Chapter 45 - 1-9 Cautiously Cultivating Immortality in a Strange World

Chapter 1: Arrival

It was a windy and snowy evening.

A hunched figure appeared at the entrance of the alley, wiped the snow from his face, and pushed open the old wooden door of the courtyard.

There were several rooms in the courtyard, and he walked familiarly towards one of them.

"Chen Lin, why are you still going out in this weather? Aren't you afraid of being possessed by evil spirits?"

It seemed that someone had heard the door opening, and a window of another room was pushed open, revealing a yellowish-faced woman.

"Oh, there's no rice at home, so I went out to buy some. I'm preparing to close the door for a while."

Chen Lin pointed to the large bag in his hand and nodded in response.

The woman's eyes suddenly lit up, and she eagerly stuck her head out, blocking the snowflakes from falling into her eyes with her hand, and stared at the bag in Chen Lin's hand. "You bought rice, can you spare some for me?"

"No!"

Chen Lin firmly refused and opened his own door.

"I can trade something for it!"

The woman's voice became even more urgent, as she was about to run out of food.

"Do you have anything valuable to trade?"

Chen Lin paused, looking at her suspiciously.

The woman opened her mouth, then suddenly gritted her teeth, puffed out her chest, and said, "How about I accompany you for a night?"

"Bang!"

The response was the sound of a door closing.

The woman looked disappointed.

Suddenly, her demeanor changed, and she gave a strange, cold smile, saying, "You damn old thing, you deserve to be struck by lightning, cursed to eat until you can't poop, and wait until I break through to the middle stage of my cultivation to see what happens to you!"

"Ptui!"

The woman spat viciously and slammed the window shut.

The large snowflakes instantly covered the footprints in the courtyard, and the entire city was shrouded in a blizzard.

Chen Lin stood inside, silently gazing at the woman's disappearing face through the window and his mouth twitching involuntarily.

He took off his hat, shook off the snow, and put the rice away in the rice container.

He found a few pieces of firewood and relit the extinguished stove, and the temperature in the room slowly rose.

He stared at the fire for a while, then sighed, stood up, and began to cook.

He put the cleaned rice on the stove, then turned to an old wooden table.

After sitting down, he opened a drawer.

First he took out a palm-sized pile of yellow paper, then a silver-colored brush.

Finally, he carefully removed a black ink bottle from his pocket and placed it on the table.

These items were the materials needed to make talismans: talisman paper, talisman brush, and spiritual ink.

He didn't just go out on this adventure because of the lack of rice; the main reason was to buy this spiritual ink.

A small bottle cost several spirit stones, and the price was so high that it made one's heart ache.

After glancing at the porridge cooking on the stove, Chen Lin took a deep breath, picked up a talisman paper, and spread it out.

He dipped the silver talisman brush in the spiritual ink, adjusted his posture to the optimal state, and his expression became solemn.

The brush tip lightly fell, and a series of fine, sparkling lines appeared on the talisman paper, slowly forming one mysterious talisman character after another.

Although the drawing seemed effortless, Chen Lin's nose began to sweat, and his brushstrokes slowed down.

When he had drawn half of the talisman, the characters on it suddenly flashed rapidly twice and then burst open with a loud bang.

Looking at the small area of the table that had been burned, Chen Lin curled his lips.

"A mid-grade talisman indeed requires more effort than a strength talisman, and the requirements for spiritual power are higher. My current cultivation at the second layer of Qi refinement is still insufficient."

He shook his head, muttered to himself, and then picked up another talisman paper to spread out.

The repetitive process continued.

This time, the talisman lines were drawn more densely, but they still failed to escape their fate, bursting open midway.

However, Chen Lin didn't show any signs of despair, calmly picking up another talisman paper to spread out.

Again, it failed.

He spread out another one.

Again, it failed.

Chen Lin was like a robot, repeatedly performing the action of drawing talismans.

And so it continued.

He repeated it nine times.

Then, on the tenth try…

This time, the action remained unchanged, and the talisman began to flash and burst open midway.

But just as the talisman characters were about to explode…

It was as if a large hand suddenly appeared, roughly gathering the already burst energy and pressing it back into the talisman paper.

Immediately after…

The talisman paper flashed, and the talisman lines became clear and bright, quickly calming down.

A subtle fireball pattern appeared on the talisman.

"It seems that my Golden Finger ability is also effective for refining mid-grade talismans. This adds another path to my wealth, although the ability is a bit weak, requiring ten attempts to succeed once."

Chen Lin nodded as he held the talisman in his hand, and then shook his head.

As a transmigrator, no matter how bad the status you obtain is, you still have the necessary benefits.

It's just that this Golden Finger ability was a bit of a letdown.

It's an innate ability, which he calls "Hit Every Ten Times".

The full name would be: "Theoretically it is possible, and if you use the correct method to make any item, you will definitely succeed once in ten times."

If it weren't for the limitation of "using the correct method", this ability would be considered heaven-defying. But with this limitation, it's quite frustrating.

What is the correct method?

For example, if you want to refine a pill medicine, you need to master the pill formula, familiarize yourself with the refining process, have a matching pill furnace and fire source, and your cultivation level needs to be within a reasonable range.

Only then can you succeed once in ten attempts.

"Ah, well, it's better than nothing."

Chen Lin didn't continue to complain.

Transmigrating to such a dangerous world, starting so badly, having an "ability" by his side was already quite good.

At least he could survive.

The smell of rice wafted through the air.

The porridge was ready.

Chen Lin didn't think too much, took the pot off the stove, and began to eat the porridge with gusto.

Even though it was just rice porridge, it wasn't ordinary rice, it was spiritual rice. Not only did it taste delicious, but it also had a certain benefit for his cultivation.

Of course, the price was not cheap, one spirit stone per catty.

Normally, he wouldn't dare to be so extravagant, but this time, since his cultivation had reached the peak of the second level of qi refinement, he wanted to try to use the energy of the spiritual rice to break through to the next level.

A bowl of porridge was quickly finished.

The gentle spiritual energy began to spread from his stomach to his entire body.

It was warm and comfortable.

Unfortunately, the spiritual energy was too little and quickly dissipated.

Chen Lin, who still wanted more, was about to scoop out another bowl when he suddenly heard a knock at the door.

"Bang bang bang!"

"Fellow Daoist Chen, open the door, it's me, Zhao Zhengyuan."

Hearing the familiar voice, Chen Lin quickly covered the pot, put a talisman in his hand, and then opened the door.

"What's going on so late at night?"

Chen Lin looked at the middle-aged man with a honest and kind face outside, but he didn't plan to invite him in.

The man was also a tenant in the courtyard, and he had a good relationship with the original owner of Chen Lin's body. However, everything here was very suspicious, and he had to be cautious.

"Hehe, I smelled the fragrance of spiritual rice from your place, and I just happened to have cooked the last piece of black-striped tiger meat and a bottle of wine. I came to invite you to drink with me."

The middle-aged man held up the things in his hand and said with a smile.

After finishing, he suddenly looked up and revealed a strange, cold smile.

This change was extremely sudden.

It was as if the man had suddenly changed into someone else, and his demeanor had also changed, giving off a feeling of eerie and madness, making people very uncomfortable.

But Chen Lin didn't show any surprise.

Since he transmigrated here, he had discovered that everyone in this place would occasionally reveal such a cold smile.

It was inexplicable, and it could happen at any time, anywhere.

After revealing such a smile, the person would suddenly become extremely arrogant, as if no one could match them.

And it seemed that the person themselves didn't have any feeling about it.

There was something wrong with the people here.

There was a big problem!

Unfortunately, Chen Lin's cultivation was too weak, and he couldn't do anything, so he could only suppress his fear and slowly seek a way to resolve it.

And to avoid drawing attention, he also occasionally made this gesture.

Chen Lin smiled coldly and said, "Okay, let's drink together."

It was just what he needed, as he had some questions to ask the man, so he nodded in agreement.

Just then, the window of another room was pushed open, and the yellow-faced woman's head poked out.

Seeing the wine and meat, her eyes suddenly lit up with a captivating light.

"Zhao Zhengyuan, what's the point of drinking with a small-minded man? Come to my place, and not only can you drink wine, but you can also drink soup!"

Chen Lin heard this and looked at the woman, then at Zhao Zhengyuan, with a seemingly amused expression.

Zhao Zhengyuan then curled his lips and walked directly into the room.

With a bang, he closed the door behind him.

Outside, the woman's angry and frustrated shouting could be heard.

"You're also a useless piece of trash, men are all no good, wait until I break through and I'll throw you all out to feed the wild beasts!"

The two of them exchanged a glance, both shaking their heads in helplessness.

Since the man had brought wine and dishes, Chen Lin could only bring out the spiritual rice porridge he had hidden away and serve two bowls.

He cut the roasted black-striped tiger meat into slices, poured the wine, and began to drink.

"Recently, the city has been getting more and more unstable. Have you heard? The patriarch of the Zhang family has mysteriously disappeared, and no one knows if he's alive or dead. He's a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, after all!"

Zhao Zhengyuan took a sip of wine and spoke with a tone of astonishment.

Chen Lin's eyes flashed slightly.

