Very soon.
After Wang Nian finished speaking, Li Ye approached as well, his expression shifting from the seriousness he had shown earlier. Compared to Wang Nian's usual fierceness, his demeanor now was the complete opposite. "All of you will be part of my branch in the future. I may be a steward of the Night Patrol Division, but I won't put on airs… During my tenure, if you have any cultivation-related questions, you can come to me."
As soon as he said this, the corpse buriers were overjoyed.
No one had ever spoken to them like this before, nor had anyone treated them with such familiarity.
Seeing this, Wen Jiu couldn't help but sigh inwardly—this guy really knew how to win people over.
With just a single sentence, these hundred or so corpse buriers would likely become completely loyal to him, following his every command without hesitation.
Then, Li Ye continued speaking and waved his hand, signaling everyone to disperse. "You can all work with confidence. With me and the Night Patrol Division here, I guarantee your safety in the land of broken corpses!"
In the next moment, over a hundred corpse buriers bowed deeply.
"Thank you, Senior!"
"Thank you, Steward Li!"
Wang Nian, despite his displeasure, said nothing.
Just as the corpse buriers were about to leave, Li Ye suddenly called out, "That Wen family boy, come here."
Hearing his name, Wen Jiu stopped.
Fang Zheng and his two companions smirked coldly, their faces full of gloating.
The other corpse buriers also looked on with the expressions of people watching a show.
Wang Nian immediately stepped forward. "Li Ye, what are you trying to do?"
Li Ye's expression darkened. "Wang, this is a matter of the Night Patrol Division. Are you trying to interfere?"
"Don't go too far!"
Wang Nian's brows furrowed in anger.
Seeing this, Wen Jiu quickly spoke up to avoid conflict. "Brother Wang, it's fine… I'll be right back."
Only then did Wang Nian hold back his words, though the anger in his expression did not fade.
Li Ye chuckled, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked away.
Wen Jiu followed immediately.
After they had walked ten zhang away, Li Ye, still facing forward, said, "Boy, don't participate in the year-end assessment. Ten years from now, I'll secure a position for you in the Night Patrol Division… What do you think?"
His voice was cold, carrying an undercurrent of killing intent.
It sounded like a question, but to Wen Jiu, it was anything but a negotiation.
"Whatever Senior says." Wen Jiu dared not refuse—he was afraid that Li Ye might kill him on the spot.
He was just a mere corpse burier.
Li Ye, on the other hand, was a steward of the Night Patrol Division.
If he were to strike him down, he wouldn't have to bear any consequences.
"You're quite perceptive." Li Ye nodded in satisfaction, his cold aura dissipating slightly before he continued, "To be frank, Steward Xu won't be returning within a year. Without his endorsement, no matter how strong your talent in unconventional arts may be, you will still remain an outsider… No one will select you as a candidate for apprenticeship."
"I understand."
Wen Jiu nodded.
"Ten years from now, I will keep my word. You will be part of the Night Patrol Division." Li Ye turned around, looking at Wen Jiu with satisfaction.
Wen Jiu cupped his hands in a salute.
"Thank you, Senior."
Li Ye smiled faintly, then turned and left.
Stolen novel; please report.
Wen Jiu stood still for a long time.
Ten years?
Heh.
Suppressing the killing intent in his heart, he quickly turned and walked away.
As he made his way back, he saw the smug smiles on Fang Zheng and his two companions—their expressions filled with mockery.
…
Back at the land of broken corpses, Wen Jiu remained silent, focusing on his work.
What he hadn't expected was that Wang Nian, who usually despised this place, would take the initiative to enter and find him.
"I heard everything!"
Wen Jiu could sense Wang Nian's anger.
"Brother Wang, it's fine… But I'm curious—why would he personally step in to stop me from participating in the assessment?"
Wang Nian lowered his voice. "This was supposed to be a secret, something you weren't meant to know. But I can't stand that bastard… This year's apprentice disciples can be promoted directly and will have the chance to participate in the once-in-three-years newcomer assessment. As long as they pass, they can enter the main peak for cultivation and receive teachings from the elders."
"So that's how it is."
Wen Jiu suddenly understood.
Passing the assessment meant entering the main peak.
Receiving teachings from the elders.
No wonder Li Ye went out of his way for Fang Zheng and his group.
Wang Nian continued, "Focus on your cultivation. I'll try to find a way for you."
"Thank you, Brother Wang."
Wen Jiu bowed in gratitude.
If Wang Nian could find a way, that would be ideal.
If not…
Then he would take matters into his own hands.
Li Ye.
Qi Refinement third layer, is it?
…
Several days passed in the blink of an eye.
The Night Patrol of the Land of Remnants was still around.
Not only that, but many patrol members had ventured deep into the area, searching over and over, as if looking for something.
To be honest, Wen Jiu was worried they would find the corpse.
