Cautiously Cultivating Immortality in a Strange World

Chapter 6: Huge Reward

"What do you two want?"

Chen Lin stopped in his tracks and cautiously looked at the two of them.

Although he didn't think they would rob him, he didn't understand why they would stop him.

"No need to be alarmed, my cousin and I don't have any ill intentions. We just have a request to make."

Lu Li cupped his hands together and forced a smile.

Chen Lin's eyes flickered slightly, as if he had some idea of their intentions, but he still felt it was unlikely.

At this time, Lu Li spoke up again, "Let me introduce myself first. I'm Lu Li, a member of the Lu family, and this is my cousin, Lan Yuqing. We met at Treasure Pavilion earlier. I urgently need to refine a Soul-Restraining Talisman, and I saw that you bought talisman-making materials, so I thought you might be a talisman master."

Chen Lin's mouth twitched.

It was true.

The other party must be very desperate to act so recklessly.

"Sorry, I'm just a low-level talisman master who has just started out. I can only refine Strength-Boosting Talismans, so I'm afraid I can't be of much help."

Chen Lin shook his head repeatedly.

His refusal was very direct.

Although he wanted to try it out and had the ability to Hit Every Ten Times, he didn't dare agree.

He absolutely couldn't reveal his innate abilities, or he would be killed instantly if others thought he had some kind of treasure.

Even if others believed it was an innate ability, there was a high possibility of being imprisoned and used as a talisman-making slave.

In this cultivation world, there was no concept of justice or morality, only the law of the jungle.

Lu Li didn't mind Chen Lin's refusal.

He sneered coldly and said, "I am planning to hold a talisman making conference tonight at the Lianyun Inn. I sincerely invite you to come and participate.” 

“If you have any acquaintances who are talisman masters, you can also recommend them to come. I, Lu, have plenty of spirit stones, and no matter who it is, as long as they can refine the talisman I need, I'll reward them with 50 middle-grade spirit stones. The recommender will also receive a reward of 5 middle-grade spirit stones!"

Chen Lin's eyes widened in shock.

The reward was truly too generous!

"Okay, then."

He nodded in agreement.

Spirit stones!

The huge reward had instantly broken down Chen Lin's defenses.

Seeing this, Lu Li's face also looked much better.

Then, the two cousins simultaneously sneered coldly and flew away, their figures disappearing into the distance.

Chen Lin gazed enviously at their backs, thinking about when he could learn to fly and wouldn't have to crawl through the snow.

He waited until their figures had completely disappeared before he snapped his mouth shut and looked away.

He continued to make his way back home, struggling through the snow.

There were many others crawling through the snow as well.

From a distance, it looked like a group of stiff, undead creatures, emitting eerie, cold laughter.

This was no longer the demeanor of cultivators, but rather a bunch of eerie, crazy people.

Chen Lin quickened his pace.

He returned to his courtyard with a heavy-heart, and happened to run into his neighbour, the yellow-faced woman.

"Hmph, old rascal!"

He had wanted to greet her, but she glared at him with a bad attitude, making him swallow his words.

Chen Lin twitched his mouth, too lazy to bother with such a woman, and ignored her as he walked into his room.

He had just taken off his cotton clothes and hat when the door was knocked on.

"Friend Chen, it's me, Zhao Zhengyuan."

Chen Lin's eyes flashed, and he grasped a talisman in his hand and opened the door.

"Friend Chen, something terrible has happened!"

As soon as the door opened a crack, Zhao Zhengyuan squeezed in, with a look of panic on his face.

"What's wrong?"

Sensing the other party's emotions, Chen Lin also became a little nervous.

"They're all dead!"

Zhao Zhengyuan's face turned pale, and his lips trembled nonstop.

"What's going on? Are they all dead?"

Chen Lin was puzzled, but soon his expression changed drastically.

"Could it be that those who were possessed by the evil spirit are all dead?"

Zhao Zhengyuan nodded repeatedly.

"That's right. I told you before that many people were possessed like us, didn't I? This morning, I saw you go out, and I also went out to investigate. That's when I found out that they're all dead, and their deaths are similar to Sun Shi and others!"

Chen Lin's face turned gloomy.

The person mentioned, Sun Shi, was a cultivator who was possessed by the evil spirit along with the original host. He died not long after returning.

There were a few others who didn't survive either.

It's said that their deaths were gruesome, like they were dried up, and their entire bodies turned into mummies.

"Are they really all dead? Not a single one survived?"

Chen Lin's voice was dry.

If that's the case, then his and Zhao Zhengyuan's existence would be too conspicuous, and they would definitely attract attention.

Zhao Zhengyuan's face didn't look good either, and he spat out a mouthful of saliva. "The ones from last time are all dead, but new cultivators who were possessed have appeared, and it's already caught people's attention. Many are discussing this matter."

"There are more people possessed?"

Chen Lin was shocked.

The more people possessed, the more conspicuous he and Zhao Zhengyuan would be, and that's not a good thing.

"That's right, and there are quite a few of them. There are two rumors going around: one is that a powerful evil creature has appeared outside the city and is targeting Kaiyuan City, and the other is that it's a plague."

Zhao Zhengyuan pulled himself out of his tense emotions and sat down in a chair.

"A plague?"

Chen Lin furrowed his brow. "Impossible, right? Can cultivators also get infected with plague?"

Zhao Zhengyuan gave a cold, sidelong glance. "Of course they can, but it's definitely not an ordinary plague. Don't worry, I, Zhao, have some research on plagues!"

Chen Lin automatically ignored the other's nonsense and remained silent.

If it's really a plague, then that would be good. As long as they isolate themselves and don't come into contact with others, they can avoid it. But if it's a powerful evil creature targeting them, the consequences would be unthinkable.

Moreover, if a powerful, strange creature appears outside, the danger of him escaping from this place would increase exponentially.

"What do you think it is?"

Chen Lin asked casually.

"Ah, who knows? We'll find out after a while. Anyway, no matter what it is, we're powerless. This heavy snow is blocking our way, and we can't even find a path out of the city. We can only wait inside."

Zhao Zhengyuan sighed and shook his head as he left the room.

After he left, Chen Lin fell into deep thought, but no matter how he thought about it, it was just like Zhao Zhengyuan said – there was no way out.

It's definitely not possible to escape from the city now.

The half-meter-thick snow wouldn't allow them to fly, and the demonic beasts outside would probably be starving, making it suicidal to go out. Not to mention the possibility of a powerful, strange creature.

"This world is too crazy to proceed step by step! "

Chen Lin gritted his teeth and made a decision.

Originally, he planned to take it slow and steady, relying on his "Hit Every Ten Times" ability to slowly cultivate, but this sudden change forced him to alter his plans.

He didn't continue making talismans but instead cooked a pot of spiritual rice porridge, drank it, and then began to meditate and cultivate.

In the evening, he prepared himself and left the room with his backpack on.