He thought to himself, "This eerie place, it's no surprise if someone dies, even if it's a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator. In fact, it wouldn't be surprising if the entire city's population died overnight."

Although he was complaining in his heart, he still maintained a deeply concerned expression on his face.

"Yes, even a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator can just disappear, this city is getting more and more chaotic."

After saying that, he drained the cup of wine in one gulp.

A clear, refreshing, and sweet liquid flowed down his throat and into his stomach.

At first, it was cool and refreshing, and then it released a wave of heat, spreading from his chest to his limbs, making the spiritual energy within him become more active.

The potency of this spiritual wine was much stronger than the spiritual rice porridge!

Chapter 2: Strange Scenery

"Good wine!"

Chen Lin exclaimed in admiration.

Zhao Zhengyuan smiled proudly, "That's natural, this is my family's culinary skill, and I can live in this city thanks to this craft."

"Indeed, Friend Zhao's brewing skills are unmatched."

Chen Lin nodded and then turned to ask, "By the way, didn't you say you were going to refine pills earlier? How's that going?"

Zhao Zhengyuan's face fell.

His proud expression vanished instantly.

"Ah, don't mention it."

Zhao Zhengyuan sighed, shaking his head repeatedly.

But he quickly lifted his chin and gazed at Chen Lin with a cold smile, "A trivial pill-refining technique can't stump me, I'm Zhao Zhengyuan, from a family of pill-refiners!"

Chen Lin's mouth twitched involuntarily and replied with a cold smile, "Right, right, with your determination and talent, you'll surely succeed."

Zhao Zhengyuan let out a bitter laugh and returned to normal, "Thanks for the encouragement, but unfortunately my inherited techniques are incomplete, otherwise there might be a slight chance."

Chen Lin forced a smile and said nothing more.

Interacting with the people here was a kind of torture.

They seemed to be unaware of their own abnormalities.

The two of them started drinking in silence.

"By the way, Friend Zhao, is it really that difficult to refine pills?"

When Chen Lin saw that they had almost finished the bottle of wine and the meat and porridge were almost gone, he finally asked the question he wanted to know.

Although the other person's mood could change at any time, he couldn't leave, so he had to adapt, and when they weren't "sick," everyone was still normal.

The resources here were extremely scarce, and with his identity, he couldn't buy any pills to help him improve his cultivation.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have thought of using Spirit Rice Porridge to break through the bottleneck.

And he didn't want to stay in this strange place for a moment longer, thinking only about breaking through the middle stage of qi refinement and then escaping.

So he decided to refine the pills himself.

With the ability to hit every ten times, as long as he had the tools, materials, and pill formula, he was sure to succeed.

Zhao Zhengyuan, slightly drunk, exhaled a mouthful of wine, "Tell me, if it wasn't difficult, would even the lowest-quality qi restoring pills be so expensive?"

"That's right, I heard that even among the few qi refining families, each of them only has one pill refiner, and if you, Friend Zhao, succeed, you can immediately go to the inner city and enjoy yourself, at that time don't forget about me!"

Chen Lin poured Zhao a full cup of wine and said casually, "Friend Zhao, since you've already started trying to refine pills, you must have obtained the pill formula, can you tell me what kind of pill it is?"

Zhao Zhengyuan paused, smiled coldly, and glanced at Chen Lin, "What, you want to refine pills too?"

Before Chen Lin could respond, he continued, "Refining pills isn't that easy, I advise you to focus on studying the talisman-making path instead."

Chen Lin's thoughts were seen through, but he didn't mind.

Many people want to learn pill-refining, and he wants to learn too, which is very normal.

However, since he's been exposed, he might as well be straightforward.

"No, I indeed want to learn pill-refining. My cultivation has been stuck at the Qi Refining second stage for over twenty years, and without pill assistance, it's unlikely I'll break through. But you also know that the pills in the city are controlled by the big families, and us low-level scattered cultivators can't possibly buy them, so I've thought of refining pills myself. No matter what, I'll try and won't leave any regrets for myself."

Chen Lin's words made Zhao Zhengyuan sigh as well.

He felt the same way.

Scattered cultivators, especially low-level ones, had it too hard.

After hesitating for a moment, he shook his head, "I do have a pill formula, and I can sell it to you, but I must declare beforehand that this formula has defects, so don't say I cheated you."

"What defects?" Chen Lin immediately asked.

Zhao Zhengyuan searched his chest and pulled out a yellowed paper scroll placing it on his hand, "Pill formulas are ancient inheritances, but with the changes in the cultivation world, some ancient spiritual herbs have already been extinct. Now, pill formulas are modified by pill-refiners themselves after multiple attempts, replacing the spiritual herbs, which is why pill formulas are so scarce."

As he spoke, he unfolded the scroll, revealing the dense, tiny characters on it.

He sighed, "The formula I obtained, although modified, might be very old. One of the spiritual herbs is now extremely rare, and its value has far surpassed that of the pill itself. I've replaced it with a cheap spiritual herb according to its properties, but whether it can be refined into a pill is still unknown."

"Did you replace it yourself?" Chen Lin tapped his finger on the table, his face full of doubt.

"Heh heh." Zhao Zhengyuan's mood changed, and he coldly smiled, "Fellow Daoist Chen, don't look down on me, Zhao, just because I've never refined a pill. I'm from a pill-refining family and have deep research on pharmacology and pharmacological effects. Improving a pill formula is not a difficult task!"

"Is that so? Then let me take a look at what you've replaced," Chen Lin said, ignoring the other person's boastful tone, and reached out to grab the pill formula.

But he was blocked by the other person.

Zhao Zhengyuan rolled up the pill formula again and said, "Three hundred spiritual stones if you want!"

"Too expensive." Chen Lin retracted his hand and took a sip of the porridge.

"This is a pill formula, and it's for increasing cultivation. Three hundred spirit stones are still too expensive? If you went through normal channels, even if you offered many spirit stones, you wouldn't be able to buy it!"

Zhao Zhengyuan's eyes widened in anger. 

Chen Lin shook his head, "What you said is a normal pill formula, but yours is basically a defective formula. Who would buy it? Alright, I'll give you twenty spirit stones, just consider it a hobby."

"Twenty spirit stones? You're kidding, right? What pill formula can be bought at this price? You think it's your powerful talisman?" Zhao Zhengyuan shouted loudly.

Chen Lin didn't say anything more, just drank his porridge silently.

If the other person didn't want to sell, he would have left already. Since he didn't, it meant the other person was eager to sell.

And Chen Lin wasn't sure if his innate abilities would work on such a defective pill formula, so he didn't want to invest too much.

Most importantly, he was very poor.

As expected, Zhao Zhengyuan huffed and puffed for a while before finally relenting.

"Add a bit more, how about fifty spirit stones, and you have to promise not to leak it out."

This price was what Chen Lin could accept, so he nodded, "Alright, but I'll need Friend Zhao to explain the basics of pill-refining and the precautions to me."

After a while, Zhao Zhengyuan left with a look of being taken advantage of.

Chen Lin then carefully examined the pill formula.

He was absorbed in it for an unknown amount of time when he heard the copper bell in the corner of the room emit a low, muffled sound. His face changed, and he immediately stood up and went to the window, opening a crack to look outside.

It was already midnight.

Except for the sound of snowflakes being blown by the cold wind, the city was quiet.

Suddenly, a red light beam appeared from a nearby courtyard.

It shot straight into the sky!

Followed by a second, third, and tenth beam.

In the blink of an eye, countless tiny light beams appeared above the city, densely packed yet orderly, piercing into the dark sky without end.

Such a magnificent scene, even when the blizzard was dispersed, yet not a single cultivator in the city came out to take a look.

It remained quiet.

The scene lasted for nearly a quarter of an hour before the red beams slowly faded away.

The wind picked up again, and the snowflakes danced.

Chen Lin stood still for a while before closing the window and returning to the table.

This scene had been happening every day since he transmigrated.

Every night, at this time, it would appear.

The rest of the time was normal.

After a month of investigation, he discovered that each of the red threads was connected to a person, but he didn't know what they were doing.

Moreover, the people connected by the threads seemed to be unaware of it, and he had asked many people in a roundabout way, but they all looked puzzled.

Even the original host's memories didn't have any records of this situation.

So he suspected that the people here, including the original host, couldn't see this strange phenomenon, just like they couldn't notice their own cold smiles.

Lack of knowledge made it impossible for him to speculate about the cause, and with his current cultivation, he didn't have the ability to investigate.

All he could do was quickly raise his cultivation to the Qi Refining middle stage, gain some survival abilities in the wild, and then escape.

Chapter 3: Hidden Danger

A sleepless night.

The next morning, Chen Lin got up early to prepare to go to the market to buy materials, but before he could leave, someone knocked on the door.

"Friend Chen, it's me, Zhao Zhengyuan."

What did the other person want to do?

Chen Lin was a bit puzzled, but he still went to open the door.

"Friend Zhao, what's the matter so early?"

As he opened the door, Chen Lin invited the other person in.

"Ah, don't mention it, I drank too much last night and forgot about the important thing."

Zhao Zhengyuan shook off the snow on his hat and said in a serious tone, "It's about what happened to us last time."

