Auntie Smile

"I didn't say anything."

Chen Qingfeng waved a hand, then said, "These are the forty-seven Low-Grade Spirit Stones for you. Put them away."

With a flip of his hand, a pile of Low-Grade Spirit Stones appeared in his palm.

"Thank you, Manager Chen."

Zhou Changwang hurriedly cupped his hands in thanks, then carefully accepted the Spirit Stones and placed them in a small cloth pouch.

He did not dare use his Storage Bag in front of others.

It would only invite covetous eyes for no reason.

"Changwang, you really have grown up."

Watching Chen Qingfeng depart, Zhou Qiankun could not help but speak.

He had listened to the entire exchange between Zhou Changwang and Manager Chen, watching him skillfully offer up the Spirit Stones. All he felt was that his son had grown up and truly no longer required so much worrying from him.

"Yes, I should have grown up long ago."

Zhou Changwang sighed as well.

Wasn't a youth's coming of age the moment he learned to be smooth and worldly?

And after being battered by society, he had long since become as slick as a ball.

At last, the harvest had been brought to Perfection.

Though selling everything to the Spirit Plant Hall had been somewhat unprofitable, some things could not be judged solely by immediate gains and losses.

Just like earlier: if he had not shown goodwill one step after another, the other party would not have deliberately added that final remark.

"Has it been unsettled around the outskirts of the market lately?"

Zhou Changwang frowned.

Every day, he stayed in his own Spirit Field. When he returned home, he never stepped beyond the front gate or the inner door. He truly did not know much about what was happening nearby.

"Lately, things around here have indeed seemed a little off.

There are many more mysterious people. Two households have moved in near our home alone. One even moved into the room where Fang Yu and his wife used to live. One household appears to be two brothers, but they do not look alike. I greeted them once, but they were neither warm nor cold, and their accents were strange too. They should have moved here from elsewhere. The other household looks like a married couple, but no matter how I look at them, they do not seem like husband and wife..."

Zhou Qiankun's expression turned grave as well.

Phoenix-Cry Cove Market had stood for several hundred years. People had always come and gone, but only in scattered dribs and drabs, gradually gathering over time.

But a situation like this, where a large number of people suddenly appeared and settled along the market's outskirts, was exceedingly rare.

"No matter what, being careful never hurts.

For the time being, try not to go out unless necessary."

After saying this, Zhou Changwang greeted the surrounding spirit farmers and hurried home.

Along the way, he deliberately observed his surroundings more carefully.

Sure enough, he spotted many unfamiliar figures. Some even dressed in noticeably different styles.

Yet with so many more people around, the outskirts of the market had actually become livelier. He even saw people setting up stalls by the roadside, selling everyday household goods.

He did not know whether they were bold because their skills were high, or whether they simply had discerning eyes.

At the very least, he would not dare do such a thing.

After returning home, he deliberately glanced toward where Qian Xiaoyue lived.

Of everyone he knew, no one was more sensitive to the atmosphere around them than she was.

Especially since she had mastered the marvelous Listening Art and often liked to cast it to listen to the movements around her. With two households of mysterious origin having moved in nearby, there was no way she would not have noticed.

Unfortunately, her door was tightly shut. Clearly, she had not returned yet.

"Still, her habit of eavesdropping really is something I have to guard against.

Looks like I need to find an opportunity to learn the Soundproofing Art.

That spell is cheap anyway. Almost everyone at the Rogue Cultivator Market knows it."

Zhou Changwang muttered to himself and committed it to memory.

He had far too many secrets, so naturally he did not want anyone prying into them.

At noon, after eating Spirit Rice, Zhou Changwang sat off to one side, feeling somewhat at a loss.

Normally, he spent almost the entire day in the Spirit Field. While tending it, he would also practice his spells.

Now that all the Spirit Rice in the field had been harvested, he truly did not know what to do for the moment.

"I still have to cultivate.

Danger is clearly brewing around the market's outskirts. Sitting still and waiting for death definitely will not do.

I have to increase my means of protecting myself.

Right, I also need to move.

Move into the market's inner city.

The rent in the inner city is expensive. Even the most ordinary house costs seven or eight Low-Grade Spirit Stones a month, while the pricier ones cost dozens or even hundreds.

But it is safe.

Safety is priceless."

Zhou Changwang's sense of crisis surged.

He hurried into his room.

First, he checked on the three Spirit Seeds.

They were all growing quite well, but the Spirit Fragments inside were being used up a little too quickly.

By his estimate, the Spirit Stone powder inside would be completely depleted in at most five or six days.

That Spirit Stone powder was all money.

Then, with a casual gesture, he cast the Growth Technique.

The three Spirit Seeds immediately shot up by a visible amount, and as time passed, they continued to grow slowly.

However, the Spirit Stone powder inside was being consumed much faster as well.

What had originally been enough to last five or six days would now only last four or five.

"These Spirit Seeds still need to be transplanted into a real Spirit Field. If this keeps up, I cannot afford to raise them."

Zhou Changwang's mouth twitched. He could not bear to look any longer.

Then, he began practicing his spells over and over.

Geng Metal Finger, Fireball Art.

When his spiritual power was exhausted, he relied on the Five Elements Formula to circulate automatically and slowly restore the spiritual power in his body. Meanwhile, he took out the three Basic Talisman Compendiums to read and study. From time to time, he would take out the jade slip containing the Talisman-Making Notes and compare them line by line until he became familiar with them.

When he felt the time was right,

he took out talisman paper, a talisman brush, and spirit talisman blood ink, then began practicing Talisman Crafting.

Once, twice, three times...

Attempt after attempt, failure after failure.

Fortunately, he had an excellent mindset and kept summarizing his experience. After each mistake, he immediately began considering where he had fallen short.

Comparing his work against the records in the Talisman-Making Notes, he improved rapidly as well.

A spirit talisman slowly took shape beneath his brush.

"Miss Qian is back."

Just then, Zhou Changwang heard his father's voice coming from the courtyard.

His attention wavered slightly. The tip of his brush shook, and his spiritual power immediately fell into disarray.

Poof!

The talisman paper ignited without wind and turned directly into ashes.

"Failed again.

But today was much better than yesterday.

Yesterday, I failed one after another after drawing at most two rune structures.

Today, I drew two more and reached the fourth one. I even have an idea of how to draw the fifth rune structure."

Zhou Changwang sighed softly, but he did not think this failure had happened because his father spoke.

Because he knew very well that even if his father had not made a sound, he would have failed before completing the fourth rune structure.

Drawing talismans had never been a simple matter.

He then put away the talisman brush and the rest of his things one by one before leaving the room.

He planned to ask Qian Xiaoyue about the unfamiliar cultivators who had appeared lately. After what had happened last time, the two of them had gained some measure of friendship.

He believed that if she knew anything, she should not hide it from him.

By then, Qian Xiaoyue had clearly already entered her house.

He walked directly to the opposite side and knocked on the door.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, what do you need?"

Upon seeing Zhou Changwang, Qian Xiaoyue first warily glanced around her, then asked.

"How about we go inside and talk?"

Zhou Changwang smiled awkwardly, only then realizing that directly coming to her door seemed somewhat improper.

Especially when he vaguely caught sight of his father standing in the doorway, wearing that auntie-like smile.