Museum of Deadly Beasts

"If my hunch is correct, the person who killed the young master and Chu Gou was Lin Jin," said Black Envoy.

Both Zhou Weng and Elder Ye were stunned by his statement.

"Isn't Lin Jin in Jade Dragon Kingdom? Hall Master Chu gathered us for the sake of killing him after all," Zhou Weng responded.

"Lin Jin has already arrived here at Heavenly Spiral City a few days ago but clearly you guys were oblivious to that. I am unsure how, but he ended up taking notice of Chu Gou and the young master. These two were finished off before you lot could even take action."

Black Envoy sounded irked.

Zhou Weng and Elder Ye knew it was time for them to declare their stance.

Both men bowed at once. "Master Black Envoy, both of us set off and finish Lin Jin off to avenge Hall Master Chu."

However, Black Envoy waved his hand dismissively. "You won't be able to kill him. That Lin Jin is no weakling. Chu Gou aside, the young master is highly skilled in martial arts but even his master, Shi Yuandao, was killed in the attack. You must know that even I find it difficult to eliminate Shi Yuandao, so if Lin Jin can deal with them both at once, he must have a weapon that we do not know about."

Zhou Weng and Elder Ye gasped at this.

They knew who Shi Yuandao was.

The man was a renowned villainous expert. Relying on his martial arts alone, he was still within the top ten of his community. In a head-on conflict, even Zhou Weng and Elder Ye knew they wouldn't be able to take Shi Yuandao down.

Yet, this battle saint died too?

Clearly, this Lin Jin was much more powerful than they imagined. With this, Zhou Weng and Elder Ye remained silent. This situation had truly exceeded their expectations.

"Both of you need not concern yourselves with Lin Jin anymore. Leave him to me," Black Envoy said. Hearing this, the two men started doing what they did best – licking his boot.

"With Master Black Envoy in action, Lin Jin will surely die! The likes of him can't possibly match up to you."

Black Envoy scoffed at their response. "Save the flattery. I need only useful people and not bootlickers. If both of you can't do your jobs well, there's no reason for me to keep you around."

Their faces turned pale as a sheet.

"I just happen to have one task for the both of you. It is just as important and tolerates no failure." Black Envoy approached them and leaned into their ears.

"I want you two to depart at once to Great Deer Kingdom…"

Zhou Weng and Elder Ye's expression faltered as they listened to Black Envoy's instructions. Then, they bowed. "Rest assured, Master Black Envoy. We will handle it well."

"Remember, there is no room for mistake. Should there be even a slight blunder, both of you will pay with your lives." Black Envoy's words were laced with heavy murderous intent. The two men acknowledged his warning before setting out into the night, rushing toward Great Deer Kingdom.

Only Black Envoy was left in this building.

He muttered to himself. "There's no need for me to personally kill Lin Jin when I can just borrow someone else's hand."

***

Inside Peach Blossom House, Senior Mo was still in the middle of his lecture. Unlike his last lesson, which occurred on their journey here to the city, this place was much more peaceful. Thanks to the lack of disturbances, he could focus on absorbing the profound teachings conveyed to him by Lin Jin.

Senior Mo remained still, like a statue as he was structuring his thoughts. Seeing this, Lin Jin got up silently and peered in a seemingly random direction.

He had already noticed the presence of the white snake as well as the carp monster.

Besides them, there was a hawk on his roof and a crane perched on his walls.

The hawk was probably just passing by but Lin Jin had met the crane before. It was one of the few wild birds that the academy allowed to live near the lake. Lin Jin was surprised to find that his lecture had attracted the attention of four unexpected guests.

Like Senior Mo, they were all plunged into deep thought. The fact that they were in such a state indicated to Lin Jin that they weren't just regular creatures.

At the very least, they understood human language.

Lin Jin wasn't surprised by the carp since it already had cultivation experience, as well as a mentor. The white snake was the carp's friend and desired the path of cultivation so it wasn't strange that it could understand human language too. As for the large crane, since it was able to roam the campus ground freely, it had access to lectures and discussions. It made sense that it was able to build its intelligence over time. The only creature that stood out here was the hawk, who had appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Since it could understand his lecture, Lin Jin assumed that fate had brought it here to his mansion.

It must have landed here while it was flying by, attracted by Lin Jin's teachings.

"Since all of you are able to hear and understand my words, I consider it fate that brought us together here tonight."

Due to this, Lin Jin did not intend to stop them from gaining the teachings.

He was reminded of how Shang'er and the other foxes came across cultivation lectures out in the wilderness. Whoever it was teaching these lessons, they couldn't possibly have not noticed the foxes' presence, but they were allowed to stay regardless. The lecture continued every day until Shang'er finally gained enlightenment and managed to transfigure into a human form.

If they could do it, then Lin Jin could too.

"Such a long night but I don't feel like sleeping at all!" Lin Jin revealed a helpless smile as he listened to Fan Yuan's snoring. Looking up at the moon, he was about to say something when his thoughts were interrupted by a voice.

"Since Appraiser Lin can't sleep, why don't you have a chat with me?"

"Who's there?" Lin Jin was startled.

Since just now, Lin Jin's senses and psyche had remained on high alert. Otherwise, he wouldn't have noticed the white snake, carp, crane, and hawk listening to his lecture.

He could even sense what was outside but he didn't think anyone was nearby. Even now, after hearing someone's voice, Lin Jin couldn't track this person's aura.

Now, this was creepy.

Despite having seen many things, Lin Jin hadn't had such encounters yet. If there was one thing that his experience taught him, it would be mental fortitude. Although he was frightened, Lin Jin was able to maintain his composure with relative ease.

Following Lin Jin's question, he heard a gentle cough behind him.

"From behind?" Lin Jin abruptly turned to find a bony old man with an ethereal appearance. Lin Jin had met this old man before, at the Beast Appraisal Pavilion last night. Back then, the old man had asked him about his appraising method which Lin Jin successfully deceived him into believing was nothing special.

Back then, Lin Jin merely assumed that he was a powerful senior working here at the academy. Now, it seems that his suspicion was confirmed. This old man was so skilled that he was able to appear behind Lin Jin without being detected.

'This won't do.'

If things went on this way, Lin Jin wouldn't be able to keep his secrets anymore.

"Appraiser Lin, since you can't sleep, why don't we have a chat under this beautiful moonlight," the old mister repeated his offer. Lin Jin didn't object as he was just as curious about him.

'A chat? Sure? It's not like I'm scared of you.'

"My name is Lin Jin. How may I address you, sir?" said Lin Jin as he saluted the old man. He maintained his composure and showed no hints of fear. The old man smiled and returned a salute. "My surname is Shu, so you can call me Shu!"