The sun rose and the moon set. In the blink of an eye, three days had passed.
Some people, however, had left their lives behind forever three days ago.
Although the bandits who had ambushed Master Xu had all vanished as a group, the news of Master Xu's death in a robbery at his own home in the city couldn't stay under wraps forever. It gradually spread throughout the city.
For a time, Linyuan City was gripped by fear. The wealthy, who considered themselves to have a fair amount of money, all felt at risk.
And all of this seemed to have nothing to do with Chu Ge, the deep-water leviathan who had casually wiped out the bandit leader.
Inside the Secret Chamber of the Chu Family, rows of oil lamps lit the room from end to end.
Chu Ge was trimming Gold Paper with a pair of scissors. Then, with colorful wax paper, Cold Gold, gold paint, silver, cinnabar, and other materials at his side, he added strange designs to the paper.
Over the past three days, he had finished preparing the Shadow Puppet of Fu Wei that he had drawn.
All that remained was to get the other materials ready, and he could make a Shadow Puppet.
For now, though, he also intended to use his Carved Paper-cutting skills to make himself a talisman totem that could enhance his strength—the Beast Power Paper Talisman.
For ordinary paper-cutting, the materials could be bamboo paper or xuan paper.
But for making a Beast Power Paper Talisman, Gold Paper or specially tanned Animal Hide Paper was best.
Different kinds of paper had different affinities for unusual power, and thus produced different effects.
Gold Paper, for instance, was tougher and more heat-resistant and durable. It was generally used as the core medium for carrying unusual power, since it lasted longer and was less likely to be damaged.
Now that he had reached the Blood Change Realm, his cultivation had gradually stabilized. Thanks to the nourishing food he had eaten over the past few days, the blood in his bone marrow had also replenished more quickly, and his strength had advanced considerably. He had firmly established himself in the early stage of the Blood Change Realm.
But considering the threat posed by the Iron Token Envoy, a potential enemy from the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult, Chu Ge felt he needed to prepare several ways to protect himself. The Beast Power Paper Talisman was one of his trump cards.
The Beast Power Paper Talisman not only required special materials for its base paper, but also called for extremely expensive and rare ingredients like Tiger Bone Powder, Giant Python Blood, Ivory Powder, and Giant Whale Oil. Only by developing a special ink from these materials and drawing with it could he create a medium capable of carrying unusual power.
It had taken Chu Ge a year and a half just to gather those materials.
For now, he wasn't even skilled enough to cut out this kind of power talisman directly. Instead, he was copying the design from the Five Mao Mountain Marvelous Skill manual using Wood Carving techniques.
Wood Carving involved using a knife to carve on paper, imitating the process of making a woodblock print.
After three days of attempts, Chu Ge had already failed several times along the way and wasted quite a lot of materials. By now, though, he was gradually getting the hang of it.
As the sharp knife slid across the Gold Paper, it slowly cut out a winding, continuous line.
At the same time, Chu Ge divided his attention, quickly brushing a small brush dipped in special ink along the line to apply the first layer.
This is quite a hassle. If I could get a skilled craftsman to make a special pen, something like a fountain pen but sharp enough to cut Gold Paper, maybe I could improve both my success rate and efficiency when making talismans that carry unusual power.
The thought flashed through Chu Ge's mind, and he immediately focused on his work again.
Meanwhile, after a thorough investigation into the Xu Family robbery, the constables of the county town followed the various clues and gradually traced the crime to the Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits, who had recently been roaming outside the city.
Inside the County Town Yamen.
City Guard Captain Tian Youji sat in the seat of honor. After looking over the report on the Xu Family case, he furrowed his brow and said gravely,
"The Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits were originally mounted bandits who came here from the Western Regions. The Imperial Court pursued them, but the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult recruited them as a gang of thugs to rob homes and businesses, offering them protection.
"These bandits showed their tracks some time ago, when they robbed merchants outside the city.
"They were very cunning, though, and I couldn't identify them right away.
"Looks like they've already made contact with a nearby Skyfire Cult stronghold. I had planned to wait for the Demon Suppressing Division to send experts so we could wipe that stronghold out in one fell swoop. I never expected them to become so brazen!"
The young constable who had presented the case files hesitated. "Sir, I suspect the Thirteen Golden Spear Bandits have already fled.
"Based on my investigation, no merchants or peddlers in or around the city have been harassed by the bandits over the past few days. It's as though they've suddenly gone quiet, which isn't like them."
