Chapter 18: The Hearts of Men are Sinister

"I didn't expect this Chen fellow to still be studying the Dao of alchemy?"

A trace of jealousy flashed in Ma Huai's eyes, then he carefully circled the alchemy room a few times, scanned the alchemy materials, and spat softly.

It seems his level isn't much to speak of.

Little trash.

No wonder he's so poor; he can't move his feet when he sees money. So that's where he wasted so many resources—on alchemy methods.

When the time comes to fleece him, I can be ruthless. Wasting it on alchemy methods is better spent on his brothers.

The alchemy room door was pushed open, and Chen Ci walked in carrying ingredients: two full-grown old hens and three whole Lingzhi mushrooms.

Adding mountain spring water to the cauldron, he put in the hens and Lingzhi, covered it, and Chen Ci began to light the fire, use the Fire Control Method, observe the Qi, and simmer the soup.

"Brother Ma, I specifically picked these three Lingzhi for you. You must eat plenty later."

Chen Ci pinched the Fire Control Method, fanning the flames with a *whoosh-whoosh* sound, and asked curiously: "I wonder what this more lucrative path you mentioned is?"

"This path, heh."

Ma Huai smelled the fragrance gradually overflowing from the small cauldron, his throat bobbing. The Lingzhi he saw earlier didn't look like much, but they were indeed full of spiritual energy. It seemed this Chen fellow had cultivated them with care. He smiled immediately: "Among the common folk, there is a distinction between rich and poor. Don't look at the rich as having plenty of silver; those poor ghosts can also be squeezed for quite a bit of profit."

"I once caught a poisonous toad in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains. Its toad venom can create an epidemic. As long as you toss it into the water source, hehe, you can squeeze a few taels of silver out of each person. Once the volume picks up, it's a huge sum of money. When the time comes, we split it fifty-fifty. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Chen Ci's hand shook, and he almost failed to hold the Fire Control Method. His expression was very conflicted, and he asked in a low voice: "No, Daoist Ma, if you play this big, will it really not cause trouble? Let's just forget about this matter."

"Don't worry, this epidemic only injures, it doesn't kill. As long as nothing major happens, the Apprentices of the Longhu Mountain in the Liang Kingdom won't care. They don't have that much free time."

Ma Huai sneered: "Commoners are like rice paddies, and you and I are exiled immortals. If the rice paddies fail completely, there will definitely be trouble, but if a few stalks fall, no one will pay much attention. How about this: you are the host, let's do a four-six split—I take four, you take six."

"Seventy percent, I'll only do it for seventy percent!"

Chen Ci shook his head vigorously: "Sixty percent is too little, I won't do it. The spiritual food is almost stewed, let's eat while we talk."

"Alright, sigh, after all, I felt like old friends with Daoist Chen at first sight..."

After a long while, Ma Huai finally agreed reluctantly, though he was secretly overjoyed. Wandering into this place, he had only intended to quietly harvest some primordial yin to refine his own Five Fiend Spirits. Now that he could earn an extra sum and have an Apprentice of the He Mountain Sect to cover for him, it couldn't be better.

"Chicken soup is here~"

Chen Ci used the Fire Control Method to observe the Qi and added salt. After a while, he lifted the cauldron lid, and the fragrance of the spiritual food surged out, enveloping the entire alchemy room.

So fragrant, this spiritual food is really good!

"It's a pity there's no immortal wine. Otherwise, with wine and meat, that life, tsk."

Chen Ci took out bowls and chopsticks, filled a bowl to the brim, and handed it over. Ma Huai reached out to take it but didn't eat, only praising it twice: "Daoist Chen's craftsmanship is truly excellent."

Chen Ci didn't bother with him, filled a bowl for himself, ate the meat and drank the soup in big mouthfuls, and asked: "Daoist Ma, where did you practice before? How did you come here? Changping County is a remote place."

"I originally practiced at Linquan Mountain, but I accidentally offended... offended some people."

Ma Huai watched Chen Ci eating with such relish and sighed to himself that he had been too cautious. This Brother Chen was clearly a law-abiding person; his own prejudice was still too deep.

Only a fool wouldn't take advantage of a bargain. Cultivation is not easy; he should eat more of this Lingzhi himself.

He immediately began to eat in big mouthfuls, sighing: "It's a long story."

But he clearly didn't want to explain too much.

The cauldron of chicken soup was quickly finished by the two of them. Chen Ci drank more soup, while Ma Huai ate more of the ingredients.

