Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Chapter 167: Trading Gold and Silver for Profit; Dark Light in Intelligence Signals an Ominous Sign

After stepping into the sacrificial realm, Liu Qing looked up at the sky. The Jinghe River system, which was suspended above the realm, was still flowing endlessly, continuously emitting the water spirit energy to nourish all living beings in the realm.

On the way to the City of No Return, the various river demons and mountain spirits they encountered were no longer as carefree as before; their expressions carried a hint of worry.

It seems that as the turmoil in the human world intensifies, the aura of slaughter obscures the secrets of heaven, and various mountain gods, local deities, city gods, and river gods are no longer as law-abiding as before.

In addition, the old demon that was originally lurking in the shadows was born and wreaked havoc, which finally affected the sacrificial ritual realm.

After paying the city's entrance tax to the ghostly guards, Liu Qing and his companions entered the City of No Return and headed straight for the western market district without lingering.

Inside the West City Market, it was still incredibly noisy and crowded. The demon vendors were enthusiastically hawking their goods, while the demons buying them were haggling over the prices.

Liu Qing made a special trip to the gambling den on Beizhong Mountain first. Seeing that Qu Yuan was not there, he felt relieved. Since no one he knew knew him, he was no longer worried about being exposed.

After wandering around for a while, Liu Qing arrived at her chosen target.

The target was a sparrow demon selling scarecrows at a stall. Its transformation was relatively complete, and judging from the aura it exuded, it could be determined that it was at the early stage of the Refining Void and Integrating Dao realm, only slightly weaker than Liu Qing.

Outside the City of No Return, there are vast fields of spirit fields where five kinds of grains and spirit seeds are planted. After the spirit grains ripen, they attract all kinds of birds to come and peck at them.

This scarecrow was made of nine-eared millet and Kunlun wheat for its skin, and golden millet and mountain beans for its frame. It also had a straw hat woven from four continents hemp. In appearance, it looked just like an old farmer tilling the fields.
However, the birds that come to the spirit field to peck at the spirit grains are clearly not ordinary creatures; most of them are spirit-awakened and have transformed into demons. This scarecrow that looks like an old farmer can frighten ordinary birds, but it cannot frighten spirit-awakened bird demons.

Therefore, the key to this scarecrow lies in the fact that its facial features are drawn using the blood of a highly skilled bird demon, which can intimidate other bird demons with lower cultivation levels.

This sparrow demon was in the early stage of the Void Refinement and Dao Integration realm. Even birds that had reached the Void Refinement and Dao Integration realm dared not peck at the scarecrows made from it.

Liu Qing saw through the truth at a glance, and couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. This sparrow demon was selling scarecrows he had made to scare away birds.

They're like those who eat their fill and then smash the pot—utterly worthless trash.

My family happens to have several hundred acres of spirit rice planted, which is about to ripen and attract birds to peck at it. Buying some scarecrows is a good idea, and it can be considered a way to make some money.

"This scarecrow is quite ingenious. How much incense money is needed for one?"

Liu Qing stood tall and proud, toying with a gold ingot of power in his hand, with Hong Gu by his side and his maid Shui'er following behind. He looked like a nouveau riche from the countryside.

The sparrow demon's eyes were fixed on the golden scepter that Liu Qing was playing with; it couldn't hear a word Liu Qing said.

Liu Qing deliberately acted out, pretending to leave. Only then did the sparrow demon withdraw its gaze, swallowed hard, and fawned, "Reporting to Master, this scarecrow can drive away birds with miraculous effects, no less than a low-grade magic artifact. You only need to reward this humble demon with a hundred taels of incense silver, and you can take one away."

It possessed the same cultivation level as Liu Qing, yet, for the sake of the Power Gold, it willingly became a lowly demon, addressing him as "Master," demonstrating its deep yearning for the Power Gold.

This is exactly what Liu Qing wanted.

"Only a mere hundred taels? How about this, I'll take it all. My servants have been growing some spirit grains lately, and this stuff will come in handy."

