"Oh? Swear allegiance to me? Why should I trust you?"
Hearing Yang Yong's words, Lin Chen was indeed a little moved.
He currently had no influence in the mortal cultivation world and knew very little about the outside world.
If he could truly subdue this Yang Yong, it would undoubtedly be of great benefit to him.
After all, he couldn't resort to soul-searching for just anyone, could he?
"I... I'm a retainer of the Liu family, how could I go back on my word?"
Seeing that Lin Chen was still unwilling to believe him, Yang Yong became anxious.
"Is that so? Alright then, give me a wisp of your soul."
Lin Chen remained unmoved and directly extended his hand.
"What do you want my soul for?"
Upon hearing this, Yang Yong became curious but also more wary.
The soul was the most important thing for a cultivator. If he handed it over and the other party harbored ill intentions, his life would truly be ruined!
"If you don't hand it over, then die!"
Lin Chen wasted no more words, raising his palm again.
"Wait, I'll give it to you!"
Threatened like this, Yang Yong flinched and quickly separated a wisp of his soul, handing it to Lin Chen.
Lin Chen was not one for pleasantries. After drawing a strange symbol on Yang Yong's soul, he put it into the Nine Dragon Ring.
Yang Yong, in front of him, instinctively felt something inexplicable within him.
"Alright, you are now my subordinate. If you dare to have any other intentions, with a mere thought from me, you will instantly perish, no matter how far away you are."
"Furthermore, this Soul Locking Technique is a secret art of my sect. The mark is deeply ingrained in your soul. Unless you can summon an immortal, no one can remove this mark."
"Also, your soul is now integrated with mine. If I die, you will be buried with me."
Speaking of this, Lin Chen felt a bit more confident.
Whether it was the Soul Searching Technique or the Soul Locking Technique, he had obtained them from the Nine Dragon Ring.
Although Yang Yong appeared foolish, his aptitude was not bad. With some training, he might indeed become a useful helper.
"What? You..."
Hearing Lin Chen's terrifying secret technique, Yang Yong shivered involuntarily.
There was no other way, this so-called Soul Locking Technique sounded too terrifying!
"As for you..."
After subduing Yang Yong, Lin Chen slowly turned his head and looked at Master Hao beside him.
"Thump."
Unsurprisingly, Master Hao immediately fell to his knees.
Even a cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Gathering like Yang Yong had fallen, what could he, a mere third-level Qi Gathering waste, do?
"Mr. Lin, I was blinded by greed. Please be magnanimous and do not hold this against me!"
"I am also willing to swear allegiance to you like fellow Daoist Yang!"
At this moment, Master Hao fully displayed his acting skills, tears streaming down his face, looking as pathetic as possible.
"Heh heh heh, a mere third-level Qi Gathering, what use are you to me?"
Lin Chen remained unmoved by Master Hao's pleas. With a slight movement of his palm, he harbored murderous intent.
If it weren't for the protective charm he gave to Shangguan Ling'er today, how could Shangguan Xiong have been beaten?
In this regard, if he hadn't given Shangguan Ling'er the protective charm, he probably wouldn't have escaped unscathed either!
What use was such a sycophantic person to keep?
"Little friend Lin, could you allow me to say a word before you act?"
Just as Lin Chen was about to make a move, Shangguan Xiong, clutching his chest, slowly stood up.
"Elder Shangguan, please speak."
Hearing Shangguan Xiong's words, Lin Chen cast a cold glance at Master Hao, and his movement momentarily paused.
"Little friend Lin, although Master Hao has betrayed my Shangguan family this time, I believe you can also put aside past grievances and take him in."
"Master Hao has been in Hangzhou for a long time and must know more secrets than we do."
"Keeping him may prove to be somewhat useful. I beg little friend Lin to reconsider."
Following that, Shangguan Xiong forced himself to gather his spirit and explained to Lin Chen.
"Alright, since Elder you has spoken, I will spare his life for now."
Hearing Shangguan Xiong's persuasion, Lin Chen's killing intent gradually subsided.
"Yes, yes, yes, thank you Mr. Lin, thank you Elder Shangguan!"
Hearing that Lin Chen would not kill him, Master Hao felt as if he had been granted a great pardon and quickly kowtowed in gratitude.
"Enough, get up. You too, separate a wisp of your soul."
Lin Chen waved his hand impatiently, imprinted a mark on Master Hao's soul, and then took out a recently refined pill from the Nine Dragon Ring.
Shangguan Xiong was already old, and now he had been kicked by Yang Yong. Without the pill, his injuries would surely take a long time to heal.
"Elder, this is a healing pill. If you take one, your injuries will improve within half a day at most."
"Hahaha, thank you, little friend Lin."
Shangguan Xiong did not stand on ceremony. He took the pill from Lin Chen and swallowed it directly.
"This... This is, a pill?"
As soon as Shangguan Xiong took the pill, Master Hao and Yang Yong beside him were astonished.
A pill, it was actually a pill!
And they gave it to a mortal?
"What? Is this pill very precious?"
Seeing Yang Yong's and Shangguan Xiong's expressions, Lin Chen was suddenly puzzled.
Wasn't it just a simple healing pill? Why the big fuss?
"This, this, this... Reporting to Master, this Blood Replenishing Pill was auctioned for a sky-high price of five million at the last auction!"
"Moreover, this kind of pill cannot be bought with money alone!"
Yang Yong's throat bobbed as he quickly replied.
Why were he and his master willing to become retainers of the Liu family? Wasn't it because the Liu family possessed an ancient pill recipe?
Yet now, their new master casually produced a pill and gave it to a mortal!
One must know that a healing pill was like a second life to a cultivator!
"Oh? So precious? Why is that?"
"The medicinal ingredients for refining the Blood Replenishing Pill are not considered rare, are they?"
Hearing Yang Yong's words, Lin Chen became even more curious.
The medicinal ingredients for refining the Blood Replenishing Pill were actually quite common, only requiring certain age specifications.
But with the lifespan of cultivators, obtaining aged medicinal ingredients shouldn't be difficult, right?
"Reporting to Master, the medicinal ingredients for refining the Blood Replenishing Pill are indeed common, but very few people know the pill formula and alchemy techniques!"
"The Liu family is called the number one aristocratic family in Zhejiang province precisely because they have an alchemist in their family, which is why my master and I were willing to serve them!"
Yang Yong explained everything he knew, one by one.