Chapter 78: The Lady's Paper Figure

Li Lin returned to the "Upper Stair Entrance" village.

He first fed the Lady Tree Immortal, then went home.

The house was now spotless, not a speck of dust in sight.

Beside it stood a paper version of the "Lady Tree Immortal" chopping wood inside the house.

A pile of firewood as high as a small mountain had already been chopped nearby.

Li Lin was stunned; without him inputting yin qi, how could this paper figure remain active for so long? Logically, it should lose its vitality after three or four double-hours.

But then he understood, for he sensed the "strange aura" of the Lady Tree Immortal on this paper figure.

So the Lady Tree Immortal had been maintaining the paper figure's "vitality" all along.

Seeing Li Lin, the paper figure modeled after the Lady Tree Immortal immediately dropped its axe, walked over, bowed slightly to him, then moved behind him, its two paper hands gently kneading his shoulders.

A massage?

It even used its "face" to gently rub against Li Lin's face.

Displaying an unusual intimacy.

Li Lin was stunned; paper figures follow the nature of their master. If this paper figure is so gentle, could the Lady Tree Immortal's true nature... also be so gentle?

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly felt a chill.

Turning his head, he saw the real Lady Tree Immortal floating in mid-air, staring coldly at him.

Li Lin instinctively stepped back, moving away from that paper figure.

A massive snake tail whipped down, nearly grazing Li Lin's body, and smashed that paper figure into pieces.

Hmph!

The Lady Tree Immortal turned, her long tail swaying as she departed.

Li Lin watched the Lady Tree Immortal's graceful back, unable to help but smile.

He returned to the room, made two new paper figures, had them cook a meal for him, then sat drinking bitter tea while leisurely rereading "The Daoist's Detailed Account".

This trip to Bobai Military Town made Li Lin feel even more how obvious the weakness of the "Fallen Thunder Incantation" was.

It took too much time.

Even with rapid hand seals, it still required several breaths.

If it could be shortened to one breath, even with reduced power, he could quickly destroy that altar, denying the enemy any chance to aim their arrows at him.

Then there would be no danger.

How to shorten the incantation casting time of the Fallen Thunder Incantation?

Since returning from Bobai Military Town, he had been pondering this question.

Then he had an idea.

Combine the talisman art with the Fallen Thunder Incantation.

He already understood the operational principle of the qi mechanism behind the Fallen Thunder Incantation.

If the talismans and incantations were inscribed with the runes of the Fallen Thunder Incantation, he could prepare the talisman paper in advance; when needed, he would only need to input yin qi and throw the talisman paper, allowing him to unleash the Fallen Thunder Incantation within a single breath.

The idea was good, but execution was difficult.

How to express the effect of the hand seals of the Fallen Thunder Incantation using lines and characters was a huge problem.

He tried many times at home, exhausting all his materials, yet made no progress whatsoever.

However, he was not discouraged, planning to go to the county town market tomorrow to buy more materials in bulk and experiment slowly.

Although the idea of combining the talisman art with the Fallen Thunder Incantation had made no progress, he had not gained nothing at all.

At least, while drawing the talismans and incantations, he had gained considerable proficiency in the talisman art.

He commanded two Soul-Guiding Paper Figures to go up the mountain and gather many herbs, producing one batch of Life-Generating Pills and one batch of Beauty-Nourishing Pills.

With the alchemy furnace, the produced pills not only looked better, but the number of defective pills also decreased significantly.

Efficiency increased dramatically.

Indeed, "To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools."

He packed three bottles of Life-Generating Pills, then went to the county town; instead of rushing to the market to buy materials, he first visited Zhao Hao's home.

A mansion with five courtyards.

Truly worthy of Young Master Zhao.

He knocked on the door, then stated his purpose to the gatekeeper; not long after, Zhao Hao came out.

"Brother Li, I never expected it to be you; come in quickly."

Li Lin followed Zhao Hao into the mansion and found that this huge residence seemed quite desolate.

