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Chapter 354: Changes in Yuanling City
🕑 Added 2024-10-17 08:40:12 +0000 UTCThe Blue Wave Hot Spring got its name because of its emerald green waters.
Liu Chun tested the water, finding it a bit hot but strangely comfortable.
The pool wasn’t large, only about ten square meters in area and a little over a meter deep.
After confirming everything was in order, Liu Chun carefully removed the layers of coverings around Liu Qin, leaving only her inner clothes, and gently lowered her into the emerald waters.
Around the edges of the pool were several large stones. Liu Chun positioned Liu Qin on one of them, with her back resting against the pool's wall. This way, only her head remained above the water.
Not long after she was submerged, the previously pale, almost greenish hue of Liu Qin's face began to show a slight reddish tint.
Gradually, faint mist began to rise from the top of her head, where the talisman was still attached.
Liu Chun stayed close by, observing her condition carefully, even channeling his spiritual energy to check on her internally. Sensing that everything was fine and that the spring water was already starting to revive her vitality, he finally allowed himself to relax. He slumped down next to the pool and let out a long sigh of relief.
His sister was finally saved.
Looking at Liu Qin, who still had her eyes tightly shut, Liu Chun’s thoughts drifted to their deceased parents.
Now, his sister was his only remaining family.
He hoped she would recover soon, and then he could take her back to Lingxian Sect, far away from the cruel world of cultivation.
As Liu Chun stared off into the distance, lost in thought, a knock came from outside the courtyard.
Earlier, Yuan Bi had mentioned that his daughter would bring supplies over, so Liu Chun figured the visitor must be Yuan Zhiyun, the young mistress of the Yuan family.
Indeed, a female voice called from outside:
"Daoist Liu, it's Yuan Zhiyun. I’ve brought some supplies for you. Are you available now?"
Liu Chun stood up, tidied his clothes, and responded, "Please come in."
The courtyard door was gently pushed open, and Yuan Zhiyun entered, carrying a storage pouch. Upon seeing that it was indeed Liu Chun, the talisman master from the recent conference, she smiled and handed the pouch to him.
"My father instructed me to prepare some supplies for you. Please take a look, and if there’s anything missing, feel free to let me know. I’ll make sure to provide whatever you need."
Her eyes sparkled as she watched him, clearly waiting for him to check the contents to see if anything had been overlooked.
Liu Chun, not wanting to refuse, opened the pouch to inspect its contents.
After a quick glance, he was taken aback and hurriedly said:
"This... this is too much, young mistress. I don’t need all of this..."
Seeing that he was about to decline, Yuan Zhiyun quickly retreated to the doorway and said:
"Daoist Liu, don’t be modest. These are just basic supplies, and as a master talisman maker, you deserve them. If you need more, just let my father know, and I’ll bring more."
With that, she stepped out and closed the door behind her, leaving Liu Chun’s protests unheard.
Looking at the closed door, Liu Chun shook his head in resignation.
It seemed that he would owe the Yuan family a favor, which he would repay in the future.
Afterward, he took out the finely crafted talisman station from the storage pouch.
This kind of talisman station was something he had only seen once before, when the Wu family had pooled their resources to support a talisman master.
The pouch also contained various grades of talisman paper, ink, and some basic cultivation supplies.
There was no talisman brush, which made sense—someone of Liu Chun's level would naturally use his own brush.
In addition to these, the pouch also contained many medicinal herbs and pills for nourishment.
It was clear these were prepared specifically for Liu Qin.
Liu Chun marveled at the Yuan family’s thoughtfulness in providing so much for him.
He set up the talisman station in the open space between the bamboo hut and the hot spring.
Although the cultivation resources weren’t extensive or of the highest quality, they were still provided by the Yuan family.
For a cultivation family in a remote border city, even if they were relatively wealthy, cultivation resources were always in short supply.
Yet, they had still set aside some for an outsider like him.
Liu Chun knew that most of this hospitality was out of respect for his sect master, Lin Xiao.
While his status as a talisman master might have earned him some attention, it wouldn’t have been this thorough without Lin Xiao’s influence.
After all, he wasn’t here as a guest of the Yuan family.
Once everything was set up, Liu Chun took a deep breath, preparing himself to focus on talisman making.
The sect master had done so much for him, and Liu Chun felt that there was no way he could ever repay such kindness. The only thing he could do was contribute as much as possible to the sect.
Now that the sect was in a period of growth, even while caring for his sister, he needed to do his best to craft talismans for the sect’s benefit.
In Yuanling City, many outside merchants had begun to withdraw.
After all, there were many profitable cities in the cultivation world, and leaving this remote place wasn’t much of a loss.
Many families in the city had already started searching for new supply lines.
Among the departing merchants, however, there was one exception.
That was Wanwanton Information Pavilion.
Not only had they stayed, but they had also increased their investment in personnel and resources in Yuanling City.
Their primary goal was to investigate the Jishi Powder incident.
In the information trade, having the first scoop was always the most valuable.
If they could uncover the truth about Jishi Powder before Lian Ying Hall, then any sect wanting information about it would have to come to them.
Controlling the source of information gave them the upper hand, allowing them to control how others accessed it.
However, the original staff at the Wanwanton branch in Yuanling City, who had once seen this as an opportunity for promotion, were now facing the risk of being sidelined due to the sudden influx of new personnel.
The newly arrived team consisted of the most capable members from the Southern Spirit Region branch, all sent to ensure that Wanwanton would be the first to uncover the truth about Jishi Powder.
With these elites present, the original staff of the Yuanling City branch were reduced to mere assistants, or worse, excluded from important tasks altogether.
Tong Hua, Liang Zhonghuai, and Yu Guang were three such employees. They had been marginalized by the new team and were now relegated to errand running, with no involvement in the critical investigation.
The three of them were currently taking advantage of the night to search the ruins of the Wu family estate, conducting a thorough search for any overlooked clues.
Although the estate had been reduced to rubble, it was vast, and some of the more durable structures had remained largely intact.
They weren’t the only ones there. Multiple factions were also combing through the ruins, each working in secrecy to avoid detection.
Everyone had their own concealment methods, and those without such skills had already been driven out by Lian Ying Hall.
Now, the various forces present at the Wu family’s ruins were gathered but unseen by each other, each quietly searching for what they sought.
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