Spending money?
Li Yan gazed at the copper coin in his hand, his brow slightly furrowed.
In his previous life, he had a fondness for antiques, so he naturally recognized this object.
This type of "spending money," also known as "aversion coins" or "folk coins," came in many varieties with different purposes, often used to ward off evil, dispel disasters, pray for blessings, or attract good fortune. They held no monetary value for circulation.
But the coin in his hand was clearly no ordinary trinket.
Merely holding it, Li Yan could detect a sharp, piercing scent, like icy spikes, laced with a trace of blood.
The faint aroma of incense that had once clung to the plaque was now completely gone.
This coin's aura was potent, brimming with murderous intent, like a vicious blade.
The "Hundred Battles Mighty" plaque from before seemed to have been its scabbard.
Now that the scabbard was destroyed, the weapon's true edge was revealed.
*Creak~*
At that moment, the sound of a door being pushed open interrupted his thoughts.
It was his grandfather, Li Gui, who had awakened and stepped out of the house.
Li Yan's heart sank, a sense of dread rising within him.
Back when his grandfather quelled the northern border rebellion and pursued enemies across the icy plains, he lost a leg, but it was also his greatest achievement.
Li Yan knew how much his grandfather cherished that "Hundred Battles Mighty" plaque. He would polish it regularly and offer incense during festivals.
Now, seeing the plaque damaged, Li Yan feared his grandfather wouldn't take it well.
As expected, Li Gui froze upon seeing the cracked and peeling plaque. His mouth opened, but all that came was a soft sigh.
Li Yan cautiously asked, "Grandfather, are you…?"
"It's fine."
Li Gui waved a hand dismissively, then lit his long pipe, took a few puffs, and shook his head. "Must be the dry weather causing it to crack. We'll get someone to fix it."
With that, he leaned on his crutch, hummed a little tune, and hobbled out for a stroll.
He didn't seem to be lying.
Li Yan let out a relieved breath, though he found it odd.
Ever since his father's death, his grandfather had been in low spirits, quick to anger, and prone to grumbling over the slightest inconvenience.
Why was he acting so differently today?
But Li Yan had no time to dwell on it. After tidying up, he hurried toward Widow Wang's house.
---
"Alive is good, alive is good!"
Those were Widow Wang's first words when she opened the door and saw him.
Li Yan's brow creased. "What do you mean?"
"Come inside and we'll talk."
Widow Wang closed the courtyard gate and led him into the house. Without preamble, she explained, "Yesterday, we miscalculated."
"When that cold altar ghost soldier appeared, its power had grown even stronger. It likely devoured all the wandering spirits within ten miles, making it far more dangerous."
"We thought you'd lose your life, but here you are, still breathing…"
"Miscalculated?!"
Li Yan's anger flared at her words.
The methods that thing used last night were far more ferocious than what the immortal had described. From Widow Wang's tone, it seemed that even without his own mistakes, they wouldn't have caught it.
How could something so life-threatening be handled so carelessly?
Widow Wang's face twisted with bitterness, but she said nothing more. Instead, she struck the Wen Wang drum and began chanting the spirit-summoning tune to call forth Hu San'gu.
Upon seeing him, Hu San'gu let out a string of unintelligible chatter.
Widow Wang translated, "The immortal asks you to recount last night's events in detail."
"And that artifact you're carrying—it's too heavy with malevolent energy, making the immortal uncomfortable. Step back a bit, and don't get too close to the red circle."
Li Yan nodded, retreated a few steps, and recounted the events of the previous night. He then took out the three copper coins and asked about their origin.
The young girl, possessed by Hu San'gu, craned her neck to look. Her eyes flashed with surprise and irritation as she waved her whisk, gesturing for him to move even farther back before chattering on.
Widow Wang listened and translated simultaneously.
"The immortal says that cold altar ghost soldier is bloodthirsty and cunning, with an extraordinary origin."
"And another thing—has your family offended someone?"
Li Yan was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Widow Wang explained, "Spending coins are significant artifacts. Various sects, schools, and even the imperial court invest great effort in crafting them."
"The coins in your hand are no small matter. Have you heard of Yang Yi?"
Li Yan nodded. "Of course. The God of Slaughter's name is renowned."
During the Daxing Dynasty, the Golden Horde invaded, occupying half the empire and creating a north-south stalemate. A century of warfare left countless dead and gave rise to numerous martial arts masters.
Yang Yi was one of them.
Skilled with dual blades, he had defied the natural order to reach the rank of grandmaster.
Rumors even circulated among the common folk that he had transcended mortal limits, glimpsed the true path, and touched the realm of great grandmaster, becoming the pinnacle of the martial world in his era.
His Two Forms Six Harmonies Blade Technique was still practiced by many today.
But his most famous title was the God of Slaughter.
He was a general of the Daxing Dynasty, leading a lone army into the grasslands, leaving rivers of blood in his wake. In his later years, he suppressed a rebellion in Jizhou, slaughtering three cities.
In folk tales, he was practically a malevolent deity.
Hu San'gu continued her chatter, and Widow Wang went on, "Folk tales are often exaggerated. Some truths are known only to those in the mystic arts."
"Though Yang Yi was a grandmaster, he wasn't strong enough to dominate all others. So he hired treasure hunters to search far and wide, eventually finding a spiritual treasure of heaven and earth. With great effort, he forged and refined a pair of demon blades, fearsome enough to make gods and ghosts retreat."
"With the help of the Taixuan Orthodox Sect, he shattered the shamanic lineage of the Golden Horde's grasslands, laying the foundation for the empire's eventual unification."
"But those demon blades were excessively malevolent. In his later years, Yang Yi was influenced by them, becoming bloodthirsty and cruel. After his death, the Daxing Dynasty melted the blades and cast them into one hundred and eight talisman coins, which were then enshrined in the incense of the Mount Tai Temple to dispel their malevolent aura."
