Witch, please have some self-respect!

In the alley.

With only half a month left until the Demon Slaying Ceremony, white animal skin banners fluttered in front of every household in the alley.

Just then, they ran into Wang Xuan and a few other people, their arms around each other's shoulders, walking back from outside the alley with mechanical steps.

Shen Yun greeted him with a smile, but Wang Xuan didn't react, nor did the others.

He couldn't help but shake his head inwardly, "She must have gone to take the Illusion-Breaking Powder again; she's really doing a lot of harm!"

Finding a secluded spot to easily alter his appearance, Shen Yun went to the neighboring neighborhood and bought nine talisman stones from several shops.

This amount of runes is nothing to cause any trouble for a workshop.

The nine talisman stones yielded a total of 810 gold coins. Shen Yun then bought two more talisman crystals: a Mind-Awakening Talisman and a Golden Knife Talisman.

It was a secondhand copy that someone else had studied, and it cost 450 yuan, which was 150 yuan cheaper than the one from Shengbaolou.

With this, Shen Yun had purchased all ten runes required for the first-tier rune master assessment.

Protective, Lightness, Swiftness, Immense Strength, Boiling Blood, Rejuvenation, Detoxification, Awakening, Ice Mist, and Golden Blade.

Although he is only at the second level of Body Nourishing, if a real fight breaks out, even a late-stage Body Nourishing cultivator wouldn't be able to withstand a set of rune stones thrown at him.

That's the allure of money.

"Exchange 360 ​​gold for source stones, two of which are of the metal attribute, two of which are of the ice attribute, and the rest are of no attribute."

Shops that buy rune stones naturally also have attribute source stones, so Shen Yun, having already put on makeup, decided to exchange them for what she needed.

There are still two Blood Essence Pills left. It won't be too late to sell them and buy more pills after I've carved out a protective talisman.

"One attribute-type Originium is equivalent to two non-attribute-type Originiums. Here are eight Originiums for you."

The shopkeeper retrieved it from the back and handed it to Shen Yun.

Holding them in their hands, two of them gleamed with a dark golden luster, while the other two emitted a light blue glow, which was clearly different from ordinary Originium.

Shen Yun didn't look at it for long, put it in his pocket, tightened his grip on the cane hidden in his arms, and quickly left.

This time, Shen Yun was very cautious, vaguely sensing that he was being spied on.

After navigating the winding alleyways, relying on his nearly perfected Breath Concealment Technique, Shen Yun altered his appearance several times before finally feeling safe.

Finally, she regained her original appearance and headed home.

"We lost them. They were wearing makeup and changed their clothes several times. They were very cautious. These days, it's not easy to find fat sheep with low cultivation levels and Originium."

Not far away, a thin man looked at the crowded street and muttered a few curses under his breath.

He did not rob.

There's no way to rob someone in the Holy City instantly; the chances of failing are too high, and getting caught means certain death.

He was looking for a target to steal from.

When Shen Yun returned home, he happened to see Qiao Niang chatting with Tong Tong and Su Wan'er in the yard.

"Chatting?" Shen Yun greeted him with a smile.

"Brother Shen is back." Qiao Niang stood up. "Wan'er should cook now. Tongtong, it's time to go home."

"No rush, you guys chat, I'll take care of some things inside."

Shen Yun didn't stay in the courtyard for long; he went back to his room and put the source stones away.

These days, Qiaoniang has been trying to get closer to them, and the relationship between the group is getting better and better, as if they have endless topics to talk about.

Occasionally, a few of them would go shopping together.

Shen Yun knew Qiao Niang's thoughts, and she was also very sensible, not coming when she shouldn't.

Since Su Wan'er was indeed bored at home, he welcomed her.

In fact, even if Qiaoniang were to leave Tongtong at Shen Yun's house to take care of her while she was away, it wouldn't cause any trouble.

Moreover, although Tongtong is young, she is already capable of taking care of herself.

Qiaoniang just hoped that if anything unexpected happened, she could lend a hand and take care of things.

Shen Yun would help with this small favor if he could.

"My husband, Qiaoniang..."

That night, Su Wan'er talked to Shen Yun about this matter, and she guessed why Qiao Niang was so close to her. She wanted to ask her husband about his attitude.

"It's alright, do as you please."

Shen Yun massaged Wan'er's little feet.

"I used to have a little niece too, just as well-behaved as Tongtong."

Su Wan'er sat on the edge of the bed, a hint of reminiscence in her eyes.

