Flute and Gallbladder

There were three or four people in that private room: a young nobleman at the head, a hunched old man, a middle-aged man with red beard and red hair, and the nobleman's personal maid.

The man's hunched old man heard the young master's summons, stood up from his chair, closed his eyes to sense it, and then said, "Young master, it is indeed the ghost energy I raised. It did not return when I cast the spell, it seems to have been captured."

The young nobleman frowned. "Who's meddling in my business? You want to stop me from cursing a tiger demon to death? Are you deliberately trying to make trouble for me? You can do some divination to find out who's stopping me. Make them come to apologize, and I'll forgive them this time."

"Young Master, please continue watching the program. I'll go take care of it right away." The old man, known as Elder Si, immediately stood up, laid out chicken bones and tortoise shells on the spot, and began divination.

But then I saw him pushing the yarrow stalks and stepping on the tortoise shell, divining by drilling the tortoise shell, and casting the yarrow stalks.

Initially, he tried to boil the chicken bones, but they cracked and split open, breaking into two pieces.

Elder Si was startled and immediately replaced the bamboo with forty-nine slender bamboo branches, symbolizing the forty-nine heavenly rules, and performed divination again. However, he saw the bamboo wither and turn yellow, and then turn into ashes.

He was immediately taken aback, his gaze becoming serious, but he did not stop.

He took another tile, struck it to break it apart, and examined its texture. He found that the inside of the tile was as smooth as a mirror, without any trace of being struck, as if it had been cut open.

He began to panic. He quickly took out the tortoise shell, bit his tongue, and spat out a mouthful of blood. With a serious expression, he held the tortoise and looked at it from the south. He then tried to burn the tortoise shell with the heat of the fire, but the tortoise shell seemed to be perfectly formed and did not change at all in the fire.

He immediately took the tortoise shell and went to the other person in the room. Holding the tortoise shell with both hands, he solemnly said, "Yan Jun, please help me."

The man called Yan Jun was somewhat taken aback, but he immediately cooperated.

But then the man made a hand Hand Seals and said, "I will use the smoke and fire of the human world to burn this tortoise shell, and use the fortune of Human Path to help you divine the result."

Then, a flame ignited in his hand, and the flames lit up the entire Clear Mist City. You could even see the officials, soldiers, musicians, merchants, and roadside vendors.

The entire Clear Mist City is engulfed in flames. Those who watch the fire see the entire Clear Mist City as if it were a tortoise shell. The fire is reflected in the light, shadows, smoke, and flames, flickering and changing. It is impossible to tell whether it is the fire within Clear Mist City or Clear Mist City within the fire.

However, to Yan Jun's surprise, the tortoise shell remained completely still.

"I'll add another coin, burn the spirit beasts I raise!" Yan Jun said, then patted the cage on his waist, and several pigeons flew out.

Flocks of pigeons flew about, their bodies ablaze with flames, each wingtip flaming like a torch.

The pigeons spewed Mars, which flew into the fireworks, making the fire burn even brighter.

But the tortoise shell remained motionless and unshaken in the fire, as clean and new as ever.

"Human Fire and beast fire are not enough, I will use Earth Fire again!" He said angrily, then used all his strength to pull it from the void.

A small crack appeared in the void, and Yin Qi overflowed!

Yan Jun's face turned red and he was sweating profusely, clearly having used all his strength. But through that small crack, a scene of hellish devastation was revealed!

Dark clouds rose, smoke and dust billowed, and rain fell incessantly from the sky, but it was not water; instead, it was a hail of blazing fire, with flames burning above it, creating intense heat.

There were also countless souls in hell, bound and unable to move, subjected to fire and hail. They were struck by fire and hail almost every second, burning skin to skin, flesh to flesh, tendons to tendons, bones to bones, and marrow to marrow. The pain was unbearable, and the smoke and flames were so intense that they pierced through their bodies and burned their flesh and blood.

The beings in hell suffer extreme pain in the fire, and cannot die.

Yan Jun ignored all of this. He picked up a hailstone that had just landed through the small crack, and then immediately closed the crack, preventing the leakage of Yin Qi.

But his hand immediately caught fire, and his face contorted in agony as the flesh and bones of his palm burned almost through.

He grabbed the hellfire hailstone and quickly threw it into the tortoise shell.

Human warmth, the Spirit Beast Heart Fire, and the fires of hell combine to scorch the tortoise shell.

The tortoise shell could not withstand such high temperatures and finally began to tremble.

Seeing this, Yan Jun and Elder Si both breathed a sigh of relief.

However, the tortoise shell trembled repeatedly, cracked open from the middle, and then exploded into several pieces!

