Realm of the Night God

Since becoming the Burial Master, Yang Haoran hadn't concerned himself much with the affairs of the Lecheng Yin Division. He entrusted all the work to Old Wu.

In terms of achievements, there were certainly some. If the Yin Division didn't act, Lecheng would probably be overrun with ghosts by now. Although the Spirit Police also handled this aspect, there were only so many of them, and their strength was generally low. They couldn't handle it all on their own.

But now, with Old Man's words, though they seemed to praise him, it was merely polite conversation. Yang Haoran naturally didn't take it to heart.

Seeing Yang Haoran's silence, Old Man continued, "Look at me, memory fades with age. I forgot to introduce myself. My surname is Zhang, currently in charge of managing all the major and minor Fu Sects in Lecheng. If Yang Divine Envoy doesn't mind, you can call me Elder Zhang."

"Mr. Zhang, don't joke. You are highly respected; how could I address you so casually?" Yang Haoran chuckled.

Elder Zhang laughed heartily, "No worries at all! You can call me however you like!"

Although Elder Zhang said it didn't matter, if Yang Haoran really called him Elder Zhang, he probably wouldn't be able to keep a smile on his face.

"Oh, behind me is my disciple. I heard you two get along well, so I brought him along today. I believe Yang Divine Envoy won't mind," Elder Zhang said with a smile.

"Of course not. When I was still with the Night Watch, I got along well with Yiming. If he wants to visit me anytime, he's welcome. I just didn't expect that you, Mr. Zhang, would be Yiming's master," Yang Haoran said with a smile.

This was Yang Haoran's sincere words. Among the three talisman masters present, the one he truly welcomed was Wang Yiming alone.

Moreover, the fact that Elder Zhang was Wang Yiming's master did surprise him a little. He knew Wang Yiming had a master, and he was a black talisman master, but he didn't know that this manager of all Fu Sects in Lecheng, Elder Zhang, was the one.

However, he was only slightly surprised, and it didn't cause much of a stir in his emotions.

Upon hearing Yang Haoran's words, Wang Yiming felt quite moved. Although Yang Haoran's status and their contact time had decreased over time, Yang Haoran still considered him a friend, which made him very happy.

But due to the occasion, he could only remain silent and say nothing.

"Haha, since Yang Divine Envoy still recognizes Yiming as a friend, many things will be easier. Come, let me introduce this one," Elder Zhang laughed heartily again, then turned his gaze to the crazy woman.

"We don't have many black talisman masters in Lecheng Fu Sect, and she is one of them. Her surname is Jiang, named Die. She was once the youngest black talisman master in our Lecheng Fu Sect, extremely talented in talisman. Unfortunately, many years ago, during a mission, she encountered an unexpected event. Otherwise, with her talent, she would probably have broken through the bottleneck of a black talisman master and become a gold talisman master by now," Elder Zhang said with a look of regret.

This made Yang Haoran feel somewhat amused. Breaking through to a gold talisman master wasn't that easy. Even if this Jiang Die had exceptional talent in talisman, it wasn't a given that she would break through. There were many talented talisman masters, but how many could break through to become gold talisman masters?

Yang Haoran, now a talisman master himself, understood this principle even as a yellow talisman master. Elder Zhang, as a black talisman master and the head of Lecheng Fu Sect, wouldn't he understand?

The answer was definitely yes. Elder Zhang must understand this principle. By saying these words to Yang Haoran, he naturally had other intentions.

Elder Zhang's meaning was not just about wine. He wanted to tell Yang Haoran something simple: because of the serpent demon, this black talisman master named Jiang Die suffered a huge loss, and this loss was irreparable.

He was laying the groundwork for what he would say next, shaping his side as a victim to take the initiative.

Yang Haoran had a sense of what was going on, but he didn't shatter the thin veneer covering the situation. He smiled at Jiang Die, who maintained a stoic expression, saying nothing and showing no intention of greeting Yang Haoran.

Although Yang Haoran wore a smile on his face, appearing unconcerned about Jiang Die's attitude, deep down, he felt somewhat uncomfortable. After all, Jiang Die was someone he had saved once. If it weren't for him, she would likely still be an unknown crazy woman.

However, now that Jiang Die was awake and not only did she not come to express gratitude, but also, upon their meeting, she didn't mention it at all. Yang Haoran couldn't help but feel a bit displeased. He wasn't a saint.

Seeing Jiang Die's reluctance to engage, Yang Haoran said with a smile, "Heh, although I didn't know the name of this black talisman master before, we've met because I saved her life. I wanted to prepare a gift and find time to visit the Fu Sect to see how she was recovering. Unfortunately, I never found the time. My apologies for that."

Upon hearing this, the smile on Elder Zhang's face froze for a moment, Jiang Die's expression changed, and Wang Yiming looked ashamed.

All three understood the implication in Yang Haoran's words. It seemed like he was talking about himself, but he was actually pointing fingers at others.

When Yang Haoran saved Jiang Die initially, although he didn't personally escort her back to Lecheng, he still discovered her and dispelled the hex on her, forcing the serpent demon to reveal the curse it had planted in her. It wasn't wrong to say he saved her.

Yang Haoran had saved Jiang Die's life, yet Jiang Die not only didn't show any gratitude but didn't even say a simple "thank you". Any normal person would find such behavior excessive.

Initially, Yang Haoran didn't think much of it. After all, saving Jiang Die was just something he did on a whim. He didn't expect anything in return or intend to ask for any repayment. However, now that she had come knocking on his door, he had to bring it up.

Comparing the situations, Yang Haoran felt that Jiang Die, this black talisman master, was not even comparable to the serpent demon. When he saved the serpent demon, it wasn't for free; it was conditional.

After the transaction with the serpent demon, it even handed him a piece of snake scale. Regardless of its actual value, at least it was a token of gratitude, showing that the serpent demon knew how to express thanks.

At this moment, Yang Haoran couldn't help but recall the story of the snake deity that the serpent demon told him. At the time, he was somewhat skeptical about it because it was entirely from the serpent demon's perspective.

However, now he felt that perhaps the serpent demon hadn't deceived him. The resentment between the serpent demon and the black talisman master might indeed be as the serpent demon had described.

Elder Zhang's reaction was swift. His expression froze for just a moment before returning to normal.

The black talisman master also caught on, her expression not looking good. She seemed like she wanted to say something but was silenced by a glance from Elder Zhang. Then, Elder Zhang laughed heartily at Yang Haoran, showing no sign of embarrassment.

"Yang Divine Envoy, what you said is too modest. If it weren't for your intervention, our Fu Sect would have lost a talented talisman master. That would have been a huge loss for us," Elder Zhang said.

"We, at the Fu Sect, have always kept your life-saving grace in mind. Due to Little Die's injuries not fully recovering, we haven't been able to come to express our gratitude. Today, with Little Die's condition finally improving, I rushed over early in the morning with her just to thank you for your life-saving grace."

With that said, Elder Zhang paused, extending his palm and revealing an object - a talisman bag.

"As the Underworld Envoy, ordinary things may not catch your eye, and apart from drawing talismans, I am not skilled in anything else. So, I specifically prepared ten black talismans for you. These ten black talismans are not ordinary low-level talismans but high-level ones from our Fu Sect. Each one has a different function and drawn by me, their power is quite remarkable. This is a token of gratitude, I hope Yang Divine Envoy will like them."

As Elder Zhang spoke, Master Wu and the serpent demon happened to return with tea, and the serpent demon listened attentively to every word Elder Zhang said.