Upon hearing this, Chunhe grew anxious at once. "What? Sister, you're going into Fanjing Mountain? That place is way too dangerous!"
"But I have to go in. There's something I need inside Fanjing Mountain. It's fine, I still have a Dharma Treasure to protect me, so you don't need to worry." As soon as she finished speaking, Su Luo couldn't help but wince inwardly—her own words sounded utterly scheming.
Chunhe truly did not want the kind fairy sister before her to run into danger, and quickly said, "What are you looking for? I'll go find it for you!"
Su Luo shook her head, her tone resolute. "No, I need to find a Spirit Plant. The place where that Spirit Plant grows is very dangerous, so I must go pluck it myself. Chunhe, thank you for your kind intentions, but I can't let you go in my stead."
"Is that so..."
Chunhe hadn't expected the fairy sister to be so kind, preferring to put herself in danger rather than take advantage of her. A warm feeling stirred in her chest.
Ever since she was little, the immortals she had seen were all arrogant and aloof. Even if they didn't bully mortals by relying on their cultivation, deep down they held utter contempt for ordinary people.
She had never met someone as kind as this fairy sister, who patronized her business, treated her so warmly, even invited her to eat, and wouldn't let her run into danger! She truly was an immensely kind person!
Just like that, without Su Luo knowing a thing, Chunhe completed her own psychological turnaround. With the look of someone making up her mind, she took a deep breath before replying.
"Actually, there really is a way to ensure my safety."
Su Luo hadn't expected her to yield so quickly. "Really?"
"However, my family doesn't let me talk about it, so... please, Sister, you must keep it a secret for me."
Su Luo nodded solemnly. "Naturally. I can swear a Heart Demon Vow!"
A Heart Demon Vow was a commonly used oath in the Cultivation World. Once sworn, it could never be broken; otherwise, one would sink deep into a heart demon, which was tantamount to cutting off one's path of cultivation.
"No, no need! I believe you, Sister!"
Chunhe hurriedly waved her hands, then immediately reached inside the collar of her shirt, pulled out a small Peace Talisman sewn from cloth, took it off, and handed it to Su Luo to look at.
"This is the Peace Talisman I've carried since I was little. According to Grandpa, my mother put this on me when I was born, saying it would keep me safe. Ever since I was a child, because of this Peace Talisman, plants and animals all around have been very close to me. Even those terrifying Spirit Plants and monsters in Fanjing Mountain have never harmed me."
*So that's how it is...*
To actually make plants and demonic beasts feel warmly inclined toward her and refuse to harm her—what kind of terrifying golden finger was this? Although the plot of the original novel had completely fallen apart in her past life, she had never heard of such a powerful golden finger...
Su Luo couldn't help leaning in closer, carefully examining the ordinary Peace Talisman. After a good long while, she noticed a faint trace of Spiritual Energy overflowing from it, an aura that bore a striking resemblance to a talisman...
Her expression changed instantly.
There was probably another talisman hidden inside the Peace Talisman! What kind of talisman was this powerful?! She had never seen it, nor had she ever heard of it...
Su Luo suppressed the confusion and excitement in her heart, raised her head, and asked, "May I hold it in my hand and take a look?"
Out of unconditional trust in Su Luo, Chunhe uttered an "Okay" and handed the Peace Talisman over to her.
As soon as Su Luo took it, the aura she felt grew even stronger.
She gently rubbed the Peace Talisman, and sure enough, she could feel the texture of talisman paper inside. It looked like someone had stuffed a talisman right into this Peace Talisman.
It seemed the real reason those animals and plants were close to Chunhe was that this talisman was at work. How fascinating. Just what kind of talisman was it? She really wanted to see it...
It was just a pity that this Peace Talisman was already sewn shut; unless she tore it open by force, she couldn't see the talisman inside.
Ah well, a gentleman does not covet what others hold dear; it seemed she would have to find another way. How about asking Chunhe's mother to take a look?
At this thought, Su Luo returned the Peace Talisman to Chunhe.
"Put it away safely. This is a treasure your mother gave you, so make sure you don't lose it. By the way, what does your mother do? This Peace Talisman is so pretty, I'd love to ask her to make one for me, too."
At the mention of her mother, Chunhe's eyes instantly turned red, and her hands involuntarily clenched the Peace Talisman tightly.
"Mother... is long gone..."
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Su Luo paused, startled.
"It's fine, Sister. I don't know much about my family's affairs." Chunhe sniffled and solemnly put the Peace Talisman away.
"I actually don't know what Mother did either. From as far back as I can remember, she had already fallen ill and passed away. To make ends meet, Father went to Tang City to work, and now only Grandpa and I are here waiting for him to come back."
Su Luo pondered, forming a plan in her mind.
That talisman was definitely a supreme-grade talisman; aside from high-level Talisman Masters, no one could possibly draw it.
Yet Chunhe was obviously a mortal, so the probability of her mother being a Talisman Master was slim. After all, Talisman Masters basically relied on inherited talent, and ordinary peasant households could hardly cultivate someone worthy of being a Talisman Master.
The most likely scenario was that someone had given this talisman to Chunhe's mother, prompting her to sew it into the Peace Talisman to protect her daughter all along.
Thinking of her own biological parents in her current life who, following a divorce and starting new families, had grown cold and distant toward her, Su Luo twitched the corners of her mouth, a trace of mockery flashing in her eyes.
