Chapter 59: Reforging the Demon Suppressing Coins
“Virgin boys and girls?!” The moment Zhou Peide heard the condition, his body stiffened. He stared at Yuan Qu in disbelief. “Isn’t he a disciple of the mystic path? What does he want children for? And in Xianyang City of all places, is he tired of living?!”
“My dear Senior Brother Zhou...” Yuan Qu shook his head slightly. “Rules are merely rules. If everyone in this world actually obeyed them, how would so many people rise to power and fortune?
“If Left Minister Lu followed the rules, would he have climbed to such heights? If Master followed the rules, would he have accepted me as a disciple? If I followed the rules, could I have completed all those dirty tasks Master assigned me? Would the Zhou Family have achieved its current influence?
“Rules are made for fools. Throughout history, which kings, nobles, generals, or ministers ever rose to power by following the rules? Heh, if we truly followed the rules, then Zhou Bai’s revenge should never be taken!”
Seeing Zhou Peide still hesitating, Yuan Qu sneered. “Senior Brother, do you really think Master is unaware of the things I’ve done? Master Chen opened a shop right in Xianyang and carries on with his business openly. Yet the Enforcement Hall hasn’t come looking for trouble. If he isn’t afraid, what are you afraid of?”
Zhou Peide’s expression shifted repeatedly. After a long silence, he finally spoke softly, “The trafficking houses also fall under your control. Finding a few children shouldn’t be difficult.”
“It is difficult!” Yuan Qu shook his head. “If it were that simple, why would he need us? Their birth dates and eight-characters must match perfectly. Every suitable child I could find has already been used.
“Doesn’t Senior Brother possess the rosters of all the youths enrolled in the Divine Fist Association villages? Their birth dates are all recorded there. Master Chen still lacks three children. If we can help him complete the number, then avenging Zhou Bai will become effortless.
“And Master Chen also said... Zhou Bai’s injuries may not be impossible to heal...”
“What?!” Zhou Peide shot to his feet. “Junior Brother Wang invited several famous medical experts, and all of them said nothing could be done. Isn’t this man deceiving us?”
Yuan Qu shook his head. “I’ve already delivered the message. Whether you believe it is up to you. Once Master Chen finishes this matter, he’ll likely leave immediately. Senior Brother, once this opportunity passes, it won’t come again.”
Zhou Peide drew a deep breath and got to his feet. “I’ll bring the roster tomorrow.”
Yuan Qu finally relaxed as he watched Zhou Peide leave. The side door of the main hall slowly opened, and a tall figure stepped out. Clad in a red robe with floral ornaments pinned in his hair, it was none other than Zheng Heibei, leader of the Iron Blade Gang.
He sneered and sat down heavily in a chair. “That old bastard always looked down on us. Even when begging for help, he still acts like this. Why bother with him?”
“What do you understand?” Yuan Qu took his own seat, taking a sip of tea before speaking calmly. “With Xianyang’s situation spiraling out of control like this, we are the ones truly in danger.
“Old Zhang’s people keep targeting us relentlessly. Given Master’s temperament, if he could abandon even Zhou Bai, then he’ll definitely sacrifice our lives to clear his own name when the time comes.”
“No surprise there.” Zheng Heibei snorted. “I knew this day might come from the first day I acknowledged him as master. If things look bad, I’ll just run.”
“Run?” A sinister light flashed through Yuan Qu’s eyes as he glanced around. He lowered his voice. “I built this entire foundation with my blood and sweat. You may be willing to abandon it, but I’m not. Hmph. That old ghost can dream on if he wishes to sacrifice me. Once the Zhou Family itself gets dragged into the mud, let’s see whether he can still stay uninvolved!”
Zheng Heibei did not argue. After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked, “What about those bladesmen? What if—”
“There is no ‘what if’!” Yuan Qu cut him off. “That bastard Zheng Xianhuai wasn’t loyal either. He’s secretly been making preparations, hoping to replace Master after we got discarded. But he never realized that every single one of those mercenaries belonged to me!
“That pauper actually thought he could compete with me? Remember this, right now, the two of us are tied to the same rope. Unless you want to end up hunted like a stray dog across the jianghu, then cooperate properly with me.
