Immortality begins with equipping a worn-out talisman pen.

Chapter 77 Successful Transaction

Han Qinxue remained silent for a moment, then finally sighed softly.

"Indeed, as you have probably all heard, in recent years, a new Foundation Establishment family, the Wu family, has emerged in Hegui Mountain next to Fengming Mountain."

""

Upon hearing this, Ning Tiehe's expression changed slightly, and he couldn't help but blurt out, "Is it that 'Mysterious Iron Sword' Wu Youcai?"

Han Qinxue nodded gently.

Ning Tiehe gasped and exclaimed, "This person successfully established his foundation at the age of forty-something. His heavy black iron sword overwhelms his peers, and he is quite famous among the foundation-establishing cultivators in Tianque Immortal City."

"More importantly, this person is also a first-tier high-grade talisman master, said to be just one step away from the second tier, and is proficient in both talismans and swordsmanship. The Wu family's rapid rise in recent years is largely due to him."

"Many people even say that if the opportunity is right, this person may have a chance to condense a golden core in the future."

""

Upon hearing this, Han Qinxue's eyes revealed an undisguised disgust.

"Over the years, he has visited my home several times to propose marriage, wanting to take me as his concubine."

"When I refused, he simply bought Hegui Mountain next to Fengming Mountain and moved the entire Wu family there."

3

"Now that the two families are so close, their intentions are obvious."

5

Ning Tiehe was somewhat puzzled upon hearing this.

"Patriarch Han, please forgive my bluntness, but this is a good thing. The Wu family is currently at its peak. If your Han family can form a marriage alliance with the Wu family, with Wu Youcai's current talent and momentum, he might actually achieve the Golden Core stage in the future. At that time, the Han family will also rise with him."

The black-clad cultivator beside him nodded slightly, clearly sharing the same thought.

Han Qinxue gave a cold laugh.

"You all know his name, but not his person. My Han family has investigated a lot of information over the years. Wu Youcai seems to be upright and honest, but in reality he is ruthless and treacherous."

"Decades ago, there was a promising genius talisman master in Tianque Immortal City. He was ambushed by him, and not only did his Daoist partner die, but all the talisman Dao inheritance he had accumulated in his life also fell into Wu Youcai's hands."

""

As she said this, she slowly clenched her fist.

"Moreover, his desire to marry me was never based on affection. What he truly coveted was the cold iron ore vein passed down through my Han family."

"Now that our ancestor is nearing the end of his life, once he passes away, my Han family will no longer have a Foundation Establishment cultivator to oversee it. At that time, whether I agree or not, he will have plenty of ways to seize Phoenix Cry Mountain for himself."

She looked at everyone in the hall and bowed solemnly.

"Therefore, I wish to invite you all to serve as guest elders of the Han family. It is not that I truly want you to be enemies of the Wu family, but I hope that by leveraging the connections behind you, the Wu family will have something to consider and will not dare to act rashly."

Upon hearing this, both Ning Tiehe and the black-clad cultivator looked somewhat embarrassed.

Over the years, they have mingled in Tianque Immortal City for many years and have indeed had dealings with some sect disciples. They often use this relationship to raise their status.

But they themselves know best.

So-called connections are nothing more than nodding acquaintances.

Ning Tiehe waved his hand repeatedly.

"Patriarch Han, I'm afraid I can't help you with this matter. The Cold Soul Black Iron is good, but you need to be alive to use it."

The black-clad monk also stood up, giving a wry smile.

"This person is extremely shrewd and meticulous in his work. He never gives up an inch of the resources he should fight for, but he never easily offends the forces he shouldn't provoke. It is precisely because of this that the Wu family has been able to develop step by step to where it is today."

""

"Now the Wu family has two Foundation Establishment cultivators in charge, and Wu Youcai himself broke through to the early stage of Foundation Establishment at the age of forty. How can we, as rogue cultivators, provoke such figures?"

After saying this, the two of them bowed to Han Qinxue almost without hesitation, then turned and left the main hall.

After a short while, the hall fell silent.

Only Li Mufeng, Shen Yuan, and the rest of the Han family remained in the large hall.

Li Mufeng sat in place, his expression still calm, but a slight ripple was slowly rising in his heart.

Wu Youcai —

Talisman Master —

A sudden rise in recent years —

These clues matched perfectly with the letters left behind by Lu Yu.