"These coins are called the Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins. The back is engraved with the sun, moon, and stars, while the front, aside from Yang Yi's likeness, bears the incantation: *Heaven Clear, Earth Serene, Slay Ghosts, Extinguish Spirits, Banish Demons, Drive Evil, As Urgent as a Command.*"
Li Yan's heart leapt with excitement. "So, it's a valuable treasure?"
"Of course it's valuable."
Widow Wang, relaying Hu San'gu's words, explained, "Though these talisman coins aren't top-tier, if you gather the sun, moon, and star coins to form the Three Talents, they can suppress evil and slay spirits."
"But hiding them in a household plaque is a malicious tactic!"
"That plaque was a reward from the court to those who rendered great service. Even if coins were to be placed within, they'd typically be for blessings or protection, consecrated with incense offerings."
"But the Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins were forged from demon blades, their malevolent energy meant to suppress evil. Hiding them in the plaque, masked by incense, is like concealing a needle in cotton—three vicious blades hanging over your doorstep. It's a sophisticated aversion technique."
"If I'm not mistaken, your family must be dwindling in numbers. Since your grandfather's time, your lineage's fortune has been burdened, with signs of violent death across three generations, until the bloodline is severed!"
"What?!"
Li Yan's face was filled with disbelief.
Such matters of fortune were abstract and mysterious. In the past, he would have dismissed them outright, but his recent experiences had shown him that this world held profound forces.
Hu San'gu's words were not wrong in the least.
His family was a single line of descent. According to his grandfather, several sons had been born but all died young, leaving only his father as the sole heir.
His father, a bladesman and a wanderer, had a wife at home but left a trail of romantic debts elsewhere. Yet, Li Yan was his only son, and his death had been somewhat suspicious.
Thinking back, Li Yan's original body had inexplicably died in a graveyard at night as a child, only to be taken over by his soul. Wasn't that also a sign of violent death?
At this thought, a surge of killing intent stirred in Li Yan's heart. "Senior, do you know who might be behind this?"
"Don't say I don't know—even if I did, you couldn't do anything about it!"
Widow Wang shook her head, advising, "These Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins would make any ordinary sorcerer envious, yet someone used them to harm your family and tampered with a court-bestowed object. That's not someone a young man like you can provoke."
"Revenge? Focus on staying alive first."
As she spoke, she listened to the immortal's words, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "But while the odds were slim before, with these coins, you might avert this calamity!"
"The method we used the other day didn't fool that ghost soldier, but it swallowed the peachwood in the rooster's stomach and clashed head-on with your household artifact, injuring its soul."
"The previous method can work once or twice, but not a third or fourth time. When that ghost soldier comes tonight, it'll come straight for you."
"Tonight, hide near the village's Earth God Temple. The incense there is strong, so if the ghost soldier wants to approach, it'll need a physical body, and it'll be suppressed by the Earth God."
"The immortal will use a secret method to craft these Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins into a blade tassel. When the time comes, you can behead its physical form in one strike and win the battle!"
With that, the young girl possessed by Hu San'gu instructed Widow Wang to fetch a red cord.
First, they stained it with Li Yan's blood. Then, with a pained expression, the girl plucked over a dozen white strands from her whisk.
Following the immortal's instructions, Widow Wang wove the white strands and red cord into a peculiar knot, with the Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins threaded within.
As she worked, she explained, "The horsehair in this whisk comes from a spiritual steed with significant cultivation. After my incense hall was raided, this is the only one left…"
"This knot is called the Evil-Repelling Ruyi Knot. When woven with the Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins as a blade tassel, it can channel and amplify the malevolent energy in your blade to slay the ghost soldier. Ordinary evil spirits won't dare come near, so you're getting quite a benefit…"
"But you're not a practitioner of the mystic arts. You mustn't wear this constantly. When not in use, keep it in a red cloth pouch and offer incense on the first and fifteenth of each month to avoid being harmed by its energy…"
Widow Wang rambled on, and Li Yan listened intently.
After this ordeal, he dared not be careless.
An hour later, the knot was complete. Li Yan tied it to his Guanshan Blade, and a strange glint flashed in his eyes.
He could sense the bloodthirsty, malevolent energy of the Three Talents Demon-Suppressing Coins flowing through the hilt to the blade, cold as ice in his hand.
Moreover, the Guanshan Blade, a masterwork left by his father, had taken many lives. It seemed the blade's own ferocious energy was being drawn out as well.
With a slight flick, the blade's gleam was so sharp it stung the eyes.
Li Yan's heart tightened, and he carefully removed the tassel, placing it in the red cloth pouch Widow Wang provided.
After thoroughly reviewing the precautions, Li Yan took his leave.
Unbeknownst to him, shortly after he left, the young girl possessed by Hu San'gu suddenly opened her eyes and spoke.
"That ghost soldier's arrival is suspicious—likely sent by an enemy. Once this matter is settled and the path is clear, we leave immediately."
Her voice, though sharp, was no longer the garbled beast-like speech.
The words of an immortal, known as "upper speech," typically required a disciple to translate.
But to speak human language directly indicated a seasoned immortal with deep cultivation.
Widow Wang was stunned but cautiously asked, "Third Aunt, that boy has awakened his spiritual root. Should we take him as a disciple?"
The girl shook her head. "It's just a sniffing talent, and he's too old, past the prime age. Even if he were forced into the path, he'd amount to nothing."
"Let him be. With his spiritual root awakened, ghosts and spirits will take notice, and some mastermind is already scheming against him…"
"Tch, even if he survives this ordeal, he won't live long…"
As she spoke, her eyelids drooped, her voice faded, and she fell back into a deep sleep.
*(Chapter End)*