Chapter 107 - 104: Vajra Talisman
Chapter 107: Chapter 104: Vajra Talisman
Li Yuan left the herb garden early in the morning, following the mountain path toward the He family’s main residence.
The He family’s main residence was much livelier than the herb garden. People were coming and going from the stone-walled courtyard, but most hurried along with tense expressions.
The meeting hall was at the very back of the courtyard. It was a spacious stone house with two old chairs placed by the entrance.
He Qing was already inside waiting.
He was sitting behind a desk, a beast-hide map covered in markings spread out before him. Several red dots had been marked on it with mineral powder.
Seeing Li Yuan enter, He Qing looked up and pushed the map to the side.
"How has the herb garden been these past few days?"
"Nothing major. A couple of Tier One Low Grade Demon Beasts showed up sporadically, but the guards on duty took care of them."
He Qing nodded.
"That Demon Beast we captured alive—I had my men inspect it thoroughly, inside and out. They really didn’t find anything unusual."
He tapped his fingers on the desk twice.
"And it’s not just our family. Several smaller families in the area are experiencing similar situations. The Demon Beasts are coming more frequently than before, but never in large numbers, and investigations have revealed no traces of human involvement."
Just as He Qing said this, he was interrupted by the sound of footsteps from outside the door.
A He family Cultivator walked quickly to the entrance, cupped his fist, and said, "Steward He, there is a visitor outside. They say they’re from the Chen family."
He Qing froze for a moment, then immediately stood up.
"Show them in."
Before long, a familiar figure walked into the meeting hall.
It was the Chen family Elder.
His hair and beard were completely white, his face was lean, and he sported a short beard on his chin—exactly as he had looked at the trade meet. The only difference was that his eyes held a graver look than when they had last met.
Following behind him was a young man at the Qi Refining Fourth Level, carrying a storage bag on his back.
After entering, the Chen family Elder first scanned the room. He saw He Qing and nodded. Then he saw Li Yuan, and his eyebrows twitched.
"Li Dao You is here as well."
"Perfect timing." Li Yuan stood up from a nearby chair.
He turned, took out a stack of Talismans from his storage bag, and placed them on the table.
"These are the ones I’ve accumulated over the past few days. Please count them."
Forty-six Fireball Talismans.
The Chen family Elder didn’t stand on ceremony. He reached out, picked up the top few Fireball Talismans to flip through them, then pulled out a few more to examine their Spirit Patterns against the light.
"Better than last time."
He stacked the Talismans neatly and beckoned to the young man behind him.
The young man took a roll of beast hide and a pile of Spirit Stones from his storage bag and placed them on the table.
"As we agreed upon," the Chen family Elder said, tapping his finger on the beast hide roll and the Spirit Stones.
Li Yuan first put away the Spirit Stones, then picked up the beast hide and unrolled it.
The characters on the hide were neatly written, and the diagrams for the Spirit Pattern layouts were clear. The two words at the very top were: Vajra Talisman.
A Tier One Combat Talisman. When used, it greatly increases the user’s strength and defense for about half a quarter-hour.
Li Yuan scanned the creation method from beginning to end, then rolled it up and put it away.
The Chen family Elder watched him and brought up a second matter.
"Also, can you make Rejuvenation Talismans?"
"How many?"
"Ten more each time."
The Chen family Elder’s tone was unhurried.
"Things aren’t peaceful on my end, either. Demon Beasts cause trouble every few days. The people in my family have low Cultivation, so it’s common for them to get injured in encounters. Rejuvenation Talismans are in even higher demand for us than Fireball Talismans."
Li Yuan thought for a moment.
’I’ve only recently started making Rejuvenation Talismans, so my success rate isn’t very high yet, but the Spiritual Qi here in the herb garden is abundant. I have time to practice.’
"I can do that."
The Chen family Elder nodded, not dwelling on the subject.
He turned his head to look at He Qing and changed the topic.
"Steward He, I’ve come this time mainly to discuss the matter of Arrays with the He family."
He Qing sat back down behind the desk.
"Please speak, Elder Chen."
The Chen family Elder leaned back in his chair, his hands folded in his lap.
"The Chen family’s territory is large, and our members are spread out. I can’t run around enough to protect the entire family."
He glanced at the beast-hide map in front of He Qing.
"The He family understands Arrays. If you could set up a few warning arrays or Defense Arrays in some of our key locations, we could at least buy ourselves some time to react."
He Qing pondered for a moment.
"Setting up the Arrays isn’t difficult, but the cost of array materials and Spirit Stones is significant."
"And... the matter of payment."
"I will cover that," the Chen family Elder replied decisively. "The Chen family will provide the materials and Spirit Stones. The He family need only provide the people and the skill."
The two began to discuss the details, but Li Yuan didn’t listen any further.
He took the Vajra Talisman creation method and the Spirit Stones from his settlement with the Chen family Elder, nodded at He Qing, and turned to leave the meeting hall.
In the afternoon, a He family Cultivator ran to the herb garden.
"Li Dao You, the traveling merchant has arrived. He’s in the front courtyard."
Li Yuan put away the talisman brush on his desk and followed him.
In an open space in the He family’s front courtyard, several people were unloading goods.
The one in the lead was a wiry man in his forties with a sharp face and two quick-darting eyes. A smile hung on his lips, and he exuded an air of shrewdness. Behind him, two young assistants were arranging goods on a coarse cloth on the ground.
Their Cultivation was not high; the leader was only at the Qi Refining Fourth Level, and his two assistants were only at the second level.
