Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion-Chapter 35: Discourse on Talismans and an Accusation

Chapter 35: Chapter 35: Discourse on Talismans and an Accusation

At the banquet, Fang Qingyuan was feasting heartily. The Liu Family’s hospitality was lavish, and there were many dishes Fang Qingyuan was trying for the first time.

Cured ox, dried venison, wild boar, and elk were all laid out, alongside dishes like sheep’s head, ginger shrimp, wine-steamed crab, roebuck jerky, an assortment of steamed delicacies, fresh seafood, and seasonal fruits.

As the ruling class, Cultivators naturally enjoyed the very best. Moreover, the Cultivators of the Southern Border, unlike the abstinent Buddhist Family or the self-restrained Confucian Family, highlighted a single principle: being uninhibited.

Fang Qingyuan ate the fine food, drank the Spirit Wine, and listened to the surrounding Cultivators flatter him. On the surface, he looked like he was thoroughly enjoying himself, but inwardly, he saw the situation with perfect clarity.

’As a Sea Patrol Envoy for the Beast Taming Sect, I can’t get too close to any of the Cultivator Clans under my jurisdiction. Otherwise, if Lechuan finds out, my usefulness will be greatly diminished.’

’A Sea Patrol Envoy must be impartial and show no favoritism. Otherwise, not only will I fail to do my job well, I’ll also easily attract the enmity of the other Cultivator Clans.’

’I just need to remain detached and act impartially. That way, any losses are shared, and no personal grudges are formed. That’s the best way.’

In the southern part of Celestial Gate Mountain, there were three small-scale sects and five Cultivator Clans. The Minshan Liu Family was merely one of them.

In this world, the classification of a sect’s size was strictly defined. The Great Zhou Academy stipulated that a small-scale sect must have one Foundation Establishment Cultivator, a medium-scale sect must have one Golden Core Cultivator, and a large-scale sect must have one Nascent Soul Cultivator.

Sects with a Divinity Transformation Cultivator were known as super-sects. Beast Taming Mountain was a super-sect because it had Divinity Transformation Cultivators in residence—and more than one.

Due to their unique Cultivation Techniques, a Divinity Transformation Cultivator from Beast Taming Mountain would typically have a Companion Beast that was also at the Divinity Transformation level. This meant Beast Taming Mountain possessed the largest number of Divinity Transformation Cultivators in this world.

Therefore, among the eight super-sects in this world, Beast Taming Mountain’s status was ranked in the top three.

The Wei Family, mentioned earlier, was actually a medium-scale sect. However, since the majority of its members were Wei family disciples, neighboring Cultivators overlooked its official status as a sect and simply referred to it as the Wei Family.

Just as Fang Qingyuan was wondering which family to visit next, Liu Siwu’s inquiry reached his ears:

"Fang Sea Patrol Envoy, I trust the food is to your satisfaction?"

Hearing Liu Siwu, Fang Qingyuan raised his wine cup and said with a smile:

"There’s no such thing as food too exquisite or meat too finely prepared. I am fortunate to be able to sample it all today. The food is delicious, the Spirit Wine is delightful, and this hospitality is already more than generous."

After Fang Qingyuan finished his words of praise, Liu Siwu laughed heartily.

"The food and Spirit Wine are good, but they are far from enough. Fang Sea Patrol Envoy has graced my Liu Family with a visit; how could we let you return disappointed? Men, bring it up."

As Liu Siwu finished speaking, he clapped his hands, and a beautiful woman holding a tray came forward gracefully.

Seeing this, Fang Qingyuan raised an eyebrow and thought to himself:

’Here comes the main event. Here come the goods. Here comes the bribe. Fang Qingyuan, you’d better hold firm.’

The woman was not yet thirty and possessed a beauty that could topple nations. When Fang Qingyuan saw her, he immediately felt that this woman was born in the wrong place. If she were in his previous life in modern society, she would definitely be a superstar.

But now, the woman came before Fang Qingyuan’s table, knelt directly on the ground, and raised the tray in her hands to eye level, presenting it for him to see.

Fang Qingyuan fixed his gaze on it and saw a jade Talisman resting on the tray. Its Spirit Charm was contained within, and it clearly wasn’t an ordinary item.

’This should be a high-grade Talisman, but I wonder what kind of spell is sealed inside. A high-grade Talisman like this is worth at least ten Middle-grade Spirit Stones. Judging by Liu Siwu’s intent, is he really just giving it to me?’

