With the Water Arrow Talisman at Great Accomplishment, Zhao Huaian could now guarantee that every talisman he drew was flawless, producing the most powerful, highest-quality First-Rank Low-Grade Water Arrow Talisman in the shortest time possible.
Moreover, after his cultivation improved, the Spiritual Energy within him became more abundant.
If he focused solely on drawing Water Arrow Talismans, then with the amount of Spiritual Energy he had, he could draw at least forty before running dry.
However, Zhao Huaian did not let the small gains distract him from the bigger picture.
The Water Arrow Talisman had already reached Great Accomplishment, with no possibility of further improvement.
So, while making sure to draw a certain number of Water Arrow Talismans, Zhao Huaian also began working on other Spirit Talismans in which his proficiency was still rather low.
The first to receive his attention were Protective Talismans and Light Body Talismans.
These two kinds of Spirit Talisman were also very popular on the market, and could even rival Water Arrow Talismans.
After all, in the early stages of Qi Refining, these two kinds of Spirit Talisman were powerful lifesaving tools. There was never any shortage of customers for them.
In the time that followed, aside from cultivating day in and day out, Zhao Huaian drew a certain number of Water Arrow Talismans to maintain his income, while devoting himself to greatly improving his proficiency with Protective Talismans and Light Body Talismans.
Time flew by during those days.
In the blink of an eye, two months had passed.
"Qi Refining Layer Six (1/100)"
In his room, Spiritual Energy surged within Zhao Huaian as his cultivation smoothly broke through to Qi Refining Layer Six.
With the breakthrough complete, he slowly opened his eyes.
"Attribute Heavenly Book!"
Zhao Huaian murmured, focused his mind, and turned his attention inward.
Name: Zhao Huaian
Lifespan: 16/123
Cultivation: Qi Refining Layer Six (1/100)
Cultivation Art: Azure Wood Art (Great Accomplishment 1269/1600)
Spells: Fireball Spell (Grandmaster 1396/3200), Earth Wall Spell (Grandmaster 435/3200), Entangle Spell (Grandmaster 129/3200)
First-Rank Spirit Talisman Master (100/100): Water Arrow Talisman (Perfection), Protective Talisman (Great Accomplishment 231/1600), Light Body Talisman (Great Accomplishment 132/1600), Concealment Talisman (Proficient 76/400), Freezing Talisman (Familiar 63/200)
Skills: Medical Skill (Perfection 1962/6400), Flying Needles (Perfection 321/6400), Gentle Breeze Footwork (Grandmaster 832/3200)
Looking at the Heavenly Tome page in his mind, Zhao Huaian nodded in satisfaction.
Overall, the biggest change to the Attribute Heavenly Book panel over the past two months had been in his Spirit Talisman skills.
As for everything else, there had been little change; most of his proficiency levels had simply increased a bit.
What had mildly surprised Zhao Huaian, though, was his Flying Needles technique.
The middle-grade combined Dharma Artifact, Flying Needles, was currently Zhao Huaian's strongest means of attack.
During these past two months, whenever he had free time to rest, Zhao Huaian had used his Spiritual Energy to control the middle-grade combined Dharma Artifact and practice.
Little by little, his proficiency with Flying Needles had unexpectedly increased by leaps and bounds, reaching Perfection.
What surprised and delighted Zhao Huaian even more was that after the Flying Needles technique reached Perfection, it still displayed a proficiency score, just like Medical Skill had before. Clearly, its potential could still be increased.
"Medical Skill isn't useful to me right now, so there's no need to hurry to study it. But Flying Needles is a tremendous help to me, especially when controlling Dharma Artifacts and fighting."
"So, from now on, I can practice it more whenever I have free time. I should try to fill up the proficiency bar for Perfection as soon as possible and see what I can gain beyond that."
"But next... I've nearly run out of Spirit Stones. It's time to head to Greenwood Market and sell my Spirit Talismans!"
Murmuring to himself, Zhao Huaian shifted his attention away from the Attribute Heavenly Book in his mind.
Over the past two months, he had bought a large supply of Yellow Dragon Pills and higher-grade Monster Beast Blood and Flesh.
After such heavy spending, he had run through all the Spirit Stones he had on hand in just two short months.
Now that his cultivation had broken through to Qi Refining Layer Six, he naturally needed to take a little break and sell off the many Spirit Talismans he had accumulated.
Once he sold them all, he would have another sizable fortune and could buy a wider range of cultivation resources.
Thinking this, Zhao Huaian's smile grew a little brighter.
He quickly tidied up, then quietly left his room while there were few people in the Residential Area.
By the time Zhao Huaian appeared again, he had reached West Street in Greenwood Market.
He was naturally wearing a Human Skin Mask, taking on a different identity as he expertly paid the fee to set up his stall in Greenwood Market.
Thanks to the reputation he had built up before, even though Zhao Huaian had not secured a particularly good spot, returning customers soon began to show up.
"Oh, it's you, fellow cultivator! You haven't come out to set up your stall in ages. The Spirit Talismans sold by everyone else just don't feel right when I use them. If you didn't show up soon, I might not even dare to go out on a mission."
A figure suddenly walked straight up to Zhao Huaian's stall.
He looked up and, as luck would have it, saw the same young man who had helped him make his first sale.
Zhao Huaian had a strong impression of him too, and a smile spread across his face. "I've been in seclusion for the past two or three months. I only came out to set up my stall after breaking through in cultivation."
"See if there's anything you need. I'll give you a ten-percent discount. I've added quite a few kinds of Spirit Talismans over the past few months."
As he spoke, Zhao Huaian gestured toward the different kinds of Spirit Talismans arranged across his stall and warmly welcomed the young man.
The most expensive item at the stall was the Water Arrow Talisman.
A Water Arrow Talisman at Perfection could unleash the power of an attack from someone at Qi Refining Layer Four, making it no weaker than an ordinary first-rank, middle-grade offensive Spirit Talisman.
So, Zhao Huaian had already raised the price to one Low-grade Spirit Stone for each Water Arrow Talisman at Perfection.
The Protective Talismans and Light Body Talismans were relatively affordable. Their prices varied according to proficiency, with the most expensive costing just one Low-grade Spirit Stone for two.
Warmly welcomed by Zhao Huaian, the young man eagerly began picking through the stall.
The young man was certainly generous.
After looking everything over, he bought Spirit Talismans worth eighteen Low-grade Spirit Stones, including ten Water Arrow Talismans along with several Protective Talismans and Light Body Talismans.
Zhao Huaian readily gave him the ten-percent discount.
The young man was so delighted he could barely contain himself, declaring that from then on, Zhao Huaian would be the only seller he trusted.
His first sale was in the bag.
And he had gained another loyal customer.
Zhao Huaian redoubled his efforts to greet passersby.
Soon, one wave of new and returning customers after another arrived.
As time passed, Zhao Huaian's business grew increasingly brisk. In just half a day, he had sold Spirit Talismans worth one hundred and sixty-three Low-grade Spirit Stones.
Especially around noon.
Greenwood Market was packed shoulder to shoulder, and most of the crowd consisted of cultivators with low cultivation.
With so many people around, not only did Zhao Huaian's stall grow even busier, but business at the other stalls picked up too. Many items that boosted combat strength or helped people stay alive were snapped up.
Watching the surging crowds around him, Zhao Huaian was secretly astonished.
He had never seen so many people gathered there before.
When he finally got a moment to himself, Zhao Huaian took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, then asked the cultivator setting up a stall beside him, "Senior Brother, what day is it today? Why is the crowd on West Street getting bigger and bigger? It feels rather unusual."
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