Living steadily in the world of gods and mystery

Only after persistent questioning,

did he cry and tell the truth.

Such news couldn’t be kept secret; it quickly spread everywhere.

The Spirit Fox Gang was completely disheartened—as the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Needless to say.

When surrounding gangs heard about it, they were all deeply shocked.

Everyone understood clearly.

It was a straightforward warning.

To kill the chicken to scare the monkeys.

The Spirit Fox Gang was just such a chicken that had been slaughtered.

And they were not monkeys, barely stronger than this chicken.

The strength of Zhang Lin from the Spirit Fox Gang and the leaders of the surrounding gangs were about the same; if the Spirit Fox Gang could suffer such a fate, other gangs touched in their lairs would fare no better.

This butcher is truly terrifying!

Everyone felt relieved but also a bit frightened.

Relieved that they were not the ones to stick their necks out, and frightened because they nearly ended up as the chickens.

By the afternoon, this news had spread throughout the entire shanty area.

For a time, all the gangs quickly settled down, even the friction and fighting between them temporarily ceased.

The mention of this butcher changed the color on everyone’s faces!

...

Following this, everything became calm.

In just a few days, Chen Li sold all the Second Order demon beast meat, and together with the bones, scales and remaining snake skin, he sold everything to the Yu Family’s talisman and tool store.

Total profit: two hundred and twenty-five Mid-grade Spirit Stones.

Out of which, selling the meat brought in ninety-five Mid-grade Spirit Stones; the rest came from selling the materials like bones and scales. Even Chen Li hadn’t expected that the income from these materials would surpass that of the demon beast meat.

This is not including the more than two thousand jin of Second Order demon beast meat and one Demon Core he kept for himself.

Otherwise, it would have been even more.

Yu Wu Feng had offered to buy the Demon Core for twenty Mid-grade Spirit Stones, but after some hesitation, Chen Li declined.

He was no longer short of money.

And the Demon Core didn’t take up much space.

Perhaps when the situation improved, he could sell it for a higher price elsewhere.

Moreover, as the first Second Order demon beast he had killed, he wanted to keep something to commemorate it. What better memento than a Demon Core?

...

Nighttime.

In the talisman-making room.

Chen Li couldn’t help but count his savings again.

Adding up all the odds and ends, all converted into Mid-grade Spirit Stones.

Two hundred and eighty-one Mid-grade Spirit Stones in total.

He took a long breath.

It was like a dream.

He remembered when he first arrived in this world; he worried every day over a single Low-grade Spirit Stone, tossing and turning, unable to sleep at night. Even after he learned to draw Evil-Repelling Talismans and had a steady income, he was still frugal, not daring to eat more demon beast meat or Spirit Rice than necessary.

He wished he could split a single Spirit Stone to make it last longer.

Never did he imagine, a year later, he would see such prosperous times.

"This money could last several years," Chen Li thought to himself,

"No need to take risks anymore."

Thinking back on selling the demon beast meat, it was still a close call, his safety rested entirely on the premise that the old ancestors of the Yu family were old, cautious, and would not act. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

Although the end result was good, it was still walking a tightrope.

How could he be sure the old ancestor of the Yu Family wouldn’t act?

What if the old ancestor of the Yu Family did act?

Could he really contend with Foundation Establishment?

"People die for wealth, as birds die for food. I can’t escape the common lot," Chen Li murmured to himself.

...

In the following days, Chen Li began to settle down to cultivate seriously,

living a life of simplicity and seclusion,

returning to his old routine.

As time went by, summer left and autumn arrived; in the blink of an eye, another month passed.

In that time, after his Scolding Skill broke through to mastery, his Palm Thunder also smoothly advanced to expert level. Compared to when he first started practicing, the lightning bolt of Palm Thunder not only didn’t get thicker but became even finer, while its color turned brighter and more intense.

At the same time, with the plentiful supply of Qi Replenishing Pills and Second Order demon beast meat,

Chen Li was getting closer and closer to the late stage of Qi Cultivation.

One day, while returning from Zhao Lin’s place, he coincidentally ran into Lin Gui.

Lin Gui was dressed in tattered clothes, gone was his previous ruddy complexion; instead, his face was pale and haggard, his hair completely white, looking like a seventy or eighty-year-old man.

Compared to before, he was virtually unrecognizable.

Upon seeing Chen Li, Lin Gui was overwhelmed with sadness, and tears fell.

"Chen... It really is you, Chen!" Lin Gui’s mouth quivered as he spoke.

"You are... Lin Gui? What happened to you?" Chen Li asked in surprise.

"Ah, it’s a long story..." Lin Gui said, his face wet with tears and snot, as he recounted his recent troubles in detail.

