To gain power, one must pay a corresponding price. This is an unchangeable truth in the world.
No one can gain something for nothing.
Zhuang Buzhou had no intention of revealing the matter of his own Spiritual Root Awakening to the outside world. Anyway, the news of him obtaining a cursed relic from the trade fair was not a secret. By bringing out the qingyun tea, he had already decided not to keep his identity confidential. This conveniently gave the outside world a special signal: he became a Spirit Master by relying on a cursed relic. This way, he could better hide himself, and at a crucial moment, it could completely turn the tide.
Therefore, he planned to directly display the book of contracts as his own contracted cursed relic to the outside world.
The book of contracts, which can create and sign contracts, is of considerable importance to many Spirit Masters. At critical moments, contracts are needed for restraint. It can also act as an intermediary, maintaining fairness and justice.
Among Spirit Masters, its status can be said to be quite transcendent.
“We must find the Other Shore and enter the Other Shore Space at least once,” Zhang Yinlong said with determination.
“I wonder if the Other Shore can allow people to become Spirit Masters, and if it can suppress curses. If it can, I also want to become a Spirit Master!” A strange gleam appeared on Zhang Jinbao’s chubby face.
Without a Spiritual Root Awakening, ordinary people can contract cursed relics to become Spirit Masters, but the problem is that the contracting process is not always successful. This is related to one's own compatibility. If one is not compatible with a cursed relic, they will suffer a backlash and die instantly during the contracting process. Such examples are not uncommon. Each attempt is a gamble with one's life.
This is also why many Family disciples dare not try easily.
Life is only once. Even if becoming a Spirit Master allows one to wield extraordinary power, what if they fail? Then they would have to completely bid farewell to their current wealth and power. Moreover, Spirit Masters do not gain eternal life; they can only possess power for one lifetime.
Zhang Jinbao had the opportunity to become a Spirit Master. It wasn't that the Zhang Family hadn't collected cursed relics, but when faced with the choice, he retreated.
After all, Qingyun City was just a small city. With money, one could get anything. Gambling one's life to become a Spirit Master was truly not worth it. However, the recent appearance of the Red Mansion, which caused many Young Masters of Families to die on the spot, has instilled a sense of unease among many Family disciples. Driven by this unease, they have begun to harbor thoughts of gaining power.
But to become a Spirit Master, one still needs to take risks.
This is the biggest problem facing Family disciples like Zhang Jinbao.
If the Other Shore truly allows them to safely and harmlessly complete the contract and become Spirit Masters, then it will undoubtedly be a great joyous event. Even if they have to pay a great price, they would be willing to try.
Zhuang Buzhou also deeply felt this point.
Before his Spiritual Root Awakening, he also had infinite expectations for Spirit Masters, and he constantly struggled and pursued it. The pursuit of power is inherently an instinct of life. It is human nature and understandable.
“Steaming hot, fresh out of the oven buns!”
“Meat buns, sweet buns, pickled vegetable buns. Come and see, they’re fragrant and delicious, cheap and affordable. Those who want them, hurry and buy them!”
On the street, a shout came.
Looking closely, it was a bun shop opposite the restaurant, called Liu’s Bun Shop. This was a decades-old shop, passed down from ancestors. The bun maker was named Liu Dashui. It is said that when his mother gave birth to him, it was raining heavily, and the roof of their house was leaking like a flood, so he was named Dashui. He is now over thirty, married, and runs this ancestral bun shop with his wife.
Relying on his ancestral craftsmanship, he was somewhat famous in the city, and many people would come to his bun shop to buy a few buns.
Only one thing: he was a bit stingy and miserly. He would only sell exactly what was bought, and he valued money greatly. If you asked for one or two extra buns, it would be absolutely impossible. However, he didn't gamble or visit prostitutes, and all the money he earned went to his Family. He also had three daughters and two sons. It can only be said that it was human nature, and his character was not flawed. After all, he did business fairly, and the buns he made were large and well-filled.
It was fine to call him stingy behind his back. His social interactions were not bad either.
However, at this moment, there seemed to be some dispute in front of the bun shop.
One could only see a ragged Old Beggar standing in front of the bun shop, leaning on a dog-beating stick, holding a broken bowl in one hand, and grinning to reveal a mouthful of rotten teeth. He looked at Liu Dashui and said with a smile, “Boss, I’ve been hungry for several days. Please be kind and give me a bun to eat. This Old Beggar will surely pray for the boss.”
As he spoke, he handed the broken bowl to Liu Dashui.
“Go! Go! Go!!!”
Liu Dashui’s face darkened when he saw him, and he waved his hand to shoo him away, saying, “How unlucky! I still have business to do here. Coming to beg for food so early in the morning, isn’t that bringing me bad luck? Hurry up and go to the side, don’t affect my business.”
