Invitation

"Fellow Daoist Chen, you know how I, Zhang Mazi, do business: one price, no bargaining. Still, there might be room to discuss your situation."

The shopkeeper stroked his nonexistent beard and spoke slowly.

"What do you mean? Just spit it out. I haven't seen you for a few days, and now you're hemming and hawing like a woman!"

Chen Lin was anxious, and his tone was rather sharp.

The shopkeeper remained unhurried. He glared at him and said, "With that attitude, no wonder your cultivation hasn't advanced an inch. Cultivators must avoid chasing quick gains above all else. You need to approach everything with a calm mind, or you could suffer cultivation deviation and fall onto the demonic path!"

Chen Lin froze.

Then he cupped his hands. "You're absolutely right, Fellow Daoist Zhang. Thank you for the lesson."

Whether the man was giving him sidelong looks or not, those words made perfect sense.

The shopkeeper gave Chen Lin a look that said he could still be taught, then finally asked at his leisurely pace, "What's your success rate with these Fireball Talismans?"

Chen Lin did not understand why he was asking, but it was hardly a secret. He immediately replied, "Ten percent!"

"Only ten percent? A little low, but with your cultivation, being able to craft a Rank 1 Mid-Grade Talisman above your level is already quite an achievement. As you grow more proficient, it'll improve."

The man muttered to himself, and Chen Lin had no idea how to cut in. He could only wait silently for him to continue.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, would you be interested in joining our Zhang Family?"

Suddenly, the man raised his head and said something that left Chen Lin stunned.

"What do you mean? Has some Miss from your Zhang Family taken a fancy to me and wants me to marry into the family?"

Countless scenes instantly sprang into Chen Lin's mind.

The Zhang Family he mentioned was the immortal cultivation family known as the Zhang Family, one of the Five Major Families-the one whose Foundation Establishment expert had just disappeared.

Even without their Foundation Establishment expert, they were still one of the Five Major Families. Their reserves remained substantial, far beyond those of an ordinary faction.

Most importantly, they controlled medicinal pills, which were what he needed most right now. To escape this place, sacrificing himself a little was not out of the question.

"Dream on!"

Chen Lin's words made the shopkeeper laugh.

Then he shot him a sidelong look and sneered. "How could a toad like you be worthy of a Miss from our Zhang Family? If you're willing to marry a mortal without a spiritual root, though, I could arrange a match."

Unable to tell whether the shopkeeper was serious or joking, Chen Lin immediately shook his head.

"Forget mortals. We'd have nothing in common. I'd be better off single. So what did you mean earlier, Fellow Daoist Zhang?"

The shopkeeper turned serious. "You've probably heard the rumors. Something happened in our Zhang Family recently, and we're recruiting large numbers of people with all kinds of skills. Since you can craft Rank 1 Mid-Grade Talismans, you qualify. If you're interested, I can report it to the family and invite you to become our exclusive talismancrafter."

Chen Lin was tempted. "What benefits would I get as an exclusive talismancrafter?"

Whether he married into the family or became an exclusive talismancrafter, it was fine as long as he could get medicinal pills.

"Benefits? Plenty, naturally. Not only would we provide more talisman recipes free of charge, you'd also receive a monthly stipend of spirit stones. Better still, our Zhang Family's master talismancrafter would teach you the art. You could say the benefits are endless."

The shopkeeper stroked his chin proudly.

"With so many benefits, I doubt they're that easy to obtain. What restrictions are there?"

There was no such thing as a free lunch. Every benefit came at a corresponding price. Chen Lin understood that clearly.

The shopkeeper glanced sideways and sneered. "The conditions are very lenient. You only need to swear an Inner Demon Oath never to betray the family for the rest of your life!"

Just as I thought.

Chen Lin sneered inwardly.

Expecting these people to show kindness was pure wishful thinking.

This was no recruitment of an exclusive talismancrafter. They were recruiting a household slave and demanding a contract that sold away his life!

An Inner Demon Oath exerted a powerful hold over cultivators. Anyone who broke one would suffer a backlash from their inner demons.

"I'll pass. I'm used to living freely on my own and don't like being tied down. Thank you for your kindness, Fellow Daoist Zhang."

Chen Lin refused outright.

He could not even be bothered to ask whether they would give him a quota for purchasing medicinal pills.

There was no way he could swear an Inner Demon Oath. If he did, leaving this place would become even harder.

The shopkeeper did not seem bothered by Chen Lin's response. Instead, he gave him a long look and said, "Fellow Daoist Chen, Kaiyuan City is growing more unsettled by the day. I suggest you think it over carefully. Unless you attach yourself to an immortal cultivation family like ours, the days ahead may not be easy!"

Chen Lin paused.

Then he cupped his hands.

"Thank you for the warning, shopkeeper. I'll give it some more thought."

The shopkeeper shook his head, looking as though Chen Lin did not know a good thing when he saw one.

