Han Li carefully stored away the two golden pages, then focused his mind to plan his next steps.
Since he intended to cultivate the Qingyuan Sword Art and the Triple Revolving Profound Art, he would need to make full use of the green liquid from the mysterious small vial. Therefore, the ingredients for the alchemy formulas on the two ancient prescriptions had to be gathered as quickly as possible. For those he already had, he would accelerate their growth. For those he lacked, he would need to search elsewhere, collecting or purchasing them wherever possible, leaving no stone unturned.
Speaking of the green liquid, aside from its spiritual energy, the other components within it remained enigmatic to him. Yet, he was certain that spiritual energy alone couldn’t possibly produce such miraculous effects in accelerating plant growth.
After joining the Yellow Maple Valley sect, he had conducted several experiments. No matter how much he diluted the spiritual liquid, as long as the water contained even a trace of the green liquid, all test animals would meet the same fate—exploding from within. It seemed the issue wasn’t about the degree of dilution but rather the mysterious unknown components within the green liquid.
After obtaining the same results multiple times, Han Li had no choice but to reluctantly give up.
But now, using the small vial’s miraculous effects solely for alchemy seemed too narrow an application! Han Li felt that the ability to accelerate plant growth could surely be put to greater use, and it felt somewhat wasteful to limit it to this purpose alone.
After careful consideration, Han Li concluded that in battles at the Foundation Establishment stage, aside from magical instruments and cultivation techniques, intermediate-level talismans were absolutely indispensable. These intermediate talismans, however, were exorbitantly priced! A single talisman could easily cost dozens of spirit stones, making Han Li shake his head in dismay.
That said, many intermediate-level elemental spells were indeed incredibly powerful and could be life-saving techniques.
The problem was that these spells were of such a high grade that even Foundation Establishment cultivators needed to expend considerable spiritual energy and time to cast them. Thus, purchasing a few talismans as a means of protection became a necessary precaution.
Han Li turned his attention to talisman-making, specifically intermediate-level talismans.
The blank talisman paper required for talisman-making, whether low or intermediate grade, was refined from spiritual herbs of certain longer years. This was perfect for Han Li, as it allowed him to leverage the vial’s miraculous effects to their fullest.
Of course, high-grade talisman paper couldn’t be produced this way, as it required spiritual hides from specific rare demonic beasts—something far beyond Han Li’s current reach.
As for the cinnabar paste used in talisman-making, there wasn’t much to be picky about. It was typically refined from the blood of spiritual beasts, often drawn from domesticated ones, and was relatively inexpensive. The talisman brush, however, required some consideration. Fortunately, Han Li still had his Golden Bamboo Brush, which should suffice.
Thinking of the Golden Bamboo Brush naturally brought to mind the easily flustered little girl, Han Yunzhi. He couldn’t help but smile slightly, wondering if she was still at the Spirit Beast Mountain.
But in the next moment, Han Li refocused his thoughts, weighing the feasibility of talisman-making and its potential benefits and drawbacks.
With the tools and an endless supply of raw materials, the biggest limitation for talisman-makers—material consumption—wasn’t an issue for him. The only remaining constraint was mastering intermediate-level spells and above.
A talisman-maker needed to be able to cast a spell themselves before they could seal it into a talisman. After all, talismans were merely a means of pre-sealing spells.
The thought of learning intermediate spells gave Han Li a headache!
He wasn’t sure if it was due to his overly mixed spiritual roots, but he seemed to have no talent for learning elemental spells. Even after spending several times the effort and time of an ordinary cultivator, he often gained nothing and failed to grasp the essence.
However, since reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, he found he could easily master low-level spells, and most could even be cast instantaneously. But with intermediate spells, he was back to square one, leaving Han Li sighing helplessly.
Despite the difficulty, Han Li believed he could still master a few intermediate spells and seal them into talismans. He had no illusions about mastering all intermediate spells and producing talismans for each.
With a large supply of intermediate talismans, not only would he gain a significant advantage in battles, but he could also openly sell them without drawing too much attention.
