FellowDao, I'm here to help!

"System, you ******, I'm not done with you!"

Pay Ling had no time to deal with the star rating panel floating in front of him. He quickly crossed his arms in front of his chest to protect his vital areas.

The next moment, the green light flashed and struck Pay Ling's left arm.

Instantly, Pay Ling felt as though he had been hit head-on by an overloaded, speeding truck. A searing pain shot through his left arm, and his body was sent flying uncontrollably.

!!! Boom!!!

Pay Ling was slammed into the stone wall of the cave with no ability to resist, leaving a noticeable dent in the rock.

"Ugh…" A metallic taste filled his throat, and he couldn't hold back a mouthful of blood. His vision blurred, and every part of his body ached as if his internal organs had been rearranged. If it weren't for the years of cultivating the Bone Tempering Art, which had greatly increased his tolerance and endurance for pain, he would have passed out on the spot.

"Cough, cough… Still alive? Cough, cough…" Seeing Pay Ling's miserable state, Wu Tinshee's expression changed.

While coughing badly, he scrutinized Pay Ling with a mix of surprise and suspicion.

This guy was unusual!

Although Wu Tinshee was severely injured, he was still a direct disciple of an Elder from Abyss Pit Sect and he'd reached the Advanced Layer of Qi Refining Stage. His power's far surpassed that of ordinary cultivators at the same level. Even it's a hastily executed Five Poisons Finger, it should have pierced through this man's arms, struck inside the heart, killing him instantly. Cause this's just a weak cultivator from Deerspring town—especially one at only 3rd layer (Elementary layer) of the Qi Refining Stage.

Yet, despite Pay Ling's seemingly gruesome injuries, upon closer inspection, the most serious damage was a large, poison-burned hole in his left arm, which had taken the brunt of the attack, exposing a bit of bone. The rest of his injuries looked horrifying but weren't life-threatening.

Wu Tinshee seemed to realize something. A faint purple light flickered in his pupils as he activated his vision to its limits, instantly discerning the details of the exposed bone. This effort caused his already pale face to flush pink, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

But he paid no attention to his own condition. Instead, he exclaimed in disbelief, "Perfect-grade Iron Bone?!"

The Bone Tempering Art originated from the Abyss Pit Sect, so for someone like Wu Tinshee, who had once been a direct disciple of an elder, it was no secret.

However, there was something even the Pay Clan chief didn't know: the Iron Bone, Refined Bone, and Jade Bone cultivated through the Bone Tempering Art were divided into grades!

Iron Bone could be classified as low-grade, mid-grade, high-grade, or perfect-grade. Most rogue cultivators could only achieve low-grade Iron Bone. A few exceptionally talented rogue cultivators might attain mid-grade Iron Bone, and if their background was clean and they weren't too aged, they would be directly recruited into the Abyss Pit Sect's outer sect. High-grade Iron Bone was something only Abyss Pit Sect disciples with abundant resources and expert guidance could hope to achieve.

As for perfect-grade Iron Bone?

That was as rare as a phoenix feather or a unicorn's horn!

Only a rare constitution or cosumiing accidental consumption of a heavenly treasure could lead to the cultivation of perfect-grade Iron Bone.

Regardless of the method, it meant that even within the Abyss Pit Sect, such a person would become a focal point of attention and had the potential to enter the inner sect.

"Cough, cough, cough…"

Wu Tinshee was wracked by another fit of violent coughing. His gaze toward Pay Ling was filled with a mix of malice and complexity.

If his master were still alive and they encountered Pay Ling, Wu Tinshee would likely have chosen to bring him back to the Abyss Pit Sect as his junior brother.

After all, a junior brother with exceptional talent or extraordinary luck, while undoubtedly diverting some of their master's attention and resources, would also strengthen their faction in the long run.

But now…

His thoughts shifted, and he suddenly asked, "Cough… How did you cultivate perfect-grade Iron Bone?"

Pay Ling slid down from the stone wall, his first thought being to escape as quickly as possible!

But as soon as he tried to sit up, a wave of dizziness overwhelmed him, forcing him to slump back to the ground. He realized that even the slightest movement required immense effort, and he could barely stand, let alone run.

Hearing Wu's question, Pay Ling was momentarily stunned.

Perfect-grade Iron Bone? What's that?

But he quickly regained his composure. Whatever it was, the most important thing was to stall and prevent Wu Tinshee from killing him now.

"FellowDao we've never met before. Yes I did take your Blood Qi Pills earlier, but you've already taught me a lesson. Now we're even. Why don't we call it quits and go our separate ways?" Pay Ling said weakly. "If you're interested in my cultivation technique, I might even consider exchanging it with you?"

