Chapter 112: Appointed as Gentleman for Court Service, The Golden Toad Seals the Precious Talisman

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Rumbling thunder. A light drizzle began to fall over Moon Harbor, with faint flashes of lightning flickering among the dark clouds. A forked bolt of lightning tore across the sky, illuminating the graceful silhouette of a dragon winding through the cloud base. As the lightning faded, the dragon’s shadow suddenly vanished without a trace.

When it reappeared, it had transformed into a stunningly cold and beautiful woman dressed in white—the Dragon Maiden—who alighted on the small stone bridge within Wang Cheng’s residence, the Osmanthus Garden.

Surveying the garden, a towering osmanthus tree stood proudly, its leaves and branches shimmering as raindrops fell, creating a blurred misty rain throughout the courtyard. Nearby, a string of raindrops dripped continuously from the eaves, like a delicate necklace hanging down—a breathtaking sight.

Clad in silver silk robes that remained dry despite the rain, Yunxiao lifted her skirt slightly and sat at the edge of the stone bridge, gently dipping her exquisitely pale bare feet into the clear stream to cleanse them. Supporting her fragrant cheek with a small hand, she silently watched Wang Cheng, who was busy at work in the courtyard, seemingly indifferent to the storm.

Wang Cheng’s embroidered Dragon Robe became more resplendent by the moment. Rainwater could not penetrate beyond three feet from his body, leaving him completely dry.

“Hey, little Chengzi, I’ve asked you so many times already. Have you decided yet what you want for that wish I promised you before?” Yunxiao asked gently.

Wang Cheng, arranging the ritual altar, glanced briefly at the silver-scaled embroidery pressed against her chest beneath the palace veil before quickly averting his eyes.

“Ah, once I complete this ceremony and my life is secure, I will ask you then—I won’t delay any longer. Sister Xiao, first, help me tidy up the water dragon veins in the courtyard. I want a heavy, continuous auspicious dragon vein that brings daily wealth. The ritual for the Court Attendant requires some financial energy—the more, the better.”

“Financial energy? If you really wanted to earn money seriously, would you still lack that little bit?” Yunxiao was sometimes baffled by this man.

“The madam of the Red Chamber said that if he spends a night there, a girl would pay him fifty taels—that’s a wonderful deal. And that’s the rate for ‘Wang Fugui.’ If little Chengzi showed his true handsome face, the girls would surely pay a hundred or even one hundred and fifty taels. Why not take advantage of such an opportunity?

“Sister here has already scouted around the Daoist grounds to find the most beautiful girls for you to earn from. You just need to share thirty percent with me. It’s honest labor, perfect for performing rituals. You rejected the fortune snail girls I introduced last time, and now you refuse the rich girls who throw themselves at you. What exactly do you want? It’s truly beyond a dragon’s understanding.”

Since escaping the Dragon Lock Well, Yunxiao had allowed the Obedient Dragon Pearl and the Nine-Tailed Demon Dragon to continue their love-hate relationship, while she took charge of the earth veins and energy nodes. She integrated the entirely new Eight-Direction Ascending Wind Pavilion formation, transforming the Yin side of Moon Harbor into her own Daoist realm as the earth deity Dragon Maiden.

Not only could she regulate the feng shui patterns on a large scale to ensure favorable weather across the Jiujiang River basin, but any stirrings within Moon Harbor could not escape her gaze. Every word spoken by the madam or the commanding officer Xing Baichuan was overheard by her.

Today, besides assisting Wang Cheng’s guardian duties, she intended to remind him of something. Suppressing her doubts, she resolved to discuss this topic only after the ceremony.

Casually extending her delicate foot to stir the stream, the entire Fenglin Study’s spiritual mechanism shifted accordingly. The auspicious dragon location within Moon Harbor was temporarily relocated here by Yunxiao. Though it would gradually return to its original place within a day or two, this was proof of the earth deity’s formidable power.

In truth, it was Sister Yunxiao who was the true force behind Wang Cheng’s control of Moon Harbor, the guarantee that no one could usurp his position.

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“All set, perfect!” Wang Cheng smiled as he sensed the energy shift through his Star-Gazing technique. He clapped his hands and placed the crucial talisman artifact, the Craftsman Silver, on the ritual altar.

Thunder roared more fiercely above, and the corresponding signs grew increasingly distinct.

“Thunder sounds” mark the second phase of the Spring Equinox. Around five days after the equinox, as temperatures rise and the climate shifts, the sound of thunder becomes audible during rain—signaling the awakening and activity of insects and other creatures. It represents the flourishing of all life, brimming with vitality.

Under the Twenty-Four Solar Terms governing the Divine Land, these seasonal changes and their signs are precise. If any sign fails to appear, it indicates a grave anomaly; celestial omens warn that someone must issue a self-judgment decree—or conveniently blame the chief minister.

Fortunately, today’s signs arrived punctually.

Confirming the signs were accurate, Wang Cheng poured out a heap of gold, silver, and incense money accumulated through recent “earnings” from the Four Seas Treasury—worth at least thirty thousand taels.

For Wang Cheng, the Court Attendant promotion ritual was easier than the White Water Attendant’s, which required going to sea to fish on the same day.

Requirement: Conduct any business, and once you accumulate ten thousand taels of silver or equivalent wealth through fair and honest transactions, you can initiate the ritual.

