~huu~

Lin Mu let out a breath that traveled far and shook the curtains on the windows. He opened his eyes that glimmered with a serene look. This was quite different from the fierce one he had before this.

"I'm close… just need another push like this to complete the first stage of the Five treasures realm….

" Lin Mu muttered to himself.

His spleen had reached 85% refinement level and would need just a bit more to reach the next stage. Once he finished the first stage, just his bodily strength would be equivalent to that of a peak stage core condensation realm cultivator.

If he was able to do this before reaching the nascent soul realm with his spirit Qi cultivation he would probably have the strength of an infant stage nascent soul realm cultivator just from this.

Not to mention since then, Lin Mu's Dantian had a larger capacity than others and his core was also bigger, his overall strength would still be higher than that of an infant stage nascent soul realm cultivator.

The foundation that Lin Mu had built until now and the slow progress he had taken was now close to showing fruit for him.

Lin Mu looked at the jade slip which had a message left in it.

"So it's time… I didn't miss it though.

" Lin Mu said.

A message had been left in the jade slip which was from none other than Wu Hei. He had now gathered enough information that, Lin Mu could continue their mission. He had contacted for about a meeting tomorrow.

"No wait… how much time has it been?

" Lin Mu questioned.

"A day has passed. The meeting should be soon.

" Xukong answered.

"I should head out then…

" Lin Mu said before standing up and using fade.

Disappearing from the real world, Lin Mu traveled in the direction of the pleasure pavilion. He was using phase at the same time and appeared in the ground below it. Since the distance traveled was rather large, Lin Mu couldn't use his spirit sense to keep track of it.

But as long as he knew a general direction, he could travel far and just appear in the ground. This was another workaround he had figured out by now and would use until he was able to increase his spatial perception.

He had also not had the chance to use his newly acquire fifth skill, 'meld' due to being inside the city. Not only did it have a massive drain on his spirit Qi but it also created some large spatial fluctuations. While these faded away quickly, there was still a chance someone in the city could detect them.

Lin Mu rose up from the ground and blinked to the alley behind the pleasure pavilion. This was where the entrance to the secret room was located and where Wu Hei had asked him to come. His spirit sense was spread around to keep a track of what was nearby. Just in case something unsavory happened.

Lin Mu could already see that there were people in the room. He counted six people in the room, including Wu Hei and Hei Wan.

~creek~

Six pairs of eyes trained at Lin Mu upon seeing the door open. They looked alert but didn't seem to be in an offensive stance.

"Sorry I got a bit late,

" Lin Mu apologized to the people.

"It is fine, brother Lin Mu, we know you were undergoing a breakthrough. Hei Wan came to check up on you.

" Wu Hei replied.

"She did? Ah, I see.

" Lin Mu said.

"Since we have everyone here, we can start now.

" Wu Hei said after taking a look around the room.

"I can now officially introduce you all to brother Lin Mu. I believe you all know who he is.

" Wu Hei spoke.

The four new people nodded at his words before speaking.

"Indeed, how can we not? Had it not been for him, perhaps we would have all been dead and this empire would have perished in the future.

" An old man spoke.

Lin Mu looked at him and could not recognize him.

"This is Jin Kou, he used to be a mercenary but has retired since then.

" Wu Hei introduced.

"This is She Qing, one of the former disciples of the Tri Cauldron peony sect, she is the one who has provided us with a lot of information.

" Wu Hei spoke.

"Greetings, sister She Qing.

" Lin Mu greeted.

Lin Mu had not expected that She Qing would be a former disciple.

"How did you leave the sect, though sister She Qing?

" Lin Mu questioned.

"Back when the red tide happened, I was there to witness it. I saw how Gu Yao attacked everyone and controlled them. At that time I was heading to the Wu Lim city to deliver an emergency missive to the peak master Yi Deng, and was at a distance from the city.

As soon as I saw it all, I barely managed to escape the area. I deliberated on returning to the sect, but Gu Yao's servants had acted quickly and started capturing the other people. Since the supreme elder was also controlled, I didn't think it would be a viable choice to return to the sect.

This turned out to be correct since the sect changed its behavior quickly after that day. Gu Yao's roots had already spread deep by then and knew I would have to do something else.

" She Qing expanded.

"I see… it is indeed quite unfortunate.

" Lin Mu acknowledged.

He then turned to the third person, who was a young man with a scar on his face. He was wearing rough clothes and looked no different from a peasant. But Lin Mu could sense his cultivation base and knew that he was at the peak stage of the core condensation realm like him.

"And who I this?

" Lin Mu asked.

"I am Shuang Zedong.

" The man introduced himself.

"Shuang? Zedong? Isn't that…

" Lin Mu said, feeling like he recognized the name.

"Indeed, this is the former crown prince of the Shuang Qian Kingdom.

"