At dawn the next day, as the many young apprentices in the alchemy room began their morning duties, Yu Lie decided to take a break for himself.
He stepped out of the alchemy room, glanced at the myna bird squatting in the corner, and continued on his way to the tea room without a word.
After a simple breakfast, Yu Lie returned to his solitary stone house.
At the same time, the myna bird took advantage of the moment when no one was paying attention and landed in the small courtyard where the stone house was located.
Once inside, Yu Lie took a moment to rest before pulling out a tiny blood-strengthening pill, no larger than a sesame seed, from his sleeve and feeding it to the myna bird.
The bird then tilted its head, extended its claw, closed its eyes, and assumed a posture that suggested it was ready for Yu Lie to do whatever he wished.
Yu Lie muttered, "Useless creature," as he pricked his own palm.
He then proceeded to cut the myna bird's claw and pressed their wounds together.
This was the "Blood Grasp" technique mentioned in the Beast-Taming Pill formula, which allowed humans and animals with similar blood qi to share sensations to some extent, facilitating communication.
It was worth noting that due to Yu Lie's cultivation of poison techniques, his blood was now toxic and could even corrode metal.
Even though the Beast-Taming Pill had been infused with his blood during its creation, animals that consumed it would develop a resistance to his blood.
However, Yu Lie had secretly experimented with other animals and found that even creatures like the black snake fish couldn't withstand his "Blood Grasp" in a short period.
Only this myna bird, perhaps because it had been used by Yu Lie for poison testing over a long time, had developed a resistance to poison, and its tolerance overlapped significantly with Yu Lie's own.
Moreover, being a spiritual bird, it only took a few days of simple feeding for it to survive the "Blood Grasp" with Yu Lie.
However, the bird's temperament was truly something else—it wasn't afraid of poison but was terrified of blood.
If it weren't for the fact that it happily pecked at bloodied black snake fish, Yu Lie would have suspected it had a phobia of blood.
With his eyes slightly closed, Yu Lie's blood qi intertwined with the myna bird's demonic aura.
Images slowly appeared in his mind, and though they were blurry, he could vaguely make out the bird's recent experiences.
Soon, the images in Yu Lie's mind settled on the scene of the landlady disappearing into the alchemy room.
He suddenly opened his eyes, a look of suspicion flashing in them.
"There's definitely something fishy going on. It really is the alchemy room!" he exclaimed.
He released the myna bird, casually flicking another sesame-sized blood-strengthening pill into its mouth, and then began to pace and ponder.
From the scene of the landlady disappearing into the alchemy room, Yu Lie was certain that someone powerful within the alchemy room had taken action against the landlady and her son.
After a moment of contemplation, Yu Lie let out a long sigh.
He once again realized that no matter how strict or secure the town's rules were, they were far less safe than having his own strength.
The fate of the landlady and her son was a clear example of this!
As for what exactly had happened to the two, Yu Lie decided not to investigate for now.
After all, he was just a former tenant in a large courtyard, and currently only a mid-level apprentice, not even a high-level one.
What right did he have to seek justice for others? One misstep, and he could end up losing his own life!
Yu Lie thought to himself, "Perhaps one day, when I become a full-fledged disciple and take over the alchemy room, I can use this incident to make an example and warn others…"
Having made up his mind, he calmed his thoughts and pushed aside these distractions.
He then took out his medicine preparation tools and began to concoct the pills he had refined earlier in the stone room.
He worked until late into the night.
Looking up at the sky outside, Yu Lie didn't go straight to bed.
Instead, after a moment of thought, he packed up and headed towards the direction of Black Street.
Yu Lie was going to the small shop run by Old Yu and his partner to retrieve the items they had agreed upon.
A few days ago, Old Yu had already informed Yu Lie to come by when he had the chance, but Yu Lie had been busy with various tasks and hadn't gone yet.
Today, having finished a batch of pills and being stirred by the incident with the landlady and her son, Yu Lie thought it best to get his hands on the life-saving tools as soon as possible.
The sooner he had them, the safer he would be.
Walking quietly through the eerie streets of Blackwater Town at night, Yu Lie soon found himself in the bustling Black Street.
The lively scene immediately enveloped him, and for a moment, he had to jostle through the crowd.
Black Street was much more prosperous and chaotic than before, at least ten times more so! Yu Lie had heard from Old Yu a few days ago that recently, there were desperate people who would borrow the entrance fee just to come to Black Street and steal.
Yu Lie cautiously covered his blood toad belly and glanced at the entrance, where nearly ten lonely hands of various colors hung like cured meat, serving as a warning to all who passed by.
