Chapter 81
As the figure gradually disappeared outside the door, a girl’s voice suddenly rang out, “Tsk tsk, this Zheng Shidi sure knows how to win people over. Clearly, this person is mine, and yet in just a few days, everyone’s worrying about him.”
With that, a girl of about fifteen or sixteen emerged from a side door at the back of the hall, leaning against Zhang Shijie’s arm.
“Yours? He hasn’t even met you,” Zhang Shijie lightly retorted. “He doesn’t even know if you’re a boy or a girl.” The girl tossed her head and huffed, “Sister, you can’t really believe him, can you?”
“Not entirely,” Zhang Shijie said, her gaze drifting to the night sky outside. “But he’s not foolish enough to come here and lie to me.”
“Hmm…”
“Half of it is genuine, and the other half is probably because he knows I value Zheng Fa, so he’s trying to curry favor with me—he’s used to scheming.” Zhang Shijie gently brushed aside the girl’s hand that had reached for her shoulder.
“He’s actually here for you, Shijie?”
The girl paused, suddenly realizing that anyone who could show their face in front of Zhang Shijie didn’t need to worry about Zheng Shidi at all!
“As long as there’s that half of sincerity in his words, I can tolerate him.”
“Maybe you’re just placing too much importance on Zheng Fa.”
“Is someone feeling resentful?”
“Of course! A newly initiated disciple, and you’re giving him two Spirit Inks and a hundred sheets of talisman paper every month as a subsidy? That’s a privilege only the instructors of the Talisman Hall get!” The girl muttered, “With so many talisman masters in Jiushan Sect, who doesn’t lack these? Who wouldn’t be envious? I bet Zheng Fa’s life in the sect isn’t easy.”
Zhang Shijie’s expression remained unchanged.
“Sister, I know you value him because you’re lacking in talisman techniques and golden elixirs, but others don’t know that, nor do they know if Zheng Fa can handle it.”
“I’ve talked to him about it.”
“Hmm?”
“It’s a test,” Zhang Shijie said.
“...Are you sure you really explained it clearly?” The girl looked at her skeptically. “Sister, you need to work on your communication skills.”
…
Zheng Fa had no idea what was happening in Zhang Shijie’s courtyard.
He was completely focused on his cultivation!
He had no time to think about Zhang Shijie or Han Shixiong.
Sitting in his room, he directed his mind skyward, closing his eyes in deep contemplation, adjusting his awareness and breathing according to the first layer of the Chixiao Jue (赤霄诀) for Qi training.
What made the Chixiao Jue safe—besides the balanced and harmonious spiritual energy it produced—was that it spoke in plain language.
The annotations were detailed, accompanied by illustrations, leaving little room for misunderstanding.
Compared to the Linghe Shen (灵鹤身), it was much friendlier for newcomers.
Though he had just received this book, Zheng Fa could roughly grasp the method for the first layer of practice.
As he breathed, a strange force seemed to enter his meridians from the air, transforming into a warm current.
This was different from the Qi of the Linghe Shen, which was self-generated within him; this power came entirely from the outside—this was probably what the Xuanwei Realm referred to as spiritual energy.
Gradually, the spiritual energy flowed steadily through his meridians in a great circulation, and Zheng Fa felt a surge of joy—this was a sign that he had successfully entered the first layer of the Chixiao Jue!
Just as he was about to open his eyes, the spiritual energy suddenly surged into his Niwan Palace, and he felt a gentle tremor in his head, as if his consciousness had entered a gray, chaotic space.
In that space, there was a jade pendant shaped like the yin-yang symbol.
The yin and yang fish on the pendant flowed and intertwined, and in the eye of the yin fish, a short-haired boy who looked exactly like him was curled up, sleeping like a baby.
As if sensing his gaze, the boy slowly opened his eyes and met his gaze for a brief moment.
Then, a familiar yet strange memory flooded Zheng Fa’s mind—it was the memory of his parents before they passed away in his modern world.
Among those memories, the knowledge from elementary and middle school made Zheng Fa want to curse:
“Where were you when I was scoring single digits in middle school?”
“Where were you when I was staying up late memorizing books every day?”
“Where were you when I was starving to death on the farm?”
“Now that I’ve become a top student and entered the immortal sect, learning to cultivate, you show up—”
“You sure know how to pick your moments!”
(End of this chapter)
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**Chapter 92: On Talisman Days**
“...Hasn’t it been decades?” the shorter lackey muttered.
“...” Han Qi choked for a moment, then spoke honestly, “I’ve thought about it, but this person just entered Jiushan Sect and only has dual spiritual roots. By the time he forms his elixir, it’ll take at least a hundred years—by then, we’ll be long gone.”
