Chapter 43 Non-binding Contract
Sitting in Danxin Pavilion, Chen Ranming could smell the aroma of medicine from time to time, and his heart felt strangely calm. He held the teapot in his left hand and took a sip, while his right hand, which was missing a little finger, clenched unnaturally.
He had made no progress in his cultivation over the past few months, spending all his time either refining weapons or trying to find a way to obtain the contract. After some inquiries, he learned that the medicine boy of Taoist Hua Shen of Ruoyu Peak could obtain such a great deal. He couldn't pass up this opportunity. With his current level of cultivation, accepting any mission was impossible. After much deliberation, he found only one solution: serve as a companion.
Many in Huaxue Ridge are bloodthirsty and aggressive, and their reputations are widespread. Fighting on the battlefields forbids killing or stealing, and at most inflicts serious injuries, so few are willing to fight them. Shen Ranming volunteered to be the punching bag, carefully taking the beatings for several months. He only lost a little finger on his right hand, which was a good thing. But now, with only three fingers left on his right hand, he must practice with his left hand to supplement his skills.
Chen Ranming's self-torture naturally required more than just an ordinary contract. He also needed a special brush and ink he had painstakingly borrowed. This brush, called Tongming, features the whiskers of the ancient Jingming Tiger as its tip, capable of distinguishing truth from lies. The ink, freshly mined from the stone, is Liangyanshengxiao Ink. This ink has two sides. One side is "Laughing Ink," and any words written on it are engraved into the soul, requiring no disobedience. Any disobedience will result in death from laughter. The other side is "Beauty Ink," and the person depicted immediately falls into a languid sleep, unable to awaken for seven days. It truly has many uses.
This ink weighs a thousand pounds, but it's hard to find a single smear. Shen Ranming risked his life, only to be able to write a few short sentences. That was enough. He had already tampered with the contract, rendering it ineffective even when written on paper. Only by using the "Two Smiles" ink would it be effective. Of course, he wouldn't have known about this kind of thing based on his knowledge; it was all thanks to a few fellow disciples who had come together to piece it together, eager to see the fun. He only hoped Luo Xuanyi would fall for it, but he hadn't anticipated that Luo Xuanyi, like a bookworm, had read 70% to 80% of Taoist Hua Shen's collection and had a rough idea of the rest. His knowledge was truly vast.
As soon as Luo Xuanyi stepped into the living room, she keenly discerned a strange smell from the burning herbs. Although Luo Xuanyi could not immediately tell what the odor was, she immediately sealed all the pores on her body without making a sound before walking in. She carefully looked at every corner and finally fell on Shen Ranming's face, which always had a smile on it.
Shen Ranming calmed down and explained the main purpose of his visit, not wanting to appear overly anxious. He pulled out a scroll of bamboo slips and handed it to Luo Xuanyi: "This is what you asked Feiyan Pavilion for some time ago." He was very curious about the contents of the scroll. Sikong Qian didn't say anything when he gave it to him, but his expression was filled with gritted teeth. After giving it to him, he immediately went to Feiyan Pavilion. The bamboo slips were sealed again with a secret seal. Once opened, they could not be restored to their original state. He had no choice but to bring them to Luo Xuanyi unopened.
Luo Xuanyi was overjoyed to have the Soul-Locking Curse, but her expression remained calm. In this respect, she was very similar to Shen Ranming. She didn't explain what it was, simply calmly putting the bamboo slips into her storage bag. She twisted her fingers in her sleeves before suppressing the urge to open it and take a look.
She's quite good at pretending. Shen Ranming muttered a few words secretly and finally got to the point.
"I brought the contract, as well as the pen and ink. Please use mine as well." Shen Ranming deliberately threw the brush and inkstone onto the table, then carefully took out the carefully rolled contract, gently touched one end with his finger and slowly opened it, his eyes showing great cherishment.
