Wang Hong refined eighty top-tier first-tier Talisman Papers out of the two hundred he had created.
Feeling dissatisfied with the low success rate, he had an abundance of first-tier Talisman Paper materials but lacked the materials for second-tier Talisman Paper. Wasting even one was a significant loss.
He proceeded to craft a thousand top-tier first-tier Talisman Papers, and after using them all, his success rate reached seventy percent.
While this was already a high success rate among symbol artisans, he wasn't content. He refined two thousand more Talisman Papers, converting all of them into Talismans. Finally, his success rate for top-tier first-tier symbol crafting reached ninety percent.
By this time, three months had passed, and the refining tool master at Thousand Crafts Pavilion lived up to expectations. They crafted a middle-grade Spiritual Weapon Symbol Pen for him.
During these three months, the construction of buildings within Boundary City was completed. However, the construction of the city walls would still take a considerable amount of time, given the colossal nature of the project and the countless manpower and resources required.
After the completion of Qingxu Tower, Wang Hong was allocated an even better independent residence than before.
Wu Dayong, the manager of Qingxu Tower, had developed a closer relationship with Wang Hong after their escape together. Within his authority, he naturally provided Wang Hong with more conveniences.
Sitting in his new home, Wang Hong toyed with the Symbol Pen in his hand. The pen's tip was flawless, and the green pen shaft still retained golden spots.
With the Symbol Pen in hand, he could now start refining second-tier Talismans.
Among the second-tier Demonic Beast hides he had peeled off earlier, not all were suitable for refining Talisman Paper. He selected six pieces of hide, each about the size of a palm.
Taking one piece, he refined it with Spirit Fire, removing impurities until only a palm-sized piece remained. Using the same method, he refined the remaining five hides into Talisman Paper.
Next was the preparation of Spiritual Ink. The ink required for refining second-tier Talismans was not ordinary, and Wang Hong had started collecting it long ago.
He took out a small bottle, poured some Demonic Beast essence blood onto an inkstone, and then took a small thumb-sized piece of Spiritual Ink, grinding it gently on the inkstone and mixing it with the essence blood.
After spreading the Talisman Papers on the table, he pressed them down with a paperweight and dipped the Symbol Pen into the Spiritual Ink.
A second-tier Talisman contained at least a hundred runes, several times more complex than a first-tier Talisman. The top-tier first-tier Talisman he had previously refined had at most forty to fifty runes.
Now, he was preparing to refine the Fire Rain Talisman, which included a total of one hundred and twenty-eight runes.
From the symbol head to the symbol body, gallbladder, and feet, the strokes had to be continuous. Any slight mistake could lead to the failure of the entire process.
During the preparation phase, Wang Hong had practiced countless times on regular paper and had become proficient.
Wang Hong picked up the pen, took a deep breath, calmed his mind, and began drawing on the Talisman Paper.
While drawing, he also controlled the amount of Spiritual Power input, ensuring that the runes were drawn smoothly while the Spiritual Power circulated on top. The speed of his strokes needed to match the flow of Spiritual Power.
Despite his careful approach, the first refinement of the second-tier Talisman failed.
He sat in quiet contemplation for a while before starting the production of the second Talisman.
After using all six second-tier Talisman Papers, he obtained two Fire Rain Talismans.
After finishing the symbol crafting, Wang Hong packed away all the tools. In a short time, he had run out of second-tier Talisman Paper to craft more Talismans.
During this period of symbol crafting, Wu Dayong had taken on numerous Alchemy tasks for him. Wang Hong needed to refine these Pills as quickly as possible, a task that wasn't difficult for him.
In just a few days, he completed all the Alchemy tasks accumulated over the past few months.
After the busy work, he stepped out of his secret chamber, collected the Transmission Talismans floating at the door, and checked them one by one.
Most of the messages were visitation requests. Having spent over a year in Jin'an City, he had naturally made acquaintances with some Cultivators, and occasional mutual visits were common.
Due to the frequent need for Immortal Cultivators to cultivate or attend to other matters, it wasn't convenient to disturb them anytime. Therefore, Cultivators above the Foundation Building stage would send a Transmission Talisman in advance, waiting for a reply before visiting.
As for Qi Cultivation Cultivators, it wasn't a matter of disrespect but rather poverty. A month's worth of Spirit Stones earned by a Qi Cultivation Cultivator might not even be enough to buy a Transmission Talisman, making it difficult for them to develop such polite habits.
Among these Transmission Talismans was one sent by Ling Shuai, who had returned with him to Boundary City earlier. He mentioned having urgent matters.
Wang Hong had a favorable impression of Ling Shuai and replied with two Transmission Talismans.
Within a quarter of an hour, Ling Shuai arrived, carrying an infant in his arms.
After entering, Ling Shuai exchanged brief greetings with Wang Hong and said, "I beg Senior Wang for help!"
"Why does Ling Fellow Daoist say so?" Wang Hong inquired.
"I implore Senior Wang to check on the condition of this infant and lend a helping hand," Ling Shuai said, partially opening the swaddling cloth and bringing the baby closer to Wang Hong.
Wang Hong had heard about the situation of this baby before and knew that her survival was precarious.
Wang Hong carefully examined her with Divine Sense, discovering that the baby's vitality was extremely weak, with the constant risk of dissipating and dying.
"Alas! Originally born with insufficient innate vitality, the weak life force, coupled with the lack of proper care during this period, puts her at constant risk of dissipating."
Wang Hong had observed her when they returned to Boundary City together, knowing that the baby was born with insufficient vitality but had improved compared to the present.
During this time, Ling Shuai had been at a loss. Initially, he fed the baby with the thick soup given by Zhang Chunfeng, and her condition improved slightly.
However, after finishing that one pot of soup, Ling Shuai sought Zhang Chunfeng to buy more but was told that there was only one pot available. Zhang Chunfeng refused to reveal the origin of the soup.
Helpless, Ling Shuai sought advice from Alchemists and Spirit Meal masters, but the Spiritual Herbs they prescribed were either rare treasures or ineffective.
He tried various methods and sought help from many people, but each day he could only watch the infant's condition worsen.
Today, he went to Zhang Chunfeng again. Seeing the baby's dire state, Zhang Chunfeng, moved with pity, suggested that he might try seeking help from Wang Hong.
Ling Shuai, desperate and willing to try anything, came to Wang Hong and explained the process of seeking medical help and the various treatment plans he had tried.
Based on Ling Shuai's information and his own observations, Wang Hong felt that there might still be a chance to save the baby.
[Read at /shanefreak, and heartfelt thankyou for your support!]