Chapter 22

Gu’s Grocery Store.

Following the tradition of "marrying a rooster, following the rooster; marrying a dog, following the dog," Ji Yan was now part of the Gu family. Thus, the shop’s name was simple: Gu’s Grocery.

The two arrived at the store.

"Thirteenth Uncle, Master Ji," Gu Xingye greeted them hurriedly.

Gu Changqing smiled. "We brought you some food."

He handed over a food container. Gu Xingye took it, opened it, and asked, "What kind of soup is this?"

Gu Changqing rolled his eyes. He wondered why the boy always loved asking that question. "Demon beast meat soup. It won't kill you. Go ahead and share it with everyone; I’ll watch the shop."

"You got it!" Gu Xingye replied loudly, carrying the container to the backyard. As for the "demon beast meat," he didn't take it seriously; he knew Thirteenth Uncle was just joking.

Ji Yan didn't take it to heart either, as everyone knew demon meat was inedible. Seeing a customer walk in, he diligently took on the role of shopkeeper. "What would you like to buy, guest?"

Gu Changqing was quite skilled at steering the conversation away from sensitive topics, effectively distracting Ji Yan from asking what kind of meat was in the soup.

"Two first-rank evil-warding talismans."

"Ten spirit stones."

Seeing Ji Yan busy, Gu Changqing simply headed to the backyard to draw talismans. The shop’s business was largely self-sufficient. The Gu family descendants each possessed a specialty: Xingdao could draw talismans, Xinglan could refine pills, Xingye was a spiritual planter, and even Gu Changling had some skill in artifact refinement. Though their levels were not high, together they kept the shop running. Gu Changqing would occasionally come by to draw talismans or craft a few formation disks for sale.

"Thirteenth Uncle, what kind of spirit beast meat is this?" Gu Xingye was both surprised and delighted. He clearly felt a tingling sensation in his body, as if stimulated by electricity, and noticed his physique was strengthening.

"Seventh Brother, slow down, leave some for me!"

Discovering the benefits of the soup, the young ones started scrambling for it, filling the courtyard with laughter. Gu Changling ate a small bowl and teased that the cooking was poor, yet despite the poor technique, the soup's effect was undeniable—even he could feel his physical strength increasing.

Gu Changqing smiled, thinking he might try using demon meat that could strengthen the spirit sense next time.

"Changqing, there’s no need to spend so much money in the future," Gu Changling advised, concerned about his spending after finishing his meal.

"It’s fine. As long as you all like it. There’s plenty of meat left at home; I’ll bring some more tomorrow."

"Thirteenth Uncle," Gu Xingye called out, "just bring the raw meat tomorrow."

"You child," Gu Changling swatted him.

Gu Changqing: "..." He knew his cooking was bad, but they didn't have to say it out loud. He nodded. "Fine." That saved him the trouble anyway.

At the doorway, Ji Yan muffled a laugh, having just finished helping a customer, only to hear Gu Changqing being ridiculed again.

"Do you know that your Thirteenth Uncle cooked that himself today?"

Gu Xingye: "..." His eyes darted around, and he quickly looked elsewhere.

Gu Changling said earnestly, "Changqing, don't waste the meat in the future."

Xinglan raised a weak hand. "Thirteenth Uncle, my cooking is actually quite good."

Gu Changqing: "..." Fine, he wouldn't cook anymore. It was just an experiment anyway to see if the demon meat was edible.

"Oh no, I forgot to save a bowl for Third Great-Uncle," Xinglan lamented.

Gu Xingye waved his hand. "It doesn't matter. The soup doesn't have much effect on Grandfather; he’d just be tasting it, and this taste..."

Gu Xingye’s expression stiffened, and he fell silent, belatedly realizing that Thirteenth Uncle’s expression was rather sour.

"Haha," Gu Changling laughed, teasing, "Changqing, your skill really is lacking."

Gu Changqing couldn't be bothered to argue with them. Feeling no guilt about them being his test subjects, he turned, went back to his room, and locked the door to draw talismans.

The business for purification talismans had been good recently. The Lingxu Sect had issued demon-extermination missions, but the demons were like weeds—cut one batch, and another grew. With more demons came more foul energy; while thin traces could be purged by the blood energy of late-stage Qi Refining cultivators, it was a deadly issue for those in the early stages. Thus, stocking up on evil-warding and purification talismans was essential. Especially for those living outside the city, who risked ambush at night; without these talismans, they couldn't sleep soundly.

...

After two hours of work, Gu Changqing left a stack of talismans and prepared to leave.

"Where are you going?" Ji Yan asked, his calm tone sounding much like a wife questioning her husband.

Gu Changqing felt a bit strange, but the feeling came and went quickly. "I'm going outside the city to take a look and hire some spiritual planters."

Ji Yan nodded. "Alright, go ahead. By the way, about Third Great-Uncle..." He hesitated. "He seems to have something on his mind. Does he need my help?"

Gu Changqing was slightly surprised. "You noticed?"

Ji Yan rolled his eyes. "I’m not blind."

Third Great-Uncle left early and returned late every day, sighing constantly, yet he put on a forced smile in front of them. It was obvious something was wrong.

Gu Changqing said, "Don't worry about him. He's just running around in circles."

"Hmph." Ji Yan snorted.

Gu Changqing vaguely felt that Ji Yan was a little unhappy. He pondered for a moment and then smiled. "I know your intentions, but Third Great-Uncle is truly just running around pointlessly. He wants to buy spiritual medicine but doesn't want to make it public, so he's been skulking around asking for information, but..." Most of the people he met were scammers who wanted to lure him out of the city to rob him. After all, he was acting so suspiciously that others thought he was a target for a double-cross.

