"You, you..."
At this moment, the unconscious Zhulin Guo slowly regained consciousness. He staggered to his feet and glared at Ye Ling, "Do you know what you are doing right now?"
"What am I doing?"
Seeing Zhulin Guo recover so quickly, Ye Ling was also surprised. He looked at Zhulin Guo and asked with a smile.
Zhulin Guo said weakly, "You have searched my soul, so you must know whose treasure the Demon Blood Lotus is. I am just a small soldier under the Queen Mother of the West. Even if you kill me, it will have no effect on the immortal realm."
"But your actions, are you sure you can withstand the wrath of the Queen Mother of the West?"
Ye Ling chuckled, "Whether I can withstand it is my own business, why do you care?"
Zhulin Guo said, "I am just advising you to turn back in time. The power of the immortal realm far exceeds your imagination."
"Even if you can crush me, you are nothing in the immortal realm."
"I was once at the peak of the mortal world, looking down on all the mountains, but when I arrived in the immortal realm, I was just an insignificant immortal."
"With your cultivation in the mortal world, your practice must not have been easy. Don't go astray."
"Then I must thank you for your kindness." Ye Ling chuckled, but his words and demeanor clearly showed that he did not take Zhulin Guo's warning to heart.
However, Zhulin Guo's consciousness was still a bit hazy after his soul was searched. He did not notice Ye Ling's expression and thought that Ye Ling had taken his advice. He continued, "Return the blood spirit to me, and I will hand her over to the Queen Mother of the West. I can help you cover up what happened here."
"It's as if nothing happened, and your immortal path will not be cut off."
Ye Ling chuckled, "You look very different from your previous aggressive demeanor. I like you more and more. Why don't you come with me?"
Zhulin Guo took Ye Ling's words as a joke and quickly said, "Please don't joke with me. The Demon Blood Lotus has been disturbed, and the Queen Mother of the West will surely react. I am just a vanguard. Please cherish your hard-won cultivation."
The strength Ye Ling had displayed earlier had completely subdued him, even reminding him of his past glory in the mortal world.
If he hadn't ascended to the immortal realm and suffered beatings from the gods and immortals, he would probably still be like Ye Ling, looking down on the world and despising everything.
Seeing Ye Ling reminded him of his past self, except that Ye Ling was superior to him in both strength and talent.
Therefore, Zhulin Guo did not want Ye Ling to be destroyed by the Queen Mother of the West.
"I'm not joking." Ye Ling smiled at Zhulin Guo and said, "I originally planned to get rid of you, but seeing that you have a good heart and were just following orders, I wanted you to work for me."
"Are you serious?"
Hearing Ye Ling's words, Zhulin Guo's face showed surprise, and he looked at Ye Ling in disbelief, "Didn't you hear what I said earlier?"
"The wrath of the Queen Mother of the West?" Ye Ling chuckled, "Don't worry, whether it's the Queen Mother of the West or the Emperor Donghua, the people of the immortal realm cannot do anything to me. Your worries are unnecessary."
"What you need to worry about now is your own affairs."
"I am just giving you a choice, whether to join me or not is up to you."
Zhulin Guo fell silent. He never expected Ye Ling to be serious!
He knew better than anyone how strong the immortal realm was.
Even a mortal who achieved immortality and ascended to the immortal realm was merely at the bottom of the Heavenly Palace, at most doing menial tasks with no status.
Although Ye Ling could crush him, he was just a small soldier of the Queen Mother of the West.
No matter how strong Ye Ling was, it didn't mean anything!
In his eyes, betraying the Queen Mother of the West to join Ye Ling was no different from seeking death!
After a long silence, Zhulin Guo asked Ye Ling, "If I refuse to join you, will you kill me?"
"It's not that serious." Ye Ling waved his hand with a smile, "I have a good impression of you now. If you don't join me, I will let you return to the immortal realm."
"As for what you do next and what you encounter, it will be none of my business."
Zhulin Guo asked again, "What about the blood spirit?"
"You naturally cannot take her away."
"Aren't you afraid I'll inform the Queen Mother of the West?"
"As you wish," Ye Ling replied indifferently, "So, what is your choice now?"
Seeing Ye Ling's stubbornness, Zhulin Guo sighed slightly and cupped his hands, "I apologize, but I cannot serve you."
He did not believe Ye Ling and dared not betray the Queen Mother of the West.
Ye Ling was not surprised by Zhulin Guo's answer.
Everyone had their own destiny, but whether they could grasp it depended on themselves.
Ye Ling's desire to recruit Zhulin Guo was actually Zhulin Guo's opportunity.
If he made the right choice, he would soar to the heavens, and his future would be bright.
If he made the wrong choice, he would have to bear the consequences himself, and no one else could be blamed.
Ye Ling felt a sense of regret and emotion at Zhulin Guo's choice but was not disappointed.
Ye Ling said, "That's a pity. You may leave."
"Are you really going to let me go?" Zhulin Guo confirmed, somewhat surprised.
Ye Ling: "A word spoken is hard to recall. If you want to leave, then leave."
Hearing Ye Ling's answer, Zhulin Guo looked at Ye Ling deeply, then bowed respectfully to Ye Ling again, "You are an extraordinary person. If you can still live in the future, I will repay your kindness of not killing me."
After speaking, Zhulin Guo did not linger and flew directly into the sky, leaving the semi-spiritual realm.
Seeing Zhulin Guo leave, Ji Xue also descended in front of Ye Ling and asked, "Master, is it really okay to let him leave like this?"
Ye Ling glanced at the sky and smiled, "It's fine. The Queen Mother of the West will know what happened here anyway. Killing him or not is meaningless."
"Moreover, letting him go back might even help us do some things."
"Why do you say that?" Ji Xue was confused. She didn't understand what Zhulin Guo could do after returning to the immortal realm other than reporting to the Queen Mother of the West.
"You'll know when the time comes."
Ye Ling kept her in suspense and did not elaborate on the matter with Ji Xue.
Then, his gaze fell on the blood spirit beside Ji Xue.
The blood spirit seemed to be afraid of Ye Ling. When Ye Ling's gaze shifted to her, she hid behind Ji Xue, not daring to meet Ye Ling's eyes.
"This..." Ji Xue didn't know what to do. She felt awkward being caught between Ye Ling and the blood spirit.
Ye Ling glanced at the blood spirit hiding behind Ji Xue and smiled at Ji Xue, "This little one is shy. Let her stay by your side for now. We'll talk about it later."
Ji Xue secretly breathed a sigh of relief and respectfully bowed to Ye Ling, "Yes."
"Let's go. One day in heaven is one year in the mortal world. Even if the Queen Mother of the West reacts, it will take some time."
"There's no point in staying here anymore." Ye Ling glanced at the empty semi-spiritual realm, stretched, "It's time to go to Xueyin Valley."