Cultivating Basic Talismans

At night, returning to his quarters.

Lu Chen opened the system panel once again.

[Own Lifespan: 23 years]

[Demon Devil Lifespan: 20 years]

[Martial Arts: Demon Suppressing Saber Technique (Mastery), Turtle Breath Meditation Method (Beginner), Body Evasion Steps (Minor Mastery)]

[Clear residual Black Claw Heart Rot Sha? Cost: 20 years of Demon Devil Lifespan.]

Lu Chen looked at the green-black rotting flesh around the wound. Although the Lime Powder could halt the poison's invasion, it was far from enough to repair the damage.

"Clear."

The Demon Devil Lifespan returned to zero once more. That hollow feeling, as if his very foundation had been stripped away, ignited an unprecedented craving within him to acquire new lifespan.

"Hah..."

Lu Chen sat cross-legged on the cold stone bed and began circulating the Turtle Breath Meditation Method, which he had only just begun to grasp.

As his breathing grew long and deep, the faint warm current in his dantian—barely nurtured into existence—started flowing along a perfect route that the system had patched together, moving slowly and steadily.

After enduring the violent assault of the Sha poison and the subsequent repair and nourishment from the system's vast life energy, he was pleasantly surprised to find that his meridians seemed slightly tougher and wider than before.

The internal energy, which had previously felt somewhat sluggish, now flowed much more smoothly.

This counted as a blessing in disguise—a silver lining amid the misfortune.

After consolidating his cultivation, Lu Chen's gaze fell on the pile of junk Foreman Wang had rewarded him with in the corner: a tattered Detailed Explanation of Basic Talismans (Fragment), along with a stack of coarse talisman paper and cinnabar.

He recalled the experience of investing his last year of Demon Devil Lifespan into deduction.

The insights from that year of bitter cultivation had ultimately condensed into a single, faintly glowing line traced in the void.

This art was profound and costly, but its potential was boundless.

Lu Chen refused to settle for just one accidental success.

He extended his index finger, cast aside distractions, and focused all his concentration at its tip. At the same time, he mobilized the thin strand of internal energy in his dantian, channeling it slowly through the meridians of his arm.

Imitating the insight etched in his mind, he used his hand as a brush and began attempting to trace that successful line in the air before him.

First attempt: failure. His fingertip swept across, leaving no reaction. The internal energy dissipated the moment it left his body.

Second attempt: still a failure. His mind and internal energy could not achieve perfect coordination.

Third attempt...

Lu Chen repeated the process tirelessly, trying again and again.

This was far more mentally draining than simply cultivating internal energy. In just a short while, a fine layer of sweat beaded on his forehead.

Unknowingly, the sky had grown light.

Finally, after who knew how many dozens of attempts, at a certain moment, his mind, his internal energy, and his understanding of that line achieved perfect resonance.

His fingertip seemed to touch an invisible barrier, and then he gently traced across it.

A faint, barely perceptible streak of light flashed through the dim Corpse Handling Room, lingering in the air for a single breath before slowly fading away.

Success!

A gleam of delighted surprise burst from Lu Chen's eyes.

Though this was only a trivial step forward, it carried extraordinary significance.

It meant he had initially mastered the ability to actively execute this runic line.

Lu Chen suppressed the excitement churning in his heart. He picked up the coarse talisman brush—its tip already split and frayed—dipped it into the cinnabar mixed with grit, and tried to replicate his success on the talisman paper.

But the moment he attempted to channel his mind and internal energy into the brush tip, a tremendous resistance and sluggishness slammed into him!

It felt like a surging stream suddenly crashing into a rotten wooden dam riddled with holes.

His mental power and internal energy simply could not flow smoothly through the inferior brush and cinnabar. Most of it was wasted and dissipated during the transfer.

The talisman he drew was crooked, dull, and utterly devoid of any spiritual charm.

[System Prompt: Calming Talisman (Half-Finished). Calming effect reduced to one-tenth.]

Lu Chen looked at the failed product before him. Instead of feeling discouraged, he was suddenly enlightened, his eyes growing brighter.

"So that's it... It's not that I lack talent, nor that my understanding is flawed. It's that these tools simply cannot bear spiritual charm!"

This discovery completely freed him from the bottleneck of self-doubt and clarified the path ahead.

Lu Chen stared at the pile of shoddy materials, his gaze burning with desire. "I have to find a way to get real talisman paper, real cinnabar, and a proper talisman brush!"

Just then, hurried footsteps sounded from outside the door, followed by Foreman Wang's impatient and gruff shout.

"Lu Chen! Where the hell are you? New job! If you dawdle, I'll skin you alive!"

The stone door was shoved open with a loud bang, and Foreman Wang strode in with a dark face.

He first looked Lu Chen up and down, his triangular eyes full of scrutiny.

"Oh, looking so pale—didn't sleep well last night?" Foreman Wang offered a fake show of concern, but was actually probing Lu Chen's recovery.

What he feared most was that Lu Chen actually had some real skill—if Captain Li took a liking to him, it might threaten his own position.

But when he saw that Lu Chen still looked as pale and depleted as ever, as if he might collapse at any moment, he breathed a quiet sigh of relief, and his last shred of doubt vanished.

This kid really is just burning through his life force on some kind of dogshit luck. Once he's wrung dry, he'll be useless.

Since that's the case, I'd better squeeze him dry while he's still useful!

Foreman Wang's greed flared up again. He waved toward the door.

"Zhang Mazi, bring it in!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Zhang Mazi—an old hand who'd worked in the Corpse Handling Room for over a decade—walked in with another laborer, carrying a stretcher covered with a white cloth.

Zhang Mazi set the stretcher down heavily on the ground, then shot Lu Chen a sidelong glance, his eyes brimming with undisguised envy and schadenfreude.

Foreman Wang's "mentorship" of Lu Chen had long bred resentment among these old-timers who considered themselves senior.

"Lu Chen, this is a good gig." Zhang Mazi gave a fake smile as he lifted a corner of the white cloth, revealing a section of a tail covered in sleek black fur. The tip of the tail split eerily into three forks.

"A Three-tailed Cat Demon! That's a rare find—plenty of good materials on it. Foreman Wang specially saved this carcass for you. You'd better do a good job and not let him down!"

His words were smooth, but his movements carried malice. He deliberately fanned the cold, sinister aura emanating from the cat demon's corpse toward Lu Chen.

A wave of yin energy, more insidious and eerie than ordinary Demonic Sha, instantly spread through the air.

Lu Chen felt his mind grow heavy, as if an invisible cat's cry echoed in his ears, and his consciousness wavered for a moment.

Yin Illusion Sha Qi!