The Liuding Xuanjia Talisman

Under Chen Lin's gaze, Xu Ruolan took out a Jade Slip, looking as though it pained her deeply.

"This contains a Sword Formula, an ancestral inheritance of my lineage. Take it, Fellow Daoist Chen!"

With that, she held the Jade Slip out to Chen Lin. Her thin hand trembled slightly, as though she was extremely reluctant to part with it.

This made Chen Lin feel rather embarrassed, as if he were a bandit looting a house while it burned.

Embarrassed or not, he still had to take it.

A Sword Formula was a fine thing indeed. He had wanted one for a long time, but unfortunately, none were sold in the Market.

Without standing on ceremony, he accepted the Jade Slip and pressed it to his forehead to examine it.

A moment later, surprise appeared in his eyes.

"Good. It's a little unusual, but it is indeed a Sword Formula. This pill is yours, Fellow Daoist Xu."

Chen Lin took out a Chuyuan Pill and handed it to her, nodding in satisfaction.

Xu Ruolan looked at the pill bottle in Chen Lin's hand, resentment seeping into her gaze. Still, she said nothing more and turned away with an angry huff.

Chen Lin paid it no mind.

From here on, mountains would tower and roads would stretch between them; their paths would never cross again.

If there truly was nothing unusual about her, she would inevitably die at the Monstrosity's hands. No matter how many fine things she possessed, they would go to waste.

Once she was far away, he put the Jade Slip into his Storage Bag and quickly left.

Xu Ruolan turned left and right as she cautiously made her way onward. Suddenly, a masked woman appeared before her without warning.

"Greetings, Senior. I've already given him the item."

Upon seeing her, Xu Ruolan hurriedly bowed and delivered her report.

"Mm, well done. Here is a token. Take it to the Han Family and seek their protection. They'll give you a place among those leaving."

The masked woman took out a Red Token and tossed it to Xu Ruolan.

"Thank you, Senior! Words cannot repay such kindness. Could you leave me something to recognize you by? If we meet again someday, I will surely repay you generously!"

Xu Ruolan felt as though she had obtained a priceless treasure. Her body trembled with excitement, and she bent low in a deep bow to the woman.

But when she raised her head, the woman had already vanished.

She felt a little disappointed, but immediately tightened her grip on the Red Token. Then she glanced at the Jade Talisman on her chest, which had already begun to crack, and headed straight toward the Han Family.

When Chen Lin returned to the courtyard, he knocked on Zhao Zhengyuan's door. The man had not returned yet.

He had also wanted to visit the Sallow-Faced Female Cultivator's room, but did not act on the thought.

Whenever he recalled the sight of her brutal murder, his heart ached terribly.

That incident also constantly reminded him that no matter how kindly Yu Yuehai behaved, it could not conceal his true nature as a murderous fiend.

Trusting his words would be like bargaining with a tiger for its skin.

This was also why he tried to curry favor with Ye Jingyun. Compared with Yu Yuehai, the woman was reasonably kind.

Back in his room, Chen Lin once again carefully recalled the changes in Ye Jingyun's expression while she spoke to him. He kept feeling that she had been trying to convey something, but it was all shrouded in clouds and mist, beyond his understanding.

In the end, he could only set the question aside for now and begin crafting Thunderbolt Beads.

Three days passed in a flash.

Chen Lin remained secluded in his room the entire time. Yu Yuehai visited once during that period. He said little, merely giving him three talismans and a Storage Bag.

The three talismans were a Transmission Talisman, an Earth Escape Talisman, and a defensive talisman called the Liuding Xuanjia Talisman.

All of them were meant to keep him alive.

The Transmission Talisman and Earth Escape Talisman were one thing. Though expensive, they still fell within the category of first-tier talismans.

But the Liuding Xuanjia Talisman was actually a Second-Tier Talisman. Even with the crafting method and sufficient materials, he could not make one.

Strictly speaking, he should not even have been able to use it.

Second-tier talismans required a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator to activate them.