The variety of goods on the coarse cloth was extremely miscellaneous. There was Cyan Pattern Paper, Spiritual Ink, cinnabar, various mineral powders, a few bundles of herbs, a dozen or so porcelain bottles of pills, two half-worn Magical Artifacts, a pile of assorted ore fragments, and a few rolls of unidentifiable beast hide.
Li Yuan walked closer and squatted down to look at the goods.
First, he looked at the talisman-making materials.
The quality of the Cyan Pattern Paper was decent—a bit worse than the paper from Wu’s Talisman Shop, but better than what the Loose Cultivators sold at the trade meet. There were two types of Spiritual Ink: a cheaper, lighter-colored one, and another with a rich black color and fine texture that was nearly double the price.
"How much for this batch of Cyan Pattern Paper?"
The wiry traveling merchant immediately sidled up to him.
"Dao You has a good eye! This batch of paper is from a small workshop up north. It’s twenty percent thicker than what you usually see on the market, so it absorbs ink more evenly. A bundle of fifty sheets for six Spirit Stones."
Li Yuan picked up a sheet and examined it. It was indeed thicker than ordinary paper, with denser fibers.
"Two bundles. And I’ll take the good bottle of Spiritual Ink."
"Right away."
The merchant swiftly separated the items, then eagerly pointed to the pile of pills nearby.
"Do you need any pills, Dao You? I have Vein Relaxing Pills, Qi Gathering Pills, and Meridian Opening Pills."
Li Yuan glanced at the porcelain bottles.
"Do you have any Wood Element pills?"
The traveling merchant paused for a second, then rummaged through the goods in front of him.
"Wood Element... yes, I have Wood Nourishing Pills. Three of them. Two and a half Spirit Stones each."
He fished a small porcelain bottle from a corner, uncorked it, and let Li Yuan have a look.
Three dark green pills. Their medicinal fragrance was faint, similar to the two he had bought at the trade meet.
"I’ll take them all."
The traveling merchant handed over the bottle and started promoting his other wares.
Li Yuan wasn’t in a hurry to leave.
His gaze swept over the pile of porcelain bottles and then suddenly froze.
In a corner, one bottle was set apart from the rest. It was covered in a bit of dust, and its cork was sealed with two layers of wax, looking as if it had been sitting untouched for some time.
It wasn’t the bottle that caught Li Yuan’s attention, but an extremely faint scent seeping through the cracks in the cork.
Bitter, with a dull, oppressive feeling.
Evil Qi.
Li Yuan reached out and picked up the bottle.
The bottle wasn’t large and felt cool to the touch. He broke the wax seal and sniffed, and the smell of Evil Qi immediately became distinct.
’Isn’t this Old Sun’s Evil Essence Pill?’
"What’s this?"
The traveling merchant tilted his head to look, his expression a little awkward.
"Evil Essence Pills."
He rubbed his hands together.
"I got those from an old man. His Alchemy skills are pretty good. He makes something called a Breaking Evil Pill that sells exceptionally well; a lot of Loose Cultivators buy it to help with their breakthroughs. I figured his other pills would sell well too, so I picked up a batch of these Evil Essence Pills on the side."
The traveling merchant spread his hands.
"Turns out, they don’t sell at all. This stuff is full of Evil Qi. What ordinary Cultivator would dare to pop one in their mouth? It would be a miracle if it didn’t cause problems. I haven’t sold a single one."
Li Yuan uncorked the bottle and glanced inside.
There were a dozen or so dark gray pills, their surfaces giving off a faint gray sheen, completely different from the gentle luster of ordinary pills.
He put the cork back in.
"How much?"
The traveling merchant’s eyes lit up.
"You want them? That’s wonderful! There are twelve. I’ll give them to you for a total of twenty Spirit Stones, how about it?"
"Done."
Li Yuan put the bottle into his storage bag.
The traveling merchant cheerfully accepted the Spirit Stones and continued to call out, inviting other members of the He family to look at his goods.
Li Yuan carried his purchases back to the herb garden.
After closing the door to his stone house, Li Yuan sat down at his desk.
First, he organized the talisman-making materials. He stacked the two bundles of Cyan Pattern Paper on a corner of the desk, placed the Spiritual Ink beside them, and set the cinnabar and mineral powders aside separately.
Then, he took out all the Wood Nourishing Pills.
Li Yuan then unequipped the Soul Mirror, took out the Rejuvenation Talisman he had made earlier from his storage bag, and equipped it.
A warm current spread from his chest to his limbs.
It wasn’t Spiritual Power, nor was it Qi Blood. It was a more subtle change—as if some long-dormant function within his body had been awakened.
After savoring the sensation for a moment, Li Yuan took out the first Wood Nourishing Pill and put it in his mouth.
A gentle stream of Wood Spiritual Power spread out from his abdomen. It wasn’t violent like a Qi Blood Pill, but rather like spring water seeping into the earth, slowly suffusing his meridians and organs.
The permanence progress for Vitality Surge also increased a little.
After cultivating for an hour, Li Yuan consumed the second Wood Nourishing Pill.
...
As the last pill entered his mouth, the panel appeared.
[Vitality Surge (White) permanence condition has been met]
[Make permanent?]
Li Yuan thought.
’Yes.’
[Permanence successful]
[Vitality Surge (White) has become a permanent entry]
[Equipped item consumed]
The Rejuvenation Talisman in his fingers turned into a faint green light and flowed into his body.
Li Yuan clenched and unclenched his fist. The gentle, warm feeling had grown a bit stronger.
Then, Li Yuan spread out a sheet of talisman paper and picked up his talisman brush.
It was still early outside; there was enough time to draw a few more Talismans.