Chapter 82: A Spirit Hunter’s Duties

The essence of talismans was using cinnabar, black water, animal blood, and various other “dyes” to draw patterns on yellow paper. Different patterns produced different effects. Then yin energy or vital energy was infused into the talisman in hopes of producing special effects.

But the Falling Lightning Incantation... how was that supposed to be expressed through a pattern?

The cold “flash of inspiration” from earlier had given Li Lin an idea.

He went to the county city again and spent a high price to buy several pieces of lightning-struck wood, then sought out the county’s papermaking bureau.

In Great Qi, paper production was a government monopoly. Ordinary people had no way to directly interact with the papermakers at the bureau.

But Spirit Hunters could.

After all, they counted as officials too.

“Sir, you want all of this lightning-struck wood made into yellow paper?”

Li Lin nodded.

“What size sheets do you need? And what thickness?”

“About the same as ordinary yellow paper.”

“Very well.” The papermaker understood. “But this will take some time.”

“How long?”

“Depending on the weather, as little as half a month or as much as a month!”

Li Lin took out a silver ingot and handed it over. “Thank you for your trouble.”

“Many thanks for the reward, sir.” The papermaker happily accepted the silver ingot.

After leaving the papermaking bureau, Li Lin wandered through the streets. Unexpectedly, he ran into Su Huafang, Bai Liwei, Bai Bufan, and Zhao Hao.

The four looked travel-worn, and Bai Bufan’s arm was wrapped in white cloth, as if it had been fractured.

Li Lin greeted them and asked, “Have the four of you just returned from Jin City?”

Seeing Li Lin, all four smiled amicably.

Looking at Bai Bufan, Li Lin asked, “How did you get injured? Perfect timing, I was just about to have lunch. This time it’s my treat, and we can also talk about what happened in Jin City.”

The four immediately smiled.

Zhao Hao laughed loudly. “We want the best dishes and the best wine.”

“No problem.”

Li Lin still had more than thirty gold ingots at home. Treating them to a meal was no issue at all.

The four sat down at Gathered Talent Restaurant and selected the finest private room.

While waiting for the dishes to arrive, Su Huafang placed something on the table that looked like a completely pure, irregular crystal.

“This is the yin stone left behind after Taowu True Lord dispersed.”

Li Lin picked it up and found it soft to the touch, nothing like a crystal.

At the same time, he could feel the powerful evil aura and intense resentment contained within it.

Then he put it back down.

It did not seem as useful as his Shengxi Pills.

“Who defeated Taowu True Lord?”

“Bi Fang True Lord and Fourfold Wonder True Lord.” Bai Liwei’s face was full of amazement. “Those two were absurdly powerful. We were only watching from half a kilometre away (~0.3 miles), yet we still felt utterly shaken, as if we were no different from ants.”

Li Lin looked at the youngster with the bandaged arm beside him. “Then what happened to Bufan’s arm?”

Bai Bufan looked embarrassed. “The gusts produced by their battle blew me away. I crashed into a large tree and broke my arm.”

Bai Liwei cursed, “Serves you right. We told you to lie flat on the ground, but you insisted on standing up.”

“It was too awe-inspiring. I got carried away for a moment.” Bai Bufan spoke helplessly.

Bai Bufan then began describing the scene the four of them had witnessed in the northern outskirts of Jin City.

All three True Lords stood hundreds of metres tall, fighting hand-to-hand while also using supernatural arts. Everywhere they passed was left in ruins.

Even while merely recalling it, the four wore expressions of deep fascination.

Li Lin, however, said, “Since True Lords are so powerful, I wonder how they were subdued in the first place.”

“I’ve heard... that after losing their supply of blood vitality, a True Lord’s strength declines dramatically.” Su Huafang explained, “The reason these True Lords can become so enormous is actually because they are nourished by the devotion and vitality of the people.”

“Oh.”

Li Lin understood.

Now he knew why the great horrors were willing to remain upon their altars.

