NOVEL NEXT Chapter 22 - Speculations
After stepping outside, Gu Yao discovered that the entire courtyard had been covered with a formation. As soon as he stepped out, it triggered the formation, and Chi Changye immediately knew, explaining the details of the formation and how to control it. He also left Gu Yao some dinner, which, as expected, was bought from an outside restaurant.
While eating, Gu Yao reflected on things. Excluding the awkward start, Chi Changye was actually a very good partner. But thinking back to the initial situation, he still felt a little uneasy around him.
Gu Yao couldn’t help but wonder who would ultimately benefit from Chi Changye’s actions. Ah, forget it, when did it become his responsibility to worry about this?
After finishing dinner, the two chatted for a while. Most of the conversation consisted of Chi Changye explaining some common knowledge about the cultivation world and sharing experiences from his own adventures. Gu Yao was very interested. If the outside world weren’t so dangerous and if his cultivation weren’t so weak, he would have left Yuanyang Town long ago.
“By the way, these are the intermediate-level talismans I made. Keep them for self-defense,” Chi Changye said, pulling out ten intermediate-level talismans and pushing them toward Gu Yao.
Gu Yao was pleasantly surprised. “Brother Ye, you can make intermediate-level talismans? That’s amazing! I heard that the price of intermediate-level talismans is ten times that of low-level ones.” In other words, each one was worth a thousand silver taels. This stack of talismans was worth as much as the ten thousand silver taels he had received when he first left the Gu Family.
Chi Changye smiled. “It’s all thanks to your Star Body technique, Xiao Yao. My injuries healed much faster, and with more spiritual power to draw on, my talisman-making skills improved. However, I think we should keep these intermediate talismans for self-defense for now. Once we’re more capable of protecting ourselves, we can distribute them.”
Gu Yao remembered what Tian Feirong had told him about the investigation between the Gu Family and the Lu Family, and nodded. “Brother Ye, you’re right to be cautious. Wait for me, I’ll be able to refine pills soon. Perhaps in a while, I’ll be able to make a pill to heal your injuries.”
“I’ll wait,” Chi Changye said with a tolerant smile, not asking why Gu Yao suddenly knew how to refine pills. However, since alchemy consumed so much energy, he still planned to draw more low-level talismans to sell through Tian Feirong.
The Fang Family
The Fang family came by for a visit but left in a hurry. Old Madam Fang secretly cursed her daughter for not standing up for her maternal family. Her grandson had been beaten so badly, yet she didn’t even help find the culprit.
“It hurts so much, I feel like I’m dying! Where’s Aunt? Doesn’t she care about me and my sister anymore?” Fang Dongxiong, lying in bed, kept groaning in pain. Fang’s mother, sitting by the bed, wiped her eyes in distress.
“Your aunt has climbed up the social ladder, and she doesn’t even care about the Fang family anymore. To her, the Fang family is just a poor, broken family,” Fang’s mother said bitterly.
At this moment, she forgot how much benefit the Fang family had gained from the Gu Family due to Fang Shi’s relationship. Now, all she could see was her son being beaten to a pulp, yet his own aunt only sent over some medicine and then ignored him.
“Xiong’er, just bear with it. What nonsense are you saying, you silly woman? Since when did your son’s aunt and uncle from the Gu Family have any say over him?” Hearing her daughter-in-law criticize her daughter, Old Madam Fang grew upset. She could scold her daughter, but no one else had the right to do so. “If it weren’t for Xiong’er’s aunt, would you be living so comfortably in this family? If anyone’s a poor, broken family, it’s your side of the family!”
“Nanny—” Fang Dongxiong cried out. Old Madam Fang immediately stopped talking, hurriedly telling Fang’s mother to apply more medicine to him. After a while, his condition finally calmed down.
“Nanny, it must have been that little brat, Gu Yao, who caused this. My sister and I had just seen him, and then we got beaten up. He must have gotten too proud after latching onto Young Master Tian. Nanny, you should tell Aunt to send someone to teach that brat Gu Yao a lesson!” Fang Dongxiong, angry and in pain, shifted the blame to Gu Yao. He couldn’t afford to offend others, but Gu Yao wasn’t someone he needed to worry about.
“Alright, I’ll go talk to your aunt and make sure that little beast gets taught a lesson,” Old Madam Fang immediately said. She was going to the Gu family’s residence. After all, that little beast was always a thorn in her daughter’s side, and no one in the Gu family cared about him. Compared to her own grandson and granddaughter, he was nothing.
Fang’s mother didn’t find this unusual. Her son had suffered so much, it was only right for his aunt to step in and do something.
The Gu Family
“What? You’re saying that the pills and talismans from the Tian family are related to Gu Yao and the man by his side? That kid is a cultivator?” The head of the Gu family couldn’t believe what he was hearing from Third Son Gu’s report.
“Father, I found out that most of the herbs collected by the Tian family ended up in Tian Feirong’s hands. The pills and talismans that appeared in the Tian family were also brought back to the Tian family by Tian Feirong. Recently, that kid has frequently visited Gu Yao. His partner’s name is Chi Changye, and he is definitely a cultivator. Although no one has seen him make a move, they’ve seen him buy talisman-making tools, and there’s a lot of pressure when standing next to him. Also, Gu Yao has been buying a lot of spirit herbs in the market. The two of them have been spending money recklessly, far more than what they took from the Gu family.”
“Chi Changye gambled and won a Yuan Gathering Pill at Old Boss Dong’s shop, but casually tossed it to Tian Feirong, saying he had no use for it. This suggests he might be a mid-level Qi Refining cultivator,” Gu Zhicheng thought. He felt that saying Chi Changye was a mid-level Qi Refining cultivator was a conservative estimate. If he were actually a talisman master, the Gu family had actually pushed away such a talent.
The head of the Gu family frowned. “Did Gu Yao really make the pills? Where did he get this ability from?”
Gu Zhicheng speculated, “Could it be… that his uncle and second aunt left behind some kind of method?”