The Lay Flat Life: My Wife's Cultivation Makes Me Stronger - Chapter 44

Han Feng, unable to use divine sense due to his lack of Foundation Establishment cultivation, and the little fox, with no cultivation at all, were left to continue searching the hard way.

He spent the entire day aimlessly roaming the secret realm, feeling like he had turned every stone. He even stumbled upon the Patriarch’s statue but still couldn’t find Wang Mian.

It wasn’t surprising. Although the space within the secret realm was limited, everyone inside was constantly on the move. Whether it was the Ye family, the Jiang family, or Wang Mian, they all could’ve passed through areas Han Feng had just left. It was entirely possible that someone Han Feng was looking for arrived moments after he had moved on.

Aside from stealing Spirit Crystals from hundreds of disciples, Han Feng had gained nothing all day.

Determined, he continued his search, moving ever farther from the Patriarch’s statue. After another half-day of searching, the little fox suddenly called out, “There’s a Spirit Crystal on the ground in that forest below. I can see it!”

“Alright, let’s pick it up. Stay in the bag. Don’t move around—I’ll grab it for you to eat,” Han Feng instructed.

“Got it!” the little fox replied obediently.

Descending into the forest, Han Feng spotted the Spirit Crystal lying on the ground and bent down to pick it up. Just as his fingers touched the crystal, the little fox suddenly exclaimed, “Something’s wrong! Malice! Strong malice!”

Before Han Feng could fully react, a figure suddenly jumped down from a nearby tree, accompanied by five white spirit beasts.

“Apologies, but that Spirit Crystal in your hand belongs to us,” the figure said.

Han Feng instantly realized it was a trap and prepared to flee. However, when he saw the man’s face, he froze, abandoning his plan to run.

He recognized this person. He’d seen him twice before.

The first time was when he registered the little fox’s identity at Spirit Beast Peak. This man had been the one handling the registration.

The second time was two days ago when he encountered Ye Longyuan. This man had been standing behind Ye Longyuan.

It was now clear—this person was from the Ye family.

Suddenly, everything clicked for Han Feng. He had always been cautious, yet despite his best efforts to remain hidden, the assassins had found him so quickly and accurately after his visit to Spirit Beast Peak. Now he understood—it was this man who had betrayed him.

The man sneered, “Brother, let me introduce myself. I’m Ye Longquan, a registrar at Spirit Beast Peak.

For the past day, I’ve been hearing whispers about a Spirit Beast Peak disciple wearing a bamboo hat and face veil, accompanied by a white spirit beast, who’s been stealing Spirit Crystals from over a hundred disciples.

And now, with just one Spirit Crystal, I’ve managed to bait you out.

I imagine you’ve got quite the collection of Spirit Crystals by now.

Why don’t we share the wealth? We’re both disciples of Spirit Beast Peak; helping each other is only natural. Give me half of your Spirit Crystals, and we’ll head to the Patriarch’s statue together to make our offerings. Afterward, I won’t ask for your identity or hold any grudges. We can act like we’ve never met.

If you choose to reveal yourself later, I’ll even prepare a bottle of wine to toast to our brotherhood.

But if you prefer to keep your identity hidden, we’ll leave it at that. What do you think?”

Han Feng’s lips curled into a cold smirk. It was clear Ye Longquan hadn’t recognized him.

With a voice hoarse from disguise, Han Feng replied, “So, Brother Ye, are you robbing me?”

“Robbing? Not at all. I’m simply offering you a way forward,” Ye Longquan replied. “You’ve already offended many disciples, and they’re banding together to hunt you down.

The secret realm isn’t that big—how long can you hide? Sooner or later, you’ll have to go to the Patriarch’s statue to make your offering. All they have to do is wait for you.

But if you align with our Ye family, no one will dare touch you. They might come for you, but they won’t try anything against us.

Handing over half your Spirit Crystals to ensure a smooth trip through the secret realm is a fair deal, don’t you think?”

“And if I refuse?” Han Feng asked, his tone mocking.

Ye Longquan’s lips curled into a sinister smile. “Then, Brother, you leave me no choice but to teach you a lesson. If words can’t convince you, perhaps fists can. And I have five Qi Refining seventh-layer spirit beasts to back me up.

Of course, if it comes to that, all your Spirit Crystals will belong to me.”

Han Feng sneered. “So, in the end, I’m to be robbed after robbing so many others. What a wonderful cycle of karma.”

“Oh? So you’ve come to your senses? That’s the spirit. We’re all fellow disciples here—peace is best,” Ye Longquan said, his confidence evident.

“Peace, my ass!” Han Feng roared, drawing his sword and slashing at Ye Longquan without warning.

Ye Longquan’s eyes widened in shock as he scrambled to retreat, but the sword arc still struck him. The protective artifact he wore flared to life, absorbing the brunt of the attack before shattering. Even so, the sword left a deep gash across his chest.

Coughing and clutching his wound, Ye Longquan glared at Han Feng. “What’s your cultivation? Since when does Spirit Beast Peak have an eighteen-year-old disciple with such combat strength?”

Even as he spoke, he commanded his five white wolf spirit beasts to attack Han Feng.

Spirit Beast Peak disciples were not known for their individual combat prowess. Their strength came from their spirit beasts, which acted as both their partners and their weapons. Most of their resources went into nurturing their beasts rather than enhancing their own cultivation.

This was why, upon seeing the little fox’s speed earlier, others had assumed Han Feng was from Spirit Beast Peak.

The white wolves lunged at Han Feng, their mouths spewing icy breath that turned the air frigid, threatening to freeze him in place.

Such an ambush would have overwhelmed most disciples, but Han Feng was different. His speed was unparalleled.

In a flash, he dodged the wolves’ icy breath and appeared behind one of them. With a powerful strike, he sliced the wolf cleanly in half.

The sheer force of the attack startled Ye Longquan, who now realized his spirit beasts were no match for Han Feng’s speed and strength.

Damn it! Weren’t they saying this guy was just fast and had some kind of speed-enhancing treasure? That he wasn’t strong and didn’t dare to fight head-on? Ye Longquan cursed inwardly. Bastards! They set me up! No wonder he’s been robbing so many people—he actually has the strength to back it up!

Realizing the danger, Ye Longquan ordered his remaining spirit beasts to surround Han Feng while he took to the air on his flying sword.