Having reached a preliminary agreement, the innkeeper lingered no longer and took his leave. He made his way back to the accounting room. As he passed the kitchen, a head suddenly poked out from inside and asked, "How was he?"
The innkeeper shed his slick, glib demeanor, his face turning grave. "He should be a ruthless one! He looks like he's missing a screw or two, and maybe he really is, but I can't read him in the slightest. I can't even touch the edges of his Dao Foundation. He's simpleminded and dirt-poor—putting on such a show just to shave off a few days of lodging fees. Good blades like that don't come around often. But a good blade can easily cut the hand that wields it. Don't you dare provoke him. Treat him as a Heaven-rank assassin for now."
The man in the kitchen sounded somewhat reluctant. "Still, that sword of his is truly fine..."
The innkeeper's face instantly darkened. "Finding a good cook wasn't easy for me, and I'm not looking to replace one just yet. Behave yourself!"
The head sullenly pulled back.
Once the innkeeper was gone, Wei Yuan wiped the delight from his face, though a faint smile still lingered at the corners of his mouth.
He produced a formation plate along with a handful of small trinkets. Calculating the alignments in his head, he carved a few small recesses into the room's walls, tucked several minor spiritual items inside, and sealed the openings back up. With the preparations complete, Wei Yuan gave the formation plate a shake, activating a feng shui formation.
So long as anyone stepped into the courtyard, the feng shui formation would saddle them with terrible luck and constant mishaps, including but not limited to magical backlash, malfunctioning artifacts, or suddenly forgetting the next line halfway through chanting an incantation.
Next, Wei Yuan carved a ghostly face in an inconspicuous corner of the wall, then brought out a small pouch of beast blood and poured it over the carving. When in Rome, do as the Romans do—this was a curse from the Wuyu Clan. In this land, the curse naturally achieved twice the result with half the effort, proving extraordinarily potent. If anyone slipped in quietly, the curse would trigger.
This curse did not strike to kill directly; instead, it threw one's mind into chaos, detonating latent desires buried deep in the heart and forcing the victim to yield to primal instinct, driving them to commit all sorts of preposterous acts. For instance, after unsheathing a poisoned blade to terrorize a foe and flaunt their own cruelty, they might impulsively take a lick of it themselves.
Wei Yuan bustled about, laying trap after trap in succession. As an academic ace of the Palace of Grand Beginning's Reform Faction, putting theory into practice made him realize he knew rather too many underhanded methods—so many that choosing among them proved somewhat difficult. Every single trick was sinister, vile, and ruthless. Even veteran scoundrels of the martial world would have no choice but to bow in admiration. The teachers who had taught Theory of Arts back then truly had some real skill.
The feng shui formation and curse Wei Yuan laid seemed simple enough on the surface, but because the formation plate used to activate them had been bestowed by an Immortal Monarch, its level was terrifyingly high. Consequently, once triggered, the curse was guaranteed to strike its mark, and its effects would be extraordinarily potent.
After finishing all the preparations, Wei Yuan set the formation plate on the table. He took out the sheet of jade paper bearing Yun Feifei's likeness, delicately teased out the wisp of divine soul aura sealed within, and eased it into the plate. He then tapped a finger against it. A faint glow flitted across the formation plate before settling into tranquility, and Yun Feifei's wisp of aura vanished without a trace.
This formation plate had been gifted by the Immortal Monarch, and its purpose was karmic destiny angling. Once Yun Feifei's aura was placed inside, anyone or anything linked to her would be drawn toward Wei Yuan under the unseen nudging of karmic destiny. The closer the connection to Yun Feifei, the easier it was to be reeled in. Unless a person possessed an exceptionally lofty stature or was riding the crest of immense fortune, escaping the dual angling of Immortal Monarch Tinghai and Wei Yuan's otherworldly fortune would be near impossible.
If someone possessed great wisdom and was deeply versed in the Dao of karmic destiny, they would naturally realize they were being drawn by karmic angling and employ various methods to break the snare. Wei Yuan, however, figured that as a newcomer to the Dao Foundation realm, his mission hardly warranted the appearance of such an extraordinary figure.