At that moment, Liu Siwu spoke up:

"Fang Sea Patrol Envoy, are you familiar with the way of Talismans and the classification of their various grades?"

’Is he pointing out how precious this is before giving it to me? He can’t think I don’t know its value, can he? I just bought one recently.’

So, Fang Qingyuan pretended not to know and shook his head, letting Liu Siwu have the stage.

"Most Talismans in this world are ungraded. For example, the lowest-level elementary Talismans like Calming or Cleansing Talismans can be drawn by an Early-stage Qi Cultivation Cultivator after just a few years of dedicated study.

"Higher-level ones, like the Exorcism Talisman and the Great Sun Talisman, are shockingly lethal to evil spirits and ghosts and possess immense power. These mid-grade Talismans can only be created by a Talisman Master who has diligently studied the way of Talismans for twenty to thirty years.

"Even higher are the advanced Talismans, like the Five Thunders Talisman, the Seven-Star Sword Talisman, the Mist Flowing Shadow-dwelling Talisman, and the Five Directions Spirit Communication Talisman. These types of Talismans can generally only be prepared by Foundation Establishment High Cultivators, and each one is an exceptionally rare treasure.

"This on the tray is a Mist Flowing Shadow-dwelling Talisman. I have treasured it for many days, and today, I’ve specially brought it out for Fang Sea Patrol Envoy to appraise."

Having said this, Liu Siwu fell silent, watching Fang Qingyuan with a smile.

Fang Qingyuan understood what Liu Siwu left unsaid. He reached out, picked up the Talisman, and began to toy with it in his palm.

Looking at the palm-sized jade Talisman in his hand, Fang Qingyuan felt very calm. Accepting a gift from one family meant you were in their debt. But accepting from *every* family... that was just them paying their respects.

On the contrary, if he didn’t take it, the Liu Family would probably think they had offended him. Thinking this, Fang Qingyuan casually tucked the Mist Flowing Shadow-dwelling Talisman into his storage bag.

Seeing Fang Qingyuan do this, Liu Siwu indeed burst out laughing.

"Excellent! Come, let us drain our cups."

After they drained their cups, the atmosphere at the banquet grew even more heated. Liu Siwu then clapped his hands again, and a dozen or so young girls came forward to dance for entertainment.

Watching the girls dance gracefully to the light music, Fang Qingyuan cursed inwardly:

’They really know how to live it up. So decadent. But why can’t I bring myself to hate it?’

As he watched the performance, Fang Qingyuan noticed out of the corner of his eye that the young woman who had carried the tray was still kneeling in the same spot, motionless.

’What’s the meaning of this? Does Liu Siwu think I’m into this sort of thing?’

So, Fang Qingyuan smiled at Liu Siwu and said:

"I’ll accept the Talisman, but the beauty is unnecessary."

The moment he spoke, Fang Qingyuan realized something was wrong, because Liu Siwu’s expression had turned ugly. ’What, is he going to turn hostile just because I won’t accept the woman?’

Soon, Fang Qingyuan discovered that Liu Siwu’s ugly expression was not directed at him, but at the woman kneeling on the floor.

"You wretched servant! Get out of here at once!"

The furious rebuke shattered the fervent atmosphere of the banquet. Hearing Liu Siwu’s shout, the woman trembled all over, threw down the tray that had been obscuring her face, and cried out directly to Fang Qingyuan:

"Immortal Master, save me! I wish to report a crime!"

As soon as she spoke, a sudden silence fell over the surroundings. The dancing girls stopped dancing, the drinking Cultivators stopped drinking, and even Lao Bai paused his gnawing on the meat to look toward Fang Qingyuan.

Liu Siwu’s face was so dark it seemed water might drip from it. Across from him, Liu Tongshu’s expression wasn’t much better. It could be said that aside from Fang Qingyuan, no one’s face showed the cheerfulness from a few moments before.

Fang Qingyuan glanced around and saw that everyone’s eyes were on him. Right now, as long as he said nothing, this whole incident would be treated as if it never happened. The music would resume, the dancing would continue, and everything would be as it was before.

’I just accepted their gift and ate their food. Am I really going to offend a group of Cultivators for a mortal woman?’

Thinking this, Fang Qingyuan sighed, downed the remaining Spirit Wine in his cup in one gulp, and then spoke:

"This case... I, Fang Qingyuan, Southern Sea Patrol of the Beast Taming Sect’s Tianshan Villa, will take it!"