Chapter 31: Improving Talisman Crafting Skills

Three days later, as a trace of spiritual light moved beneath Song Qingming's pen tip, a series of highly peculiar runes gradually appeared upon a yellow talisman paper. These symbols were arranged neatly according to a certain pattern, shimmering with a layer of golden light.

As time passed, the spiritual light on the paper slowly faded, finally becoming firmly imprinted upon the talisman.

Song Qingming picked up this Golden Light Talisman and examined it carefully. Then, gripping the newly crafted talisman, he gave it a gentle squeeze. As a surge of spiritual power flowed from his body into the talisman, the object in his hand instantly erupted with brilliant golden light. With a flick of his finger, it transformed into a streak of golden light that shot out and abruptly exploded against a stone stool inside the room.

"BANG!!" With a loud crash and a plume of white smoke, Song Qingming squinted as he looked at the ground. The hundred-pound stone stool had instantly been reduced to a pile of rubble.

"The power is already equivalent to a full-strength strike from a fourth-layer Qi Refinement cultivator. This Golden Light Talisman is finally a success," Song Qingming murmured to himself.

Over the past few days, he had used dozens of sets of talisman-making materials. After testing the effects of over a dozen finished products, Song Qingming had finally successfully drawn this qualified mid-grade talisman, the "Golden Light Talisman."

The "Golden Light Talisman" was a relatively common mid-grade offensive elemental talisman found in markets. Having just completed the effectiveness test, Song Qingming was finally satisfied with its performance; he had officially advanced to the rank of a mid-grade talisman maker.

Half a month later, by relying on a talisman-making speed four to five times faster than an average person, Song Qingming finally raised the success rate of the "Golden Light Talisman" to twenty percent, barely becoming a qualified mid-grade talisman maker.

The final yield of over a dozen talismans had cost him more than two hundred sets of mid-grade materials, resulting in an overall loss of nearly thirty spirit stones.

However, this was unavoidable. To improve his talisman-making skills, such investment was necessary. Only by becoming a true mid-grade talisman maker could he slowly earn back these invested spirit stones bit by bit.

A mid-grade talisman like the "Golden Light Talisman" could sell for about three spirit stones on the market. As long as he could raise his success rate to above thirty percent, each talisman would yield at least one spirit stone in profit. With sufficient materials, he could produce three or four a day, earning over a hundred spirit stones a month—a considerable profit.

Compared to his production of low-grade talismans, where he already had a fifty to sixty percent success rate but earned at most twenty to thirty spirit stones a month, the comparison made it clear that the investment required to improve his skills was well worth it.

Currently, his main shortage was talisman-making materials. The few hundred sets of mid-grade materials he had brought from Guiyun Market were almost entirely exhausted. As long as he could collect another batch of mid-grade materials, he was confident he could raise the success rate of the Golden Light Talisman to over thirty percent. Touching his chest, Song Qingming thought to himself that it shouldn't be much longer.

With his materials nearly depleted, Song Qingming had to pause his production. It was time to head out and procure more.

Calculating the dates, it was time for the monthly gathering at Straw Hut Mountain again. He hadn't been to Straw Hut Mountain for several months; it was a good opportunity to go there first to sell off his prepared Golden Light Talismans and exchange them for spirit stones to purchase more mid-grade materials at Qinghe Market.

Since the incident involving the ambush of the Huang family cultivators a few years ago, Qinghe Market had become much more peaceful. Families no longer prevented their young people from going out to gain experience. Now that his cultivation had reached the fifth layer of Qi Refinement, a trip to Qinghe Market was naturally no problem.

He wondered if Gao Yuyao had come to Straw Hut Mountain to look for him during these past few months. Regarding this woman with whom he held a secret transaction, Song Qingming never dared to be negligent whenever they met, fearing he might lose his source of medicinal pills.

After greeting Uncle Jiu, Song Qingming returned to Straw Hut Mountain for the first time in nearly three months. Looking at the familiar trees and plants on the mountain, his experiences of touching life and death over the past few months made it feel as though an eternity had passed.

