Top-tier Unruly Master

The white-robed woman repeated the word "strange" several times before she slowly approached Ding Fan.

"May I see your right hand?" the white-robed woman asked, her breath as fragrant as an orchid, her voice like that of a multitude of birds singing to Ding Fan.

Ding Fan immediately extended his right hand toward the white-robed woman.

This was the Land of Changsheng, which could be said to be the white-robed woman's territory. If she really intended to do something to him, she probably would not have waited until now.

The white-robed woman then gently grasped Ding Fan's hand. She closed her eyes gently, as if listening to something.

The white-robed woman's right hand was very smooth and soft, as if devoid of bone. The lady was not far from Ding Fan; he could even clearly smell the faint scent coming from her.

He did not know what the fragrance was, but it made one's heart feel very serene upon smelling it.

Even though the white-robed woman was as beautiful as a celestial being, Ding Fan's heart was not distracted. A person who, for the sake of securing a place for himself, showed no mercy in slaughtering hundreds to thousands of villagers—how ruthless was her heart? Such a person, no matter how beautiful, what could it possibly matter?

"Strange..." The white-robed woman held Ding Fan's right hand for a full half-hour before she finally let go, her eyes filled with incredulity as she looked at Ding Fan.

"Is there something wrong?" asked Ding Fan.

"The poison vapors rising from the lake, how did you suppress them?" the white-robed woman pondered for a moment before directly voicing the doubts in her heart.

Hearing this, Ding Fan understood why the white-robed woman had kept saying "strange."

The white vapor rising from the water was extremely poisonous. It was only by using the Pills he had refined himself that Ding Fan had protected his body from the vapors' harm.

"I refined some Pills that just happen to counteract that poison, so the vapors do not really affect me," Ding Fan explained.

At this moment, a hint of brightness returned to the white-robed woman's eyes. "Are you saying that you can resist the white vapor rising from the lake outside?"

"Only for a short time, I cannot do it for long," Ding Fan shook his head as he said.

Upon hearing Ding Fan's words, the original shine in the white-robed woman's eyes dimmed again.

The poisonous gas above the lake was extremely potent, and Ding Fan could only isolate himself from it for a short period. "Respectful Lady, I have come here with no intention of offense, and certainly not to breach your natural barriers."

After listening to Ding Fan's words, the white-robed woman spoke indifferently, "This land does not belong to me. You may come and go as you please, what does it have to do with me... As for that lake, the poison was fostered by heaven and earth, and it is not something I used as a barrier."

Ding Fan was surprised by the white-robed woman's words.

If he had not known in advance that the white-robed woman had committed a massacre to achieve her goals, he would have truly been deceived by her prior behavior.

Her demeanor just now was the spitting image of a hermit who had transcended the mundane world.

"Respectful Lady, the person I am seeking in the Land of Changsheng is none other than Jin Minchong," Ding Fan said to the white-robed woman.

The white-robed woman nodded her head. "I have heard about the matter of Jin Minchong from my servant. Jin Minchong is deceitful and has killed the innocent. To deliver justice for the deceased, we certainly will not let Jin Minchong go," she replied.

Ding Fan was taken aback once again.

The words spoken by the woman in white always seemed righteous and dignified, different from what Ding Fan had imagined.

"May I ask what led our Enlightened One to shelter Jin Minchong in the first place?" Ding Fan asked.

The woman in white paused before replying, "Jin Minchong claimed he was possessed by a heart demon and sought my guidance to expound upon it."

Possessed by a heart demon?

Ding Fan looked at the woman in white with a puzzled expression.

Seeing Ding Fan's confusion, she explained, "Buddha said that innate nature is easily tamed, but demonic nature is hard to change. The Buddha even likened the heart demon to the mind monkey; once the mind monkey stirs, self-control becomes difficult, and various evil spirits can take the opportunity to invade the true heart..."

As Ding Fan listened to the woman in white speak eloquently, she bore no resemblance to a demonic head; Instead, she resembled an enlightened master.

"Jin Minchong was also introduced to me by a good friend. My Divine Sense is quite powerful, especially effective in suppressing heart demons. Since Jin Minchong's arrival, I have been continuously preaching and expounding the dharma to him," the woman in white said with an innocent look.

"Enlightened One, there's something I don't understand. Why was Jin Minchong extremely nervous about a single Pill?" Ding Fan inquired.

Originally, Jin Minchong's Pill accidentally ended up in the hands of a servant, and Jin Minchong didn't hesitate to harm, attempting to kill that servant.

Taking a life over a single Pill—that was something Ding Fan hadn't fully comprehended.

Gazing out the window, the woman in white said, "Anyone who comes to the Land of Changsheng understands one thing: to listen to my teachings, they must relinquish all personal belongings. All things they carry must be left outside. However, we don't check whether guests have left all their possessions behind; it depends on the guests' honesty."

Ding Fan observed the woman in white, still puzzled by how this rule related to why Jin Minchong was anxious about a single Pill.

At that moment, the woman in white continued, "The belongings Jin Minchong carried with him, guest, are you really unaware of what they were?"

Ding Fan shook his head slightly.

After Jin Minchong fled, Ding Fan had meditated to gather his energies right away, so he truly didn't know what treasure Jin Minchong possessed.

The woman in white watched Ding Fan and, after confirming that he truly didn't know, said, "Jin Minchong was carrying a Peiyuan Stone."

A Peiyuan Stone?!

At that moment, Ding Fan did recall something about the Peiyuan Stone mentioned by Cheng Bufan. Later, when Ding Fan inquired, Cheng Bufan, to guard the Sect's secrets, chose not to elaborate.

"What is that?" Ding Fan, genuinely unaware, asked outright.

The woman in white didn't keep him in suspense, directly explaining, "The Peiyuan Stone is a treasure that can be used repeatedly to replenish True Yuan. Simply put, the Peiyuan Stone generates a Stone Pill every half-year. The efficacy of that Stone Pill is comparable to a Second Grade Foundation Building Pill. In the Ancient Martial World, it's considered a precious treasure among treasures."

Ding Fan nodded his head.

A Second Grade Foundation Building Pill was an exceptionally precious item already. At an auction, they were hard to come by for tens of millions. And this Peiyuan Stone could cultivate a Stone Pill every half-year that was on par with a Second Grade Pill.

From this perspective, the Peiyuan Stone was an invaluable relic.

"This Peiyuan Stone is an heirloom of my ancestors; it naturally had to be secured when it appeared in the hands of Jin Minchong, who would certainly try to escape," the woman in white explained.