Chapter 83

Cloud Mountain City.

A crowd gathered at the South Gate, pointing at the bounty announcement posted on the city wall.

Just as Wang Chen was about to enter the city, he stopped in his tracks, his gaze sweeping over the crowd and settling on the highly placed bounty scroll.

Lu Zhisen (suspect), a wandering monk from Liangshan Temple (suspect), with high-tier Qi Cultivation level (suspect), whoever knows his whereabouts, rewards of one thousand Low Spirit Stones or two hundred Merit Points, alive capture or slaying of this man, rewards of three thousand Low Spirit Stones or five hundred Merit Points!

This bounty clearly included both sect disciples and Loose Cultivators from the Outer Domain.

Within it, a lifelike portrait occupied most of the paper.

Big ears, a round face, a straight nose, a square mouth, thick eyebrows and leopard eyes, and a noticeable moxie beard, full of fiendish and defensive air.

At least eighty percent similarity!

Wang Chen was very clear.

This portrait must have been carefully drawn based on the description provided by the Spirit Planting Hall disciple he had let go.

This was entirely within Wang Chen’s expectations.

The reason why he did not kill the person was not out of kindness or weakness.

It was because then there would be no direct witnesses.

The Punishment and Defense Halls, responsible for investigating serious crimes, would certainly trouble the passersby and farmers present at the time.

With the nature of those two Halls, they wouldn’t be able to extricate themselves without being skinned to the bone!

Wang Chen did not want to involve these innocent people.

Nor was he afraid of exposing his secret identity; without Lu Zhisen, there were still Wu Song, Lin Chong, Yan Qing…

One hundred and five heroes, take a look!

So for this bounty, Wang Chen just sneered and did not linger any longer.

When entering the city, he distinctly felt that Cloud Mountain City’s defense had become much stricter.

The Guards at the gate scrutinized everyone passing through very thoroughly.

Especially Loose Cultivators from the Outer Domain, even their Storage Bags were inspected!

This was actually a matter of great taboo.

After all, many Cultivators’ secrets were hidden in their Storage Bags and were not meant to see the light of day.

But the Guard Hall Cultivators were relentless; Loose Cultivators wanting to enter the city had no choice but to swallow their anger and let themselves be searched.

As an Outer Sect Disciple, Wang Chen was spared this humiliation.

Otherwise, he would undoubtedly have turned around and left.

However, the recent year of counterproductive actions by Cloud Sun Sect made Wang Chen feel it was like swallowing a bitter pill!

This time in Cloud Mountain City, Wang Chen first went to a Talisman store to purchase a batch of Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink.

Although Talisman Crafting doesn’t burn through Spirit Stones like Alchemy or Artifact Refining, to become a true Talisman Master also required accumulating experience bit by bit; without exceptional talent, one could only rely on practice makes perfect.

Although Wang Chen had cheats with his system panel, his success rate in drawing Talismans was still not very high.

And the experience points for Primary Talisman Making Skill could only be increased by successful crafting.

The Talisman Paper and Talisman Ink he had bought previously were all used up.

He planned to spend another month or two to level up his Primary Talisman Making Skill to Great Achievement or even Grandmaster level!

By then, he would be able to earn a large amount of Spirit Stones with this skill alone.

“Brother Chen!”

Just as Wang Chen stepped out of the Talisman store, he heard a crisp voice calling from the side.

He turned around to see a beautiful woman.

The woman was wearing a long dress, holding the hand of a little girl with her hair tied into double buns.

What a coincidence!

Wang Chen exclaimed with surprise, “Lady Chen, Ya!”

It was none other than the widow Chen and her daughter.

Lady Chen gave him a graceful greeting, “Young Master Wang, it’s been a while.”

“Indeed,”

Wang Chen felt somewhat moved, “How have you been recently?”

Lady Chen had sent her daughter Ya to deliver things to him several times.

Even though they were just peaches and wild vegetables, not worth much, the gesture moved Wang Chen.

Truth be told, he hadn’t really done much to help them.

But they always remembered.

Perhaps it was because they were in the city, not in the countryside, surrounded by strangers.

“`

Lady Chen struck up a conversation with Wang Chen on the roadside for a bit longer.

It turned out that at the beginning of the year, the Cloud Sun City’s Xie Family had opened a new embroidery shop and were recruiting skilled embroiderers.

Embroidery was also one of the hundred arts of immortal cultivation, and Lady Chen happened to master this craft.

Thus she applied for a position at the Xie Family Embroidery Shop and then moved to Cloud Sun City with her daughter Ya to settle down.

Wang Chen was surprised, “What about your spirit fields, then?”

“They have all been transferred to someone else.”

Lady Chen explained, “The house has also been sold.”

The Xie Family’s Embroidery Shop provided food and accommodation, which was the fundamental reason she decided to give up her family business.

After all, the living environment in the city was much better than that of the rural areas!

Wang Chen exclaimed, “That’s not a bad move.”

He was speaking from his heart.

Lady Chen was lucky to find work in the city before the new village chief took office, avoiding being squeezed and exploited again.

Wang Chen was also happy for the mother and daughter.

However, he was not very familiar with Lady Chen, and she was a widow.

Therefore, they didn’t chat for too long.

When parting, Wang Chen bought Ya a string of candied hawthorns.

Seeing the smile on the little one’s face made him feel much happier.

Then Wang Chen headed to the Four Seas Commerce Association.

After careful selection, he purchased a technique named “Thousand Illusion Hand.”

It was a skill specifically used to launch miniature weapons.

At the highest level of mastery, one could simultaneously release hundreds and thousands of Flying Locust Stones, Plum Blossom Darts, Thunderbolt Pellets, and the like!

It cost Wang Chen one hundred and fifty Low Spirits.

But he didn’t buy this technique to expand his skill tree in using hidden weapons.

After a round of shopping, it was nearly 11 a.m.

Wang Chen found a nearby tea house, chose a seat by the window, and signalled the waiter to order a pot of High Fragmented Spirit Tea and two plates of pastries, quelling his hunger while listening to the chatter of the guests next to him.

This kind of small tea house with two or three floors was plentiful in Cloud Sun City, loved by the lower-class cultivators due to its low consumption level, and there were a lot of regular customers coming and going.

They liked to gather together to chat about everything under the sky, using it as a place for leisure.

After Wang Chen’s first visit, whenever he came to the city for errands or shopping, he would sit in the tea house.

To listen to urban rumors and gossip.

The news one could hear here was often the most current.

And before a dish of Spirit Rice pastries was finished, Wang Chen actually heard them mention “Lu Zhisen”!

“Who knows about Liangshan Temple?”

“Who could know? Although the Buddhist Sect is considered heterodox, their monasteries are spread all over the continents.”

“And that Qiantang River, never heard of it!”

“Heh, if I knew, I would have gone to claim the reward!”

“Claim the reward? It’s useless just understanding the person’s background, you need to know where this poetic monk is currently staying!”

“Isn’t he called the wild monk?”

“Whether poetic monk or wild monk, they’re all truly chivalrous, I heard that… ”

“Shush, you dare to speak of such things!”

“What’s wrong with…”

“Ahem!”

At this moment, the tea house shopkeeper came over and coughed loudly twice at a group of guests spewing saliva as they talked animatedly.

Then he pointed at the “Be Discreet” sign hanging on the pillar.

A few of the guests sheepishly shut their mouths.

The atmosphere in the tea house was no longer as lively and boisterous as before.

Wang Chen chuckled, took out thirty Fragmented Spirit Stones and tossed them on the tea table, then stood up and left.

As he walked away, he didn’t forget to take the remaining pastries with him.

————-

The first update is delivered.