"Then do you know that the Inner Sect Prodigy, Qin Ying, comes from the Qin Clan?"

"This... Disciple has heard of it."

"Hahaha, Martial Nephew Song, don’t be nervous. This Disciple of mine is from the Qin Family. Speaking of which, she is also Qin Ying’s clan sister."

Senior Sister Qin Ying’s... sister?

Song Yan’s gaze sharpened, and he looked at the other party squarely.

Indeed, his feeling was not wrong; Qin Sheng did possess some of Senior Sister Qin Ying’s beauty.

However, their temperaments were completely different. Qin Sheng was delicate and demure, unlike Senior Sister Qin Ying, who kept everyone at a distance.

Qin Sheng felt his gaze and smiled sweetly, looking innocent and adorable: "Senior Brother’s demeanor in the small Blessed Realm that day truly made this Junior Sister admire him greatly."

"If there’s an Opportunity in the future, I’d like to ask you for some pointers!"

Song Yan’s expression was calm: "I wouldn’t dare to give pointers, but sparring is certainly no problem."

Yang Wenxuan observed Song Yan’s reaction, paused, and then said meaningfully: "The Qin Clan has a considerable Foundation within the Sect and has always favored young talents."

"Martial Nephew Song is already exceptionally talented, but unfortunately, he seems to lack backing. If he could gain the Qin Family’s support, his Cultivation path would undoubtedly be much smoother."

Song Yan’s heart tensed; he now understood the other party’s intention.

Recruitment?

Within a large Sect like Cave Abyss Sect, there were naturally many factions and camps.

Not to mention the entire Sect, when Song Yan was still an Outer Sect Disciple, he had heard that even the Outer Sect alone had countless small groups.

To compete for resources, fighting alone was indeed difficult.

However, those were mere trifles compared to what Elder Yang Wenxuan was proposing.

For a moment, Song Yan’s mind was in turmoil.

Elder Yang Wenxuan could not possibly be a member of the Qin Clan, but he was now recruiting talent for the Qin Family.

This clearly meant that he had already sided with the Qin Family.

Yang Wenxuan held a very high position in Cave Abyss Sect, overseeing Sect rules and laws.

Even he had already sided with the Qin Family, so it was hard to estimate how many other Elders had already been swayed by the Qin Family...

"Thank you for the Elder’s kind intentions..."

Song Yan carefully chose his words.

He naturally would not join the Qin Family; even with resource support, it would not be given for free.

He would definitely need to do something for the Qin Family.

Such restrictions and constraints made him feel uncomfortable.

"It’s just that this Disciple’s Aptitude is mediocre. To have the guidance of a good teacher is already a great fortune; I dare not ask for more."

A flicker of displeasure crossed Yang Wenxuan’s eyes, but he quickly regained his composure.

He slowly said: "Martial Nephew is too modest. With your performance at the Sword Wiping Assembly, how could you be mediocre?"

Song Yan was about to say a few more words, but he was interrupted: "However..."

"This old man will not force anyone. Since Martial Nephew Song has no intention, then let it be."

Song Yan’s heart relaxed, and he was about to cup his hands and say a few polite words.

But he noticed that Yang Wenxuan’s expression was no longer gentle.

He said pointedly: "However, this old man is still a bit curious: with your three Spiritual Root Aptitude, and without the support of a noble family or a Senior, how did you manage to advance so rapidly in just a few years?"

Song Yan’s heart tightened, knowing that the other party’s words held a hidden meaning.

He quickly said: "This Disciple was fortunate to receive the favor of Senior Qin Xijun, and also by chance had some Opportunities..."

"As far as I know, Elder Qin Xijun’s Cultivation method is not the same as yours."

Yang Wenxuan suddenly smiled: "What kind of Opportunity could allow an unknown Cultivator to counter-kill Wang Xi under the Profound Origin Sect’s scheme?"

"And to Breakthrough to Late Stage Qi Refining in a few years, and even defeat Senior Brother Kong You, who is at Level 8 Qi Refining, head-on?"