Immediately, he coldly smiled and said, "But don't worry, I, Zhao, will handle it. There's nothing I can't handle in this city!"

Chen Lin also coldly smiled back, then lowered his head and didn't speak.

The matter that had been weighing on his mind surfaced.

The original host's death wasn't a normal death.

A month ago, the original host and a few companions went to the wilderness to collect materials, and when they returned, they became disoriented and then mysteriously died, allowing him to transmigrate and take over.

Of course, to outsiders, it seemed like he was just sick for a few days and then recovered.

But the companions who went with him all died one by one, leaving only Zhao Zhengyuan.

So, in reality, only the other person had survived, which was why he was wary of him.

As for the cold smiles and red threads, he had long ignored them, as everyone in the city was the same, and there was no way to defend against it.

Except for the midnight hour when the red threads appeared, he didn't dare to go out, and at other times, he just lived a normal life.

"What, did you discover something?"

Chen Lin also wanted to know what had happened that time and looked at the other person with a probing gaze.

The cold smile only lasted for a moment, and Zhao Zhengyuan had already returned to normal. After shaking his head he said, "It's not that I discovered something, but someone else has gotten into trouble, with the same symptoms as us!"

"What?"

Chen Lin was shocked.

"What kind of person, what cultivation level?"

Zhao Zhengyuan's face looked difficult, "This time, there are over a dozen people, with the highest being at the Qi Refining late stage, and there are even cultivators from the five families."

Immediately, he coldly smiled again, "The five families are nothing, with me, Old Zhao, you can rest assured!"

"So many people, including five family cultivators?"

Chen Lin's face changed.

The five families referred to the five major families in the city with Foundation Establishment cultivators, who were the actual controllers of the city.

"That's right, and these people also got sick after returning from the wilderness. If they all die, we two might be investigated."

Zhao Zhengyuan's tone was somewhat gloomy.

This was exactly what Chen Lin was worried about.

Their previous companions were all Qi Refining initial stage scattered cultivators, and whether they died or not didn't matter to anyone.

Now, with Qi Refining late stage cultivators and five major families cultivators involved, it would definitely be taken seriously, and an investigation was unavoidable.

He wasn't afraid of anything else, but he was afraid that his identity as a transmigrator would be exposed, or that the fact that he was different from the people here would be discovered. That would be the end of him.

Although the cultivators here were like puppets on a string, they still acted normally. Even if he was a little special, he was still just a bottom-stage cultivator.

"What's the worst that can happen if they investigate? Am I supposed to die?"

Chen Lin's heart was pounding, but he put on an indifferent front.

Zhao Zhengyuan sighed, "That's true, but what if some people use this as an excuse to make things difficult for us and demand some spirit stones?"

Chen Lin's face turned gloomy.

This was almost certain to happen.

Usually, those in charge would try to squeeze every last drop out of them. Now, with the pretext of investigating the evil influence, they would undoubtedly try to bleed them dry.

Without spirit stones, he wouldn't be able to quickly improve his cultivation, and his plan to escape would be hindered.

"So, what are you going to do? Are you planning to leave this place?"

Chen Lin glanced at his companion, testing the waters.

If they could gather a group of people to leave together, even with weaker cultivation, there might be a glimmer of hope.

He wanted to leave this bizarre place as soon as possible, not spending a moment longer than necessary.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Zhengyuan shook his head repeatedly.

"Leave? Are you joking? With this abnormal snowfall, I don't want to walk out there and die. Besides, we haven't done anything wrong. If we run, it will only make us look guilty, which is a sure way to bring about our demise."

Then, his companion's demeanor changed, and he sneered, "I, Zhao Zhengyuan, would never stoop so low as to become a fugitive!"

Chen Lin nodded helplessly.

His companion couldn't sense the abnormalities of this place, so their thoughts were bound to differ. Their goals were not aligned.

"Sigh, let's just take it one step at a time. What will be, will be. We can't avoid calamity, but we can offer sacrifices to ward off disasters. Our low cultivation and lack of connections are to blame!"

Chen Lin shrugged.

Zhao Zhengyuan wore an expression that showed he deeply agreed.

After further discussion, the two of them couldn't come up with any good solutions. They could only pray that most of the people involved in the incident would survive, ideally without any casualties.

If that happened, it would indicate that the problem wasn't severe enough to attract the attention of the five great families.

After all, their Foundation Establishment stage experts had gone missing, so they probably didn't have the time to bother with minor issues.

After Zhao Zhengyuan left, Chen Lin sat on a stool, frowning in thought.

It was unwise to pin their hopes on others. He had to find a way to quickly improve his cultivation.

In the early stages of Qi training, he was too weak, not even as good as a powerful martial artist, and he had to rely on talismans to cast spells..

Only upon reaching the middle Qi Refining stage could one truly begin to practice spells and wield magical artifacts. That was when one could consider themselves a genuine cultivator.

Chen Lin intended to gain sufficient self-protection abilities and then leave this bizarre city as soon as possible. He had no desire to continue associating with these people who always seemed to be sneering at him.

After some contemplation, he got up and left his room, braving the snow to head directly to the marketplace.

The streets were cold and deserted, with only a few hurriedly moving figures, all of whom wore unwelcoming expressions.

Chen Lin paid them no mind and soon arrived at the marketplace.

He came to the small marketplace in the northern outer city slum area, instead of the inner city.

Due to the abnormal snowfall and the disappearance of the Foundation Establishment stage experts from the five great families, the inner city had been placed under lockdown, making it rather troublesome to enter.

This so-called marketplace was simply a shabby little alley with some shops.

Before the snowfall, there would have been some loose cultivators setting up stalls outside, but now, not a single soul was in sight.

Chen Lin was familiar with the area and soon arrived at a shop. He pushed open the door and entered.

"Well, well, if it isn't Talisman Master Chen. Have you come to sell more Strength-Boosting Talismans?"

A thin middle-aged man with a pockmarked face saw Chen Lin and immediately gave him a mocking smile.

His attitude was less than friendly, and he didn't even bother to get up from his chair.

Chen Lin had come to this shop to sell talismans every once in a while, so he was quite familiar with the shopkeeper.

As for the sneering and cold laughter, Chen Lin had long since stopped paying attention to them, considering them a normal part of this world.

Knowing the shopkeeper's acerbic personality, Chen Lin didn't take it to heart. He returned the sneer and then took out a Fireball Talisman, waving it in front of the man's face. "Zhang Mazi, open your little eyes and take a good look. Didn't you say that I'd never be able to refine a first-grade mid-quality talisman in my entire life?"

"What? You actually succeeded?"

Upon seeing the Fireball Talisman, the man jumped up from his chair in surprise.

He took the talisman with a disbelieving look and carefully examined it before placing it on the counter.

"Impossible! How could someone with your lousy talisman-drawing technique actually refine a Fireball Talisman? It's against the laws of nature!"

Hearing this, Chen Lin pretended to fly into a rage.

"What do you mean by lousy technique? My talisman-making skills have a proper lineage, how dare you call it lousy? Are you going to buy it or not? If not, I'll just go to the Treasure Pavilion next door!"

"I will Buy, I will buy! Don't be angry, Master Chen. I'll give you a better price than the Treasure Pavilion, I assure you."

The shopkeeper forced a smile and repeatedly apologized.

But as soon as he turned around, he gave Chen Lin a mocking smile. "You little loose cultivator, how dare you threaten me? Go ahead, try your luck at the Treasure Pavilion, and I'll shove my foot up your—"

Chen Lin kept reminding himself that these people were not well. Suppressing his anger, he asked, "How many spirit stones are you willing to offer?"

The shopkeeper didn't answer immediately but took the talisman in his hand again and examined it carefully.

After a while, he exclaimed, "Not only have you refined a Fireball Talisman, but its quality is also perfect. Could you be a talisman-making genius?"

Chen Lin knew that the talisman he had refined was perfect, thanks to his golden finger. So, he had some expectations.

If it were an ordinary Fireball Talisman, the purchase price would be transparent—around seven or eight lower-grade spirit stones.

"Stop beating around the bush. How many spirit stones are you offering?" Chen Lin urged again.

The shopkeeper stopped hedging and, after some thought, held up one finger.

"Ten spirit stones?" Chen Lin frowned.

"That's right," the shopkeeper nodded, giving Chen Lin a mocking smile. "Due to the recent situation, the prices of talismans have gone up. We usually buy Fireball Talismans for around eight spirit stones, but considering the quality of your talisman and the fact that you're a regular customer, I can offer you ten."

Chen Lin was somewhat dissatisfied.

Ten spirit stones didn't leave him with much profit.

After all, with his current success rate of one out of ten, he needed to make a decent profit to afford the materials for the pill formula.

"Can you add a little more? I didn't just refine this one, and I'll have more in the future." Chen Lin began to haggle, looking at the shopkeeper's pockmarked face.

He wanted to squeeze out as much as he could; every extra spirit stone counted if he wanted to accumulate enough for the pill formula.

To his surprise, Zhang Mazi, usually sharp-tongued and sarcastic, didn't refuse outright or mock him.

Chen Lin's eyes lit up.

He felt that there was a chance to get a better deal.

