An enormous bounty

"What do you two mean by this?"

Chen Lin stopped in his tracks and eyed the two warily.

Although he doubted they would rob him in the street, he could not understand why they had blocked his way.

"Don't be alarmed, fellow Daoist. My junior sister and I mean you no harm. We have a favor to ask."

Lu Li cupped his hands and forced a faint smile.

Chen Lin's gaze flickered. He thought he understood what they wanted, but it still seemed unlikely.

Then Lu Li spoke again. "First, allow me to introduce myself. I am Lu Li of the Lu Lineage, and this is my cousin, Lan Yuqing. You saw what happened in the Multitreasure Pavilion just now. I urgently need someone to craft a Soul-Detaining Talisman. Since you seemed to have bought talisman materials, I assumed you were a talisman master. That's why I took the liberty of stopping you."

Chen Lin's eyes flickered.

He really had guessed correctly.

But just how desperate were they to be blundering about like headless flies?

"I'm sorry, but I'm only a low-rank talisman master who has just started learning. At present, I can only craft Vigor Talismans. I'm afraid I can't help."

Chen Lin waved his hands repeatedly.

His refusal was utterly unequivocal.

Although he desperately wanted to give it a try, and his Ten Attempts One Hit ability would certainly let him craft it, he dared not agree.

He absolutely could not let anyone discover his talent ability. If someone assumed he possessed some treasure that granted him this power, he could be blasted to pieces in an instant.

Even if they believed it was his talent ability, there was still a chance they would imprison him as a talisman-making slave-and a very high chance at that.

The Immortal Cultivation World here cared nothing for virtue or morality. It knew only the law of the jungle.

Lu Li did not seem bothered by Chen Lin's refusal.

He cast a sidelong glance at him and sneered. "I intend to hold a Talismancrafting Convention at the Lianyun Inn tonight, and I cordially invite you to attend. If you know any talisman masters, you may recommend them as well.

"I, Lu, have spirit stones to spare. Whoever can craft the talisman I need will receive fifty medium-grade spirit stones. Anyone who recommends a successful candidate will also receive five medium-grade spirit stones!"

Shock appeared in Chen Lin's eyes.

That reward was truly enormous!

"Well, all right."

He nodded in agreement.

The enormous bounty of spirit stones tempted Chen Lin beyond measure. Whether he went or not, he could agree first.

Seeing this, Lu Li's expression improved considerably.

Then the senior brother and junior sister both cast sidelong glances and sneered, their figures flickering as they skimmed away low above the ground.

Chen Lin watched their retreating figures enviously, wondering when he would learn the Flight Technique so that he would no longer have to crawl miserably through the snow.

Only after the two had completely disappeared did he smack his lips and withdraw his gaze.

He continued trudging toward his lodgings.

He was far from the only one crawling along.

From a distance, they looked like stiff zombies, occasionally letting out sinister, wildly arrogant sneers.

Where was the bearing of a cultivator in any of this? It was downright painful to look at.

Chen Lin quickened his pace.

He returned to the courtyard weighed down by worries and happened to run into his neighbor, the sallow-faced fiery female cultivator, as she came out.

"Hmph, you old bachelor!"

He had been about to greet her, but her hostile glare forced the words back down his throat.

Chen Lin could not be bothered to stoop to arguing with a woman like her. He ignored her and entered his room.

He had just taken off his padded coat and hat when someone knocked on the door.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, it's me, Zhao Zhengyuan."

Chen Lin's eyes flickered. Holding an Evil-Warding Talisman ready in his hand, he opened the door.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, something terrible has happened!"

The door had barely opened a crack before Zhao Zhengyuan urgently squeezed inside, panic written all over his face.

"What happened?"

Sensing his agitation, Chen Lin grew nervous as well.

"Dead. They're all dead!"

Zhao Zhengyuan's face was pale, and his lips trembled incessantly.

"What do you mean, all dead?"

Chen Lin was baffled, but then something seemed to occur to him, and he exclaimed in alarm, "Do you mean everyone who was possessed has died?"

Zhao Zhengyuan nodded repeatedly.

"That's right. Didn't I tell you last time that a lot more people had been possessed, just like us? This morning, I saw you go out, so I went out for a look myself and asked around. That's when I learned that all those people had died, and their bodies looked just like Sun Shi's and the others'!"

That answer made Chen Lin's heart sink.

The Sun Shi he mentioned was a cultivator who had been possessed alongside this body's original owner and the others. He had died shortly after returning.

There had been several others, too, and not one of them had survived.

Their deaths were said to have been horrific. They looked as though they had been dried in the wind, their entire bodies reduced to desiccated corpses.

"Are they really all dead? Not even one survived?"

Chen Lin asked again to be certain.

If that was true, then he and Zhao Zhengyuan stood out far too much. They were bound to attract attention.

Zhao Zhengyuan looked grim as well. He swallowed and said, "Everyone from the last group died, but more newly possessed cultivators have appeared. It's already drawn attention, and a lot of people are discussing it."

"More people have been possessed?"

Chen Lin frowned.

The more people became possessed, the more conspicuous the two survivors would be. That was hardly a good thing.

"Yes, and quite a few of them. There are two rumors going around now. One says a powerful heretical entity has appeared outside the city and set its sights on Kaiyuan City. The other says this is a plague."

Zhao Zhengyuan recovered from his nervousness, pulled over a chair, and sat down.

"A plague?"

Chen Lin shook his head. "Surely not. Can cultivators catch a plague?"

Zhao Zhengyuan cast a sidelong glance and sneered. "Of course they can, though it certainly wouldn't be an ordinary plague. But there's no need to fear. I have some expertise in plagues as well!"

Chen Lin automatically ignored the words born of the man's affliction and pondered in silence.

If it really was a plague, that would actually be preferable. He would only need to isolate himself and avoid contact with others. But if a powerful heretical entity had set its sights on them, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Moreover, if some powerful bizarre horror had appeared outside, the danger of fleeing this place would rise sharply.

"Which do you think it is?"

Chen Lin looked at him and asked.

"Alas, I don't know either. We'll find out after some time. In any case, there's nothing we can do, no matter what it is. With snow this heavy, we wouldn't even be able to find the road outside the city. We can only wait here."

Zhao Zhengyuan sighed, shook his head, and rose to leave the room.

After he left, Chen Lin sank into thought. But no matter how he turned it over in his mind, it was just as Zhao Zhengyuan had said: there was nothing he could do.

Fleeing the city now was certainly out of the question.

The snow was more than half a meter deep. Without the Flight Technique, traveling any great distance was impossible. Besides, the monster beasts outside the city were probably crazed with hunger by now. Going out would be tantamount to delivering them a snack.

Not to mention the possibility of a powerful bizarre horror lurking outside.

"This world is too insane. I can't keep taking things one step at a time!"

Chen Lin gritted his teeth and made his decision.

Originally, he had intended to proceed steadily, developing slowly with his Ten Attempts One Hit ability. But this sudden turn of events forced him to change his plans.

Rather than continue crafting talismans, he cooked a pot of Spirit Rice Porridge. After drinking it, he began meditating and cultivating.

That evening, he made some preparations, then left his room with a bundle on his back.