"I actually took a nap and elevated my physical body to a Treasure Body... That woman is truly generous."
Shen Wang thought weirdly. Back then, he noticed that helping her wouldn’t affect him, and he just happened to feel like eating bear paws, so he casually killed those wild beasts, not expecting such a reward in return.
It made him want to do more good deeds.
No, he shouldn’t think . Such opportunities are rare, and who knows, maybe the next time he saves someone, it’ll be a demon instead?
Shen Wang shook his head and descended the mountain with large strides, his pace gradually slowing.
Neither martial artists nor Qi Cultivation cultivators are keen to show anything in front of ordinary people.
Who would want to be watched by a bunch of people like a monkey? Even if they are monkeys that ordinary people dare not provoke.
Shen Wang disguised himself as an ordinary person to enter the city gate. He went to a small shop selling rain gear, bought a set of straw raincoats, a conical hat, and then a cloak. He also put on a mask to cover most of his body and face before heading to the northern part of the city.
Being misunderstood by Wu Jieqi, he didn’t dare to show his true appearance and had to disguise himself simply, to minimize trouble as much as possible.
After sufficiently disguising himself, he wandered into a narrow alley, staring at the moss-covered wall ahead. It appeared to be a dead end.
Yet, he raised his hand and flicked out a wisp of Spiritual Power. Under its influence, the wall suddenly became somewhat transparent. Without hesitation, he took a step toward it.
Encountering no obstruction, Shen Wang passed through the wall, and on the other side unseen by ordinary people, a new street emerged.
The street was less than a hundred meters long, with dozens of shops on both sides. One shop, occupying three storefronts, bore the sign of Hengchang Commerce Association, precisely the branch managed by Wu Jieqi.
There were people sitting on the roadside setting up stalls, not many pedestrians, and two cross streets in the middle. Occasionally, someone would appear at the end, or someone would disappear.
This was the Cultivator Market of Baixi City. Although not large, it was complete with everything from elixirs to talismans and magical artifacts materials.
Today, he only intended to buy talisman materials; everything else was beyond his financial reach.
He first glanced at the formal shop selling materials, then set his eyes on a roadside stall.
After thinking for a moment, he touched his storage pouch silently and walked in. He came out after a while.
"A single low-grade Spirit Stone can only buy three low-grade talisman papers, and a bottle of low-grade Rune Liquid costs five Spirit Stones. Let’s not even mention the more expensive talisman brush. I didn’t use to feel anything about this, but now it feels ridiculously pricey."
Beneath the cloak, Shen Wang smiled wryly and headed to a nearby bargain stall. An elderly blind cultivator was selling talisman-related items, such as talisman paper, talisman brushes, and Rune Liquid.
The quality of the talisman paper seemed acceptable, so he walked over to inquire, "How much for the talisman paper?"
"Five sheets of low-grade for one Spirit Stone, two sheets of middle-grade for one Spirit Stone, one sheet of top-grade for one Spirit Stone, and as for magic tier talisman paper, three Spirit Stones per sheet."
The elder replied indifferently, "You needn’t doubt the quality; my talisman paper is no worse than the shop’s. If I made more, I wouldn’t have resorted to setting up a stall."
"What about the Rune Liquid and talisman brush?"
"Low-grade Rune Liquid is three Spirit Stones, middle-grade five Spirit Stones, top-grade ten Spirit Stones, and the talisman brush is twelve Spirit Stones. Only ordinary entry-level ones are available."
The old man glanced at Shen Wang with his one eye, "You look like a novice too. The entry-level should be sufficient for you."
Shen Wang felt awkward hearing this. He didn’t even have enough Spirit Stones on him to buy a talisman brush.
After a moment of silence, he asked, "Do you buy talismans?"
"I don’t; I can draw talismans myself. I don’t lack them."
Shen Wang could only move on to another shop, which was the Hengchang Commerce Association.
