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

"Daily Intelligence: From Miner to Dao Ancestor of Alchemy and Talismans" ranks high in readers' votes for the best fantasy novel!

He took a half-step forward, his voice tightening, "Brother Xu, you have no idea how powerful Zhang Kui is now! He's the deputy captain of the guard team, controlling most of the patrol guards. The Zhao family is currently investigating Blood Fiend Sect accomplices like madmen. If those two team up to pin this charge on you, they can find any excuse to come and arrest you. You won't even have a chance to defend yourself! You'd better pack your things and hide outside the city for a while!"

Qian Shi was really worried.

He had been in Qingyafang for ten years and knew the rules here all too well.

An unaffiliated cultivator with no background or sect was accused of colluding with the Blood Fiend Sect. The Zhao family always preferred to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free, and the only outcome was death.

Xu Yuan simply smiled faintly after hearing this, raised his hand and patted his shoulder: "Hiding won't help. What's meant to come will come."

"Brother Xu!" Qian Shi stamped his feet anxiously. "The situation is critical, how can you still be so calm! That's Zhang Kui! A cultivator at the eighth level of Qi Refining, and he also has military power given to him by the Zhao family!"

"When soldiers come, we'll block them; when water comes, we'll dam it." Xu Yuan carefully put the newly drawn blade talisman into the wooden box, his tone still calm. "Go back and cultivate in peace. Don't spread this around. I know what I'm doing."

Qian Shi looked at his confident expression, opened his mouth as if to persuade him again, but when he met Xu Yuan's calm eyes, he swallowed his words.

He knew Xu Yuan's temperament; he appeared gentle, but in reality, he was more shrewd than anyone else. Since he said he knew, he was definitely not just making empty promises.

He could only bow with a heavy heart and leave, looking back every few steps.

After seeing Qian Shi off, Xu Yuan's faint smile slowly faded, and he tapped his fingertips lightly twice on the table.

Zhou Chengxian's attempt to curry favor with Zhang Kui and spread rumors and framing others was nothing more than an attempt to gain favor and eliminate him through Zhang Kui's hands. This would allow him to avenge his previous humiliation and also gain spirit stones and a powerful backer.

Zhang Kui already considered him a thorn in his side, and with Zhou Chengxian as a ready-made witness, he could legitimately accuse him of treason and kill him on the spot, leaving even the Zhao family with no grounds for complaint.

They've certainly got a good plan.

Xu Yuan didn't rush to make any arrangements. He had calculated that if Zhang Kui was going to make a move, it wouldn't be on the same day. He would definitely find the safest opportunity to set up a trap so that Zhang Kui couldn't turn the tables.

All he had to do was wait.

At midnight, the system intelligence refreshed, clearly presenting the other party's entire plan to him.

As night deepened, the sounds of patrols echoed through the streets and alleys, while the protective array's light screen gleamed with a pale golden light in the night sky.

Xu Yuan sat cross-legged on the couch, circulating his cultivation technique to stabilize his sixth-level Qi Refining cultivation while quietly waiting for midnight to arrive, his mind as steady as a rock.

As the clock hands just passed midnight, the familiar system notification sounded in my mind right on time.

[Ding! Today's intelligence has been updated.]

[Bai Bao: Three days later, Zhang Kui will lead a team to arrest Xu Yuan under the pretext of searching the market for accomplices of the Blood Fiend Sect, and kill him on the spot. Zhou Chengxian will serve as a key witness, accusing Xu Yuan of colluding with the Blood Fiend Sect and leaking information about the market's defenses. Afterwards, Zhang Kui will pay Zhou Chengxian fifty spirit stones as a reward.]

Xu Yuan slowly opened his eyes, his gaze clear and cold.

Just as he predicted, his death was imminent in three days.

An ordinary rogue cultivator would probably have panicked and fled the market overnight, or risked everything to fight to the death. But Xu Yuan remained calmly seated on the couch, already having a complete plan in mind.