Despite this, after walking a few steps, he still felt as if someone was watching him, and not just one person.
Fortunately, his blood qi was strong, and no fool dared to approach him.
After navigating through the streets, Yu Lie arrived at the small shop.
He knocked on the door, and a lazy voice came from inside:
"Who is it?"
Yu Lie knocked again according to the agreed-upon signal and then said, "Brother, it's me."
"Oh!" The lazy voice changed, and the small door immediately opened.
A masked head peeked out and looked at Yu Lie:
"Come in, come in!"
Once inside the underground room, the masked man removed his disguise, revealing a square face, and smiled, "Brother, you've finally come. I've been waiting for you for a few days."
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, Brother Guo," Yu Lie exchanged a few pleasantries with him and then got straight to the point.
Brother Guo seemed well-prepared.
After Yu Lie entered, he rummaged through a shelf and took out a wooden box and a list.
Placing both items on the low table, Brother Guo introduced, "This wooden box contains a set of talismans prepared according to your wishes and my experience."
Yu Lie's expression shifted slightly.
He cupped his hands in thanks and gently opened the box, revealing a series of talismans, some pale and some light yellow, glowing with spiritual light.
Brother Guo counted on his fingers:
"There are seven concealment talismans, enough to hide your aura for seven days; three calming talismans, which can free you from distress three times; three water purification talismans and three clothing purification talismans, each usable ten times; Three illusion talismans; five message talismans, each capable of transmitting three sentences over a distance of no more than thirty feet; four gill talismans, each allowing you to breathe underwater for half an hour, and they even threw in two webbed talismans; Two levitation talismans, each allowing you to rise ten feet for five breaths; three gecko climbing talismans; one earth-sinking talisman; one stone-transforming talisman; seven pain-relief talismans; and two rage talismans…"
Brother Guo went on and on, then cautioned Yu Lie:
"The pain-relief talismans can be used, but make sure not to use them more than three times a day. It's best to use them once every other day, or you might get addicted. And the rage talismans are only for life-threatening situations. Remember that!"
Yu Lie couldn't contain his joy upon hearing all this.
He stood up and thanked Brother Guo sincerely, "Thank you, Brother Guo. You've really gone above and beyond!"
This was genuine gratitude from Yu Lie.
The talismans Brother Guo had described ranged from cheap to expensive.
Yu Lie could have bought them himself, but he would never have been able to gather such a variety, especially at this critical time.
The set of talismans in the wooden box covered almost every aspect of survival—food, clothing, shelter, travel, flying, swimming, burrowing, communication, and life-saving measures.
With this set of talismans, Yu Lie's chances of survival outside the town would be far better than most apprentices.
But that wasn't all.
Brother Guo pulled out two wooden plaques from his sleeve and said, "I couldn't find the paper donkey talisman you mentioned, but I managed to get these 'Water Monkey Armor Horse Talismans' for you. Tie them to your legs, and you can travel six to seven hundred miles a day over mountains, hills, and streams as if walking on flat ground. In a fight, they'll make you as agile as a monkey, allowing you to move freely between trees."
He joked, "These are top-notch talismans, no less than the paper donkey talisman you wanted!"
Yu Lie was even more thrilled and praised, "Great talismans, indeed!"
Finally, Brother Guo wasn't done yet.
He pointed to the list on the low table and said, "Take a look at this list. I couldn't find the paper puppet talisman you wanted, but I can get you one of these items."
Yu Lie looked down and saw that the list had several charcoal sketches with brief descriptions.
The first thing that caught his eye was the "Inferior Storage Bag," a blood artifact!
Looking at the other items—Soul-Stealing Blood Spear, Blood-Drinking Ring Blade, Soft Thorn Blood Armor, Self-Firing Blood Bow… all of them were blood artifacts.
Yu Lie mentally calculated the cost of the talisman set and remembered that blood artifacts usually required spirit stones to trade.
He looked at Brother Guo in surprise and asked tentatively, "Can my share still buy a blood artifact?"
Brother Guo waved his hand, "If I say I can get it, I can get it. If necessary, I'll just drag Old Yu over and use him as collateral!"
Yu Lie immediately understood that the remaining difference would be covered by Brother Guo and Old Yu.
Whether through favors or other exchanges, the two were kindly helping Yu Lie out.
And Yu Lie accepted this kindness! The set of talismans would make his life in the wild much easier, and with an additional blood artifact, his strength would double, making his life more comfortable and secure.
But looking at the blood artifacts on the list, Yu Lie found himself struggling to choose.
Apart from the storage bag, he wanted all the other blood artifacts!
(End of Chapter)