Chapter 945: Get Lost Immediately
The Gold Talisman Master and his apprentice, Han Fushi, had expected Yang Haoran to leave after extracting Qin Yefeng's soul. Yet, not only did Yang Haoran remain, he brazenly demanded compensation.
Precisely for this reason, the Gold Talisman Master was enraged, unleashing powerful energy fluctuations that shattered many objects in the vicinity, serving as a stark warning to Yang Haoran.
However, Yang Haoran was unfazed, completely ignoring his warning. Instead, he articulated his reasons for demanding compensation.
"Master! This person is utterly insolent! I beg your permission, Master! Let me kill this Yin dog!"
Han Fushi was already seething with anger, but with the Gold Talisman Master present, he dared not act on his impulses, nor make a move against Yang Haoran. But now, seeing his master had finally lost his temper, he promptly requested permission.
He thought his actions would not only gain his master's approval but also earn him some merit. Instead, he was once again verbally scourged by the Gold Talisman Master.
"Is your brain utterly useless for anything besides striking iron?"
Han Fushi was baffled by the scolding. Though he couldn't fathom why he was being berated again, he obediently clamped his mouth shut to avoid further censure.
"Damaging things certainly warrants compensation. This is only natural and undeniable. What compensation do you seek? " the Gold Talisman Master asked in a deep voice.
"Heh heh, this junior is of limited strength and timid, so I have always been collecting items useful for self-preservation. Since senior is a Gold Talisman Master, you naturally possess innumerable Gold Talismans. There must be no shortage of talismans among them that can save this junior's life. Therefore, this junior wishes to ask senior for a talisman. Any kind of talisman will do, as long as it can be used to save my life in a crucial moment. I'm not picky," Yang Haoran said with a smile.
While a Gold Talisman Master could draw Gold Talismans, this did not mean they possessed an inexhaustible supply. Drawing a single Gold Talisman consumed a large amount of a Gold Talisman Master's Talisman Spirit Power, and the success rate was far lower than for Black Talismans.
Furthermore, the materials required for Gold Talismans were extremely precious, not as easily obtained as those for Yellow Talismans or Black Talismans. If the wrong materials were chosen, they simply couldn't withstand the power of a Gold Talisman, causing it to shatter and resulting in failure.
Thus, Gold Talismans were incredibly expensive to produce; the higher the grade, the higher the cost, far surpassing Black Talismans. Therefore, even a Gold Talisman Master had a very limited number of Gold Talismans at hand and would not readily give them away, much less waste them casually.
As a Talisman Master himself, Yang Haoran naturally understood the preciousness of Gold Talismans. His demand for such compensation from the Gold Talisman Master was actually a random bidding. He never truly expected the man to hand over a Gold Talisman. He figured the man would refuse nine times out of ten. Once refused, he would then propose a slightly lesser compensation, and that lesser demand was his real goal.
But to his utter astonishment, after he proposed demanding a Gold Talisman as compensation, the man didn't even think about it, directly retrieving a Gold Talisman from his independent space and tossing it to him.
"This talisman has extremely strong defensive power; it can save your life in a crucial moment."
Watching the Gold Talisman float before his eyes, Yang Haoran was momentarily stunned. The outcome was not quite what he had anticipated, so for a moment, he actually didn't react.
His daze lasted only a blink of an eye. Then he snapped out of it, grinning as he collected the Gold Talisman floating before him.
Han Fushi, seeing his master actually give Yang Haoran a Gold Talisman, felt both disbelief and extreme envy. Even he, as an apprentice, hadn't received many Gold Talismans from the man, and the few he had been granted long ago had been completely used up. Now, he didn't have a single one left.
"The Gold Talisman has been given to you. Now, both of you, get out of here immediately. I don't want to see you again."
Seeing Yang Haoran collect the Gold Talisman, the man immediately said in a deep voice. These words, driving them away, were more direct and impolite than anything he had said before.
Yang Haoran chuckled, gave the man a polite bow, and then departed the underground secret chamber with Xu Meijing.
Xu Meijing, upon leaving, did not even offer a hint of a polite gesture. She departed with her head held high, looking aloof, not even glancing at the Gold Talisman Master. As for Han Fushi, needless to say, she ignored him entirely.
After confirming the two had left, Han Fushi, his face full of bewilderment, asked the Gold Talisman Master,
"Master, Gold Talismans are so precious, why did you give one away as compensation? It was clear at a glance that Yang Haoran was deliberately asking for an exorbitant price. Why did you actually give it to him?"
How could the Gold Talisman Master not see that Yang Haoran was asking for an exorbitant price? But to quickly make Yang Haoran scram and stop him from continuing to disgust him, he decided to give Yang Haoran a Gold Talisman, just to make this disgusting fellow disappear from his sight quickly, even if he would incur some losses.
He worried that if he continued to entangle with Yang Haoran, he wouldn't be able to control his inner fury and would directly kill Yang Haoran. If he truly did that, the matter would become even more troublesome, potentially bringing him considerable negative influence. That was not the outcome he wanted to see, so he would rather lose a Gold Talisman than keep this disgusting fellow around.
However, he did not explain any of this to Han Fushi, nor did he have any intention of explaining. Scarcely had Han Fushi's puzzled voice faded when he unleashed the anger he had been suppressing within him.
"Kneel!"
A furious roar suddenly erupted from the Gold Talisman Master's mouth. The unprepared Han Fushi's body trembled with fright, then he dared not utter another word and quickly knelt before the man.
"Since becoming a Gold Talisman Master, I have never felt so stifled as I do today. To have two juniors ride roughshod over me, treating me with utter contempt, and yet I could do nothing against them! And in the end, I even lost a Gold Talisman! If this gets out, where will I put my old face? How will I ever operate in this circle again? Anyone who sees me will think I'm a comedian. And all of this is thanks to you, my unfilial apprentice!"
The anger that the Gold Talisman Master had been suppressing finally exploded completely onto Han Fushi at this moment.
Feeling his master's rage, Han Fushi lowered his head, silent. At that moment, how could he dare to speak? Even if he were dumber, he'd know that speaking now would be asking for trouble. The most rational course of action now was to keep his mouth shut, and let his master vent the anger in his heart. Once the anger had been vented, then he could speak without being punished.
As an apprentice, Han Fushi naturally knew his master's personality perfectly. Precisely because he knew his master's personality, he knew that it was best not to say a single word at this moment.
The Gold Talisman Master scolded Han Fushi for a full ten minutes, only then mostly venting the anger in his heart, ceasing his furious tirade.
Han Fushi judged the time was right, and immediately offered his apology.
"Master, I'm sorry. I only wanted our An City Talisman Guild to achieve more, to bring glory to your venerable self. I never expected to cause such immense trouble."
The Gold Talisman Master looked at Han Fushi, who was kneeling before him, and shook his head, filled with the disappointment of iron failing to become steel.
"It would be a blessing if you just didn't cause your master trouble. How could I even expect you to achieve anything, let alone bring me glory? I won't bring up past incidents. I'll just talk about this one: even if you wanted to kill Yang Haoran, couldn't you at least clean up your tracks? Not only did you fail to kill them, but you even gave them leverage, causing them to come knocking on our door, stirring up trouble! They not only destroyed our temple, injured so many Talisman Masters, and even killed quite a few believers! Crucially, there were outsiders present. Once this matter spreads, not only will your An City Talisman Guild's face be utterly lost, but the reputation of our entire Talisman Guild will be affected!"
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