Su Huafang continued, “Besides, a True Lord without an altar is essentially just a crazed ghost. They’re actually easier to deal with.”

Afterward, Su Huafang shared more common knowledge about True Lords, things Li Lin had never known.

There was nothing that could be done about that. No one had taught him.

Previously, Su Huafang had only been responsible for introducing him to the profession.

After eating and drinking for half a shichen, Su Huafang and the others thanked Li Lin and departed.

Li Lin bought some daily necessities and returned to the village.

Since the talisman paper would take a long time to make, he continued cultivating other martial techniques.

He reassigned the time he had spent on the White Tiger Turning Over Stance to short-weapon training.

The secret manual Wang Tianyou had sent was called Sleeve-Hidden Silver Serpent.

Just as the name suggested, it was an assassination technique that involved hiding a short sword inside one’s sleeve and approaching a target before striking.

Its emphasis was on catching people off guard.

It had only three moves.

Stab the heart.

Pierce the throat.

Gouge the eyes.

Although there were only three moves, every one of them was a killing move.

Yet there had to be a reason it qualified as a secret manual.

The manual contained methods for concealing the short sword, preventing it from falling out while walking, and crafting a short sword that blood would not stick to.

Those were the truly important parts of the manual.

Li Lin got stuck at the second step.

Following the manual’s instructions, he hid the short sword inside his sleeve, but it always fell out easily whenever he walked.

Just practicing this technique alone took him seven days.

One morning, Li Lin was running around his courtyard. After only a few steps, Clack. A short sword dropped from his sleeve.

Li Lin picked it up and was about to continue when he saw an elderly man approaching from the distance.

It was Village Chief Zhang.

The old man walked over with a cane and stopped outside the fence.

“Patrol Hunter Li, may this old man have a few words with you?”

Li Lin wiped away his sweat and said, “Please, Elder.”

“I have a granddaughter who married into Pingzheng Village. A few days ago, I visited her there and learned that the village has recently encountered some trouble. It is suspected that they are being disturbed by supernatural entities.”

Li Lin thought for a moment and said, “I remember that Pingzheng Village was previously guarded by Senior Sun Youyi. He unfortunately passed away some time ago, but there should still be a True Lord stationed there.”

Village Chief Zhang shook his head. “I don’t know either. That’s simply what my granddaughter told me. She also said that Pingzheng Village has already gathered one hundred taels of silver, about 3.7 kg (~8.2 lb), and wishes to invite Patrol Hunter Li to investigate. Whether you achieve anything or not, the one hundred taels will still be paid.”

Li Lin was even more puzzled. “Why me? Aren’t there stronger Spirit Hunters in the county city?”

Village Chief Zhang explained, “Patrol Hunter Li, perhaps you don’t know this, but you’re already quite famous among the surrounding villages and towns.”

“Hmm?”

Li Lin was even more confused.

Village Chief Zhang smiled. “The wandering ghost outside Shangtikou Village had existed for decades. Everyone in the surrounding villages knew about it. But Patrol Hunter Li eliminated it and gave Shangtikou Village a peaceful life. News of that has already spread.”

So that was it.

Li Lin pondered.

One hundred taels of silver was no small sum.

But he believed Pingzheng Village could afford it.

Because it was the largest and wealthiest village in Yulin County.

There were more than eight hundred households and over four thousand residents.

Pingzheng Village even had a major local clan, the Zhao family.

Those one hundred taels of silver had probably been provided by the Zhao family.

Besides, this was one of a Spirit Hunter’s duties.

After weighing the advantages and disadvantages, Li Lin said, “Then I’ll go take a look tomorrow.”

Village Chief Zhang was overjoyed. Being able to persuade Li Lin to help Pingzheng Village made him feel extremely proud.

“Many thanks, Patrol Hunter Li. Sorry to trouble you.”

Li Lin smiled.

For a well-paying job, it was not troublesome at all.