Chapter 57: Harvest

The Drop-Gold Merchant Guild possessed quite a progressive business philosophy; to bolster their renown, they conceived the novel concept of a "brand mascot," commissioning the great grandmaster of drawing, Xuan Daozi, to design it. After thrice revising the drafts, it was ultimately determined that the initial sketch would serve as the mascot itself.

That initial sketch depicted a plump little piglet clasping a coin in its paws, looking utterly endearing.

Once the Drop-Gold Merchant Guild had its brand mascot, its fame did indeed spread far and wide with spectacular results; upon learning of this, numerous merchants followed suit one after another, acquiring mascots unique to themselves.

The tofu shop on the Front Street of Yanjiang County was precisely one of them.

Qin Yuanhao had not truly executed his subordinate; once he calmed down and thought about it, the man worked meticulously and never made blunders, so if he said the person could not be found, then they truly could not be found.

It could not possibly be that the tofu shop's mascot had actually come to life to run about spreading rumors and causing trouble.

"To be so conspicuous in appearance and yet untraceable, it seems a fellow disciple of the Demonic Sect is attempting to frame me!" Qin Yuanhao sneered, easily guessing that this was a deliberate act by someone, though he knew not who the culprit was.

Such occurrences were by no means rare within the Demonic Sect; Qin Yuanhao himself had done things that undermined his companions.

So much time had passed that every single clue had vanished; Qin Yuanhao could only swallow this bitter grievance for now, slowly scheming for the future as to whom he should settle the score with.

"Since he cannot be found, there is no need to look for him any longer."

Qin Yuanhao drew a stack of papers and several pieces of silver from his robes, tossing them to his subordinate.

This was also one of the reasons he had refrained from killing him; the tasks arranged by the Helm Leader always required someone to perform them, and if he killed the man now, where would he find a replacement?

"At the first break of dawn tomorrow, gather the brothers, head to the neighboring eight counties, and covertly distribute these sheets of paper to the black markets. This silver is your allowance and travel expenses for this month, do you hear me clearly!"

"I, I hear you clearly." The subordinate was startled into a tremor by Qin Yuanhao's final shout.

"Louder."

"I hear you clearly!" The subordinate straightened his back and bellowed once more, shouting until his neck flushed crimson.

The elderly matron next door flared up in anger, her voice carrying clearly right through the wall: "Do you have any idea what time it is, what are you shouting for!"

The elderly matron's volume was even greater than the subordinate's.

A flash of murderous intent flickered in the corner of Qin Yuanhao's eye.

"Boss, the other party is a Foundation Establishment cultivator who came here to live in seclusion," the subordinate hastily said, for many cultivators enjoyed amusing themselves in the mortal realm; it was entirely possible that even a street vendor grilling skewers might be a cultivator.

Qin Yuanhao gave a cold snort, said no more, and departed from the place.

The subordinate let out a yawn, thinking to himself that the boss had finally left, and tumbled straight into sleep.

He still had to rise early tomorrow to work.

The subordinate frequently received various nonsensical tasks assigned by Qin Yuanhao; for the sake of secrecy, Qin Yuanhao told them nothing, merely bidding them to do as instructed.

It was the same this time.

Once the subordinate was fast asleep, Lu Yang emerged from the earth, took three sheets of paper, and followed Qin Yuanhao.

Qin Yuanhao had come out solely to find his subordinate, and having concluded his business, he headed back.

When Qin Yuanhao passed by the "One More Time" Barbecue Shop, he paused for a brief moment.

"I was merely in secluded meditation for four days, and a new barbecue shop has already opened? And it's this popular?"

Qin Yuanhao conceived the notion of having a meal; a large crowd meant nothing to him, at worst he would cut the line. For a Foundation Establishment cultivator to dine in a petty place like this, it was already a grace not to demand they kneel to welcome him, so why should he wait in line?

Ultimately, Qin Yuanhao dismissed the thought; barbecue was a thing that required a crowd to have the proper atmosphere, and eating alone would, in the end, lack a bit of joy.

"Some other time."

