Record of a Demon’s Cultivation

 

Translator: Cinder Translations

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Looking at the sneaky man, Zhu Mei's icy face was full of disdain.

 

She scolded sternly,

 

"Zhao Dapeng, you schemed endlessly, disregarding the sect's rules, and in the end, you want to force me to marry this fool. You'd better abandon that idea early. Don’t entertain such foolish thoughts."

 

"Even though my son and I are weak, we would rather starve to death than live with your foolish brother."

 

Zhu Mei threw out a cloth bag, her voice cold as she continued,

 

"Here are ten spirit stones. Don’t disturb us again."

 

After speaking, Zhu Mei directly closed the courtyard gate.

 

Zhu Mei’s sudden huge transformation left Zhao Dapeng momentarily at a loss for how to respond, staring blankly as her figure was blocked by the gate.

 

Why was this widow suddenly willing to pay the rent?

 

The sneaky man was also dumbfounded. This was completely different from what they had discussed last night.

 

"Big brother, what should we do? You said you would find me a wife."

 

Zhao Dapeng's face turned extremely ugly, changing colors rapidly. After a few breaths, he said,

 

"Let's go back! Her husband died outside, and all his possessions were lost. With only the ten spirit stones of compensation, I want to see how long she can hold on!"

 

"But my wife..."

 

"I'll find you a mortal woman."

 

......

 

In the small courtyard next door, Ai Kun, who had overheard most of the conversation, shook his head and sighed.

 

"Zhu Mei’s husband was named Lu Hong. He was an ambitious man. We were on good terms when he was alive, which counts as friendship in this deceitful world of cultivation."

 

"Who would have thought that I, an old man who likes to stay in the market town, would still be alive, while he, who aspired to become a Foundation Establishment cultivator, would fall so early?"

 

"Heaven is unpredictable, and misfortunes befall humans."

 

"Stop lamenting here. You didn't even go help that widow and orphan," Song Wen said impatiently.

 

"I'm just an old man who can barely take care of himself. How could I help them..."

 

After chatting for a while, the topic returned to talismans. In the end, unable to refuse Ai Kun's pleading, Song Wen agreed to draw two Thunder Talismans for him every day.

 

Song Wen claimed he couldn’t produce many Thunder Talismans each day, but that wasn’t true. His spiritual sense was as strong as that of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. The mental energy needed for drawing Thunder Talismans didn’t affect him at all.

 

Even using only the pure spiritual power cultivated from the "Longevity Technique," drawing ten Thunder Talismans in one go was a piece of cake for Song Wen.

 

......

 

Ten days passed quickly in cultivation, talisman drawing, and alchemy practice.

 

After countless cost-ignoring attempts, Song Wen finally grasped some alchemy techniques.

 

In his most recent attempt, he was just a step away from success.

 

Although he failed in the end, Song Wen was confident that after a few more tries, he would successfully produce the Blood Qi Pill.

 

Just as he was about to disguise himself and go out, Ai Kun appeared at the courtyard gate.

 

"Zhang Cheng, have you finished the twenty Thunder Talismans, you promised me?"

 

"They’re ready."

 

As Song Wen spoke, he touched the storage pouch at his waist and handed twenty talismans to Ai Kun.

 

After verifying the talismans were fine, Ai Kun's old face lit up like a blooming chrysanthemum.

 

"Thank you."

 

He handed Song Wen a cloth bag.

 

Song Wen took the bag and probed it with his spiritual sense, finding eighty spirit stones inside.

 

The market price for twenty Flying Thunder Talismans sold in shops was a hundred spirit stones. According to Fang Ning's seventy percent purchase price, it should have been seventy spirit stones.

 

"The number of spirit stones is incorrect. Why are there ten extra?" Song Wen asked.

 

Ai Kun laughed as he said, "I know you have a low success rate with talismans and rely on them to get by. Since I'm asking for your help, I can’t let you take a loss. Those ten spirit stones are my compensation to you."

 

"Won't you be losing ten spirit stones then?" Song Wen asked.

 

Ai Kun replied with a bitter smile, "There's no other way. We're stuck under the control of the Beastmaster Sect, so we just have to accept being exploited."

 

What he didn't say was that having Song Wen draw twenty talismans for him saved him a lot of time and mental energy, allowing him to create rare talismans that he could sell in the market for high profits. The common Flying Thunder Talismans could be handed over to the Beastmaster Sect.

 

Song Wen didn't ask further and casually put the spirit stones into his storage pouch.

 

Ai Kun suddenly kept glancing towards the widow's courtyard, looking extremely lecherous and suspicious.

 

"You’re not thinking of making a move on Widow Zhu, are you?" Song Wen asked, glaring at Ai Kun with disdain.

 

Ai Kun's eyes widened. "What nonsense are you talking about!"

 

He then lowered his voice and whispered, "Do you know why Zhu Mei so readily paid the rent?"

 

Song Wen shook his head. "How would I know?"

 

Ai Kun leaned in and whispered mysteriously, "She went to the brothel to work."

 

"Brothel?" Song Wen was incredulous.

 

Just days ago, Zhu Mei had fiercely rejected Zhao Dapeng and his foolish brother. Song Wen had admired her strength. How could she have ended up in a brothel so quickly?

 

Ai Kun sighed, "She’s had a hard life. She probably refused Zhao Dapeng's brother to avoid her child suffering. After all, that fool doesn’t know how to be gentle."

 

Thinking of Zhu Mei’s crow's feet and slightly worn face, Song Wen asked, "Can she attract customers at the brothel?"

 

Song Wen worried that with Zhu Mei’s looks, she might not earn enough even to pay the rent.

 

Ai Kun, who had been somewhat somber before, suddenly perked up at this topic.

 

"You don't understand. A married woman, a widow, a dignified aunt, a mature woman; any one of these roles can attract a lot of customers, let alone someone who embodies all four."

 

Seeing Ai Kun's excited expression, Song Wen teased, "Seems like you've been there?"

 

Ai Kun's face immediately turned serious. "Of course not. I told you before, her husband and I were friends. A friend’s wife is off-limits. She's in trouble now, and I can't help her much, but I certainly won’t take advantage."

 

"How is it taking advantage? It's called 'generous assistance'!"

 

Ai Kun looked thoughtful, "You might have a point there. I’ll think about it."

 

Saying this, Ai Kun walked towards the gate. Just as he reached it, he turned back.

 

"By the way, I forgot to tell you, don’t wander around too much recently, especially at night."

 

"Why? Is the market town unsafe?" Song Wen asked, puzzled.

 

Ai Kun nodded, "Recently, there have been consecutive disappearances of rogue cultivators. Some disappeared in the wilderness, and some within the town. In any case, be careful."

 

With that, Ai Kun disappeared around the corner.

 

...

 

Several days later.

 

Song Wen finally succeeded in refining his first batch of Blood Qi Pills, producing two pills, identical to the ones he first took from Ji Yin.

 

Staring at the Blood Qi Pills for a long time, ensuring they were fine, Song Wen calmed his excitement and swallowed one.

 

The familiar rush of blood and the surge of spiritual power hit him once again.

 

However, this time, the small amount of blood consumed didn’t affect him at all.

 

Song Wen quickly activated the "Longevity Technique" to refine the pill's spiritual power. After half an hour, he had absorbed all the spiritual power from the Blood Qi Pill.

 

He then opened his mouth and took the second pill...

 

(End of the Chapter)

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