Talismans

"Better let the old man prepare it, to avoid arousing suspicion."

Qi Condensation Pills were almost always tied to breaking through to the Xiantian realm.

Fang Yuan, as far as the outside world was concerned, was supposed to be repairing his dantian—there was absolutely no way he could take a Qi Condensation Pill, or his body would burst.

After thinking everything through clearly, Fang Yuan opened the door. What came into view was a round, chubby fatty with a smile on his face.

"What are you doing here?"

Fang Yuan was a bit surprised, but he still smiled and invited Fang Man inside, ordering a maid to serve tea.

"Brother Yuan, last time you asked me to look into that talisman matter—I've got some leads now."

Fang Man gulped down the tea like a thirsty ox, moistened his throat, and spoke up.

Fang Yuan's eyes flickered, memories surging up in his mind.

Before the trial to enter the Azure Cloud Sect, he and Fang Man had been out training once and stumbled upon a stone covered in runic inscriptions.

Traditional talismans had very high requirements for their carriers, usually needing special yellow oil paper.

A talisman carved into stone was clearly unusual.

Moreover, the place where they found the talisman happened to be not far from the Fang Family's spirit vein.

Fang Yuan had specifically sent people to investigate, and sure enough, they found several more similar stone talismans nearby.

The art of talismans was quite mysterious.

Some pre-made talismans could unleash tremendous power in an instant, even borrowing the strength of heaven and earth.

"I got word that the Wang Clan recently received an important figure, suspected to be a Daoist cultivator," Fang Man said.

Within the Great Zhou Dynasty, Daoist cultivators were few in number, considered a niche among the cultivation system.

And to craft talismans, only Daoist cultivators had that ability.

"I'll bring this up with the clan head. Thanks for your hard work," Fang Yuan said with a smile.

When it came to the family's spirit vein—that was their very foundation—no amount of caution was excessive.

"What kind of talk is that?" Fang Man waved his hands repeatedly. "When Brother Yuan gives me a task, I've got to put my heart into it."

"Those bastards in the Wang Clan, every last one of them rotten to the core. I bet they're cooking up some scheme again."

Among the three great clans, the Wang Clan had been established in the county city the longest. Before the Fang Family rose to power, they had always held the top spot.

"Since you're here, stay for a meal. It's just about time anyway."

Fang Man wanted to decline, but under Fang Yuan's gaze, he could only grin and stay.

"This soup is something special."

Before long, the dishes were all served.

As the young clan head, Fang Yuan had his own private kitchen. The meat cooked was high-quality demon beast meat, rich in blood and qi.

"There's a five-hundred-year-old lingzhi in it, a gift from the Grand Elder."

Fang Yuan picked up the soup spoon and took a light sip. The soup, made from old turtle stewed with lingzhi, was indeed exquisitely delicious.

"A five-hundred-year lingzhi—that's a rare find. I'll have to shamelessly drink a few extra bowls," Fang Man said with a laugh.

A five-hundred-year lingzhi had potent medicinal properties, excellent for strengthening the foundation and nourishing the core. Even Xiantian realm experts would covet it.

Its value was roughly enough to buy a two-bedroom house with a courtyard on the outskirts of the county city.

"If Fang Hui found out that we're drinking his dad's lingzhi after he got beaten up, I wonder what he'd think," Fang Man said with a strange expression.

Mentioning this, Fang Man suddenly remembered that Fang Hui's older brother, Fang Yuan, still had a duel pending.

"I've had it with that punk Fang Yuan for a long time. In a couple of days, I'll block their doorstep and beat the hell out of those two brothers."

Blocking someone's doorstep—only Fang Man would pull a stunt like that.

Fang Yuan knew Fang Man wanted to vent for him, but he didn't consider those two brothers worth his attention.

Besides, Fang Yuan's strength was indeed no joke. Among the younger generation of the Fang Family, the only one who could firmly suppress him was Fang Yuan himself.

"You don't believe in my strength?" Fang Yuan asked with a smile.

Knowing Fang Man's temperament, even if he wasn't strong enough, he might really go head-to-head with Fang Yuan. That wasn't something Fang Yuan wanted to see.

"Of course not!" Fang Man waved his hands frantically, afraid Fang Yuan might misunderstand.

"Leave this matter to me. Don't get involved."

Fang Yuan slowly stood up, patted Fang Man on the shoulder, his words confident and domineering.

In that moment.

Scenes rolled through Fang Man's eyes.

He had started late, his talent only manifesting at the age of twelve.

On top of that, having lost his parents young, he had been bullied plenty. It was the figure standing right in front of him who had protected him back then.

For an instant, the silhouette from his childhood gradually overlapped with the one before him now.

"Young master, it's bad! Miss Ke'er has challenged Young Master Fang Yuan on the arena stage!"

Xiao Zi rushed over in a fluster, her words snapping Fang Man back to reality. Fang Yuan, however, furrowed his brow slightly.

"This little girl, still so impetuous in her actions, never thinking of the consequences."

Fang Yuan cast a deliberate, sidelong glance at Fang Man. Fang Man looked a bit embarrassed, lowering his gaze as a wry smile spread across his face.

"Brother Yuan, I swear, I knew nothing about this."

Fang Yuan paid it no mind. He turned and headed toward the martial arts field, with Fang Man following closely behind.

"You're no match for me."

On the arena stage.

Two young figures stood. The man, clad in a white robe with sword-like brows and starry eyes, held his hands behind his back, his tone dripping with arrogance.

"Make your move!"

The girl had a lovely face, her hair cascading like a waterfall to her waist, her eyes like a clear autumn pool. Her demeanor was cold and aloof, her words sparing.

"I won't raise my hand against a woman."

Fang Yuan didn't even glance at the girl. He looked down at the surging crowd below the stage, basking in their awed gazes.

"Fang Ke'er is the most beautiful woman in our family. I wouldn't have the heart to strike her either."

"If you say that, where does that leave our little princess Fang Qingyun?"

Some of the male disciples weren't focused on the fight itself but had started discussing the women of the family instead.

This drew looks of disdain from a few female disciples.

"What do you think? Is Fang Ke'er suddenly challenging him to stand up for the young master?"

"No need to think about it. That's definitely it."

The responding disciple's words were thick with jealousy and envy.

As everyone knew, Fang Ke'er rarely interacted with anyone in the family and was always stern and aloof—a true ice-cold beauty.

But Fang Yuan was the sole exception.

This left many of Fang Ke'er's admirers beating their chests in frustration.

They might have dared to compete for others.

But Fang Yuan was a once-in-a-century prodigy for the Fang Family, the patriarch's own son, noble in status—utterly incomparable.

"Could it be that the young master is really that badly injured, to the point where Fang Ke'er has to step in?"

Many disciples who didn't know the full story began to speculate.

"I don't think so. The young master is such a heaven-defying genius. How could he fall so easily?"

A pretty female disciple spoke up in rebuttal.

"I think Fang Ke'er just can't stand Fang Yuan's arrogant behavior."

Among this generation of the Fang Family, Fang Yuan had won the favor of many women and enjoyed high prestige, with plenty of supporters.

"Are you all really concerned about talent?"

Some disciples muttered resentfully under their breath.

"You're just judging by looks. Pah!"

Fang Yuan, after all, held immense authority among his peers. Most people didn't believe he had fallen from grace.

But they were still very curious about his current level of strength.

"Look, Fang Ke'er is making her move!"