Liu Qing's words exuded the air of a wealthy landlord, which secretly pleased the sparrow demon.

Just as they were rejoicing, Liu Qing said with annoyance, "Oh dear, I made it in time this time, but I didn't bring any small change like incense money. I'm used to using official gold, and I don't have any money to buy a scarecrow. What should I do?"

"Never mind, let's not buy it today."

Liu Qing turned to leave, but the sparrow demon's eyes widened and it hurriedly called out, "Master, wait, wait! The Power Gold will do, but this little demon can exchange it for you here."

The two fang swords inside Liu Qing's body were almost summoned out by the sparrow demon. Liu Qing was very unhappy because the fang swords had poor spirituality and could not distinguish who their master was.

The sparrow demon's shout immediately attracted the attention of many nearby demon traders and passing mountain and river demons, who all gathered around in shock.

"Oh, I saw someone using the power gold to buy things in the market again. They must be rich."

"Yes, yes, this sparrow demon is really lucky today."

"Who says otherwise? You know, today someone used their power and money to buy things, so I, Donkey Three, also came to set up a stall."

Liu Qing stopped in his tracks, looking somewhat hesitant: "I'm not stupid, I know this power is precious. If you want to exchange it for me, what kind of exchange rate can you offer?"

The other mountain and river demons who had been watching all turned their attention to the sparrow demon, especially the demon vendors at the nearby stalls, who seemed ready to immediately quote a higher price if the sparrow demon said it was too low.

The sparrow demon was secretly annoyed, but gritted his teeth and gave a ratio: "One to five hundred, sir, I didn't get a single penny off."

Liu Qing smiled without saying a word. Upon seeing this, the other demon traders immediately stood up, ready to snatch the business away.

The sparrow demon's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately stamped his foot and shouted, "One to five hundred and fifty! By the grace of Lady Wangshu, I have never lied to you, sir!"

The demon could swear an oath by Lady Wangshu and see the truth in her heart. Liu Qing glanced at the other demon dealers and saw that they sat back down with resentful expressions, so he knew that this ratio was already the highest.

"Alright then, it'll be one to five hundred and fifty. I'm going to play a little longer today, so I'll exchange all the power and gold I have for you."

Upon hearing this, the sparrow demon became excited. It turned out that this great demon master had more than just one ingot in his hand; he also had more on his person.

With the blessing of Lady Wangshu, I, Sanmazi, am going to strike it rich today!

"Very well, Master, however many there are, this little demon can replace them all."

As a creature within the sacrificial realm, the sparrow demon also has a mountain god ancestor behind it, so it naturally has no shortage of incense and silver offerings.

One hundred and thirty taels of gold for authority, exchanged at an exchange rate of one to five hundred and fifty, amounted to seventy-one thousand and five hundred taels of silver for incense offerings.
Each scarecrow costs 100 taels, and if you buy ten, that's exactly 1,000 taels. Liu Qing still has more than 70,000 taels of silver left for incense offerings.

Afterwards, Liu Qing, Hong Gu, and Shui'er deliberately played in the market for half a day, then went to a restaurant in the market for a meal before leaving the city.

The restaurants in this market town serve monkey wine brewed by monkey demons from the Dharma Realm. The dishes are mostly river fish, but also include animal meat, and the staple food is steamed rice made from nine-eared grains.

Despite the hefty price tag, costing several hundred taels of silver for incense offerings, the delicious taste and exquisite presentation of the food and wine made it well worth the money.

Once outside the City of No Return, Liu Qing, accompanied by Hong Gu and Shui'er, hurried towards the entrance to the sacrificial realm. After leaving Wei Xiaokuan's temple, he instructed Hong Gu and Shui'er to keep watch while he used his Alchemy ability to transform the incense silver into power gold. At its peak, this Alchemy ability transformed 70,000 taels of incense silver in just a short time.

At a ratio of one to one hundred, seven hundred taels of power and gold were conjured.

