Chapter 149 - 138 Stealing the Heavenly Mechanism

Chapter 149: Chapter 138 Stealing the Heavenly Mechanism"Why me, huh?" Zhou Xuan was still hoping to see Yun Ziliang show off his skills, but he was suddenly called out. "Because you can see the Blood Well, and the Blood Well knows the Teeth Cultivation Technique." "Uh..." Zhou Xuan thought that the Blood Well Divination was indeed mysterious, but did it include the Teeth Cultivation Technique? "Did you forget that sixty-four years ago on the Laba Night, the Blood Well devoured many Great Divine People and Great Yin People?" Yun Ziliang stroked his beard, sipping the tea aroma, and said, "Why can’t the Liao Ghost cultivate teeth? Because the Great Yin People who knew the Teeth Cultivation Technique in their Tangkou were swallowed by the Blood Well. And in recent years, they haven’t been closely connected with the Alien Ghost behind their Tangkou. The Alien Ghost isn’t willing to teach them the method, so without the Alien Ghost and without the Great Yin People, the Teeth Cultivation Technique naturally became lost." "So, the Blood Well is actually a treasure trove of knowledge?" "Why did so many people want to open the Blood Well Map? Wasn’t it for the various lost legacies and flowing treasures inside?" Yun Ziliang had deep knowledge of the Blood Well, saying, "Visualize the Blood Well and ask. I estimate that the cost to obtain the Teeth Cultivation Technique won’t be too high; it won’t require high-level sacrifices." "Then I really should ask." Zhou Xuan thought that the tusk gift from Lin Xia was too heavy. He felt he had to reciprocate, but using the Teeth Cultivation Technique as a return gift was equally too much. The whole Liao Ghost Tangkou lost its cutting edge because they didn’t have the Teeth Cultivation Technique, with the ghosts being above Liao Ghosts. With this method, the Liao Ghost Tangkou’s strength would rise a notch. "The Teeth Cultivation Technique can’t simply serve as a return gift. It must also be negotiated for a price, but I want the price to be lower." *Zhou Xuan pondered, and suddenly, the shop door was pushed open; it was Lao Yang, the big landlord from East Market Street, coming in.* "Brother Zhou, you’ve gone too far." "What did I do?" *Zhou Xuan was suddenly accused by Lao Yang and was at a loss.* "You dug up my shop, the Old Painting Pavilion." Lao Yang, puffed up with anger, pulled out a chair, sat down, and crossed his arms, much like an aggrieved wife. "Oh, you’re talking about that dirt pit at the Old Painting Pavilion." "That guy Yun Ziliang called in the laborers early in the morning to move dirt. Luckily, I found out. If I had been a bit later, wouldn’t you have dug a two-story building downstairs from my shop?" Lao Yang insisted that Zhou Xuan give him an explanation. "Lao Yang, I bought that house from you," Zhou Xuan said directly. "Once I bought it, the house was mine. I can dig however I want, right?" "Buy... on what..." Lao Yang’s eyes were suddenly covered with a layer of golden light. He originally wanted to scold Zhou Xuan loudly, but those gold bars were just too dazzling, blinding his eyes. The gold bars were gifts from Lin Xia and Feng Xigui, a small box of them. The two of them, one being the most famous broker in Ping Shui Prefecture and the other the Second Master of the Liao Ghost Tangkou, who was also her brother, were people of high status, naturally generous in their gifts. "What’s the price for your shop?" Zhou Xuan asked Lao Yang. "I... I’m a bit muddled... Is your purification business this profitable? Can I buy some shares?" "Stop with the nonsense, what’s the shop’s price?" Zhou Xuan asked again. In the Old Painting Pavilion, there was the Mother Palace Stone Plate, and since he also planned on raising zombies, buying it was less troublesome. He genuinely wanted to buy, but Lao Yang didn’t genuinely want to sell. He considered all his properties as little golden hens that could lay eggs, rarely doing anything rash like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, unless Zhou Xuan offered him too much. "Twenty percent above the market price," Zhou Xuan raised two fingers. "Twenty percent, huh? Then I’d have to think about it..." Lao Yang picked up a small