30: Beauty and Ugliness

Over the next few days, Zhou Wannian went all out, converting all the raw Materials he had accumulated into these "Double Spiral Talismans."

Thirty in total.

And while he was buried in production, the marketplace outside finally fell into chaos, just as he had expected.

It all started with a veteran monster-hunting squad called "Falcon."

They had fallen for Zhao Feng's nonsense, spending forty Spirit Stones to buy five "Top-grade Exploding Flame Talismans" to hunt an "Iron-armored Crocodile" known for its defense at Black Wind Ridge.

The result... "What the hell kind of 'top-grade' Talisman is this?!"

The captain of the Falcon squad, a burly man with half an ear missing, was carrying a stretcher and cursing loudly at the entrance of the Hundred Herbs Hall branch.

Lying on the stretcher was a team member, charred all over and on the verge of death.

"We hadn't even gotten close to that beast before this Talisman exploded in my brother's hand!"

"Two others hit the crocodile's hide and didn't even leave a white mark; instead, they enraged the beast, nearly wiping us all out!"

"Refund! Compensation! Where's Zhao Feng? Tell him to get out here!"

A crowd of Loose Cultivators gathered around to watch the commotion.

"I told you, that Talisman looked unreliable."

"How tragic, getting injured by a Talisman you bought yourself. Who can they even complain to?"

"This is the price of blindly believing in a Genius."

Inside Hundred Herbs Hall, Zhao Feng stood behind the counter with a grim expression, not daring to go out.

"These unruly mobs!"

Zhao Feng gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning white from clenching. "It's clearly their own improper storage that caused the spiritual power imbalance, or their technique was wrong! How can they blame my Talismans?"

But in his heart, he knew those were just excuses.

That method of drawing, which forcibly distorted the spiritual power structure for the sake of aesthetics, was a time bomb in itself.

"Senior Brother Zhao..." a shop assistant beside him said cautiously, "it's getting too rowdy outside. The shopkeeper said you have to handle this yourself; Hundred Herbs Hall cannot take the fall for this."

Zhao Feng swayed, a flash of panic appearing in his eyes.

Without the backing of Hundred Herbs Hall, his "Genius" persona would collapse in an instant... Meanwhile.

Miscellaneous Goods Street, Old Black Junk Shop.

Zhou Wannian, still dressed as a "down-and-out middle-aged Loose Cultivator," walked into the shop.

"Shopkeeper, are you buying?"

Black Shopkeeper was leaning on the counter, looking troubled.

Recently, because of the incident with Zhao Feng's "Top-grade Exploding Flame Talismans," the entire market for fire-attribute attack Talismans had been affected. Everyone was afraid of buying fakes that were "all show and no substance," causing his inventory to stagnate as well.

"Buying? Buying what?"

Black Shopkeeper waved his hand irritably. "No one wants fire Talismans now! Everyone's buying Vajra Talismans to save their lives! Do you have any Vajra Talismans?"

"I do."

Zhou Wannian slapped five "Scabby Vajra Talismans" onto the table.

Black Shopkeeper's eyes lit up. "Oh, this is good stuff! These ugly talismans are a hot commodity right now!"

"And this."

Zhou Wannian pulled out another dark red Talisman that looked like a heart covered in abscesses.

"This is..."

Black Shopkeeper's eyelid twitched, and he instinctively recoiled. "How does this thing look even more disgusting than the cow dung from last time? What kind of Talisman is this?"

"Double Spiral Talisman."

Zhou Wannian lowered his voice. "An upgraded version of the last one. It can drill inside and then explode a second time."

"Really?"

Black Shopkeeper looked at him suspiciously. "Things are tense outside right now; everyone's afraid of buying 'self-exploding Talismans' like Zhao Feng's. Is this thing... stable?"

"You can test it."

Zhou Wannian pointed to a discarded iron anvil in the backyard used for testing blades. "If it breaks, it's on me."

A moment later.

"Boom!"

A muffled explosion shook the entire shop, sending dust falling from the ceiling.

Black Shopkeeper stared dumbfoundedly at the iron anvil, which had been shattered into pieces, the edges of the cracks reduced to fine powder.

"Good lord..."

Black Shopkeeper swallowed hard. "This power... even someone at the Late Stage Qi Refining would be brought to their knees by one hit!"

"How is it?" Zhou Wannian said calmly. "This was specifically developed to deal with the current trust crisis. It might be a bit ugly, but it definitely won't explode in your hand."

"I'll take them! I'll take as many as you have!"

Black Shopkeeper was so excited his face was flushed. "Once this comes out, that pretty boy Zhao Feng's fakes won't have a chance! This is a true killing technique!"

"Eight Spirit Stones each," Zhou Wannian demanded a high price.

"Deal!"

Black Shopkeeper didn't even haggle. That trash Zhao Feng dared to sell his for eight; selling this true Divine Artifact for eight was practically a steal!

...Zhou Wannian walked out of the junk shop in a pleasant mood, carrying two hundred and forty Spirit Stones (for thirty Talismans).

As he passed the Hundred Herbs Hall branch, the farce there was still ongoing.

Zhao Feng was eventually forced to compensate the injured Loose Cultivator fifty Spirit Stones and slunk back into the inner hall. Meanwhile, those Loose Cultivators who had once praised him were now loudly mocking his incompetence.

"Watch him build a high tower, watch his tower collapse."

Zhou Wannian glanced at the shop sign and shook his head.

"Fame is a double-edged sword."

"Without the strength to back it up, one will eventually face a backlash."

He patted the Spirit Stones in his robe and walked briskly toward the pill shop.

With this money, plus his previous savings, he could start preparing the resources to break through to the Fifth Level of Qi Refining.

Furthermore, as the "Double Spiral Talisman" flowed into the black market, those ruthless experts who truly knew their stuff would surely notice this mysterious "Ugly Talisman Master" again.

"I need to keep an even lower profile."

"I'll go back and reinforce the Traces Concealment Formation in the courtyard. And while I'm at it... I'll make a more discreet disguise for that 'demonic path map'."

A storm is coming.