After moving into a B-grade residence, Shen Xuan returned to his daily routine of cultivating, crafting talismans, and training his beloved wife.
Occasionally, after training his wife until she fell asleep, he would use the Breath Concealment Technique and Invisibility Technique to fly down from the third floor into the Spirit Pool. Then he would pass through the Underground River and swim into the Longze River, improving his various Water Law talents.
In his spare time, he wrote five letters, sending them to Qin Yuehan, Lu Zhengying, Wang Fugui, Zhao Sujin, and Li Changan.
Qin Yuehan and Lu Zhengying were the most important. The other three were merely an afterthought.
In the letters, Shen Xuan wrote down his new address and invited them to visit Qinglong Bay Market whenever they had time.
The letters were for the Ding Family to see, a way of keeping in touch with his old classmates.
After all, he'd accepted their kindness, so he ought to show some appreciation.
As for whether Qin Yuehan and the others would come, Shen Xuan didn't hold out much hope.
They were all getting on in years and had their own affairs to attend to. Every household had its own troubles; who would travel a thousand li just to visit an old friend?
A month later, he advanced Iron Bone Art to the Mastery Stage.
Around that time, Zhao Chunsheng also brought good news.
After years of building up his strength, once he moved into the B-grade residence and cleared the snake venom from his body, he seized the momentum and finally broke through to Qi Refining Level 8.
This rare occasion made him generous. He laid out a feast and invited Shen Xuan and his wife to eat and drink.
"Actually, my Fire Spirit Root is only 28 points. Whether I break through or not isn't all that important. If you're determined, you can just keep simmering away and make it to Qi Refining Level 9."
After a few drinks, Zhao Chunsheng became a little talkative.
"Wealth, Companions, Dharma, and Place. Without spirit stones, no matter how high your Cultivation Realm is, it all comes to nothing. Talisman Master Shen, let me tell you why Monster Hunters can never save up any spirit stones."
"They struggle on the brink of life and death. The moment they hunt some big game and earn spirit stones, they eat, drink, visit brothels, and gamble, numbing themselves until they've spent every last stone they earned by risking their lives!"
"So there's no future in being a Monster Hunter!"
Taking advantage of his drunkenness, Zhao Chunsheng vented, "They call me the Rabbit Monster Hunter behind my back, mocking me for being a coward who doesn't dare venture deep into the Shadow Forest to hunt."
"They don't know a damn thing!"
"Nothing in this world is more important than your life! I'm not like them! I have a wife and son, and I'm going to enjoy the good life someday."
"Risk my life for a few spirit stones? Not worth it!"
At Jiang Xueqi's pleading look, Shen Xuan smiled, lifted his teacup, and gently clinked it against Zhao Chunsheng's.
"Daoist Zhao is right. I think so too."
"Wife, see? Even Talisman Master Shen agrees with me!"
That night, Zhao Chunsheng was especially excited and drank himself into a stupor.
The next day.
Shen Xuan brought the Spring Return Talismans he'd made to the Ding Family shop.
As soon as he walked in, Shopkeeper Ding hurried over to greet him warmly.
"Talisman Master Shen, long time no see. I heard you moved into a B-grade residence!"
Shen Xuan was taken aback.
"Wasn't it Young Master Ding Yijin who introduced me? Didn't you know, Shopkeeper Ding?"
"Young Master Ding is a busy man. Why would he tell us about something so trivial?"
"What's the price of Spring Return Talismans these days?"
"Wilderness Reclamation has ended, so the price has dropped a bit. Ten for eleven spirit stones; the high-grade ones fetch double."
Shen Xuan shook his head.
That meant his profits had fallen as well.
"But the Talisman Paper and Cinnabar for Spring Return Talismans have also come down in price."
Shen Xuan took out a large stack of ordinary Spring Return Talismans.
"Trade these for three hundred and sixty sets of Talisman Paper and a bottle of Cinnabar. Turn the rest into spirit stones."
"Sure thing!"
After a month of hard work, devoting himself to crafting Spring Return Talismans had earned him only talisman-making materials and a dozen or so spirit stones.
Fortunately, there were still more than twenty high-grade Spring Return Talismans in his Storage Bag.
Otherwise, he couldn't even afford a Small Spirit Gathering Array.
"Should I stop using the array for now?"
The cultivation room in the B-grade residence was a Tier 1 high-grade Dao Field, more than good enough for him to cultivate in.
"No! There's no time to waste. With the Spirit Gathering Array, I'll need only half as long to break through to Qi Refining Level 6. Three years will do it."
Shen Xuan had an unusual obsession with improving his strength.
He always felt that Qinglong Bay Market wasn't safe enough.
After leaving the Ding Family shop, Shen Xuan bought some Spirit Rice, Yao Beast Meat, Spirit Fruits, and Spirit Vegetables.
