Secret Machine Cannon Powder Formula

Xu Yuan let out a breath of stale air, finally relaxing. For the past few days, he had been constantly teetering on the brink of life and death, his nerves stretched taut.

"Nothing Is Forbidden" affected its user, while "Eight Directions Injury Sha" affected their opponent.

Moreover, its effects covered an area. Unlike Fate Arts, it couldn't directly target a specific person.

Saint Aunt had made one wrong judgment and choice after another because she had fallen under the effects of "Injury Sha."

Saint Aunt was an Eighth Stream Artisan Cultivator, while Xu Yuan was an Eighth Stream Fate Cultivator. At the same level, the influence of one's fate was quite noticeable.

But the effects had been especially pronounced on Saint Aunt for another reason: she was stubborn and self-willed by nature.

If he had faced a Seventh Stream cultivator, "Eight Directions Injury Sha" would probably have made his opponent commit only one mistake over the course of the fight.

That was how Fate Cultivators fought. The reason Upper Three Streams Fate Cultivators were so terrifying was that they possessed many fates, which they could constantly switch between and combine. Under all sorts of mysterious influences, their opponents often lost in utter confusion.

Xu Yuan took stock of what he had gained from the battle. Saint Aunt had four Artisan Cultivator creations on her. One was an ear-shaped device made of redwood and brass. After fiddling with it for a moment, Xu Yuan figured out what it was for, and delight spread across his face. "Now that's a good find."

There was also a Divine Mechanism Crossbow. It had no bolts, but he could ask his stepmother to make some when he got back. That wouldn't be a problem.

Then there were a small knife and a hammer.

They were Artisan Cultivator tools. Xu Yuan could make use of the knife, and he'd take the hammer back to "honor" his stepmother with.

"That's it?" Xu Yuan was deeply dissatisfied. "You're the dignified Saint Aunt of the Pingtian Society, and this is all you've got on you?"

Xu Yuan searched the corpse over and over, checking it several times. At last, he noticed Saint Aunt's feet. Some people liked to hide things beneath their insoles.

So Xu Yuan took off her shoes.

He felt around inside—and the texture seemed unusual!

"There really is something?"

Xu Yuan tore open the shoes. Sure enough, there was a hidden compartment in the sole, and a sheet of paper as thin as a cicada's wing slipped out.

"Secret Machine Cannon Powder Formula."

Xu Yuan looked it over and clicked his tongue. "This is the powder formula for bronze Crafted Cannons! One of the Pingtian Society's main sources of income is supplying Crafted Cannons to the Divine Machine Camp. This powder formula is one of their core secrets."

"Their Saint Aunt secretly hid a copy of the formula in her shoe. Heh. Saint Aunt wasn't exactly pure of heart, either."

Xu Yuan treated the formula like a priceless treasure.

The powder used for these Crafted Cannons was far more explosive than the powder for Master Qiao's Three-eyed Gun.

"Only..." Xu Yuan scratched his head as he looked at the formula. "A few of the key steps can only be done by an Artisan Cultivator. I'll have to ask my stepmother."

"But if she finds out my Inner Pill is actually cannon powder... she'll nag me endlessly again."

Xu Yuan put away the formula and tore open the other shoe as well, but there was nothing hidden inside.

"This formula is enough."

Without a doubt, the greatest gain was that he had wiped out the Pingtian Society's people. At least in the short term, the Pingtian Society wouldn't come looking for him.

Xu Yuan disposed of Saint Aunt's corpse the same way as before, tossing it into the wild grass nearby. Before long, it would become a feast for evil spirits.

It was just past noon, so he had plenty of time to get back to town today.

By dusk, Xu Yuan had returned to town. He planned to spend another night at Zhao's Furs Shop and head back to the city first thing tomorrow morning.

He still had his thick felt hat pulled low over his face, its brim hiding most of his features. He didn't want to attract anyone's attention.

