This Damned Thirst for Survival Chapter 10

Jiang Luo asked suspiciously, “You want to buy my talisman?”

What he really wanted to ask was, “Wait, this talisman’s actually worth something?”

Ge Zhu couldn’t take his eyes off it. “I-I do want to buy it, but…I don’t have any money…”

Jiang Luo: “…”

Ge Zhu’s words sounded like he was teasing Jiang Luo, but his expression said otherwise. Jiang Luo didn’t miss the subtle look on his face. He gently set down his brush and picked up the talisman.

Ge Zhu’s gaze followed the talisman as it moved. Once Jiang Luo was certain his reaction was genuine, he decisively handed the talisman over to him. “It’s yours.”

Ge Zhu was caught off guard, “You’re giving it to me?!”

Jiang Luo shrugged. “Yeah, it’s yours.”

The materials used to draw the talisman all came from the table—Jiang Luo hadn’t even put in much effort. Something so easy to make, yet valuable enough to trade for a favor, was totally worth giving away.

Ge Zhu, overwhelmed, clutched the talisman paper and said emotionally, “Jiang Luo, I can run errands for you. I don’t have money, but I can wash your clothes, do the dishes—I have lots of experience with that.”

Jiang Luo looked at him, radiating that immortal aura, then glanced at Lu Youyi not far away, exuding the aura of someone wealthy. He couldn’t help but sigh at how colorful the world was. “No need. Just help me more with my studies—that’ll be enough.”

Ge Zhu was nearly in tears. “Wishing boundless blessings upon you! There really are good people in this world. Jiang Luo, feel free to come to me anytime. If I know something, I’ll tell you.”

After saying that, he couldn’t help but take another closer look at the talisman. “The runes are full of spirit, the lines flow like clouds and water—and the power it contains is evenly distributed in every part. This is truly a rare, top-grade talisman.”

Jiang Luo silently committed those words to memory.

The original host had never produced something like this before. Thinking back to the black energy he’d seen at the 129 Hotel, Jiang Luo felt these changes were closely tied to his own soul.

Maybe… he really was a little genius.

Ge Zhu beamed at Jiang Luo. “Jiang Luo, how come you’re suddenly able to draw a talisman like this?”

Jiang Luo kept a straight face and was just about to come up with an excuse, but Ge Zhu’s expression suddenly lit up with realization. “It must be because you want to avenge Chi You, right? That’s why you’re pushing yourself so hard?”

As he spoke, he nodded as if confirming his own theory, unable to stop himself from sighing. “So love really can unlock a person’s potential.”

Jiang Luo’s eyes curved into crescents, his joy visible at a glance. “Yeah, he changed me from the inside out.”

Eighteen times reborn, eighteen times restructured.

Heh.

Their conversation caught the attention of the old master. He walked over with a frown and said sternly, “Why aren’t you two drawing talismans? What are you doing here?”

Ge Zhu started, “Master, we—”

The old master suddenly interrupted him, his eyes lighting up as he stared at the talisman in Ge Zhu’s hands. Overjoyed, he said, “Ge Zhu, your talisman skills have improved again!”

Ge Zhu scratched his head in embarrassment. “Master, this talisman wasn’t drawn by me. Jiang Luo drew it.”

The old master froze and looked blankly at Jiang Luo. From his eyes, Jiang Luo could clearly see thick skepticism.

Not a single drop of sweat on his forehead, while everyone else was just getting started and still struggling—and he had already finished?

It was like someone telling the old master that a pig could climb a tree. Ridiculous.

“Is that so?” Though the master said nothing more, his tone and expression made his disbelief obvious. He said lightly, “Not bad, not bad. Jiang Luo, could you draw another one for me to see?”

Ge Zhu hesitated. “Drawing that talisman took a lot of energy. Master, maybe don’t make Jiang Luo do it again.”

But Jiang Luo cheerfully cut in, “You want me to draw one just like this?”

The old master stared at him intently, eyes full of pressure. “Yes.”

