Chapter 31: Safety Demands Awareness of Danger

At dawn, Ninth Aunt performed her morning rites before the ancestral tablet, then replenished the incense for the villagers before lazily taking her seat and picking up a boiled egg from beside the water jug for breakfast.

Crack…

The eggshell tapped against the table, cracks spreading in a circle; Ninth Aunt was about to reach out when a sudden intuition struck—she immediately formed a hand seal, murmured incantations, and her gaze grew slightly unfocused.

Without warning, her posture froze, her eyes returning to the cracks on the egg, her brow knitting in frown.

"Strange—where did this karmic debt come from, out of nowhere?"

As a mystery cultivator, Ninth Aunt would never dismiss sudden intuition as coincidence, and the cracks on this egg carried particular significance. Though divination was not her forte, a spirit medium must know at least a little.

And now, through mystical perception and interpretation, the cracks on the egg clearly indicated…

"Good morning, Ninth Aunt!"

Ninth Aunt looked at Feng Xue—the same young man she'd met just yesterday—and her expression darkened slightly; over the past few days, he was the only person she'd interacted with deeply, and his weary face…

"I told you to moderate yourself! You're just a rumor dealer—why did you have to get yourself into trouble and make me pay the price? Even if you're desperate for windfall, you could've gone to the madam… Could that merchant have swindled me? That doesn't make sense!"

Ninth Aunt's mind raced with muttered complaints, but she dared not voice them outright, instead speaking with as much concern as she could: "You haven't slept all night, have you? Wait—I'll brew you some divine tea. At your age, you must learn restraint, or even a cultivator will…"

"Where do you get that idea? I came back all night from Port City," Feng Xue cut her off immediately—he knew exactly what she was imagining. Ninth Aunt felt skeptical but said nothing, instead following his lead:

"Then why did you rush back here all night? Let me be clear—I don't take jobs handling ghosts!"

Feng Xue was done correcting her rigid misdirection—he simply said outright:

"I want to buy two Hu Tian Cursing Pouches. What's the price?"

"Oh? I thought you planned to make one yourself!" Ninth Aunt perked up instantly—actually, offering Hu Tian Cursing Method for sale was itself an implicit hint that she handled related services, since such a technique couldn't be learned merely by reading a manual.

Feng Xue merely shook his head:

"I'll learn it eventually—but does that mean I can't buy furniture before I finish learning carpentry? Do you have any? If not, I'll ask that foreign Monk."

"No, no, no! That foreign devil doesn't understand the Microcosm in a Mustard Seed or the Universe in a Pot!" Ninth Aunt panicked at the mention of the foreign Monk and snapped:

"I have two options for Hu Tian Pouches: one is a pair of Yin and Yang pouches sold together for two strings, but the internal energy lasts only three months—you'll need to replenish it yourself or come back here to pay 100 cash per month for refills; the other is to leave the Yin pouch here with me, keep the Yang pouch yourself, and I'll replenish its energy and devotional power monthly—you just use it. Each pouch costs one string, but I charge 300 cash monthly storage fee. The Yin pouch is one zhang square—enough to fit a small room inside."

Since Feng Xue had previously bought a Hu Tian Cursing Pouch, he immediately understood—pulling out ten banknotes, he said:

"I'll take the second option—with three years' storage fee."

"Straightforward!" Ninth Aunt's eyes lit up at the ten one-string notes; she waved her hand, and the black ghost she'd seen before immediately brought the goods. Yet she didn't forget her earlier intuition and asked:

"Young man, you're prepaying for three years—have you run into trouble?"

"Nothing serious. You know I'm traveling—I've stayed in Ping'an County for a few days, time to move on elsewhere," Feng Xue replied vaguely, not revealing his true intentions about the Port Gang.

