Chapter Twenty-Three: Talismans

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In the mountains beyond the city.

More than a thousand people had gathered in this desolate wilderness—men and women, old and young alike. There were no buildings in sight, not even wooden huts, and living conditions were terribly primitive. Yet compared with the massacres taking place at every moment inside Yangzhou, simply surviving was already something to be grateful for.

The Old Man in the Straw Hat showed little reaction to someone’s arrival. The main quest required survival for ten days but imposed no restrictions on location. The nearest military commander to these mountains was Commander Liu, a blood relative of the Grand Protector of the current dynasty. He had been abandoned by his allies during the Northern Campaign and had ultimately defected to the Azure Army.

At present, the two sides had reached a tacit agreement. Commander Liu would turn a blind eye to the civilians hiding in the mountains, on the condition that once the massacre of the city was over, all able-bodied men would enlist and do their utmost to recruit the surviving men from within the city.

The Old Man in the Straw Hat had paid a considerable price to secure this hard-won stability. Protecting the survivors could also slightly improve his quest rating.

Jiang He stated his purpose. “I’m looking for Cangshan Fuxue.”

The Old Man in the Straw Hat frowned and said firmly, “Desert Walker, this secret passage concerns the lives of more than a thousand people. If you go back, you’ll only increase the risk. This involves the interests of the main quest. I absolutely cannot yield.”

“Set your business aside for now. I smell a deal.”

Not far away, Cangshan Fuxue came over wearing a Six-Dots helmet. She specialized in talismans, and whenever someone sought her out, their purpose was self-evident. If the two men started fighting, the victor remained uncertain, but her business would certainly be ruined.

Jiang He turned to her. “I intend to buy all the talismans of the kind you gave Chu Fuqiang before.”

Cangshan Fuxue folded her arms, clearly pleased. “You mean Yellow-Paper Tower Talismans. They protect the wearer. Every one of them is of ordinary quality, but making them consumes a great deal of my time and effort. Fifty game coins each, nonnegotiable. And don’t think that’s expensive. Once the quest is over, ask around. I conduct business more fairly than anyone.”

Jiang He weighed his supply of game coins and asked, “How many Yellow-Paper Tower Talismans do you have left?”

Cangshan Fuxue raised two fingers. “Twenty.”

“Not enough money.”

Cangshan Fuxue fell silent.

Brother, then why did you come running over here?

Jiang He produced a cinnabar mirror. “I can trade you a rare-grade item.”

Cangshan Fuxue examined the item’s information and was disappointed. “With this, I might as well buy a truckload of pinhole cameras. You’re from the northwest, aren’t you? Do me a favor and work a little harder. How about going into the mountains to hunt?”

Jiang He thought for a moment. “Your talismans require wild beasts as materials.”

Cangshan Fuxue shrugged. “More precisely, animal hide. Since I mentioned hunting, you should be able to guess that ordinary leather won’t do. There’s an essential difference in spiritual vitality between wild beasts and domesticated livestock. So when the time comes, don’t try to pass off defective goods on me. Two hides of undamaged, good-quality animal skin for one Yellow-Paper Tower Talisman. I’ll keep your mirror as collateral. Once the transaction is complete, you can take it back.”

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The Old Man in the Straw Hat cut in. “If Desert Walker dies in Yangzhou, you’ll lose everything. One game coin can be exchanged for ten thousand yuan through the Order Bureau. On the underground market, the price is another twenty or thirty percent higher, and there are hardly any people willing to exchange them. If you let him go back now, there’s a good chance you won’t recover your costs.”

Cangshan Fuxue was astonished. “Old-timer, you can’t be serious. Even a pig could get away with twenty Tower Talismans.”

“But they can’t stop someone who’s determined to get himself killed.”

The Old Man in the Straw Hat took out a fishing rod and looked coldly at the other man. “I’ve seen that look before, back when I wasn’t old. It’s the look of someone who’s starved enough to want to kill.”

Jiang He raised the mirror and studied himself. Aside from the disguise provided by the gentleman’s monocle, nothing else had changed.

“Spreading malicious rumors.”

The Old Man in the Straw Hat fell silent.

Fine, fine.

The atmosphere gradually grew tense. Concealing this place’s location was the Old Man in the Straw Hat’s bottom line, while Cangshan Fuxue was also hesitating. A deal involving twenty Yellow-Paper Tower Talismans was no small matter; she was not wealthy enough to throw them away casually.