So far, Wang Cheng’s “business” had zero complaints or negative feedback—no dissatisfied clients, not even in his thoughts. Fair, just, and meticulously attentive service!

This was a secret technique inherited from his master, the key to promotion rituals.

No matter the ritual, if the human heart gives no feedback, no positive or negative stress reactions arise. If the client disappears, no bad reviews occur.

Hence, the phrase “family must stay united” grew more meaningful.

Speaking of unity, it was also a form of “integrity,” wasn’t it?

Wang Cheng took out the wooden door panel given by Lu Yuncheng, seated cross-legged upon it, his mind instantly clearing. Aside from knowledge and insight, no other distractions remained.

“Birds roost by the pond-side tree; a monk knocks on the moonlit door.”

When the poet Jia Dao composed this famous line while riding his donkey, he agonized over the verb in the second half. His intense deliberation accidentally collided with the ceremonial guard of Han Yu, then governor of Jingzhao, who summoned him for an explanation.

Han Yu agreed that “knocks” fit the scene best, settling the wording.

The two became close friends despite the age difference.

Thanks to this thousand-year-old anecdote, the poem became the origin of the term “to deliberate,” gaining a peculiar power.

Sitting on this door panel to study and deliberate enhanced one’s efficiency, making it a treasured tool for Daoist seekers.

Lu Yuncheng, a genius envied even by spirits and ghosts, surpassed others even when his main focus was divine cultivation. With this “deliberation” talent amplifier, it was truly “with all my insight, all my lifelong accumulation, my heavenly wisdom, and unmatched aptitude, to achieve supreme divinity!”

Not a drop of exaggeration.

Wang Cheng lacked such innate talent—but he had tools.

Burning incense and bowing, he chanted the incantation:

“Heaven’s aid is impartial, the Qian symbol reveals the subtle. No darkness nor shadow unknown to it. Wearing talismans, divine weapons obey the call. I, the Daoist Sovereign, ascend the immortal capital—command!”

The Craftsman Silver radiated intense azure light, enveloping the surrounding gold, silver, incense money, but did not absorb them. Instead, it extracted the “Market Qi” accumulated through countless transactions.

The remaining material wealth could still be spent as currency.

The brilliant light mixed with blue smoke vanished into the void, once again helping Wang Cheng weave a fragrant path between heaven and man.

As expected, the Four Seas Treasury intervened midway, carrying Wang Cheng’s consciousness through the Mountain and Sea Curse to glimpse the outside world beyond the wall.

Just like last time, nothing was clear—only countless rare goods flashed continuously.

“Ghosts dwell in Xiling, shaped like humans with red eyes and fangs, hiding by day and emerging at night, feeding on human blood to extend life.”

“On Dishan, there are flesh-gathering beasts with two eyes, shaped like ox liver. Eating them grants endless life and revival.”

“The White People’s Kingdom lies north of the Dragon Fish, with white bodies and flowing hair. Riding yellow creatures shaped like foxes with horns on their backs, living two thousand years.”

Perhaps due to close contact with the recently chaotic elixir of immortality, all these entities related to longevity.

It seemed that these treasures, which even emperors covet, were commonplace beyond the wall.

Wang Cheng guarded his spiritual platform unmoved.

Though he advocated stepping out, he would not act rashly.

One’s appetite must match one’s capacity. Without reaching the top three ranks of the living spirit realm, he would not leave the Mountain and Sea Curse to explore the outside world.

Once he cultivates himself and his family and gains capital, then he will govern the country and bring peace to the world. Everyone must wait for him!

Soon, Wang Cheng’s vision returned to reality and back into his body.

Above him, a “Heavenly One Produces Water Golden Toad Qi” descended, twisting into a golden talisman under the specific ritual and thunder’s call.

—The Golden Toad Treasure Suppressing Talisman!

Wang Cheng’s heart stirred.

“This has changed again! When I assumed the White Water Attendant role, a normal River Chart Life-Saving Talisman transformed into the higher-level Four Seas Exorcism Talisman.

A Court Attendant should receive a Wealth-Inviting Talisman, but this time, influenced by the Four Seas Treasury, it became the Golden Toad Treasure Suppressing Talisman.”

In his heart, alongside the White Water Attendant’s Four Seas Exorcism Talisman, the Golden Toad Treasure Suppressing Talisman slowly descended.

The two merged into a new wick of light, bound by the fundamental conviction: “I do not seek to be marquis, only wish for peaceful seas.”

The lamp’s glow, originally bright red, gained a faint cyan hue, expanding beyond one-third, nearing half.

Others struggled for years to gather ten thousand taels for promotion.

Wang Cheng, through swift, no-cost trades, effortlessly amassed thirty thousand in months. Combined with Yunxiao’s daily wealth-bringing auspicious dragon energy, the Daoist feedback rewards were especially potent.

Now, the fate and aura of these two official talismans exceeded the normal scope of a seventh-rank official.

With the door panel’s help, Wang Cheng’s wisdom was clear and serene.

Watching quietly, he noticed the cloud-scripted thunder runes at the base of the two talismans began to overlap.

Suddenly inspired, he reached out and made an intangible push toward the unseen core.

Boom!

A thunderclap burst above, resonating with the thunder in his heart.

The bases of the two talismans abruptly merged into one!