It looked like they were about to leave the forest itself with how sparse the Jade Trees became. That also meant they were about to leave the sect's territory.

“Brother Zheng, we should stop here.”

Zheng Tao frowned as he looked back at him. “The Jade Trees still affect the development too much in this area. Plus, all the spiritual growth is too easy to identify with most of them being sect staples.”

“Then how about I point out what I see?” William suggested, not wanting to bring his mood down even more than it would be shortly.

“Don’t argue, Junior Brother,” Zheng Tao denied him swiftly, “There are some that are just like the Soul Lotus. I want to see if you can find those.”

“Out there?” William incredulously asked, “I get that you are testing me, but that is not even close to believable. It would be outside of the sect’s territory.”

Zheng Tao let out an exasperated sigh. “Must you fight me? I only have your best interests at heart, Little Brother Wei.”

William might have been convinced if not for Mei Lingxi. He felt her presence beside him, a change from the distance she had been keeping.

“This farce can end here,” her voice was as cold as ice.

“Senior Mei?” Zheng Tao looked as confused as he sounded, though that didn’t last long.

William witnessed everything that happened in great detail, though that was all he could do. Witness it.

Two cultivators slammed into the ground beside Zheng Tao. The speed at which they did so was almost a blur, telling him he couldn’t match them without help. He immediately prepared his Qi to activate Force Multiplier, a martial skill he created. It wasn’t as effective as when he was in the Qi Gathering Realm. However, it was still valuable.

It would no longer give him a five times multiplier to his physical attributes, but it would increase them by four times.

That was plenty for the cultivators that appeared.

[Name: Mo Xuefeng | Level: 142]

[Name: Ren Wushan | Level: 151]

If it wasn’t for Mei Lingxi’s hand suddenly clamping down on his shoulder, he would have acted to stop the disaster that happened next.

Zheng Tao barely had time to register the danger that landed on both sides when one of the cultivators sliced through his spine with a sharp blade. He screeched in pain as his legs crumpled beneath him and would have collapsed to the ground if not for being grabbed by the other cultivator.

His limp form was casually tossed over the shoulder and over the invisible boundary of the sect. He landed with a shrill shriek on his back before falling quiet.

“Brother Zheng!” William was ready to activate Force Multiplier and rush to his rescue, but Mei Lingxi stopped him again.

“Calm your mind, Young Master,” her tone has somehow gotten colder, with the fury she felt no longer hidden, “It is not as it seems.”

He had already used Observe on the two men that likely crippled Zheng Tao, or worse. They were specialized in Agility, as was expected, and surprisingly, Strength. Not that it would help them. They would get crushed by Mei Lingxi. And when he joined after activating Force Multiplier, they would be left in a more miserable state than Zheng Tao.

William was looking forward to the process of making that happen.

“You, boy,” the man named Mo Xuefeng growled, “You’re a disciple of the Jade Healing Sect. Bring us a Soul Lotus, and your fellow disciple will live.”

He sneered, wondering if they thought he was that naive. If he actually did as they demanded, it would likely end with them trying to kill all the witnesses. Thankfully, they were too weak for that to be a possibility.

“Interesting plan,” Mei Lingxi interrupted again, something he was quickly becoming fed up with. He shot her a glare that was promptly ignored.

“Take the one on the right,” William whispered, “I’ll take care of the other. Don’t give them a chance to harm him even more.”

“They are not the threats,” Mei Lingxi returned quietly, “Wait, Young Master.”

“Since you both are content to talk to each other, I guess you don’t care,” Mo Xuefeng commented, “It seems we miscalculated, Wushan.”

“Guess so,” Ren Wushan grunted, “So we kill the boy and leave? The Elders might arrive soon.”

“It’s up to them,” Mo Xuefeng replied as he stared at William, “What do you think we should do?”

“As I said before, interesting plan,” Mei Lingxi repeated, “I’m guessing your leader would show up when the Soul Lotus drowns out her presence?”

The way they both froze told him that Mei Lingxi’s guess was exactly their plan.

“I must be losing my touch.”

William looked past the two men to see a woman standing next to Zheng Tao’s body.

[Name: Feng Lirong | Level: ?]

While in the Qi Gathering Realm, he had been able to see the names of cultivators in the Foundation Establishment Realm and the Core Formation Realm. So, it wasn’t that outlandish of an assumption to think the two major realm gap would apply once he advanced.

That was not the case.

William still hadn't been able to see Elder Yu’s name in the basic system status, and she was in the Nascent Soul Realm.

That meant this Feng Lirong could only be in the Core Formation Realm.

“I wonder what your plan was after that,” Mei Lingxi asked, staring right at the woman. The two men had retreated to her side, showing subservient body language.

“That no longer matters, does it?

“No,” Mei Lingxi agreed, “I suppose not.”

They were having a stand-off while William was frantically trying to find a way to get Zheng Tao back to the sect alive. It didn’t seem possible with a Core Formation Realm cultivator now in the mix.

Feng Lirong sighed, “Well, this was a wasted effort. How about this? I don’t kill this kid, and in return, give me the spatial ring of your finger, boy.”

“This?” William pointed at the ring he wore, beyond happy to have such an offer.

“That and everything inside it,” Feng Lirong smirked, “Are you willing to trade for this half-dead kid?”

“Yes,” William nodded firmly. He would lose the gauntlet and a few pills, but those could be easily replaced.

“Huh,” Feng Lirong looked at him strangely, “I didn’t expect that. No hesitation. Wushan, Xuefeng, get me the ring.”

The men bowed to the woman slightly before reentering the sect’s territory. The distance she kept from the boundary brought up the memory of the description of the defenses. One of them was a massive array that alerted the Elders if a cultivator in the Core Formation Realm crossed the boundary.

That was why Feng Lirong refused to get any closer.

“Strange, isn’t it?” Mei Lingxi suddenly said, “Not many expect a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator like me to be serving the Young Master. Especially since he is known to be from a small village, not a large clan with resources to spare.”

“What was the point of saying that out loud, woman?” Ren Wushan growled but stopped several paces away with a wary look.

Mei Lingxi smirked, “Even less expect that I am just outside the peak of the Foundation Establishment Realm. You two are no match for me. Nor can Zheng Tao’s poor acting fool my senses.”

William’s mind blanked. The sounds he heard dimmed when he saw Zheng Tao’s supposedly broken body move. The boy he had called brother opened his eyes and had the gall to give him a sheepish look as he stood up.