The maid who was standing to the side reacted extremely quickly. With a wave of her hand, a roll of silk flew out, its brocade swirling and intertwining, forming a ring that contained the explosion.

The explosion wasn't very powerful, but the Yan Jun flames contained within were quite potent, completely incinerating the scroll of silk and leaving Yan Jun and Elder Si covered in soot.

As for the fruits, dishes, soups, tablecloths, cushions, wine pots, cups and chopsticks in this private room, they were all overturned by the aftershocks of the explosion, and the entire private room was in chaos.

But Elder Si, disregarding the ash covering his face, jumped up in shock and bowed deeply to the young nobleman, saying, "Young Master! This person is either of very high rank, whom I cannot afford to offend, or he is protected by a treasure, making divination impossible!"

The young nobleman frowned. He had watched the whole thing and naturally knew what was going on.

Both Yan Jun and Elder Si are eighth-rank experts. Elder Si, in particular, although he had no chance to join the Wushen Mountain, he was fortunate enough to have obtained some orthodox Shaman Path methods. Whether it was divination or Curse, he had a bit of the style of an orthodox diviner. He was more than ten times stronger than ordinary Shaman and was one of his most trusted subordinates.

"The grade is very high, which is unlikely. If that were the case, you wouldn't have just had your tortoise shell explode, but would have been directly spied on by the other party. But don't worry, if he really saw me, he will naturally stop. At least in the Green Mountain Kingdom, even if the king came, he would only punish me a little for my father's sake, and wouldn't go too far." The young nobleman tapped the table and said.

The Green Mountain Kingdom Lord, Fifth-Rank Great Expert, is already the strongest in this region. As for those above that level...

He never even considered it; it was completely impossible.

Those above the fifth rank are already rulers of a country, possessing astonishing power. With a wave of their hand, they can shatter a small world, and the aftershocks of battle can easily cause devastation within a radius of ten thousand miles. Reaching for the stars and seizing the moon is a piece of cake for them. As for the fourth rank, even he has never seen it.

That was an unimaginable level of power; even such a being wouldn't bother with him.

"So, it seems that a treasure protected its karma and lifeline, which caused your Elder Si to fail and your divination to fail... Tsk tsk, such a treasure should be reserved for a destined person, which is just right for me. How could it fall into the hands of a tiger demon?" He stood up, no longer even looking at the deathmatch he used to enjoy.

"Let's go down. We don't need to do any divination. We'll just follow the ghostly aura and see what's going on with that tiger demon. We'll also retrieve that dusty treasure so it can regain its glory and not suffer in the hands of a demon." The young master stood up and walked out of the private room.

Yan Jun, Elder Si, and the maid followed him downstairs.

As for Li Qi, he felt nothing at the moment.

There was no other way. As a ninth-rank orthodox Shaman Path, he was extraordinary and had a small world within his body. Now he could go a year without eating or drinking without any side effects, and breathing was no longer necessary. He could hold his breath for four or five days and still move around normally, only he couldn't speak.

After all, without breathing, there is no airflow to vibrate the vocal cords, and speaking becomes impossible.

When one cultivates the Shaman Path to a high level, the human body becomes a microcosm that can even produce living things. The body forms its own world, free and eternal, without relying on any external things.

To divine Li Qi's fate is essentially to divine a small world. Although it is indeed very small now, its rank is still much higher than that of an individual life form.

Furthermore, since he was Outer Dao, divination was extremely difficult for him.

However, Li Qi has recently learned some relevant knowledge and knows that not all Outer Dao are like him, and even great diviners find it difficult to catch his traces.

To be precise, the farther away from the heavens, the more difficult it is to perform divination, because this involves the Heavenly Dao of the corresponding world, and divination has no effect beyond distance.

For example, in the Earth Oil Realm, a ninth-rank fortune teller can easily predict and divine the future.

Even the great diviner would find it difficult to calculate... Li Qi, in any case, had no idea how far away Earth was.

However, these were all just wild thoughts. Li Qi's main focus right now was on selecting the Wind-Walking Talisman.

Because... there are too many.

Yes, there are too many.

The learning threshold for Wind-Walking Talisman is low, almost an entry-level product for talisman masters, and the cost is almost zero. All that is needed is ordinary talisman paper and ink, as well as the talisman master's own energy. Basically, it's all about the craftsmanship that's being sold.

Therefore, almost every shop here sells Wind-Walking Talisman, and the effects vary depending on the maker's style.

This wasn't mentioned in the book; it was the first time Li Qi had ever known that the Wind-Walking Talisman could have different characteristics.

There are eight winds in the sky, each with a different nature. Therefore, depending on the type that the creator is skilled in, the Wind-Walking Talisman will have different special effects.

