Gentlemen, it's time to enter the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.

Chapter 12 The Art of Social Interaction
Chen Ye was extremely unwilling to have any entanglement with the Qinghe Sword Sect.

In his heart, cultivation was the most important thing. He came to Cui County this time to refine blood pills in order to make rapid progress on the path of cultivation.

He had gone to great lengths to stage that elaborate show in order to make a name for himself and gain entry into the sights of those wealthy merchants, so that he could use their influence to gather the livestock he needed for his cultivation.

However, such an operation was rather time-consuming and laborious. Now, by chance, he had met this Miss Su, and it seemed possible to build a relationship with her. Chen Ye then had a bold idea: to take a shortcut.

Although the side effects of the Blood Refining Method have been eliminated, the Qi Condensation Pill is still more convenient. Just one pill can save him a lot of effort and make his cultivation path much smoother.

Su Chunyi pondered for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't have any Qi Condensation Pills."

Chen Ye was slightly disappointed. It seemed that there was no easy shortcut on the path of cultivation.

However, Su Chunyi changed the subject and said, "However, I have materials for refining Qi Condensation Pills. If you can answer my question, I am willing to exchange them for this."

Chen Ye's eyes lit up, and without thinking, he agreed: "Deal."

Chen Ye knew how to refine Qi Condensation Pills, but the incredibly precious Xuanji Dew was extremely difficult to find. Now, if he could obtain the Xuanji Dew from Su Chunyi, cultivating his dantian and qi sea would be just around the corner.

Su Chun readily took out several exquisite jade bottles and placed them in front of Chen Ye. These were all the materials needed to refine the Qi Condensation Pill. Chen Ye examined them carefully and found that these materials were of the highest quality, far better than he had originally estimated.

As expected of the Qinghe Sword Sect, they are indeed very wealthy! Moreover, Su Chunyi took out the items so directly, seemingly without any concern that Chen Ye would go back on his word.

This is perhaps the confidence of a powerful sect; there are probably very few cultivators in the world who dare to mock the Qinghe Sword Sect.

Chen Ye didn't stand on ceremony with her and generously put the materials into his storage bag. Then, he said to Su Chunyi with a frank expression, "I am just a rogue cultivator with no one to rely on. I can only try to figure out if I can exchange some cultivation resources with those wealthy merchants."

"The act I put on with Wang Sanqi was actually to make a name for myself. Ordinary people don't have much money, so it's better to tell fortunes for them for free and let them help spread the word, which will also attract wealthier customers for me."

Su Chunyi frowned slightly and asked softly, "What benefit can a mortal's wealth bring to cultivation?"

Chen Ye smiled and patiently explained, "Miss Su comes from a prestigious sect, so perhaps she doesn't know much about the ins and outs. Although the Xuanji Dew is rare and precious, it can still be bought if you're willing to spend a lot of money."

Upon hearing this, Su Chunyi suddenly realized and nodded slightly, saying, "So that's how it is. Fellow Daoist, you want to swindle more money."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ye's heart skipped a beat. It seemed like Su Chunyi was digging a pit for him.

If I confess to being a "liar," will a flying sword immediately come hurtling down and behead me?
Who knows what the Qinghe Sword Sect's criteria for judging good and evil are? Chen Ye certainly didn't dare to admit to being a swindler, so he quickly waved his hand and explained, "Of course I'm not swindling money. I will refine some health-strengthening pills in exchange. Although the price may be a bit higher, it is definitely not for swindling money."

That's absolutely true. Chen Ye had previously planned to promote and package his medicines after they became famous, exaggerating their healing properties into miraculous cures that could bring the dead back to life, so that he could sell them for a higher price.

However, Su Chunyi, as if she were an innocent child, continued to ask, "Does deliberately raising the price not count as cheating?"

Chen Ye's heart tightened. This person's question was quite tricky. He quickly explained, "Whether it's worth it depends entirely on the negotiation between the buyer and seller. Doing business is about buying low and selling high. Otherwise, how would merchants make money? How much of a price increase constitutes fraud? Who can really say for sure? Take those antiques worth tens of thousands of gold coins, for example. Most of them are actually just clay that has been fired. How much of a premium they have depends entirely on people's judgment. I don't make fakes, and the elixirs are genuine. How much I can sell them for is up to my skill."

Chen Ye spoke somewhat hastily, genuinely afraid of being mistaken for a swindler and facing certain death.

Fortunately, Su Chunyi was a reasonable person, and she nodded slightly in agreement after hearing Chen Ye's explanation. However, the sword cultivator's questions seemed endless, and she immediately asked, "I understand what you have done, but there is still one thing I don't understand. You said that you don't actually understand the way of divination, so how can you calculate so accurately?"

