Daily Intelligence: From Miner to Dao Ancestor of Alchemy and Talismans

He glanced at the room full of terrified rogue cultivators, his single eye landing on the trembling Zhou Chengxian. He grinned, revealing a set of yellow teeth, and said in a hoarse voice, "Zhou Chengxian, we're here. Didn't you want to use us as a sacrifice for your sword? I'd like to see just how capable you are."

"Kill them!" At the command, more than a dozen Black Wind Stronghold bandits rushed forward instantly.

They killed anyone they saw and robbed anything they could find. Screams, the clash of weapons, the explosion of spiritual energy, and cries echoed throughout the entire Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

The trapping formation blocked all escape routes, leaving those inside with no way to escape and becoming lambs to the slaughter. The rogue cultivators who had come along to eat and drink were only there to freeload and flatter, with no intention of fighting to the death. When the tribulation cultivators rushed up, they didn't even have the strength to resist and were instantly cut down in droves. Blood flowed down the stairs, staining the bluestone slabs of the Drunken Immortal Pavilion red.

Zhou Chengxian's face turned green. He never expected that the people from Black Wind Stronghold would actually dare to make a move in front of so many people in Qingyafang, and even set up a trapping formation! How could he, a rogue cultivator who had just broken through to the fourth level of Qi Refining, possibly defeat the leader of the eighth level of Qi Refining and more than a dozen mid- and late-stage Qi Refining cultivators?

"Stop them! Stop them now!" he roared hysterically, shoving the two obsequious rogue cultivators beside him forward.

The two rogue cultivators were instantly cleaved in two by the charging cultivator, their blood splattering all over Zhou Chengxian's face. Terrified, he turned and ran towards the private room on the second floor, intending to jump out the window. But the moment his hand touched the window, he was violently bounced back by the light barrier, causing his blood to surge and him to spit out a mouthful of blood.

"Trying to run away?"

The one-eyed black demon sneered, his figure flashed, and he was in front of him in an instant. The ghost-headed blade whistled through the wind and slashed down fiercely.

Zhou Chengxian was so frightened that he lost his mind and could only raise his long sword and grit his teeth to block it.

With a crisp clang, the longsword in his hand was instantly cleaved in two. The ghost-head saber, undeterred, struck him squarely in the chest.

"Ah—!" With a piercing scream, Zhou Chengxian was sent flying and crashed hard into the wall. A deep, bone-revealing wound appeared on his chest, and blood gushed out, instantly staining his brocade robe red.

Hei Sha walked over step by step, stepping on his chest, his ghost-headed blade pressed against his neck, his voice icy: "Hand over the spirit wine recipe. Otherwise, I'll make sure you die a horrible death."

Zhou Chengxian convulsed in pain, staring at the knife pressed against his neck. His previous arrogance was gone; tears and snot streamed down his face as he cried out, "I'll give it all! I'll give it all! Don't kill me! I'll give you the whole formula!"

He trembled as he pulled out a jade slip containing the recipe for the spirit wine from his robes and handed it over.

Hei Sha snatched it away, scanned it with his divine sense, nodded in satisfaction, then frowned: "Only the first half? Where's the second half?"

"The second half... I hid the second half!" Zhou Chengxian hurriedly said. "Let me go, and I'll take you to get it! You can have it all!"

Hei Sha grinned, his eyes filled with ruthlessness: "No need." As soon as he finished speaking, he twisted his wrist and slashed the ghost-headed blade fiercely.

Zhou Chengxian's screams came to an abrupt halt. One of his arms had been severed at the shoulder, and he instantly fainted from the pain.

"Take him back and interrogate him slowly." Hei Sha casually tossed the unconscious Zhou Chengxian to his subordinates behind him, glanced at the corpses scattered on the ground and the wailing survivors, and said coldly, "Seize everything. Kill all the men, and take the women away." The entire Drunken Immortal Pavilion was completely transformed into a living hell. The screams continued for nearly half an hour before gradually subsiding.

Meanwhile, in Xu Yuan's small courtyard with its blue-tiled roof, the gate was tightly closed, and all restrictions were lifted.

Xu Yuan sat cross-legged on the couch, holding a wolf-hair brush in his hand, drawing a fine talisman of thick earth. As the brush tip fell, each stroke was as steady as Mount Tai without the slightest tremor.

The screams and explosions coming from the direction of Zuixianlou could be faintly heard from two streets away, but he seemed not to hear them at all, not even lifting his eyelids.

As he finished the last stroke, a flash of inspiration appeared on the talisman paper, and a high-quality Earth Talisman was successfully completed. He put down his pen, picked up the talisman paper, and gently brushed his fingertips across the surface of the talisman, his face still expressionless.

This calamity was already destined from the moment Zhou Chengxian broke the leg of the Black Wind Stronghold messenger and threatened to throw a banquet to challenge them.

He couldn't save them, and he didn't want to.

At the same time, at the other end of the market, in Qian Shi's small courtyard, Qian Shi huddled in the corner of the bed, covering his mouth tightly, listening to the screams coming from the direction of Zuixianlou. His whole body was trembling like a leaf, and the back of his clothes was completely soaked with cold sweat.

He had just been standing at the courtyard gate when he saw a group of black-clad bandits rush into the Drunken Immortal Pavilion with knives in hand. He watched the trapping formation rise and heard the familiar screams of his fellow villagers inside. He was so frightened that his legs went weak.

If Xu Yuan hadn't stopped him, if Xu Yuan hadn't told him beforehand that he shouldn't get involved in this, he might have actually gone to Zuixianlou out of consideration for their shared hometown.

Now, he is probably just like his fellow villagers, a cold corpse.

Qian Shi let out a long breath and slumped onto the bed, his admiration for Xu Yuan reaching the point of complete submission.

Xu Yuan didn't even leave the house, yet he had calculated everything perfectly.

Only by following someone like that can he survive in this cannibalistic world of cultivation.

One night passed.

The tragedy at Zuixianlou caused an uproar throughout the entire market. Of the ten banquet tables and nearly a hundred rogue cultivators, fewer than ten survived, and all of them were injured. Zhou Chengxian had one arm severed, and most of his spirit wine recipe was stolen. Although he survived, he was now completely crippled.

Liu Yue'er was slashed. She never imagined that the powerful backer she had placed so highly would collapse.

Although the Zhao family was furious and sent a guard team to Black Wind Valley to encircle and annihilate them, the people of Black Wind Village had already disappeared without a trace with the looted goods and people.

The entire market was in a state of fear, and everyone turned pale at the mention of Black Wind Stronghold. But that very morning, a series of chaotic footsteps suddenly came from outside Xu Yuan's courtyard.

Then, with a loud crash, the wooden gate of the courtyard was kicked open, sending splinters flying.

Xu Yuan put down the alchemy furnace in his hand and looked up. At the courtyard gate, Zhou Chengxian was being supported by two subordinates. His face was deathly pale, one of his arms was severed at the shoulder, and his chest was wrapped in thick bandages, which were still seeping blood. Behind him were more than a dozen other rogue cultivators who were also injured, each with a ferocious expression and eyes full of resentment.

Upon seeing Xu Yuan, Zhou Chengxian's eyes instantly turned red. Like a mad dog driven to the brink, he screamed hysterically, his voice shrill and piercing: "Xu Yuan!! Was it you! Was it you who colluded with Black Wind Stronghold and betrayed me!!"