WBICDPH Chapter 38 Part 1

Chapter 38: When Enemies Meet Again

It had only been a few days since they’d left, but when Lin Jin returned to the mist-shrouded, smoky blue mountain range, it felt as though a lifetime—or several—had passed since he’d last walked these paths.

“Ahhh, we’re finally back. I missed this place so much. Come on, come on—let’s submit the paper, finish the defense, grab our spirit stones, and take a nice long vacation.”

The spiritual energy in the mortal world was thin. After spending several days in Zhongyun City, Han Ao had practically withered. Now that he was back on the immortal mountain, he took a few deep breaths of the dense spiritual qi around him, his face full of bliss.

Lin Jin couldn’t help laughing and crying at the same time.

“I told you to look over the report on the way back. Did you even read it? When the elders start asking questions during the defense and you can’t answer, what are you going to do then?”

Lin Jin had been so influenced by Han Ao that he’d unconsciously picked up his weird way of talking.

At Yanyu Mountain, disciples who accepted missions from the Mission Hall were required, after completing them, to record every detail of the operation—from beginning to end—into a mission bamboo slip, along with the final resolution and their personal reflections. That was what Han Ao called the “paper.”
To ensure the information recorded was accurate, the elders might question suspicious points after reviewing it and require the disciples to answer—this was Han Ao’s so-called “defense.” Later, the outer sect might even conduct follow-up visits.

“If I can’t answer, aren’t you here, my good brother?” Han Ao grinned and sidled up next to Lin Jin.

Third-tier missions weren’t particularly difficult, and most disciples submitted brief, perfunctory reports. But Lin Jin took this one seriously. He recorded everyone they encountered, everything that happened, the story of the two Xu sisters, and the impact their actions had on mortal law. He even ended with an eloquent, beautifully written reflection. The elders in the Mission Hall were stunned.

One bearded old man had originally held a grudge against the two youngsters for being picky about missions that day and had planned to make things difficult during the defense. But after reading Lin Jin’s report over and over again, he couldn’t find a single flaw to nitpick.

On top of that, they had praise seals from Second Master Qin and Immortal Physician Liu Fuxin of Bright Moon fame. The Mission Hall quickly approved their settlement, issued the rewards, and allowed them to return and rest.

Lin Jin and Han Ao parted ways within the South Qian Gate. When Lin Jin returned to the small hill of the Beast-Taming Path, he saw his master, Moyuzi, pants rolled up like a farmer, inspecting spiritual herbs in the field.

“Master!”

After several days apart, Lin Jin felt genuinely excited to see the little old man again. Moyuzi looked up at the sound and replied just as dramatically:

“My good disciple!!!”

“My good disciple, were you tired or hungry in the mortal world? Was the mission dangerous? Were you injured? Ah, my diligent, brave, hardworking disciple—always going down the mountain to do missions whenever there’s time. It truly makes your master—”

Moyuzi grabbed Lin Jin’s shoulders with mud-covered hands and inspected him from head to toe several times, only letting go once he was sure Lin Jin hadn’t lost any limbs. He smacked his lips and added,

“Tsk. But where have you been? How did you get so dirty? You’re covered in mud.”

“……”

Lin Jin looked at the dirt on himself, then at Moyuzi’s hands, and said nothing.

He simply took a small bead from his storage pouch and showed it to him.

“Master, during this mission, I happened to obtain this little thing by chance. I don’t know what it is—could you take a look?”

“What? Let me see.”

Moyuzi cast a cleansing spell, washing both of them clean, then took the small white bead.

Lin Jin had carried it with him for quite some time, yet it hadn’t warmed at all. It was still as cold as when it first fell into his palm.

It was a singl,e clear tear shed by Xu Dongsi before her soul dissipated. Lin Jin had thought it would vanish on its own after a short while, so he hadn’t paid it much attention—yet it had remained until now.

Moyuzi held the bead up to the light, squinting, then hissed softly and leaned closer.

“A Ghost Condensation Pearl? Is it really a Ghost Condensation Pearl? Your luck this time is incredible. Where did you get it?”

“Our mission target was a Qinghuo. We found her hidden body and resolved her obsession. Before dissipating, she wrote the word ‘thanks’ in my palm, and then a tear fell and condensed into this.”

“Oh, that makes sense. But a Qinghuo producing a Ghost Condensation Pearl—that’s something I’ve never heard of.”

Moyuzi nodded and explained,

“A Ghost Condensation Pearl, also called a Ghost Tear, is exactly what it sounds like—the tear of a ghost. After a living soul turns into a ghost, its other emotions gradually fade away, leaving only hatred to grow stronger. They stop being moved by anything, let alone crying.
A Ghost Condensation Pearl is the very first tear shed when a ghost breaks through instinct and is ruled by positive emotion. It’s extremely rare. Keep it safe—don’t let those artifact-refining lunatics see it, or they’ll cling to you to death over it.”

He very carefully returned the bead to Lin Jin, as if afraid of damaging it.

“Oh…” Lin Jin nodded and remembered this, then asked, “But Master, why did you say it’s unheard of for a Qinghuo to produce one?”

“There’s nothing mystical about it. White-robed ghosts and Qinghuo are low-tier ghosts with incomplete intelligence. They can’t even solidify hatred, let alone other emotions. They don’t even know how to harm people. If mere obsession was enough for one to break instinct and produce a Ghost Condensation Pearl, it means this ghost’s heart was extremely pure. Once she reenters the cycle of reincarnation, her next life will surely be smooth.”

Lin Jin nodded, put the icy bead back into his pouch, and said softly,

“That’s the best outcome.”

—

After returning from the mortal world, Lin Jin rested in his room for a day. Then he poured out everything he’d bought and began assigning himself tasks.

After all, the main purpose of his trip down the mountain had been procurement; accompanying Han Ao through missions came second.

Thanks to the financial support of Miss Hua Nanzhi and Old Marquis Qin, he’d successfully brought back everything he needed: seasonings, vegetables, and vegetable seeds—things unavailable at the immortal market.

Lin Jin had an unusual obsession with food. He’d spent an entire month on Yanyu Mountain. Meat wasn’t lacking, but the problem was that there was nothing but meat.