A Bloody Disaster

Zhuang Qingdi and others hadn't figured it out after decades of research, and Zhang Xuezhou didn't expect to understand it in such a short time.

He examined Zhuang Qingdi's many Law Treasure artifacts only to determine whether they could meet Divine Lord Zhenyuan's needs.

"Perhaps it'll work, even if it's barely enough?"

Putting aside the heirlooms of the Zhuang family, Zhang Xuezhou felt that the Law Treasure cloths provided by Zhuang Qingdi were good, but not top-tier.

He was unsure whether Divine Lord Zhenyuan could join forces with Li Shaojun.

However, considering that Divine Lord Zhenyuan was not picky about array items, Zhang Xuezhou felt that it was worth a try.

I'm going to take a trip to the north!

Having understood the situation, Zhang Xuezhou decided to set off for initial contact.

Divine Lord Zhenyuan could wait for someone to come to him, but Li Shaojun was genuinely going to the northern lands to invite him.

He told Rong Tianding to take good care of the items provided by Zhuang Qingdi to prevent them from being lost.

"Shouldn't I come with you?" Rong Tianding asked quickly.

"If nothing unexpected happens, I'll be back tomorrow," Zhang Xuezhou said with a smile.

"So fast?"

Rong Tianding opened his mouth.

He reflected on how his journey to Mount Tai took several days, while Zhang Xuezhou only needed two days for a round trip, and realized that the difference in their flying skills was still enormous.

But the timeframe Zhang Xuezhou mentioned also excited Rong Tianding, who felt that as he continued to work hard, the gap between them was slowly closing.

If things weren't so urgent, Zhang Xuezhou might very well take him flying with him.

"I don't aspire to the Divine Ability Realm. As long as I can unify my soul and body and enter the Body Transformation Realm, my flying strength should increase by 30%. At that time, the gap between me and my cousin should narrow again, and it won't be so difficult for me to keep up!"

Rong Tianding kept thinking about it.

The elixirs needed for cultivation are expensive and lack circulation, which means that to advance in cultivation, one either needs to rely on a sect, become an official and depend on the imperial court, or have Lineage that has been practicing cultivation for generations in order to be able to cultivate normally.

As the first generation of cultivators in the Rong Household, Rong Tianding owes his current cultivation level almost entirely to Zhang Xuezhou, and the two are extremely closely bound together.

Spiritual practice may seem tedious and involve various risks, but it can bring ever-increasing power of control, making people addicted to it.

After Zhang Xuezhou left the Zhang residence, Rong Tianding sat in the study for a long time until Rong Li shouted at him, at which point Rong Tianding with a headache withdrew from refining his Realm Technique.

"Look at yourself! A grown man like you, all you do is stay home all day. Are you hatching eggs and laying eggs, or creating masterpieces? At least Jia Zhiyuan knows how to make money by reading people's faces; at least he's seen the light in his old age. What are you doing all this time...?"

Even as she grew older, Rong Li remained as fiery as ever, and she would inevitably scold Rong Tianding again during meals.

Rong Tianding didn't bother to respond. At most, it was Rong Li who just didn't like Zhang Xuezhou because he had found a wife, and she was just picking a fight with him.

"Tian Ding and Zhouzi are doing something important; you, a woman, shouldn't talk nonsense!"

Jia Zhiyuan offered a firm word of support, but was then brought up by Rong Li.

Seeing that Rong Li's hand was about to slap his face, Jia Zhiyuan quickly shut his mouth.

"Dingzi is just hoping to get scraps from the Zhouzi, but the Zhouzi is sick and has even lost his official position. Where would he get so many scraps for Dingzi?" Rong Li scolded, "You all think like this all the time! I'm too ashamed to eat with my sister!"

"Why!"

Jia Zhiyuan grunted, while Rong Tianding looked up at Rong Li.

"Your father can earn two or three hundred coins a day now. You should hurry up and join Jia Zhiyuan's stall so you can at least make a living in the future," Rong Li said.

"Two or three hundred a day, that's two or three thousand in ten days, and tens of thousands a year. This business requires no capital and is more profitable than selling pigs," Jia Zhiyuan said in a low voice.

"Um!"

Rong Tianding nodded.

He didn't need to calculate; he knew that by running a fortune-telling stall for about fifteen years, he could earn a million coins, and then he could go to Silanfang to buy a girl.

But this was actually an unreliable plan. There weren't that many fortune tellers in Chang'an City, and he couldn't possibly spend fifteen years earning money to marry a woman.

For Rong Tianding, as a cultivator, making money was not too difficult. As long as he harbored evil intentions and robbed others, he could amass considerable wealth.