Uncle Rong Kui was sitting in Sister-in-law Zhang's tea stall, leaning against the earthen wall on the west side. He tried to make himself as small as possible, despite his bulk, so as not to draw attention.

The tea stall didn't actually have a building. Two earthen walls stood on either side, with bamboo poles laid across the top and extending a zhang out front. Cloth stretched over them provided travelers and merchants with a place to drink and rest.

A bowl of tea cost one copper coin.

Many travelers couldn't afford to eat at an inn. They would buy a bowl of hot tea, soften the flatbread they had brought with them, and call it a meal.

The sky was growing dark, and there were hardly any customers left at the stall.

Uncle Rong Kui had been waiting until now. When he finally saw Xu Yuan coming out of the mountains, his eyelid twitched.

That kid was back!

He had gone into the mountains and come back out. What had he been doing?

Uncle Rong Kui had a suspicion, but he couldn't even believe it himself.

"The Pingtian Society's got plenty of men and horses..."

And yet not a single person had come back!

Uncle Rong Kui had actually begun to feel a little wary of the kid.

He dropped ten copper coins on the table, stood up, and walked out, turning into the alley nearby.

He'd sat there all day, and Sister-in-law Zhang hadn't chased him off. He might as well pay a little extra.

He had been staying at Widow Yang's house for the past two days. Tonight would be his last night there; he had to leave tomorrow morning, too.

On his way from the tea stall toward the south end of the street, he passed through a narrow alley.

Uncle Rong Kui's nose twitched. He caught a familiar scent and turned to investigate—and was instantly drenched in cold sweat!

Xu Yuan was floating off the ground, and somehow he had already appeared right behind him!

He was getting old. He'd been tailing a young man and still gotten caught!

He didn't know that, to Xu Yuan, the "fates" of familiar people were like lamps burning in the night. The moment they came near, they stood out.

A cold glint rested against Uncle Rong Kui's neck.

A cook's neck was thick, with a heavy layer of fat beneath the skin.

The cold glint pressed down lightly. His neck sank a little, and a bead of blood welled on his skin.

Uncle Rong Kui hurriedly cried, "Don't do it! Don't do it! We're on the same side!"

Uncle Rong Kui had recognized the cold glint in Xu Yuan's hand. It was Saint Aunt's small knife—the same thing she had used to lift the top of Er Liang's skull.

"So he really did..." Uncle Rong Kui thought.

Xu Yuan stared at him coldly. "We're on the same side?"

Uncle Rong Kui raised both hands. Sweat streamed from his forehead as he forced a smile. "I know you don't believe me. Just wait, hear me out..."

"Cut the chatter!" Xu Yuan pressed down harder, and the knife sank a little deeper.

Uncle Rong Kui blurted, "I'm a General Banner Officer in the Monster Extermination Army. I've got my Waist Token right here in my robes. I can show it to you. We really are on the same side, so don't get the wrong idea. Just keep your hand steady..."

Uncle Rong Kui wanted to slap himself. Whenever he got nervous, he started babbling. It was an old habit he hadn't been able to break in decades.

Xu Yuan frowned. "The Monster Extermination Army?"

"Yes, yes, the same Monster Extermination Army your second uncle belonged to."

Xu Yuan's face turned icy. He was about to strike. "You came here specifically for me!"

The Monster Extermination Army's full name was the "Imperial Guard's Outer Provinces Monster Extermination Thousand Household Office." It had been established two hundred years ago.

At the time, the Great Ming had just conquered Korea, but resistance forces across the peninsula kept rising up. So, under the pretext of "exterminating monsters," they formed an army like this.

The office had broad responsibilities: it was tasked with suppressing large-scale uprisings, hunting down remnants of the previous dynasty hiding among the people, and, while they were at it, dealing with evil spirits in the villages.

Later, as the Great Ming added provinces such as "Mongol Yuan Province" and "Dawan Province," it followed the same system, tasking the "Monster Extermination Thousand Household Offices" with pacifying the regions and suppressing rebels.