Qin Yuanhao went home.

Lu Yang returned to the barbecue shop to help out; the moment he stepped back, he saw Meng Jingzhou performing a stand-up monologue, with the diners cheering one after another, clamoring for "one more time."

Lu Yang took a deep breath; you two truly intend to make this barbecue shop bigger and stronger, don't you.

Sensing Lu Yang's gaze, which cut like a knife, Meng Jingzhou hurriedly shut his mouth, honestly assuming the role of a shop waiter, ignoring the diners no matter how they called out.

After a long spell of bustling activity, the diners dispersed one by one, and the barbecue shop finally grew quiet.

The two ghost slaves tidied up the grills and utensils, tallied the ingredients consumed today, and estimated the amount of provisions needed for tomorrow, while the three men sat on the second floor, discussing today's gains.

"How much silver did we earn today?" Meng Jingzhou rubbed his hands together, asking with excitement; building a business from scratch gave him quite a sense of accomplishment.

"Who is talking to you about that kind of gain!" Lu Yang slapped the table and glared, "Have you forgotten what we came here to do?"

"Open a chain of shops?" Man Gu was still thinking about making his family enterprise bigger and stronger.

Lu Yang paid no further heed to these two fools, produced the three sheets of paper, and recounted the circumstances of his tracking tonight.

"Blank paper?"

Meng Jingzhou held a sheet of paper, inspecting both the front and back thoroughly, yet failed to discern any reason for it.

Lu Yang also did not know how this paper ought to be used: "Qin Yuanhao had people distribute these papers to the black market; there must be information on them, it is just that we don't know how it should be read."

"Is it a method of communication unique to the Demonic Path?"

Meng Jingzhou nodded, agreeing with Lu Yang's hypothesis: "Very likely; these furtive fellows always like to concoct some sort of secret codes."

"This is paper intended for all demonic cultivators, so all demonic cultivators must be able to understand it; with our Foundation Establishment eyesight we cannot see the writing on the paper, and demonic cultivators of the Qi Refining stage would find it even more impossible to see."

"Therefore, the issue lies not with the secret code, but with the paper itself."

Lu Yang pondered for a moment, then held the paper over the charcoal fire to roast it.

"What is this for?" Man Gu was perplexed.

Lu Yang roasted the paper intently, speaking casually: "I read in a book that if one writes on paper with sugar water, no words will show once it dries; it requires high heat to dehydrate the sugar, and then brownish-black words will appear."

Meng Jingzhou and Man Gu found this point of knowledge quite interesting.

After roasting it for about five minutes, nothing appeared on the paper, so Lu Yang could only abandon this method.

Lu Yang then summoned a small sphere of water in his palm, abruptly bursting it, and in an instant, a sprayed mist of water landed upon the white paper.

"And what is this for?"

Lu Yang explained: "Special liquids like body wash and laundry detergent have excellent water absorption qualities; if one writes with these special liquids, nothing can be seen after they dry, but by sprinkling water on the surface, utilizing the principle of differing water absorption speeds, the words will manifest."

The Central Continent appeared ancient, yet in truth it was not entirely so; owing to the existence of spells, whether by intent or coincidence, many products that did not belong to antiquity had emerged here.

For instance, the body wash and laundry detergent Lu Yang mentioned.

Regrettably, still nothing manifested on the paper.

Lu Yang was not discouraged; he sank into thought for a moment, conceiving a new approach.

"Since this is a means of contact within the Demonic Path, perhaps it must be unlocked using methods customary to the Demonic Path?"

Lu Yang bit his thumb, letting several drops of fresh blood fall onto the paper; the fresh blood seemed to come alive, moving across the surface of the sheet.

"As expected, this is the Demonic Path's method of refining paper, it cannot be judged by common sense." Lu Yang breathed a sigh of relief; he had finally succeeded.

There seemed to be invisible grooves upon the blank paper; as the blood traversed them, it filled the grooves, forming characters.

"On the first day of the fourth month, the Yanjiang Helm of the Immortal Sect will recruit followers; the specific location will be announced on the day prior to recruitment."