Chapter 34

Gululu~~

In the courtyard, a pile of phosphorus wood burned fiercely, and a large pot on the fire emitted white smoke, boiling vigorously.

Inside the iron pot, dozens of spiritual materials were being cooked, including the flesh and blood of fierce beasts and some herbs.

This was not for refining medicine, but for smelting spirit ink.

Generally, spirit pattern masters need a specialized "ink furnace" for smelting spirit ink, which is specifically cast for this purpose.

Some precious ink furnaces even have many spirit patterns engraved inside, making them almost indistinguishable from spirit artifacts.

However, Lin Xun could not currently make an ink furnace. To smelt spirit ink, he could only make do with an iron pot for now.

The spirit ink produced this way has ordinary effects and is extremely wasteful of spiritual materials, but it can still be used.

At this moment, Lin Xun was smelting a pot of "Crimson Fire Spirit Ink."

The formula for Crimson Fire Spirit Ink is quite common, but the effects of the spirit ink produced with different spiritual materials are entirely different.

For example, the "Purple Sun Flower," a material used to refine Crimson Fire Spirit Ink, has different grades. The three-leaf Purple Sun Flower is the most common but has ordinary effects, while the nine-leaf Purple Sun Flower is the rarest and has the best effects.

The various spiritual materials Lin Xun used to smelt this batch of "Crimson Fire Spirit Ink" were only of medium quality, neither high nor low, but they were sufficient to meet his needs.

While smelting the spirit ink, Lin Xun was also busy, holding a half-foot-long, roughly chopstick-thick, dark purple bone, and repeatedly grinding it on a whetstone.

This segment of dark purple bone was taken from the leg of a fierce beast, the "Iron Beak Mountain Pheasant," which itself is a rather precious spiritual material.

Its value lies in the fact that it can be refined into a spirit brush!

A spirit brush, with a sharp tip like a knife, is a key tool for engraving spirit patterns, hence it is also called a pattern knife.

To judge the quality of a spirit brush, one only needs to look at its material. The higher the quality of the spirit brush, the easier it is to communicate with the spirit pattern master's perception and spiritual energy.

Similarly, a high-quality spirit brush allows the spirit pattern master to precisely control the power of the spirit ink when engraving spirit patterns, ensuring that the engraved spirit pattern lines, whether thick or thin, straight or curved, perfectly meet the spirit pattern master's needs.

After the dark gray spirit brush left by Mr. Lu disappeared, Lin Xun lacked a handy spirit brush to practice the art of spirit patterns.

However, fortunately, among the prey obtained this time, there was a "Iron Beak Mountain Pheasant," whose leg bone is a material for refining a spirit brush.

Sssss!

As Lin Xun continuously ground the dark purple bone, it emitted a friction sound, sparks flying, and a rough shape of a spirit brush began to take form.

In the courtyard, the ground was piled with the snow-white skeletons of fierce beasts, and the walls were hung with already cured beast meat, weighing over a thousand pounds, like a mountain of meat.

In addition, beast skins, tendons, and various scales, claws, and horns were neatly stacked.

These were all valuable treasures that could be used for refining medicine, smelting spirit ink, or exchanged for wealth.

These were the results of Lin Xun's efforts over the past few days.

Xiao Tianren and his group brought back a large harvest, and Lin Xun alone received nearly thirty fierce beast corpses.

As for other fierce and wild beasts, there were even more, but these were of little use to Lin Xun, so he distributed them to the villagers.

Thus, these days, not only was Lin Xun busy, but the villagers were also busy curing the beast meat at home, fearing that it would spoil if left too long.

It was only after all this hard work that Lin Xun finally dissected the various fierce beast corpses, removing the useless parts and keeping only the valuable ones.

...

The courtyard was filled with a strong smell of blood, but Lin Xun seemed unaware, focusing on grinding the dark purple bone in his hand.

After a full incense stick's time.

The spirit brush was finally complete. Lin Xun stood up, washed off the dust on the spirit brush with clear water, revealing its true form.

In the sunlight, the spirit brush was slender and straight, with a faint dark purple color. The body was solid and simple, the tip as sharp as a blade, thin as a cicada's wing, and gleaming with a cold light.

Lin Xun calmly perceived the spirit brush he had made, channeling a thread of spiritual energy into it, feeling its subtle qualities.

After a long while, a satisfied smile appeared on his lips. The spirit brush itself had no problems; it only needed to be refined and nurtured with special methods and materials to be complete.

At this moment, the iron pot on the fire emitted a sharp boiling sound, as if it were about to burst.

The spirit ink was ready!

Lin Xun immediately stopped what he was doing, extinguished the fire, and waited for the iron pot to cool down. Then he took out a clean white porcelain bowl and walked to the iron pot.

A full pot of spiritual materials had been refined down to a layer of amber-like liquid at the bottom of the pot, bright red and translucent, with a flame-like aura on its surface, emitting a refreshing fragrance.

This was the Crimson Fire Spirit Ink!

It looked like a successfully refined medicine, but it was not for consumption.

