'The inheritance is mine!'
Li Chang'an didn't dare to linger outside and immediately returned to the Marketplace.
He only felt at ease after returning to his room and shutting the door.
He began to carefully examine the contents of the Jade Scroll.
'Spirit Shield Talisman, Cold Wind Talisman, Mad Blade Talisman...'
All the Low Grade Talismans included in this inheritance were of the most common variety.
Finding buyers for these would be no trouble at all!
The more Li Chang'an read, the more delighted he became.
He took a few deep breaths to calm himself, then sat cross-legged, preparing to begin his serious study of the Path of Talismans and Seals.
But just then, a voice suddenly called out from outside.
"Brother Li, are you home?"
It was Xu Fugui's voice, and it sounded somewhat weak.
Li Chang'an got up to open the door.
Outside, Xu Fugui's face was ghastly pale, completely drained of color.
He looked completely disheveled, leaning on a crutch with what appeared to be a lame leg.
Seeing his state, Li Chang'an immediately asked:
"Fugui, what happened?"
"Brother Li, I should have listened to you!"
With a face full of misery, Xu Fugui recounted his group's experience inside the cave.
At first, everything had gone smoothly.
Working together, they had managed to break through the already damaged Array.
They successfully entered the cave.
However, there was no Treasure inside the cave at all. Instead, they found an even more concealed Array.
Completely oblivious, they all walked right into it.
Then, the Array suddenly detonated!
The group suffered heavy casualties!
Four of them died on the spot. Two more were so severely injured that they died on the way back.
Xu Fugui was one of the lucky ones.
He hadn't lost his life, but his internal organs had taken a blow, and one of his legs was now lame.
"Brother Li, if only I'd listened to you and stayed away from that cave!"
Xu Fugui was consumed by regret.
That cave wasn't some fortuitous opportunity; it was a deathtrap!
His injuries were severe.
The mere thought of the Spirit Stones he'd have to spend on Healing made his heart bleed.
Hearing this, Li Chang'an sighed and offered a few words of comfort.
"The important thing is you're alive. Focus on your recovery."
After a bit more conversation, a vexed Xu Fugui limped away.
His miserable state only strengthened Li Chang'an's resolve to pursue a path of steady, cautious cultivation.
'Unless it's absolutely necessary, I must never explore unknown caves, ancient ruins, or anything of the sort.'
Li Chang'an closed the door, calmed his mind, and resumed his study of Talismans.
「That night at Midnight.」
The new Divination appeared.
[Divination Refreshed]
[Today's Divination: Neutral]
[You will have little to gain today. Nothing of note will occur within or without the Marketplace.]
'A quiet day.'
Li Chang'an felt at peace.
He was already more than satisfied with his recent gains.
He wasn't some son of destiny, after all. He couldn't expect great fortune to strike every single day.
'As long as it's not an Evil Trigram, I'm good!'
Li Chang'an preferred peaceful days.
「Over the next while.」
He immersed himself in the world of Talismans, hardly ever stepping outside.
His daily Divinations were all 'Neutral,' and nothing of consequence happened.
In cultivation, time flows by unnoticed.
A month passed in the blink of an eye.
「One day.」
Li Chang'an sat before a low table, his expression focused, a Talisman Brush in his hand.
He had purchased the Talisman Brush in the Marketplace. It was only Tier One Low Grade—the cheapest available—yet it had still cost him a full thirty Spirit Stones!
If he hadn't accepted Zheng Jinbao's Spirit Stones, he never would have been able to afford it.
He had used the remaining Spirit Stones to buy Talisman Paper and Spiritual Ink.
'Today, I'll see if I can finally paint a complete Talisman.'
Li Chang'an focused his full attention and began attempting to paint a Light Body Talisman.
Among Tier One Low Grade Talismans, this one was relatively easy to paint. Its effect was also extremely simple: it made the user's body lighter.
The delicate bristles of the brush glided across the Talisman Paper, leaving elegant, flowing strokes in its wake.