If it really is the same person—

This person's possession of everything he has today is probably not due to any chance encounter, but rather because he climbed up step by step, step by step, over the corpses of Lu Yu and his wife.

Han Qinxue felt a pang of bitterness when she saw Ning Tiehe and the others leave without hesitation. So they really didn't want to provoke him?

In recent days, she had also tried to visit some Foundation Establishment cultivators in Tianque Immortal City, and even wanted to use the name of a sect disciple to intimidate the Wu family.

However, those people all had some connection with Wu Youcai, and none of them wanted to offend a promising Golden Core cultivator for the sake of a declining Han family.

Left with no other choice, she thought of inviting independent cultivators to recruit a few guest elders with impressive backgrounds, hoping to buy the Han family a few years to catch their breath.

But now it seems that she had oversimplified things.

Han Qinxue sighed softly, took out a storage bag, and handed it to Li Mufeng.

"Master Li, I've made you come all this way for nothing."

"Here are some spirit stones for your journey. Please don't find them too expensive."

Li Mufeng did not reach out to take it, but slowly said, "Patriarch Han, your problem is not unsolvable."

Han Qinxue was slightly taken aback.

"I would like to hear the details."

Li Mufeng calmly said, "As long as the Han family produces another Foundation Establishment cultivator, Wu Youcai will naturally not easily set his sights on the Han family again."

Upon hearing this, Han Qinxue couldn't help but smile wryly.

"What you say, fellow Daoist, is certainly true to me, but is Foundation Establishment an easy task?"

"Foundation Establishment Pills are hard to come by. Although I have prepared some Foundation Establishment spiritual items, I still don't have complete confidence and dare not try rashly."

Li Mufeng nodded.

"So, the solution I'm proposing is to buy time for the Han family."

""

As he spoke, he gently flipped his hand over.

A talisman radiating a faint spiritual power quietly appeared in his palm.

On the talisman, spiritual patterns intertwined, and a cyan water dragon appeared and disappeared, its aura alone far surpassing that of a first-tier talisman.

Han Qinxue's pupils suddenly contracted.

"This is?"

"A second-tier talisman?!"

""

Her gaze suddenly fell on Li Mufeng, her expression filled with shock.

Li Mufeng simply smiled faintly and did not explain the origin of the talisman.

"Patriarch Han, do you think this talisman can be exchanged for ten catties of your Han family's Cold Soul Black Iron?"

7

Han Qinxue stared at the second-tier talisman for a long time without looking away.

With this talisman in hand, she would have the confidence to fight to the death even when facing a Foundation Establishment cultivator. But could a mere second-tier talisman really intimidate Wu Youcai?

Seemingly sensing her concerns, Li Mufeng slowly said, "Patriarch Han, you don't need to actually use this talisman. If Wu Youcai comes to your door again, you only need to use this talisman. As for whether to activate it, that's entirely up to you."

Han Qinxue was somewhat puzzled.

"Is that all it takes to make him leave?"

Li Mufeng nodded slightly.

"Although I am not 100% sure, I am at least 70% or 80% sure. Wu Youcai is a first-class high-grade talisman master, so he naturally knows better than anyone else what a second-class talisman means."

,

"If he saw that the Han family suddenly had an extra second-tier water-type talisman of unknown origin, his first reaction would definitely not be to force his way in, but to suspect that there might be a second-tier talisman master behind the Han family that he did not know about."

""

"For someone like him, the unknown is often more terrifying than danger."

Li Mufeng didn't continue speaking; there was one more thing he didn't say.

If Wu Youcai is indeed the person recorded in Lu Yu's letter.

So, when he saw this water dragon talisman, another thought probably came to mind.

Is Lu Yu still alive?

A cultivator who climbs up by stepping on the corpses of others is definitely more suspicious than anyone else.

He would never take any risks before finding out the truth, and these few years were enough for the Han family to prepare for the Foundation Establishment and to determine their future fate.

Han Qinxue remained silent for a long time. She knew that this was a huge gamble, but the Han family didn't have many options left.

Finally, she slowly nodded.

"Okay, I agree to this deal."

""

Half an hour later.

Li Mufeng put away the storage bag containing ten catties of Cold Soul Black Iron and quietly left Phoenix Cry Mountain.