Chapter Seven: The Unyielding Pawnshop

The pain from earlier today remained vivid in Yu Qi’s memory. He examined his own body, yet still found nothing unusual. After much thought, he could find no explanation, so he simply stopped dwelling on it.

The Heaven-Casting Method relies on absorbing the demonic energy from one’s surroundings to strengthen the physical body; the more demonic energy, the greater the strength. However, compared to the vast, sky-filling demonic energy that existed when the Ancestor first emerged, the current amount available to him was pitifully small.

To condense more demonic energy, one must either find a place rich in such energy or follow the routine of circulating inner energy through the three meridians formed by demonic essence to produce thin wisps of it. Yet, progress this way was agonizingly slow.

Still, something was better than nothing. Yu Qi immediately began circulating his inner energy along those three meridians, continuously completing a full cycle.

Every time his inner energy completed a cycle, a wisp of black demonic energy would gestate within the "Evil Seed" in his dantian. Only after repeating this cycle over and over did he gradually gather those tiny wisps into a concentrated form. However, as the demonic energy entered the Evil Seed, its pitch-black hue would gradually turn gray, then dissipate outside the body as "Evil Aura."

After a whole night, Yu Qi had only managed to gather three wisps of Evil Aura—a mere drop in the ocean compared to the Ancestor’s sky-filling power.

Just then, the door below opened, and Li Changchu shouldered his fishing net, heading toward the river.

"Uncle Li," Yu Qi called out.

Li Changchu looked back at the sound, spotted Yu Qi sitting on the roof, and greeted him, "Your aunt is making breakfast; make sure to come down and eat in a while. I’m off to work."

Hearing the commotion outside, Li Yulian rushed out. When she saw Yu Qi on the roof, her eyes filled with hope. "Brother Yu, how did you get up there? I want to go up too."

Yu Qi smiled gently, jumped down from the roof, wrapped his arm around Li Yulian’s waist, and with a light leap, carried her back up to the rooftop.

This was the first time Li Yulian had ever seen someone jump so high; to her, it was like opening a window to a new world. Her eyes brightened with joy as she watched Li Changchu nearing the river. "This is my first time on the roof! I can see so far—I can even see Father."

Yu Qi sat on the roof, watching the excited Li Yulian beside him. He felt truly happy. He felt a deep sense of relief for this simple, kind-hearted family, for they had made him feel at home again, even after he had been all on his own.

"Xiaolian, Yu Qi, time for breakfast!" Aunt Li’s voice echoed from the house.

"Let’s go, Xiaolian. I’ll bring you up again next time." With that, Yu Qi picked up the still-excited girl and leaped down from the roof.

Back in the house, as they sat down, Xiaolian munched on a steamed bun and mumbled, "Mother, Brother Yu is so amazing! With just a light jump, he can leap higher than our house." She even used her hands to gesture the height.

Aunt Li looked at her and said softly, "Brother Yu is a martial artist, of course he’s amazing."

At the mention of martial arts, a longing look appeared in Xiaolian’s eyes. She suddenly said, "Mother, I want to learn martial arts too."

Aunt Li’s expression turned helpless. "Xiaolian, martial techniques are so expensive, how could we ever afford one?"

"Oh..." Hearing this, the excitement in Li Yulian’s eyes gradually faded into dejection. She ate her bun in silence, losing all the liveliness she had shown before.

Yu Qi saw this, and his heart felt heavy.

Soon, they finished their meal. Aunt Li came over with a set of cloth garments. "Yu Qi, this is the clothing your uncle bought for you in town yesterday. Change into these; I’ll take your current outfit to wash."

Yu Qi nodded. He quickly shed his luxurious attire and put on the clothes Aunt Li handed him. Though they were made of simple, coarse cloth, Yu Qi felt a hint of warmth wearing them—not just the warmth on his skin, but a warmth in his soul.

"By the way, Aunt Li, I’d like to take Xiaolian to town," Yu Qi said after getting dressed.

The dejected Xiaolian suddenly heard that she could go to town, and her face lit up with joy. She looked at Aunt Li, knowing that she could only go if her mother agreed.

Aunt Li looked at Xiaolian, remembering her dejected expression from moments ago, and felt a pang of sympathy. Letting her go to town to clear her head would be for the best. "Then make sure you go early and return early," she said.

Before Yu Qi could even speak, Xiaolian had already run out, grabbing Yu Qi’s hand as she pulled him along. "Mother, we know! We’ll be back soon!"

Yu Qi could only smile at Aunt Li and let himself be led away.

The road to the town was quite long, but after walking for only a short while, Xiaolian began to complain of fatigue. With no other choice, Yu Qi offered her a piggyback ride.

"Xiaolian, hold on tight," Yu Qi said. He tapped the ground and darted forward, moving at a speed far greater than walking.

"This is fun, so fun! Brother Yu is amazing!" Xiaolian cheered from his back, occasionally pointing out the direction to the town.

Lying on Yu Qi’s back felt like riding in a carriage. The wind whistled past them, and the scenery along the road blurred backward. There were others heading to town as well, but before they could even catch a glimpse of Yu Qi’s figure, they were blinded by the dust kicked up in his wake.

The journey that usually took half an hour was shortened significantly by Yu Qi. Soon, the silhouette of the town appeared before them.

As they entered, the bustling noise of the town greeted them, making Yu Qi, who had enjoyed a few days of peace, feel slightly uncomfortable.

They hadn't walked far before Yu Qi noticed Xiaolian swallowing hard, her eyes fixed on the candied haws on a rack ahead.

"Xiaolian, do you know if there’s a pawnshop nearby?" Yu Qi asked suddenly.

"Oh... a pawnshop? I know where one is. Brother Yu, follow me!" Jolted by his question, Xiaolian reluctantly tore her gaze away, wiped the drool from the corner of her mouth, and led Yu Qi toward another street.

After turning several corners, Xiaolian brought Yu Qi to a rather ornate-looking building. Above the grand entrance hung a plaque engraved with four shimmering golden characters: "Wujian Pawnshop."

*Wujian Pawnshop? I never expected to see one of their branches in a town this small,* Yu Qi mused to himself.

Wujian Pawnshop, despite its peculiar name, had branches all across the world. No matter how remote the village, one could always find them. It was said that the power behind this pawnshop was an incredibly formidable family, which was precisely why Wujian Pawnshop had managed to stand for so long across these lands.

Yu Qi touched the luminous pearls in his pocket and walked inside, pulling Xiaolian along.

It had to be said that Wujian Pawnshop lived up to its reputation as a world-spanning enterprise. Even this small town’s branch was quite luxurious. The floors were paved with smooth, polished marble, and a red carpet of unknown material was laid over it; every step taken felt soft and incredibly comfortable.