Jiang Luo smiled. “Something this simple? Of course I can.”

When the old master heard such an arrogant response, disappointment flashed again in his eyes. “Then go ahead.”

Jiang Luo really did pull out a yellow talisman and casually began to draw.

The whole process unfolded right under the old master’s nose—from start to finish. His eyes slowly widened, shifting from the talisman to Jiang Luo, stunned.

Jiang Luo hadn’t even broken a sweat. In fact, he found drawing talismans easier than technical drawings. Technical schematics had to be precise to the millimeter; talismans, on the other hand, were much more freeform. “How’s this?”

Ge Zhu was dumbfounded. “Blessings of the boundless heavens…”

The old teacher snapped out of his shock at that exclamation. His eyes suddenly lit up as he snatched up the freshly drawn talisman and scrutinized it with gleaming excitement. Then, laughing heartily, he turned and sprinted out of the room so fast that the whole class was left speechless.

Everyone quickly crowded around Jiang Luo. He had no choice but to draw another one in front of them.

Lu Youyi looked at the completed talisman, his eyes nearly brimming with tears. Choking up, he said, “You’ve been working so hard behind my back. Now you’re no longer last place — I am.”

Jiang Luo: “…”

Lu Youyi was devastated. He took off his watch and handed it to Jiang Luo. “Quick, trade it with one of your talismans to heal my wounded heart.”

Jiang Luo glanced at the six-digit watch, then immediately turned to look at Ge Zhu.

Ge Zhu quickly hid his talisman inside his clothes and gave Jiang Luo a sheepish, broke-student smile.

Big mistake.

So just one talisman could be worth six figures.

Jiang Luo instantly stuffed the new talisman into Lu Youyi’s hand and pocketed the watch. “Anyone else want one? Going cheap! Just this one chance!”

Zhuo Zhongqiu asked, “How many more can you draw?”

Jiang Luo replied, “I’m not sure.”

He propped his chin on one hand, eyeing the stack of yellow paper, then said, “I’ll draw one, you take one?”

“Alright,” Zhuo Zhongqiu agreed, “but promise me — when you reach your limit, stop right away.”

Jiang Luo: “Okay.”

As he drew, Zhuo Zhongqiu and Ge Zhu explained the difficulty of talismans.

The metaphysics world was in decline — not only were artifact refiners rare, but true talisman masters were even rarer. The current generation of talisman masters were elderly, often too frail to produce high-quality work. There was no promising talent among the younger generation — it was a transitional gap.

Now, to buy a quality talisman, you needed not just money, but connections. The market was in short supply, so most people relied on their own, mediocre, hand-drawn talismans. Those who were truly bad at it would buy even worse ones from classmates for daily use.

Jiang Luo continued drawing while listening. Once he realized how rare good talismans were, he stopped after finishing seven. “I’m done. Can’t draw any more.”

Even so, seven high-quality talismans in a row was a miracle — their talisman class teacher probably couldn’t manage that.

Zhuo Zhongqiu muttered, “Just how long have you been wasting your talent…”

The seven talismans, excluding the ones already given to Ge Zhu and Lu Youyi, were claimed one by one by the rest of the group. Zhuo Zhongqiu transferred money directly to Jiang Luo through WeChat. The others offered trades.

Ye Xun: “I’ll tutor you.”

That was good — Jiang Luo nodded and looked at the next person.

Kuang Zheng said stiffly, “I can refine weapons for you.”

That was very good — Jiang Luo had long been envious of Ye Xun’s wraith doll.

Wenren Lian smiled, “I can take you to the best places to buy forging materials — best quality, lowest price.”

Jiang Luo: “Deal.”

Cyril, the foreigner, enthusiastically said, “I can teach you to dance, drum, and sing.”

Jiang Luo: “…” What?

“Cyril’s from a shamanic tribe,” Wenren Lian explained. “To summon spirits, he needs to dance, drum, and sing — it’s a form of invitation for the gods, used to enter a trance.”

