He began to attain enlightenment from the Demonic Sect.

Chapter 13 Seeking Help

"Let's come in first and talk about it then."

Du Jianyuan reached out and helped Huang Quan up, but a sense of unease crept into his heart.

After he achieved a breakthrough in his cultivation technique, Huang Quan's personality subtly changed, and he always hoped, openly or secretly, that Huang Quan could help him out.

Both of them were well aware that a subtle distance had grown between them, but neither of them spoke of it, and it was difficult for them to laugh and talk as freely as before.

"well……"

Tears welled in Huang Quan's eyes as he followed her into the cave. His gaze swept over the furnishings on the walls, his envy barely concealed. He sighed:

"Brother Yuan, please forgive me for disturbing you so late at night."

"Hey, why bother with all this polite talk?"

Du Jianyuan shook his head and smiled, placed the porcelain jar on the table, gestured for Huang Quan to sit down, and poured him a cup of hot tea.

"We only have this coarse tea in the manor, it's very bland, please don't find it unpleasant, Brother Quan."

"No, no..."

Huang Quan took the teacup with both hands, took a small sip, and immediately recognized it as ordinary spiritual tea, not the refreshing tea in the porcelain jar.

Du Jianyuan noticed that his gaze flickered towards the small celadon jar, and couldn't help but smile:

"If you want to drink this refreshing tea, you are welcome to take some home. I certainly wouldn't dare touch it."

"I'm afraid of dying too."

Huang Quan couldn't help but smile, knowing full well that the other party was always cautious and suspicious.

Du Jianyuan would have people inspect the items he received before using them, or he would sell them in the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall and use the proceeds to repay the favor. He was never willing to take any risks with things that were unclear or unknown.

"We've known each other for years, so let's not beat around the bush. Just tell me what's wrong, and I'll help if I can."

Du Jianyuan suppressed his smile and steered the conversation to the main topic.

"it is good."

Huang Quan nodded slightly, took a deep breath, and poured out all his embarrassment and helplessness:

"A few days ago, I took on a job at the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, which required me to collect one hundred five-year-old ink bamboo stalks within a month..."

"I was originally confident, but Lord Yan suddenly increased the amount of talismans I was given these past two days. I'm busy until midnight every day, so I really can't find the time to go and collect bamboo."

"But if I fail to complete this task, the two spirit stones I staked in the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall will be wasted..."

At this point, Huang Quan stood up, bowed deeply, and his tone was tinged with sorrow:

"Brother Yuan, I really can't afford to lose these two spirit stones. Please help me..."

"I have now collected thirty bamboo stalks. You only need to collect the remaining seventy to receive all the rewards. I will be satisfied as long as I can get back the spirit stones that I have held in the temple."

Du Jianyuan looked at him quietly without answering immediately.

So-called ink bamboo is spiritual bamboo that grows in an environment of malevolent energy. It is a first-class material whether used to make magical artifacts or talismans.

However, this bamboo forest on Wanzhi Peak is shrouded in mist and has the strongest yin energy in winter.

If an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator stays inside for too long, not only will they suffer great depletion, but they will also be easily injured by the cold Qi if they are not careful, and they will have to buy a Qi-dispelling pill to resolve the problem.

Seeing that he remained silent, Huang Quan quickly took something out of his storage bag and explained:

"Don't worry, Brother Yuan, I will never let you suffer a loss... A while ago, Zhao Tietou from the Talisman Room broke through his cultivation and was promoted to the Weapon Room. He gave me this Jade Pendant for warding off evil spirits. This item can resist the cold evil spirits and protect the body from being corroded..."

"It was because of this that I had the idea of ​​collecting ink bamboo."

Du Jianyuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and his mind raced.

He carefully reviewed Huang Quan's statement but didn't find anything obviously suspicious, so he casually asked:

"Why did Lord Yan suddenly increase your dosage?"

Old men like Huang Quan, who had been working in the talisman shop for over a decade, were no longer worth exploiting, so Yan Jun usually didn't bother to make things difficult for him.

Huang Quan revealed a bitter expression and explained:

"It wasn't just me; many people in the talisman room suffered as a result... I only learned from others when I went around asking for help that Master Yan had increased the weight of the talisman paper on everyone."

"Oh?"

Du Jianyuan frowned slightly, somewhat surprised, and said:

"Lord Yan is extorting money so blatantly... has something happened to the talisman room?"

Huang Quan shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and then lowered his voice to say:

"I heard... that Lord Yan recently ingested a mouthful of spiritual energy to try and break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining, but he couldn't make it and failed."

Upon hearing this, Du Jianyuan paused slightly, his hand holding the teacup pausing, and his face showed surprise.

He really didn't expect that Yan Jun, that bastard, had been exploiting and oppressing people for so many years, accumulating countless resources, and even with thorough preparations, he would still fail to break through!

What a useless piece of trash!

Du Jianyuan put down his teacup, followed his words to deduce the reasoning, and said softly:

"So, Lord Yan has exhausted his savings of many years to break through the bottleneck, but in the end, he failed and is now penniless, so he can only squeeze more money out of us."

Seeing that Du Jianyuan had spoken so bluntly, Huang Quan no longer held back and nodded, saying:

"Now that both Steward Wen and Lord Ling are away from the talisman room, Lord Yan can take this opportunity to scrape off as much as he can..."

At this point, he subconsciously added a reminder:

"I reckon when you hand in your report next time, Lord Yan will add even more weight... Figure out a way to handle it yourself."

"It's unavoidable."

Du Jianyuan shook his head and sighed. No matter what he tried, it was no use. Once Yan Jun said something, he still had to obediently do as he was told.

Besides, that bastard failed his breakthrough and is in a terrible mood. If he tries to bargain at this point, he might even lose his life.

Huang Quan didn't know how to comfort him for a moment, so he could only sit silently with him for a while.

Once Du Jianyuan's expression had softened slightly, he carefully picked up the jade pendant with both hands and presented it to him.

"Brother Yuan, I owe you a huge favor this time. Please help me this once... I'll also give you this amulet to ward off evil spirits."

Du Jianyuan reached out and took the jade pendant. Its texture was smooth and cool to the touch, but his face showed no sign of greed. He simply looked at Huang Quan and said with a smile:

"Brother Quan, aren't you afraid that I'll take the things but not do the work for you? Anyway, you took the job, so even if I don't finish it, it won't cost me anything."

Huang Quan's smile froze slightly. After a moment of silence, he slowly said:

"You won't... Although I've misjudged many people, I've known you for many years and know you're a person who keeps his promises."

As he spoke, he sighed deeply and said wistfully:

"Of course, if you ultimately fail to complete this task... then I'll just have to accept my fate."

Du Jianyuan toyed with the jade pendant in his hand, having already made up his mind, and smiled:

"Alright, you've gone to such lengths to ask, it would be rather unreasonable for me to refuse..."

"But let me make this clear: I will only do my best. If there are any unforeseen dangers in the Ink Bamboo Forest, you will have to find someone else to handle this matter, and you will still have to pay me the appropriate compensation."

Upon hearing this, Huang Quan breathed a long sigh of relief, feeling as if a great weight had been lifted from his body.

He bowed deeply, then quickly took out the bamboo-gathering token required for the mission from his pocket, presented it with both hands, and said gratefully:

"That's only right... Brother Yuan, I won't thank you enough. If you ever need my help in the future, please don't hesitate to ask!"