Chapter 283: Goodbye Yuansheng

"Isn't it impressive?" Ji Yuan seemed to read Hu Yun's mind, teasing him with the question. The red fox nodded vigorously in response.

"Yes, yes, this big guy looks so powerful! I bet he could even beat Lu Shanju to the ground..."

Hu Yun looked at the Golden-Armored Warrior, then at Ji Yuan. Initially, he thought even Mr. Ji couldn't defeat this big guy, but then he remembered that this imposing Golden-Armored Warrior was conjured by Mr. Ji himself, which made him think Mr. Ji was still more formidable.

Ji Yuan shook his head.

"If Lu Shanju knew the warrior's weakness, he wouldn't need any sophisticated methods; he could just toy with it and make it spin in circles."

Ji Yuan rubbed his temples to relieve his fatigue. It seemed now that, given Du Changsheng and his master's meager cultivation, it was quite remarkable that two generations had managed to refine a total of six talismans. Moreover, the previous warrior conjuring method was far inferior to the one Ji Yuan had deduced. Although it only involved 108 paper cutouts, each refining process likely demanded immense effort.

After tidying up the paper scraps and tools on the table, Ji Yuan took the sieve back inside.

Hu Yun looked at the motionless Golden-Armored Warrior, then quickly followed Ji Yuan indoors, his mouth still chattering away.

"Mr. Ji, Mr. Ji, is this spell called the Golden-Armored Warrior Talisman?"

Ji Yuan turned his head to look at the robust warrior still standing outside and said to the red fox, "Yes, you can call it that. It can also be called a Yellow Turban Warrior."

The red fox poked its head out the door for a closer look and indeed saw yellow turbans hanging both in front of and behind the armored giant.

"Then why isn't it a red turban? I like red, just like my fur—it's so pretty!"

As he spoke, Hu Yun even wagged his tail at the giant outside. His fur was now fiery red and completely pure in color, making him exceptionally striking.

However, this action naturally elicited no reaction from the Golden-Armored Giant, whose gaze seemed fixed on the air a few feet in front of him.

Ji Yuan wasn't annoyed by Hu Yun's antics and patiently explained.

"Yellow represents the profound. This stack of yellow paper isn't ordinary; it contains a trace of earth spirit. Though minimal, it signifies the upright and solemn earth—thick, deep, and capable of shaping and forming. There's a saying: 'Strength rises from the earth.' The warrior is bound to the earth; as long as its magic power is not exhausted, its strength is infinite..."

As he spoke, as if receiving some instruction from Ji Yuan, the Golden-Armored Warrior slowly bent into a horse stance, drew back its fist, and then suddenly punched towards the diagonal sky.

"Whoosh... bang..."

The punch tore through the air, causing the surrounding currents to ripple slightly.

"Rustle... rustle..."

The punch generated an upward gust of wind, making a branch of the large jujube tree sway up and down, and causing the thin snow accumulated between the leaf veins to fall.

Hu Yun stared blankly at the scene, his heart pounding, as he suddenly realized the meaning of Mr. Ji's earlier words.

"So, if this big guy gets knocked into the air, he'll instantly become weaker?"

Hearing Hu Yun blurt this out, Ji Yuan paused slightly, then gave the red fox, who was still intently staring at the warrior outside, a deep look.

"Indeed, as you said, if the warrior cannot stand on the ground, its only source of power is the magic given by the caster during summoning. Not only does it easily fail to exert its full power, but it also cannot last long. This is another weakness of the spell..."

Ji Yuan paused, put away the yellow paper and other items, walked back to the doorway to look outside, and then continued.

"But if the warrior is grounded, it's not so easily lifted. Hmm, you mustn't go around telling outsiders about this, understood?"

Hu Yun looked at the terrifying, 'do-not-approach' appearance of the warrior, thinking Mr. Ji was absolutely right, and nodded in response.

"Understood!"

The red fox was already imagining a future where he could also have a Golden-Armored Warrior follow him around to show off, so even without Mr. Ji's explicit instruction, he wouldn't dare blab.

"Mr. Ji, can I use this? Do I need to have as profound magic power as you?"

"Do you want to refine the talisman or use it? Haha, if it's refining, you shouldn't even think about it for now. If it's using it, you can barely manage to use it with the aid of vital essence, but that would be quite draining."

Ji Yuan hadn't properly observed this Golden-Armored Warrior before. In fact, the yellow silk sashes draped over its front and back had another function: they could both help support its form and act as restraints.

'All in all, I'm quite satisfied.'

However, if the paper cutouts were damaged, then such a Golden-Armored Warrior would cease to exist. Ji Yuan thought it would be ideal if, in the future, he could cultivate this spell to the point of "manifesting from the extreme, dissolving into the void." To gather an extreme number of paper cutout movements, unify them to refine a warrior, and finally dissolve the warrior talisman into the heavens and earth, avoiding the crisis of the talisman losing its form—that would, to some extent, approach a truly living Golden-Armored Warrior.

Thinking of this, Ji Yuan waved his hand. The Golden-Armored Warrior in the courtyard immediately dissipated, transforming back into a yellow paper cutout, which flew into Ji Yuan's hand.