"Daoist Ma, want some?"

Once they were full, Chen Ci pulled out a large bag of powdery stuff, fawning over him.

Five Immortals Powder?

This Chen fellow plays so wild?!

Ma Huai's eyelids twitched a few times; this stuff is not something one should touch.

"No, no, Daoist Chen... you go ahead."

"This is good stuff, Brother Ma, but you don't have the fortune for it."

Chen Ci rubbed his nose, swallowed the bag of powder with some clear water, and closed his eyes to rest for a while.

"Daoist Chen, that's not how Five Immortals Powder is used, is it?"

Ma Huai saw Chen Ci's face turn slightly pale and kindly reminded him: "Such a large amount will hurt your body."

"Five Immortals Powder? Oh, Daoist Ma, you misunderstood. This stuff is called 'universal soil' among the common folk."

Chen Ci opened his eyes and explained unhurriedly: "But I prefer to call it Smectite Powder. By the way, Daoist Ma, I have one thing I don't understand: if you happen to make a big mess of things, what will happen to my foundation here at Sanyin Temple?"

"If you want to make big money, you naturally have to take some risks. Besides, I'll do all the dirty work, so don't you worry, Daoist."

Ma Huai cursed under his breath, but accompanied it with a fawning smile: "Rest for a while, tonight shall we brothers go have some fun?"

"I can see it now, the hearts of men in this world are sinister; they just can't stand to see someone have a little foundation and live a peaceful life!"

Chen Ci was heartbroken. While sighing, he pulled a stack of Soul Fixing Talismans from his sleeve and counted them carefully: "Brother Ma, why must you drag me into the water? I had no choice before, but now..."

Only eighteen sheets, not very stable. One only regrets having too few talismans when the time comes to use them.

"Daoist Chen, what do you mean by this?"

Ma Huai also felt something was wrong and secretly guarded himself. They had just been chatting like old friends, everything was fine, so why did he suddenly start blaming him?

"Daoist Ma, don't say I bullied you."

Chen Ci pinched his fingers to calculate the time; it should be about right. He silently held his breath: "I'll let you go first."

"Huff, huff, this alchemy room can't be used anymore."

Chen Ci touched a wound on his rib, his face somewhat pale. As for whether it was because of the injury or the filth covering the floor, that is a matter of opinion.

He killed someone.

This wasn't very important. After all, having been in this world for a long time, Chen Ci had already done a lot of psychological preparation. Even if this matter today were placed before Zhang San, it should count as emergency self-defense... right?

"The Soul Fixing Talismans I sold must have caused harm or influence to this Ma fellow, otherwise he wouldn't have come looking for me."

"I could actually just cave in, promise not to sell Soul Fixing Talismans anymore, and honestly hide in Sanyin Temple, and nothing would happen."

"But why should I?"

Chen Ci exhaled a breath of turbid air: "I just want to live a stable life, earn money, and cultivate; that is all."

However, his first battle in life had revealed his shortcomings.

The Five Yin Black Evil was not as powerful or as fast as he had imagined.

It was just like that man surnamed Ma earlier; in such a wretched state, his speed in circulating Qi and casting spells was significantly slower, and he had lost at least fifty percent of his ability, yet he still managed to use his True Qi to withstand three strikes of the Five Yin Black Evil and land a hit on his ribs with a short sword at close range.

If it weren't for the fact that Chen Ci's movements had become much more agile after cultivating the Stone Lock Primordial Chaos Art, he might not have been able to protect his own kidney just now.

"The Five Yin Black Evil can be used for crowd control and dealing damage, and its power is linked to the amount of evil energy, but it lacks a decisive, finishing blow."

"Adai, you have disappointed your master too much."

Five Yin Evil Qi Bag: "."

Chen Ci grumbled, then turned his gaze toward a strange statue on the ground with five heads and ten arms, held in place by a Soul Fixing Talisman, as well as a short sword the length of a forearm.

"A poor wretch; I don't even know if the Soul Fixing Talisman I threw out will pay for itself."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the Five Yin Evil Qi Bag at his waist suddenly twitched, spitting out a piece of close-fitting soft armor and a Dao Tome woven with golden threads.

Oh my, this is a drop!

Chen Ci patted the Five Yin Evil Qi Bag and waved his hand grandly: "Kid, I'll give you an extra meal next time, for sure!"

(End of chapter)