gold bar, playing with it in his hand. He had just flipped the gold bar, and immediately put it down, staring at Zhou Xuan, saying, "I’ve thought it over. I always felt that we had a connection. Raising the price would hurt our feelings. Didn’t we say last time that we would be friends? What kind of friend scams another friend?!" "Ten percent below the market price. If you agree, let’s sign the papers." "Then let’s sign." Zhou Xuan was pleasantly surprised; with money about to enter someone else’s pocket, it was better to lock it in with a signature. Not signing would be foolish. With the price negotiated and the papers signed, Zhou Xuan didn’t have cash, so Lao Yang took four gold bars and said, "These gold bars aren’t market-regulated and can’t directly be used as currency. I’ll go to the gold shop for an appraisal. If it’s more, I’ll refund you cash. If it’s less, I’ll come back to you for the difference." "That’s fine, that’s fine. I trust Boss Yang’s character," Zhou Xuan said courteously. "See you, Brother Zhou." Lao Yang left, delighted. Lv Mingkun looked at the papers and said, "How come this Lao Yang was so agreeable today?" *Zhou Xuan, holding a gold bar and looking out the door, said,* "There’s no free lunch. Lao Yang might know Feng Xigui. He deals in cotton, so maybe Feng Xigui helped to connect us." In the corner on the back of the gold bar, there were tiny engraved words—Ping Shui Prefecture Feng Xigui. ... In a classical-style mansion on Kong Street in Mingjiang Prefecture, the courtyard was extremely large. Liu Qingguang stood in front of a door, waiting for the call from the person inside. Inside, people came and went, wearing either neatly decorated silk long gowns or expensive suits, with faces showing an air of arrogance. *Liu Qingguang felt anxious, getting more and more impatient as he waited. Finally, just as his nerves were causing him to pace in circles, a butler-like person waved at him,* "Master Liu, the master is calling you in." "Housekeeper Bai, how is the master’s mood now?" "Not good, not bad. Don’t worry, Master Liu, you’ve been with the Si Mansion long enough. You won’t be treated like a reckless newcomer who gets strict family discipline at the drop of a hat." Bai’s comforting words eased Liu Qingguang a bit before he lightly patted him on the back and said, "Go ahead, don’t be afraid." Liu Qingguang then cautiously headed inside. The room’s decor was rich with an ancient atmosphere, adorned with elements like scholarly calligraphy and paintings, antique porcelain vases, and pearwood furniture, but on the wall in the front hall hung a plaque with upright writing, piercing through the soft ancient charm with a long knife, adding a sense of menace. The plaque bore only three words—"Steal Heavenly Mechanism." Si Ming sat formally under the plaque. In Liu Qingguang’s impression, the master had always been like this—sitting upright and rigid whenever he sat. Even now, despite his age, he never slouched. "Qingguang, you’re here?" Si Ming greeted Liu Qingguang but did not offer him a seat. "Master." "You’ve put me in a difficult position lately. It’s not really a big deal, but it severely affects morale. The disciples in the Tangkou are all saying that you, Liu Qingguang, are a coward." What Si Ming referred to was Liu Qingguang’s experience from a few days ago. Liu Qingguang heard that something had happened to two Tangkou disciples at the Penglai Inn on East Market Street and went by carriage to check it out. It turned out that as soon as he reached the entrance of the Penglai Inn, he hadn’t even gotten out of the car when his eyes fell on a tattoo of a Spiritual Snake. Terrified, he fled, ordering the driver to escape. This sort of thing could be seen as minor or major. On a minor scale, it was natural to avoid going into a "firework" area in the inn carelessly. On a major scale, what if the two disciples inside weren’t dead? His escape would mean not valuing their lives at all! "How long have you been the Lantern Master?" Si Ming asked Liu Qingguang. "Over twenty years." "A Lantern Master specifically guides disciples on techniques and skills daily. Every disciple in our Tangkou, regardless of innate talent, goes through your training in the