22: You come to talk business, I invite you to watch the fireworks

At this moment, the wind on the mountaintop seemed to be choked by an invisible hand.

The soaring flames, like a blood-red lotus blooming in the depths of hell, illuminated half the sky with a shocking glow.

The roar of the explosion arrived late, like the bellow of a giant, sweeping across the entire Mount Longhu with rolling airwaves.

Birds in the forest startled, and the branches and leaves of ancient trees trembled, as if quivering at the sudden destruction.

Zhang Xuanyi still leaned lazily in the bamboo chair, his eyes, which were usually half-closed, were now fully open, and deep within his dark pupils, the fiercely burning flames were reflected.

A faint smile played on his lips, a cold and satisfied smile, like that of a hunter watching his prey step precisely into a trap.

“It’s not that I wouldn’t sell the Dao… it’s you who gambled with your life.”

This whisper, dispersed in the violent wind, pierced into Su Qingzhu's ears, who was close by, more clearly than thunder.

Su Qingzhu froze completely.

The lens of the camera in her hand was still fixed on the crash site, the glass reflecting the flickering flames.

Her lips parted slightly, but no sound came out.

Her mind was blank; the unprecedented shock almost stopped her from thinking.

Selling talismans? Technology transfer? Trial version?

It turned out that from beginning to end, it wasn’t for those mere ten spirit coins.

Those three seemingly childish photocopy yellow papers were not commodities at all, but a poisoned knife handed out!

She suddenly turned her head, staring intently at Zhang Xuanyi.

Was the man in front of her still that good-for-nothing senior brother, wearing a faded Daoist robe, usually sloppy, guarding a broken stall, and almost unable to pay his rent?

No, it wasn't him anymore.

At this moment, the lazy and casual shell on him was completely torn away, revealing a chilling sharpness and ruthlessness beneath.

He sat there so calmly, as if what had just been destroyed was not a priceless Black Hawk helicopter and the elites on board, but merely a noisy fly he had casually crushed.

This extreme calmness was more terrifying than any hysterical rage.

“Senior brother… you…” Su Qingzhu’s voice was dry and trembling; she wanted to ask something but found she couldn’t even form a complete question.

Zhang Xuanyi didn’t look at her; his gaze remained fixed on the distant flames, and at the same time, his mind was immersed in the earth-shattering changes within his consciousness.

The system interface was unprecedentedly active.

“Ding! Achievement ‘Breaking the Real with the Void, Forming Law by Borrowing Power’ achieved!”

“Ding! Detected that the causality weapon successfully hit a key target, judged as a high-level ‘Technology Output’!”

“Ding! spirit coin exchange function, officially unlocked!”

Those ten spirit coins that flew out of the secret compartment and were swallowed by the tattered stall had now been completely transformed.

They were no longer physical entities, but had turned into a line of golden numbers in the system interface: [Spiritual Energy Balance: 10].

Immediately after, the mysterious prompt reappeared, every word seemingly containing the ultimate truth of heaven and earth:

“Spirit is not gold, but the breath of heaven and earth. Ancient resonance has been triggered, and the system’s core module is being reconstructed… Reconstruction progress 1%…”

A glint flashed in Zhang Xuanyi’s eyes.

So that’s how it is!

The cultivators of this world regarded crystals containing “Qi” as hard currency, calling them “spirit coins,” but had long forgotten their essence.

They were not currency, but solidified spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the sediment of the world’s “breath.”

And his system, this thing that seemed to be just a street stall auxiliary tool, its true core function was actually to restore, absorb, and transform this “breath” into energy for its own growth!

Unlocking the exchange function was the true beginning of this system!

Just as his mind was surging, in the distant mountains and forests, behind that ancient pine tree, the figure of Iron Lady, Luo Shisan, tensed almost instantly, like a female leopard struck by thunder.

Her pupils contracted to the extreme, reflecting the falling flames, and the blood drained from her face.

As a top-tier peripheral spy of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion embedded in Mount Longhu, her mission was to monitor and evaluate everything.

She witnessed the arrogance of the Under Heaven Society and also saw Zhang Xuanyi’s seemingly self-humiliating “stall selling talismans.”

She saw through that the three yellow papers were “empty shells,” without “Dao pattern locks,” and concluded it was a humiliating prank.

But she was wrong.

Terribly wrong!

They were not empty shells at all, but the most ingenious “Trojan Horse”!

It didn’t need a Dao pattern lock, because it itself was a “key,” a key that could open the door of destruction within Yan Jiuzhang’s body!

“Empty Summoning Talisman?” Luo Shisan’s lips trembled silently; she overturned her previous judgment, “No… no… an Empty Summoning Talisman only activates magical artifacts, it’s absolutely impossible to achieve this level… This is… this is a causality attack!”

She recalled the terms mentioned in some forbidden chapters of the Tianshi Mansion’s oldest scriptures—Daoist Punishment, Heart Imprint, backlash of the Natal Talisman Seed… These legendary, most vicious curse-killing techniques, which only existed in theory, were actually sent out by Zhang Xuanyi in a manner almost like “commercial fraud,” with an air of understatement!

And she, who had witnessed the entire “transaction” process, had no idea of the terrifying killing intent hidden beneath those three thin yellow papers.

Cold sweat instantly drenched her back.

Her gaze towards Zhang Xuanyi had completely transformed from initial scrutiny, through contempt in the middle, to bone-deep horror and fear.

This person wasn't fishing.

He was using the entire fish pond as a sacrifice, just to precisely curse and kill the most ferocious shark!