With an initial investment of 130 taels, the money multiplied five or six times in a single transaction. Such exorbitant profits filled Hong Gu and Shui'er with admiration, who repeatedly exclaimed, "Master is amazing!"

A strand of hair fell down, partially obscuring her eyes. Liu Qing flicked it away, thinking, "Ha, you'll see how formidable the master is in the future."

Next, while Shui'er waited there, Liu Qing and Hong Gu used the Face-Changing Insect to change their appearances, transforming themselves into two completely unfamiliar people, and went to the sacrificial realm again.

There are only two insects, male and female, that can change faces. In order to avoid being discovered, they had no choice but to leave Shui'er behind. Liu Qing and Hong Gu transformed into newlywed young people to distinguish themselves from their previous appearance.

Seven hundred taels of gold was a bit too much; it wouldn't be easy to exchange it at a small vendor's. Luckily, the restaurant I'd eaten at was quite upscale, making it the perfect target.

Two hours later, Liu Qing and Hong Gu, unable to hide their excitement, left the sacrificial altar.

Inside the pouch was a full 380,000 taels of silver for incense offerings; originally, it was 385,000 taels.

Liu Qinghong ordered dishes at the restaurant, and seeing that the monkey wine tasted very good, she bought some. The total cost of the food and wine was five thousand taels.

Even so, 380,000 taels of incense money was already an astonishing gain. Keep in mind that even the old lord Yuan Datou, after hundreds of years of accumulation, had only managed to amass 800,000 to 900,000 taels.

Liu Qing's profits from just two entries and exits were equivalent to Yuan Datou's life savings. If Yuan Datou knew, he would probably secretly resent Lady Wangshu for being biased, allowing this snake to have such a way to make money.
Even robbery can't make money as fast as this, and its efficiency is even higher than that of Qu Yuan, the old man from the Dragon Boat Festival.

Once outside the sacrificial altar, Shui'er, who had been waiting anxiously, rushed forward, blinking her big eyes, and asked in a low voice, "Master, Madam, did you make a profit?"

Hong Gu proudly tossed her head: "My Xiao Qing is the most capable, how could she not make a profit?"

Shui'er immediately curved her big eyes into star shapes and looked at Liu Qing with admiration. This expression provided Liu Qing with a lot of emotional value.

Liu Qing was planning to use his Alchemy to transform the incense silver back into power gold, change its appearance, and then perform another sacrifice to the Dharma Realm so he could make a fortune.

Hong Gu refused, saying, "When my sister came out of the East Sea, she brought with her one or two thousand taels of gold, some of which she used to give as a congratulatory gift to Yuan Datou. She still has plenty left."

"Don't go this time. I'll go in by myself to avoid attracting unwanted attention."

Following suit, Hong Gu confidently figured out the routine and decided to go to the Dharma Realm alone again. Otherwise, even with the Face-Changing Worm changing her appearance,

However, the two of them going in together again would inevitably arouse suspicion from those with ulterior motives, so it was better to be on the safe side and go in alone this time.

"Sister, go in first, and then Xiaoqing, you can go in later. That way, we can do it twice."

Hong Gu's eyes were bright and she was extremely excited. Clearly, she approved of Liu Qing's method of making money.

Just as Hong Gu had the Face-Changing Worm change her appearance again and was about to go inside, the intelligence box in front of Liu Qing suddenly emitted a dense black light.

The intelligence box was glowing black, a sign of great misfortune. Liu Qing quickly grabbed Hong Gu, saying, "Sister, don't go yet, it's dangerous."

Hong Gu was somewhat puzzled. She had attained the Dao of Power, and since then, she had frequently consumed the spiritual essence from the East Sea brought back by the sea. Now, her cultivation had reached the mid-stage of the Divine Power Realm.

With his collection of spiritual treasures, his true combat strength is no weaker than that of an ordinary Dharma Realm Saint. Who could possibly put him in danger in a mere sacrificial Dharma Realm of the Jinghe River system?