Chapter 4: Invitation

"Friend Chen, you know my style. I usually give a take-it-or-leave-it price, but your case isn't without room for discussion."

The shopkeeper stroked his non-existent beard and spoke slowly.

"What do you mean? Spit it out. Why are you being so coy after not seeing me for a few days? Are you turning into a woman?" Chen Lin asked impatiently, his tone turning a little sharp.

The shopkeeper remained unhurried and shot him a glare. "With that attitude, no wonder your cultivation hasn't progressed. Cultivators should avoid being greedy for quick success and instant benefit. You must approach everything with a calm mind and peace. Otherwise, you risk veering off the path and falling into the demonic path!"

Chen Lin was taken aback for a moment, then bowed and said, "Friend Zhang's words are reasonable. I appreciate the lesson."

Regardless of the shopkeeper's constant sneering, what he said made sense.

The shopkeeper gave Chen Lin a look that seemed to say, "You have much to learn, young one," before continuing slowly, "What's the success rate for your Fireball Talismans?"

Chen Lin didn't understand why the shopkeeper was asking this, but he answered honestly, "One in ten."

"Only one in ten? That's a bit low. But it's commendable that you, with your cultivation level, can refine a mid-grade talisman of a higher level. As you become more proficient, your success rate will improve."

The shopkeeper mused, and Chen Lin didn't know how to interject, so he remained silent and waited for him to continue.

"Friend Chen, I wonder if you're interested in joining our Zhang family."

Suddenly, the shopkeeper looked up and said something that surprised Chen Lin.

"What do you mean? Does one of the young ladies of the Zhang family have her eyes on me, wanting me to marry into the family?" Chen Lin immediately imagined countless scenarios.

The Zhang family the shopkeeper referred to was one of the five great cultivator families, the one that had recently lost its Foundation Establishment stage expert.

Even without a Foundation Establishment stage expert, the Zhang family was still one of the five great families, with a deep foundation that ordinary forces couldn't compare to.

Most importantly, they had access to pills, which were exactly what Chen Lin needed to escape this place. He was willing to do whatever it took, even if it meant marrying into the family.

"You're dreaming!"

The shopkeeper was amused by Chen Lin's words and burst into laughter.

Then, with a mocking smile, he said, "How could my Zhang family's young ladies deign to look at a toad like you? If you're willing to marry a mortal without spiritual roots, I could arrange something for you."

Seeing the shopkeeper's half-joking, half-serious expression, Chen Lin quickly shook his head.

"No thanks, I'd rather stay single than be with someone with whom I have nothing in common. So, what did you mean by your previous statement?"

The shopkeeper's expression turned serious. "You may have heard the news. Our Zhang family has encountered some troubles recently and is actively recruiting people with various talents. Since you can refine mid-grade talismans, you meet our recruitment criteria. If you're interested, I can report to the family and invite you to become our exclusive talisman master."

Chen Lin was intrigued. "What benefits come with being an exclusive talisman master?"

Whether it was marrying into the family or becoming an exclusive talisman master, as long as he could get his hands on pills, he was willing to consider it.

"There are many benefits, of course. Not only will you have free access to more talisman-making techniques, but you'll also receive a monthly allowance of spirit stones. Moreover, you'll have the opportunity to learn from our Zhang family's master talisman makers. It's a very attractive offer."

The shopkeeper stroked his chin proudly.

"With so many benefits, there must be some strings attached, right?" Chen Lin was clear-headed; he knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch. The greater the benefits, the greater the cost.

The shopkeeper gave him a mocking smile. "The conditions are quite lenient. All you need to do is sign an Oath of the Heart Devil and never betray the family for the rest of your life!"

Just as he expected.

Chen Lin sneered inwardly.

It was impossible to expect these people to act out of goodwill; that would be pure wishful thinking.

This wasn't a recruitment for an exclusive talisman master; it was more like they were recruiting a slave and asking him to sign a contract of indentured servitude!

The Oath of the Heart Devil was a powerful constraint on cultivators. If one broke the oath, they would be devoured by the heart devil.

"Never mind, I'm used to being free and unconstrained. Thank you for your kindness, Friend Zhang, but I'll have to decline." Chen Lin refused outright.

He didn't even bother to ask if they could provide him with the opportunity to purchase pills.

There was no way he would take the Oath of the Heart Devil; doing so would make it even harder for him to leave this place.

The shopkeeper didn't seem to mind Chen Lin's refusal. Instead, he gave him a meaningful look and said, "Friend Chen, things are getting less peaceful in Kaiyuan City by the day. I advise you to think carefully. If you don't affiliate yourself with one of us cultivator families, your days ahead might not be so pleasant."

Chen Lin was taken aback for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Friend Zhang. I'll think about it some more."

The shopkeeper shook his head, giving Chen Lin a look that seemed to say, "You ungrateful brat."

After leaving the Zhang family's shop, Chen Lin wandered around some other stores and bought a large bag of materials, spending almost all his wealth.

It was only after he had spent almost all his wealth that Chen Lin started making his way back.

The snowfall was still heavy, and the snow on the ground was more than a foot deep, making it difficult even for cultivators to walk.

Along the way, he hardly encountered anyone, and the few he did meet were all mid-to-late Qi Refining stage cultivators who had learned the Flight Technique.

Chen Lin envied those who had mastered the Flight Technique. If he could learn that spell, his chances of survival in the wild would increase significantly.

Unfortunately, the Flight Technique required at least the mid Qi Refining stage to learn, and it was said to be extremely difficult.

For now, his priority was to improve his cultivation level.

He had to start refining pills as soon as possible.

When he returned home, Chen Lin lit a fire to cook a meal. After eating, he began to make talismans.

He was making Strength-Boosting Talismans, a first-grade low-quality talisman, one of the two types that the original owner knew how to make.

The Fireball Talismans were not profitable and required a lot of time, so he had to put them aside for now.

Although the Strength-Boosting Talismans were cheap, the original owner had mastered them, and with his "Hit Every Ten Times" talent, he had a forty percent success rate. After deducting the cost of materials, he could make a profit of about two spirit stones for every ten sets of materials.

By getting up early and staying up late, he could refine twenty sets of materials a day.

That meant a profit of four spirit stones per day!

He planned to use this skill to earn enough spirit stones to buy the materials for pill refining. Only then could he start attempting pill refining.

Chen Lin hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign outside his door and then began to make talismans day and night.

In the blink of an eye, ten days passed.

Chen Lin, with two dark circles under his eyes, looked at the thick stack of talismans in his hand with a sense of accomplishment.

The snow outside had continued to pile up, showing no signs of stopping.

At this rate, he wouldn't be able to leave his house in a few days.

Chen Lin pushed open the window, worriedly watching the snowflakes dancing in the sky for a long time before withdrawing his gaze.

Fortunately, the feared investigation due to the abnormality in his aura hadn't happened, which eased his tension considerably.

After exerting a lot of effort to open the door and clearing some of the snow, Chen Lin trudged toward the marketplace.

Zhang Family Branch Store.

The room was warm, but there weren't many customers.

Chen Lin placed all the Strength-Boosting Talismans on the counter.

"You've actually increased the success rate of the Strength-Boosting Talismans to forty percent. Good progress!"

Through the refining time, Shopkeeper Zhang Mazi had immediately calculated his success rate.

He was astonished.

These low-level talismans were not desirable, so Chen Lin hadn't bothered to conceal his success rate.

He nodded and said, "Yes, ever since I refined the Fireball Talisman, my understanding of talisman making has deepened."

Zhang Mazi had no way of knowing that Chen Lin was no longer the original Chen Lin and had gained the "Hit Every Ten Times" talent. He simply thought that Chen Lin had suddenly had a breakthrough and his potential had been unlocked.

While handing over the spirit stones for the Strength-Boosting Talismans to Chen Lin, Zhang Mazi gave him a mocking smile and then stared at him intently.

Chen Lin felt a bit uncomfortable under his gaze.

"What are you looking at? Are you planning to rob me?" Chen Lin put the spirit stones into his pocket and held them in his hand, eyeing the other man warily.

Zhang Mazi gave him a mocking smile. "Do you think I'm as poor as you? These few spirit stones aren't worth my effort."

Chen Lin knew that with the other man's status, he wouldn't be interested in such a small amount of money. He was probably just trying to ease the atmosphere.

"Then why are you staring at me?"

Zhang Mazi stroked his non-existent beard and said, "I have a widowed older cousin. Although she's a bit older, less attractive, a bit plump, and has a bad temper, she has a cultivation at the fourth stage of Qi Refining. She also has a younger brother at the late Qi Refining stage. If you're interested, Friend Chen, I can introduce you to her."

…

Chen Lin's face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.

Resisting the urge to punch the other man's pockmarked face, he coldly refused, "Thank you for your kindness, Friend Zhang, but your cousin is too good for me."

He was willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of improving his cultivation, but not to that extent.

He thought that Zhang Mazi would be displeased, but to his surprise, the man nodded thoughtfully, giving him a mocking smile. "Friend Chen, you're indeed self-aware. You're right, I was being presumptuous. With your status, my cousin would definitely look down on you. If I really made the introduction, I'd probably be scolded. Forget I ever mentioned it."