Before his words finished, he suddenly looked up, and a sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

He abruptly raised his hand, and a streak of Spiritual Qi shot straight towards Song Yan!

This sudden change happened too quickly for Song Yan to react.

Even if he could react, how could a Qi Refining Stage Disciple possibly resist an attack from a Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivator?

The protective Spiritual Qi he had barely managed to condense was instantly shattered.

"Elder Yang, you!"

Several strands of spiritual power coiled around Song Yan’s limbs, binding him in place.

Xiao He immediately swam out, stopping in front of Song Yan, and several streaks of green leaf demonic power quickly condensed.

"Oh? Your Spiritual Pet is quite loyal."

Yang Wenxuan’s fingertip moved slightly, and a surge of spiritual power instantly suppressed it.

The green leaf demonic power completely dissipated, and that spiritual power also trapped Xiao He within it.

"Hiss––"

The wisp of Spiritual Qi that Song Yan had previously condensed was captured by Yang Wenxuan and held in his hand.

At the same time, Song Yan’s qiankun bag at his waist was pulled by a huge force and fell into Yang Wenxuan’s hand.

"Elder Yang, what are you doing?!"

Song Yan was filled with shock and anger; he couldn’t believe that a Sect Elder would brazenly attack him outside an Inner Sect Disciple’s Immortal Cave.

Sword Qi instinctively surged, and the Unmoored Boat already hummed as it unsheathed, guarding him and Xiao He.

His heart sank to the bottom.

The opponent was a Foundation Establishment Elder; if they truly fought, he had no chance of winning!

However, although Yang Wenxuan’s actions were rude, they did not truly harm him.

"Oh?"

"Indeed, you have some courage. Even when facing a Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivator, you still have the thought of rising up in resistance..."

"Heh heh..."

Yang Wenxuan smiled indifferently.

"Martial Nephew, there’s no need to be nervous."

"In recent days, demonic Cultivators have been rampant, and it is this old man’s duty to treat the matter with caution."

After saying that, his Divine Sense directly probed into the qiankun bag.

Song Yan’s face was a bit grim.

Yang Wenxuan’s explanation was flawless.

He was originally in charge of matters related to Sect rules and regulations. If he sensed something amiss, using supervision as a reason, there would be nothing inappropriate.

No one would question an Elder’s actions for the sake of an ordinary Inner Sect Disciple.

His qiankun bag contained many personal items, and most importantly, the liangyi pearl was also inside!

If the other party discovered the secret of the liangyi pearl... Cold sweat drenched him, and Song Yan’s mind had already flashed with the worst possible scenario.

Yang Wenxuan’s expression was unruffled, but his heart was filled with doubt.

"Aside from a few Spiritual Plants and Spirit Medicines, there’s nothing particularly special."

"There’s a Breakthrough Pill for breaking through the Bottleneck of Late Stage Qi Refining..."

This was exchanged with merit points during the Changping incident, which Yang Wenxuan naturally knew about.

"His Spirit Stone assets are slightly more than an average Late Stage Qi Refining Cultivator, but this is not surprising."

He scanned it again and again but did not find any special treasures or Spiritual items.

He didn’t even glance at many of the items stored inside, as they belonged to a Qi Refining Stage Cultivator and held no appeal for him, a Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivator. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Even the liangyi pearl, he merely glanced at it casually, dismissing it as a broken formation pearl, and did not discover anything miraculous about it.

Song Yan’s only relief was that he never kept too many Spirit Stones, always converting them into Spiritual resources for Cultivation.

Therefore, the Spirit Stones piled in the qiankun bag were not too many.

The moon-bearing ancient lotus seeds, which could have aroused suspicion, had also been lent to Liang Feng.

Just as his thoughts raced, Yang Wenxuan took out two items from the qiankun bag.

The Xuan E Bai Ling Covering Mask and the "heretical Cultivator’s notes".