However, this was a passive talisman. When its bearer encountered grave danger, it would activate automatically, forming a suit of armor made of energy that covered the entire body. Thus, there were no restrictions on its use.

According to Yu Yuehai, the protection this talisman created could withstand a casual strike from a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator.

A talisman like this was immensely valuable. Yu Yuehai had truly poured a fortune into him.

He had probably plundered quite a few fine things over the past few days. Otherwise, he would not have been so generous.

Of course, it also showed that he truly did not want Chen Lin dead. Keeping him alive still served a purpose.

Chen Lin put away the Transmission Talisman and Earth Escape Talisman, then found something to hold the Liuding Xuanjia Talisman and hung it against his chest with a cord. Only then could he ensure that it would activate at any moment.

After dealing with that, he picked up the Storage Bag Yu Yuehai had given him.

In the past, he had not dared dream of owning even one, yet now he suddenly had two. He could not help marveling at how pleasant it was to enjoy the shade beneath a great tree.

He had finally experienced the abundance enjoyed by the children of great lineages. No wonder Lu Li had been able to offer a reward of fifty medium-grade spirit stones for crafting a Soul-Detaining Talisman.

Still, this did solve a problem for him.

Previously, he had never dared reveal the Storage Bag Ye Jingyun had given him, because he did not know whether she had told Yu Yuehai about it. He had been forced to use it furtively.

Now, at last, he could use it openly.

He kept both Storage Bags hanging inside his robe, one on each side.

He put all his belongings into the one Yu Yuehai had given him, reserving the other for Thunderbolt Beads so that he would not have to distinguish between items with his spiritual sense when he needed them.

Once everything was arranged, he picked up the Liuding Xuanjia Talisman hanging against his chest again and carefully studied how second-tier talismans differed from first-tier ones.

Unfortunately, after examining it for a long while, he still could not make out anything beyond the greater intricacy of its talisman patterns.

In fact, the talisman Ye Jingyun had previously asked him to craft was even more advanced. Chen Lin strongly suspected that it was also a Second-Tier Talisman, perhaps even higher-grade than this Liuding Xuanjia Talisman.

By rights, even with his talent ability, he should never have been able to craft it. Insufficient cultivation also counted as "not using the correct method," after all, which failed to meet his talent ability's requirements.

Yet he had succeeded.

Thinking it over afterward, he concluded that the Cold Nether Flame must have been the reason.

Not only could this strange fire replace a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's true fire, but because it possessed its own spiritual awareness, it could also lower the requirements for mana strength and purity during talismancrafting.

Ye Jingyun had probably modified the crafting method specifically for him, lowering the requirements of a Second-Tier Talisman that originally demanded the Foundation Establishment Realm to a level manageable in the mid Qi Refinement Realm.

Otherwise, he had never heard of ordinary talisman crafting requiring strange fire to assist it.

Although he had never heard of strange fire before, it had to be something of an exceedingly high grade. Using it for talismancrafting was like putting a mighty timber to work as a toothpick.

After pondering for a while, Chen Lin gathered his thoughts and picked up the Detailed Spell Manual to study spells.

He had now done almost everything he could. Since he could not go out, all he could do was study spells while waiting for word from Yu Yuehai.

Only three spells in the Detailed Spell Manual remained unlearned: the Cleansing Spell, the Fireball Spell, and the Awe Spell.

Previously, he had devoted his energy and resources to the few spells he urgently needed. Now that he had nothing else to do, he could take the opportunity to learn them all.

Another day passed.

With the help of two Enlightenment Pills, he fully grasped all three spells.

Now he could count himself a seasoned mid Qi Refinement Realm cultivator who knew six spells.

He went into the courtyard and practiced each spell for a while. Just as he was feeling thoroughly satisfied, a stabbing pain suddenly flared in his dantian, and his body began to convulse.

Chen Lin was startled at first. Then, as though something had occurred to him, he hurriedly took a small bottle from his Storage Bag, pulled out the stopper, and poured out a reddish-brown pill.

It was a Blood Qi Pill.