Don't Cause Trouble Chapter 8: Mistflower Fang

The four of them were still living in the dilapidated temple outside the city, spending their days refining magical artifacts. In the past, materials in Qianji Sect were scarce; disciples had to save up for months just to gather one type of material, and they might only get one chance to refine an artifact in an entire year. This forced them to develop a habit of minimizing mistakes at all costs—after all, a single failure meant waiting another year for another attempt.

Now, with the ability to purchase all the necessary materials at once, they were working relentlessly on refining artifacts.

For the past few days, Ming Liu Sha, Xiyu, and Xia'er had been fully dedicated to artifact refinement, and they had unknowingly reached the peak of the Qi Refining stage, just one step away from Foundation Establishment.

For an artifact refiner to break through, the quality of the artifacts they refine plays a crucial role—the better the artifact, the higher the chances of advancement. Aside from gaining insights into the Dao through refining, having a sufficient supply of spiritual energy was the most fundamental requirement for improving one's cultivation realm.

As for Ye Su, she had been focused on drawing talismans to earn spirit stones.

Refining magical artifacts required a vast amount of spiritual energy, but in the abandoned temple, where there was no ambient spiritual energy at all, they could only rely on consuming spirit stones.

Although Vajra Talismans were valuable, Ye Su chose not to sell them anymore. Instead, she drew a few to distribute to her junior disciples for self-defense.

Due to the frequent openings of secret realms and inheritance sites in the cultivation world, it was common for people to learn techniques from other sects, leading to a meritocratic mindset where strength determined one's status.

Normally, this wouldn't be a concern, but given the past experiences of Qianji Sect elders, Ye Su was wary of giving Wuxing Sect an excuse to claim her artifacts as their own. To avoid trouble, she only sold Swift Movement Talismans from time to time.

……

Xia'er had just finished engraving patterns on the sword blade. When he looked up, he saw Ye Su returning.

"Senior Sister, what are you holding?"

《The Complete Compendium of Talismans》? Xiyu withdrew her spiritual energy and frowned. "Senior Sister, just hearing the title, this book sounds like a scam."

Ye Su lifted the thick book in her hand. "It wasn't expensive—only three thousand low-grade spirit stones."

A technique manual that could be bought for so few spirit stones wasn't something Ye Su took too seriously. As long as even one talisman inside proved useful, it would be worth the price.

Earlier that day, she had gone into the city to sell all the Swift Movement Talismans she had drawn over the past few days. While there, she passed by a street stall selling all sorts of obscure technique manuals and picked out this Complete Compendium of Talismans.

She tossed a bag of steamed buns to them. "The stall owner let me flip through a few pages, and the talisman diagrams on those pages looked quite complete."

Back then, she had traced the symbols in her mind and felt they were legitimate talisman diagrams.

"Let’s take a look." Ming Liu Sha eagerly leaned in.

Ye Su opened the Complete Compendium of Talismans. She had already checked the first page, but starting from the second page, all the talisman diagrams were fake—not a single one had a complete structure. The only genuine pages in this thick book were the few the stall owner had randomly flipped to for her.

Although Xiyu couldn't understand talismans, she immediately noticed something odd. "Senior Sister, this diagram looks exactly the same as the one before."

"I see it." Ye Su tore out the few pages with complete talisman diagrams. "These few seem real. I'll give them a try."

She spread the talisman diagrams out on the ground, took out her brush and paper, and began drawing.

"Turn, Bane, Talisman," Ming Liu Sha read aloud as he tilted his head at the diagrams. "Mystify, Sleep, Talisman… Cluck, Cluck, Talisman?"

Ye Su’s talisman drawing process was smooth and effortless, unlike ordinary talisman masters who struggled with every stroke. It was as if she was simply sketching on paper. In no time, she had fully replicated the diagrams.

Setting down her brush, she asked, "Who wants to test them?"

Ming Liu Sha moved with lightning speed, snatched up the Cluck Cluck Talisman, and… slapped it onto Xia'er’s back.

Before Xia'er could even glare in anger, his mouth opened involuntarily—

"Cluck, cluck, cluck."

Like a chicken.

"It actually is a Cluck Cluck Talisman," Ming Liu Sha exclaimed in awe.

"Cluck, cluck, cluck?" Xia'er raged.

Ye Su raised an eyebrow slightly, plucked the Sleep Talisman between two fingers, and flicked it onto Ming Liu Sha’s forehead.

Ming Liu Sha had no time to react. The talisman took effect instantly, and he collapsed forward—only to be caught by Xiyu’s sheathed sword before he hit the ground.

Both talismans worked. Now they just needed to see how long they lasted. There was still one more talisman, the Turn Bane Talisman. Ye Su tucked it into her Qiankun Bag without testing it.

"I’ve heard of turning fortune, but turning bane… That probably isn’t a good talisman to mess with."

Xia'er: "Cluck, cluck."