Chen Lin opened his mouth, at a loss for words.

He cursed the other man inwardly for looking down on him, and his mood was so ruined that he didn't even feel like buying materials anymore. He turned around and left.

Even after stepping out of the shop, he was still so angry that his chest heaved.

However, the thought that these people were just like puppets on strings helped him calm down a lot.

Chapter 5: Soul-Restraining Talisman

Apart from the Zhang's store, there was only one relatively large store, Treasure Pavilion, in this small market within the slum district.

The interior decoration of Treasure Pavilion was much more luxurious than that of Zhang's store, and it was more popular, with several customers browsing through the goods even on a day like this.

However, they weren't very interested in low-grade talismans like the Strength-Boosting Talisman, and the prices they offered were lower than those at Zhang Mazi's place. Therefore, Chen Lin had never sold any talismans here.

The shopkeeper was an old man with a square face, who was currently attending to an elegantly dressed couple. When he saw Chen Lin enter, he only gave him a glance and didn't say a word.

Chen Lin didn't mind.

The shopkeeper recognized him and knew he didn't have much purchasing power, as he had visited several times before.

There were also two sweet-looking female attendants, who were busy serving other customers. Chen Lin slowly made his way to the counter where talisman-making materials were sold and began to browse.

Suddenly, his ears perked up.

The conversation between the couple caught his attention.

"Brother, going out of the city at this time might be dangerous, and it will also delay our family's business. I think it's better not to take unnecessary risks."

The woman who spoke had a very pleasant voice, a beautiful figure, and a lovely profile.

The man was handsome, exuding an air of confidence, and he sneered coldly, "What's there to be afraid of? I'm a Qi Refining late-stage cultivator, and I'll protect you if there's any danger!"

Chen Lin's eyes flickered slightly.

It turned out that the man was a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, which meant he was definitely from a cultivator family . There weren't many people with such cultivation in the secular world.

However, Chen Lin felt that the man's tone was a bit too arrogant. The head of the Zhang family's Foundation Establishment Stage had just gone missing, and a Qi Refining late-stage cultivator couldn't possibly be stronger than that.

The woman seemed to want to say something, but was immediately interrupted by the man.

"It doesn't matter, we're not going far. If you're afraid, you can go back first, and I'll come find you later."

The woman pouted, but didn't say anything else.

Chen Lin was secretly thinking about which family these two were from and whether he could buy cultivation-enhancing pills from them. As he was thinking, the man spoke up again.

But this time, it wasn't to the woman, but to the old shopkeeper.

"Shopkeeper, I came from the Treasure Pavilion in the inner city. The people at your branch told me that there's someone here who can refine Soul-Restraining Talismans. Can you tell me who it is?"

Chen Lin silently observed.

He had never even heard of Soul-Restraining Talismans and wasn't interested, but he was thinking about how to get close to them and buy pills.

The old shopkeeper was taken aback, then forced a laugh and said, "Sir, you must be Lu Li, the third young master of the Lu family. The one who told you this information was an old woman with one eye, wasn't it?"

"Yes?"

Lu Li nodded.

The old shopkeeper sneered coldly and said, "She didn't lie to you. There is indeed someone here who can refine Soul-Restraining Talismans, and that person is me!"

When Chen Lin heard the old shopkeeper's words, he was extremely surprised.

He really didn't know that the old shopkeeper was a talisman master.

Lu Li also revealed a joyful expression and said, "So, shopkeeper, you're the talisman master. That's great! I've already prepared all the materials for the Soul-Restraining Talisman. As long as you help me refine it, I'll definitely be grateful!"

His loud voice attracted the attention of several other customers in the store.

Under Lu Li's expectant gaze, the old shopkeeper shook his head.

"I'm extremely sorry, but I no longer have the ability to refine such talismans. You'd better find someone else."

The old shopkeeper's refusal made Lu Li's face turn gloomy.

"What do you mean? Are you playing with me, or do you think I'm not qualified?"

A fierce aura suddenly emanated from his body.

It seemed like he was ready to fight at any moment.

The old shopkeeper saw the situation and immediately explained, "Friend Lu, please calm down. It's not that I'm unwilling to refine it, but I no longer have the ability to do so."

"Why?"

Lu Li's tone was filled with skepticism.

The old shopkeeper looked at him and said, "Since you know about the Soul-Restraining Talisman, you should also know that refining it is extremely difficult. Normally, there's almost no chance of success. To increase the success rate, a talisman master's divine soul is required as a catalyst."

Seeing that Lu Li didn't respond, the old shopkeeper continued, "Over the years, my divine soul has weakened to the extreme due to refining this talisman. I'm no longer capable of withstanding the consumption of refining another one, even if it means sacrificing my life."

The old shopkeeper's words made Lu Li frown.

The old shopkeeper had said it so bluntly that Lu Li couldn't press the issue further.

Even though he was a disciple of the Lu family, Treasure Pavilion wasn't a place where he could act recklessly.

However, the Soul-Restraining Talisman was crucial for his current trip. If he couldn't get it, it would be a waste of a great opportunity.

"Shopkeeper, this Soul-Restraining Talisman is very important to me. Do you know if there's anyone else who can refine it?"

He asked reluctantly.

The old shopkeeper shook his head, "Refining the Soul-Restraining Talisman is difficult, and it can only be stored for a day after successful refinement. Very few talisman masters are willing to research it, so I'm afraid there's no one else in the city who can refine it."

As he said this, his tone changed, and he sneered coldly, "However, I've improved the refining method of this talisman through my decades of experience. It's very easy to refine, and I can sell you the method. You can find a talisman master to refine it yourself."

Lu Li was taken aback.

He frowned and asked with some doubt, "Is refining this talisman really that easy? I need it urgently tomorrow."

The old shopkeeper chuckled, "It's very simple. Any talisman master can easily learn it, but to refine it successfully, you'll need some luck, and the talisman master will need to use their divine soul as a catalyst."

Lu Li frowned again, hesitated for a moment, and then agreed to the old shopkeeper's suggestion.

Next, the old shopkeeper took out a jade slip, which was about the width of a finger, and handed it to Lu Li.

Chen Lin recognized this item, it was called a jade slip, which was a tool used to record information in the cultivation world. It was a high-grade item.

The old shopkeeper claimed to be selling it at a half-price, half-gift deal, selling it to Lu Li for 1,000 spirit stones.

Chen Lin sighed at the wealth of the family disciples and stopped paying attention, instead focusing on buying materials.

This time, he was buying materials to refine the Strength-Boosting Talisman.

Eighty spirit stones weren't enough for ten sets of refining materials, so he needed to continue saving.

After buying the materials, he turned to leave.

The snow outside had decreased a bit.

But the cold wind was still biting, making it hard to open his eyes.

Despite this, people began to appear on the streets, some clearing snow from their doorsteps, others struggling to move forward in the snow.

Without exception, they would occasionally sneer coldly.

Chen Lin tightened his cotton hat and followed the footprints he had made earlier, cautiously observing his surroundings while struggling to make his way back home.

Suddenly, two figures flew past him and landed in front of him.

Chen Lin's face changed, thinking that someone was daring to rob him in broad daylight.

But when he saw the faces of the people, his shock turned to confusion.

It was actually the Third Young Master Lu Li and his cousin!

Chapter 6: Huge Reward

"What do you two want?"

Chen Lin stopped in his tracks and cautiously looked at the two of them.

Although he didn't think they would rob him, he didn't understand why they would stop him.

"No need to be alarmed, my cousin and I don't have any ill intentions. We just have a request to make."

Lu Li cupped his hands together and forced a smile.

Chen Lin's eyes flickered slightly, as if he had some idea of their intentions, but he still felt it was unlikely.

At this time, Lu Li spoke up again, "Let me introduce myself first. I'm Lu Li, a member of the Lu family, and this is my cousin, Lan Yuqing. We met at Treasure Pavilion earlier. I urgently need to refine a Soul-Restraining Talisman, and I saw that you bought talisman-making materials, so I thought you might be a talisman master."

Chen Lin's mouth twitched.

It was true.

He had been guessed correctly.

The other party must be very desperate to act so recklessly.

"Sorry, I'm just a low-level talisman master who has just started out. I can only refine Strength-Boosting Talismans, so I'm afraid I can't be of much help."

Chen Lin shook his head repeatedly.

His refusal was very direct.

Although he wanted to try it out and had the ability to Hit Every Ten Times, he didn't dare agree.

He absolutely couldn't reveal his innate abilities, or he would be killed instantly if others thought he had some kind of treasure.

Even if others believed it was an innate ability, there was a high possibility of being imprisoned and used as a talisman-making slave.

In this cultivation world, there was no concept of justice or morality, only the law of the jungle.

Lu Li didn't mind Chen Lin's refusal.

He sneered coldly and said, "I am planning to hold a talisman making conference tonight at the Lianyun Inn. I sincerely invite you to come and participate." 

"If you have any acquaintances who are talisman masters, you can also recommend them to come. I, Lu, have plenty of spirit stones, and no matter who it is, as long as they can refine the talisman I need, I'll reward them with 50 middle-grade spirit stones. The recommender will also receive a reward of 5 middle-grade spirit stones!"

Chen Lin's eyes widened in shock.