He won't run away, much less take matters into his own hands.

If he were to personally deal with Zhang Kui, it would be tantamount to confirming his crimes of rebelling against the Zhao family and colluding with evil cultivators. Even if he killed Zhang Kui, he would become the public enemy of the market, which would play right into the hands of the Blood Fiend Sect.

The best method is always to use someone else to do the dirty work.

Using the Zhao family's knife, he eliminated the two troublemakers, Zhang Kui and Zhou Chengxian, without getting involved in any cause or effect, and without leaving a trace.

Xu Yuan got up, opened the secret compartment of the room, and took out a paulownia wood box.

Inside were two things: one was a secret letter from Zhang Kui to the Blood Fiend Sect, which he had previously taken from two Blood Fiend Sect spies. It contained Zhang Kui's handwriting and personal seal. The other was a copy of the blueprint for the protective array's core, which he had secretly made while eavesdropping on the meeting at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

Either of these two items, if taken out, would be enough to ensure Zhang Kui's utter demise.

The Zhao family was already on edge due to the threat from the Blood Fiend Sect, and what they hated most was the traitors who colluded with foreign enemies and betrayed the market.

The deputy captain of the guard team was accused of treason, a major case that would shake the entire Qingyafang district, and the Zhao family would not let it go easily.

Xu Yuan took a piece of unmarked hemp paper, carefully folded the secret letter and the copy of the blueprint, stuffed them into a blank envelope, and sealed it with sealing wax. Throughout the process, he wrapped his fingers with cotton cloth, leaving not a single fingerprint, nor did he inject any of his own spiritual power. Even the sealing wax was made of ordinary material that could be bought anywhere in the market, with no traceable source.

This person can only be Li Qinghe.

Xu Yuan knew Li Qinghe's thoughts all too well. The two served the Zhao family. Li Qinghe was in charge of the market, while Zhang Kui was the deputy captain of the guard team, holding military power and always putting him at a disadvantage. The two had been fighting each other for years. Li Qinghe had long hated Zhang Kui to the core, but he had never been able to find any fault with him.

Now that this irrefutable evidence, capable of putting Zhang Kui to death, has been delivered into his hands, it is nothing short of a tremendous achievement falling from the sky.

He could use this opportunity to eliminate his biggest rival and make a great contribution to the Zhao family head, thus securing his position. He would never let this opportunity pass, nor would he bother to investigate who sent the letter.

As dawn broke and the morning mist still lingered over the market, Xu Yuan had already finished disguising himself.

Dressed in a faded coarse cloth outfit, his face was covered in a thick layer of charcoal ash, his cheekbones were raised with disguise cream, and his eyes were pulled down. His originally handsome appearance became rough and mediocre. He then applied two concealment talismans to suppress his cultivation level to the second level of Qi Refining, making him look exactly like a manure-carrying farmer making a living at the bottom of the market.

He carried two empty manure buckets and walked along the secluded irrigation canal alley to Li Qinghe's residence.

Li Qinghe's residence was on East Street. Two guards were yawning against the door frame. Visibility was blurred in the morning mist, and no one gave this farmer carrying a bucket of manure and smelling of sourness a second glance.

Xu Yuan didn't stop walking, pretending to be passing by. Just as he passed the gate of the mansion, he flicked his fingertips slightly, and the anonymous envelope landed precisely behind the threshold, hidden by the half-open door. It could only be seen when the door was opened.

After doing all this, he didn't stop for a moment. He continued carrying the manure buckets, walking forward at a leisurely pace. After turning two alleyways, he disappeared into the morning mist.

He did not disturb anyone or leave any trace, as if he had never been there.

Back in the courtyard with its blue tiles, Xu Yuan removed his disguise, washed his hands, and acted as if nothing had happened. He then set up the alchemy furnace again, took out the medicinal herbs, and continued to refine the high-grade Yuan Qi Powder.

The fire roared in the stove, and the aroma of medicine gradually filled the air.

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