This would free him from his current shortage of spirit stones. He didn’t dare trade spiritual herbs for spirit stones anymore—it was too conspicuous.
Moreover, Han Li had another concern: if he were to ever disperse his cultivation and start over, the period of rebuilding his power would undoubtedly be his most vulnerable time. If enemies or adversaries were to seek him out then, he would be in grave danger. After all, the world of cultivation was far from peaceful, and anything could happen.
But with a handful of talismans at his disposal, he could maintain a certain level of strength. Even if he couldn’t defeat his enemies, he could likely use the talismans to escape.
Although delving into talisman-making would undoubtedly slow his spiritual progress, the benefits far outweighed the drawbacks.
After pacing around his bedroom a few times, Han Li decided to simultaneously cultivate the Qingyuan Sword Art and practice talisman-making.
Once everything was carefully considered, Han Li immediately sprang into action.
In the following days, he made two trips—one to his sect’s market and another to the Heavenly Star Sect’s market—to gather ingredients for alchemy and seeds or seedlings for talisman paper.
Since the alchemical ingredients were recorded in ancient formulas, they were naturally rare and valuable. Fortunately, Han Li had no specific requirements for the years of the herbs, and he managed to gather enough ingredients for one of the elixirs, “Qi Refining Powder,” which delighted him.
As for the ingredients for talisman paper, since he was starting with low-level talismans, they were easy to acquire. Of course, a large amount of cinnabar was also indispensable.
Three or four days later, Han Li fully activated the protective formations outside his cave dwelling, sealed it shut, and began his first closed-door cultivation session since reaching Foundation Establishment.
…
Cultivation knows no time. Four years passed in the blink of an eye. The cave’s entrance, concealed by formations, remained tightly shut since the day it was sealed.
Until one day, a blue streak of light flew in from the distant horizon, circled the formation a few times, and transformed into a smiling scholar holding an oddly shaped blue wooden board.
“So this is Junior Brother’s cave dwelling! Why did he choose such a remote place with such sparse spiritual energy? If it weren’t for Uncle Lei’s guidance, it would’ve been hard to find!” the scholar muttered with surprise.
He then examined the formation outside the cave, a hint of eagerness flashing in his eyes.
“Uncle Lei said Junior Brother’s protective formation is incredibly powerful, so much so that even a Core Formation cultivator might not be able to break through. Is that true? Should I test it out?”
But after a moment’s thought, the scholar sighed dejectedly and said to himself, “Better not. I shouldn’t delay Master’s important business.”
With that, he took out a message talisman and tossed it into Han Li’s formation. The talisman instantly turned into a spark of fire and silently seeped into the formation.
The scholar then threw the wooden board into the air, mounted it, and flew away.
Inside the cave, in the meditation room with the Spirit Spring, Han Li was deep in meditation.
His appearance remained unchanged from four years ago, not a single trace of difference. However, his body was enveloped in a faint layer of cyan light, flickering incessantly, ethereal and mesmerizing.
But a glance around the room would leave anyone speechless. Aside from the area where Han Li was meditating, the rest of the room was littered with talismans of various grades—from low-tier spells like “Fireball” and “Ice Arrow” to high-tier ones like “Earthen Wall” and “Fire Cloud.” It looked like a massive talisman warehouse. Additionally, empty cinnabar boxes and stacks of blank talisman paper were scattered about, adding to the chaos.
After an unknown amount of time, Han Li frowned slightly, as if sensing something, and opened his eyes.
He pondered for a moment before suddenly standing up and walking out of the meditation room. The moment he rose, all the talismans and other items on the floor silently vanished into his storage bag, leaving the room spotless.
As soon as he stepped out, Han Li flipped his hand, and a small yellow flag appeared. He tossed it, and it transformed into a streak of yellow light shooting outward.
In just a moment, before Han Li could even reach his bedroom, the yellow light returned, followed closely by a spark of fire.
Seeing this, Han Li calmly reached out. The small flag flew back into his hand, while his other hand stretched open, emitting a cyan light that enveloped the spark and brought it before him.
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