Chapter 1215: Godlike Calculation

“Enough of this drivel about not needing this or that, about not believing in fate, dragging in so many who-haves and who-have-nots!” the old man sputtered, his voice dripping with contempt. “Pah! Don't pretend you don't mind the cost!”

On the long street, the old man retreated several steps, seeming to reappraise this young prodigy whose name resounded throughout the heavens. He sighed with emotion, saying, "To be able to challenge the price set by I, a half-immortal who exhausts divine and ghostly calculations, you indeed possess some capability!"

A half-immortal?

Jiang Wang smiled, but offered no words.

This mysterious old man had finally begun his "work." He scrutinized Jiang Wang from head to toe for a good while, observing him again and again.

"Trouble, make it quick. I truly have matters to attend to," Jiang Wang reminded him.

The old man didn't seem to mind, only sighing with emotion. "Looking at your face, you are currently life-satisfied, with an extraordinary identity!"

Jiang Wang replied, "You needn't examine my face for that. One need only look at my horse to know."

The old man then said, "I see your inner treasure light is restrained, your divine splendor heaven-born. If you can temper it further, your future is truly boundless!"

Jiang Wang chuckled. "You should have already understood me before coming. As long as one knows my name, it is difficult to calculate a lack of future."

"But..."

"But what?"

"Your celestial court bears a cloud of Yin, karma swims within your spirit platform, your treasure light is dim, and your divine splendor conceals an omen," the old man mused. "I observe that you lost your mother in childhood, your father in youth. Before reaching adulthood… almost all your teachers, friends, relatives, and neighbors have perished!"

These words were truly shocking!

And indeed, they precisely mirrored his past experiences.

An ordinary person would likely have already surrendered to such a pronouncement.

Jiang Wang's expression remained unchanged. "Is it possible that there will be a recent blood light disaster?"

"Eh?" The old man wore a look of surprise. "You can also calculate?"

"Then, Elder, how can you save me?" Jiang Wang asked. "Is it a matter of purchasing some item to dispel the disaster and resolve the calamity?"

"Uh," the old man replied. "That is indeed necessary. I possess a protective talisman here, bathed in the essence of the sun and moon, woven from spirit silk of the nine netherworlds. I have held it close, chanting various scriptures and inscribing dispelling mantras, burning incense and praying daily. After a full ninety-nine years of offerings, having accumulated countless merits, it can dispel tribulations and avert disaster, ensuring your safety!"

Jiang Wang's face showed difficulty. "Such a precious item! But I only have a thousand Yuan Stones on me. I wonder if it is enough..."

"Enough? Of course, it's not enough!" the old man sighed. "But who can fault this old man for being soft-hearted, unable to bear the suffering of the world? Especially since you are still so young, with a great and fortunate life ahead. Very well! For just a thousand Yuan Stones, this protective talisman will be yours!"

Saying this, he produced a protective talisman from his bosom and eagerly extended it towards Jiang Wang.

Looking at it, it was no different from the protective talismans sold to ordinary people in common Taoist temples, probably priced around two or three copper coins. The needlework was especially poor, with even loose threads!

When Jiang Wang was practicing martial arts in the outer courtyard of the Taoist Academy in his early years, he had also mended his own clothes. Although his skill was not as good as Ling He's, he could confidently say it wasn't humble. Compared to the workmanship of this protective talisman, it was far superior!

"Not proper, not proper," Jiang Wang shook his head. "I, a seven-foot tall man, how can I take advantage like this? Whatever its value should be, that is what it should be. Elder, please wait for me for a few years. When I have saved enough Yuan Stones, I will come here to purchase it!"

The old man sighed. "I can wait, but you cannot, ah! There is a recent disaster, how can you not be concerned? Let us not speak further. This old man will suffer a small loss. This protective talisman, you can take it for a thousand Yuan Stones."

While sighing, he still stood on tiptoe and placed the protective talisman into Jiang Wang's bosom.

Jiang Wang leaned back. "That won't do, Elder! You have already offered ninety-nine years. It is better to take it back and offer for another year, making it a complete number, which will also command a higher price!"

The old man twisted and let out an "eh," frowning in displeasure. "What nonsense about commanding a price or not? How could this old man haggle over such matters? This old man sees that you have a destined connection, thus I help. Do you take this old man for someone obsessed with wealth? Quickly take it away! Disasters must be dispelled early!"