The path to immortality is long, and he had only just taken his first step. Even if the road ahead was fraught with danger, whether one was a small character like him scattered in every corner of the cultivation world or a powerful expert of a certain realm, no one had a path of retreat.

Tossing a token, the mist on Straw Hut Mountain slowly dispersed, and Song Qingming stepped forward with determination.

Despite his absence for several months, the bi-monthly gatherings at Straw Hut Mountain were as bustling as ever. Just as he reached the entrance of the courtyard, Song Qingming encountered an acquaintance.

"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist Song! I haven't seen you for months, and I didn't expect you to have broken through your cultivation level. Haha, I was wondering why I hadn't seen you here these past two months; it turns out you were in seclusion for cultivation."

This person was Qin Zhen, the rogue cultivator who had originally acted as a middleman to help Song Qingming purchase medicinal pills.

Seeing that Song Qingming's cultivation had already broken through to the fifth layer of Qi Refinement and was almost catching up to him, Qin Zhen was somewhat surprised.

*This kid is only in his early twenties, yet his cultivation is already catching up to a cultivator like me who has practiced for over forty years. It is truly enviable,* Qin Zhen thought as he looked at Song Qingming. *If this person isn't a genius with a triple spiritual root, then he must be a direct descendant from a family with no shortage of cultivation resources. I must make sure to befriend such a promising young cultivator in Qinghe County.*

"Fellow Daoist Song, your absence these past few months has truly made us miss the talismans your family produces. Using talismans purchased from other shops lately has felt somewhat unsatisfactory; in the end, I still find your family's talismans to be of better quality. Now that you are here, I will certainly buy more later, so that I won't run out when you are away."

"Not at all, it is only thanks to my family's support that my cultivation has progressed. I will have to rely on Brother Qin for your continued guidance in the future," Song Qingming replied.

Song Qingming walked familiarly into the courtyard. Not long after he had set up his stall, Qin Zhen approached him with a smile.

Looking at the pile of mid-grade talismans on Song Qingming's stall, which was even larger than before, Qin Zhen asked curiously, "Fellow Daoist Song, you are bringing out so many mid-grade talismans at once. Could it be that your talisman-making skills have already broken through to the mid-grade level? To be such a young mid-grade talisman maker, you truly are a person of extraordinary talent."

"Brother Qin overpraises me. Most of the talismans here are being sold on behalf of my clan elders; my own talisman-making skills are still somewhat lacking. However, my family does indeed have some research into the Way of Talismans. There are several high-grade talisman makers in my family, and these talismans were all produced by their hands. Please rest assured regarding the quality, Brother Qin."

Although the vast majority of these mid-grade talismans were produced by Song Qingming himself, since he began learning talisman-making, he had always claimed that most of the talismans on his stall were made by his clan elders to avoid the trouble that selling talismans on Straw Hut Mountain might attract. Otherwise, given the quantity of talismans he produced each time he was on the mountain, it would inevitably arouse suspicion.

Even though he was now a mid-grade talisman maker, he did not want to expose his skills too much in public. After all, if someone were to ask why his skills had improved so rapidly, explaining it would be a hassle. Attributing it to his clan elders was easier for others to understand and saved him a lot of trouble.

Hearing Song Qingming's explanation, Qin Zhen thought it made sense and did not dwell on it. In his view, even if Song Qingming had become a mid-grade talisman maker at his age, it was unlikely that he could have drawn all the talismans on his stall by himself.

A talisman maker, without affecting their own cultivation, could only produce about seven or eight mid-grade talismans a month. Every time Song Qingming came to set up a stall, the large quantity of talismans he brought out made it look impossible for him to have made them all alone.

He simply could not have imagined that Song Qingming possessed a treasure like the Remnant Map. Under the Remnant Map's several-fold acceleration of mana recovery, his talisman-making speed was equivalent to that of an ordinary cultivator four or five times faster.

(End of Chapter)