8: Dreams of Immortality Shattered

In the early morning, the Qinghe Market was shrouded in a layer of gray mist.

The West District Shantytown was even more deathly silent than usual. News of the Black Wind Ridge massacre spread like a plague. The families of the Loose Cultivators who hadn't returned were still sobbing suppressedly at the alley entrances, adding a few more degrees of desolation to the already cold winter day.

Zhou Wannian had just hidden the fragmented Jade Slip containing "The Solution to the Void Talisman" when a hesitant and weak knocking sounded from outside the door.

"Thump... thump."

The sound was very light.

Zhou Wannian looked through the crack in the door, his pupils shrinking slightly. He quickly pulled away the table bracing the door and opened it.

Standing outside the door was none other than Wang Dachui.

After not seeing him for only half a month, this man who used to be as strong as an ox now looked as if he had aged ten years. His face was as pale as paper, his cheeks—which usually held a simple, honest smile—were sunken, and his eyes were as hollow as a pool of stagnant water.

The most shocking sight was his right sleeve—it was empty, swaying feebly in the cold wind.

"Dachui..."

Zhou Wannian opened his mouth, but a thousand words eventually turned into a sigh. He stepped aside to let him in. "Come in and talk."

Wang Dachui walked in woodenly. Seeing the familiar furnishings in the room, a flicker of emotion finally appeared in those ash-dead eyes.

He didn't sit on a stool but collapsed directly onto a prayer mat on the floor, as if all the bones had been sucked out of his body.

"Wannian, you were right."

After a long time, Wang Dachui spoke hoarsely, his voice sounding like sandpaper grinding across a tabletop.

"Black Wind Ridge... it's a man-eating pit."

Zhou Wannian poured a cup of hot tea and handed it to him. He didn't press for details, just listened quietly.

"Full of traps... and Yao Beasts..."

Wang Dachui held the hot tea, his body still trembling uncontrollably. "Skinny Monkey died the most miserably, skewered straight through by those ground spikes... Brother Zhao is gone too. He was at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, yet he didn't even make a splash before he was gone..."

"I was lucky. I lost a hand but kept my life."

At this point, Wang Dachui gave a tragic laugh and looked up at Zhou Wannian, his eyes full of regret. "If only I had listened to you that day... how good that would have been."

Zhou Wannian remained silent.

He didn't know what to say.

In this dog-eat-dog cultivation world, "if only I had known" were the three most useless words.

"So what are your plans next?" Zhou Wannian asked softly. "If you're short on healing medicine, I still have a little here..."

"I'm not cultivating anymore."

Wang Dachui shook his head, interrupting Zhou Wannian. His tone carried a finality born of a dead heart. "This immortality, I'm not seeking it anymore."

Zhou Wannian was taken aback.

"I've finally seen it clearly." Wang Dachui bitterly touched his stump.

"Loose Cultivators like us, with no background and no talent, are just cannon fodder used to scout the path for those great Families and Sects. We risk our lives for decades, and in the end, we can't even leave behind a whole corpse."

"I still have some savings. Combined with selling off my belongings, I can scrape together a few Spirit Stones and head back to the Mortal World."

At the mention of the "Mortal World," a spark of light finally lit up in Wang Dachui's despondent eyes.

"Exchanging Spirit Stones for gold will be enough for me to buy hundreds of acres of fertile land in my hometown, marry a few wives, and live out my days steadily as a wealthy man. Though I'll only have a few decades to live, at least... I'll live like a human being."

Zhou Wannian was silent.

For Cultivators, returning to the Mortal World was often seen as being a "failure."

But looking at the broken Wang Dachui before him, Zhou Wannian suddenly felt that perhaps this was also a form of liberation.

Rather than being a bug in the cultivation world that could be stepped on at any time, it was better to go to the Mortal World and be a carefree wealthy man.

"Wannian, I came today because I want to sell these things to you."

Wang Dachui pulled an old cloth bundle from his chest and opened it. Inside was a collection of odds and ends: a chipped Low Grade Dharma sword, a few unknown Ores, and several bottles with half-finished Medicinal Pills.

"I don't have the face to set up a stall anymore, and I don't want to be lowballed by those dishonest merchants. Just give me whatever you think is fair. Once I have enough for travel expenses, I'm leaving."

Zhou Wannian looked at the pile of items.

To be honest, they were all defective goods. If taken to a pawnshop, they would probably only be worth three to five Spirit Stones.

But he didn't hesitate. He reached into his robes, pulled out ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and pressed them into Wang Dachui's hand.

"This..." Wang Dachui was stunned and hurriedly tried to decline.

"This is too much! This junk isn't worth this much!"

"Take it."

Zhou Wannian held his hand down, his tone brook no argument. "Just consider it as me buying your 'peace of mind.' Once you're back in the Mortal World, don't mention anything about the cultivation world. Just live your life steadily."

In truth, these extra Spirit Stones were his way of settling the final bit of Karma for the original owner of this body.

When the original owner was destitute, Wang Dachui had given him two steamed buns.

Today, he was returning ten Spirit Stones to see his friend off on a long journey.

Looking at the Spirit Stones in his hand, Wang Dachui's eyes instantly turned red. This six-foot-tall man gritted his teeth to keep the tears from falling and gave Zhou Wannian's shoulder a heavy pat.