Seeing the paper cutout disappear into Ji Yuan's sleeve, Hu Yun showed intense envy in his eyes.

"It's getting dark, and it's late. You should return to the mountain soon. Since Lu Shanju said he'd bring you along to welcome spring, he intends to help you out. Go back early and prepare."

Ji Yuan waved his hand, signaling the fox to leave. It wasn't that he didn't want Hu Yun to stay, but he didn't want the fox to rush back later, or possibly distract Lu Shanju.

"Oh..."

Hu Yun acknowledged, then peered into Ji Yuan's room to see where the yellow paper and scissors had been put away. After a moment of hesitation, he left the courtyard.

"Well, Mr. Ji, I'll be going now. Um, that, that warrior talisman... could I borrow it for a few days?"

"No!"

"Oh..."

Hu Yun kept looking back every few steps, finally reaching the courtyard gate. He stood on his hind legs, extended a paw, unlatched the bolt, opened the door, and went out.

As soon as the red fox left, the courtyard seemed to quiet down considerably.

Hearing the distant dog barks grow increasingly frequent, Ji Yuan chuckled, walked into the courtyard, and picked up the ceramic bowl Hu Yun had left after finishing the honey.

In the kitchen, he tidied the stove and firewood. There were still some eggs, a pile of radishes, and a dried salted fish. Given it was New Year's Eve and he was still awake, Ji Yuan decided to light the stove and cook some dishes.

He made a bowl of scrambled eggs, a bowl of radish stew with salted fish, and a small pot of rice. The taste was surprisingly good, making him somewhat regret not having kept Hu Yun to try it.

As the old year passed and the new year arrived that night, the Green Vine Sword cheerfully ascended, flying straight to Niu Kui Mountain. Amidst the tiger's roar, it cut down a small wisp of spring cloud qi.

All things welcome spring; embryonic bones transform and grow.

On the first day of the New Year, Ji Yuan was still in bed when he heard the crackling of firecrackers from all over Ning'an County. However, what truly made him get up was the sound of footsteps approaching Jue'an Small Pavilion.

"Knock, knock, knock... knock, knock, knock..."

"Excuse me, is Mr. Ji at home? We are servants of the Wei family from Desheng Prefecture, sent by our master to respectfully invite you!"

Ji Yuan got dressed and left his room. Overnight snowfall had transformed everything into a world of silver.

Upon hearing movement inside the courtyard, the two men outside stopped knocking and waited patiently outside the gate.

"Creak..."

Ji Yuan opened the courtyard gate and saw two dusty men outside. Their beards and hair were covered in frost, and their faces were red from the cold—a few shades redder, and they'd resemble his Golden-Armored Warrior. Enduring the relentless cold wind, they rode four horses in shifts, covering two to three hundred *li* of land. In less than a day and night, they had managed to reach Ning'an County.

"Greetings, Mr. Ji!"

Seeing Ji Yuan open the door, both men quickly bowed together.

"Has Master Wei descended the mountain? Please, come in and have some hot tea; we can talk slowly."

Ji Yuan could tell that both men possessed good martial arts skills, but they weren't made of iron; they were now trembling slightly.

The two men didn't decline. Upon entering, they carefully observed the small pavilion's courtyard: a large jujube tree covered in snow but still green, a well covered with a stone slab, a stone table and four stone stools, and ordinary houses surrounding them.

'Is this where a reclusive master lives?'

Only after sitting in the main house's living room, cradling hot tea, did the two men detail the Wei family's situation in response to Ji Yuan's questions.

"Oh, Yi Yi and that young man came along too?"

"Precisely!"

The two men held their teacups to warm their hands, then took a sip. As the tea went down, besides its refreshing sweetness, a warm current spread from their stomachs throughout their bodies, gradually dispelling the chill from their journey.

They didn't stay long at Jue'an Small Pavilion, bidding farewell and departing after about fifteen minutes. Since Mr. Ji had agreed to visit during the New Year period, the two men immediately stood up to return and inform their master so preparations could be made.

At the gate of the small pavilion, Ji Yuan watched the two riders depart. After a moment's thought, he turned and closed all the doors and windows of his house. Then, he leaped into the air from the courtyard, stepping on clouds towards Desheng Prefecture City.

Soon, Ji Yuan had already set foot on the streets of Desheng Prefecture and strolled to the gate of the Wei Estate. Coincidentally, at that moment, Shang Yiyi, Guan He, and Wei Yuansheng were just walking out of the estate gate. Several servants nearby carried long strings of firecrackers, clearly preparing to set them off outside.

Even though it had been many years since they last saw Ji Yuan, Wei Yuansheng, Shang Yiyi, and Guan He all recognized him immediately.

"Mr. Ji!" "Mr. Ji is here!"

Wei Yuansheng quickly grabbed the firecrackers from a nearby servant's hand and said to him, "Go quickly and inform my father."

"Yes!"

As soon as the man left, Wei Yuansheng leaped directly from the estate gate onto the street.

"Mr. Ji, come quickly, let's set off firecrackers together!"

Ji Yuan nodded towards the somewhat reserved Guan He and Shang Yiyi, then looked at Wei Yuansheng. After several years, the young man had certainly laid a good foundation.