early stages! You’re essentially their master into this world, mixing with the Tangkou where the master is like half a father. You watched two ’sons’ die in the Penglai Inn and ran away yourself; this is unacceptable..." "Master, it’s not that I didn’t save them. It’s just that in the inn... in the inn... there was a Tattoo Evil Ghost. I saw its Spiritual Snake tattoo." "The Tattoo Evil Ghost has appeared in Mingjiang Prefecture too?" Si Ming nodded and said, "Everyone’s afraid of the Tattoo Evil Ghost, so it’s normal for you to fear it. But you did flee, and if I don’t leave you with some memento, the disciples might say I’m not being fair. Indeed, how can water be perfectly balanced? But one must at least put on a show of it..." He pulled out a golden pen from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and gently stabbed it into Liu Qingguang’s thigh, then pressed the pen’s end with his palm, pushing it deeper until the pen’s body was fully inserted. Si Ming returned the pen cap to the table and said to Liu Qingguang, whose forehead was covered in large beads of sweat, "Go to the hospital. If you get there in time, you might save your leg." "Thank you for your generosity, master." Liu Qingguang, drenched in cold sweat, limped out of the room, his gratitude genuine. As a Divine Stealer, he relied on his hands and eyes to make a living, especially his gourd eye. As long as those areas were unharmed, his skills remained intact, and he still had his livelihood. After Liu Qingguang left the house, Si Ming gazed out the window. "There’s a Tattoo Evil Ghost on East Market Street. If I could find him, maybe my daughter’s Blood Well affliction might be cured." Tattoos could counteract the Blood Well. This was one of the few insights Si Ming had gained over four years of inquiries into the Blood Well affliction. ... Teeth cultivation varied due to its different uses and styles between various Tangkou. The Bone Teeth in Zhou Xuan’s possession was relatively easy to cultivate. He went to the Old Painting Pavilion, spilled blood on the stone plate, and sat on a mat next to the Blood Tree of the Mother Palace. The Blood Tree was still in a withered state, but as soon as Zhou Xuan took out the Bone Teeth, one of the tree branches revived, like a tentacle, reaching towards Zhou Xuan. Then, the branch stood upright and emitted a strange gray mist that enveloped the Bone Teeth. The texture of the Bone Teeth began to change. Zhou Xuan felt as if he held not Bone Teeth but a bar of soap, light as a feather, with a somewhat soft surface, When the tip of the branch started engraving runes on the Bone Teeth, all the symbols were incomprehensible to Zhou Xuan. The "Tree" was teaching Zhou Xuan how to cultivate his Bone Teeth. After the Bone Teeth was successfully cultivated, it grew heavier, and Zhou Xuan merely touched the tip, causing his finger to bleed, the blood seeming to be drawn naturally by some strange force, flowing onto the Bone Teeth... He had successfully cultivated his teeth, but for the Liao Ghosts, there was no one to teach them. He had to inquire at the Blood Well. Zhou Xuan left the Mother Palace World and returned to the Old Painting Pavilion, where the energy was so overwhelming that Zhou Xuan felt as though the room was filled with ice. "I should’ve brought an extra layer of clothing." Zhou Xuan endured the chilling sensation and sat in a chair, beginning to meditate on the Blood Well. The eyes on the Blood Well Temple Wall, having tasted the offering before, expected Zhou Xuan to make another offering, each eye filled with eager anticipation. Zhou Xuan, however, directly conjured a thought in his mind, "How to cultivate the tusks of Liao Ghosts." This time, snow fell once more in the Blood Well sky, and soon after, the ground displayed a single word—four! Again with the need for sacrifices?! *Indeed, the essence of how the world operated was a trade of interests.* The Blood Well had evidently become a merchant. However, the four incense sacrifices weren’t as hard to come by as last time. In just a few days, the Liao Ghosts and kidnappers were bound to have a fierce fight over "Lao He." At that time, at least a few Ghosts would meet the criteria for the four incense.