“Hmph. That old bastard was right about one thing. The true winner is the one who laughs last.”
***
Scrape! Scrape!
Before dawn had even arrived, Sha Lifei was awakened by the noise in the courtyard.
Wood planing, chiseling, sawing...
The sounds echoed nonstop.
“Breakfast’s ready! Breakfast!”
“Uncle, what’re we eating today? Smells amazing!”
“Fermented noodle soup, bowl-steamed pork, tofu with vegetables.”
Sha Lifei had been sleeping like the dead with the blanket wrapped over his head, but the moment he heard the food that would be served, saliva immediately flooded his mouth. He flipped upright and charged outside with his clothes still disheveled.
The courtyard was indeed bustling with activity. The carpenters were already sweating heavily despite the cold autumn morning. White steam rose from their heads as they finished up work and prepared to eat.
The moment Sha Lifei rushed into the front courtyard, his nose nearly twisted from anger. Six giant cauldrons had been set up in the yard and flames were roaring beneath them.
Two boiled fermented noodle soup. Two steamed bowls of pork. Two cooked vegetable tofu.
The aroma drilled directly into people’s noses. Meanwhile, Wang Daoxuan and Li Yan were already squatting on the steps, bowls of noodles in hand, eating pork and tofu until sweat streamed down their faces.
“You bastards!” Sha Lifei trembled with rage. “You found good food and didn’t wake me?!”
Li Yan lifted his giant bowl, chopsticks clattering loudly as he finished the last mouthful of noodles. Only after letting out a satisfied burp did he sneer. “You slept like a dead pig. We tried waking you and couldn’t. Now you’re blaming us?”
“Hahahaha!”
The carpenters around them burst into laughter. Sha Lifei could not even be bothered to argue further. He immediately grabbed a bowl and squatted on the steps beside them, stuffing food into his mouth so fast his neck started to bulge.
Shopkeeper Wan also arrived, smiling broadly while holding a long tobacco pipe. “Brother Li, finished eating yet? Come, let me show you the drum.”
Li Yan’s eyes lit up instantly. “It’s already finished? That fast?”
“Hahaha, of course not!” Shopkeeper Wan laughed as he shook his head while leading him away. “Even an ordinary drum requires over ten processes, from selecting materials, cutting boards, bending wood, drying, stretching the hide, driving nails, and more!
“The craftsmanship of our Listening Pavilion goes beyond twenty separate steps. No matter what, it’ll still take over a month. But your luck is good. The rhinoceros hide we acquired earlier had already been processed beforehand, which saves us quite a bit of time.”
As he spoke, he led Li Yan into the rear courtyard. Unlike the front yard, this was Shopkeeper Wan’s personal living area. Many tools were arranged neatly, all crafted from superior wood polished smooth with age and use.
Li Yan could even smell traces of incense qi lingering upon some of them. Clearly, none of them were ordinary items.
Meanwhile, the Thunderstruck Jujube Wood they had brought back had already been cut, heated, and shaped into curved wooden panels which were arranged to dry. The wood had possessed a dense toughness to begin with. With the lightning scars etched across it, the material now carried a uniquely striking beauty.
Li Yan activated his divine ability and inhaled deeply. Immediately, a fierce, blazing scent rushed into his nose, so intense that his mind became startlingly clear. It was the scent of Heaven’s Lightning astral qi contained within the wood. If it smelled like this even before it had been transformed into a spiritual artifact, it was no wonder it was considered one of the finest materials for crafting artifacts.
A smile spread across Li Yan’s face.
At his side, Shopkeeper Wan spoke. “There’s something else I should tell you. I reduced the war drum’s size by half. It isn’t because this old man is stingy. Once the drum is completed and consecrated into a true spiritual artifact, if it retained the original dimensions of a Qin-Han War Drum, you likely wouldn’t be able to strike it more than a few times before your soul suffered severe backlash.
“This old man understands your situation. Techniques like yours cannot be mastered overnight, but hidden force requires constant practice. Otherwise it’s like rowing upstream, the moment you stop, you will fall behind. As such, this is the perfect size for you.
