Night Hunt

The youth wore an elegant green robe, with a high ponytail neatly tied up, standing tall and poised.

A long sword hung at her waist, and her aura was cold and indifferent. Though she stood completely still, she exuded a faintly sharp and intimidating presence.

The City Lord's pupils shrank. Pushing his spiritual energy to its limit in an instant, he demanded sharply,

“Who are you?! How did you break into the Qingshi City Lord's estate out of thin air?”

“My Qingshi City is a vital administrative territory of the Qingyun royal court! How dare you trespass into a government office? Insolent!”

Faced with the City Lord's harsh interrogation, Ye Ling remained calm and unhurried.

With a flick of her hand, a simple, ancient token flew through the air and landed firmly in the City Lord's hand.

The City Lord looked down to examine it. The token's patterns were precise, and the words “Qinglan Personal Disciple” were clearly engraved on it. Its craftsmanship was of the highest standard, impossible to forge.

In an instant, the air in the main hall fell dead silent.

The fear, wariness, and anger on the City Lord's face vanished instantly, replaced by absolute respect and trepidation.

The Qingyun royal court existed under the vassalage of the four major sects, and the officials of mortal cities were all subject to the sects' jurisdiction.

As a mere city lord, his status was worlds apart from that of a personal disciple of the Qinglan Sword Sect.

He hurriedly bowed and saluted, his tone incredibly humble.

“This subordinate greets the personal disciple of the Qinglan Sword Sect! I did not know of your esteemed arrival and failed to welcome you properly. Please forgive me.”

“May I ask what important matter brings you here today?”

Ye Ling raised her hand slightly. “Rise. There is no need for such formality.”

The City Lord immediately stood straight, lowering his hands respectfully.

“I have come to Qingshi City specifically for the bounty on the fugitive Lin Jie,” Ye Ling said, getting straight to the point.

Upon hearing her words, a wave of ecstasy and relief instantly surged in the City Lord's eyes.

He had been anxious day and night over Lin Jie's threat, with no one to turn to for help.

He had never expected a personal disciple of the Qinglan Sword Sect to personally come for this matter. The crisis of Qingshi City was finally resolved.

Seeing his joyful expression, Ye Ling continued to instruct, “I have just arrived in Qingshi City and am entirely unfamiliar with the local terrain and people's movements.”

“You control the city's security and intelligence. Immediately mobilize all the scouts in your estate to conduct a city-wide investigation.”

“Carefully investigate any unusual movements and the traces of any unfamiliar foreign cultivators within the borders. We must locate Lin Jie's hiding place.”

The City Lord understood immediately, grasping the key to the situation.

Lin Jie's cultivation was at the Xiantian Realm Great Perfection. He was cunning, suspicious, highly alert, and skilled at hiding and fleeing.

If they conducted a loud, public search of the city, they would inevitably alert him and cause him to flee beforehand. Finding him again would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Therefore, instead of deploying the city guards for a massive patrol, he secretly mobilized all the scouts and hidden informants of the City Lord's estate, dispersing them to hide throughout Qingshi City.

Everyone conducted low-profile investigations quietly, secretly searching for any unfamiliar foreign martial artists in the city.

If they detected any unusual spiritual energy fluctuations or suspicious isolated courtyards, they were to report back immediately. The information was kept strictly confidential, without causing the slightest stir.

After a full day of quiet searching, an informant slipped into the City Lord's estate and brought back key information.

“Reporting to the City Lord, a foreign martial artist is hiding in a quiet, isolated courtyard in the suburbs.”

“His movements are secretive, he keeps his doors shut all day, and his aura is dark and sinister. He completely matches all the characteristics of the wanted criminal Lin Jie.”

Upon learning the exact hiding spot, a bright light flashed in Ye Ling's eyes. After tracking him for days, she had finally locked onto her target.

Without a moment to lose, Ye Ling immediately stood up and had the informant lead the way, heading straight for the suburban courtyard where Lin Jie was hiding.

The Qingshi City Lord followed closely behind, planning to go with her to assist if the opportunity arose.

But just as he took half a step forward, Ye Ling raised her hand and stopped him with a quiet word.

“No need. One person is enough.”

Her tone was calm, yet it carried absolute confidence and sharp resolve.