Perhaps most people were gathered at the lake outside the city for a meeting, leaving the shop rather deserted and with few people. Inside, there was only a servant watching the store, with no spiritual power fluctuations about him, but with slightly bulging temples, indicating he was a martial artist.
"Honored guest, what may I help you with?"
The servant greeted him politely. Anyone who came here was a cultivator, not someone he could afford to offend easily.
"I have two talismans to sell."
He took out two middle-grade Silver Radiance Talismans from his belongings, only leaving one behind, and not for his own use.
At this point, his physical body already had the initial success of a Treasure Body, so ordinary swords and knives should find it difficult to harm him. His need for such talismans had greatly diminished, keeping one just to avoid emergencies, like using it last time during a hailstorm to protect his daughter from catching a cold.
"Ah, alright, let me have a look."
The servant examined the talismans and said, "These are excellent Silver Radiance Talismans, mid-grade quality. How about I offer you three Spirit Stones each? Usually, we only purchase for two. Were it not for the grand event today, with most talismans taken out for sale, the store’s stock is quite low, so I couldn’t offer you this price."
Shen Wang agreed helplessly. Selling two middle-grade defensive Treasure Talismans, Silver Radiance Talismans only fetched him six Spirit Stones, raising his count to seventeen.
The talisman brush cost twelve, the low-grade Rune Liquid three, and just ten sheets of low-grade talisman paper were all he could afford.
He didn’t buy anything else; he immediately took the Spirit Stones over to the stall and handed all the Spirit Stones to the blind old man, taking away the items.
It was still early. Not in a rush to return, Shen Wang went to the area where ordinary people lived and checked into an inn, placing the items on the table.
The talisman brush was similar to a writing brush; the talisman liquid was a semi-transparent liquid. The talisman paper resembled yellow paper but was more durable and was a light yellow color, made from special materials.
Each item only contained a trace of Spiritual Qi, with a faint sheen, belonging to the lowest-grade Treasure Tier items.
Fortunately, these materials were sufficient to support him in drawing middle-grade Treasure Talismans. Shen Wang picked up the talisman brush, dipped it in Rune Liquid, and took out the Silver Radiance Talisman for a look.
"It’s a good thing my clan’s basic courses included these common talismans, otherwise, I’d still need to find a book to learn from."
Shen Wang thanked his luck for being born into a cultivation family, providing some inherited knowledge. If he were a loose cultivator, it would be dire, with everything having to be learned from scratch.
"Back then, when learning this, I failed more than I succeeded, being labeled by the clan elders as lacking talent in talismanic magic. But now, having reached entry-level thanks to the system, I should succeed at least once."
Shen Wang’s gaze focused on the paper, contemplating, "I need to succeed at least once to exchange for another ten talisman sheets. That way, I can continue, succeed twice, and start this fortune-building venture to steadily elevate my talismanic magic skills, and sooner craft powerful talismans to rid of the evildoer harassing Xue’Er."
Spreading out a talisman sheet, Shen Wang paused in silence, clearing his mind of distractions, calming his heart and concentrating spirit.
Once prepared, he infused it with Spiritual Power, the talisman brush glowed faintly and moved under Shen Wang’s hand.
Ordinary talismans weren’t complicated, and the Silver Radiance Talisman was the most balanced light attribute talisman, requiring just the correct runes and Spiritual Power flow to absorb the power of light and accumulate strength.
Having previously drawn such talismans, Shen Wang’s fundamentals were solid. The lines formed neither too swiftly nor sluggishly, taking shape, and in the instant the circuit closed, the rune emitted a ring of white radiance.
Shen Wang watched the talisman as the glow intensified and then restrained, with its hue slowly changing to silver as a gentle yet illuminating power gradually gathered within.
"Succeeded on the first attempt, truly blessed by my daughter!"
Shen Wang exclaimed in delight, having drawn one talisman; essentially, he had just broken even.