Chapter 929: Dupe, Dupe, and Dupe Some More

“That’s a divine pen,” the old man noted. “So you have ties to Southern Dipper Temple as well?”

He had sharp eyes. One glance and he noticed Ye Wenxin’s golden pen was no ordinary tool. Ye Wenxin felt guilty. She had borrowed this thing from the abbot at Southern Dipper Temple years ago. To this day, he still didn’t know. After this old man recognized the pen’s origins, she must admit he had some skill.

“I’ve met Abbess Jiunan a few times. It’s nothing worth mentioning,” Ye Wenxin replied with a smile. She straightened the silver chain and channeled her qi into the golden pen.

Immediately, golden ink began to flow from the pen. Ye Wenxin wrote “固” (Strengthen) in the air. The glowing character floated down and wrapped around the silver chain, consecrating it. The glow lasted a moment before fading, and the chain’s original color returned.

Seeing the old man’s surprised expression, Ye Wenxin knew her little trick had fooled him. “Sir, see if the chain feels sturdier now,” she prompted.

He nodded and used his qi but couldn’t break the silver chain.

“Well then! Celestial Master Ye, you’re extraordinary. I’m convinced,” he said. Once he was sure that Ye Wenxin hadn’t swapped or tampered with the chain, the old man gave her a serious cupped-fist salute.

Ye Wenxin’s unique skill had won him over.

She laughed. “It’s nothing much. I owe it to Abbess Jiunan’s guidance. It is an evolved form of the Lion’s Roar technique,” Ye Wenxin continued to lie with a straight face. But one part was true—it was a written form of the Lion’s Roar. Different characters she wrote with the golden pen could manifest different abilities.

“Lion’s Roar… so it’s the Lion’s Roar technique that every monk and nun at the Southern Dipper Temple knows,” said the old man, laughing. Given his many years of experience, he naturally knew about Lion’s Roar.

It was a mental debuff capable of intimidating and throwing enemies into disarray. A more advanced version could turn spoken words into physical force, and many monks enjoyed using it to hurl characters at people for fun. What Ye Wenxin had just demonstrated leaned more toward the long-lost Divine Lion’s Roar, which allowed complete mental domination through speech.

However, Ye Wenxin hadn’t obtained Divine Lion’s Roar. She had only refined the technique’s basic form using the golden pen.

But the old man didn’t know that. His eyes glazed over as if Ye Wenxin’s talent had struck a heavy blow.

After her bluff had worked and dampened the old man’s sharp edge, Ye Wenxin ended the conversation. She and Liuli followed Sister Hong to the first floor to settle the payment.

Night had already fallen by now. The air was still, yet the lantern flames flickered. It was unsettling. When Ye Wenxin descended the stairs, she saw around a hundred people gathered in the main hall. They were likely guards, servants, and other staff of the Treasure Pavilion.

“Sister Hong, why is it so lively here?” she asked.

“Lively?” Sister Hong smiled wryly at her. “We gathered everyone up because of the evil spirits. This way, we can look out for each other if things get out of hand.”

Liuli tugged at Ye Wenxin’s hand again, reminding her about their earlier agreement.

Ye Wenxin gave Liuli a nod before settling the payment for the bells with Sister Hong.

A hundred spirit stones would be an outrageous price for the average cultivator. But Ye Wenxin felt it was a bargain. She knew Sister Hong had given her a significant discount, likely out of respect for her.

Still, the fact that she could do that without batting an eye revealed how high her position was. The Cozy Gang should avoid the Treasure Pavilion if they wanted to gain a foothold in the Golden Age Dynasty.

A commotion erupted in the hall as Ye Wenxin waited for the items. A man dressed in exquisite silk appeared. He looked average but exuded authority. From how the staff addressed him, Ye Wenxin realized this must be the Treasure Pavilion’s owner: Qian Duoduo (means many, many money).

Although his name sounded lame, he was the wealthiest man in the entire dynasty.

“What is going on?” Qian Duoduo’s voice carried impatience as he questioned the crowd about the current situation.

“It’s the people from Cozy Pavilion! They must’ve done something. That’s why the Treasure Pavilion is suddenly haunted!”

“Wasn’t it because Renzha (a pun for scum) killed a mother and daughter, and now their ghosts are haunting us?”

Unfortunately, everyone had different conclusions, and the scene descended into chaos. Since Sister Hong was attending to Ye Wenxin, she couldn’t report to her boss.

Qian Duoduo grew annoyed. He glanced at Sister Hong in the distance, then at Ye Wenxin and Liuli, and walked toward them.

“Xiao Hong, what’s happening?” Qian Duoduo asked, having more faith in Sister Hong than in the others.

Sister Hong glanced at Ye Wenxin hesitantly. Ye Wenxin tactfully took her gift and moved a short distance away, pretending to admire the interior. Sister Hong gave her an apologetic smile and began explaining the Treasure Pavilion’s situation to Qian Duoduo.

“Something strange happened in the sky last night. After that phenomenon, many of the items here suddenly began resonating for no apparent reason. Three of our brothers lost their lives in the chaos of trying to contain them.

“And that wasn’t the end of it. The phenomenon hasn’t stopped. Malevolent spirits have possessed several others, destroying many precious artifacts.

“I immediately summoned the most renowned priests and monks. They told me that the phenomenon had awakened a powerful ghost sealed in one of the treasures. Without delay, I sent a message to Priest Wang of the One Short Sect, but he’s not here yet.”

Sister Hong carefully explained the full sequence of events, which differed from Ye Wenxin’s earlier analysis. She thought something had gone wrong with that box on the top floor. The box attracted malevolent spirits, but they couldn’t get close to it, which led to deaths.

However, as an outsider, Ye Wenxin wasn’t obliged to get involved. She used her golden pen to draw a large circle on the floor, using black ink she found nearby to make it more noticeable.

When someone finally noticed what Ye Wenxin was doing, she had already completed eight circular patterns resembling the taijitu (yin-yang symbol).

“Hey, what are you doing?!”

Even though Ye Wenxin had braced herself, the sudden voice still startled her. When she turned around, she saw several people staring at her.

Sister Hong looked awkward but quickly defended her, “Boss, this is Celestial Master Ye. I’m sure she has a good reason for drawing these strange patterns on our floor.”