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

This isn't a no-go, it's a recommendation for the treasure book "Daily Intelligence: From Miner to Daoist Ancestor of Alchemy and Talismans":

She set aside all her pride and dignity, just to leave the last bloodline of the Zhao family.

In the entire Qingya Fang, and even in the entire Western Region, only Xu Yuan had the ability and the mindset to save her brother's life during the bloodbath six months later.

Xu Yuan looked at the contents of the wooden box, then at the timid little boy hiding behind Zhao Qiuyue. His eyes remained calm, but he had already clearly calculated the pros and cons in his mind.

Taking on this child would mean taking on all the karma of the Zhao family, putting him on the opposite side of the Blood Fiend Sect and the Evil Cultivator Alliance, and inevitably subjecting him to endless persecution, completely violating his original intention of seeking survival through the righteous path.

But he wasn't a cold-blooded person. He retrieved the jade pendant on the banks of the Xiling River and saved Zhao Qiuyue's life. In return, Zhao Qiuyue gave him second-tier alchemy materials, top-grade talisman paper and cinnabar, as well as the secret of the talisman seal passed down through generations of the Zhao family. Even after he severely injured Elder Liu of the Blood Fiend Sect, she did not investigate the whereabouts of the talisman seal. He always remembered this favor.

He couldn't let his saintly heart get the better of him and take on the mess that was the Zhao family, putting himself in a perilous situation with no way out. But he also couldn't turn a blind eye and owe them this favor, thus earning a reputation for being ungrateful.

After a moment of silence, Xu Yuan finally spoke, his tone calm but his words clear: "I can make you a promise. If the market is destroyed in six months, and I can leave Qingya Market alive, I will protect Zhao Chen's life and send him to a safe sect far away from the Western Border to live in seclusion, ensuring his lifelong peace."

He paused, then added, his tone leaving no room for doubt: "But I will not accept the Zhao family's inheritance, nor will I bear the Zhao family's karma, and I will not confront the Blood Fiend Sect or the Evil Cultivator Alliance head-on for the sake of the Zhao family. I will only take the second and third-tier alchemy and talisman-drawing materials I need from the Zhao family's treasury. The remaining gold, silver, jewels, cultivation manuals, magic weapons, and treasures will all be sealed away and left to Zhao Chen. I will not touch a single one."

I won't take the blame, nor will I act like a saint. I will only repay the favor within my capabilities and uphold my bottom line.

He neither put himself in danger nor betrayed the other party's trust, managing to advance and retreat with ease and leaving no room for error.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Qiuyue's tears instantly welled up. With a "plop," she knelt straight down on the cold, rocky ground and kowtowed three times to Xu Yuan, leaving red marks on her forehead. "Thank you so much, Fellow Daoist Xu! I will never forget your great kindness! The Zhao family will remember your kindness for all eternity!"

Without any hesitation, she immediately handed over the treasure vault key and the core token of the protective array from the wooden box to Xu Yuan, and even gave him the jade slip containing the Zhao family's inheritance.

That afternoon, Xu Yuan followed Zhao Qiuyue and secretly sneaked back to Qingyafang, entering the Zhao family's underground treasure vault.

Inside the treasure vault, gold and silver were piled up like mountains, and shelves were filled with magical artifacts and cultivation manuals of varying grades. However, Xu Yuan did not even glance at them. He only took all the second and third-grade alchemy main materials, top-grade thunder pattern talisman paper, and top-grade cinnabar. He also took three high-grade spirit-exploding pills that could instantly double spiritual power without any side effects.

He sealed everything back into the vault as it was, reset the restrictions, handed the key back to Zhao Qiuyue, and left only a backup restriction.

In addition, relying on the core token of the protective array, he thoroughly understood all the core logic of the array. He could not only control the opening and closing of the array, but also accurately control the spiritual power flow of each array eye. Even if the array was blown up by the Blood Fiend Sect, he could still control the remaining array eyes to leave himself an absolutely safe escape route.