Perhaps she simply lacked affinity with family...
Unloved by her parents in this life, and greeted by indifference after transmigrating into a novel world with no one caring about her—and the only one who cared was a madwoman, tch!
Su Luo let out a wistful sigh, reached out to ruffle the little girl's hair, and said in a somewhat envious tone, "Chunhe, you are fortunate, because your mother has always been silently protecting you."
Hearing this, tears welled up in Chunhe's eyes.
"Mhm, I know... Father and Grandpa love me too, I know it all. I am very fortunate!"
Su Luo smiled, withdrew her hand, and once again urged Chunhe to eat more. The two agreed that Chunhe would guide her into Fanjing Mountain, and in return, she would give her a generous reward.
The reason she needed Chunhe to guide her inside was precisely because she was the most familiar with Fanjing Mountain and could easily find the location of the Seven-Rosy Lotus. Coupled with the presence of that Peace Talisman, the risk for Su Luo to follow her in and harvest the Seven-Rosy Lotus would be drastically reduced.
Though it was a pity she wouldn't get to see the real talisman, the thought of snatching her enemy's fortuitous opportunity lifted Su Luo's spirits considerably.
When Chunhe finally finished eating, nothing was left on the table.
Who would have guessed the little girl had the potential of a bottomless pit...
After wiping her mouth, Chunhe brought up the precautions. "In the early morning at Fanjing Mountain, most of those Spirit Plants and demonic beasts are asleep, so that's usually when I go. Sister, going at dawn tomorrow is the safest time."
"Alright." Su Luo pulled out another High-grade Spirit Stone, but no matter what, the little girl refused to accept it.
Seeing that she stubbornly refused to take the spirit stone, Su Luo gave up after a moment of thought and had the waiter pack up some more delicacies. She then stuffed a large bundle of items straight into the girl's arms.
"Take these back with you. Consider it as payment for helping me. At the Hour of Yin tomorrow, I'll see you at the entrance of Fanjing Mountain."
With that, before Chunhe could refuse, Su Luo turned around, waved her right hand, and left without looking back.
"Sister, wait!"
Chunhe wanted to chase after her, but the moment she looked up, the figure was already gone. With no other choice, she bowed deeply and gratefully toward the direction Su Luo had left, hugged her things, and turned to depart.
Not long after she left, a figure quietly followed behind her—that person was none other than Su Luo.
Su Luo hadn't walked far; she trailed Chunhe all the way, protecting her in secret as she watched the girl hug her things, skip her way back to a small mountain village, and enter a stone house at the very edge of the hamlet.
"Grandpa, I'm back!"
"Chunhe, you're finally back... *cough cough*... Where did you go? Why are you back so late?"
"Grandpa, I met an extremely kind person..."
Su Luo quietly drew closer, listening to the feeble voice of an old man ringing out from inside, the grandfather and granddaughter chatting happily, and only then did she relax.
Afterward, Su Luo surveyed her surroundings, found a large tree close to the stone house, and flew up into it. She leaned gently against the trunk as a lush canopy of leaves in front shielded her figure.
Night was falling, and this place was sparsely populated. Without paying close attention, no one would notice her. Tonight, she would stay right here and keep a close eye on any movement from the stone house.
Tomorrow was of the utmost importance, and she absolutely could not allow any slip-ups during this time!
Glancing at the setting sun, Su Luo pondered for a moment before taking out talisman paper, a talisman brush, and other items from her Storage Bag. She placed the talisman paper against the tree trunk, dipped the talisman brush into a bit of ink, concentrated her mind, and began to draw. In less than ten attempts, she successfully crafted a talisman.
All of this was witnessed by a Cloud-Winged Bird not far away. It tilted its head, rolled its eyes, and a flash of red light swept across them.
Meanwhile, a youth far away in the Tianyiji Sect took everything in. Those red eyes were bottomless and unfathomable, terrifyingly like an abyss.
"How interesting... Does the Tianyiji Sect have any idea what kind of genius they just let walk away?"
Crafting talismans not only demanded a concentrated and tranquil mind, but also required powerful Divine Sense. Consequently, there were numerous rules, and even a slight flaw could easily ruin a talisman or cause the crafting to fail.
Even he knew that ordinary Talisman Masters, even when placed in a quiet environment and using a fine table, could hardly achieve a success rate of one in a hundred. Yet Su Luo was able to draw talismans on a tree trunk with an extremely high success rate—even reaching one in ten—and as she drew more, her success rate only increased.
This young girl was a talisman-crafting genius!
It was laughable that those people in the Tianyiji Sect all looked down on her, deeming her the most useless existence in the sect, and thus couldn't wait to let her leave. If those sanctimonious people of the Tianyiji Sect ever found out about this, they would probably regret it to the point of stamping their feet in despair, wouldn't they?
Just thinking about it was immensely entertaining.
A few muffled chuckles escaped the youth's throat. His blood-red eyes gleamed, as though some terrifying monster on the verge of breaking out were lurking within them, chilling to the bone.
"Su Luo, you surprise me more and more. What other secrets do you have that I don't know about? I am so terribly curious..."
Su Luo remained completely oblivious to all of this, still wholly focused on drawing talismans, entirely unaware that the very person she wished she could avoid was quietly watching her every move.
By the time she eventually discovered it, it was already far too late.