With everything in place, Wei Yuan had only to wait by the tree for the hare to run into it, waiting for interested parties to deliver themselves to his door.
Using himself as bait, Wei Yuan sat idly by, casting his line to see which fish would deliberately bite. When Grand Duke Jiang fished, he fished for those who thought they could drag the fisherman down. Of course, the fish thought the exact same thing.
With nothing else to do for the moment, Wei Yuan settled under the lamp to read. The innkeeper put on quite the airs of elegance, having actually placed a book chest in the room. Inside were several thread-bound books of mortal paper, possessing an antique charm. The edges of every page showed distinct signs of wear, making it clear they were not mere decorations, but had genuinely been thumbed through on a regular basis.
Wei Yuan picked one up at random and opened it, only to discover that instead of orthodox histories, it contained popular, embellished folk editions of the Great Dao of Yin and Yang he had once read about.
Naturally, anything kept in an inn's book chest had to be a masterwork of its kind. The volume in Wei Yuan's hands, for instance, abounded with whimsical notions and wild flights of fancy, finding astonishing ways to play with many common minor Daoist arts. It proved quite the eye-opener for Wei Yuan, offering no small amount of inspiration. The characters in the book peaked only at True Monarch, however, and climbed no higher. Anyone who dared fabricate stories about an Immortal Monarch ran a very real risk of being struck by lightning.
Wei Yuan appeared to be reading, but his focus was actually hard at work within his sea of consciousness. He merely turned a page now and then to keep up the pretense.
Within his sea of consciousness, Wei Yuan selected a stone from the ground and kneaded it repeatedly. Slowly, the stone deformed, gradually shaping into a four-sided, three-legged cauldron.
Ever since manifesting the full moon of Grand Yin, Wei Yuan's mastery over his Dao Foundation had advanced a step further. With conscious effort, he could now alter the objects within it slightly—such as kneading stone into a stone cauldron or a stone sword.
If one was going to put on a show, one had to go all the way. Since his Dao Foundation was large enough anyway, Wei Yuan molded a cauldron and left it there. When a fight broke out, he could visualize it and hurl it out. Regardless of its actual might, it would at least look intimidating.
As for a sword, that was much simpler. Zhang Sheng's three swords were far too famous to be used freely. But ever since Xiaoyu had cultivated the Immortal Sword Great Sun, he would parade before Wei Yuan clutching the sword for no reason at all, keeping it up for nearly half a year before finally finding it dull and stopping. It had taken a while after Xiaoyu ceased his visits for Wei Yuan to realize something was off—who went around showing off their Dao Foundation every single day?
Still, thanks to Xiaoyu, Wei Yuan was intimately familiar with the Immortal Sword Great Sun, making it effortless to visualize.
It was just a pity that ever since casting his Dao Foundation, Wei Yuan had been caught up in a flurry of business and had not yet found the time to parade it before Xiaoyu. Even if he wanted to, Ten Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains hardly permitted it. How was one even supposed to display such a Dao Foundation? Hold it aloft, or stand on it? Never mind ten thousand li of rivers and mountains; even walking around balancing a miniature jade mountain atop one's head would be painfully conspicuous. Wei Yuan still possessed a sense of shame, and such antics were beyond him.
Fortunately, the Hall of Myriad Manifestations housed not only Ten Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, but also that sweeping old Daoist. Even if Xiaoyu failed to recognize Wei Yuan's Dao Foundation, the old Daoist would point it out. There was no fear of him lacking eyes to see.
Having finished fashioning the stone cauldron and sword, Wei Yuan had finally made his title of Double Paragon of Cauldron and Sword ring true in deed as well as name. Now all he had to do was wait for a fish to bite. With nothing else pressing, he leaned back against the jade mountain, manifested the Dao Foundation Chapter of Outlaw of Heaven and Earth in his hand, and began to study it in detail. The round moon in the sky watched as well, pondering alongside him.
Wei Yuan had not been studying for long when a shrill scream suddenly rang out nearby. Laced with Dao power, the sound carried remarkable penetration, jolting half of Quliu Town awake in an instant! Wei Yuan's train of thought was abruptly broken by the shriek.
This was a lawless land. No matter who died, Wei Yuan had no intention of interfering, so he returned to his reading.