After leaving the Zhang Clan Trading Firm, Chen Lin browsed several other shops and bought a large bundle of materials.

Only after spending nearly all his savings did he head back.

The snow was still falling heavily.

Snow on the ground was over a foot deep, making walking difficult even for cultivators.

He encountered almost no one along the way. The few he saw were cultivators at the qi condensation mid-late stage who had learned the Flight Technique.

Chen Lin deeply envied the Flight Technique. If he learned that spell, his ability to survive in the wilderness would improve enormously.

Unfortunately, one had to reach at least the mid qi refinement realm to learn it, and it was said to be extremely difficult to master.

For now, improving his cultivation had to remain his priority.

He had to put pill refining on the agenda immediately.

Back home, Chen Lin lit a fire and cooked. After eating, he began crafting talismans.

He made Vigor Talismans, Rank 1 Low-Grade Talismans and one of the only two kinds the body's original owner knew how to craft.

Fireball Talismans brought no profit and wasted too much time, so he could only set them aside for now.

Although Vigor Talismans were cheap, the original owner had already mastered them, achieving a thirty-percent success rate. With his Ten Attempts One Hit talent, that rose to a full forty percent. After deducting costs, he could earn about two spirit stones for every ten sets of materials.

By rising early and staying up late, he could work through twenty sets of materials a day.

That meant four spirit stones coming in!

He had to use this skill to earn enough spirit stones for materials before he could start experimenting with pill refining.

Chen Lin hung a "Do not disturb" sign outside his door, then began crafting talismans day and night.

In the blink of an eye.

Ten days passed.

With dark circles beneath both eyes, Chen Lin looked at the thick stack of talismans in his hands and felt quite accomplished.

The snow outside had grown considerably deeper, yet it still showed no sign of stopping.

At this rate, he would not even be able to leave the house in a few more days.

Chen Lin pushed open the window and gazed worriedly at the snowflakes swirling through the sky. Only after a long while did he look away.

Still, the investigation he had been worrying about had never materialized, which eased his mind considerably.

After struggling mightily to get the door open, he cleared away some snow and trudged toward the Market.

The Zhang Clan Trading Firm Branch.

The room was warm, but hardly anyone was inside.

Chen Lin took out all his Vigor Talismans and placed them on the counter.

"You've actually raised your success rate with Vigor Talismans to forty percent. You're making progress!"

From the time Chen Lin had spent crafting them, the shopkeeper, Zhang Mazi, immediately calculated his success rate.

He was astonished.

Talismans this low-level could hardly arouse anyone's greed, so Chen Lin had made no attempt to conceal it.

He nodded. "That's right. Ever since I crafted a Fireball Talisman, my understanding of talismancrafting has deepened."

Naturally, Zhang Mazi could not know that Chen Lin was no longer the original Chen Lin and had gained the Ten Attempts One Hit talent. He merely assumed that Chen Lin had suddenly seen the light and unlocked his potential.

As he handed Chen Lin the spirit stones for the Vigor Talismans, he gave a sidelong sneer, then stared at him.

His stare made Chen Lin uneasy.

"What are you looking at? You're not planning to rob me, are you?"

Chen Lin put the spirit stones into a pouch and held it in his hand, watching the man warily.

Zhang Mazi glanced sideways and sneered. "Do you think I'm a pauper like you? Would this handful of spirit stones even be worth lifting a finger for?"

Chen Lin knew that someone of his status would not covet such a small sum. He had only said it to ease the atmosphere.

"Then why are you staring at me?"

Zhang Mazi stroked his nonexistent beard and said, "I have an older female cousin who's been widowed for years. She's a little old, a little ugly, a little stout, and a little bad-tempered, but she has cultivation at qi condensation layer 4, as well as a younger brother at the qi condensation late stage. If you're interested, Fellow Daoist Chen, I could introduce you."

Chen Lin's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

Fighting back the urge to punch the man's pockmarked face, he refused coldly. "Thank you for your kindness, shopkeeper. A Miss from your Zhang Family is truly beyond my reach."

He could sacrifice himself to improve his cultivation, but not to that extent.

He had expected those words to upset the man. Instead, Zhang Mazi considered them for a moment, then looked thoroughly convinced.

With a sidelong sneer, he nodded. "You certainly know your own worth, Fellow Daoist Chen. You're right. I took too much for granted. With your qualifications, my cousin certainly wouldn't fancy you. If I actually proposed introducing you, she'd probably give me a scolding. Let's pretend I never mentioned it."

Chen Lin opened his mouth.

Yet he found himself utterly speechless.

Silently cursing the man for looking down on him through a dog's eyes, he lost even the desire to buy materials there. He turned and walked straight out.

Even outside, his chest still heaved with anger.

But when he remembered that these people were nothing more than a bunch of string-controlled puppets, much of his anger faded.