However, as Rong Tianding spent more time with Zhang Xuezhou, he learned not only skills but also moral character.

He might take shortcuts, but Rong Tianding never resorted to force.

While casually going through the motions with his parents, Rong Tianding's eyes flickered slightly, and he looked at Jia Zhiyuan again.

"Are you going to do a face reading for someone with a broad nose and thick lips today?" Rong Tianding asked.

"How did you know I had a fortune telling session with this person today?" Jia Zhiyuan asked curiously.

"Oh, he's coming down the street with four men carrying sticks!"

Rong Tianding pointed outside and gestured with his fingers; everyone could already hear knocking and rude questioning from the other side.

"What? He clearly has a face that looks like it's destined for bloodshed, how can you say that it's not true?" Jia Zhiyuan retorted, Qi Ingestion.

"Are you got a knife in your mouth or something? You're a fortune teller, can't you at least say something nice?" Rong Li scolded. "You think people will give you money just because you say a few nice words!"

"You think you can tell a fortune just by saying nice things?" Jia Zhiyuan said. "If you could tell a fortune just by saying nice things, how come you only earned thirty-seven and a half taels of silver a day?"

"Shut up!"

Unhappy, Rong Li slapped Jia Zhiyuan. She quickly grabbed a stick and gestured to Rong Tianding, indicating that he should call for Rong Tianding if the fight broke out.

"Hey you, surnamed Jia, open the door! I know you live here!"

A rough sound came from outside the door. Rong Li leaped up and quickly ran towards the gate.

"Hey, you liar, open the door right now! You said I had a bloody disaster planned for today, why can't I get my wish?"

Having seemingly confirmed that Jia Zhiyuan lived in this house, the knocking on the door grew louder.

Before Rong Tianding could even shout, many neighbors from Zhang Household Village had already set up ladders and peered over their walls to check the situation.

"I've never seen anyone so eager for bloodshed!"

Rong Tianding glanced around and felt that these guys were like lambs to the slaughter. If they behaved properly, they would be fine, but once they started using sticks, they would inevitably be beaten and would most likely suffer a bloody disaster.

"My second maternal uncle is a man of the Prefectural Governor's Office in the capital. You've dared to swindle me, Wang Donghai, and if you don't pay up today, you'll be spending some time in jail!"

When Wang Donghai, who had been rudely knocking on the door, introduced himself and mentioned that the four men behind him carrying sticks were yamen runners from the Jingzhao Yin Prefecture, Rong Li was also carrying sticks, became extremely anxious.

The common people don't fight with the officials; how could they possibly fight with the yamen runners of the Prefect of the Capital?

Normally, it wouldn't be a problem; Zhang Xuezhou's high-ranking official status would be enough to reduce these minor troubles. Even if they got into a fight, they could get the people out of trouble. But now that Zhang Xuezhou Zhang Xuezhou has been impeached and dismissed from office, if they cause any more trouble, it will only make things worse for him.

Rong Li was caught in a dilemma, feeling that the stick in her hand was useless, and scolding Jia Zhiyuan would be even less effective.

Just as she was caught in a dilemma, she heard a scream from Wang Donghai outside the door.

"This is too simple!"

Rong Tianding, still holding his rice bowl, murmured something.

It's one thing to predict other things by looking at faces, but predicting bloodshed and disaster is far too easy to achieve.

He had only slightly stirred up the evil spirit guarding the gate when, as the constable outside was banging heavily on the door with his stick, he accidentally struck Wang Donghai on the nose, causing blood to gush out and leaving Wang Donghai completely stunned.

Is the fake fortune teller inside?

After a long while, Wang Donghai requested an audience again, but his tone was completely different.

"Can my face be read again? I'm willing to pay more."

Fake skills are exposed, but genuine skills are undoubtedly frightening.

Wang Donghai originally intended to make some money, but he never expected to run into a truly skilled fortune teller.

This immediately dampened his arrogance, and he even began to worry about whether he would suffer any further bloodshed. He then took out money from his purse and asked for a fortune teller's help.

"This customer base seems to shorten the time it takes to make money!"

Rong Tianding pondered his customer base, which was a cut above the poor in the East and West Markets, and also considered how difficult it would be to replicate Zhang Xuezhou's customer base. He quickly positioned himself and also dealt with the troublesome matter caused by Rong Li.

In the Daoist temple in the north, Zhang Xuezhou met Li Shaojun again.

The way he invited Li Shaojun was no different from how Jia Zhiyuan, Rong Tianding, and others handled matters.

"Old Li, you're in deep trouble! You're destined for bloodshed!"

Upon meeting Li Shaojun, Zhang Xuezhou immediately launched into a tirade of threats.