Xiyu slowly withdrew the sheath, letting Ming Liu Sha lie on the ground before putting it away. Then she turned to Ye Su and asked, "Senior Sister, there’s less than a month left. Have you decided what artifact you’ll refine for the selection?"

They had spent the past month crafting and selling magical artifacts They had spent the past month crafting and selling magical artifacts, but afterward, they focused entirely on refining artifacts for the selection. After all, this competition determined whether they could qualify for the Poyuan Sect tournament.

"I haven’t decided yet," Ye Su said. She had no particular preferences when it came to artifacts—only a distinction between what she could and couldn’t make. Lately, she had been too busy earning spirit stones, most of which she sent back to Qianji Sect, leaving her with little inspiration for refining artifacts.

Xiyu wasn’t worried. "Senior Sister, you could make a sword or a saber—either would work." Senior Sister’s artifacts were always more powerful than theirs.

"Cluck, cluck, cluck, cluck!" Xia'er chimed in enthusiastically—then immediately covered his mouth upon hearing his own voice.

A quarter of an hour later, Ming Liu Sha woke up. He ripped the talisman paper off his forehead, where the talisman diagram had already faded. The moment he held it in his hand, it turned to dust and scattered into the air.

Seeing this, Ye Su glanced at the talisman paper on Xia'er’s back. Sure enough, its markings had disappeared as well. She didn’t even need to touch it—it crumbled into ash on its own.

It was different from the Swift Movement Talismans she had drawn before.

She wasn’t sure if it was because the Swift Movement Talisman had undergone some kind of transformation or if only these specific talismans behaved this way.

Ye Su didn’t dwell on it. She had other matters to attend to—she needed to inscribe all the rare transformation patterns she had memorized, which could be applied to artifacts, into jade slips and distribute them to her junior disciples.

A few days later.

Ye Su opened her eyes and glanced around the ruined temple at her still-drowsy junior disciples. She stood up and walked outside.

"I'm going for a walk."

Outside the city was a forested mountain range. A few months ago, they had flown low over it while practicing sword control and spotted a stream. Today, the sight suddenly reminded her of the back mountain of Qianji Sect, so she decided to check it out.

When Ye Su arrived at the stream, she noticed some differences from her sect’s back mountain. The stream here was much gentler, and the surrounding chirping of birds and insects gave it an almost utopian feel. It was far better than the desolate back mountain of Qianji Sect, where even birds seemed reluctant to stay.

Ye Su leaped onto a rock in the middle of the stream and tilted her head to gaze at the sky. The morning sun was slowly rising.

A thin mist, formed by the stream water’s evaporation, hovered lightly over the area. Under the soft golden sunlight, it became even more pronounced. With just a gentle inhale, the crisp scent of the forest and fresh water filled her lungs.

Ye Su reached out and passed her hand through the thin mist.

Suddenly, inspiration struck—she now knew what artifact she wanted to create. However, she was missing a few materials and would need to visit the city to purchase them.

After mentally going over her artifact design, Ye Su turned to leave. Just as she was about to leap over the slow-moving spring, something caught the corner of her eye, and she abruptly stopped.

Clusters of tall, broad-leafed green plants grew along the spring’s edge, swaying slightly in the breeze. One particular leaf, closest to where the water trickled down from the cliffside, drew her attention. But it wasn’t the leaf itself—it was the black shadow resting on it.

——A small snake.

Even from a distance, Ye Su could see that the snake was entirely black as jade, its eyes closed as it lazily sprawled on the wide green leaf. Mist from the mountain spring slowly layered onto its sleek body.

The only flaw was the faint white scar on its forehead, marring its otherwise perfect appearance.

Cultivation bred spiritual beings, and this little snake had the air of a spirit creature. Even if it wasn’t, its jet-black jade-like scales were undoubtedly extraordinary.

Ye Su was no stranger to spirit beasts, but she had never come across any records of a snake like this.

The soft golden morning light spilled over the small black snake, adding an almost ethereal touch to its presence amidst the green leaves and flowing spring. However, the snake seemed to be sleeping rather restlessly—it flicked its tail to cover its own eyes.

For some reason, Ye Su could sense a distinct irritation from the snake’s actions. Following the direction of its tail, she realized that a ray of sunlight had landed directly on its chosen leaf.

Out of all the broad leaves, it had insisted on this particular one, only to be annoyed when the sunlight hit its eyes. Rather than moving, it simply used the tip of its tail to block the light—without ever opening its eyes.

A petty yet lazy little black snake.

Ye Su smiled silently.

With a flick of her fingers, she gathered mist into water at her fingertips and lightly flicked a droplet away. The water landed precisely on another broad leaf, shifting it slightly—just enough to block the ray of sunlight.

After doing this, she stepped away quietly.

She didn’t notice that, behind her, the little snake had lowered its tail and, still with its eyes closed, lazily flicked it in contentment.

