Hide in the world of gods and demons

Chapter 199 Half a Year
Time flies, and half a year has passed since we settled in Stanley City.

Another cold winter has arrived.

The morning glow was just beginning to appear on the horizon, and the sky was about to brighten but had not yet broken.

Outside, the wind howled and snow fell heavily, but inside Stanley City, a persistent drizzle fell and the air was thick with moisture.

Early risers have already begun their busy day in the dim light of dawn.

An elderly couple walked along the alley from a distance. The man carried a load of goods on his shoulders, while the woman walked beside him holding an umbrella for him. They were wearing slightly worn blue Taoist robes, which indicated that they were low-level rogue cultivators.

The man was about sixty years old, with rough, dark skin covered in wrinkles, a slightly hunched back, and an honest, simple appearance.

The woman was slightly younger, but looked to be around fifty years old. Time had left deep marks on her, and she appeared simple and safe.

"This owner is so extravagant! Good heavens, one day's food is enough for us to live on for several years!" the woman whispered.

"After all, they are Foundation Establishment cultivators, which is beyond our imagination. However, they are very generous, giving fifteen low-grade spirit stones per month. That's thirty for the two of us. Most people don't have that kind of money," the old man said with a smile.

"You can't waste this money. It's for San'er. He spends a lot on pills every month and has been wanting to buy a high-grade magic weapon!"

“I know, I’ve been saving it all up, I haven’t spent it recklessly, and I’ve even given up drinking now. We finally have a potential cultivator, we can’t let him be held back.”

"I wish I could reach the Foundation Establishment stage."

"Sigh, I dare not think about it. If I really reached the Foundation Establishment stage, I could die in peace now."

"Pah, pah, what nonsense are you talking about?"

The two chatted as they traveled, and soon arrived in front of a mansion with the words "Chen Mansion" prominently displayed on a tall plaque.

Bai Wei was already waiting prettily at the door. Seeing the two return, she activated the array to let them in, while saying unhappily:

"Why are you back so late? The whole kitchen is waiting for you. The master is about to finish his cultivation. If you don't get breakfast, he will blame you and kick you out. You can't blame anyone else."

The old man was startled and quickly apologized, "I thought these were lunch and dinner meals. Ordinary people don't eat breakfast. I was just a newcomer and didn't know the rules, so I was a bit lax and delayed for too long. I will definitely not do it again next time. Manager Bai, you are very generous and please forgive me this time."

The woman also looked terrified.

"Alright, I was just reminding you. I'll let it slide this time since you're new here. Just be more careful next time. Now go inside." Bai Wei stopped talking.

"Thank you, thank you!" The old man quickly picked up his load and hurried away.

"Manager Bai is truly beautiful inside and out, with such a great figure. She was born to enjoy a life of luxury," the woman said, bowing her head and taking small, quick steps as she followed behind, offering her compliments.

Bai Wei blushed slightly but ignored it, her expression calming down.

……

Chen Li picked up his pen and concentrated, and the blood-red ink at the tip of the pen gradually began to glow.

next moment.

He paints as soon as he puts pen to paper, his brushstrokes flowing like dragons and snakes.

One after another.

With each stroke of the brush, spiritual energy and mental focus were continuously drawn from his body, yet his body remained completely still, and his hands were as steady as cast iron, utterly unaffected.

Eight consecutive images.

Not a single one failed.

Chen Li gently exhaled a breath of stale air.
Now his proficiency with the Water Element Talisman has reached the master level, with a success rate of over 90% and very few mistakes.

He took a Rejuvenation Pill and felt the spiritual energy in his body slowly recover. He gradually regained his strength and looked at the newly drawn talismans on the table.

Compared to the "calm and peaceful" effect of the first-tier, level-nine golden amulet, the second-tier, level-four water elemental talisman was undoubtedly much more miraculous when it was first drawn.

These talismans emitted a soft, watery blue light. Although not dazzling, they contained immense energy. They flashed and faded like breathing, and after several repetitions, this immense energy gradually subsided and was finally contained within them.

After the ink on them dried naturally, Chen Li placed the eight new talismans, which were still warm, on top of a thick stack of talismans.

These talismans, lined up in a row, had already accumulated into five stacks.

'Including these eight, that makes exactly five hundred. Tomorrow I'll go to a talisman shop and sell this pile of talismans,' Chen Li thought to himself. He already knew the price of Water Element Talismans here perfectly well.

It's a bit cheaper than Luanluo City.

In Luanluo City, it costs six mid-grade spirit stones per item, while here it costs five.

Of course, this is the selling price of the store. If he chooses to sell to a shop, Chen Li estimates that he can only get four.

Even so, it was still a considerable sum of money, enough to cover his expenses for half a year.

'Alas, it's a pity that the illusory body can't draw talismans! Otherwise, a thousand high-grade spirit stones every year would be nothing!' Chen Li thought to himself, feeling regretful.

Perhaps drawing talismans requires mental concentration and a high degree of mental focus, which cannot be done by using an illusory body.

Otherwise, how many Water Element Talismans could a Foundation Establishment Level 6 illusory body draw?

This isn't an illusion; it's a complete money-printing machine.

Chen Li fantasized for a while, then washed the talisman brush, sealed the blood ink, tidied up the talisman-making room, and went out.

The talisman-making room served as his workshop, and it was filled with all sorts of odds and ends. He never let anyone touch it, and he even took care of the cleaning himself.

Outside, the air was misty and damp.

The air was filled with a musty smell.

"This damn weather!" Chen Li cursed.

If I had to pick the season I dislike the most, it would be this one.

He felt that winter here was the perfect time to experience it.

I almost froze to death at Green River Square.

Later, they moved to the City of Cultivation.

With the city's protective array in place, it's no longer freezing, but it still feels damp all day long.

Thanks to the city's protective array's ability to maintain a spring-like climate year-round, every winter when it snows heavily outside, it drizzles inside. Even on sunny days, the city is shrouded in mist when the cold and warm air from above come into contact.

Sometimes, even at noon, the city is still damp.

It was almost completely dry throughout the entire winter.

If it weren't for the cleaning technique, he felt like mold would grow all over his body.

Chen Li saw Bai Wei and waved.

Bai Wei hurried over: "Master, what are your orders?"

"Are the two new recruits behaving themselves?" Chen Li asked.

Including Bai Wei, there were originally three maids in the entire mansion, but they were all ordinary people. They were good at doing chores and serving people, but they were not good at things like going out to buy supplies.

Firstly, they were all young girls who had never done these things before.

Secondly, this is, after all, a city of cultivation, frequented by ruthless cultivators, where mortals face many dangers.

In fact, not to mention mortals, even cultivators are not very safe.

If he wanted, he could kill any low-level rogue cultivator without anyone noticing.

What restrained him from doing so was not the law, but the morality in his heart. He believed that the moral bottom line of most cultivators in this world was lower than his, much lower. This was an extremely dangerous world, and a slight carelessness could lead to a violent death.

"Reporting to Master, I have already checked the purchase ledgers and found no errors. However, today is only the first day, so it doesn't mean anything. I will keep a close eye on things," Bai Wei said earnestly.

Chen Li smiled and said, "As long as it's roughly the same, that's fine."

"Yes, sir!"

P.S.: Sorry for the lateness. I kept flipping through the previous pages while writing, and it was so frustrating.