Luo Shisan didn't hesitate, retreating silently, her figure merging into the deeper shadows like a ghost.

She had to immediately transmit this intelligence back to the Heavenly Secret Pavilion headquarters.

The threat level assessment for Zhang Xuanyi needed to be redefined.

No, it had to be raised to the highest level— “Taboo”!

At the same time, at the foot of Mount Longhu, within the Under Heaven Society’s temporarily constructed underground Qi furnace workshop, it was already a living hell.

The two innate deacons who had just completed the “transaction” were thrown flying by a violent Qi wave the moment they stepped into the workshop, crashing heavily against the alloy wall, spitting blood.

The entire workshop’s alarms shrieked piercingly, and red lights flashed wildly.

Countless researchers and guards in protective suits were in a chaotic mess; the strong smell of blood and burnt Qi mixed together, making people almost vomit.

“Quick! Go to the central talisman array!”

“President! Something happened to him!”

“Stabilize the ‘Kun’ position of the array, the energy core is about to lose control!”

Ignoring their injuries, the two scrambled towards the core area.

The central talisman array, usually as stable as a rock, now had chaotic light, and countless runes shattered and scattered like snowflakes.

In the center of the talisman array, Yan Jiuzhang knelt on the ground, his precise mechanical prosthetic arm, once his greatest pride, was now emitting black smoke, its internal miniature talisman arrays breaking layer by layer, making a series of “crackling” explosions.

His face was covered in blood, dark red blood oozing from all seven orifices, his hair disheveled, looking like a vengeful ghost.

His chest heaved violently, each breath bringing out a puff of blood mist.

Inside his body, a violent Qi aura, not belonging to him yet originating from the same source, was like an awakened evil dragon, frantically crashing through his meridians, tearing at his Dantian.

“Zhang… Xuan… Yi!”

Yan Jiuzhang squeezed out these three words from the depths of his throat with all his strength, each word carrying endless resentment and disbelief.

“You… you actually dared to… use ‘Daoist Punishment’!”

He finally understood.

That talisman was not some photocopy at all, but an “empty talisman” replicated using the legendary “Heart Imprint Yellow Paper”!

And what that empty talisman carried was his most primitive Natal Talisman Seed, which he had personally stripped and discarded after his failed advancement years ago!

That was the first imprint on his Dao path, the root of his cultivation!

Even though it was discarded, its aura was completely consistent with his.

When he tried to use his own Qi to analyze this talisman, it was no different from using a key to open a lock.

But this lock was not connected to a treasure, but to an arsenal of explosives he had long buried!

The talisman seed, sensing its master’s aura, was instantly activated, and in the most violent way, detonated all the residual talisman arrays he had set up in his body to suppress old injuries.

One link after another, precisely and viciously!

“Pfft——”

Another mouthful of blood gushed out, Yan Jiuzhang’s vision went black, and he completely collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

At this moment, on the mountaintop, the system’s cold prompt sounded again.

“Warning: ‘Qi Tribulation’ countdown is still active. Remaining time: 46 hours 12 minutes.”

Zhang Xuanyi slowly exhaled a turbid breath, retracting his gaze from the distant flames.

He glanced at Su Qingzhu, who was pale and still lost in thought beside him, and then at the still red countdown on his system interface, his eyes calm and unwavering.

Yan Jiuzhang’s severe injury and the Black Hawk’s crash only bought him a little breathing time and precious initial “spiritual energy.”

The real crisis, the “Qi Tribulation” hanging over his head, had not been resolved.

Night deepened gradually.

The flames in the mountain gorge also gradually weakened, leaving only rolling thick smoke, which, carried by the night wind, coiled like a black giant dragon in the valley, lingering for a long time.

The surrounding silence was deathly; those prying eyes hidden in the dark seemed to have temporarily retreated after this drastic change.

Zhang Xuanyi stood up and unhurriedly began to pack up the items on his stall.

He folded the tattered cloth, and several unrecognizable “wares” were put into a cloth bag.

The entire process was calm and unhurried, as if he had merely finished a day’s ordinary business.

Su Qingzhu finally found her voice; she looked at Zhang Xuanyi’s back and asked in a low voice, “What… what do we do next?”

Zhang Xuanyi didn't turn around, simply saying, “Wait.”

“Wait for what?”

“Wait for dawn.”

Night completely enveloped Mount Longhu. The mountain wind grew cold, chilling everyone’s hearts.

When the last flicker of fire was swallowed by darkness, the entire world seemed to fall into silence.

Zhang Xuanyi had packed up all his belongings, the bamboo chair that had accompanied him for many years resting on his shoulder.

He didn't return to his dilapidated Daoist temple but turned to look towards the back of the mountain.

There, a small figure was peeking out, it was A Che, the young Daoist boy who usually ran errands for him.

A Che had evidently also witnessed the earth-shattering scene just now, his small face pale with fright, yet unable to suppress his curiosity.

Zhang Xuanyi waved at him.

A Che hesitated for a moment, but still trotted over, timidly calling out, “Zhang… Senior Brother Zhang.”

A gentle smile appeared on Zhang Xuanyi’s face, completely different from his previous ruthlessness.

He freed a hand, patted A Che’s head, and said, “A Che, go to the kitchen and bring the biggest and sturdiest bamboo basket.”

A Che was stunned, asking in confusion, “Senior brother, why do you need such a big basket? It’s already dark…”

Zhang Xuanyi’s gaze passed over A Che’s head, towards the deep gorge below the mountain, shrouded in thick smoke.

A meaningful arc played on his lips.

“Tomorrow morning, we’ll go down the mountain.”