“This Thunderstruck Jujube Wood is itself a heavenly treasure. It only needs a few more days of drying before we can stretch the hide and drive the nails. Within seven days, you’ll be able to use your treasure.”
Li Yan immediately nodded, knowing the man meant well. “I’ll follow Senior’s judgment.”
Shopkeeper Wan said, “And one more thing.”
He pulled a wooden box out from his robes and carefully opened it. Inside lay a simple-looking leather cord. Though it looked ordinary, Li Yan immediately smelled a tremendously dense aura of incense qi from it, mixed with an icy, murderous sharpness.
Shopkeeper Wan spoke quietly, “Since the drum’s dimensions were reduced, this old man ended up benefiting from the leftover wood. I can’t let you suffer a loss.
“Among the batch of rhinoceros hide I acquired, there was one beast that had already developed cultivation and was worshipped within the Taibai Manor of the Queen Mother Courtyard. Its hide was used to craft ceremonial drum tassels. I secretly kept some of its material.
“Give me your coin tassel.”
Li Yan’s eyes immediately brightened. He quickly removed the tassel made from the Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coins.
Shopkeeper Wan skillfully dismantled it, then carried the materials into the inner hall. After lighting three incense sticks before the ancestral master’s statue, he began weaving. His hands moved so quickly they blurred like streaks of light.
Every time he tied a knot, he formed hand seals, muttered incantations, then pointed at the knot before proceeding to the next step. Li Yan could smell icy killing qi mixed with incense energy being infused into every knot.
Knotting Killing Qi!
His eyes immediately lit up.
Wang Daoxuan had once explained it to him. “A blade without hardness cannot be sharp. A talisman without killing qi cannot be effective.”
When drawing talismans, the talisman head and core were only the foundation. Two things were required to truly make a talisman work. One had to be able to weave killing qi by knotting it, and they had to be able to inscribe runes.
Weaving meant infusing astral qi and killing qi into the talisman paper. Inscribing runes meant writing the names of the gods. Only after completing both steps could a talisman become effective.
Yet Shopkeeper Wan could actually integrate killing qi by weaving it into artifact refinement itself. His inheritance was clearly extraordinary. Then again, without Wang Daoxuan’s reminder, who would have guessed that the amiable old shopkeeper was actually an elder of the Xianyang Artisan Guild, possessing a cultivation with a two storied inner temple?
Finally, Shopkeeper Wan completed the tassel before the three incense sticks finished burning.
The new tassel looked far more plain and unassuming. Not only were the Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coins completely concealed within it, even their aura had been fully hidden. Unless activated, it was indistinguishable from an ordinary object.
The moment Li Yan accepted it, joy flooded his face. From then on, he no longer needed to fear others coveting the Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coins.
After finishing the newly made tassel, Shopkeeper Wan looked visibly tired. Taking a few puffs from his pipe, he smiled. “This tassel can also be hung upon the war drum. If used while beating the drum to suppress evil, its power will multiply greatly.
“The only concern is whether your spirit cultivation is sufficient to activate it.”
Li Yan bowed deeply with cupped fists. “Many thanks, Senior.”
Shopkeeper Wan waved to dismiss him. “No need. Zhao Luzi already told me everything. Without your assistance, retrieving that Thunderstruck Jujube Tree would likely have been impossible, and this old man’s plans would’ve fallen through.
“We unorthodox practitioners cannot compare with the orthodox sects of the mystic path. Naturally, we must support one another.”
Li Yan cupped his fists again in sincere gratitude. “Senior is truly righteous!”
This time, Shopkeeper Wan had truly helped him enormously. Combined with the gold obtained from the bandit stronghold, once the matter in Xianyang concluded, he would finally be able to head toward Mount Taibai and establish his inner temple.
Li Yan’s mood greatly improved as the spiritual artifact neared completion.
Another day passed.
Around noon, boredom finally got the better of him. Since there was nothing to do anyway, he packed some wine and dishes and prepared to head into the mountains to drink with Zhao Luzi.
Yet before he could leave, a man suddenly burst frantically into the courtyard. With a thud, the man dropped to his knees and wailed, “Elder Wan, Zhuzi’s been kidnapped! Please save him!”
He repeatedly slammed his forehead against the ground until blood covered his face.