A fully cultivated Qi Refinement male cultivator's body, along with a damaged top-grade first-tier magical artifact—he didn't want to lose either.
But there was nothing he could do.
All he could do was pray.
Fortunately, after searching for several days, they stopped.
Wen Jiu let out a deep sigh of relief.
The next day, he took the black ghoul with him to hunt for wandering souls in the Land of Remnants, hoping to make up for the lost experience. He meticulously searched using his divine sense, not hesitating to delve deeper.
Perhaps due to the time of day, it wasn't long before he found a newly formed wandering soul lurking in the crevices of a pile of rubble.
The black ghoul, ravenous, pounced on it immediately, devouring it without hesitation.
However, just as this happened, a voice emerged from the mist-like yin energy—weak and elderly.
"Little friend…"
"Little friend…"
Wen Jiu's heart tensed.
He instinctively took a few steps back, positioning himself behind the black ghoul.
The source of the voice was unclear.
But his divine sense detected an overwhelming wave of yin energy—several times colder than the surrounding atmosphere, ten times stronger than the wandering soul just now—carrying an undeniable aura of danger.
At that moment, a kindly, elderly figure slowly drifted out from the cracks between the corpses.
"Little friend, are you a gravekeeper from Dead Man's Peak?"
Wen Jiu stiffened.
A true wandering soul!
Even in daylight, its aura surpassed his, sending a chill down his spine.
It was likely as strong as a second-layer Qi Refinement cultivator.
Sensing Wen Jiu's wariness, the old soul quickly reassured him, "Fear not, young one. I am Sikong Ming, a Night Patrol deacon of Qianye Peak. I perished here months ago and struggled immensely to leave behind this spectral form… Could you help me deliver a message to Qianye Peak? Have the Night Patrol come for me, and I will reward you handsomely!"
"How handsomely?" Wen Jiu asked.
The old soul eagerly responded, "I can have my old friend take you as his disciple! That way, you can become an official member of Dead Man's Peak and be rid of this gravekeeper's labor. If you have any other requests, feel free to ask!"
"Deal!" Wen Jiu's face lit up with delight.
"Senior, wait here. I'll go fetch them now."
With that, he turned to leave.
But the moment he turned his back, the old soul lunged at him like a starving beast, its kind and gentle demeanor vanishing in an instant, replaced by savage ferocity!
A surge of yin energy exploded like a tidal wave, and in the blink of an eye, it had vanished from its original spot—reappearing right behind Wen Jiu.
Its speed was terrifying.
"Die, brat!"
Just as the old soul pounced, the black ghoul intervened, blocking Wen Jiu and sinking its teeth deep into the ghostly figure. A bloody glow erupted from its body as its powerful arms locked the old soul in place. No matter how much it struggled, it was useless.
Wen Jiu swiftly retreated ten steps, then turned around and coldly watched as the black ghoul swallowed the old soul piece by piece.
The ghostly elder pleaded desperately, offering to pass on his life's knowledge to Wen Jiu, but Wen Jiu didn't even blink.
Only after the black ghoul completely devoured the wandering soul did Wen Jiu finally move, letting out a relieved breath.
"Good thing it's daytime, and the black ghoul's Blood Transformation Body has reached the second stage… I never expected to encounter a wandering soul as strong as a second-layer Qi Refinement cultivator."
If it had been nighttime, things would have been far more difficult.
Even with the black ghoul's second-stage Blood Transformation Body.
"Having devoured such a powerful wandering soul, I wonder how much experience and death energy it'll yield."
Wen Jiu couldn't help but look forward to the night's settlement.
Midnight arrived swiftly.
The daily settlement began.
[Daily Settlement Panel Lv2 (1/1000)]
[Today's Settlement!]
[Chanted the Corpse-Nurturing Mantra for an hour: Corpse-Nurturing Mantra (Yin Prefecture) experience +10.]
[Buried corpses in the Land of Remnants for three hours, searched for wandering souls for another three hours, continuously absorbing corpse energy and death energy: Panel experience +1, Corpse Energy +6, Death Energy +6.]
[Raised a corpse in a corpse-nurturing ground for twelve hours using yin energy and a large amount of cultivator blood, devoured a first-tier lower wandering soul ghost cultivator: Panel experience +1, Corpse Mutation experience +18, +40, Corpse Nurturer experience +1, Blood Transformation Body experience +12, Death Energy +200, black ghoul acquired a new ghostly technique from devouring the lower wandering soul ghost cultivator: Three Rivers Ghost Concealment.]
[Consumed two bowls of inferior spiritual rice, one pound of non-tiered demonic beast meat, and tempered the body using Earth Fiend Yin Energy for two hours: Body Tempering experience +20.]
[P.S.: Daily panel upgrade—starting tomorrow, all experience gains will be doubled!]