The night was as dark as ink. The Shantytown in Taihang Market lay wrapped in deathly silence, broken only by the occasional bark from a distant dog and the mournful howl of the cold wind passing through the dilapidated rooftops.
Inside, a tiny oil lamp flickered.
Chen Ping sat cross-legged on a wooden bed with one corner caved in, turning over the seven Fragmented Spirit Stones he had earned from selling talismans that day.
His fingertips were rough, and vermilion still stained the gaps beneath his nails. There was no ease in his eyes; instead, they were shadowed by deep worry.
"The tallest tree catches the wind."
Chen Ping murmured to himself.
Over the past half month, his Purification Talisman business had begun to pick up, but it had also gradually drawn the attention of those around him.
A down-and-out Rogue Cultivator at the first level of Qi Refining who could bring out several high-quality talismans every day was, in the eyes of those bottom-tier cultivators, no different from a child carrying gold through a crowded marketplace.
As he packed up his stall that day, he had clearly felt several greedy gazes linger on him for a long while.
If he hadn't gotten away quickly, and if he hadn't been hiding behind his master-level concealment disguise, trouble might well have found him on the way home.
"Brother Ping..."
Yun Niang's weak, sleep-murmured voice came from beside him.
Chen Ping hurriedly put away the spirit stones, tucked the blanket around her, and pressed his palm to his wife's cold forehead. He sent a wisp of gentle Everlasting Spring Technique spiritual power into her. Only when Yun Niang's brow relaxed and she fell asleep again did he slowly draw back his hand.
Just then,
"Knock, knock-knock."
A faint yet rhythmic knocking suddenly