Just as he gathered his thoughts again and felt an inkling of inspiration, a loud bang rattled the entire inn. A fierce gust of wind swept outward in all directions, flattening a wide swathe of the surrounding shacks!
The escaping Dao power jarred Wei Yuan's senses, nearly causing him to throw his longsword like a javelin on pure instinct. Having his thoughts disrupted twice in a row, even Wei Yuan's good temper wore thin. He set down the scroll, took his sword in hand, stepped out of the room, and climbed onto the roof, gazing in the direction of the tremor.
A masked, burly man was shooting into the sky, attempting to flee. On the ground, a short, diminutive figure let out a sinister chuckle, raised a wooden staff, and pointed it into the air. A streak of green vapor shot from the staff's head, striking the fleeing man in an instant. Without making a sound, the burly man plummeted straight down. By the time he hit the ground, he had already turned into a pile of white bones.
In that fleeting moment, Wei Yuan saw that the hand gripping the staff was not human, but a bird's talon!
The short figure walked over to the man's remains, picked something up, and strode away. Around the site of their clash, all the shanties and tents within dozens of yards had been flattened. Yet the people around seemed long accustomed to it, busying themselves with picking up their scattered belongings without the slightest panic. Beneath one torn tent, a man and a woman were writhing in passionate entanglement, refusing to stop even with the roof ripped away. Under another tent, several creatures writhed together; Wei Yuan could barely tell that one of them was human, while the rest were entirely unrecognizable.
Across the immediate vicinity, Wei Yuan was the only one standing on a rooftop, watching like a prowling tiger. Before long, numerous gazes turned toward him, most dripping with malice. Wei Yuan let out a sinister sneer. The illusory image of a square cauldron materialized above his head, accompanied by a flash of golden light. Instantly, countless onlookers cried out in agony and clutched their eyes.
Having established his dominance, Wei Yuan returned to his room. He picked up his unfinished scroll and read closely beneath the lamp, reading until dawn without realizing it.
As the light of day broke, having studied Outlaw of Heaven and Earth through the night, Wei Yuan finally felt a touch of weariness.
Just as the morning grew clear, the innkeeper knocked and entered the courtyard, personally carrying Wei Yuan's breakfast.
After setting down the meal, the innkeeper slid a sheet of paper from his sleeve, laid it before Wei Yuan, and whispered, "Immortal Master Li, this man is worth five hundred ounces of immortal silver! On top of that, you may choose one of three magical artifacts as extra compensation."
A fish had taken the bait so soon? Keeping his expression impassive, Wei Yuan picked up the portrait to inspect it.
Depicted on the paper was a middle-aged man with a dignified countenance, sporting a striking pair of thick brows and a mole the size of a fingertip near the corner of his mouth. The portrait was drawn with considerable skill, but because it was not made of jade paper, it could not be viewed from multiple angles, nor did it record any divine soul aura.
The innkeeper lowered his voice and said in a rush, "This man's name is Wang Lang, and he's skilled in Daoist arts. On the surface, he trades in immortal materials and pills, but in truth, he sends a batch of young women west every month, which even includes female cultivators. He arrived in Quliu Town yesterday and pitched camp three li outside the town. This time, there are three female cultivators among his merchandise."
Wei Yuan remained impassive. "What are these women used for?"
"Some are used by the Wuyu Clan for sacrifices, while others are sent to brothels in the west. As for female cultivators, there's demand for them in both sacrifices and brothels—they'll take as many as they can get."
Wei Yuan frowned. "Killing him over such a trivial matter?"
"The exalted immortal's vision is truly sharp! Truth be told, an esteemed lord specifically requested one of the female cultivators in this batch."
"That still isn't worth five hundred ounces of immortal silver, is it? Especially with a magical artifact thrown in."
The innkeeper lowered his voice further. "This Wang Lang's background is somewhat tricky. He works for the Xu family, so this job has to be done cleanly!"
"Which Xu family?"
The innkeeper pointed a finger toward the ceiling. "Which other Xu family could there be in western Ningzhou? The Xu family that oversees more than half of Ningzhou, of course!"
Chapter 101