After a long while, Jiang He said, “After I leave, I won’t return to the city through this secret passage. As for the talisman trade, I’ll raise the price to two and a half wild-animal hides for one talisman.”

At that, Cangshan Fuxue immediately tossed over twenty Yellow-Paper Tower Talismans. The Old Man in the Straw Hat had no choice but to put away his fishing rod and turn to leave. Having lost the advantage of two against one, he was unwilling to risk a life-or-death battle alone—especially now that the other party had voluntarily yielded.

Jiang He handed over the cinnabar mirror, and the two of them added each other as friends in the Origin Game. The function was attached to the interface and served only as a means of communication.

…

The fifth night after Yangzhou fell.

Under the Azure soldiers’ wanton slaughter, the local death toll had already surpassed one hundred thousand.

From the mountaintop, Jiang He looked down over the plain below. Military tents stretched for ten miles, and more than ten thousand soldiers filled the landscape. After waiting for five full days, these surrendered troops were restless and ready to move. The lifting of the curfew meant that before long, they would be able to enter Yangzhou and feast to their hearts’ content.

Holding a torch that had just gone out, Jiang He closed his eyes and steeled himself. Then he removed his monocle and repeatedly pressed it against his own face.

The sizzling sound of flesh scorching rang out at once. His strength, which had reached eight points, erupted involuntarily, nearly crushing the wooden shaft of the torch in his hand.

Burns on the surface of his body could be healed with a minor recovery potion, but the pain of being seared by flame was utterly real. The veins on Jiang He’s forehead bulged, and his face twisted into something like the mask of a vengeful ghost.

“…An unyielding will… Damn it… It hurts!”

There was no one around. Jiang He nearly wanted to throw himself to the ground and roll about, but the habits he had cultivated over the years kept him standing silently in place, enduring the pain.

From a young age, he had understood that the slightest sign of weakness would cost him his houseboat, his fishing vessel, and even his personal freedom. A piece of meat that offered no resistance was most likely to awaken mankind’s basest impulses. Even across the various lands, the practice of preying upon families left without male heirs was hardly uncommon, and the criminal underworld of Peaceful Isle was extraordinarily dangerous to ordinary people.

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It took a full quarter of an hour before Jiang He continued onward. He relit the torch and went straight down the mountain, arriving at the military camp.

“Halt!” shouted the officer guarding the camp entrance, raising his spear. The other soldiers immediately grew wary.

The approaching man was clad in armor, his face covered in burn scars. At a glance, he looked like a fierce and ruthless character. Before the Azure soldiers had entered the pass, privately possessing armor in the Central Plains had been a capital offense equivalent to rebellion.

Jiang He calmly raised his military token. “I am Li Tongfeng, Deputy Commander of Wuzhou. I was stationed in western Yangzhou. Your commander, Li Tongyan, is my elder brother. Go and report this at once.”

Suspicion appeared on the gate officer’s face. If this man truly was the commander’s blood brother, his appearance here at such a time was strange no matter how one looked at it.

The officer gave a meaningful glance to a soldier beside him, who immediately ran into the camp.

A quarter of an hour later, a dignified and imposing general emerged, wearing half-armor and accompanied by more than a dozen personal guards.

The general’s expression was grave. He shouted, “What petty scoundrel are you? The commander received news of General Li’s death three days ago. Seize him!”

Two of the guards stepped forward. Jiang He lifted his leg and kicked one of them squarely, sending him flying several yards.

“Take me to my brother.”

Jiang He’s tone was cold, and his heart remained utterly calm. As long as he bore Li Tongfeng’s identity and military token, meeting Commander Li Tongyan was practically inevitable. After all, aside from the commander himself, no one else could completely disprove his identity. Li Tongfeng’s body lay buried beneath the mountain of corpses west of the city, and his head had already been smashed beyond recognition.

The officer and the soldiers said nothing, but they all straightened and put away their weapons.

“You…”

The general found himself in a difficult position. He was seventy percent certain that this man was an impostor, but certainty was not the same as proof. No matter what, blocking him here would plant a thorn in the commander’s heart, because Li Tongfeng’s corpse had yet to be found.

And in the commander’s eyes, anyone bold enough to stop this man might also dare to stop the real Li Tongfeng. The response from headquarters was therefore obvious.

“Hmph. Trying to deceive us, are you? I’ll take you to your death myself.”

The general snorted coldly. If the other man’s identity documents proved false, he would be punished as well, and his mood was therefore exceptionally foul.

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