Seeing Feng Xue wouldn't speak, Ninth Aunt had no choice—but unresolved karmic debt only grew heavier. After thinking, she took a sheet of yellow paper, scooped a pinch of incense ash from the altar's censer, folded it into a triangle, and handed it to Feng Xue:

"You're a major customer—this protective amulet is a gift from me. May you have a safe journey."

Feng Xue stared at the Talisman, hesitated, then accepted it, tucking it alongside the Hu Tian Pouch into his pocket before taking his leave again.

"Now the debt's settled." Watching Feng Xue leave the hall, Ninth Aunt suddenly felt a weight lift—her whole body grew light. Yet precisely because of this, she grew even more suspicious:

"In all these years of business, I've never encountered a transaction so willingly agreed upon that still left a karmic debt. No—I must ask that merchant for information. I won't be cheated without retaliation!"

…

Ignoring Ninth Aunt's turmoil, Feng Xue had already returned to the house he'd rented for months but only stayed in for days, stuffing all the rice, flour, oil, and other provisions into the Hu Tian Pouch—no bigger than a palm.

Though the pouch's opening was only fist-sized, anything placed against it would shrink as if distorted by a funhouse mirror.

But the Hu Tian Pouch could only contain inanimate objects (or objects without sentience)—otherwise, it would be perfect for trapping enemies.

"Still, given the principle of the Hu Tian Pouch, if one filters devotional energy properly, could one not create a treasure like the Purple Gold Gourd, capable of swallowing people?"

Feng Xue had cultivated too briefly to know whether mystery cultivators in this world possessed such techniques—he simply crammed all his belongings into the pouch, feeling lighter than ever as he left Ping'an County.

…

A white mountain bike rolled along a bumpy dirt road; Feng Xue mentally reviewed this "crash."

At first glance, the biggest mistake was his clothing—after arriving in Ping'an County, his windbreaker earned him many favors, leading him to assume everywhere operated the same, so he never changed into local attire, which caused him to be easily spotted in Port City.

But upon closer thought, many details emerged—for instance, he entered the antique shop right in front of the rickshaw driver, meaning that whether dressed well or poorly, he carried money or valuables.

From this angle, his real mistake was revealing his destination to the rickshaw driver while utterly unfamiliar with the place?

Of course, this doesn't mean he shouldn't have hired a rickshaw—but he shouldn't have chosen those waiting near brothels. As low-income laborers, those who wait roadside for customers differ from those who actively roam for fares, let alone those loitering near brothels—even a transplant like Feng Xue, if he thought about it, could easily link them to modern "professional beggars" and "Beggars' Sects" who monopolize begging spots.

"So, I was truly too careless!"

Regarding character personality, readers of my previous works should know I dislike flat, direct descriptions like "the protagonist is a xx." Even when I do describe traits, I embed them in context, never rigidly outputting static character sheets, nor do I keep the protagonist's personality unchanged from debut to finale—my protagonists evolve. To understand how he becomes who he is, you must trace his experiences.

For example, in my last novel, Dream Inquiry, readers watched the protagonist grow from "trembling at the sight of corpses" to "when in doubt, just die, damn it"—a hardened, ruthless man—but no one found his transformation jarring, right?

I believe a character's personality must evolve with his experiences. The reason this novel's protagonist can act decisively and lethally isn't because he was born a killer—but because of the ten days I skipped.

This protagonist has only sixty days to live upon transmigration, each day a countdown. Unlike the protagonist of Ghost Tales, who also counts down days but has clear methods to extend life and a solid advancement path, with a decent power-up, he isn't desperate—he just follows the routine.

But this protagonist transmigrates into a Low-Magic World with no apparent supernatural forces. Though he constantly seeks ways to extend his life, each option demands either a final leap—risking his life against a speeding truck—or gambling on a one-in-220,000 chance. After persisting for ten days, his personality naturally hardened: more decisive, more resolute, more ruthless, even bordering on madness.

Why didn't I write those days in detail? Because it's boring—nothing worth writing. Better to leave blanks for readers to imagine.



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(End of Chapter)