"Wannian, take care! You're smarter than me and steadier than me. In the future... take a look at the scenery in the heavens for me!"

...As he saw Wang Dachui off, fine snowflakes began to drift from the sky.

Watching that hunched figure disappear into the wind and snow at the alley entrance, Zhou Wannian stood at the door for a long time without moving.

"The immortal path is heartless."

He tightened his old robes around him, turned back into the house, closed the door, locked it, and braced it with the table.

The series of actions was as smooth as flowing water.

Outside, the wind and snow raged; inside, the fluorite glowed dimly.

Zhou Wannian sat cross-legged on the bed. His heart was somewhat heavy, but his eyes were clearer than ever before.

Wang Dachui's exit served as the most sobering alarm bell for him.

"If I don't want to end up like him, losing an arm to survive or even dying on the spot, I must arm myself to the teeth in this man-eating world."

"But I can't go out and risk my life. I have to rely on my craft."

He pulled out the fragmented Jade Slip he had risked his life to buy at the Ghost Market last night—"The Solution to the Void Talisman."

This was his armament.

"First-Rank Medium Grade, Blazing Fire Talisman, Vajra Talisman."

Zhou Wannian took a deep breath, extended his Divine Sense into the Jade Slip, and began to study it carefully.

Unlike the unorthodox methods in the "secret paintings of the spring palace," although "The Solution to the Void Talisman" was a fragment, it followed the orthodox path of Talismans. It explained in detail the Five Elements transformations of spiritual energy and the structural principles of runes.

However, as he continued reading, Zhou Wannian's brow began to furrow.

"Hard."

"Too hard."

Orthodox drawing methods required vigorous spiritual energy and upright brushwork. With his current meager spiritual energy at the Qi Refining Second Layer, trying to draw a qualified Blazing Fire Talisman was a fool's dream. According to the Jade Slip, one needed to be at least at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer to attempt it; otherwise, the Talisman would easily explode during creation.

"Do I have to wait until the Qi Refining Fourth Layer to learn?"

Zhou Wannian was unwilling.

The situation in the market was currently so chaotic. After the Chen Family took over Black Wind Ridge, there would surely be major moves, and Robber Cultivators would become more numerous. Without a means of self-protection, he couldn't sleep soundly.

"I must find a way to draw this Blazing Fire Talisman with my current conditions!"

He subconsciously looked toward the space between his eyebrows.

At this moment, the dull tolling of a bell came from the distant clock tower.

The midnight had arrived.

Buzz—

The familiar bronze tortoise shell emerged in his Sea of Consciousness.

This time, Zhou Wannian didn't ask where there was Treasure Trove, nor did he ask where there was danger.

He asked an extremely tricky and practical question:

"I ask the heavenly secrets: with my cultivation at the Qi Refining Second Layer, combined with the special brushwork techniques from the 'secret paintings of the spring palace,' how can I modify the drawing method of this 'Blazing Fire Talisman' to avoid it exploding and successfully create it?"

This was a technical question.

It was also the correct way for a "Gu Dao" Cultivator to use a Golden Finger—not seeking a windfall from heaven, but seeking a technical Breakthrough.

The bronze tortoise shell rotated slowly, emitting circles of profound ripples.

A moment later, several lines of golden ancient seal script characters appeared in the void, accompanied by a dynamic demonstration diagram:

[Today's Omen: Minor Luck]

[Resolution: The violence of fire lies in its direct release; if one wishes to control it, one must first curve it.]

[Method of Modification: Abandon the orthodox 'Straight Stroke Evil-Expelling' and adopt the essence of the third stance from the spring palace pictures, 'Coiling Dragon Around the Pillar.' Change the linear spiritual energy patterns at the core of the Blazing Fire Talisman into a spiral-shaped restrained structure. Although this will sacrifice the Talisman's stability and aesthetic appeal, it can lower the activation threshold to the Qi Refining Second Layer.]

[Note: The Talisman drawn with this method is extremely ugly. Furthermore, after activation, its trajectory is erratic, exploding in a spiral pattern that does not distinguish between friend and foe. Use with caution.]

Looking at the "spiral-shaped" rune structure being demonstrated in his Sea of Consciousness, the corner of Zhou Wannian's mouth twitched.

How was this a Blazing Fire Talisman?

The lines were distorted and tangled. At first glance, it looked like a pile of burning cow dung, or like a messy ball of red yarn.

"It's a bit ugly..."

Zhou Wannian withdrew from his Sea of Consciousness and looked at the Talisman paper on the table, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"But as long as it can blow people up, it's a good Talisman!"

"Spiral explosion? Doesn't distinguish between friend and foe? Isn't that perfect! I never planned on fighting anyone head-on anyway. I'll just throw it and run; I don't care how it drifts!"

Having a direction, Zhou Wannian no longer hesitated.

He took out a stack of mid-grade talisman paper he had specifically bought a few days ago (it cost him five Spirit Stones, which made his heart ache for a long time) and prepared the cinnabar.

He lifted the brush and concentrated.

In his mind, the principles of "The Solution to the Void Talisman" and the clever maneuvers from the "secret paintings of the spring palace" began to fuse.

"Coiling Dragon Around the Pillar... spiral to the heavens..."

Zhou Wannian's wrist flicked, and the lines under his brush tip began to distort in an eerie manner.