Luo Xuanyi was indeed drawn to his actions, chuckling inwardly. Her eyes easily discerned the tampering with the contract. The original binding contract had been specially processed by the sect, imbued with spiritual energy, but the spiritual energy in this contract was unevenly distributed, clearly a remnant of the destruction left by the spell. This kind of tactic was typically only employed by disciples in the sect's Foundation Establishment stage who hadn't yet gained much experience. Those with a bit of experience could easily see through it. Who would have thought that Shen Ranming, after all this time, would only resort to such a crude tactic?
Luo Xuanyi was about to let her guard down, but then she thought of that strange fragrance again. As Shen Ranming lowered his head to grind the ink, the surrounding spiritual energy became increasingly impure. Luo Xuanyi looked at the brush and ink Shen Ranming pushed towards her, and her suspicions grew.
"You've made thorough preparations, but if you're hesitant to use my things, how can I trust yours?" Luo Xuanyi deliberately avoided the inkstone she suspected, instead picking up the brush and playing with it. This playfulness immediately revealed its extraordinary qualities. She maintained a composed demeanor, but inwardly she wished she could chop the brush into pieces right there. Under her close scrutiny, she easily located the shimmering tiger whisker within the brush, emitting a shimmering aura.
If Shen Ranming had been able to find a genuine Transparent Pen crafted by a master refiner, Luo Xuanyi would never have noticed anything unusual. However, this pen had been broken by someone unknown and then reforged with crude techniques, leaving it riddled with flaws. Taoist Hua Shen had experimented with the exotic material of Mirror Bright Tiger hair when refining a glazed mirror, but unfortunately, it was discarded due to its lack of availability. The appearance and efficacy of this Mirror Bright Tiger hair were naturally well documented, so how could Luo Xuanyi not recognize it? With a single thought, Luo Xuanyi knew what he was going to do with this pen.
But that wasn't enough. If he was afraid of lying, even if he was caught, he wouldn't get what he wanted. He must have a backup plan, and that backup plan was in this ink. Even if he couldn't figure out what kind of ink it was that gave Shen Ranming such confidence, Luo Xuanyi just had to avoid using it.
"You could obtain so many things, including rare treasures, but I'm different. While other sects have abundant contracts, I have to expend considerable effort to obtain them. Naturally, I can't resort to trickery with rare treasures." Shen Ranming feigned indignation, but Luo Xuanyi wanted to laugh. Actually, you can do quite a lot. She suppressed the urge to complain, let go of the brush, pushed it on the table, and simply played along.
Although Luo Xuanyi's expression remained calm, a hint of pride could not help but show in her eyes: "That's right. Okay, I'll use yours for the contract and pen, but I won't use this ordinary ink." She stretched out her hand to summon the mechanical puppet and gave a few instructions, and the mechanical puppet immediately brought Fang Li up.
"Go to Curry and see if you still have the gilded ink like the one in the master's post. Please bring some over."
Fang Li, just as Luo Xuanyi had imagined, went to the storeroom without a single word and quickly returned with the gilded ink. Unlike Chen Rong, he wasn't constantly guessing. Shen Ranming, somewhat unwilling and wary, asked, "What is this ink?"
Luo Xuanyi smiled and said, "You and I are both worried that the other party might tamper with it, but this is gilded ink that only the elders in the sect can afford. It is used to symbolize the importance of the letter. It cannot be interfered with by external forces, so there is no suspicion of tampering. Let's use this." There was a lot of boasting in her words.
Chen Ranming had not expected that Luo Xuanyi would actually use gilded ink instead of his own. He wanted to make amends, but Luo Xuanyi had already picked up the inkstone filled with the Two Smiling Faces ink and splashed it with a look of disgust. His eyebrows twitched and veins on his hands popped out immediately, but he finally endured it and watched Luo Xuanyi throw the inkstone into his arms with disgust, and began to grind ink with the inkstone that Fang Li brought along.
Shen Ranming gritted his teeth and smiled more gently.
The contents of the contract did not require much discussion. Both parties had already prepared a draft in their minds during such a long period of time, and they quickly reached a consensus. Luo Xuanyi picked up the pen and wrote:
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