For a businessman, encountering a beggar so early in the morning was not a good thing.
He certainly didn't want to give his Family's buns to a beggar; those were all money.
The Old Beggar heard him and showed a strange smile, shaking his head and saying, “You can’t not give. Look at the mark on my bowl.”
As he spoke, he turned the bottom of the bowl towards Liu Dashui. On the bottom of the bowl, several gleaming golden characters were clearly inscribed.
“Begging by Imperial Decree?”
Liu Dashui himself was illiterate, but after seeing those characters, he instinctively knew what they meant and even read them aloud.
“This Old Beggar is begging by heavenly decree. You can’t not give. Boss, please give me a few buns,” the Old Beggar said with a smile.
“Get lost, get lost, get lost! What ‘begging by Imperial Decree’? What does that have to do with me? Get out of my sight!” Liu Dashui immediately shooed him away. Carving ‘begging by Imperial Decree’ on a broken bowl meant one could really just beg for food and money casually? What kind of joke was this? It was absurd! He wouldn't believe it, and it was even more impossible for him to give him buns; these were meant to be sold for money.
However, this thought was only in his mind; what came out of his mouth was completely different: “Okay, I’ll give.”
It was as if his mouth and body were suddenly out of his control.
He reached out and picked up a large meat bun in front of him, placing it into the broken bowl. But after the bun was put in, the Old Beggar shook his head and said, “Not enough, still not enough.”
Liu Dashui’s face was about to turn black when he heard this. He instinctively wanted to refuse. Giving away one bun had already pained him greatly, and now he was saying it wasn’t enough and wanted more. This was asking for his life!
He didn't want to in his heart, but his body was out of control, and he picked up two more large buns and put them into the bowl.
“What’s going on? Why is Old Liu so generous today?”
“Exactly! He never used to give alms to beggars. Every time a beggar came, he would chase them away. Over time, everyone knew he was stingy, and even beggars wouldn't come to him for alms. Why is he suddenly so generous?”
“Yeah, Old Liu used to not give away a single character. Fortunately, when doing business, his portions were always generous; there was no shortage of portions. But I feel something is off. Old Liu’s expression isn’t right.”
Many people around who saw this scene in front of the bun shop showed surprise.
Qingyun City was not large, and everyone nearby was a neighbor or acquaintance. Even if they weren't close, they had all met before and understood each other's personalities. Now, seeing Liu Dashui's actions, they were all a bit surprised and shocked.
This clearly did not match his character.
“Not enough, still not enough.”
The Old Beggar still smiled and extended his dirty, large bowl.
“I’ll give!”
Liu Dashui was about to cry.
One hundred percent unwilling in his heart, but his hand repeatedly handed over the snowy white buns.
Once!
Twice!!
Each time he gave, the Old Beggar would smile and say it wasn’t enough.
Liu Dashui could only give more.
In the shop, cage after cage of hot buns were thus ‘given away’. Yet, the Old Beggar’s bowl seemed to never fill up. No matter how many buns were put in, it just wouldn’t fill. It was as if it were a bottomless pit, making the surrounding commoners marvel.
Everyone could see that this Old Beggar was an extraordinary person.
Although they all knew that such a situation was clearly wrong, no one dared to intervene.
“Boss Liu is truly a great benevolent person! Heaven will surely bless you!” The Old Beggar, seeing that all of Liu Dashui’s buns had been given away, then grinned, revealing his mouthful of rotten teeth.
Liu Dashui, however, rolled his eyes and fainted directly to the ground.
“Fellow villagers, today, this Old Beggar met a great benevolent person who gave me many buns. This Old Beggar cannot eat them all alone. Anyone who wants some can come and take them. First come, first served; those who come late will get none.”
The Old Beggar ignored Liu Dashui and said with a smile to the surrounding commoners.
“So fragrant, I want to eat!”
A little girl swallowed her saliva and spoke.
“Here, take one,” the Old Beggar said, handing the bowl to the little girl, letting her grab a steaming hot meat bun.
“Give me, give me, I want some too!”
“Free buns, I’ve never had them before!”
The surrounding commoners heard this and were all moved.
Wanting to take advantage is an instinctive reaction in the hearts of ordinary people.
One by one, the steaming hot buns were distributed into their hands, and many people immediately opened their mouths and began to eat. They were all real buns. In a blink of an eye, they were all eaten.
“No, those are my buns! You are a bandit, a thief!”
Liu Dashui’s wife had already come out, supporting the now conscious Liu Dashui. Liu Dashui’s face was pale, and he trembled with anger as he watched the buns being distributed. Those were his Family’s buns, and he hadn’t earned a single penny; now he had lost everything.
This was robbery!
That feeling almost made him vomit blood on the spot.