Chapter 114: The Road Ahead and Fishing

"First, I need to make one thing clear to you. The favor I’m asking of you is extremely dangerous—even more so than before. This isn't a simple matter, and I want you to consider it carefully before deciding, in case you’d rather return to an ordinary life."

He was silent for a moment before gripping Zhang Lan’s sleeve. "Then stay here. I will take care of everything downstairs for you."

"For me?" she asked, looking up. As she turned back, the expression on Zhang Lan's face was visibly haggard. "Tell me about your side of things first."

"I am going fishing."

"Fishing?" She frowned, clearly confused.

"Fishing for something very large. But you are the bait." He looked at Zhang Lan, who suddenly smiled.

"Then I agree."

"Don't you need to know what I want you to do?"

"It doesn't matter. As long as I can take revenge on them, that's enough. No matter who they are, no matter who has been manipulating my life, I just need to be able to retaliate against them."

...

Six hours later—the present.

Chen Qing gazed out the window, looking composed as he asked Bu Zhaozhao, "Have you prepared the progression path for my next piece of Intangible Heritage?"

"Which one are you referring to?"

He remained silent for a moment, seemingly in thought. "Any of them will do, I suppose."

"And what about the future?" Bu Zhaozhao frowned, looking somewhat displeased. "Don't tell me you intend to push every single item you acquire to its highest potential?"

"Is that not possible?"

She rolled her eyes at Chen Qing. "That’s obviously not possible. Not to mention the immense pressure that comes with increasing the rank of an Intangible Heritage item, can you even afford the quantity of materials required for such promotions?"

She paused for a moment before continuing, "Compensation is certainly better the higher it gets, but you only have twenty-four hours in a day. You must make trade-offs with the resources you have."

"But I don't need to worry about that just yet, do I?" Chen Qing clapped his hands together with a carefree air. "The Thousand-Faced Gentleman must be upgraded. I have a feeling that thing is rather peculiar. As for the others, didn't you say you already had a prepared path for the Withered Blood Glaze?"

She hummed in acknowledgment but looked conflicted. "The materials for the Withered Blood Glaze aren't hard to find. However, the promotion ritual itself is quite tricky. That is the issue I haven't mentioned to you until now."

"What does the complete ritual entail?" Chen Qing asked, curious.

"Saltpeter, a sulfur solution boiled to a concentration of about 17%, and bone meal ground after being boiled. And the most important part—you must seal a weak soul during the ritual."

"What about the location?" Chen Qing pressed. "Are there no requirements for the location this time?"

"It must be by a riverbank where ivy grows, and the soul must be sealed when the moonlight is at its peak."

Chen Qing’s brow furrowed involuntarily as he listened. "But when it comes down to it... what is a soul, anyway? No, never mind what a soul is—I’m just talking about how I’m supposed to use a wooden stick to poke something as intangible as a soul into a seal."

"Two points. First: a soul is not something that cannot be interacted with. It is an isomer born from human willpower under specific conditions..."

She hesitated before describing it: "An isomer. In essence, they are the same thing, but they shift their form under specific conditions. Once it reaches a state where it can detach from the body, it becomes a soul."

"And the second point?"

"The second point is that a soul is not untouchable. In fact, most souls, spirits, and similar entities can interact with physical objects. Since they can, why wouldn't you be able to touch them?"

"Are there conditions?" Chen Qing asked again.

"Generally speaking, anyone capable of using an Intangible Heritage item can observe and touch a soul. Because these items rely on the user's willpower to activate, they inadvertently raise the user's willpower significantly. To a detached soul, such a person is like a heavy artillery cannon—a mere brush against one would cost them half their life."

Chen Qing nodded in understanding. "So the problem lies in the soul itself?"

She hummed, adding, "Although you haven't reached your consciousness cap yet, I still suggest that you build your own system based on the Intangible Heritage items you currently possess."

He pondered for a while—or at least, he appeared to. "What about the Thousand-Faced Gentleman, then? What is the promotion ritual for that piece?"

She was silent for a moment, her voice sounding faint. "As it happens, I can't detect the promotion ritual for that thing. Aren't I impressive, big sister?"