Before long, Li Chang'an's arm paused, and the Talisman Brush came to a halt.
The Talisman on the table was complete.
He picked up the Talisman and injected a trace of Spiritual Power to activate it.
HUMMM...
The Light Body Talisman trembled slightly.
Li Chang'an felt his entire body lighten, as if he were floating like an immortal.
"Success!"
A smile appeared on his face.
To think he had succeeded on his very first try!
The entire process was as smooth as flowing water, without a single hitch.
This meant that Li Chang'an had officially become a Talisman Master!
'I must have some talent for the path of talismans.'
Li Chang'an was quite satisfied with his own progress.
According to the inheritance he had received, talented Cultivators could successfully paint a Talisman within weeks or months.
Those with poor talent, however, could struggle for years without even mastering the basics!
'Let's try some other Talismans!'
Riding the wave of his success, Li Chang'an continued to paint.
Soon, he had successfully painted two more types of Tier One Low Grade Talismans: the Spirit Shield Talisman and the Fireball Talisman.
It was only when he tried to paint a new kind of Talisman that he made a careless mistake and failed.
'Not bad. The success rate isn't low at all!'
Li Chang'an was quite satisfied with his success rate.
And this was only his first time performing Talisman Painting; his technique was still unpracticed.
Once he became more practiced, his success rate would surely increase significantly.
'According to the inheritance, Talisman Painting consumes not only Magical Power but also a great deal of mental energy.'
A normal Cultivator in the Early Stage of Qi Refining would feel tired and mentally drained after painting just three Low Grade Talismans in a row.
However, Li Chang'an felt no fatigue whatsoever.
He was still full of vigor and brimming with energy.
Perhaps because he had lived two lives, his Spiritual Power was far stronger than that of other Cultivators at his level.
He estimated that his Spiritual Power was probably on par with that of a Cultivator in the Middle Stage of Qi Refining.
He proceeded to paint more than ten Talismans in a row.
Only then did he finally begin to feel a hint of fatigue.
'I'm still not at my limit, but I shouldn't overexert myself.'
Li Chang'an set down his Talisman Brush and rubbed his brow.
After meditating for a moment to recover, he put away all the Talismans and began his daily cultivation exercises.
...
「That evening.」
Li Chang'an left his room and headed to a shop called the "Hundred Treasures Pavilion."
The Hundred Treasures Pavilion was a long-established shop in the Marketplace.
The shopkeeper, a man with the surname Qian, was known for being amiable and had a good reputation.
Li Chang'an walked into the shop.
He took out a Fireball Talisman and handed it to Manager Qian behind the counter.
"Manager Qian, what do you offer for a Talisman like this?"
"Let me see."
Manager Qian picked up the Talisman and looked it over for a moment.
"Tier One Low Grade, a Fireball Talisman. The quality is decent, nothing special. As for the price... how about two Spirit Stones?"
He commented nonchalantly, offering a fair price.
Li Chang'an wasn't some rookie new to the Cultivation Immortality Realm; he had a basic understanding of Talisman prices and knew Manager Qian's offer was reasonable.
So he took out two more Fireball Talismans, three Wind Blade Talismans, and four Spirit Shield Talismans.
Bringing the total to ten, he sold them all to Manager Qian.
'Twenty Spirit Stones, just like that!'
Li Chang'an was overjoyed.
Now that he had learned a trade, he was earning Spirit Stones far faster than ever before!
Of course, this was mainly because Talismans were in high demand.
Among the Hundred Skills of Cultivation Immortality, Pills, Talismans, Artifacts, and Arrays ranked as the top four. The speed at which one could earn Spirit Stones with the other skills could hardly compare.
"Manager Qian, I'll take two bottles of Qi Nourishing Pills."
Li Chang'an pointed to the Elixir Pills displayed on a shelf behind the counter.
Qi Nourishing Pills were one of the most suitable Elixir Pills for Early Stage Qi Refining Cultivators. A single bottle cost five Spirit Stones.
In the past, he could never have afforded them.
Now, he could finally give them a try!