Chapter 36: A Shortcut to Charging the Truth Bubble?

"For those seven or eight people, the sudden cannibalism by the ferocious three-headed beast was an unprovoked disaster."

"It is rare to see such things elsewhere, but in Ten Thousand Blessings City, these kinds of groundless calamities are not uncommon; peace and comfort have no connection to Ten Thousand Blessings."

"At least, until one's strength reaches the level of Carefree, that is."

As Li Yu pondered, his desire to improve his own strength became increasingly urgent.

Without a doubt, Sequence 8 was definitely not enough.

Sequence 7 should be enough to live freely in a place like the Heavenly Mystery Workshop.

To go any higher, one would need Sequence 6.

Just as Li Yu was estimating what level he needed to reach to live the life he wanted, the joyful "proselytizing bustle" already unfolding throughout Ten Thousand Blessings City finally reached the old street of the Heavenly Mystery Workshop.

Proselytizers dispatched by all sorts of strange and bizarre evil god cults entered the old street and began knocking on doors one by one.

"Neighbor, are you home? Any interest in joining our [Snake Cult]? As long as you are willing to join, this snake tooth, which contains potent poison and can bring blessings, will be gifted to you."

"Fellow Daoist, you look like a smart person. Join our [Innocent Cult]; coming into the world naked and leaving it naked is true wisdom. Join the cult and get a free ticket to the Unrestricted Assembly."

"Hey, you're also from Li, a fellow countryman! Come, come, I won't tell anyone else, join my [God of Poverty Cult]. The benefits are beyond your imagination. Others only get one mourning mask for joining, but since you're a fellow countryman, I'll give you two. Wear them in rotation day and night, and you'll be able to beg for good fortune at any household."

"Big brother, big sister, want to get rich overnight? Want good fortune to strike? Join the [Gate of Disaster]! As long as you worship the God of Disaster, all bad luck will vanish, and good fortune will sprout. Take this copper coin of fortune as a gift."

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist. If you also dislike the pure human race and enjoy matters of cross-breeding, perhaps you can be one of our like-minded companions. Listen to the auspicious sound of our great Lord, and take this doll to play with first..."

"Knock, knock."

"Neighbor, are you home?"

"Hey, heretic, don't come over here; I was at this house first."

"On Proselytizing Day, there is no such thing as first come, first served. Whoever has the better methods gets the believers."

"We're all just errand runners, stop arguing. Let's finish up quickly and go to the next street."

The courtyard gate of Li Yu's house, which had just been repaired, was also knocked upon at this moment.

And very quickly, they were all scrambling together.

Harboring expectations for those free gifts and handouts, Li Yu went forward and opened the door.

Sure enough, five or six people were already crowded in front of his door.

When he appeared, scorching gazes immediately fell upon him, followed by more subtle glances toward Hongdou behind Li Yu.

Before he could even open his mouth to ask, a full five gifts, whose names and descriptions he had already heard, were handed over.

A snake tooth, a colorful copper scroll, a mourning mask, a strange and realistic half-human half-horse doll, a rusted copper coin... looking at them, although they weren't exactly rare treasures, they were quite different from ordinary mundane objects; they were special items with some value.

Arriving at the same time were invitations that were clearly much more enthusiastic, and even sweetened with extra offers.

"Fellow Daoist is so young; one can tell at a glance you are a seed for cultivation. An ordinary snake tooth isn't worthy of you; this one has been blessed by our cult's Snake Maiden Priestess, its effects are much stronger. As long as you are willing to join, it's yours for free."

"Young Master is too handsome; those unrestricted events attended by commoners would only sully you. This ticket is higher-end; all participants will be cultivators of Sequence 8 or even higher. Just say the word, Young Master, and you can go."

"How could a young prodigy like you be sullied by the vulgar human race? Take this centaur maiden; after dripping your blood to bind it, you can experience infinite mysteries."

Li Yu did not know when his expression had turned cold.

After listening, he did not take any of the gifts, but instead asked, "How does one count as having joined the cult?"

This question clearly excited them all, and they each scrambled to answer.

"Wear it on your body and chant 'Long live the Snake God' once, and you are considered joined."

"Write your true name on the copper admission ticket and silently chant 'The Innocent are unhindered,' and you are also joined."

"Wear the mourning mask for three breaths and pray to the great God of Poverty; this is the fastest way to join."

"Hahaha, all too cumbersome. In my sect, as long as you take this good item and use it after dripping your blood on it, that's all."

"My copper coin of fortune also only requires dripping blood to bind it."

After hearing five consecutive answers, a look of disappointment could not help but flash in Li Yu's eyes.

Immediately, he flatly refused:

"You all should go elsewhere."

"I already believe in my Lord and cannot accept your gifts."

