The Death Talisman is one of the Ultimate Techniques of the Talisman Master lineage.

Legend has it that using a Death Talisman binds its target to a Deceit, which will then hunt them relentlessly until one of them is destroyed.

This item is precious, mainly because the art of creating Death Talismans has been lost to time.

Of course, as anyone in the know would tell you, no one can say for sure whether it was lost intentionally or by accident.

Because of this, each Talisman Paper of this kind that is used is one less in the world.

They are exceptionally rare.

The man in black put away the Talisman Paper and said, "This Shen Bai, at such a young age, already stands at the pinnacle of his generation in Fenglin State."

"If this continues, who will be able to stop him?"

"Can you? Can I?"

"No, neither of us can. The Wild Taoist Sect never leaves an enemy alive, much less a prodigy like him. He must die."

With that, everything that needed to be said had been said.

After a long silence, the Changbai Temple Master nodded. "I’ll take care of it."

The man in black put the Death Talisman away. "Remember, use the Reverse Nourishing Method on the final night. That will be your limit, and the limit of what it will take to kill Shen Bai."

The Changbai Temple Master agreed.

The man in black turned and left the room.

A moment later, the Changbai Temple Master was the only one left in the room.

The Changbai Temple Master stood up, a thought blossoming in his mind: ’My son may be dead, but joining the Wild Taoist Sect is an excellent choice. His death was worth it. With the Devouring Deceit Skill, I can reach a peak unattainable by ordinary people.’

He would never have had such a thought normally.

The Devouring Deceit Skill was changing the Changbai Temple Master’s very nature.

...

「Time passed slowly.」

Lately, the Observatory had become a flurry of activity.

Due to the unusual events surrounding the "Shadow Clothing" Deceit, Liu Wufeng was in the middle of a frantic investigation.

However, he couldn’t find any useful information in such a short time.

Meanwhile, the Wild Taoist Sect and the Wild Buddha Sect had begun to surface, appearing all along the borders of Fenglin State.

Some members of the Observatory were now rushing about in the wilderness.

"Tell the leaders of each department that the Wild Taoist Sect and Wild Buddha Sect seem to be using a tactic to lure the tiger away from the mountain."

Liu Wufeng said slowly, "I will remain here to hold the fort in Fenglin State. Equip everyone with a signal talisman. If you encounter danger, burn the talisman."

An extremely precious talisman was distributed to every member of the Observatory. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Shen Bai looked at the talisman, then at the two wisps of Evil Qi he had obtained, and fell into deep thought.

Deceits were few, but that didn’t mean there were none.

Even after a time-consuming and laborious search, Shen Bai had only managed to find two of them.

Including what he had before, he only had four wisps of Evil Qi.

Shen Bai had also heard Liu Wufeng’s orders and couldn’t shake a sense of unease.

’This whole thing... it isn’t directed at me, is it?’ Shen Bai thought as he put the Talisman Paper away.

After thinking for a moment, Shen Bai shook the thought away.

’I’ll see what happens. Right now, even Liu Wufeng doesn’t have any leads. I should just take it one step at a time.’

Shen Bai stretched and turned to look at the celebrating commoners.

"Lord Shen, happy festival!"

"Lord Shen, try this! It’s delicious. It’s my own new recipe."

"Lord Shen, look! The shape of this tanghulu is so unique."

Many commoners would greet Shen Bai from time to time as they passed by.

Today was the last day of the state anniversary celebration.

By the second day, Shen Bai had already become a familiar face on this street.

He hailed from a small county town and had also been a pawnshop owner, so he knew how to get along with ordinary people.

In the eyes of the people, Shen Bai was of high status, yet he was humble and refined, which made him very well-liked.

"Brother Shen, the final evening gala is about to start. Are you going to watch?"

A little girl of about five or six walked up to Shen Bai, holding a sugar figurine, and asked with a grin.

Shen Bai crouched down and patted the little girl’s head. "I’m not going. You go on and have fun. I’ll come find you when I’m done with my work."

The little girl said, "Oh," and waved her chubby little hand as she left with her mother. "You have to come, Brother Shen!"

Shen Bai smiled and waved back.

Nearby, Huang Guang watched Shen Bai’s gentle demeanor and shook his head.

"It’s hard to imagine that the Lord Shen who earned the praise of Fenglin State’s powers and single-handedly destroyed the Upper Evil Sect could be so gentle."

Kong Fang, also beside him, chimed in, "Lord Shen’s Sword Qi can transform into anything. It’s only natural that it can also take on a form as gentle as jade."

Shen Bai came back to his senses. "Alright, that’s enough praise. I just feel... healed. There’s nothing more healing than a human cub."

Huang Guang and Kong Fang didn’t understand.

Shen Bai waved a hand. "Send word down the line. Tell everyone to be extra vigilant. Tonight is the last night, and I have a bad feeling something’s going to happen."

When it came to official business, the two didn’t hesitate, nodding in agreement.

Shen Bai continued his patrol along the street.

When night fell, the feverish atmosphere throughout Fenglin State reached its peak.

"Lord Shen, look! Fireworks!"

Huang Guang pointed at the sky.

Shen Bai looked up and saw fireworks blooming in the dark night sky above every street.

"With such a festive atmosphere, you really can’t see any sign of the dynasty’s turmoil," Shen Bai said, narrowing his eyes.

He finally understood the necessity of the state anniversary. Without it, the common people might have no outlet for all the various troubles they encounter throughout the year.

"Even in the bitterest of times, there needs to be joy," Kong Fang said very seriously.

Shen Bai turned his head. "That statement is rather contrary to your personality."

Kong Fang coughed. "I read it in a storybook. In that story, the protagonist’s aunt dies at the very beginning, but her memory stays with him throughout his journey. It was deeply moving."

Shen Bai asked curiously, "What storybook was it?"

"I think it was called something-something Divine Technique... I can’t remember," Kong Fang replied after a moment’s thought.

Shen Bai shook his head and didn’t press the matter.

"Let’s keep going."

He planned to continue patrolling the streets.

But just then, something unusual happened.

Amber, nestled in Shen Bai’s arms, suddenly let out a MEOW.

The cry was sharp, carrying a hint of deterrence.