Chapter 43: Leaving

"No plans?"

Lin Zixi blinked, the words she had intended to say got stuck, and she asked irritably, "So you don't intend to find a Dao Partner for the rest of your life? One failure doesn't count for much."

Xiao Zhangqing didn't want to keep entangling, so he said directly, "Lin Dao Companion, first let me apologize. If you're trying to play matchmaker for yourself, I'm not interested. If that's not what you mean, just consider me being self‑deluded."

Making the relationship with these two sisters worse will help hide his identity.

Make sure not to play the "tangled yet cut" routine.

Otherwise, when someone curious investigates and accidentally uncovers him, it'll be troublesome.

"......"

Lin Zixi, hearing that, was momentarily speechless; after a pause she snapped, "Pah! I never thought of you! You're just a petty Basic Talisman Master, so uncouth, yet you dare hope this lady would be enamored with you? You really have the nerve! When I look for a Dao Partner in the future, naturally… anyway, you're not even qualified yet!"

If it weren't for Senior Bai Wuji's identity not being revealable, Lin Zixi would have dragged him out to slam his face! Xiao Zhangqing, however, wasn't angry at all, and replied coolly, "Fine then. There's no need for you to play matchmaker for your sister."

"You… I…" Lin Zixi was choked up again.

This guy's face is truly detestable!

"Which aspect of my sister doesn't match you?"

"Don't think that just because your cultivation has advanced rapidly these past few years, you can look down on others. Although you have Sixth Layer of Lian Qi, my sister is only at Fifth Layer. That's because my sister was forced by circumstances in recent years, lacking good conditions, and she saved every Spirit Stone she earned… saved them… Hmph, anyway. My sister now has good cultivation conditions, and sooner or later her level will catch up to you, even surpass you!"

"Don't forget, you're only a lower‑grade Spirit Root. Even if luck is on your side now, and you don't know any secret techniques, and your cultivation speed is rapid, what's the use? Are you still aiming for Foundation Establishment? Forget Foundation Establishment; the bottleneck of Late Stage of Lian Qi is a huge hurdle for lower‑grade Spirit Roots—you might not even break through smoothly! As for my sister, she's at least a middle‑grade Spirit Root!"

"As for your position as a Basic Talisman Master at Lingfu Pavilion, I tell you, it's nothing special! Can you guarantee that you'll definitely become a First‑rank Talisman Master in the future? Many Basic Talisman Masters spend their whole lives just as Basic Talisman Masters!"

"And my sister and I are now honored guests of the Cao Family, our status higher than yours! The amount of Spirit Stones we earn each month far exceeds yours!"

"Hmph! Just wait, someday you'll regret today's arrogance!"

Lin Zixi finished speaking, then stormed off.

Before coming to Xiao Zhangqing to matchmake for her sister, she had actually been secretly investigating him.

She was well aware of Xiao Zhangqing's recent situation.

Xiao Zhangqing's situation at Lingfu Pavilion is decent now; although his talisman skills are still at the Basic Talisman Master level, unable to draw Entry‑rank Talisman Scripts, the time he's been in the trade is still short—only about four years in total.

In the future, there's a fairly good chance he'll become an Entry‑rank Talisman Master—a promising prospect.

However, compared to Xiao Zhangqing, his talisman skill progress is not obvious.

Yet, for someone with a lower‑grade Spirit Root, his cultivation speed is jaw‑dropping, astonishing.

No one knows what secret he holds, or perhaps his cultivation method aligns perfectly, his comprehension is astounding; in just four years, he's already reached Sixth Layer of Lian Qi!

He's only one step away from becoming a Late Stage of Lian Qi cultivator.

Unfortunately, his Spirit Root quality is truly poor; being a lower‑grade Spirit Root, otherwise this cultivation speed would already have drawn some attention from the sect behind Lingfu Pavilion.

For a lower‑grade Spirit Root, a temporary rapid cultivation is useless; the Foundation Establishment is a heavenly trench that cannot be crossed.

However, Lin Zixi claimed she didn't expect Xiao Zhangqing to reach Late Stage of Lian Qi, merely to belittle him. In truth, she privately believes he can achieve the Ninth Layer of Lian Qi Great Perfection.

That level is sufficient even for the top ninety percent of cultivators.

After all, among the many cultivators in Nanshan Fang, only six have reached Foundation Establishment.

A Ninth Layer Lian Qi Great Perfection places one at the pinnacle, a top combat force that even Foundation‑establishment families need to court.

Precisely because of that, after her assessment she thought Xiao Zhangqing's overall potential was good; her sister Lin Ziyu didn't dislike Xiao Zhangqing, so she considered matchmaking them.

But who could have known… who could have known this guy is so ungrateful! Hmph, someday you'll regret! ……

……

Since Xiao Zhangqing coldly rejected Lin Zixi…

When they occasionally meet at the house entrance, Lin Ziyu will nod to Xiao Zhangqing as a greeting, while Lin Zixi just rolls her eyes to the heavens, not bothering to look further.

But what she doesn't know is that on the first and fifteenth of each month she has to act as a sycophant before the Xiao Zhangqing in a new guise.

Any casual remark from Xiao Zhangqing must be carefully scrutinized, repeatedly pondered and measured, lest they misunderstand his meaning and fail to satisfy him.

Overall, Xiao Zhangqing's life is quite peaceful, with no real trouble.

Only the situation in Nanshan Fang is becoming increasingly turbulent.

In fact, it's not just Nanshan Fang; the entire southwestern region of the Da Yu Cultivation World is like this.

Especially the scattered cultivator families spread in the wild, occupying First‑rank Spirit Vein Star Arrays, who live in water and fire, many choose to abandon their bases and relocate entire clans to the major towns.

Thus, property prices in Nanshan Fang began to rise.

Whether it's residential caves, shops, or even the shantytown, prices have risen over thirty percent in the past year.

Amid this turmoil, Lingfu Pavilion Shopkeeper Hong Jiantao received an order; Luoxia Sect sent him to Character: Liyang Immortal City to open new business for the sect.

The originally agreed two‑year term was moved up by half a year for unknown reasons.

Character: Liyang Immortal City doesn't belong to any sect or cultivation family; it was founded by three great Jie Dan Realists and is the famed "First City of Scattered Cultivators".

Because of its neutral status and the presence of three Jie Dan Realists, Character: Liyang Immortal City draws countless aspiring scattered cultivators, and many merchant guilds gather there; its commerce flourishes, not far behind some Nascent Soul forces.

Yet Character: Liyang Immortal City lies tens of thousands of li from Nanshan Fang, already near the central region of the Da Yu Cultivation World.

Logically, Luoxia Sect, being a sect in the southwestern Da Yu Cultivation World, shouldn't have to venture to such a distant place as Character: Liyang Immortal City to develop new business.

But the sect's decision is unknown to those inside Lingfu Pavilion; they can only reluctantly prepare to carry out Shopkeeper Hong's orders.

Hong Jiantao has been Lingfu Pavilion Shopkeeper for decades; even those talisman masters who weren't directly promoted by him have still received some favor. Moreover, Hong Jiantao is kind‑hearted and runs a relatively relaxed management, so the talisman masters lead fairly comfortable lives.

When the sect later sends a new shopkeeper down, it's unclear what the situation will be; will they be as relaxed as before?

Xiao Zhangqing learned of Shopkeeper Hong's impending departure, and on the next workday finally succeeded in drawing a First‑Grade Talisman "Cold Ice Talisman"! Lingfu Pavilion has now produced an Entry‑rank Talisman Master! (End of chapter)