Chapter 193: Cracked

Chen Ziwu opened his eyes, stared blankly at his hands, then saw Pan Yun watching him intently—he had come over right after the ceremony and whispered, "Do you know? I suddenly feel a new sense of responsibility toward heaven and earth, toward all things."

Pan Yun nodded. "I understand."

Meeting his skeptical gaze, she said, "Truly."

Chen Ziwu still doubted, so Pan Yun frowned. "Don't forget—you've only received the talisman; you haven't been granted an official post. But I? I'm the temple attendant sealed by the mountain god."

Chen Ziwu immediately grew respectful, bowing his head. "Elder, I was blind to your greatness."

Pan Yun snorted, then swiftly drew a bundle of talismans. "How about it? You're officially talisman-authorized now—perfect time to make a name for yourself. Want a few more talismans?"

Chen Ziwu was tempted, but his purse hurt more—he gritted his teeth. "I love peace. I hate fighting. Let someone else handle the fame and glory."

"Love peace, huh? I've got talismans for that too—peace talismans, wealth talismans, romance talismans—all very peaceful," Pan Yun said, then noticed his expression and retracted the talismans. "Got it. You're broke."

Chen Ziwu blushed. "That phrase should come from me."

Pan Yun: "Fine. You're poor."

Chen Ziwu: "Has anyone ever told you you're just like your third senior brother?"

"You mean her compassionate heart?"

Chen Ziwu: "No. Your tongue. Just as annoying as ever."

Pan Yun: "You know my third senior brother?"

Chen Ziwu: "I've heard of him!"

Since he wasn't an old acquaintance of hers, Pan Yun ignored him. She glanced around and quickly spotted a Daoist.

He stood out—tall, dignified, especially among a row of thin Daoists: one with a round belly, plump and wealthy, whose Daoist robe gleamed brighter than anyone else's.

Pan Yun pushed through, studied his gait and aura, confirmed his cultivation was below hers, then leaned close and whispered, "Fellow Daoist, buy talismans? Thunder talismans and Speed talismans, crafted by Grand Master First Marquis."

He froze, looked her over, saw her school robes, and his expression softened slightly—but still stern. "Where did you get talismans drawn by Grand Master First Marquis?"

"My senior sister, Xuanmiao, drew them."

He frowned. "Zhang Li? She's recovered? And now she's First Marquis?"

Pan Yun: "Are you buying or not? I only have five total. If you don't, I'll find someone else."

"Wait," the fat man blocked her with his hand, frowning. "I didn't say I wouldn't buy. A merchant must let me see the talismans first."

Pan Yun: "Which talismans do you want to see?"

"All of them."

She pulled out one Thunder talisman and one Speed talisman and showed them to him.

He saw the clear talisman lines, tilted his hand slightly—the lines shimmered in the sunlight. Clearly, the talisman held substantial spiritual power and true qi. Definitely high-grade.

But he couldn't tell if Xuanmiao had drawn it.

Still…

He studied her from head to toe. "You're Zhang Li's little junior sister, the new temple attendant from Mount Sanqing?"

Pan Yun nodded. "You've got good gossip. That's me."

Fat man: "You should call me Senior Uncle. Zhang Li is my niece."

Pan Yun paused, then smiled. "Really? You look incredibly rich and incredibly young—almost the same age as my senior sister."

Fat man: "Nice compliment. Don't give me any more. I'm really about Zhang Li's age—just higher in generation. Didn't she tell you? She used to bully me when she was little…"

Seeing he still held the talismans without paying, Pan Yun snatched them back. "Fine. Don't buy then."

Fat man blinked. "Why are you still calling me 'fellow Daoist'? You should call me Senior Uncle!"

"You don't teach at the academy," Pan Yun said. "You're just a distant uncle of my senior sister. Daoists don't recognize worldly kinship. Everyone is a fellow Daoist."

Seeing her turn to leave,

Fat man hurriedly said, "Wait! I'll buy these talismans."

Pan Yun stopped instantly, smiled, turned back. "Good, fellow Daoist. How many do you want?"

"All five."

Pan Yun swiftly pulled two Thunder talismans and three Speed talismans from her sleeve and handed them over. "Twenty taels each. One hundred taels total."

Fat man pulled out a hundred-tael banknote—brand new, large denomination!

She held it up nervously to the sunlight.

Fat man: "Relax. I deposited it at the bank right after returning from Nanjing. Real money, guaranteed." Pan Yun folded the note and slipped it into her pouch—amid the crowd, she used the motion to slip it into her spiritual realm space. "Forgive me, fellow Daoist. I've never seen the world. First time holding such a fresh banknote."