The reward was truly too generous!

"Okay, then."

He nodded in agreement.

Spirit stones!

The huge reward had instantly broken down Chen Lin's defenses.

Seeing this, Lu Li's face also looked much better.

Then, the two cousins simultaneously sneered coldly and flew away, their figures disappearing into the distance.

Chen Lin gazed enviously at their backs, thinking about when he could learn to fly and wouldn't have to crawl through the snow.

He waited until their figures had completely disappeared before he snapped his mouth shut and looked away.

He continued to make his way back home, struggling through the snow.

There were many others crawling through the snow as well.

From a distance, it looked like a group of stiff, undead creatures, emitting eerie, cold laughter.

This was no longer the demeanor of cultivators, but rather a bunch of eerie, crazy people.

Chen Lin quickened his pace.

He returned to his courtyard with a heavy-heart, and happened to run into his neighbour, the yellow-faced woman.

"Hmph, old rascal!"

He had wanted to greet her, but she glared at him with a bad attitude, making him swallow his words.

Chen Lin twitched his mouth, too lazy to bother with such a woman, and ignored her as he walked into his room.

He had just taken off his cotton clothes and hat when the door was knocked on.

"Friend Chen, it's me, Zhao Zhengyuan."

Chen Lin's eyes flashed, and he grasped a talisman in his hand and opened the door.

"Friend Chen, something terrible has happened!"

As soon as the door opened a crack, Zhao Zhengyuan squeezed in, with a look of panic on his face.

"What's wrong?"

Sensing the other party's emotions, Chen Lin also became a little nervous.

"They're all dead!"

Zhao Zhengyuan's face turned pale, and his lips trembled nonstop.

"What's going on? Are they all dead?"

Chen Lin was puzzled, but soon his expression changed drastically.

"Could it be that those who were possessed by the evil spirit are all dead?"

Zhao Zhengyuan nodded repeatedly.

"That's right. I told you before that many people were possessed like us, didn't I? This morning, I saw you go out, and I also went out to investigate. That's when I found out that they're all dead, and their deaths are similar to Sun Shi and others!"

Chen Lin's face turned gloomy.

The person mentioned, Sun Shi, was a cultivator who was possessed by the evil spirit along with the original host. He died not long after returning.

There were a few others who didn't survive either.

It's said that their deaths were gruesome, like they were dried up, and their entire bodies turned into mummies.

"Are they really all dead? Not a single one survived?"

Chen Lin's voice was dry.

If that's the case, then his and Zhao Zhengyuan's existence would be too conspicuous, and they would definitely attract attention.

Zhao Zhengyuan's face didn't look good either, and he spat out a mouthful of saliva. "The ones from last time are all dead, but new cultivators who were possessed have appeared, and it's already caught people's attention. Many are discussing this matter."

"There are more people possessed?"

Chen Lin was shocked.

The more people possessed, the more conspicuous he and Zhao Zhengyuan would be, and that's not a good thing.

"That's right, and there are quite a few of them. There are two rumors going around: one is that a powerful evil creature has appeared outside the city and is targeting Kaiyuan City, and the other is that it's a plague."

Zhao Zhengyuan pulled himself out of his tense emotions and sat down in a chair.

"A plague?"

Chen Lin furrowed his brow. "Impossible, right? Can cultivators also get infected with plague?"

Zhao Zhengyuan gave a cold, sidelong glance. "Of course they can, but it's definitely not an ordinary plague. Don't worry, I, Zhao, have some research on plagues!"

Chen Lin automatically ignored the other's nonsense and remained silent.

If it's really a plague, then that would be good. As long as they isolate themselves and don't come into contact with others, they can avoid it. But if it's a powerful evil creature targeting them, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Moreover, if a powerful, strange creature appears outside, the danger of him escaping from this place would increase exponentially.

"What do you think it is?"

Chen Lin asked casually.

"Ah, who knows? We'll find out after a while. Anyway, no matter what it is, we're powerless. This heavy snow is blocking our way, and we can't even find a path out of the city. We can only wait inside."

Zhao Zhengyuan sighed and shook his head as he left the room.

After he left, Chen Lin fell into deep thought, but no matter how he thought about it, it was just like Zhao Zhengyuan said – there was no way out.

It's definitely not possible to escape from the city now.

The half-meter-thick snow wouldn't allow them to fly, and the demonic beasts outside would probably be starving, making it suicidal to go out. Not to mention the possibility of a powerful, strange creature.

"This world is too crazy to proceed step by step! "

Chen Lin gritted his teeth and made a decision.

Originally, he planned to take it slow and steady, relying on his "Hit Every Ten Times" ability to slowly cultivate, but this sudden change forced him to alter his plans.

He didn't continue making talismans but instead cooked a pot of spiritual rice porridge, drank it, and then began to meditate and cultivate.

In the evening, he prepared himself and left the room with his backpack on.

Chapter 7: Ruthless

"Hey, you've been out for so long, why did you come back in this state?"

As soon as Chen Lin walked out of his room, he saw the wax-yellow-faced female cultivator walking in from outside the courtyard.

Her steps were unsteady, her hair was a mess like a bird's nest, and her clothes were disheveled, as if she had just rolled around on the ground.

She also had an unknown smell on her body.

The usually sharp-tongued yellow-faced female cultivator was unusually silent this time, not even daring to look at Chen Lin, and instead kept her head down, holding a rice bag with both hands, and hurriedly walked back to her own room.

Chen Lin looked at her back with a thoughtful expression, shook his head, and didn't bother to intervene.

Here, everyone had their own way of surviving, and there was no need to get involved in others' business.

With his backpack on, Chen Lin walked out of the courtyard and walked for a while along the narrow road that had been cleared. He turned around an alley and checked around to see that no one was passing by. He then quickly dug a hole in a large snowbank that had been naturally formed by the wind and crawled inside.

After a while, a stout man with a black face and a fur hat emerged from the snow hole.

The black-faced man first looked around to make sure no one was there, then shook off the snow on his body, and walked out of the alley.

Lianyun Inn.

Chen Lin, now the black-faced man, arrived at the inn's entrance when the sky had already completely darkened.

"Halt, this place has already been booked for the day. If you want to stay, please go elsewhere!"

Just as he was about to enter, someone blocked his way.

"Oh, I'm a talisman master. I heard that the Young Master Lu, is offering a reward for crafting talismans, so I came to give it a try."

Chen Lin's voice had also changed, becoming somewhat hoarse.

Whether it was the facial disguise or the voice-changing pill, they were all made by Chen Lin using his "Hit Every Ten Times" ability, which was a test of his innate talent.

"Ah, a talisman master, please follow me!"

Upon hearing that Chen Lin was a talisman master, one of the two guards immediately smiled and welcomed him in.

Chen Lin was slightly surprised.

He had thought he would need to go through a lot of trouble, wondering what to say if they asked to verify his identity, but it turned out they didn't ask anything at all.

It was unclear whether Lu Li was really enthusiastic about the Soul-Restraining Talisman or felt that no one in Kaiyuan City dared to harm a descendant of the Lu family.

In any case, it saved him from a lot of trouble.

Following the servant, Chen Lin walked into the inn's main hall and saw that there were already over ten people present.

In the center of the hall, Lu Li sat in a chair with an unreadable expression.

His junior sister sat behind him.

After Chen Lin was led into the hall, the servant retreated, and seeing that no one was speaking, he found a corner and sat down quietly.

Then, several more people were led in.

After that, no one else came.

After waiting for a while, Lu Li raised his eyebrows and stood up from the chair. 

"Thank you, esteemed talisman masters, for your presence!"

He first bowed and then looked around the room, and said, "I'm sure you all know why I've gathered you here. My time is limited, so I won't waste words. This is the method for crafting the Soul-Restraining Talisman. Please take a look!"

He then took out a jade slip, which was the one he had obtained from the old shopkeeper at Treasure Pavilion.

Chen Lin noticed that as soon as Lu Li finished speaking, the eyes of everyone in the room lit up.

Regardless of whether they could obtain the reward of spirit stones, being able to get the method for crafting a rare talisman like this was worth the trip.

He estimated that at least half of these people were here to take advantage of the situation.

"I'll go first. I want to see what's so special about this Soul-Restraining Talisman that it requires Young Master Lu to host a talisman-crafting conference to create it!"

A red-faced man stepped forward, gave a cold, sidelong glance, and took the jade slip.

The information inside the jade slip required spiritual power to view, and he attached it to his forehead. His face began to change color rapidly.

Soon, the man's face turned pale, and he seemed to want to say something, but after glancing at Lu Li, he didn't speak and instead handed the jade slip to the second person.

The second person received it with a puzzled expression, and after observing it, his face also turned pale.

The jade slip was then passed around the room, and each person's face didn't look good after viewing it.

Finally, it was Chen Lin's turn.

He attached the jade slip to his forehead, and his spiritual power transformed into a probing hand that entered the slip.

A series of images appeared in Chen Lin's mind.

This feeling was very strange, something that ordinary people could never understand.

Soon, the method for crafting the Soul-Restraining Talisman was understood.

According to the contents of the jade slip, the requirements for crafting the Soul-Restraining Talisman were not high, and the manufacturing process was not complex.

