Mortal: I can unlock the card pool by becoming an apprentice to him.

"Squeak, squeak."

The carriage slowly made its way along the gravel-strewn dirt road toward the distant, rolling valleys.

"Senior brother, why don't we rest for a while up ahead?"

After observing for a moment by lifting a corner of the carriage curtain, Lin Mo spoke to Zhao Kun, who stood beside him like a wooden statue.

"Can."

Zhao Kun agreed without much hesitation.

After leaving Jiayuan City, the two headed towards Jingzhou, hardly stopping along the way, and even their provisions were hastily prepared in the carriage.

After nearly a month of travel, not to mention Zhao Kun, even Lin Mo was finding it hard to keep up.

"Where are we now?"

Zhao Kun stretched his back and asked the driver.

"In reply to the Second Young Master, we are now in Jingzhou, and it is still half a day's journey to the place the Master mentioned."

The driver was a middle-aged man with a dark complexion. He stood tall and straight like a pine tree, with thick and strong knuckles, clearly someone who exercised regularly.

After he finished speaking, the driver gripped the reins tightly again and said no more.

"A half-day journey."

A glint of light flashed in Zhao Kun's eyes.

He coldly watched Lin Mo walk towards the edge of the woods to quietly admire the scenery and said, "Haven't you had anything to ask me along the way, Junior Brother?"

"no."

Lin Mo didn't even turn around when he said those words.

He stared intently at the tree branch, as if he had discovered something extremely interesting.

On the branch, a bright green praying mantis was crouching, poised to strike, silently approaching the cicada on the branch.

"Since there isn't one, then junior brother... please go and die."

The moment Zhao Kun finished speaking, his inner strength suddenly erupted, and his figure shot out like an arrow.

The two were not far apart, and Zhao Kun's left palm, carrying a fierce wind, struck Lin Mo's back without mercy.

However, the next second, Lin Mo's figure spun gently like a leaf in the wind, seemingly slow, but just enough to dodge the thunderous attack.

The palm struck the tree trunk hard, causing the branches and leaves to fall in a rustling sound. The emerald green mantis, which was about to pounce on the cicada, leaped up in fright.

"The Dragon-Trapping Technique?"

Before Zhao Kun could even be surprised at his missed attack, he involuntarily cried out.

What his opponent displayed was his most prized skill.

"Why would Master entrust this skill to you...?"

Before Zhao Kun could finish speaking, he saw Lin Mo's arms suddenly swell up as if inflated. Even more incredibly, under the sunlight, his arms reflected a cold metallic sheen.

It looks extremely sinister!

"The Silver Hand?"

Zhao Kun immediately recognized his master's signature martial art and spun around sharply to the side, retreating with all his might to create distance.

Before he could even land, Lin Mo swooped in like a shadow, his swollen hand whistling through the air as it hurtled straight toward his chest!

"Click."

A crisp cracking sound rang out suddenly, and Zhao Kun's ribs broke in response, sending him flying backward like a kite with a broken string.

"Aren't you curious how I knew you were going to make a move?"

Lin Mo stood in the sunlight, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Lying on the ground, Zhao Kun was no longer the sharp and imposing figure he had been when they first met. His face was deathly pale, blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and his breathing was heavy and labored, like a broken bellows.

With a look of resentment and unwillingness in his eyes, Lin Mo walked step by step toward the coachman who was already standing there in a daze.

"map."

The driver trembled, his legs went weak, and he dared not disobey in the slightest.

Although he had some basic martial arts skills, what he had just witnessed left him with no desire to resist. He could only tremble as he pulled out a roll of map from his pocket and handed it over with both hands.

Lin Mo was familiar with this map; it was the secret letter he had traveled thousands of miles to deliver to Jiayuan City.

However, after being soaked in the medicine, the contents of the letter had changed completely.

[To my wife: Do not worry. I have found a cure for the illness, but it requires a thousand taels of gold as a catalyst. Gather the gold quickly and have Zhao Kun deliver it personally. Do not fail him. Also, the messenger is useless; he must be eliminated.]

Below this line of small print is a detailed topographical map, clearly marking the mountain paths.

Sure enough, Doctor Mo eventually found the Golden Light Temple.

"Young master, I know nothing, please have mercy..."

Seeing that Zhao Kun was barely breathing and looked like he was about to die, the driver's legs went weak and he knelt down and kowtowed.

"Okay, you can go back now."

Lin Mo waved his hand, seemingly unconcerned that the driver would leak the news.

"Thank you, young master! Thank you, young master!"

The driver stood up shakily, but before he could take a step, Lin Mo spoke again.

"By the way, it's a bit far, let me give you a ride..."

After taking care of everything, Lin Mo turned and walked towards the carriage. He lifted the back cover, and five small ebony boxes with copper corners immediately came into view.

He bent down and picked one up. As expected, when he opened it, dozens of neatly stacked gold ingots were revealed.

For a moment, golden light shimmered, dazzling the eyes.

In the original story, Venerable Jin Guang was originally a cultivator at the third level of Qi Refining. Due to his inferior aptitude and the absorption of his family, he had no choice but to flee in haste. Later, he hid in the mortal world and contentedly indulged in worldly affairs.

"Although this person has no interest in Taoism, he must be a magnanimous person."

Lin Mo drove the carriage, silently making plans.

Originally, he planned to use this windfall to draw cards, but then he thought that although the Golden Light Master's realm was low, he might still be able to obtain the key to the world of cultivation from him.

Moreover, the performance of Master Jinguang in the original work was truly unremarkable.

Although he used flying swords, talismans, and Vajra talismans to launch a devastating attack on mortals, he was easily subdued by Han Li with just a few words and even died from a sneak attack.

Therefore, Lin Mo did not have much fear of it.

Following the map, after passing through a pine forest, a Taoist temple came into view.

The Taoist temple was nestled at the foot of a mountain; it wasn't grand, but it was neat and serene.

Two boys who looked like Taoist acolytes were sweeping the stone steps in front of the mountain gate, holding bamboo brooms.

Upon seeing the carriage approaching, the young Taoist on the left immediately stopped what he was doing, stepped forward, and said, "Who goes there? This is the place of quiet cultivation at Jin Guang Temple. Unauthorized persons shall immediately cease their presence!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Mo gently pulled the reins, and the carriage came to a steady stop on the open ground not far from the stone steps.

He leaped down, bowed to the two young disciples, and said, "My name is Lin Mo, from Lanzhou. I have long admired your great supernatural powers and have come here today seeking only to become your disciple and devote myself to cultivating the Dao."

"Become an apprentice?"

The boy on the right first glanced at the carriage behind Lin Mo, and then looked at his clothes.

Seeing that although he was dressed in plain clothes, he had an upright posture and a calm demeanor, I couldn't help but ask, "It's certainly not a problem for me to become your disciple, but have you prepared the tuition and fees?"

"The tuition fee has already been prepared. I hope you two senior brothers can convey my message."

After saying that, Lin Mo stepped forward, took out a few gold ingots, and stuffed them into the ingots.

The gold ingot felt heavy in their hands. The two young Taoist boys looked down to confirm it, and their expressions softened considerably, their wariness fading away.

"You're a reasonable person, unlike that old devil who came a few days ago, who stingily pulled out a few pieces of silver and wanted to become an apprentice. It was utterly laughable."

The young Taoist on the left, having accepted the bribe, became even more enthusiastic. He waved his hand and said, "Wait here for a moment, I'll go in and report to my master." With that, he threw down his bamboo broom and ran into the temple.