Since escaping the Green Clothes Gang, Lin Gui had been living rough.

In time, as his stock of Ascension Elixirs dwindled, he couldn’t restrain himself from wanting to concoct more.

But times have changed, and there were hardly any herbs to be found in the market. Those that were available were mostly delivered to the Yu Family’s pill shops. He could only continue to toil. If it had just been this, he wouldn’t have become so destitute.

He had a fair amount of savings at hand, enough to live on.

But then the proverbial roof started leaking amidst a stormy night.

Perhaps because he was often too generous, he inadvertently showed his wealth.

One night, someone broke into his bedroom. Luckily, the thief had a sliver of conscience.

After surrendering all his possessions, Lin Gui luckily escaped with his life.

The money was gone, but he was still alive.

Every day he could only scavenge for food along the streams and in the wilderness. His honest and timid nature meant he was often bullied. Despite busy days, he could barely scrape by. In just a few months, he seemed to age twenty years.

"I really can’t go on like this. Please, for the sake of our past neighborly ties, you must help me," Lin Gui pleaded with a desperate look, "I’m bowing to you."

As he spoke, he made as if to kneel.

"No, no!" Chen Li quickly helped Lin Gui up, reminiscing about the times when Lin Gui was brimming with vitality, now reduced to such a lowly state, his heart filled with sorrow.

After some thought, he fished out a pouch from his sleeve, pulled out a handful of Low-grade Spirit Stones—without counting, guessing there were about ten or twenty—and placed them in Lin Gui’s hand:

"I don’t have much spare cash myself, this is all the help I can offer. Make sure it doesn’t get stolen again."

"Thank you, Chen, thank you so much," Lin Gui clenched the Spirit Stones tightly in his hand, his face alight with emotion.

After parting ways with Lin Gui, Chen Li couldn’t help but look back.

He saw Lin Gui staggering away, his white hair billowing behind him like that of a withered old man.

Perhaps, he wouldn’t survive this winter.

Chen Li felt heavy-hearted.

He walked home step by step.

The shantytown grew ever more desolate.

The Demon Beast calamity had not yet ended. Compared to before, perhaps because more people had perished, the Demon Beasts no longer brazenly ravaged the markets, but they still lingered in the surrounding forests, unwilling to leave.

...

Another half-month passed.

Chen Li had reached the peak of the sixth level of Qi Cultivation and, much like the previous third level, he encountered another bottleneck.

This time, his cultivation stalled for a whole ten days before the threshold finally showed signs of giving way.

One afternoon,

In the quiet room,

"Boom!"

Chen Li’s whole body vibrated as the Spiritual Power within him followed a newly expanded route, forming a complete circulatory network.

Suppressing the excitement in his heart, he slowly calmed his agitated Spiritual Power.

He opened his eyes.

"I’ve done it, I can finally call myself a late-stage Qi Cultivating cultivator," Chen Li said with joy.

The seventh level of Qi Cultivation, just stepping into the late stage, was a rare feat even in the entirety of the Green River District, with probably no more than fifty individuals at this level.

He closed his eyes again to savor the sensation of advancement.

Spiritual Power coursed through his body leisurely and automatically.

Full of vitality, his body felt lighter, and his mind crystal clear. It seemed as if even his thoughts were moving faster.

He opened his eyes and brought up the game panel.

[Name: Chen Li]

[Lifespan: 42/135 years]

[Realm: Qi Cultivation Seventh Level: 1/100]

[Cultivation Technique: Longevity Skill Master: 701/1600]

[Skills:]

Symbol Craft: Cleaning Talisman Expert: 356/400; Silencing Talisman Expert: 21/400; Guiding Talisman Expert: 11/400; Evil-Repelling Talisman Skilled: 185/200; Arrow-Evasion Talisman Skilled: 35/200, Featherweight Talisman Skilled: 8/200

Spells: Spiritual Power Snap Master: 3200/3200; Scolding Skill Master: 335/1600, Traction Skill Expert: 302/800; Palm Thunder Expert: 165/800, Hemostasis Healing Skill Skilled: 8/100

Swordsmanship: Basic Swordsmanship Master: 153/1600;

[Divine Skills: None]

"At the seventh level of Qi Cultivation, I can start practicing that Ice Skill," Chen Li mused.

He was rather troubled by the more advanced spells.

They were powerful but slow to cast.

The fast ones had less power.

The Ice Skill, being a Second Order seventh-tier spell, was naturally more complex.

And practicing it would be time-consuming and draining.

But he still needed to learn it. Another skill meant another way to save his skin during dangerous times.

You never know when you might need it.

He turned off the game panel, stood up, and opened the door of his quiet room. Today, he decided to take a well-deserved break for himself.