After eating and drinking their fill, Jiang Yi still wanted to tidy up, but Old Li’s wife and Widow Qin stopped him and sent him back.
The two of them cleaned everything up briskly, allowing no one else to interfere.
The rice wine tasted sweet, but its aftereffects were strong; one gust of wind and a man would topple.
He Laohun and Old Li had drunk to their hearts’ content. Now both were already dizzy, hugging wine jars, nearly about to slide under the table.
“Brother Yi, pour me a few more bowls…”
“Come, come, Brother He, let’s drain them together!”
“A little horse piss and you can’t tell east from west!”
Old Li’s wife grabbed him by the ear and dragged him back into the house.
As for He Laohun, Jiang Yi supported him over and tossed him onto the plank bed.
Once everyone was settled, the communal courtyard instantly fell quiet.
Widow Qin brought out a jar of honey from inside, scooped out a spoonful, mixed it with clear water, and handed it to Jiang Yi.
“Brother Yi, drink a cup of honey water to sober up a bit. Tomorrow morning, you still have to get back to work.”
Jiang Yi thanked her and accepted it with both hands. At least the original owner had finally done one good deed, forming this bit of goodwill.
In the communal courtyard, He Laohun seemed close to him, but their friendship was not all that deep.
On the contrary, Widow Qin had looked after him quite a bit, openly and in secret. She was the one most willing to help.
She said softly,
“The end of the month is almost here. Every workshop is bound to rush its tasks again. It’s a good thing you broke through to the second level of Qi Refining, Brother Yi. If you were still at the first level, I’m afraid you’d have a hard time enduring it.”
Among the workshops of the four outer peaks, the hardest time to get through was the end of the month.
At the slightest shortfall in “production progress,” the menial servants would have to take turns working overtime.
If they ran into a kind-hearted duty overseer like Yang Xun, he would even subsidize them with some talisman coins. If their luck was poor and they ended up under Zhou Bapi of Sewing Peak, they would have to buy their own medicine even if they worked themselves into coughing blood.
After Jiang Yi finished the honey water, the strength of the wine did indeed subside.
“Sister-in-law Qin, you should also take care of your health. I remember your twelve-year term is almost up. The bitter days are nearly over.”
Widow Qin sighed faintly.
“Once I leave Qianji Sect and come down from Crimson Flame Peak, it only means I won’t be driven to work every day. Life will still be hard. There isn’t much difference.”
Jiang Yi comforted her,
“There are many markets around Beimang Ridge. Sister-in-law, you’re at the third level of Qi Refining, and you also know the craft of grinding, engraving, and forging. It shouldn’t be hard to find work at some trading house or shop. In any case, it’s better than being driven like cattle and horses day after day.”
Widow Qin chuckled softly. Years of hardship had added a few wrinkles to the corners of her eyes, but one could still tell she had been an outstanding beauty in her youth.
“Brother Yi, you have a good heart. It’s a pity you ended up in the demonic path. In the future, don’t spend any more money on that Miss Luo. Cultivate properly. In our courtyard, you’re the most diligent, and also the one with the best chance of reaching the fifth level of Qi Refining.”
Jiang Yi cupped his fists and smiled.
“Then I’ll borrow Sister-in-law Qin’s auspicious words. The day I reach the fifth level of Qi Refining, I’ll definitely present you with a generous gift, to make good on this blessing of yours.”
Widow Qin stared blankly at Jiang Yi. Her gaze seemed dazed as she said in a soft voice,
“Don’t call me sister-in-law from now on. I once had a younger brother, about your age, and just as good-looking as you. If you don’t mind, call me ‘elder sister.’”
Jiang Yi readily went along with it, more than happy to deepen this connection.
“Sure thing, Sister Qin.”
The corners of Widow Qin’s eyes relaxed, a faint charm showing through.
“I’ve soaked that bear gall in sorghum liquor for you. Have a few sips every day. It can nourish your qi and blood, and clear heat toxin.”
Jiang Yi thanked her again. Seeing that the night was deep, he took his leave of Widow Qin and slipped back into his room.
Once the door closed, the howling north wind was shut outside.
Today’s spirit rice porridge and spirit fish soup could be considered somewhat nourishing to the body.
Jiang Yi sat properly on the bed, crossed his legs, and meditated, breathing in and out as he practiced.
His true qi completed twenty circuits, finishing two full great heavenly cycles, and only when he felt his whole body brimming did he stop.
After breaking through to the second level of Qi Refining, every time he circulated his cultivation, wisps of heat seeped out from between his bones, causing his qi and blood to surge and his vitality to flourish.
This was the benefit of transforming sinews and bones. As long as he consolidated it steadily, his strength would continue to increase.
It was said that one’s original strength of a thousand jin could be multiplied several times over.
“To step into the fifth level, I must make each thread and wisp of true qi sink like lead and mercury. When exhaled in one breath, it must hover without falling; only then can it be considered complete. Otherwise, I won’t be able to break open the Origin Gate or establish the Inner Mansion.”