Having said that, he prepared to close the door directly.

Seeing this, the five people still wanted to pester him, their mouths already starting to say things like, "Even if you already have a path, our cult has ways..."

However, the next moment, after Li Yu turned his head and shouted "Hongdou," these five fanatical proselytizers all became concerned for their lives and dispersed in frustration.

This scene was also within Li Yu's expectations.

From the five people's demeanor from the start, it could be judged that they knew something about the master and servant.

That was why they had sweetened the gifts from the start, attempting to lure Li Yu into the trap.

It must have been that night of the battle royale; the master and servant had killed too ruthlessly and gained some small-scale fame, which was why they were targeted.

Of course, that was likely the extent of it; there wouldn't be any follow-up conflict.

Scaling it up to the entire Heavenly Mystery Workshop, there weren't many Sequence 8 cultivators, but there weren't few either.

If they turned into enemies every time they failed to lure someone, those cults wouldn't be able to continue proselytizing.

"Sure enough, there is no such thing as a free lunch in this world. In my past life, even to get a fan from those street promoters, I had to be forced to follow some accounts, let alone these good items that can clearly be sold for money."

"Those short, seemingly harmless initiation rituals actually have endless hidden dangers."

"If I really believed in them, I'd probably be tricked to death."

"However, for some poor people who have no channels, are penniless, and have nothing left but their miserable lives, choosing one from these miscellaneous evil god cults is indeed the fastest path to becoming a cultivator."

"It's just that the outcome is mostly very miserable."

"The so-called 'proselytizing' is likely for finding cannon fodder from the bottom."

With this thought, Li Yu lost all interest in Proselytizing Day.

If it were any other time, he would have been willing to spend some time to see if he could avoid the traps, get the gifts for free, and sell them all afterward to make some money.

But since the cost-effectiveness was no longer high, he stopped caring.

"Hongdou!"

"Add a few words to that plague-ridden chicken, tell it to come over and guard the door for me; whoever asks, refuse them."

"Yes, Master!"

Li Yu closed the door to guests and returned to the main room. Having taken only one step, he was already seriously contemplating the most urgent matter in his mind, one that concerned his life and his future path.

The Demon Star Order!

There had been too many successive changes before, from the divine miracles to the fierce power of the Three Saints.

It had left him overwhelmed and afraid to leave any traces, so he hadn't had time to carefully study the cold rules left in his mind by the Demon Star Order.

Now, it was the right time.

"In two days, I will encounter my first summons and be teleported to an ancient realm of mystery."

"Cannot refuse, otherwise will be erased." These were not the only two brief rules.

Besides causing a strong premonition of crisis in Li Yu's heart, a whole heap of questions immediately surfaced in his mind:

"Wait? If everyone who received a Demon Star Order tonight is summoned in two days, doesn't that mean many people will disappear at the same time? Wouldn't that be a disguised exposure?"

"If they aren't summoned at the same time, it means the realms of mystery and spirit worlds everyone is summoned to will be different."

"When summoned, can I bring things with me? Or will I be taken away naked? Or is it a soul projection?"

"If I can bring things, are there any restrictions?"

"Can I take Hongdou with me?"

Everything that should be thought of, Li Yu had thought of.

Unfortunately, the Demon Star Order was not his Truth Bubble; it wouldn't provide answers one by one just because his direction of inquiry was so comprehensive.

These questions of his were like stones sinking into the sea, with no response at all.

Li Yu suddenly recalled the illusion-like mockery from the Demon Star Order he had obtained, which was called the "Calamity Star," when it conveyed the rules earlier.

That feeling was back again.

=9+Shu_ba

"The answers to these questions of mine should also belong to secret knowledge, but they won't reach the ears of low-level cultivators like me."

"I'll just have to wait until I experience it once; if I don't die inside, I'll be able to guess roughly."

"However, the holders of those [Rebel Star] and [Plague Star] orders are all young prodigies above Sequence 7 with great backgrounds; they must know."

"Unfortunately, although I know their identities, I dare not go to them to ask."

Muttering to this point, Li Yu could not help but show a bitter smile on his face.

He had used up his fourth Truth Bubble!

Aside from intercepting a Calamity Star Order, the remaining harvest was peeking into the true identities of several Demon Star Order holders.

One must know that even powerhouses of Sequence 3 or 2 could not do this.

This intelligence was of extremely high value.

Alas, he could not sell it, nor did he dare to.

"In two days, I fear I will have to fight for my life again."

"The Demon Star Order holder is both an opportunity and a disaster; in every rumor, it is said that the mortality rate is extremely, extremely high, especially for a low-level cultivator like me who knows nothing."

"The only plan now is to exhaust my family's wealth and prepare with all my might."