Having obtained what he needed and repaid the favors, Xu Yuan did not linger at Qingya Workshop and immediately returned to his cave at Wohu Mountain.

But he did not stop there.

Over the years, his biggest taboo has been placing all his hopes on one place.

Although the cave on Crouching Tiger Mountain is a good place, this place will inevitably be affected. He must leave himself more ways out and never put all his eggs in one basket.

Over the next three days, relying on the daily updated system intelligence, Xu Yuan found three more extremely hidden natural caves in the deep mountains within a hundred miles of Qingyafang.

One is located on a cliff hundreds of feet high, with its entrance hidden by a waterfall. Unless you search deliberately, it is impossible to find. Another is at the end of a tributary of an underground river. You can only find it by swimming into the river. It is easy to defend and difficult to attack. And yet another is underground in an ancient forest, hidden by thick fallen leaves and rocks. It is full of spiritual energy and no monsters roam there.

For each cave, Xu Yuan spent a full day setting up four layers of interconnected formations: early warning, concealment, trapping, and spirit gathering. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator would find them difficult to detect, let alone break through. At the same time, he stockpiled enough spirit stones, pills, spirit rice, and clean water in each cave for a whole year, along with spare talismans, talisman paper, and alchemy materials. Even if he hid inside for a year, he wouldn't have to worry about supplies.

With three backup cave dwellings and three completely different escape routes, even if the cave dwelling on Wohu Mountain is discovered and Qingyafang is massacred, he will have countless ways to escape and will never be trapped in one place.

By the time he finished setting up the last backup cave and returned to Wohu Mountain, it was already late at night, just in time for the system intelligence update at midnight.

But to his utter surprise, the updated message was a top-tier crimson intelligence report filled with a strong sense of crisis.

A line of large, blood-red characters suddenly appeared on the surface of his consciousness:

[Crimson Top-Tier Intelligence: In ten days, a massive beast tide will erupt around Blackwater City. The Black Pine Forest, the only route to Blackwater City, will be completely engulfed by the beast tide, and all cultivators passing through will face certain death.]

The Black Pine Forest was the only route he had to take to reach Blackwater City for the Alchemist Conference.

The words "Red Report" lingered in his mind for a long time, carrying a suffocating sense of crisis.

Xu Yuan tapped the stone table lightly with his fingertips, and without the slightest hesitation, immediately adjusted his plans to go to Blackwater City.

He originally planned to set off five days later, but now he has to leave earlier.

The Black Pine Forest is the only way to reach Blackwater City. It is flanked by sheer cliffs, with only a narrow official road in the middle. Once a beast tide breaks out, it will be a deadly trap with no way to escape.

When seeking survival, the worst thing one can do is to take chances. He would never gamble on being able to get through the beast tide. The only sure thing is to cross the Black Pine Forest before the beast tide breaks out.

Without delay, he made thorough arrangements for everything at Qingyafang that very day.

He summoned Qian Shi and Li Qinghe to his cave at Wohu Mountain, leaving each of them a communication talisman capable of transmitting messages over a hundred miles. He repeatedly instructed them: "After I leave, the market will continue to operate as before. No matter what happens, you are not allowed to actively seek trouble with the Blood Fiend Sect or the Pill King Valley, and you are not allowed to get involved in any disputes. If there is any abnormality, send me a message immediately. Do not make any decisions on your own."

He knew very well that after he left, Qingyafang would be a no-man's land, and if he was not careful, the Blood Fiend Sect would take advantage of the situation.

The safest course of action is to remain steadfast, avoid trouble, and keep a low profile.

Qian Shi and Li Qinghe nodded repeatedly, patting their chests to assure each other that they would never dare to disobey in the slightest, and that they would definitely guard Qingyafang, keep a close eye on all movements, and never cause trouble for Xu Yuan.

Having made arrangements for his escape route, Xu Yuan made thorough preparations for disguise overnight.