Changes in Yuanling City

The Emerald Hot Spring got its name because its water was a lush green.

Liu Chun tested the water. It was a bit hot, but it felt strangely comfortable.

The pool wasn't large—only about ten square meters in area.

It was roughly a meter deep, maybe a little more.

After confirming everything was normal, he unwrapped Liu Qin’s layers of bundled clothing, leaving only her inner garments, and gently lowered her into the emerald-green pool.

Flat stones lined the inner edge of the pool near the walls, so Liu Chun had Liu Qin sit on one, her back against the pool’s edge, with just her head poking above the water.

Not long after she was soaked in, her face—which had been pale to the point of looking sickly—began to show a slight flush that was visible to the naked eye.

Gradually, a thin mist rose from the top of her head where the talisman was affixed.

Liu Chun stayed by her side the whole time, watching her condition closely. He even sent spiritual power into her body to monitor her internal state, and found no problems. The spring water was already starting to stimulate her body’s recovery. Only then did the knot of worry in his chest finally loosen—most of it, anyway. His whole body relaxed at once, and he plopped down by the edge of the pool, letting out a long breath.

His sister was going to be saved after all.

Looking at Liu Qin, who still had her eyes tightly shut in the pool, Liu Chun found himself thinking of their late parents.

Now, his sister was his only family left.

He hoped she’d recover soon, and then he’d take her back to the Lingxian Sect, far away from this devouring world of cultivation.

While Liu Chun was lost in thought, staring blankly at the distant scenery, a knock sounded at the door—"knock, knock, knock."

Earlier, Yuan Bi had said he’d have his daughter bring some supplies over. Liu Chun figured it was probably Yuan Zhiyun, the young master of the Yuan family.

Sure enough, a woman’s voice came from outside:

“Fellow Daoist Liu, I’m Yuan Zhiyun. I’ve come to bring you some supplies. Are you both decent right now?”

Liu Chun stood up from the ground, straightened his robes, and said, “Please, come in.”

The courtyard door was pushed open gently. Yuan Zhiyun walked in carrying a storage pouch. When she saw that it really was Liu Chun—the Fu Master Liu from the Talisman Masters’ Convention—she smiled softly and handed the pouch over, saying:

“These are some supplies my father prepared for you. Please take a look, Fellow Daoist Liu. If we’ve overlooked anything, do forgive us. If there’s anything else you need, just tell me, and I’ll have it arranged.”

Yuan Zhiyun’s eyes sparkled as she stared at him, almost as if urging him with her gaze to hurry up and open it—check if anything was missing.

So Liu Chun had no choice but to look down and inspect the contents of the storage pouch in his hand.

After one glance, he froze for a moment, then hastily said:

“This—this is too much, Young Master. I don’t need all this...”

Seeing him try to refuse, Yuan Zhiyun immediately retreated to the doorway and said:

“Don’t be so polite, Fellow Daoist Liu. These are just basic necessities. As a master of talisman crafting, you deserve them. If they’re not enough, tell my father, and I’ll bring you more.”

With that, she stepped out the door and shut it behind her, sealing his refusal inside.

Liu Chun looked at the now-closed courtyard door and shook his head with a helpless sigh.

Fine, he’d return this debt of gratitude another day.

He then took out an exquisite talisman-crafting table from the storage pouch.

He’d only ever seen such a table at the house of the talisman master who’d been sponsored by the entire Wu family’s resources back in the day.

There were also all sorts of talisman paper and ink of various grades, plus some basic cultivation supplies.

As for talisman brushes, they hadn’t prepared one for him—surely knowing that a talisman master like him would always be accustomed to using his own brush.

Aside from that, there were plenty of nourishing pills and herbs.

Clearly, those were meant for Liu Qin.

Liu Chun marveled at the Yuan family’s thoughtfulness—they’d prepared so much for him.

He set up the talisman-crafting table on the open ground between the thatched hut and the hot spring pool.

Though aside from the talisman materials and the pills and herbs, the cultivation resources they’d given weren’t all that much, nor all that high-grade.

But still—these were the Yuan family’s resources!

Even for a cultivation clan in a border city, however wealthy, nobody ever thinks they have too many cultivation resources.

And yet they’d set some aside for an outsider like him.

Liu Chun knew—this was all for the sake of his sect master’s reputation.

Maybe being a talisman master earned him some extra respect, but it wouldn’t have gotten this level of care.

After all, he wasn’t here as a guest elder of the Yuan family.

Having arranged the talisman-crafting table and other supplies, he took a deep breath and calmed his mind to begin crafting talismans.

He owed his sect master a debt he could never repay in this lifetime. The only thing he could do was contribute more to the sect.

With the sect going through a period of growth and preparation, even here accompanying his sister during her recovery, he had to work hard to produce as many talismans for the sect as possible!

These days in Yuanling City, many outside merchants had pulled out.

After all, there were plenty of cities in the cultivation world that could turn a profit—no need to stick around in some remote corner.

Many of the city’s clans were starting to look for new sources of supply.

But among all those who’d left, there was one notable exception.

That was the Wanwantong Intelligence Hall.

Not only had they not retreated like the other merchants, but they’d actually doubled down on their personnel and capital investment here.

For one reason only: they wanted to investigate the matter of the Ji Stone Powder.

First-hand information would always fetch the highest price.

If they could get to the bottom of the Ji Stone Powder’s whereabouts and details before the Lianting Hall did, then the major sects would have no choice but to buy that information from them.

Because if you held the source of information, you had more leverage—and you could control how others obtained it, or even keep them from getting it at all.

As for those who’d originally been sent to Yuanling City by Wanwantong as their vanguard—aside from the leader—they’d all been hoping for promotions at this branch. But suddenly, this expansion of personnel meant their hopes for promotion were now in jeopardy.

After all, to snatch up this critical first-mover intelligence on the Ji Stone Powder, the people sent here this time were the best from the Southern Spirit Domain branch.

With them around, the original staff at the Wanwantong Yuanling City branch were reduced to running errands and fetching things.

And even that wasn’t guaranteed.

Tong Hua, Liang Zhonghuai, and Yu Guang were three such people who’d been sidelined by the newly dispatched higher-ups.

They were only allowed to run errands. Any sensitive intel—they weren’t permitted to touch.

The three of them were now out under cover of night, conducting a meticulous, grid-by-grid search through the massive ruins of the Wu family estate, determined not to let a single clue slip.

The Wu family’s grounds had all been turned to rubble, but the area was still sizable, and many of the well-built structures had survived mostly intact, not fully burned down.

They weren’t alone here either. Multiple other factions were also quietly combing the ruins, each keeping to their own turf.

Most of them had their own unique means of concealment. Those without had long since been discovered and driven off by the Lianting Hall.

Right now, on the Wu family ruins, several factions had all gathered here, yet none of them were meeting face to face.