Chen Ye didn't mince words and explained frankly, "It's just some江湖 (jianghu) trickery. I didn't calculate the family background of those who sought divine blessings, but rather inferred it from their words and actions. What people seek is nothing more than wealth, peace, marriage, and offspring."

"As the saying goes, when an old man asks about his son, though he may have many, he may have few; when a young man asks about his son, though he may have many, he may have few. If a person is listless and dull-witted, he is currently in dire straits, and his plans will likely end in failure nine times out of ten. If a person is radiant and has a loud voice, this child will bring good fortune in the near future, and his plans will likely be successful nine times out of ten..."

Chen Ye muttered to himself, rattling off a long string of words, all about how to deduce the other party's family background and current situation from details of their behavior.

When an elderly person comes to inquire about offspring, it's obvious they have few children and no descendants. When a young person comes to ask about offspring, it's mostly because they have no children or have only daughters.

If the person seeking advice appears listless and their questions are complicated and confusing, it's likely they've recently made several wrong decisions, leading to problems at home. If they're beaming and speak with pride, it's obviously a sign of good fortune coming their way; a little flattery will gain their trust. There are many other similar tips and tricks.

By carefully observing a person's speech, demeanor, and eyes, one can roughly discern their character. If you encounter a frivolous and dissolute person, a few words of flattery will naturally make them overjoyed; if you encounter a gentleman, treat him with sincerity, and he will surely be regarded as a confidant.

Once the person seeking divination felt that Chen Ye's "sayings were all correct," the rest became much easier.

Those seeking wealth should remind him to be more cautious and less adventurous; those seeking peace should be given two health-strengthening pills; those seeking marriage should be advised to value character; and those seeking offspring should wish him many children and grandchildren.

As long as the divination is done vaguely, the person seeking the divination will identify with it and feel that Chen Ye is truly a "living god".

Even if you guess wrong, it doesn't matter. Just casually say that you've used up too much of your magic power today and made a mistake.

Since he wasn't charging money, no one would make a fuss about it, and those who thought his predictions were accurate would speak up for Chen Ye. However, he was really lucky today; he told the fortunes of dozens of people and guessed almost everything correctly.

Chen Ye's skill in navigating interpersonal relationships wasn't something he cultivated through spiritual practice, but rather something he honed through his experiences navigating the ups and downs of the workplace in his previous life.

Su Chunyi had been listening quietly at first, but later he found himself nodding frequently without realizing it. By the end, he exclaimed in admiration, "Fellow Daoist, you are truly talented. I have learned a great deal."

For the first time, Miss Su's tone changed; she was genuinely astonished by Chen Ye's ability to read people. Although this wasn't magic, it was far more powerful than any spell. If this person intended to bewitch someone, even someone with high cultivation wouldn't be able to defend against it.

Chen Ye was not arrogant; on the contrary, he felt somewhat helpless.

"It's just a low-level trick, of no use to cultivation. If it weren't for the fact that life is tough for rogue cultivators, I would rather hide in the deep mountains to cultivate, and I'm too lazy to waste my time trying to figure out people's hearts."

The scheming and intrigue of his past life were exhausting enough; Chen Ye really didn't want to go back to his old ways in this life unless absolutely necessary.

Upon hearing this, Su Chun said to Chen Ye, "Fellow Daoist is too modest. Such skill cannot be acquired even after hundreds of years of cultivation in the mountains."

"Miss Su, you flatter me."

After Chen Ye said a few words of modesty, he heard Su Chunyi say in a deep voice, "I have one last question. Please enlighten me, fellow Daoist."

This tone seemed somewhat different from its previous coldness.

"Please speak, Miss Su."

Chen Ye sensed something; it seemed that after all that talk, now was the crucial moment. He just didn't know what this disciple of the Qinghe Sword Sect wanted to ask.

To Chen Ye's surprise, Su Chunyi took off her straw hat before asking the question and looked at him with her clear, bright eyes.

Su Chunyi is very beautiful, but what really caught Chen Ye's attention were her eyes.

These were the clearest eyes Chen Ye had ever seen in his two lives, as if they could see right through him and make no attempt to hide their own thoughts.

Chen Ye didn't know how to describe this feeling. This girl looked both very easy to fool and very difficult to fool.

This feeling of openness and honesty upon first meeting was a little unsettling for Chen Ye, a socialite who had been tainted by worldly wisdom for many years.

Chen Ye finally understood why Su Chunyi had taken off her straw hat. Lying into those eyes was incredibly difficult; even a seasoned veteran like Chen Ye might not be able to do it perfectly.

Why is Su Chunyi asking such a serious question?

However, Su Chunyi only asked a question he had asked before: "Fellow Daoist, is helping a villain like Wang Sanqi considered doing good?"

(End of this chapter)