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

Amidst the flying sawdust, the courtyard gate was kicked and slammed against the wall with a dull thud.

Zhou Chengxian was supported by two subordinates, one on each side, with one arm propping up his body. The bandage on his chest was torn and bleeding from the movement. His once spirited face was now twisted beyond recognition, and his bloodshot eyes were fixed on Xu Yuan in the room, as if he wanted to devour him alive.

Behind him followed a dozen or so wounded rogue cultivators, all of whom had miraculously survived the day at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion. Each of them wore the fear of surviving a calamity on their faces, and were further incited by Zhou Chengxian, adding a touch of resentment and ferocity. They blocked the entrance to the small courtyard, filling the already small gate to the brim.

A crowd of onlookers had already gathered at the alley entrance, peering into the courtyard and whispering amongst themselves. Everyone knew that Zhou Chengxian had suffered a great calamity yesterday, and that he and Xu Yuan were from the same hometown, but no one expected that he would actually lead a group to kick down Xu Yuan's courtyard gate.

Xu Yuan sat at the table, still holding the silver skewer he had just used to tend the spiritual fire in his hand. The spiritual fire in the furnace was still warm, and the fragrance of medicine wafted through the air. He didn't even get up; he merely raised his eyelids, glanced at the group of people at the door, and said calmly, "The door was broken. Tenfold compensation. Either pay now, or get out now."

"Pay?!" Zhou Chengxian laughed hysterically as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world. The laughter caused his chest wound to throb with pain, and he coughed violently, spitting out a mouthful of blood. His eyes hardened even more. "Xu Yuan! You ungrateful wretch! I'm not settling scores with you today, I'm settling scores with you for life!"

He suddenly struggled forward, pointing at Xu Yuan's nose and roaring, "Was it you?! Was it because you were jealous that I obtained the spirit wine inheritance, jealous that I'm living a better life than you, that you secretly informed the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold?! Otherwise, how would they know I was hosting a banquet at Drunken Immortal Pavilion? How would they have set up a trap, blocking all escape routes?!"

Upon hearing this, the dozen or so rogue cultivators behind him instantly became agitated, their eyes filled with hatred as they looked at Xu Yuan. Most of their relatives, friends, and brothers had died in the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, and now, with Zhou Chengxian leading the way, they naturally directed all their resentment at Xu Yuan, the "informant."

"It's you! It's definitely you!"

"We have no grudge against you, why did you collude with bandits to kill us?!"

"You're not leaving this courtyard until you give us an explanation!"

Amidst the clamor and shouting, a timid yet resentful voice rang out. Liu Yue'er emerged from behind Zhou Chengxian, her dress still stained with unwashed blood, her hair disheveled, and her face devoid of its usual exquisite makeup, leaving only a deathly pallor and lingering fear.

She looked at Xu Yuan, her eyes reddening, her voice trembling with tears, yet every word she uttered was a veiled attack on him: "Brother Xu, we were so wrong about you. Back when we left the village, we all relied on you. How could you do something so ungrateful? What did Brother Zhou do to you that you would do this to him? That you would cause so many of our fellow villagers to lose their lives?"

That day at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, she had fainted from fright under the table. The thieves were busy killing and looting, and their attention was drawn to the jade slip on Zhou Chengxian's body, so they didn't notice her, allowing her to escape with her life. But after escaping death, looking at Zhou Chengxian with his broken arm and completely crippled, and recalling Xu Yuan's usual composure, she felt both regret and hatred. She regretted being blind and giving her heart to the wrong person; she hated that Xu Yuan could have persuaded them, yet he watched them jump into the fire. In her heart, she had even accepted that it was Xu Yuan who had betrayed them—otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence that he hadn't gone?

After listening to this furious accusation, Xu Yuan finally put down the silver token in his hand. He leaned back in his chair, looked at the group of people at the door, and suddenly chuckled softly.

The laughter was faint, without a trace of anger, yet it instantly silenced the noisy courtyard.

"Finished?" Xu Yuan raised his eyes, his gaze first landing on Liu Yue'er's face. His tone was flat and mocking. "It's quite surprising that you survived the ambush at Zuixianlou. Since you've escaped with your life, why aren't you hiding? Why are you joining in the fun?"

Liu Yue'er felt a chill run down her spine under his gaze and instinctively took a half-step back, stubbornly insisting, "I... I just want to seek justice for Brother Zhou!"

"Fairness?" Xu Yuan's gaze returned to Zhou Chengxian, his three fingers lightly tapping the edge of the table as he spoke slowly and deliberately, "You, Boss Zhou, are going to host a banquet at Zuixianlou to challenge Black Wind Village. The news spread like wildfire throughout Qingyafang three days ago. Even the farmers selling vegetables at the East Gate know you're hosting a banquet at Zuixianlou at dusk. Do I really need to inform on you?"

"And if I were truly colluding with Black Wind Stronghold, what they want is your spirit wine recipe, and their lives. Not only are you alive now, but you also possess the second half of the recipe. How dare you stand here and challenge me? Do you think the people of Black Wind Stronghold are fools, or are you the fool?"

"You invited me to dinner three days ago, and I refused on the spot. On the day of the incident, I was in this courtyard from morning till night refining elixirs and drawing talismans. I didn't step out of the courtyard gate. The patrol guards from the west street of the market passed by the alley entrance every half hour. Anyone can testify to that. I didn't even leave the door, so how could I have informed Black Wind Stronghold? Did you appear in my dream?"

He spoke of these things in a calm manner, instantly exposing Zhou Chengxian's lies and leaving him no room for rebuttal.

The courtyard fell silent instantly, even the scattered cultivators watching from the alleyway stopped talking. The logic was clear to everyone; Zhou Chengxian had brought this upon himself, hit a brick wall, and, having nowhere else to vent his anger, had chosen an easy target.

But... they messed with the wrong person!

Zhou Chengxian's face flushed red and then paled, rendered speechless by the rebuttal. His lips trembled for a long time, unable to utter a single word in rebuttal. Of course, he knew these principles, but he couldn't accept the fact that he had fallen from grace, couldn't accept that he had lost his arm and his cultivation, while Xu Yuan, whom he had always looked down upon, was still safely and unharmed in the courtyard.

He needed to find someone to hate, someone to hold accountable for his fate. And Xu Yuan was that thorn he could never get past in his life.

"You're talking nonsense!" Zhou Chengxian completely lost his mind. He shoved aside his two henchmen, drew his short knife from his waist with his remaining hand, and charged at Xu Yuan with bloodshot eyes. "You're the one who ruined me! I'll kill you today, you ungrateful wretch!"

He's like a mad dog now. Even knowing he's in the wrong, he'll still pounce and bite. Seeing this, the dozen or so rogue cultivators behind him are also itching to move, gripping their weapons and ready to charge forward.

The crowd at the alley entrance gasped in surprise, all thinking that Xu Yuan was going to be in trouble today—after all, in everyone's impression, Xu Yuan was a useless person who had only reached the third level of Qi Refining in ten years, while Zhou Chengxian, even with his arm broken, was still at the fourth level of Qi Refining, not to mention he had more than a dozen helpers.