Seeing Liu Qing's solemn expression, Hong Gu, though confident, wondered how Liu Qing could sense danger, but still obeyed and did not go.

My husband is quite extraordinary. If he says there is danger, it probably is. Listening to him is always the right thing to do. As for why he can sense danger in advance, there's no need to ask. Just know that he won't harm me.

[Today's intelligence: Level Black. Your exchange of Authority Gold within the Sacrificial Realm has been noticed by those with ulterior motives, who are preparing to ambush you outside the City of No Return.]

Sure enough, his repeated use of the power-granting gold had already attracted the attention of those in the sacrificial ritual community.
Those who planned to murder and rob outside the City of No Return, dared to ambush him and Hong Gu, and even caused the intelligence box to emit a sinister black light.
It seems that this "person with a purpose" must be a deity with extraordinary abilities.

If that's the case, then we won't go to the Dharma Realm worship ceremony. We'll go back to our old nest in Da Wan Lake. As for making money, we'll talk about that later.

Liu Qing said to Hong Gu and Shui'er, "Shui'er, reveal your true form, and let's quickly return to Da Wan Lake!"

Shui'er didn't ask why, and listened to her master in everything. Upon hearing this, she immediately put her hands on the ground, her divine power flashed, and she manifested the Water-Avoiding Golden-Eyed Beast in its true form.

Shui'er's cultivation has almost fully recovered, reaching the Divine Power Realm. Furthermore, because her authority is aligned with the Dao, although she hasn't taken up a divine position and remains a minor deity in the mortal world, her innate divine abilities are formidable, and her strength is considerable. If Hong Gu didn't possess a collection of spiritual treasures, it's uncertain who would win between the two.

Immediately, Liu Qing rode on Shui'er's back, carrying Hong Gu in his arms, and followed the Jing River downstream towards Dawan Lake.

Each breath covered several miles. Liu Qing turned back to look at the sacrificial altar and thought to himself, "You can wait outside the City of No Return. I'm not going. Let's see what you can do about it."

They thought they had escaped danger, but the illusory intelligence box in front of them was still emitting a black light, unlike before.
The black light disappeared after a while, but this time it continued to emit black light, indicating that Liu Qing was not out of danger.

Liu Qing frowned. Could it be that those guys who were lying in ambush outside No Return City had chased after them?
How do they know not to go in and to leave?
The situation didn't allow Liu Qing to think too much. Liu Qing said to Shui'er, "Shui'er, walk faster!"

Without asking why, Shui'er immediately unleashed her full potential in walking on water and treading waves, covering more than ten miles in almost a single breath.
Heading north from the Jinghe River towards Dawan Lake, the journey was swift, with fish and shrimp in the water receding rapidly, making them almost invisible.

As Liu Qing walked, he suddenly realized: "Although the Jing River is a thousand miles long and wide, the current is extremely fast. It should be out of the Jing River by now."

"No, Shui'er used all her strength to escape into the water, probably traveling hundreds of miles north, but she hasn't even left the Jing River yet. We've been caught in a trap!"

Upon hearing this, Hong Gu immediately spat out more than ten spiritual treasures to protect herself, Liu Qing, and Shui'er. Liu Qing also had a solemn expression and released the Thousand Rivers and Ten Thousand Waters Flag. He also had Yang Shen take the other Yin Jade Spirit Banner, Yin Yang Harmony Drum, and the Ruyi Double-Ear Furnace, which had not yet been fully refined, and secretly made full preparations.

While still submerged in water, the Thousand Rivers and Ten Thousand Waters Flag can exert its maximum power.

Seeing this, Shui'er knew that continuing to escape northwards into the water was futile, so she turned eastwards. However, after running for hundreds of miles, she found herself back where she started.

Like a trapped beast, Shui'er ran in two directions, west and south, but after hundreds of miles, she still circled back to the same place.

"Shui'er, save your energy, it seems we're trapped in a formation."

(End of this chapter)