Chapter 65: Cultivation Is Not Easy

When the chill on his body fully dissipated, Li Lin flipped through the Book of Hui again.

He gritted his teeth and read the jumbled, disordered text three more times.

This time, no strange hallucination triggered—but negative effects appeared.

【Energy -1】

His head began to feel dizzy and heavy.

He quickly got up and walked slowly around his bedroom for several laps before gradually regaining clarity.

It seemed this thing couldn’t be forcibly cultivated, or problems would arise.

So he turned his gaze again to the Book of Yangxing.

The text here was also obscure and hard to understand, making him frown; after reading it three times, he gained a slight benefit.

【Body Cultivation +1】

This should be the Book of Yangming, right? Torturing the spirit to strengthen the body?

He read it a few more times, but no further effects occurred.

Li Lin frowned deeply; his instinct told him both texts were powerful, but not understanding them was frustrating.

He put down the books and went to the hall for breakfast.

Though it was only plain porridge with pickled vegetables, the porridge was exceptionally delicious—admittedly, the new cook had real skill.

After finishing breakfast, he planned to go to the market to buy paper charms and other materials to practice new abilities like talisman arts, paper-binding, and spirit-nourishing techniques.

But then he saw “Xing’er” approach, bow slightly, and say: “Master, a noble visitor has come, claiming to be Wang Tianyou.”

Li Lin paused: “Ask him in.”

Then he turned to Zhang Afu beside him: “Prepare tea to receive our honored guest.”

Zhang Afu nodded and immediately went to the kitchen to brew tea.

Li Lin waited in the hall.

Not long after, Wang Tianyou entered; Li Lin immediately went to greet him and invited him to sit.

His complexion was still slightly pale, but no longer as terrifying as before.

“Congratulations, Brother Wang, on escaping Fendu County. How is your health now?” Li Lin asked.

“Much better,” Wang Tianyou sighed. “I plan to return to Jincheng. Passing through here, I heard you’ve settled a residence here, so I came to pay a visit—and to thank you for saving my life.”

Li Lin waved dismissively: “No need for formalities—we were in the same boat.”

“I, Wang Mou, keep my word. This debt I will repay,” Wang Tianyou said, looking at Li Lin. “I know you’re desperate for cultivation methods or martial arts manuals. Tell me what kind you want—I’ll have a hand-copied copy sent to you soon.”

Li Lin thought for a moment: “If you have any close-combat martial arts—like dagger or short-sword techniques—that would suffice.”

“No problem!” Wang Tianyou nodded. “I’ll check at home and send someone with it later.”

Li Lin smiled and bowed slightly.

Wang Tianyou was indeed a man of principle.

They chatted a while longer. Wang Tianyou sipped the tea Zhang Afu brought, then rose and said: “I must leave now. I assume you’ve heard about the situation in Yuecheng—be careful. The Qin family there is insane; they might send people to trouble you.”

“Why?”

“Because the Qin family of Fendu County has secretly pledged allegiance to them—they’re a branch clan.”

Li Lin laughed: “Now they’ve declared themselves kings in Yuecheng, likely facing imminent imperial army suppression—how could they spare the manpower to bother us?”

“That’s exactly why they’re insane,” Wang Tianyou said helplessly. “If they weren’t mad, why ally with the Southern Barbarians, seize territory, and become barbarian rulers? Better to be cautious.”

That made sense.

Then Wang Tianyou left.

Li Lin went to the market stalls and bought cinnabar, talisman paper, and rice paper as practice materials—a large sack—and then bought a donkey, loading all the supplies onto its back to carry home.

Back at Shangtikou Village, Li Lin had just unloaded the donkey’s cargo when the village elder arrived with three men.

“Li Xunshou, back from the county seat?”

Li Lin turned and smiled: “Elder, have you eaten?”

“Eaten, eaten,” the elder grinned broadly. “These three are from our village. They heard the wandering ghosts outside the village have been eliminated by you, so they want to bring their wives and children back. They have no land to farm outside—it’s hard living. They’ve come to ask your opinion: will you accept them… or not?”

The Han family incident had shamed the entire village.

Since then, everyone agreed: any outsider wishing to settle in the village must have Li Xunshou’s approval.

The three men were typical farmers, now smiling nervously, faces tense with anticipation.

Li Lin said: “Elder, you handle this. I’m merely the Xunshou here.”

“Then what’s your view on these returning farmers?”

“More people, more liveliness.”

The elder sighed in relief: “I know what to do. Sorry to disturb you, Li Xunshou.”

Li Lin paused, then added: “By the way, I’ll be practicing new techniques soon—there may be strange effects. Don’t be afraid if you see odd things; they won’t harm you.”

“Don’t worry, we’re used to it.”

Spirit-hunters practicing techniques could at most summon thunder on a clear day… they’d heard enough of that lately to ignore it.

Yet… the entire village remained fearful for several days.

Because every day, countless tiny paper figures poured out of Li Lin’s house. Though they never entered others’ homes, they darted around wildly—chasing chickens, herding dogs—extremely “mischievous.” And with their large round eyes, though cute in design, their unnatural appearance struck the villagers as deeply eerie.

So many were frightened.

It took several days before they barely grew accustomed.

After days of practice, Li Lin finally mastered the new paper-binding technique.

Soul-Guiding Paper Figure.

The small paper figures sought people; this one guided souls.

Moreover, the Soul-Guiding Paper Figure was much larger and required far more yin energy, so it couldn’t be mass-produced like the small ones—it had to be crafted as a premium item.

First, one must define an image.

The more familiar, revered, and powerful the image in one’s heart, the stronger the Soul-Guiding Paper Figure becomes.

Techniques like this are deeply subjective.

Li Lin immediately drew the one superhero he had worshipped since childhood, unchanged in his heart.

Monkey King!

And failed.

The moment he finished drawing the Monkey King’s image, the paper figure spontaneously combusted.

Li Lin also lay in bed coughing for two days.

He reconsidered and replaced the Soul-Guiding Paper Figure’s image with the Tree Immortal Lady.

Instantly succeeded!

But when the Tree Immortal Lady discovered it, she angrily grabbed Li Lin’s arm and sucked energy for a full hour, then coldly sniffed and left, covering her mouth.

Li Lin lay in bed for two more days, dark circles under his eyes.

When he recovered with Life-Sustaining Pills and Blood Rice, Su Huafang came to visit.

“Li Xunshou, want to join the raid?”

He asked with a smile.

(End of Chapter)