Tian Youji gave a cold snort. "A dog can't change its habit of eating shit. They came into the city and committed a major crime, so they're lying low out of fear. But they can only hide for a while. When they get hungry, they'll come out again."
He paused, thinking of the news that had recently come from other towns, then said solemnly, "The Heaven and Earth Incense Cult has grown more and more rampant in recent years. Recently, wealthy merchants in many towns have suffered at their hands. I suspect they're likely planning something new.
"Go notify the wealthy merchants in the city. They need to hire more guards and take strict precautions. They should avoid leaving the city as much as possible."
"Yes!" The constable turned around, revealing a sallow face. It was none other than Little Qin, who had once traded Spirit Fish with Chu Ge.
Tian Youji watched Little Qin leave, a cold glint in his eyes. He weighed how many casualties there would be if he led men against the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult's stronghold now and wiped out those madmen.
"We'll have to see how many experts the Demon Suppressing Division sends. I'll have to visit Brother Hu as well."
After a while, a sigh echoed through the room.
The Great Zhou was growing more chaotic and feeble by the day. All sorts of sects and factions, demons and monsters, were emerging across the land.
The Demon Suppressing Division, he'd heard, was riven by fierce infighting. It might not even take a small city like Linyuan seriously.
Inside the Chu Family's Secret Chamber, where some odor-masking incense had been sprayed, a stone vat weighing two thousand pounds was suddenly hurled away by Chu Ge. It shook the air with a whistling roar, pressing down on the room until the air itself seemed to grow heavy.
The instant he threw the vat, Chu Ge bent his knees and sprang forward in a fierce charge, like a fierce tiger charging down the mountain, his momentum surging like a rainbow.
In the blink of an eye, he had reached the spot where he expected it to land. His body reared upright like a fierce tiger, and he raised both arms with all his strength. As he roared and exhaled, the muscles in his back swelled into knotted mounds like rising dough, bursting forth with a terrifying, ghostlike visage.
The Tiger Crouching Technique was a body-tempering art. In that instant, Chu Ge circulated his qi and blood, becoming like a tiger rising onto its hind legs, with boundless strength.
Boom!
The ground trembled, and dust lifted into the air.
Chu Ge's body swayed, but he didn't even need to dissipate the force. The paper-cut design affixed to his back, resembling a talisman, trembled slightly. Its multicolored patterns seemed to glimmer, and the unusual power attached to the paper talisman formed a strange force that flowed into his body, letting him forcibly catch the heavy stone vat as it came crashing down.
A martial artist in the Blood Change Realm could easily lift a stone vat weighing two thousand pounds.
The hard part was catching it as it came hurtling down at high speed.
The impact carried by that speed was nothing like simply lifting a mere two thousand pounds.
Chu Ge exhaled and set down the stone roller with a thud.
"After using the Beast Power Paper Talisman, my strength seems to have increased by a full eighty percent! It lasts...about ten breaths."
Chu Ge carefully felt it out. When he sensed the power of the talisman on his back fading, he peeled it off and inspected it.
He noticed that about one wisp of unusual power had been consumed from the talisman. It pained him, but he also had a better idea of how it worked.
"Looks like each use consumes one wisp of unusual power and lasts about ten breaths.
"That probably isn't the limit of the paper talisman's effect. It's the limit of my technique."
This talisman was the Beast Power Paper Talisman he had only managed to make in the past couple of days.
Its design was quite complex: a strange totem with a tiger's head, a dragon's tail, and an elephant's body. Every whisker was there, and even the lines and texture of its muscles were rendered in the finest detail, symbolizing strength.
With Chu Ge's current paper-cutting skills, he could only make this talisman using Wood Carving techniques. It could hardly be considered a good talisman, so its effects and number of uses were limited.
Still, with the Beast Power Paper Talisman as a medium, he could borrow the power of unusual forces in advance and increase his own strength.
I wonder how it compares to that Iron Token Envoy's so-called secret art of unusual power.
As Chu Ge pondered this, he stuck the talisman back on, put on his clothes, and left the Secret Chamber.
"Young Master, the eldest miss sent a letter and a package! Also, Constable Qin from the County Yamen is here to see you!"
Steward Fu saw Chu Ge emerge from the Secret Chamber and immediately came forward with a letter and a package to report the news.
He knew the young master had been waiting a long time for this reply.
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