"My little niece? How old are you?"

Shen Yun was taken aback. He rarely asked Su Wan'er about her past, for fear of touching on painful memories.

"Not only does he have a little niece, but he also has a big nephew..."

That evening, Su Wan'er told Shen Yun a lot about herself. She was born to her parents late in life, and she had two older brothers and sisters who were more than twenty years older than her.

My little niece's surname is Xiao, and she's a very cute girl.

Her eldest nephew was four or five years older than her. In her memory, he was a sickly person who had been jilted by a cultivator from the sect when he was fifteen.

Shen Yun joked, "Luckily, we don't cultivate battle qi."

Suddenly I thought of Xiao Yifan, the Demon-Suppressing Thunder Lord. His city was also breached more than six years ago, and his surname was Xiao.

Shen Yun's brow twitched, and he tentatively asked, "What are their names?"

Su Wan'er looked at her husband in surprise, wondering why he asked their names, but after thinking for a moment, she said...

My little niece's name is Xiao Yi.

"My eldest nephew is frail. His nickname is Tie Niu (Iron Ox). Grandma says a humble name is easier to raise. What's his formal name...?"

"Xiao Fan, call him Xiao Fan."

Upon hearing this, Shen Yun couldn't help but slap his forehead.

"Xiao Yi, Xiao Fan, Xiao Yifan... Am I the uncle of the Demon-Suppressing Thunder Lord?" he couldn't help but wonder.

As he thought about it, Shen Yun couldn't help but furrow his brows deeply.

If that's true, then we're in trouble.

This Xiao Yifan was sickly as a child, was jilted at fifteen, and later encountered a monster attacking the city...

Some time ago, he even broke through his cultivation level in battle, and the Great Demon of the Reverse Heaven Demon Saint Hall was accepted as a true disciple by the sect leader.

"Why does this sound so familiar? It's like it's based on some kind of inspirational 'Destined One' template!?"

Following the template conceived in his previous life, the originally peaceful cultivation world changed after the protagonist appeared.

Shen Yun couldn't help but rub his temples; things outside the Holy City hadn't been peaceful these past few days.

Right.

It's better to believe it exists than to believe it doesn't!

Thinking of their names, Su Wan'er was immersed in memories, and a wave of sorrow washed over her.

He didn't notice Shen Yun's reaction for a moment.

Seeing this, Shen Yun changed the subject and started talking about something relaxing.

Although I'm fairly certain, it's best not to tell Wan'er before confirming it in person.

Moreover, no one can say for sure; only a face-to-face, private confirmation is possible.

Xiao Yifan might have an enemy somewhere!

And so, the two talked for a long time.

[Emotional exchange, Su Wan'er's exclusive blessing +10]

I fell asleep late at night, and nothing was said that night.

The next day, after inspecting the spirit fields, he returned but did not hear any news of Xiao Yifan's return.

Ignore it for now; I can't afford to associate with relatives like that.

After a comfortable lunch and a short rest, Shen Yun couldn't wait to return to the quiet room.

The ancient scroll has 45 points of good fortune.

This quantity is enough for him to carve attribute runes; he's just one step away from passing the entry-level assessment.

[Humanity Talisman Master (Tier 1 472/100000)] +40

With this sudden enlightenment about talisman masters, Shen Yun picked up the light blue source stone and began to carve.

The energy fluctuations inside attribute source stones are slightly different from those of ordinary source stones. When you infuse your blood and qi into them, you experience a cool and refreshing sensation.

Shen Yun had long been familiar with the intricate ice mist runes, having practiced them dozens of times on ordinary stones.

However, the difficulty of obtaining the Ice Mist Runestone far exceeded Shen Yun's expectations.

During the seal carving process, he was struggling to keep going.

After an hour and a half of continuous concentration, Shen Yun felt dizzy and lightheaded.

My hands, which had been touching the ice-attribute source stone for a long time, felt cold and stiff.

Add the last five points of good fortune to boost energy.

As the room was bathed in a brilliant blue light, Shen Yun let out a long breath.

"We almost failed; it took nearly two hours!"

He can now complete a regular protective talisman in less than an hour.

The difficulty of the Ice Mist Runestone is acceptable, but it requires two full hours of continuous effort.

It's too much for an old man.

"The entrance exam is still pending, and I'm afraid I can't handle carving ten rune stones at once!"

Taking a breath, Shen Yun frowned.