"It's newly issued, so of course it's fresh," Fat man said. "If you want fresh banknotes, you can take money to the bank and have them issue one on the spot—or exchange old notes for silver, then deposit the silver and get fresh notes."

Pan Yun: "... ho does that? Isn't that too much trouble?"

Fat man: "I've done it."

Pan Yun opened her mouth, then raised her thumb. "Senior Uncle, impressive."

Pan Yun turned to leave. This time, Fat man didn't stop her. He waited until she vanished into the crowd, then strolled slowly toward Zhang Zi and the others.

Zhang Zi and the others bowed to him. "Eleventh Uncle."

Zhang Eleven nodded. "Why didn't your Sixth Uncle come?"

Zhang Zi lowered his eyes. "Sixth Uncle and Sixth Aunt are in seclusion. They couldn't come."

"Why are they always in seclusion? Zhang Li's now selling talismans on the streets—don't they care?"

!. ead

Zhang Zi and the others stayed silent.

Zhang Zifang was annoyed too. He muttered, "So she sells talismans? Who hasn't sold some?"

The Zhang family was wealthy and large, but so were its branches—each household needed income. Everyone here had drawn talismans to sell.

Why was Zhang Li any different?

Zhang Eleven frowned at him. "You? Fine. But Zhang Li is a genius. Her talisman craftsmanship is deep. If her talismans flood the market, is that really good?"

Zhang Zifang asked innocently, "Why not? Talismans are useful, aren't they? And they're from Long Hushan—good for our reputation."

Zhang Eleven sneered at him, too lazy to answer.

Sigh. Stupid nephews are a headache. Especially this eldest nephew—he's older than me, eats more, but dumber.

Pan Yun didn't know the fat man had turned cold after buying. She was now figuring out how to make "Xuanmiao" stop selling talismans.

She moved through the crowd, searching for customers.

She had a sharp eye: either like the fat man—obviously wealthy, even without fortune-telling;

or carrying a sword, radiating killing aura—someone who'd killed men, ghosts, or demons. Such people walked the edge of danger and bought talismans for protection.

Or simply naive, easily swayed into spending money.

The first two types could judge whether her talismans were worth the price—so if they needed them, sales were quick.

Only the third type: they were tempted but feared fraud—no, not fraud, but that the talismans' true qi and spiritual energy weren't as strong as she claimed. So they hesitated.

For these, Miaozhen and Miaohé came in handy. She brought them to the Celestial Master's gate and pointed to them. "If you don't trust me, I'll have them demonstrate the power of these two talismans."

The naive ones nodded eagerly. "Yes! Yes! Let's see!"

Let's see, then.

First, Miaozhen flicked the talisman, formed a hand seal—and a thunderbolt as thick as an arm crashed from the sky, striking the stone slab with a crack. Everyone jumped back, clearing a wide space.

But it wasn't over. Two more bolts struck the ground before the storm ceased. The final bolt was thin, the thunder quieter—but the lightning blazed white, blinding, and when it hit, it shattered the stone into a deep crater.

Except for an old beggar huddled in the corner, no one noticed that as the final bolt struck, a hairline crack appeared on the stone qilin to the left of the Celestial Master's gate—the one closest to the strike.

The beggar, who had been lazily half-asleep against the wall, sunbathing, sat bolt upright. He stared at the qilin, then at the girl proudly showing off her Thunder talisman. He watched silently for a long while, then laughed soundlessly.

He limped over to the qilin, placed his hand on it. No one knew how—he simply erased the crack, hiding it completely.

The naive buyers, awestruck by Miaozhen's demonstration, rushed forward to buy.

Pan Yun pulled out a handful of Thunder talismans. "Limited stock. First come, first served. All identical quality, same price: twenty taels each. Twenty taels each."

"Give me ten!"

Pan Yun stared at the fellow—plain clothes, plain face. She cursed herself inwardly: how could she have missed such a rich customer?

She quickly counted out ten talismans and handed them over. "One hundred and eighty taels!"

Miaohé stopped demonstrating the Speed talismans and helped Pan Yun collect payment.

Amid the frenzy, one naive buyer suddenly realized: "Wait—these talismans you're selling, are they really as powerful as the demonstration?"

Pan Yun glanced at the five talismans in his hand. She thought it was a bit late to ask now—but she wasn't a fraud. "Don't worry, Senior Brother. If you doubt it, draw one now and test it. If it's not as good, I'll refund you."

(End of Chapter)