Chương 138: Weighing Options

Ch138 Weighing Options I give a simple wave while turning to leave Meng Ruo's shop.

"Thank you, this will do just fine. I'll be seeing you again soon." A complicated expression of uncertainty is left on the older woman's face behind me. I walk back down the Jade Market Alley to my own shop, and make my way into the isolated courtyard. With a single thought, I disappear into my hidden realm. Lan Xin's voice hits my ears the moment I do.

"Hey! You're finally back!" She stands up with a startled expression, halting her quiet cultivation, and Meimei jumps from her lap to run after me. I ignore the fiery woman and walk to the edge of the array.

"Hello? Are you listening to me? You can't just leave me here forever!" The little white fox climbs up my leg, and I step off the array, up the floating jade steps. Lan Xin calls out again, but dense golden mist rises behind me, and her words are muffled out. I step onto the enlightenment island and pull out my new enchanted stone bullet talisman along with a bronze upgrade card. Meimei curiously looks over my shoulder, hanging on with her small claws to my robe as a flash of white light fills my hands.

The thin paper grows in size to become a piece of hard, earthy wood, and the subtle vibrations coming off of it grow denser and heavier. When I imprint it again, new system labels appear in my mind. [Perfect Grade Tier 1 Offensive Talisman][Perfected Stage Mortal Grade Harmony Enchantment]"It works… just like I thought…" I murmur, flipping the small upgraded artifact over a few times in my hand. It feels far stronger than the enchanted incineration talismans Meng Ruo gave me during the wedding.

It now holds the attack power of a 12th level qi refiner's stone bullet spell, strengthened even further with a perfected mortal grade physique. I pull out my Azure Lightning Attack Talisman in the other hand and feel its aura in comparison. It's tough to be certain, as one is pure qi, while the other has two energies compounding. From my instincts alone, the stone bullet talisman feels at least on par in strength with a low grade tier 2 artifact.

A smile grows on my face as I stow both away and pull out a heavy barrel of inferior quality spirit rice wine next. It has enough wine inside to fill a few hundred small bottles. With another tap of an upgrade card, the aged wood becomes pristine, almost white. The iron wrapped around the barrel turns to a shiny silver. This upgrade process worked just like the vial of rock bee honey.

In the past, I tried upgrading sealed vials of pills, or even stacks of talismans, but they never worked in the same way as these liquid items do. It is still a mystery to me exactly how the system classified something as a single item. I drop the barrel back into my storage and pull out the tier 2 contract next. To imprint it, I have to close my eyes and use all my focus. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Thick wisps of qi flows from my dantian, and pours out my fingers into the talisman to slowly make it glow bright white. Over a third of all my available qi is used up, and two strict commands are stored into the talisman. I let out an exhale, and let this contract drop into my storage too, then begin to think about the confrontation I'm about to have. It is going to go one of two ways. The first is that she signs the contract without resistance.

This will only occur if her mental state has already deteriorated completely under the pressure of the last few days, followed by being trapped in this hidden realm. In this case she'll submit to work as a compliant tool from here on out. The second option is that she will refuse. It is the one I expect. Considering her attitude the instant I stepped back in here, she does not sound like a woman who has given up.

Either way, this contract will be used as intended, or as leverage to steer this interaction in a favorable direction. The jade steps back down to the cultivation platform appear, and the golden mist fades. Lan Xin still stands in its center with an irritated expression. I stop ignoring her and respond.

"You're welcome. I healed your body and had my spirit beast mend your soul…" I scratch the little fox's head on my shoulder while walking back to the array's center.

"Though, naming her without me was unfortunate. Meimei suits her well, and there are far more demanding issues to focus on, so I won't complain." The tiny white ball of fur in question lets out a cheerful yip and crawls down my robes to run into the pure metal portion of the cultivation array. Lan Xin takes a step back and crosses her arms, looking me up and down. I inspect her too, seeing that there is no longer a single scar left on her body. Her skin is smooth, even more snow-white than before.

Her soul's strength has returned back to its peak. Flames do not flicker on her skin or eyes at all. Her mid-stage spirit grade physique is still cracked and fragile. I'm unsure if this is because of a premature breakthrough or if the foundation establishment blood qi damaged it too severely. Her serpent shares the same exact cracks all over its inner energy body, and it does not come out of her skin more than just to peek with its eyes every once in a while. Lan Xin breaks the silence again.

"Sure, you healed me, but are you going to stay on the run forever? Are you just going to keep me trapped in here until you find safety?" I raise an eyebrow.

"I'm not on the run… I already told you, I took care of that mess… Lingshi City is safe." She shakes her head in confusion.

"I still don't understand how. A Late Stage Foundation Establishment, with two spirit grade physiques. Any of those tier 2 items you have, even combined, they would never be enough." I crack a grin.

"Look around you… Do you think those artifacts are my limit? Do you think I'd walk into a public gathering of foundational cultivators without knowing I could kill every last one of them if they tried to turn on me? Do you think this life is all fun and games, that everyone wants to be your friend if you have enough ranking in the sect?" Lan Xin's gaze shifts with understanding, and she murmurs, "No… I guess not…" After a pause, she still looks at me with concern.

"So you actually killed Jiang Duo alone. Did you know he used to be an elder of the combat peak? The sect will punish you, no matter the reason, you'll have your cultivation ruined and be exiled at best… Even if you think you're safe now, you can't go back to the sect!" I roll my eyes.

"I've had the Mu and Wang Patriarchs gracefully take credit for killing that old demon, just like you are known for single-handedly killing the Tang Patriarch and fighting off all four elders of the Jiang Family at once." Lan Xin's mouth opens, but no words come out.

"The situation outside is quite safe, but that doesn't mean I'll just be letting you out to do as you wish. You remember the terms I gave you before bringing you here, don't you? You've wasted too many of my resources to come this close to killing yourself multiple times already. I need more control." Her eyes dart around the mist, but there is built up frustration leftover in her gaze. While I was outside, she tried every possible way to escape and failed. I pull out the glowing white piece of qi infused jade.

"This will do just fine for now. A Tier 2 spirit contract. I've already imprinted it with two commands. The first is to never tell a single soul of this hidden realm or anything you've seen inside. The second is to follow any order given without refusal." Her face turns pale, but I let out a sigh.

"Not much will change from our current arrangement, there will just be another layer of guaranteed trust built in. I simply need my spirit stones collected, various errands run, and a face with more prestige than mine to take on a few public achievements. For example, you have to claim your reward from the Mu Family for helping during the wedding. They've kindly gathered together all the inferior grade spirit vein mines surrounding the city and wish to give them to you."

I walk forward, but a sharp pressure begins to grow from her side of the array. My steps come to a halt once her skin begins to light up with flames. She responds through gritted teeth.

"No. Not like this. I refuse…"