Chapter 22: You're a Generous Boss!

Even with Feng Xue's steady nerves, his heart nearly skipped a beat when he saw these items. The momentary change in his expression did not escape Jiu Gu's notice. She gave him a playful look and said with a smile, "It doesn't seem like you're as ignorant as you claimed to be!"

"Heh..." Feng Xue gave a dry laugh, unable to offer a proper response. However, he had figured it out: these manuals were likely acquired through some method similar to the "Five Ghosts Carrying Wealth."

Even knowing this, the sight of the garishly colored covers of the manuals made it hard for him to keep a straight face. After all, traditional thread-bound books usually came in blue or earthy yellow, and even red was acceptable for special purposes; but seeing books in all three colors at once inevitably gave off an air of impropriety.

Feng Xue knew better than to fixate on the superficial, so he focused his attention on the titles on the covers:

"Object Summoning," "Ghost Mastery," "Paper Cutting," "Fire Invocation," "Nightmare Casting," "Staff Displacement," "Divine Travel," "Ingestion," "Demon Slashing," "Walking on Water," "Pot Heaven," and "Dust Cleansing."

There were twelve spells in total, their names concise. Some were self-explanatory, while others were slightly abstract. Yet, after a quick scan, Feng Xue noted that apart from "Nightmare Casting" and "Staff Displacement," which were literal enigmas, the rest were combat or defensive techniques. Notably absent were any exorcism skills. If Jiu Gu truly lacked knowledge of these, the staples of a medium—like "Inviting Spirits" or "Communicating with the Nether"—were missing from this collection.

"So, these are the family trade secrets?" Feng Xue pondered, quickly connecting the dots. While he found the combat and defensive abilities more miraculous than summoning ghosts from the underworld to possess someone, he realized that for a professional, these were the core, income-generating techniques.

"I'll take them all!"

Feng Xue declared with grand flair. Jiu Gu’s eyes brightened immediately, and she gave a thumbs-up. "Generous! Twelve volumes at a twenty-percent discount comes to nine thousand six hundred wen. I’ll waive the remainder; just give me nine strings of cash!"

"That’s easy enough. But Jiu Gu, I’d like to ask you something else." No sooner had the words left his lips than Jiu Gu interjected, "Ask away!"

"I heard there's a way to collect wish power to cultivate a False God..."

"I can't teach that." Before Feng Xue could finish, Jiu Gu shook her head. The mercenary glint in her eyes vanished, replaced by a rigid, mask-like expression of cold severity. She offered no explanation, her demeanor making it clear that if he pushed further, she would refuse to sell him the other books.

Seeing this, Feng Xue didn't press. He fished out a gold bean and said, "I don't have that much cash on me. Do you accept gold? If not, we can go to the money changer..."

"I accept! Of course I accept!" Jiu Gu took the gold bean, which weighed about two qian. She weighed it in her hand, then pinched off a piece with her fingers. Although gold is soft, the crisp, clean way she snapped off a segment left Feng Xue stunned—even with gold's malleability, being able to pinch a piece off like that was no small feat!

Jiu Gu didn't seem to care at all, handing the remaining fragment back to Feng Xue. "I've taken a little over one qian. Want to put it on a scale?"

"No need, no need." Feng Xue’s gold beans were ten grams each; compared to market rates, Jiu Gu had actually taken less.

Jiu Gu happily tucked the gold into her purse, then glanced at Feng Xue as he stuffed the stack of books into his bag. "I’ve sold you the techniques, but let me offer a word of advice: cultivation is a gradual process—don't be impatient. Also, don't go running off to catch ghosts the moment someone dies! That will cost you your yin lifespan. If you need ghosts and don't know where to find wild ones, you can buy them from me. My prices are fair!"

"I'll study them first and come back if I need to."

Feng Xue didn't commit himself, smiling and nodding before rising to leave the hall. He returned home to prepare for his studies. The agent he’d hired was efficient; by the time Feng Xue arrived home, the agent had already delivered the bed and bedding to the doorway.

After directing the laborers to set things up and paying the balance, Feng Xue closed the door and collapsed onto the not-so-comfortable sofa. He glanced at the unopened imported bedding, then looked at his ring.

"W-what are you doing?" The little white snake sensed his gaze and asked nervously. Feng Xue’s lips curled into a smile. He didn't answer directly, simply asking, "Do you want to become human?"

"I do!" The little white snake answered without hesitation, but then she abruptly caught herself and added, "I will not help you cultivate!"

"It’s not that complicated. Can you make a bed? Help me tidy up the room." Once the words were out, Feng Xue realized it might be a tall order, as she might not know how.

However, upon hearing the condition, the little white snake brightened. "I haven't done it before, but I think I know how! Don't worry, I'll do it well! Really!"

Seeing the little white snake acting like an eager maid, Feng Xue couldn't suppress his smile. Although he had suspected that "sealing" her with his words granted him benefits, as someone holding the power of "nullifying cultivation with a single word," her becoming stronger only worked in his favor.

"Since you are so sincere, very well. I see you as human," Feng Xue said with a triumphant air. Suddenly, he felt his arm grow heavy, and the little white snake slammed into him.

"Damn!"

Though he had a soft body in his arms, Feng Xue felt no pleasure; the sudden, explosive weight nearly knocked the wind out of him.

Fortunately, the little white snake reacted even more sharply, springing away instantly. She watched him warily, and seeing he was still struggling to catch his breath, she hurriedly said, "I, I'm going to figure out how to make the bed!"

With that, the seemingly delicate girl picked up a large crate that several men had struggled to move, and dashed toward the master bedroom like a gust of wind.

"..."

Feng Xue finally caught his breath, sighing to himself, "That physique definitely needs some work... Oh well, time to read."

He pulled out one of the manuals he’d bought from Jiu Gu at random. Unlike the concise, straightforward manual from the cemetery, this one was long-winded. It used a vast amount of ambiguous, repetitive jargon to describe things that could have been said in a sentence or two, feeling much like the filler text from a low-quality writing studio.

Regardless, the sheer volume of text eventually made the point clear. Combined with the somewhat crude but functional diagrams, Feng Xue quickly understood the ritual for the "Staff Displacement" spell.

"Prepare a wooden stick, pre-cast the spell, and when damage is taken during the spell's duration, it can be transferred to the stick... Isn't this just a substitution curse?"