Lin Xun carefully poured the "Crimson Fire Spirit Ink" into the porcelain bowl, his smile growing wider. He could use it to engrave spirit patterns tonight.

"Can it be eaten?"

At some point, Xia Zhi had come to Lin Xun's side, pointing at the Crimson Fire Spirit Ink and asking, her voice calm and pleasant.

But the content of her words startled Lin Xun, and he quickly shook his head: "This is not food; eating it will cause poisoning."

Xia Zhi said "Oh" and did not say anything more, standing quietly to one side.

"I'll make you something good to eat tonight."

Lin Xun patted Xia Zhi's little head and turned to walk into the house.

Xia Zhi frowned, seemingly resistant to being patted on the head. She stood there thinking for a long time and finally decided not to argue with Lin Xun.

Speaking of which, this five or six-year-old girl was indeed very special, different from other children. She was calm and quiet, spoke little, but had an astonishing learning ability and extraordinary intelligence.

These days, whenever Lin Xun had free time, he would interact with Xia Zhi. In just a few days, she could understand every sentence and say some simple words.

Like "Can this be eaten?" "I'm not full." "I want more." "Is there more to eat?" "This tastes good."

It's no wonder Lin Xun thought of Xia Zhi as a beautiful little foodie; her words clearly showed some hints.

...

In the evening, the village chief, Xiao Tianren, walked into Lin Xun's courtyard.

He was in a hurry and, upon seeing Lin Xun, directly stated his purpose: "Everything is ready; we can set out tomorrow morning."

Lin Xun smiled: "It's faster than I expected."

A few days ago, Lin Xun and Xiao Tianren had discussed and decided to move all the villagers to a safe place before Lian Rufeng and his group returned.

This was to prevent the villagers from being affected when Lian Rufeng and his group returned.

Although they did not know what Lian Rufeng and his group were plotting, both Lin Xun and Xiao Tianren were clear that it would not be anything good.

"Haha, speaking of which, we also owe it to that beast disaster, which provided us with a large number of prey. The food made from these prey is enough to let all the villagers survive outside for a while."

Xiao Tianren laughed.

Lin Xun also laughed and said: "Uncle Xiao, let's settle it this way. Tomorrow, you lead everyone to the abandoned mine tunnel and hide there. Once I deal with Lian Rufeng and his group, we will have no more worries."

Xiao Tianren nodded and then asked seriously: "Lin Xun, this matter is too dangerous. If you fail, don't fight to the death. We can always admit defeat. Do you think Lian Rufeng and his group would dare to kill all of us? As long as we have a foothold, we can always find a way."

Lin Xun's eyes were clear and calm: "Uncle Xiao, other villagers might have a way out, but if you and I fail, it will be certain death. So this contest must be won!"

His voice was resolute.

Xiao Tianren knew that Lian Rufeng had been patient with him for a long time and would not let him live once he had the chance.

Similarly, he knew that after killing Lu Ting and Qian Qi, Lin Xun had no way out. He either had to kill Lian Rufeng or be killed by him.

Thinking of this, Xiao Tianren felt a heavy heart and a worried expression: "Are you prepared?"

Lin Xun nodded: "Just one last step."

Xiao Tianren patted Lin Xun's shoulder and said: "Take care. If you fail, run away. The vast mountains are vast; as long as you run, Lian Rufeng can't do anything to you. Remember, don't sacrifice your life for everyone."

Lin Xun felt a warm feeling in his heart and smiled: "Uncle Xiao, don't worry; I have a plan."

Xiao Tianren looked at Lin Xun for a long time, then turned and left.

Just as he walked out the door, he suddenly said: "Living is more important than anything; remember that."

His voice was old and echoed in the evening, like ink in the blood.

Lin Xun smiled and turned back to the room. Yes, living gives you a chance for revenge, and dying means everything is over.

He had understood this long ago.

The next morning, the villagers, carrying their luggage, left the village under Xiao Tianren's lead.

They were just ordinary people, not cultivators, and had no power to resist cultivators. Staying in the village would only be a burden and hinder Lin Xun.

Lin Xun stood at the village entrance, watching them leave, then turned back, looking at the empty and desolate village. His expression was as calm as before.

The autumn wind was bleak, and at some point, a layer of leaden clouds covered the sky, adding a sense of impending storm to the world.

Although Lian Rufeng and his group had not returned, Lin Xun knew it would not be long...

"Do you want to fight?"

When Lin Xun returned home, he saw Xia Zhi wearing a beast skin cloak, waiting there.

Lin Xun nodded, knowing that it would be hard to hide anything from this clever little girl.

"I'll help you."

Xia Zhi lifted her head, revealing her beautiful face under the hat. Her moon-shaped eyes, like black gemstones, were filled with seriousness.

---

ps: Writing to the end, I couldn't help but think of what Xia Zhi said in the group a few days ago: "Are you going to challenge the monthly ticket ranking? I'll help you."

A simple sentence, but it warmed my heart. I thank you, Xia