……

Upon arriving in Dinghai City, Ye Su visited nearly every material shop before she finally managed to gather the materials she needed: Ice Spider Silk, Gold-Touching Liquid, and Wing Sand.

These three materials weren’t particularly rare, but they were seldom used by artifact refiners—especially in combination—so most shops didn’t keep them in stock.

The Ice Spider Silk and Gold-Touching Liquid were relatively easy to find, but Wing Sand was far more obscure. Almost no artifact refiner used it, and although it wasn’t expensive, it was extremely uncommon.

Ye Su eventually found Wing Sand in a material shop called Wendong Materials Hall.

"Do you only need Wing Sand" the shopkeeper asked. "Do you require any other materials?"

"No need, this is enough."

With a clear direction for refining her artifact, Ye Su quickly headed out of the city.

She paused briefly as she passed through the forest.

By habit, she preferred refining artifacts and cultivating in places where she could hear the sound of running water. But remembering the little black snake on the broad leaf by the mountain spring, she eventually chose to return to the ruined temple instead.

After all, refining artifacts could be quite a noisy process.

The moment she stepped inside, Xia'er looked up and asked, "Senior Sister, where did you go?"

"I went into the city to buy materials. I’m preparing to refine an artifact for the selection." Ye Su took out the items she had gathered.

"Ice Spider Silk, Gold-Touching Liquid…" Xiyu leaned in for a closer look, her gaze landing on a pouch of grayish sand. "This is…?"

"Wing Sand," Ming Liu Sha recognized it immediately.

"That’s right." Ye Su reminded them, "You should familiarize yourselves with some of the more obscure materials as well."

The three of them read plenty of books, but they tended to focus only on subjects that interested them, avoiding other areas.

Wing Sand was rarely seen and almost never used by typical artifact refiners. Only those skilled in crafting hidden weapons might have heard of it—it was used to alter the color of an artifact during the refining process.

Ye Su took the Ice Spider Silk and mixed it with Gold-Touching Liquid. In an instant, the originally snow-white silk turned golden.

This process granted the Ice Spider Silk the toughness and flexibility of metal. With a slight lift of her fingers, the transformed silk hovered in midair. Then, she summoned spiritual fire into her palm and began engraving patterns onto the strands.

The Ice Spider Silk was already as thin as a strand of hair, yet Ye Su continued refining an entire bundle with precise, intricate work—without making a single mistake. Her level of control over her spiritual power was terrifyingly precise.

The engraving process alone took five whole days, during which Ye Su shattered tens of thousands of lower-grade spirit stones without touching any mid-grade spirit stones.

By the morning of the sixth day, she freed one hand to grab the Wing Sand, melted it with spiritual fire, and poured it over the engraved Ice Spider Silk.

As soon as the Wing Sand was added, the golden silk began to change color—shifting from gold to pale gold—but the transformation wasn’t finished yet.

Ye Su continued adding Wing Sand, and as the Ice Spider Silk gradually darkened, faint golden undertones shimmered within the black hue. Only then did she consider the color adjustment complete.

With the color set, she proceeded to apply layers of Gold-Touching Liquid to coat and solidify the silk’s final form.

From the moment the Ice Spider Silk turned black, Ye Su had already envisioned the artifact’s final shape in her mind.

—A bracelet shaped like a small black snake, its head and tail seamlessly connected.

It looked almost identical to the little black snake she had seen that day.

However, for reasons she couldn’t quite explain, Ye Su deliberately left out the white scar on its forehead.

……

"Senior Sister, is it ready?" Xiyu asked cautiously. Beside her, Ming Liu Sha and Xia'er stared intently, their eyes fixed on the artifact.

Ye Su stood up, holding the black and gold bracelet in her hand. "Let’s test it."

The three of them stood behind their senior sister, waiting for her to activate the artifact.

Ye Su walked toward the headless Buddha statue in the temple. Keeping a certain distance, she injected her spiritual power into the bracelet.

In an instant, the bracelet’s head spewed out Ice Spider Silk, which exploded like a misty rain veil—ethereal and eerie in its beauty.

But the next moment, the delicate mist transformed—each strand stretched and twisted, resembling countless miniature serpents, their fierce nature fully revealed.

With their jaws wide open, they lunged at the statue, tearing it to pieces.

Behind her, the three disciples gasped in unison.

This artifact possessed both deadly power and mesmerizing beauty—as expected of their senior sister’s craftsmanship.

Ye Su raised her hand slightly, and the countless tiny serpent-like shadows embedded in the shattered statue suddenly retracted, as if pulled by an invisible force. They reassembled into pale gold Ice Spider Silk and flew back into her palm.

"It’s done."

"Senior Sister, what’s this artifact called?" Ming Liu Sha asked quickly, no longer stuttering.

Ye Su thought for a moment and casually replied, "Mistflower Fang."