As these thoughts flashed by.

In Li Yu's mind, various plans and schemes immediately began to form.

Most importantly, he must possess at least one opportunity to analyze all things.

This is his greatest reliance; at critical moments, it can serve an effect akin to cheating.

As this thought arose, Li Yu glanced toward his eye membrane.

The fifth Truth Bubble!

Charging progress: one-third.

"With only a day or two, no, if I subtract the time for my other preparations, I fear I have only a few hours to spare. In such a short time, where can I find enough extraordinary secrets to fill the remaining bubbles?"

"The most convenient 'Wanfu Daily' won't release its next issue for another three days... hmm?"

Suddenly, Li Yu seemed to think of something, and his eyes lit up.

In his past life, although he was not a journalism major, he had a friend who was, so he knew some knowledge that could hardly be considered industry secrets.

For example, before every issue of a newspaper is published, a large amount of topics and materials are selected, but in the end, not all of them are used, and a lot remains.

In his past life, these scraps had no value.

But in this world, especially for Li Yu, the value of these scraps is extraordinary.

With this thought, Li Yu subconsciously wanted to flip through that first issue of the Wanfu Daily and find contact information on it to see if he could pull off this deal.

But after flipping through it several times and gaining nothing, he couldn't help but frown and mutter:

"This newspaper can use 'Wanfu' as its name and be distributed throughout the city; I fear its level is very high, at least capable of reaching the overlords of the four districts and a large number of high-sequence powerhouses."

"Not to mention whether someone like me at the bottom would be acknowledged if I went knocking, just going there is a risk."

"If I happen to run into a high-sequence powerhouse, face-to-face, my identity as the Demon Star Order Master would likely be exposed."

"Hmm? Since the Wanfu Daily is also organized and published by the [Tiangong Sect], perhaps salesmen like Meng Shenji or Shi Dazhu have channels to help me buy those unused news scraps..."

"For others, or even the Wanfu Daily office, those unused, outdated news items have no value, so they probably won't be very expensive."

"If I play the role of a cultivator who is obsessed with gossip and has money to burn, I could completely rationalize this matter, and perhaps even do this continuously in the future to steadily and sustainably charge the Truth Bubbles?"

The more Li Yu thought about it, the more feasible he felt it was.

Without the slightest delay, he called for Hongdou and issued a bounty again.

Only this time, it was a bit different from before; he waited for a long while and no one accepted it.

Just as Li Yu was feeling puzzled, Hongdou's mechanical voice suddenly sounded:

"The bounty has been claimed!"

"Tiangong salesman Shi Dazhu has begun preparing the trade items; it will take one hour."

"Furthermore, due to this act being suspected of illegal trading of internal information, it is necessary to split the proceeds with several Wanfu Daily editors, so the selling price will not be low; please have at least one thousand taels of silver ready."

"Do you wish to withdraw the bounty?"

"Agree to it!"

Li Yu said with a look of realization.

Previously, he had been a bit wishful; after all, it is a newspaper in an extraordinary world, so even the scraps that weren't selected still have significant value.

If he guessed correctly!

He wasn't the only one with this idea, even if the goals were different.

He was doing it to charge the Truth Bubbles, while others might be trying to find some cutting-edge business opportunities or secrets; if any single piece could be utilized, the value would be immense.

And the Wanfu Daily office had already formed a rough industrial chain for this.

That is why other salesmen didn't take the bounty, but Shi Dazhu did; this fellow is likely the one among the Tiangong Sect salesmen who loves to fish for side income the most, and also has the widest channels.

One thousand taels!

It was much more expensive than expected, but it should be the market price.

If he could successfully fill the fifth Truth Bubble, it would be worth far more than the cost.

As for the money?

Li Yu is indeed penniless right now, but he has things he can sell, and they are of great value.

"That [Blood Bone Whistle] belongs to a legitimate Blood God Sect artifact and is worth at least several thousand taels."

"There is also that Forbidden God statue, the sacrificial register, the human skin scroll, and the recipe for the Flesh-Person secret medicine... they belong to a complete set of heritage. If I were willing to take them out to sell, there is no doubt they would fetch over ten thousand taels. The only thing to fear is that I must find a middleman, otherwise, the person coming to buy might very well be a madman from the Forbidden God Sect like Yi Ya."

"It's a pity about the Wandering Soul secret medicine and my own Alchemist secret medicine, because they were both obtained through peeking and lack reliable artifacts to carry the recipes; even if I write them down, no one will believe or buy them."

"This rule blocks my path to crazily peeking at recipes and selling them for money in the future."

Thinking of this, a flash of helplessness crossed Li Yu's eyes; the shortcut to sudden wealth was cut off before it even began.

(End of chapter)