However, there was a major flaw.

That was that the stability of this talisman was extremely poor, and the success rate was almost zero if crafted normally.

To increase the success rate, the crafter had to use their own soul as a catalyst, and fuse it into the talisman.

The more soul energy infused, the higher the success rate.

Even so, the final success rate was still quite low, and the stability of the talisman was still poor. It was only able to maintain its effects for a day and a night at most.

The jade slip also contained a secret method for splitting one's soul, but it was a crude and simple technique that posed a significant risk to the user.

Chen Lin returned the jade slip to Lu Li and his face was also not looking too good.

Of course, he was just pretending.

With his "Hit Every Ten Times" ability, he only needed to follow the normal crafting method to successfully craft the Soul-Restraining Talisman, without needing to use the soul catalyst.

At the same time, he thought it was a pity.

This talisman had too many drawbacks, and its effects could only last for a day. Otherwise, it would be a great item for him to use his innate talent to make money.

Moreover, this talisman was too niche, neither an attack nor a defense type, but rather used for soul collection.

A soul collection item that could only last for a day, it was unclear what it could be used for.

It was unclear who would buy it even if it was crafted.

"Alright, everyone should now understand the method for crafting the Soul-Restraining Talisman. It's not complicated, but the success rate is a bit low. However, I've prepared sufficient materials, and the room is ready. Let's get started!"

Lu Li took out a large pile of materials from his storage bag and spoke loudly.

However, no one moved.

After a long silence, the red-faced man finally broke the silence, "Young Master Lu, crafting this Soul-Restraining Talisman will cause too much damage to our souls. You didn't make it clear earlier, so I'm afraid I won't be able to help."

Immediately, a withered old man gave a cold, sidelong glance and said, "That's right. Although Young Master Lu's reward is quite generous, our souls are the foundation of our cultivation. If we suffer damage, we'll be cut off from the path of immortality. A few thousand spirit stones aren't enough to make me do this!"

"Hmph!"

As soon as the old man finished speaking, Lan Yuqing, who had been sitting silently, suddenly burst out laughing.

She also gave a cold, sidelong glance and said, "This Daoist friend is probably around 60 or 70 years old, and yet his cultivation is only at the Qi Refining third stage. He's still stubbornly pursuing the path of immortality. It's truly admirable!"

Her voice was like silver bells, but her words were piercing.

The old man's face turned red, but he still stubbornly said, "Even if my path is dark, soul damage will still have a significant impact on us talisman crafters. I won't create such a talisman, farewell!"

He then walked towards the door with a cold face.

"Hmph!"

Lu Li's face turned cold.

"Do you think this is a place where you can come and go as you please?"

After speaking, a black light shot out from his hand, piercing through the old man's chest, and then flashed back to Lu Li's hand.

The entire process was over in the blink of an eye, and the old man didn't even have time to react before falling to the ground dead.

Everyone gasped in shock, looking at Lu Li with a mixture of fear, anger, and horror.

But no one dared to speak out.

Even the two people who had shown signs of weakness earlier were forced to hold back their words.

Chapter 8: Making Talisman

Chen Lin was also shocked by Lu Li's methods.

One wrong move and he would kill someone; the family descendants indeed didn't put these rouge cultivators in their eyes.

However, Chen Lin naturally wouldn't dare to do anything reckless, so he also shrank back into his chair and remained silent.

Seeing the effect of his intimidation, Lu Li coldly laughed again, "My things aren't something you can just take casually. You think you can get a talisman-making method and a Soul-Restraining Secret Technique for free? "

He glanced around the room.

Seeing no one speaking, he coldly laughed again, "Now I'll give you two choices: either take the materials and find a room to make the talisman yourself, or pay 50 middle-grade spirit stones to buy the talisman-making method. If you want to leave forcefully, you'll have to ask if my flying sword agrees!"

As he spoke, he waved the small, exquisite black sword in his hand.

Just a moment ago, this sword had instantly killed that old, withered man.

With a loud noise, the red-faced man pushed his chair back, took a few strides forward, grabbed a set of materials, and went upstairs without looking back.

It seemed that he was the most hot-tempered, but also the first to surrender.

The talisman makers were all scattered, rootless cultivators who usually relied on their skills to make a living. 50 middle-grade spirit stones were an amount that none of them could afford.

That was equivalent to 5,000 lower-grade spirit stones!

Moreover, even if they could afford it, who knew if Lu Li would keep his word?

Someone took the lead, and the others immediately followed, each taking a set of materials and going upstairs to find a room to make the talisman.

Chen Lin also blended in with the crowd and received a set of materials.

When he received the materials, Lu Li glanced at him but didn't recognize him.

Silently, Chen Lin went upstairs, chose an empty room, hung a sign on the door to indicate that someone was inside, and closed the door.

Only then did he let out a gentle sigh.

It seemed that his decision to come here was still a bit reckless. He underestimated the chaos of this world.

No matter what, he couldn't have imagined that Lu Li would so casually take someone's life!

After a while, Chen Lin finally calmed down, then went to the table, opened the material package, and began to prepare.

He no longer had high hopes for the reward; as long as he could leave safely, that would be enough.

However, with so many talisman makers, the other party couldn't possibly silence them all. That would be too big of an impact, even for a family descendants.

Killing that old man was just to intimidate them, to prevent them from being reluctant to use their souls to create a Soul-Restraining Talisman.

After thinking it through, Chen Lin felt that the possibility of being silenced was low, so he began to recall the method of drawing the Soul-Restraining Talisman.

After a long time, he opened his eyes, took out a talisman paper, and spread it out.

The materials provided were very complete, including talisman paper, talisman pen, talisman ink, a calming incense stick, and a spirit-replenishing pill.

It seemed that they had indeed put in effort.

This further proved that the other party's main intention was to obtain the Soul-Restraining Talisman, and they truly didn't want their lives.

With his heart at ease, Chen Lin prepared to make the talisman.

Suddenly, Lu Li's voice came from the corridor outside, "Everyone, I must obtain the Soul-Restraining Talisman. To avoid distracting you, I didn't send anyone to supervise, but don't think you can slack off. After the talisman is complete, I have a way to detect whether you used the Soul-Splitting Secret Technique. If I detect it, hehe!"

Chen Lin took a deep breath, ignoring the other party's threatening words, and picked up the talisman ink bottle to examine it.

According to the jade slip's contents, this talisman ink was a mixture of three substances, and he only knew one of them, the black leaf grass, a rare and expensive spirit grass. The other two were completely unknown to him.

It only took Lu Li half a day to get the jade slips, but he managed to gather so many pieces of information, which showed both his identity and financial resources.

He lit the calming incense stick, and his thoughts immediately calmed down.

Chen Lin picked up the talisman pen, dipped it in the talisman ink, and began to draw lines on the talisman paper, slowly and carefully.

"Whoosh!"

As soon as he drew two talisman patterns, the talisman paper suddenly trembled, and then a black light appeared and turned into ashes.

This was normal.

After all, it was his first time attempting this kind of talisman, and it would be strange if he succeeded at once.

He cleaned up the ashes, took out another talisman paper, and began to draw again.

He failed again.

He repeated this process several times, wasting several high-quality talisman papers, and even ate a spirit-replenishing pill in the middle. Only then did he manage to push the entire talisman pattern to half completion.

Chen Lin didn't know how the other talisman makers were doing, but he felt that he had done his best.

With his level of skill, if he didn't use his soul as a guide, it was impossible to complete all the talisman patterns, let alone create a talisman.

He shook his head and continued drawing the talisman.

Very soon, it was the tenth attempt, and the familiar scene finally appeared.

Just as the talisman pattern was half completed, the entire talisman began to tremble and was about to be destroyed. An invisible mysterious force suddenly appeared, wrapped around the talisman paper, and forcefully pulled it together. A complete talisman with subtle energy fluctuations appeared on the table!

Every time Chen Lin saw this scene, he was extremely shocked, but he didn't have time to study it now.

He gathered the remaining materials, put them in his pocket, and decided that if he couldn't get spirit stones, these items would be his reward.

Then, he walked to the door, pressed his ear against it, and listened for any movement.

He decided to wait until everyone else had gone downstairs before he went down. If someone else had successfully created the Soul-Restraining Talisman, he wouldn't take out his. But if everyone else had failed, he would take his out, otherwise, he felt that Lu Li, under the stimulation of great disappointment, might kill them all in a fit of rage.

Time passed slowly, and finally, footsteps appeared in the corridor, gradually heading downstairs.

He counted the number of people in his heart, and when the last footsteps had gone downstairs, he finally walked out of the room, pretending to be stunned and disoriented, and staggered down the stairs.

There were about twenty talisman makers, each with their heads hung low and their spirits exhausted.

Just looking at this scene, it was clear that no one had succeeded in creating the talisman.

"What's the result?"

Lu Li's face was as calm as water as he looked at the crowd, his eyes already guessing the outcome.

The red-faced man was the first to speak up, "I'm truly sorry, my skills are not refined, I've used up all the materials, and I've used the Soul-Splitting Secret Technique twice, but I still didn't succeed!"

After finishing, he cupped his hands together and revealed a carefree attitude.