There were very few servants.

Even the fallen leaves piled thickly on the stone path had not been swept away by anyone.

Zhao Hao led Li Lin to the left wing room of the third courtyard, then smiled and said, "Sorry, everyone in the family has gone out; only two or three old servants remain, so I cannot brew tea to entertain you."

"No need, I just came to sit for a while before leaving." Li Lin took out the three bottles of pills and said, "Last time you saved my life; I am quite poor and have nothing good, so only these items are barely presentable."

"What kind of pills are these?"

Li Lin thought for a moment, then said, "Primordial Qi Pills!"

Zhao Hao's body instinctively leaned back slightly: "Primordial Qi Pills?"

He immediately uncorked the bottle, sniffed it, and felt a cool energy enter his dantian through his nose and throat.

"It truly is Primordial Qi." Zhao Hao took a deep breath, recorked the bottle, then pushed the three bottles back toward Li Lin: "These items are too precious; I cannot accept them."

Li Lin pushed the three bottles of medicine back: "No matter how precious, they cannot compare to my small life. I am very afraid of death."

Before giving the gift, he had thought it through carefully.

Setting aside the fact that Zhao Hao saved his life, which alone required a return gift of sufficient value, the matter of the "Four-Person Pact" also revealed Zhao Hao's character, which was truly unshakable.

Although this person sometimes likes to tell tall tales and speak in grandiose terms, isn't that also a mask to protect himself?

Zhao Hao hesitated for a moment, then said with difficulty: "Li Xunshou, I will accept these three bottles of pills. If you need anything in the future, please speak freely; I will go through fire and water without hesitation."

"There really is something I need to trouble you with." Li Lin said with a smile, amidst the puzzled gaze from the opposite side: "This matter must not be known to a third party."

Zhao Hao nodded heavily.

Half an hour later, Li Lin came out of the Zhao residence.

He went to the market to buy a large amount of talisman paper and materials, preparing to return to the village.

But at this very moment, Li Lin suddenly saw a Taoist priest.

A faint yin qi emanated from the other's body.

A Soul Hunter?

A Taoist priest?

Li Lin suddenly remembered the incident that occurred not long ago during the 'Running Gang' period.

That woman who had given birth to a ghost child said she had been deceived by a Taoist priest.

Could it be this person?

Clearly, County Magistrate Huang Yan had already issued a notice telling the people of Yulin County to beware of Taoist con artists, yet this fellow still came to Yulin County.

Truly audacious.

Li Lin immediately followed quietly.

Thanks to his status as a virgin and the Fallen Thunder Incantation, although Li Lin also cultivated a yin qi cultivation method, his yang qi was particularly abundant, achieving a balance of yin and yang; on the surface, he looked much like an ordinary person, without the obvious leakage of yin qi seen in other Soul Hunters.

This made it very convenient for him to infiltrate and track.

This Taoist priest wandered up and down the street; not long after, he trailed behind a woman.

This woman looked quite ordinary, and her appearance was also very average.

When the woman reached a place with fewer pedestrians, this Taoist priest blocked her path.

"This female benefactor, please stop."

This Taoist priest had the appearance of an immortal with wind and bone, looking quite charming.

Seeing the other party, the woman felt somewhat nervous, her face turning slightly red: "Venerable Daoist, what business do you have in stopping me?"

"You have a Dao affinity!"

Huh?

The woman stared at him blankly.

The Taoist priest took out a yellowish-brown leather object and handed it over: "This item is named 'Immortal-Born Face'. Soak it in water and drink it; you will become more beautiful day by day. After drinking it for fifteen days, your beauty will rival that of celestial fairies."

There was a hint of suspicion in the woman's eyes; she felt the other party was a con artist.

The Taoist priest continued to smile: "Since it is fate, naturally it is a gift for you; you need not spend a single coin. After you have drunk it for five days and see the effects, I will come to find you again."

The woman was quite tempted and accepted this 'brown skin'.

(End of this chapter)