Lin Fang looked at the green stone in front of him and couldn’t help but think it was just an ordinary rock; he was quite skeptical that the Well Dragon King was trying to deceive him.

Placing his hand on the green stone, his soul power surged out, and immediately a strange force transmitted from the stone, making Lin Fang suddenly feel as if a great mountain weighed upon his body, his mana’s circulation becoming incredibly stagnant. He quickly withdrew his hand.

"This stone!"

"Immortal, what do you think? This stone is a treasure, isn’t it?" the Well Dragon King asked with a smile on his face.

"I really can’t accept this treasure, how about you change it for something else, Old Dragon King?"

"To be honest, aside from this, there really isn’t much else worth offering in my Dragon Palace," the Well Dragon King said, quickly waving his hands—as if joking, reluctant to give anything even if he had it.

"I’ve heard that you have the Appearance-Preserving Pearl; how about giving me a couple of sacks of those, and I’ll just leave this treasure here with you, what do you say?"

"Two sacks!!" The Well Dragon King’s eyes bulged.

"Immortal, don’t joke, Appearance-Preserving Pearls, though not particularly precious treasures, are still very rare. I did have one, but it was given to the ruler of Wuji Kingdom. If you don’t mind, take this king’s body back with you, with your divine skills, if you could bring him back to life, what is there that you couldn’t have?"

Looking at the Well Dragon King, who was eagerly trying to sell him the body of Wuji Kingdom’s King, Lin Fang slightly twitched his mouth—this guy really thought he was naive. If he dared to take the body back today, the Green Lion Spirit would take his life.

"Forget it, I’ll take a loss and accept this stone. Just throw in some local specialties too; it’s good to bring gifts when visiting relatives."

In the end, Lin Fang collected the green stone and a big bag of pearls with the Glazed Glass Tower, then left the Well Dragon King’s Crystal Palace, content.

The Well Dragon King, accompanied by Prime Minister Turtle, saw him to the door. Once Lin Fang was a good distance away, the Old Dragon King cursed, "Damn pauper, heartless bandit, hope he meets a bad end... it’s all that damn Monkey’s fault, now everyone thinks they can breeze in and loot the Dragon Palace."

Every time he thought about the Great Blue Stone and so many treasured pearls he had saved up, the Well Dragon King felt a pang of sadness, as these were the savings he had scraped together with great difficulty, every pearl infused with his painstaking effort.

"My lord, why don’t we report this to the Heavenly Court?" Prime Minister Turtle suggested at his side.

"Report what, with my lowly status, who would listen to my complaint? Forget it, let’s consider it as doing a good deed." The Well Dragon King returned to his palace greatly displeased, to mourn the loss of his treasures.

Seeing this, Prime Minister Turtle also shook his head and transformed back into a huge turtle, starting to aimlessly stroll around the bottom of the well, restoring peace to this world once again.

As for Lin Fang, he began his journey back with his recently acquired treasures. He truly hadn’t expected to be able to extort anything from the Well Dragon King; his original plan was to just leave a mark here, waiting for the Monkey to turn up and take advantage in a luck draw, unknowingly stumbling upon an unexpected windfall.

But this green stone was indeed peculiar, seeming to be able to suppress all mana, and even now Lin Fang had no good idea what to do with it.

Returning to the mouth of the well, Lin Fang leapt out of the water, turned into a small moth, and slowly flew up, passing through the hole he had made on entry, and arrived above ground.

It was now deep into the night. Even within the Imperial Palace, all was quiet, with only the weak light from the lanterns in the palace flickering, dispelling darkness.

Lin Fang revealed his true form, stretched languidly, and prepared to sneakily explore Wuji Kingdom’s Imperial Palace.

"Who goes there!" A majestic voice echoed from the darkness.

Lin Fang turned his head and saw a person clad in yellow robes standing amid the shadows, staring intently at him, which took him by surprise.

"It’s really true that whatever you’re afraid of, comes to pass!" Lin Fang lamented to himself.

This person was none other than the Green Lion Spirit who had replaced the Wuji Kingdom’s King. Distracted and restless, he had wandered here for a walk and happened to see Lin Fang standing near the dry well, which led him to challenge Lin Fang.

Lin Fang had no wish to deal with the Green Lion Spirit, so without a word, he turned tail and ran.

But how could the Green Lion Spirit let him get away as he wished? The spirit leaped up to stop him, and as they clashed midair, both sensed the other’s extraordinary nature.

"Who is this expert who snuck into the Imperial Palace so sneakily? Could he possibly be after the deceased Emperor?" the Green Lion Spirit speculated wildly.

But Lin Fang was cursing his bad luck, meeting trouble despite trying to avoid it, indeed a stroke of misfortune.

In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged blows more than a dozen times, their immense strength shattering the nearby rockeries, and drawing the attention of the surrounding guards.

Countless torches were lit, and the Imperial Palace guards swiftly assembled, rushing towards the commotion.

Seeing this, the Green Lion Spirit slightly furrowed his brows. He didn’t want these guards to witness his prowess, or else his masquerade as the Emperor might be exposed.

Lin Fang, even less eager to show his face, lest he becomes a target, joined the Green Lion Spirit in unleashing their full force with a single strike, and their fists met in midair. The air itself seemed to reverberate with the sound, and a vast windstorm swept out in all directions, hurling countless trees into the air amidst billowing smoke.

Jolted by the rebounding force, both men staggered back several steps. Seizing the opportunity, Lin Fang fled at once, while the Green Lion Spirit was about to give chase when the voices of the guards reached his ears, prompting him to restrain himself and adjust his appearance to avoid giving himself away.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, are you unharmed?" A tall and burly guard bearing a Treasure Blade approached the scene. Upon seeing that the Emperor was safe and sound, he visibly relaxed.

He knelt with a thud and said, "This servant deserves to die a thousand times over for allowing an assassin to infiltrate the palace and disturb Your Imperial Majesty. I beg for your forgiveness!"

"Stand up," the Green Lion Spirit waved his hand dismissively, not intending to blame the Guard Commander. "This assassin is no ordinary foe. We must be more cautious in the future to prevent such incidents." The spirit gazed deeply in the direction Lin Fang had escaped, pondering over Lin Fang’s motives.

But little did he know that the formidable figure he thought Lin Fang to be had sneaked into the Imperial Palace merely to extort.

Calculating the time, with the three-year period almost upon him, the Green Lion Spirit felt a wave of annoyance. He no longer paid attention to the still kneeling and anxious Guard Commander and left.

After the Green Lion Spirit had gone, the Guard Commander slowly stood up and looked around, shocked at the sight. The once desolate garden was now a mess; the faux mountains had disappeared without a trace, and many of the trees had been uprooted.

"Who was it that fought here, to have caused such devastation? It is truly astonishing," the Guard Commander murmured to himself, feeling as though his eyes had been opened to a new world.

However, he also felt relieved that His Majesty the Emperor had emerged unscathed from such peril, which was indeed a stroke of great fortune.

Looking at the continuous influx of torchlights, he knew it would be a sleepless night.