Cyril nodded earnestly. “Yes, I can teach you. I’m very good!”

Lu Youyi scooted over to Jiang Luo and whispered, “Cyril can’t sing in tune at all. It’s probably why he’s never successfully summoned anything. You know the soundproof music room at school? That was built just for him, so he wouldn’t scare the rest of us when he sings.”

Jiang Luo was silent for a moment before asking Cyril, “Are you third-to-last in the class?”

Cyril gave a bright, silly smile. “Yeah! I’m third, Lu’s second, and you’re first! You’re the best!”

Jiang Luo’s expression twisted briefly, then he shoved a talisman into Cyril’s hands. “Take it.”

For the sake of Cyril soon becoming second-to-last, Jiang Luo decided to let him off the hook.

The last two talismans he kept for himself — he wanted to test them against Chi You.

All morning, their talisman teacher never returned. Jiang Luo figured the matter had ended. After lunch with his classmates — the usual awful cafeteria food — he was sitting in the Feng Shui class that afternoon when the school suddenly made an announcement.

The points for the mission completed by Jiang Luo, Lu Youyi, and Ye Xun had been finalized. Because the mission had turned out far more difficult than expected — and they’d even brought back a headless ghost in a flowerpot — their points were doubled. The original 4 points had become 8, enough for Lu Youyi and Ye Xun to qualify for the competition in Yunnan.

In the entire class, the only one whose credits were still too low was Jiang Luo. Even after adding the 8 points, he only had a pitiful total of 11. However, because he had produced a top-tier talisman, the school awarded him an additional 10 credits as a special reward for a student’s first achievement.

Students who accumulate 20 credits will be automatically registered by the school to participate in the Yunnan competition. In other words, Jiang Luo must participate in the “National College Students’ Natural Science Competition” a month from now.

That night, Jiang Luo moved back into his dormitory. He checked the doors and windows, placed a small knife under his pillow, along with the two suppression talismans he had drawn during the day.

Perhaps thanks to those two talismans, Jiang Luo slept soundly until morning.

The next day at dawn, Jiang Luo opened his eyes, stretched lazily, and drew back the curtains.

Midway through his stretch, Jiang Luo slowly froze.

On the balcony laid the corpses of over twenty small birds, scattered in disarray. Blood smears from their impact covered the glass window—at a glance, the scene resembled something from a horror movie.

Jiang Luo crouched down and coldly looked at the tiny bodies.

What kind of situation would make these birds recklessly crash into his room as if their lives didn’t matter?

He ran his hand across the now slightly cracked glass and retrieved the two suppression talismans from under his pillow.

One had already turned to ash. The other was faintly warm to the touch.

To think that the talismans he drew could even fend off birds controlled by soul-refining puppet arts.

Jiang Luo curled his lips into a smile, walked back to the window, and looked down at the pile of bird corpses. He suddenly said with a half-smile, “Chi You, so you love me this much, huh?”

His tone was mockingly sweet. “We were only apart for one night, and you’re already this desperate?”

His reflection appeared faintly in the glass—long hair draped over his shoulders, mocking brows and eyes, still in his pajamas.

He drawled, “If you like me that much, it’ll become a problem, you know? A secret admirer should act like a proper secret admirer. Understand?”

Jiang Luo turned around cheerfully. After just two steps, a loud crash suddenly echoed behind him as something slammed into the glass.

He spun around at once.

The dead birds on the ground were somehow standing upright again. Dragging broken wings and split-open skulls, they slammed into the cracked glass again and again as if they didn’t feel pain.

It looked like something out of a horror film: zombie birds, eerie and grotesque.

Jiang Luo’s expression darkened. The talisman in his hand abruptly burned hot and turned to ash, slipping through his fingers. At the same moment, the birds on the balcony fell lifelessly to the floor, as if the thread controlling them had been severed.

Chi You had grown stronger.

Why?

Suddenly, Jiang Luo remembered something—

Tonight was Chi You’s seventh day.