His family and the Zhao Chunsheng household cooked separately.
That spared them plenty of squabbles.
Back at the residence, he called over Zhao Chunsheng, who had sobered up.
"Help me sell these twenty high-grade Spring Return Talismans. Same as before, you get a fifteen percent commission."
"Also, find a way to deal with this Spirit Burst Pill for me."
Zhao Chunsheng took the talismans and the Spirit Burst Pill and hurried off.
That evening, when he returned, he handed Shen Xuan ninety-five spirit stones.
"Fifty-four spirit stones for the high-grade Spring Return Talismans, and forty-one for the Spirit Burst Pill."
Shen Xuan handed Zhao Chunsheng ten spirit stones.
"Thanks for the trouble."
"What trouble? I just ran an errand."
"Did anyone keep an eye on you?"
"Talisman Master Shen, you're far too cautious. I'm a Qi Refining Level 8 Monster Hunter. Could anything happen over such a small amount of merchandise? You're underestimating me!"
"No matter what, a cautious sailor never runs aground. Safety comes first."
After a few more reminders, Shen Xuan went back to cultivating and crafting talismans.
With more than eighty spirit stones in his pocket, Shen Xuan picked up the Savage Plains Yao Beast Illustrated Guide again.
If he plundered one more First-Order Middle Grade Water Attribute Monster Beast, he could raise his Spiritual Root to 20 points.
Twenty points meant a Mid-grade Spirit Root!
With good luck, he might even have a slim chance of reaching Foundation Establishment!
Shen Xuan flipped through the Savage Plains Yao Beast Illustrated Guide several times, but couldn't find a Monster Beast whose talent he wanted to plunder.
Water Attribute Monster Beasts were among the cheapest, but most of them lived in the East Sea.
There were few near the Longze River that were plentiful, cheap, and possessed special talents.
In the end, Shen Xuan settled on the Water Cloud Turtle.
A First-Order Middle Grade Monster Beast, an Adult Water Cloud Turtle could weigh several hundred jin and cost as much as four or five hundred spirit stones!
Water Cloud Turtle meat was highly nourishing and was said to have life-extending effects.
Moreover, its shell was extremely hard and served as the raw material for the Defensive Magic Tool, the Water Cloud Shield.
"I can't afford an adult Water Cloud Turtle. I wonder how much a Juvenile Water Cloud Turtle costs."
Fortunately, Water Cloud Turtles bred quickly, laying hundreds of eggs each time. Only a tiny fraction of the Juvenile Water Cloud Turtles survived to adulthood.
He'd ask Zhao Chunsheng about it when he got back.
"A Juvenile Water Cloud Turtle? Depends on its size. The little ones are only as big as a fist and cost two spirit stones each."
Shen Xuan thought it over.
"What about one the size of a bowl?"
"One that size would weigh a jin or two. It'd cost five or six spirit stones."
Shen Xuan did the math.
With eighty spirit stones in savings, plus a net income of sixty or seventy spirit stones each month, he could just about afford them.
"Help me buy some Juvenile Water Cloud Turtles. Don't get too many at once—three or four will do."
"Sure thing. Leave it to me, Talisman Master Shen. I'll handle it without a hitch!"
Zhao Chunsheng guessed that Shen Xuan had a secret art that could refine Essence Blood from Water Attribute Monster Beasts and improve his talisman-crafting ability.
But that had nothing to do with him.
Which cultivator in the Cultivation World didn't have a few secrets?
Talisman Master Shen wasn't good at fighting and was timid and cautious. It was only natural for him to handle the buying and selling.
He only had to run a few errands to earn a commission. What was there not to like?
A few days later, three Juvenile Water Cloud Turtles sat on the stone table in Shen Xuan's cultivation room.
Golden light flashed from the Mysterious Jade Talisman.
[Plunderable Talent: Life Extension, Hard Fang, Water Arrow]
Shen Xuan froze for a moment.
He remembered that the First-Order Low Grade Mysterious Water Turtle had the plunderable talents Water Control, Breath Concealment, and Life Extension.
It was impossible for the First-Order Middle Grade Water Cloud Turtle not to have Water Control and Breath Concealment.
Could it be that his own Water Control and Breath Concealment talents were stronger, so he couldn't plunder similar talents of a lower grade?
In the end, Shen Xuan chose the Life Extension talent.
[Talent: Life Extension (21/100)] [Dao Rhyme: 18]
He had spent eighteen spirit stones, and the talent's progress had reached 21 points, while the Dao Rhyme was as high as 18 points.
"Looks like the Life Extension talent is quite high-quality. Its Dao Rhyme is much better than that of the Mantis Shrimp and Ironback Crab."
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