Jiang Yi deeply felt that the effects of the gradeless Orthodox Meridian Qi Circulation Art were far too poor.
If he cultivated at this pace, when would he ever break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining?
He suppressed his stray thoughts. Golden light surfaced in his eyes, and the Heavenly Book manifested.
An hour had long since passed.
The result appeared on the golden page.
[Example One: In the communal courtyard, He Laohun of the eastern room has accumulated thirty-nine thousand talisman coins, hidden in the interlayer of that tattered cotton quilt.]
[Example Two: In the communal courtyard, the couple Li Gensheng of the southern room have accumulated a total of fifteen thousand talisman coins, wrapped in kraft paper and pressed beneath the water vat in the corner of the kitchen.]
[Example Three: In the communal courtyard, Qin Ru of the western room has saved up fifty thousand talisman coins…]
Jiang Yi fell silent. So all the opportunities for “seeking wealth” had landed on his neighbors in the courtyard.
Was one supposed to start scheming for money with acquaintances first?
He shook his head and pretended he had not seen these examples, afraid that looking at them a few more times would shake his resolve.
Added together, they came to just over a hundred thousand talisman coins—enough for him to purchase a ninth-grade Qi Refining cultivation method.
“And you call yourself a demonic cultivator! Jiang Yi, oh Jiang Yi, you really are unworthy of being a demonic cultivator!”
Jiang Yi mocked himself, skipped the three entries above, and made another selection.
After a dozen breaths, his eyelids lowered.
“Menial servants really do love hiding talisman coins everywhere. Sewn into loincloths, buried under big trees… all waiting to be taken out when their twelve-year terms are up.”
Jiang Yi found himself in a difficult spot. He himself was a menial servant; how could he not know how hard talisman coins were to earn?
Stealing the hard-earned blood-and-sweat money that these oxen and horses had painstakingly saved was no different from murdering several living, breathing lives.
Even if he used “I am a demonic cultivator” to dress it up, he still could not get past the barrier in his heart.
“The old leader was right after all. If a person isn’t ruthless, he can’t stand firm; if the heart isn’t ruthless, there are no windfalls.
“As for me, I truly don’t count as a good demonic cultivator.”
Jiang Yi pondered for a moment, then fiercely gulped down a few mouthfuls of bear gall liquor. Its spicy, potent strength rushed down his throat, slowly propping up the courage in his chest.
With a flicker of thought, he erased this query.
“It’s not as if I’m so poor I’m starving to death. Why create karma for no reason?”
Jiang Yi focused his mind and watched the writing on the golden page of the Heavenly Book dissipate.
The radiant light was nearing silence. Today, he had one last chance to make a request.
He changed the phrasing and asked again.
[I beseech the Heavenly Book to show me ownerless wealth.]
[Additional condition: preferably the hidden money and valuables of disciples or menial servants of Qianji Sect who have died in recent years and whose stashes have yet to be discovered.]
Jiang Yi’s mind turned quickly. Stealing from the living was somewhat unconscionable and hard to accept.
But taking money from the dead did not count for much.
He would just consider it an “investment” in him.
After all, among the several hundred menial servants on the outer peaks, what was least lacking were cases where the person was gone, but the money had not been spent.
There was a chance!
Jiang Yi saw the golden page of the Heavenly Book flicker several times. It actually gave the result directly.
“Does cause and effect vanish when a person dies? Is that why it was so quick?”
He secretly guessed.
[Matter investigated: Ownerless wealth]
[Deduction time: one breath]
[Example One: Zhao Shuan, a menial servant of Soul-Nourishing Peak, was used to fill a medicinal field five days ago. He buried eight thousand talisman coins by the old locust tree at the foot of the mountain.]
[Example Two: Song Haoyang, a menial servant of Sewing Peak, mistakenly entered Heart-Seizing Forest two days ago. He hid five thousand talisman coins in the fish pond.]
[Example Three: Yang Zhi, son of Yang Xun, duty overseer of Crimson Flame Peak, perished in the Hundred Beasts Cave half a year ago. He left a copy of the Minor Origin-Tempering Fire-Control Art in the villa at the foot of the mountain.]
[Example Four: Herb-Gathering Peak…]
After reading it.
There were four “karmic connections” in total, amounting to twenty-four thousand talisman coins altogether.
Jiang Yi let out a long breath. Now his purse was full enough. Spirit rice and spirit fish at every meal would be no problem, and he could also make plans to enter the inner sect while he was at it.
“I should be able to sleep soundly and peacefully tonight.”
Even though the plank bed beneath him was only padded with a layer of dry grass and bedding, Jiang Yi felt more comfortable than ever before.
However, as his thoughts turned, he pondered again,
“The losses among Qianji Sect’s menial servants are indeed not small. Used to fill medicinal fields, mistakenly entering Heart-Seizing Forest, even a duty overseer’s son died in the Hundred Beasts Cave… I must charge up to the fifth level of Qi Refining as soon as possible. Only then can I protect myself.”