Some simply run faster, some last longer, some can be given the ability to fly briefly, and some even have two or three different special effects.

If a talisman master is proficient in all eight winds, they can even create Wind-Walking Talisman that possesses eight different characteristics simultaneously.

Of course, prices will definitely skyrocket as well.

This was Li Qi's first time at such a market. Since it wasn't mentioned in the book, he certainly didn't know it, so he was slowly learning.

Shen Shuibi, on the other hand, although she is not a talisman master, has a very good eye and can always point out some flaws, which can greatly help Li Qi make choices.

Piaoxu would often offer advice on a store's reputation, which made the selection process very smooth.

Soon, Li Qi selected three coins based on his needs, all of which were extremely fast. He also used the shortcomings pointed out by Shen Shuibi to cut the price by nearly a third, acquiring them for two gold coins each.

At this point, Li Qi had only one gold coin and a tiny bit of change left.

Fortunately, we didn't exceed the budget.

However, he also knew the cost of making Wind-Walking Talisman. At two gold coins each, the rest was pure profit after deducting labor costs. Wind-Walking Talisman were also very easy to damage, so they were considered consumables. They would be destroyed if they were bumped or knocked during battles or while traveling. Basically, it was just about producing large quantities. Skilled talisman masters could easily make a dozen or twenty a day.

But it's a good thing for him.

Cheap is great!

But...

"Two gold pieces is quite cheap..." Li Qi said with a sigh.

Just a year ago, he was struggling for a few copper coins, but now he thinks, "Two gold coins is such a bargain, it's really good value for money."

Two gold pieces, that's twenty thousand coins!

Piaoxu glanced at Li Qi, somewhat puzzled. She was already amazed that such an expert could negotiate prices, so what did it mean that he was now marveling at it?

Shen Shuibi, on the other hand, showed no reaction at all. She reverted to her usual dazed state and became absorbed in her own world.

It's probably because of this personality that she hasn't left Mount Luofu for thousands of years, which is why Li Qi has been deceiving her all along the way...

"Hmm... I've bought the Wind-Walking Talisman, but as for Cultivation Method, I'm afraid I don't have enough money. I need to think of a way to earn money. I don't have any supplies in my pocket either. Should I go to Green Mountain?" Li Qi pondered his next move.

Cultivation Method are definitely ridiculously expensive; you probably can't buy them with gold.

"Well, we've bought everything. Let's go back so as not to delay your business. We've been out for almost a Chen and a half. It'll be good to have dinner when we get back," Li Qi suggested after buying the goods.

"As you say, sir." Piaoxu seemed much more at ease, gave a curtsy, and then walked forward.

Shen Shuibi had no objection. She had already activated the follow mode, so she could just follow along and didn't need to worry about anything else.

However, right at this very moment.

Shen Shuibi, who had been following absentmindedly, suddenly moved and grabbed Piaoxu, startling the fox.

"Sir, what's wrong?" Piaoxu respected the lady who saved her, so she quickly asked, assuming that the lady had something to tell her.

However, after Shen Shuibi grabbed Piaoxu, Li Qi immediately made a move.

The Five Peaks Qi surged forth from within his body, incredibly steady, like the roots of mountains piercing the ground, forming a thick shield of the Five Sacred Mountains.

However, with the sound of a flute, the steady aura composed of the Five Peaks Qi was pierced through.

Li Qi frowned.

The xiao (vertical bamboo flute) embodies the spirit of the center. All things are born from silence and appear invisibly. It signifies solemnity, an invisible killing intent. The sound of the xiao is associated with solemnity and killing, hence the phrases "desolate and mournful" and "trees withering," which are derived from this meaning.

Was the other side planning a sneak attack from the very beginning? And a deadly one at that?

Just as sound can penetrate a solid shield, Xiao Zhiqi could easily pass through the Five Peaks Qi within Li Qi's body, rendering normal defenses useless against him.

But this did not stump Li Qi.

He suddenly swung his fist and punched his liver and gallbladder area!

The spirit of courage is like a tremor; it is the tremor that emanates from a person's resentment, a voice that expresses the highest virtue.

The liver's qi is life-giving, sensing the harmonious qi, and its origin lies in the beginning of vitality.

Just as thunder brings vitality and dispels the bleak atmosphere, Li Qi pounded his liver and gallbladder while shouting loudly, "Ha!"

The others around hurriedly dodged, and the sound of the flute was also dispelled by Li Qi's resounding voice, which carried the Gallbladder Qi, but Li Qi also coughed slightly.

I punched myself; it hurt a lot. I guess it's a minor injury.

"Who is it?" Li Qi dismissed the guards of the Five Sacred Mountains and looked toward the source of the flute sound.

* (Monthly... votes, ugh!)