The City Lord paused, realizing instantly that his cultivation was only at the mid-stage Xiantian Realm.

Against Lin Jie, who was at the Xiantian Realm Great Perfection, he would be a liability rather than a help.

He tactfully stopped and stepped back, quietly waiting where he was.

By the time the sky had turned completely pitch-black, the entire Qingshi City was silent. The streets were deserted, and the lights were sparse.

Only a few scattered cold stars dotted the night sky. The night breeze was slightly cool, making the courtyard seem even more profound and eerie.

Inside the courtyard, the wanted criminal Lin Jie sat alone in his room, completely sleepless.

The hideous scar on his forehead looked even more terrifying in the dim light. His face was full of ferocity, and his body was enveloped in a sinister, baleful aura bred from years of bloody combat.

He was highly conscious of his situation. Slaughtering hundreds of people in the escort agency was already a heinous crime, and killing the inner sect disciple of the Burning Heaven Martial Academy two days ago had completely infuriated the four major sects.

Yet, despite fleeing for days, no pursuers had appeared. Instead of putting him at ease, this eerie silence made his nerves even tighter.

It felt like the calm before a storm. He stood up, pushed open a small window, and fully spread out his Divine Sense, tightly covering the entire courtyard, on high alert.

At that very moment, Ye Ling, who was quietly approaching the courtyard wall, was instantly locked onto by his Divine Sense.

Ye Ling paused slightly. She keenly captured that cold, probing thread of Divine Sense and knew she had been exposed.

She simply stopped hiding her presence. This was a perfect opportunity to use this battle-hardened criminal to iron out her own combat shortcomings and temper her physical combat strength.

With her mind made up, she leapt up and landed firmly on the courtyard wall. Her green robe fluttered in the wind as she looked down into the yard with her sword on her back.

Seeing that the intruder was such a young sect youth, Lin Jie sneered inwardly.

He assumed she was just like the previous disciple from the Burning Heaven Martial Academy who had lost due to underestimating him—someone with raw talent but no real combat experience, a fragile rookie.

In his eyes, sect disciples lived pampered lives with smooth sailing. When it came to life-and-death struggles, they were far inferior to a rogue cultivator like him, who had crawled his way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

A sudden surge of killing intent arose. Without hesitation, a flash of spiritual energy appeared at Lin Jie's fingertips, and a Yellow-grade high-tier magic tool, the Soul-Snatching Needle, shot out silently, aiming straight for Ye Ling's temple.

In the next instant, a sharp, metallic clanging sound rang out.

The Profound-grade high-tier Soul-Snatching Needle, which was powerful enough to assassinate a cultivator at the Xiantian Realm Great Perfection, actually flattened upon striking Ye Ling's body.

The twisted piece of scrap metal fell to the bluestone ground, bouncing a few times with a metallic clink.

Lin Jie, watching from the shadows, was instantly dumbfounded. A cold sweat broke out all over his body.

A Yellow-grade high-tier hidden weapon couldn't even pierce the opponent's physical defense!

This person was an unstoppable force!

His psychological defense completely collapsed. Stripped of all will to fight, he turned around, intending to flee from the back to save his life.

But it was already too late.

Ye Ling instantly executed the Wind-Chasing Movement Technique. Her figure blurred like a passing shadow, blocking him in the blink of an eye and completely cutting off his escape.

Seeing no way out, Lin Jie's expression turned grim and terrifying. He had been completely driven into a corner.

He grit his teeth, drew the heavy saber from his back, knowing that his only hope of survival tonight was to fight to the death and kill his opponent.

Instantly, he channeled the violent spiritual energy of the Xiantian Realm Great Perfection and charged desperately at Ye Ling.

Lin Jie came from the lowest rungs of rogue cultivators and had never had access to high-level inheritances in his life.

His entire cultivation and saber techniques were merely Profound-grade low-tier martial arts he had chanced upon in his early years.

His foundation was shallow and his methods crude, worlds apart from the deep, solid foundation of an orthodox sect's personal disciple.

However, having spent half his life plundering and fighting without pause, his combat experience was exceptionally seasoned.

His moves were tricky, vicious, and aimed to kill, consisting entirely of lethal techniques honed through life-and-death struggles in the wilderness.

The moment they clashed, Ye Ling immediately became aware of her current shortcomings.