Without his usual cold, sarcastic smile, this person was actually quite humble.

Lu Li slowly stood up from his seat, took out a brown, egg-sized bead, and pointed at it with his hand. The bead automatically floated up and hovered above the red-faced man's eyebrows.

Then, the bead emitted a faint, grayish light and flashed slowly.

"Alright, you can leave."

Lu Li put away the bead and waved his hand.

The red-faced man cupped his hands together again and retreated to the back of the crowd.

Chen Lin glanced at this person, who had unexpectedly used the secret technique twice. Even in such a situation, there's internal strife. What are you going to do about the others?

Indeed, the other talisman makers looked at this person with some resentment in their eyes.

But they could only curse him in their hearts and didn't dare to speak out.

Next, an old man in a blue robe stood up, recounted his talisman-making process, and then accepted the inspection.

The brown bead floated again and stuck to the person's eyebrows.

This time, the light was slightly brighter, and the flashing frequency was slower.

"You only used the secret technique once, huh?"

Lu Li snorted.

Normally, using the secret technique once would be enough, but after the previous person's performance, it seemed insufficient.

The old man hastily explained, "Reporting to Young master Lu, I don't dare to conceal the truth. This talisman is too difficult to make, and with my many years of experience in talisman-making, I can say that even if I used the secret technique five or ten times, I still wouldn't be able to succeed. And at my old age, using the secret technique once is already my limit. If I use it again, I'm afraid I'll die on the spot!"

Lu Li waved his hand expressionlessly, but didn't say anything else.

The old man quickly retreated to the back of the crowd and then glared fiercely at the red-faced man.

Chapter 9: I've Struck It Rich!

Next, others were examined one after another.

The Soul-Detecting Pearl's flashing intensity was similar to that of the old man in green, indicating that they had all used the Soul-Splitting secret technique.

Before long, everyone had finished their inspections, leaving only Chen Lin.

Lu Li's face had already turned extremely ugly.

His eyes gleamed with a fierce light, as if he might erupt into violence at any moment.

The atmosphere had become extremely tense.

Chen Lin observed with his peripheral vision that several talisman masters had already slipped their hands into their sleeves, probably holding magical weapons.

Some people had also formed seals on their hands, ready to cast their spells at any moment.

In short, no one wanted to sit back and wait for death.

With Lu Li's keen senses, it was impossible for him not to notice this situation, but he seemed completely unconcerned, clearly not taking these people's abilities seriously.

As Lu Li was about to control the pearl to inspect Chen Lin, Chen Lin hastily pulled out the successfully crafted Soul-Restraining Talisman from his bosom.

"I'm fortunate to have not disgraced myself, and I've luckily succeeded once. I don't know if I've met your requirements, Young Master Lu."

After that, he handed over the talisman .

He didn't dare let Lu Li inspect him, for if Lu Li discovered that he hadn't used a secret technique, it would be difficult to explain.

"Ah!"

Lu Li had long since given up any illusions, and he was only thinking about whether he should gather more materials after the inspections were completed and have these people craft the talismans again.

However, he also knew that since they hadn't succeeded this time, it was likely that even if they crafted the talismans several more times, it would be of no help.

The talisman masters he found were all casual cultivators who were not very high in cultivation and whose craftsmanship was definitely not exquisite. However, he couldn't force the talisman masters from the major families, and he didn't have enough leverage to entice them with benefits.

But unexpectedly, just when all hope seemed lost, the last talisman master, who was only at the Qi Refining second stage, actually produced a successful talisman!

Lu Li snatched it over and held it up to examine it.

Then, he burst into loud laughter.

"Ha ha, not bad, not bad! It's indeed true that you can't judge a person by their appearance. I didn't expect your talisman-crafting skills to be so refined, which gave me a huge surprise. What's your esteemed surname?"

Lu Li happily put the talisman away and his tone also became more amiable.

The tense atmosphere in the hall relaxed slightly.

The others were stunned for a moment before congratulating him in unison.

The talisman had been successfully crafted, so they didn't have to worry about Lu Li venting his anger by killing them, which was why they were genuinely happy.

Chen Lin cupped his hands together and without a hint of pride he said, "I'm Wang Tieniu, just a low-level talisman master who has just entered the door. It's purely luck that I was able to craft this talisman."

"Heh heh, no need to be too humble. Luck is also a part of one's abilities."

Lu Li's face was filled with smiles, a complete transformation from before.

After speaking, he gestured to his cousin, who had been silent the entire time, and she brought over a cloth bag and placed it heavily on the table in front of him with a loud thud.

"These are 50 mid-grade spirit stones. I, Lu Li, am a man of my word. Since Daoist Wang has crafted the talisman, the reward will definitely not be a single piece less!"

50 mid-grade spirit stones!

Chen Lin's breathing became heavy and rough.

He hadn't expected that Lu Li would actually keep his promise and give him the reward.

Not only him, but the others' eyes also sparkled with excitement, fixedly staring at the spirit stones bag.

This made Chen Lin's heart skip a beat.

If he took these spirit stones out, he estimated that he wouldn't be able to walk far before being robbed and killed.

With his Qi Refining second stage cultivation, anyone here could overpower him.

However, it was impossible for him to give up this sum of spirit stones.

Thinking of this, he didn't hesitate to take the heavy spirit stones bag in his hand, then asked Lu Li, "Fellow Daoist Lu, may I take my leave first?"

Lu Li looked at him with a hint of a smile and nodded his head, "Very well, Daoist Wang, take your time."

Receiving permission, Chen Lin's heart relaxed slightly, and he carried the spirit stones bag out of the inn's main gate without looking back.

He took advantage of the night to hurry along the road.

He didn't dare to be certain how long Lu Li could keep those talisman masters occupied, so he used all his strength to traverse the snowy terrain with his feet flying in all directions.

He quickly arrived at the place where he had changed his clothes and disguise earlier. He looked around cautiously, and after making sure no one was around, he dove into the snow pile.

Soon, a young woman wearing a white dress emerged.

Her face was a bit pale, and there were still snowflakes on her hair.

She cautiously looked around, then adjusted the bundle on her shoulder and quickly proceeded along the small path that had been trampled out.

After several twists and turns, she stopped in front of a broken-down courtyard door.

After checking back to make sure he wasn't being followed, he pushed the door open, stepped inside, and closed the door again with his backhand.

Not far away, Lu Li and his cousin's figures suddenly appeared in mid-air, floating quietly.

Lu Li raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at the courtyard door with interest. "I didn't expect it to be a woman. Her disguise technique is quite good, and she's also very cautious."

"Should we catch her, Big Brother?" 

Seeing that her cousin didn't move, Lan Yuqing spoke in confusion.

"What's the point of catching her? Fifty mid-grade spirit stones aren't enough to make me go back on my word. I just want to confirm her residence and identity. Who knows, maybe we can use her in the future."

Lu Li returned with a sideways sneer.

Lan Yuqing nodded and said no more.

Her big brother's personality was a bit arrogant, but he was also a man of his word, which was one of the reasons she liked him.

"Alright, let's go back. We'll leave the city early tomorrow morning, so let's get some rest."

Lu Li glanced at the courtyard, then drove his artifact and left with Lan Yuqing by his side.

The two of them had just departed when the snow pile behind the courtyard wall suddenly trembled, and a figure emerged from within.

It was none other than Chen Lin.

He hadn't discovered Lu Li's surveillance, and merely out of caution, he looked around before quickly departing.

This time, there were no detours, and he quickly returned to his residence.

He locked the door, calmed himself down, then took off his outer clothes and retrieved the bag containing the spirit stones from his waist.

He gently stroked the bag, then opened it and poured out all the spirit stones inside.

Clatter!

A dazzling array of spirit stones covered the table.

Chen Lin felt dizzy and mesmerized, and his breathing became rough. He picked up one piece, then touched all the spirit stones.

He had struck it rich!

This time, he had really struck it rich!

One mid-grade spirit stone was equivalent to one hundred low-grade spirit stones, and fifty pieces meant five thousand low-grade spirit stones!

A huge sum of money!

Chen Lin was excited for nearly half an hour before calming down, he put the spirit stones away, and thought about how to spend them.

At the same time, he also reflected on whether he had been followed earlier.

Although he felt that Lu Li, with his identity, wouldn't bother to secretly tail him for these spirit stones, otherwise, he wouldn't have let him go and even allowed him to leave first.

However, his habitual cautiousness still led him to change his identity twice and use a previously prepared hideout.

That broken-down courtyard was one he had rented a month ago using a female identity, and he had never used it before. It was meant to be a safe haven in case of danger, and this time, he had used it to avoid leaving any traces.

But Chen Lin felt it was worth it.

He was currently too weak, and for safety, he couldn't be too cautious.

That night, Chen Lin couldn't sleep, so he got up and began to meditate and cultivate.

With his pockets full, he extravagantly used a mid-grade spirit stone, and the effect was indeed much faster than normal cultivation. However, the energy was slightly unstable and not explosive enough to help him break through.

The next morning, Chen Lin washed up and went to the Treasure Pavilion.

After buying ten sets of alchemy materials and a simple alchemy furnace, he hurried back home.

Back at home, he hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door and began to attempt alchemy.