In his mind, he silently called out to the system, "System! Can you modify the Bone Tempering Art so that this guy can't tell it's fake, but it'll cause him to go mad if he tries to cultivate it?"

The system chimed.

~ Ding! *System Notification Chime* 

[AllFullOS: Version 1.0.0]

> All-Smart Full-Host Cultivation System is at your service! 

> One-click-cultivation, worry-free-ascension!

 + [Features]

 - Intelligent upgrades tailored to your cultivation needs!

...

Pay Ling cursed inwardly: "I knew I couldn't count on you…"

He was considering whether to use some ancient texts from his previous life to impersonate a cultivation tomes and buy time when Wu Tinshee let out a cold laugh.

"Cut it. You're cultivating the Bone Tempering Art. If you're not a member of the Abyss Pit Sect, you must be the descendant of one of ours outer disciples. If I'm not mistaken, the Sect's wanted order has already reached this area. And since you've chased me into the mountains, how could you not recognize me?!"

"Then what do you propose, FellowDao?" Pay Ling frowned. Disciples from this sinister sect were indeed hard to fool. Good thing is Pay Ling was still young and had just broken through 3rd level. After lying still for a while, he had regained a bit of strength and could probably stand up, albeit with difficulty. But running away was still impossible… He needed to stall a little longer!

With this in mind, Pay Ling had an idea and said, "Fellow Dao, you got me wrong. Although Kinson Zheng did instruct the Pay Clan disciples to search the mountains for you, I'm the only one who not only doesn't want to reveal your whereabouts but also hopes you can escape safely."

Seeing Wu Tinshee sneer in disbelief, Pay Ling quickly added, "Do you know about the byobu screen in Kinson Zheng's room? At first glance, it looks ordinary, but upon closer inspection, it contains hundreds of beauties…"

"The Bone Raksha Painting?" Before Pay Ling could finish, Wu Tinshee blurted out, his expression suspicious. "How do you know about this? Wait, you've seen the painting and you're still alive?!"

Pay Ling's heart sank. It seemed the screen was even more dangerous than he had thought. But there was no time to dwell on that now. He hurriedly explained,

"I'm a branch disciple of the Pay Clan in Deerspring town. My birth mother passed away early, and despite having decent talent, I've been suppressed by my stepmother for years, leaving me with nothing to my name… Recently, Kinson Zheng was invited by the clan heir to stay in our guest courtyard. Rumors say he's incredibly wealthy, far beyond what the Pay Clan can imagine. I heard from the servants that he's often away, so I took the risk to sneak into his room…"

At this point, Wu Tinshee's gaze turned extremely strange. "You, a third-layer Qi Refining cultivator from a backwater town, dared to steal from Kinson Zheng?"

For a moment, Wu Tinshee was genuinely bewildered. Had he been in the sect for so long that he didn't realize how bold wild outsiders had become?!

Compared to Kinson Zheng, who was still unaware that his room had been robbed, Wu Tinshee found it almost nothing that he had just been robbed of three Blood Qi Pills right in front of him.

"Ahem, anyway, Kinson Zheng hasn't discovered the theft yet because he's been busy chasing you," Pay Ling said, clearing his throat. "So, I'm actually the one who most hopes for your safety and escape. After all, only if you're safe can you keep Kinson Zheng occupied, buying me more time and opportunity to flee far away."

Pay Ling put on his most sincere tone. "FellowDao, I'm actually here to help you!"

Wu Tinshee threw his head back and laughed. "Help me? How? By stealing my Blood Qi Pills the moment we met and forcing me to crawl like an ant to retrieve my medicine?"

"FellowDao, that's just a minor issue," Pay Ling said earnestly. "At the time, I was being harmed by the Bone Raksha Painting. Without the Blood Qi Pills, I might have died. If that had happened, you'd be alone here, unfamiliar with the area, and sooner or later, the Pay Clan disciples would find you and report to Kinson Zheng! Would that end well for you? Right now, we're actually in the same boat. We should work together, not nitpick over small matters!"

Good, my breathing had become smoother, and I felt like could stand up and walk a few steps. But how long could i last?

Pay Ling hesitated, glancing at Wu Tinshee. Seeing that the man seemed to be deep in thought and showed no immediate intention to attack, Pay Ling secretly breathed a sigh of relief and decided to stall a little longer to avoid any mishaps while trying to escape.

"You're quite the smooth talker," Wu Tinshee said after a moment of contemplation, a cold smile spreading across his face. "But you do have a point. When life and death are at stake, everything else is trivial."

He paused, then suddenly asked, "Do you know why Kinson Zheng is hunting me down?"