"Sigh," Jiang Wang also sighed. "But I just now remembered, I left in a hurry today and did not bring that many Yuan Stones with me."

The old man glared. "Then how many do you have, eh?"

Jiang Wang held up one finger.

"One hundred? Ten? Not even a single piece? You are truly too excessive! I have offered for ninety-nine years, using the essence of the sun and moon..."

He stopped abruptly at this point. "Sigh, so be it. Then I will give you a discount. One Yuan Stone will be just one Yuan Stone."

He held the protective talisman in his right hand, offering it to Jiang Wang, while extending his left hand towards Jiang Wang. "One hand exchanges money, the other exchanges goods."

From one thousand down to one, this discount was so brutal that it fully exposed the water content in the price of this protective talisman.

But Jiang Wang only shook his head. "Elder, you misunderstand. I only have one Dao Yuan Stone on me."

Dao Yuan Stone and Yuan Stone, though differing by only one word, differed in price by ten thousand times.

The old man snatched the protective talisman back in one go and looked up at Jiang Wang on horseback. "Indeed, ah! You still take this old man for a swindler, do you?"

The person in front of him was of course immeasurably profound, but no matter who it was, it was impossible to simply snatch a thousand Yuan Stones from Jiang Wang with a single broken talisman.

Jiang Wang smiled but remained silent.

Although he did not speak, his meaning was already clear.

The old man let out a cold哼 snort and suddenly turned his body around, facing the same direction as Jiang Wang. He grabbed Yan Zhao's rein with one hand. "Then let me show you, you ignorant boy. Look carefully!"

He led Yan Zhao forward a large step.

Before Jiang Wang could even react, he was already following forward on horseback.

The entire long street suddenly fell silent.

The pedestrians on the long street all froze in their original positions. Every person's expression was frozen at the previous moment.

The old man casually pointed at the face of a young man. "This person's life will not exceed thirty-seven."

This man appeared sturdy and strong, with a very good complexion, not at all looking like someone with a short life.

Jiang Wang was still in the state of shock and doubt regarding the current moment, unable to speak for a while.

"If you don't believe, then come and see."

The old man said, leading Yan Zhao, and taking another step forward. Yet, he brought Yan Zhao's horse and Jiang Wang crashing towards that young man.

The entire long street disappeared.

Between the flow of light and shadow, Jiang Wang, on horseback, appeared in a room.

From the layout, it appeared to be a bedroom.

On the bed lay a person.

By the bedside, a woman was sobbing.

A slightly younger child giggled in a cradle.

Sorrow and joy in one room, life and death coexisting.

And looking forward, the man lying on the bed, his face full of sickness, was suddenly the young man they had met at the head of Linzi street!

Compared to when they had seen him before, he was slightly older, but absolutely not yet forty!

The people inside the room were completely unaware of the two people and one horse that had suddenly appeared.

The man on the bed held the woman's hand. "After I am gone, do not linger. If there is a suitable family, then remarry. My parents are still here, and there is also some wealth, they can raise the child. You need not..."

His words broke off here, his soul having already flown to the netherworld.

The woman suddenly began to wail.

And the old man led Yan Zhao's horse, turning to the side.

When they looked again, they were already back on the long street in Linzi.

Jiang Wang fell into a state of deep shock.

Illusion or reality?

If this was an illusion, why did he not detect even a trace of it? Why did everything he saw and felt seem so real?

If this was real, what kind of great power could it be to see another person's future in such clarity?

Simply unbelievable!

"How was it?" In the clamoring Linzi street head, now restored to its former state, the old man turned his head to look at Jiang Wang. "Now you should believe this old man, correct? I, a half-immortal who exhausts divine and ghostly calculations, how can my reputation be false?"

After this matter, the person was still the same person, the old appearance still the same old appearance, but suddenly, he seemed as high as a towering mountain, making people uneasy.

Jiang Wang said, "Elder's strength is beyond Jiang Wang's ability to fathom. This kind of divine power is truly..."

"Alright, being arrogant at the front and respectful at the back is very boring. Flattery is not necessary," the old man interrupted him, his momentum fully unleashed. "Will you buy the protective talisman or not?"

Jiang Wang looked at the old man seriously and said, "I will at most offer one copper coin."