Ji Yan’s cheeks turned red. *Bah!* Who said he knew his intentions? He just... Third Great-Uncle was good to him, and he just wanted to return the favor.

"Are you sure you don't need me to help inquire?"

Gu Changqing shook his head. "Let Third Great-Uncle handle his own affairs. Don't worry, if I need your help, I won't be polite."

Ji Yan smiled then, waving his hand to shoo him away. "Go do your work. Come back early; don't just disappear again."

Gu Changqing rubbed his nose. He wasn't that bad—the previous two times were accidents. Accidents!

...

Northern Spirit City.

Arriving at the city gates again, Gu Changqing noticed there were even more rogue cultivators gathered. In the remote areas in the distance, some had even set up tents. As long as they didn't block the roads or interfere with the lives of the city dwellers, the enforcement team generally didn't care.

He hadn't looked closely when he came at night, but today he noticed a task exchange point had been added at the gates, along with a team dedicated to burning demon corpses. Most were low-level rogue cultivators below the third layer of Qi Refining who couldn't kill demons, so they took on the task of burning the remains.

Beyond that, another area was packed with low-level rogue cultivators.

A man who looked like an overseer stood on a platform, arrogant and cold. "The Yang family is hiring spiritual planters. Those interested, come for an assessment."

"Me, me! I'm a low-level spiritual planter. I know the Cloud and Rain Spell, Gold Needle Spell, and Soil Turning Spell."

"Accepted. Next."

"I'm a mid-level spiritual planter, eighth layer of Qi Refining. I can cultivate thirty mu of spirit fields."

"Accepted!"

Many rogue cultivators crowded forward, fighting tooth and nail for a spot. Even though the Yang family took a high commission—leaving a cultivator with only five spirit stones after a year of work on one mu of land—it was still a decent way to earn money for many. At least they didn't have to pay for accommodation, and the more land they farmed, the more they earned.

"That's enough. We only need one hundred people this time."

The overseer left with the successful applicants. Those who were rejected looked dejected.

Gu Changqing observed carefully; most of the late-stage Qi Refining spiritual planters had been picked. Those remaining were either unskilled or had too low a cultivation level. This suited him perfectly. If their cultivation were too high, they would be hard to manage. After all, it was just farming—it didn't matter who did it.

"Xiwu Mountain is hiring spiritual planters," Gu Changqing announced, walking over.

A group of low-level rogue cultivators swarmed over, though some retreated; they had never heard of Xiwu Mountain. Rogue cultivators with any ability, even if they hadn't found work, would pick their employers carefully. Large families like the Yangs were the ones they aspired to join. Finding an employer was like finding a backer; only with a strong backer could they feel secure.

Gu Changqing didn't mind. He quickly picked thirty people.

"Junior Brother Gu!"

He heard a call from afar.

"Senior Brother Zhang," Gu Changqing smiled and walked up. "Long time no see! You look as dashing as ever!"

"Sigh, don't mention it. I've been busy to death lately." Zhang Yuan complained, then looked at the spiritual planters behind him. "You're looking for people for Xiwu Mountain?"

"Yes!" Gu Changqing sighed helplessly. "Most of my previous spiritual planters ran off. The spirit fields are left uncultivated."

"Why not look for better ones?" Zhang Yuan asked with slight disdain. None of the people in front of him were above the fifth layer of Qi Refining.

Gu Changqing smiled. "It's fine. My place is small anyway; since their cultivation isn't high, it's easier for me to manage them."

"Junior Brother Gu, you're being too humble." If a second-rank spirit vein wasn't considered big, some small Foundation Establishment families would have to go hit their heads against a wall.

Gu Changqing smiled without a word, noticing that those who hadn't been picked for the Yang family were starting to regret it. If they had known he was from the Lingxu Sect and had good relations with the Enforcement Hall, they should have fought harder. It was too late for regrets now.

The thirty people who were hired looked delighted, their previous anxiety gone. Zhang Yuan’s uniform provided a good sense of deterrence.

Gu Changqing said, "By the way, Senior Brother, why are there more and more rogue cultivators outside the city?"

"Sigh, it's because of the demons," Zhang Yuan sighed. "Nobody knows where they popped up from. They attacked a few small families a few days ago, causing panic. The rogue cultivators don't dare stay outside, so they have to come here for protection, don't they?"

Gu Changqing asked, "How are those families doing?"

Zhang Yuan shook his head. "Tragic. Very few escaped."

"How is that possible?" Gu Changqing was surprised. They were just low-level demons; how could they wipe out entire families?

Zhang Yuan was helpless. "There are so many of them. The families attacked were all small Qi Refining clans with only dozens of people. How could they resist a swarm of snakes, insects, rats, and ants?"

Gu Changqing’s expression turned grim. Such swarming creatures were the hardest to deal with. Even ants could kill an elephant, let alone a group of bloodthirsty demons.

"Has the cause been investigated? Why are the demons appearing?"

Zhang Yuan shook his head. "It's as if they just appeared out of thin air. However..." He paused and transmitted his voice: "I heard that the world is undergoing a transformation. Not only has foul energy appeared, but the spiritual energy has become denser. Perhaps the demons were demonized by the influence of the foul energy."

Gu Changqing was stunned. A transformation of the world?

"Don't go around saying this, or it will cause chaos. Besides, these are just guesses; they might not be true."