“We don’t need him to be that powerful; we just want to leverage Zhang Shijie’s background, right?”
“That’s even more of a problem,” Han Qi said, his face filled with despair. “I’ve heard that the seniors in the Talisman Hall are quite unhappy about Zheng Fa receiving so many resources right after joining…”
“But Zheng Shidi has Zhang Shijie backing him; do they dare to bully him?” the tall, thin one asked, puzzled.
“Exactly, they wouldn’t dare to truly offend Zheng Shidi,” Han Qi glanced at him, his tone desperate. “But once we align ourselves with Zheng Shidi, it’ll be a different story—perfect for venting our frustrations.”
“?”
“They wouldn’t dare to hit Zheng Shidi, but they wouldn’t hesitate to take it out on us?”
“…”
…
“Zheng Shidi, today is the Talisman Hall’s monthly Talisman Day; shall we go together?”
“Thank you, Han Shixiong.”
Zheng Fa cupped his hands in gratitude. Although it was Zhang Shijie’s instruction, Han was genuinely considerate, waiting at his door early in the morning.
To facilitate transportation, the Talisman Hall was located at the very center of the valley.
Though it was called a hall, it resembled more of a school.
Upon entering the courtyard, to the left were two rows of rooms resembling classrooms, while to the right was an open space, at the end of which stood a high platform, with rows of cushions arranged below.
“Shixiong, are we going to listen to the seniors discuss talismans here?”
Talisman Day was essentially an open class where more experienced seniors explained the art of talisman drawing.
“That’s only for when a Golden Elixir True Person comes to give a lecture; for example, if Zhang Shijie were to come, there would be a crowd,” Han Qi pulled Zheng Fa toward the two rows of classrooms. “On regular Talisman Days, it’s usually the Foundation Establishment seniors who teach us in here.”
“Shidi, remember, the front row of rooms is ours, and the back row belongs to the Pang Zhenren’s faction.”
“...Isn’t it all about talismans? Don’t they teach the same things?”
“Actually, the basics are certainly similar, but our two factions have a history of disputes, especially among those Foundation Establishment seniors. They tend to argue when they meet, so we simply separate the classes.”
Zheng Fa nodded and followed Han Qi and the others into a room.
Inside, there weren’t many people—about thirty or forty low tables were set up, with one table at the front where a man sat facing the others.
He wore a blue scholar’s robe, sitting upright with a serious demeanor.
His presence brought a quiet atmosphere to the room.
As Zheng Fa entered, the senior raised his eyes and seemed to recall something.
“Zheng Fa?”
“Yes.”
“Sit over there.” The senior pointed to a low table in the corner of the front row.
Zheng Fa noticed that this table was different from the others.
While the other tables had talisman paper and materials for drawing talismans, this one had none.
Seemingly aware of his gaze, the man looked at him, then at the various expressions of the others in the room, and spoke:
“Zhang Shijie has already provided you with talisman paper and spirit ink each month. While I don’t agree with it, that’s her allocation, and I have no say in it.” He turned to Zheng Fa and continued, “But spiritual materials are precious; you cannot use them here, or it would be unfair to others. If you feel I’m targeting you, feel free to report it to Zhang Shijie. If she asks, just tell her my surname is Zhang.”
Zheng Fa listened, glanced at Zhang Shixiong, and saw his serious expression, his eyes fixed on him.
He cupped his hands and replied, “Shidi understands.”
(End of this chapter)
---
**Chapter 93: Talisman Grades**
Zheng Fa felt a growing distance from most of the people around him.
The attendees were mostly new disciples, and due to their shared experiences on the ship, they had initially felt quite close to Zheng Fa.
However, after Zhang Shixiong’s remarks, there was a subtle shift in their attitudes—
Of course, Zhang Shixiong’s demeanor played a role.
But more significantly, it was the dissatisfaction with Zheng Fa’s special treatment that was brewing among them.
In the few days since arriving at Jiushan Sect, it was clear to everyone how precious spiritual materials were, and they understood the value of Zheng Fa’s additional resources.
For instance, most people had only three sheets of talisman paper on their low tables—meaning the free talisman paper provided amounted to just three sheets.
The entire room’s worth of supplies was less than what Zheng Fa used in a month.
It wasn’t about scarcity; it was about fairness.
…
Zhang Shixiong, however, seemed unfazed by the strange atmosphere.
He stood up and addressed everyone, “Talisman paper is hard to come by; I hope you all cherish it. For now, don’t start drawing; wait until I finish my lecture.”
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