"Could it be that he's from a noble family?"
Jiang Ming froze for a moment at this realization. He quickly pocketed the silver—after all, even the smallest profit counts—and tossed the token at the man before leaving.
A single slap from a servant wouldn't be something a noble son would hold against him for long. However, killing someone from the noble house would definitely lead to dire consequences. Thus, Jiang Ming restrained himself and slipped away.
Back at the Taihe Teahouse, after instructing Uncle Fu not to disturb him, he hurried to the back courtyard and locked the door behind him. He opened the white gourd and placed it aside, then reached for the golden-eyed eagle in its cage. To his surprise, the bird pecked at the cage, creating sparks that startled Jiang Ming.
"What a fierce creature."
He then called upon the Black Tiger.
The Black Tiger said, "Young Master, you've already memorized the spells and incantations. Let's begin."
Jiang Ming nodded and prepared forty-nine candles, a stack of yellow paper, and a bowl of red cinnabar. He arranged the candles in a nine-palace formation, sitting at the center while placing the gourd in the left palace and the golden-eyed eagle in the right.
He started writing the spells with the cinnabar on the yellow paper, a total of forty-nine spells. Once completed, he burned them according to specific directions, ensuring each one was flawless.
Jiang Ming concentrated intently as the spells burned away, turning into a black smoke that flowed into the gourd. The gourd seemed to reveal a network of spells momentarily before it faded.
Before long, all forty-nine spells were burned, and the gourd was successfully consecrated. Now it was time for the Iron-beaked Divine Eagle. As its name suggests, the creature's powerful beak could effortlessly pierce through gold and stone.
With a hand sign, Jiang Ming lifted the candles, grasping the golden-eyed eagle with one hand, enduring its sharp claws leaving wounds on his skin while he dripped wax onto its beak with the other.
"Crack!"
The eagle let out a painful cry. Jiang Ming felt a twinge of guilt but pressed on.
After using up all forty-nine candles, he felt a connection forming with the golden-eyed eagle. He opened the cage, and the eagle soared into the gourd in a flash of light, completing the ritual. Now, he only needed to find other spirited birds to easily summon them into the gourd and transform them into Iron-beaked Divine Eagles. If he could gather a thousand, that would be a significant achievement.
"I wonder how powerful they will be?" Jiang Ming was eager to test their strength. He left with the gourd and headed to the outskirts.
Seeing that the area was deserted, he chanted softly, removing the gourd's lid. Instantly, a thick black smoke billowed out, spreading like a net towards the forest.
Within the smoke was the golden-eyed eagle, now transformed into an Iron-beaked Divine Eagle. The black smoke danced eerily, with the eagle's wings like bronze blades and its beak resembling a golden needle.
With a swift motion, the eagle struck down a tree as thick as a person's embrace, turning the area barren in an instant.
Jiang Ming retrieved the divine eagle and closed the gourd, astonished by its might. If one was this powerful, how formidable would a thousand be?
The black smoke could obscure perception, making it difficult to detect the divine eagle hidden within, likely capable of tearing a person apart in moments.
Back at home, Jiang Ming felt quite satisfied with the power of this technique, though he realized it was quite costly. The golden-eyed eagle alone had cost him a thousand taels; a thousand would amount to a fortune!
Meanwhile, the Black Tiger, with a strange expression, said, "Who says you can only buy them? My Iron-beaked Divine Eagle is the king of eagles. Release it, and it will seek out spirited eagles to bring back."
Jiang Ming suddenly understood and released the Iron-beaked Divine Eagle, then recited a few verses of the incantation before going to sleep.
On the other side, the man in the alley woke up, retrieved the token, and limped back to meet the young noble.
Hearing that not only had he lost track of Jiang Ming but had also been beaten, the young noble kicked the man in frustration, cursing him as useless, before deciding not to pursue the matter any further.
The next morning, after the commotion had calmed down, Jiang Ming noticed several majestic eagles perched around his bed. Although not as impressive as the golden-eyed eagle, they were still fine specimens.
He also noticed two of them had copper rings on their feet, indicating they had been snatched from some rich family's collection.
Quickly, he drew spells with yellow paper and cinnabar, then captured them in the white gourd.
Just as he was about to leave, he ran into Uncle Fu, who was knocking on his door, anger visible on his face. "Young Master, Xiao Si says some teahouses are telling tales of your 'Investiture of the Gods.'"
Jiang Ming had anticipated this; it had taken five days for others to start copying his work. It seemed the merchants in Dongdu were still rather slow on the uptake.
However, he wasn't telling tales solely for profit. He was also looking to gather cards and wanted to see if others' versions of "Investiture of the Gods" would provide him with public willpower. He was curious whether printing it in book form was feasible.
With someone else conducting a trial for him, he saw it as a good thing.
Besides, in this era, there wasn't much of a concept of copyright. As long as he maintained his status as the originator, he wouldn't go hungry even if storytelling became a booming business.
"By the way, Young Master, you spent over a thousand taels yesterday. What was that for?" Uncle Fu asked.
"I bought an eagle."
"An eagle?" Uncle Fu's heart sank. Jiang Ming had recently kicked a gambling habit, and now he had taken up the wealthy pastime of birdkeeping?
"What was the cost?" he asked hesitantly.
"Just a thousand taels."
"Goodness!"
"And the eagle?" Uncle Fu looked around but only saw the empty cage and some droppings.
Jiang Ming pointed at the gourd nearby. "It's inside."
Uncle Fu assumed Jiang Ming had accidentally let the eagle go, forcing a smile as he said, "Young Master, we still owe three thousand taels to the gambling house."
Jiang Ming smiled lightly. "It's not a problem."
He had planned to repay it yesterday but felt embarrassed today and decided against it. After spending over a thousand taels just to complete a spell, he needed to be frugal, but he had to figure out a way to get that IOU back.
Sure enough, today the Taihe Teahouse was less crowded than yesterday. After all, those patrons could go to other teahouses for stories at cheaper prices.
Jiang Ming didn't mind. He struck the gavel and began today's storytelling.
At Silver Rise Gambling House, Luo Tianlin wore a grim expression, while A Hu stood by with his head lowered, not daring to breathe.
He had messed up badly. He hadn't expected Zhu San'er to be so incompetent, getting caught and then beaten by an old man.
"There are five days left. It seems this plan to disrupt the teahouse business isn't going to work. A Hu, I don't care how you do it; make sure Jiang Ming disappears!"
A Hu nodded.
Then he recalled someone and said, "Young Master, do you remember Zhao Lao Liu?"
Luo Tianlin shook his head. He didn't keep track of unimportant people.
A Hu smirked. "Zhao Lao Liu is a regular at our gambling house. I've learned he practiced a technique for simulated death in his youth. Even a coroner wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Why not have him stage a scene at the Taihe Teahouse..."
Luo Tianlin pondered. If Zhao Lao Liu pretended to die at the Taihe Teahouse, they could leverage the situation against Jiang Ming, either through private settlement or public prosecution, putting themselves in an invulnerable position.
"A Hu, you're truly my right-hand man. But if we're going to act, we must do it perfectly. What if someone sees through the ruse?"
A Hu's eyes glinted dangerously. "Don't worry, Young Master. Zhao Lao Liu will be really dead."