Chapter 13: Turning the Tables

“Uncle, if he were really that powerful, would he still be living in this shabby house?” Lin Xiang spoke up.

A few hundred spirit stones—after working for so long, neither he nor his uncle had ever managed to get that many.

“Uncle!” Lin Yunshan’s eyes flashed with ruthlessness. Fortune favors the bold.

All this time, the two of them had never acted within the market district. The main reason was that their targets rarely carried enough spirit stones; risking the attention of the enforcement squad for such a meager reward wasn’t worth it. But that didn’t mean no one ever made a move in the market. Every day, cultivators died here—most weren’t victims of demonic cultivators, though the blame often fell on them.

“Go call Old Ghost Wang Qing. We don’t want to capsize in a ditch.” Their target was a talisman master; Lin Yunshan thought it best to be cautious.

“Uncle, bringing another person means—” Lin Xiang grew anxious.

Before he could finish, he received a slap on the head. “Idiot! Talisman masters are never easy to deal with. We've already attracted his attention tonight. The more, the merrier—Old Ghost Wang’s Blood Venom Centipede might come in handy. Once the job’s done, we’ll deal with him, too.”

“You keep watch. I’ll go prepare some antidotes—don’t want to get poisoned by Old Ghost Wang’s tricks.”

…

Inside the house.

Shen Lian snorted quietly, then swiftly grabbed two handfuls of talismans.

“If you’re so reckless, you’ll get a taste of my talisman array.”

“Go.”

His spiritual power gathered onto the talismans, sending them flying toward every corner of the room. The fluttering talismans landed skillfully on beams, floors, walls, and hidden corners.

Talisman arrays were a branch of formation arts. Shen Lian hadn’t studied proper formations yet, but thanks to the system’s inheritance of hundreds of first-grade lower-tier talismans—including basic array combinations—he could mimic their arrangement.

By combining different talismans within a fixed area, he could unleash their collective power.

Whoosh—

Without a proper foundation, Shen Lian simply followed the inherited patterns, and his spiritual power was quickly drained.

He didn’t hesitate, taking out two Yellow Sprout Pills and swallowing them. He’d already consumed one while drawing the talismans earlier, to replenish his energy.

Now, with most of his power depleted, the pills refined much faster than before.

Crisis breeds motivation, after all.

Without being targeted, he’d never have achieved such a breakthrough.

Since returning, he’d drawn sixteen talismans in one go.

Including those meant for self-defense, there were nearly forty talismans arranged throughout the small house.

Although all were lower-tier, in such a cramped space, their combined explosion would crush even late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators.

Now, he waited to see if the cultivators tailing him would break in.

Fortunately, they were only mid-stage Qi Refinement—if they were late-stage, with spiritual sense, his setup would have been exposed.

Night fell.

On Shen Lian’s bed, the blanket was piled high, everything silent.

Beneath the covers, a large hole had opened in the stone floor, perfectly fitting Shen Lian’s body.

“If only I had spiritual sense,” he thought bitterly. For now, all he could do was wait and gamble that those outside would be blinded by greed.

Rustle, rustle—

In the darkness, Shen Lian—focused and waiting—heard the sound of earth being disturbed.

A strange, unsettling airflow seeped up from below.

He flipped his palm, activating several talismans.

A Concealment Talisman and a Golden Light Talisman enveloped him in protective light.

“Quick and quiet—avoid attracting attention.”

“Stick the Golden Light Talisman on for defense.”

Outside, the three attackers simultaneously produced talismans and slapped them onto themselves, transforming into three glowing figures.

Crash!

The door and adjoining wooden wall were smashed open. Their magic tools shrieked as, together, they struck toward the bed.

A cold gleam tore through the blanket, slamming into a shimmering field of talisman light.

“He’s still inside—good, he hasn’t run…”

The small room was suddenly crowded with three people, their combined attack unleashing spiritual power that exploded within the confined space.

Buzz—

In an instant, the talisman light surged. The talismans stuck around the room were forcibly activated.

Light flashed everywhere, forming a barrier of earthy yellow.

First-grade lower-tier Earth Source Talisman.

Then, the floor began to ripple like mud.

Swamp Array—formed by combined talismans!

As the ground wobbled, gaps appeared under the attackers’ Golden Light Talismans.

Rustle—

Vines, as thin as snakes, sprouted from the earth, wrapping around the trio’s legs.

Crucially, these vines were covered in sharp thorns, piercing flesh and inducing numbness.

Thorn Vine Talisman—another combination.

“This is bad! This talisman master is tough—retreat!” Lin Yunshan immediately realized they’d hit an iron wall.

The trio tried to back out, but found themselves trapped: the yellow talisman light blocked their escape, vines pinned their feet, and the mud made them unstable.

Whoosh, whoosh!

“Ah…” Lin Xiang screamed.

His lower body was exposed, pierced through by the thorns.

The pain sent his spiritual power into chaos, shattering his Golden Light Talisman.

Buzz—

A ball of fire crashed down, engulfing Lin Xiang.

Lin Yunshan tried to save his nephew but found himself helpless, flames enveloping him as well.

The entire yellow barrier erupted into roaring fire.

Fire Talismans rained down one after another.

Crash—

Lin Yunshan and Old Ghost Wang’s protective talismans shattered, flames searing their bodies.

“Ah…” Amid the screams, Old Ghost Wang glared at Lin Yunshan with bitter resentment.

Where was the promised fat sheep?

How had it turned into roasted lamb?

In the cramped space, dozens of talismans struck—this was no ordinary talisman master.

In their final cries, the three figures were enveloped by fire.

Moments later.

Shen Lian returned.

He activated two more Fire Talismans, dropping them onto the barely burnt corpses.

The three charred skeletons, huddled together, were consumed once more.

When the flames died, he rummaged through the ashes with his battered flying sword.

As for their storage bags, they’d been incinerated.

He managed to dig out three broken magical tools.

At that moment, a cracking sound echoed—the Earth Source Talisman was collapsing, the shock waves already damaging the house.

He gathered the remaining items and placed them in his storage bag, then took out a Burrowing Talisman, ready to vanish.

His gaze caught a purple-black leg on the floor.

He lifted it with his sword—it was a dead spider.

He stowed the spider in his bag and disappeared.

Whoosh—

Night fell. Flames surged inside the house, thick smoke rising to the sky, causing a stir.

But none of the nearby cultivators emerged.

The enforcement squad arrived half an hour later, only to find a scorched ruin.

…

In a new house near the street, Shen Lian frowned deeply.

This job had been far from smooth.

It exposed many weaknesses.

He shouldn’t have cleaned up the aftermath himself.

If only he had a puppet.

Against mid-stage Qi Refinement, this was manageable. But facing late-stage cultivators with external spiritual sense, his talisman arrays wouldn’t suffice.

“I never had the resources before, and this time was too rushed. I must refine my cremation package and make it foolproof.”

Luckily, he’d set up several spare residences beforehand.

He could no longer stay in the southern district of the market.