Striving for the Fourth Level

The powder of transparent Immeasurable Crystals, mixed with the black, oil-like Cuttlefish Fat, turned into a peculiar deep blue. As it boiled in the small steel furnace, rings of bright blue ripples appeared, releasing a faint, citrus-like fragrance.

Once the Immeasurable Crystal powder had completely dissolved in the Cuttlefish Fat, Wei Suo carefully poured the viscous, deep blue talisman liquid into an exceptionally clean jade bottle. Before the liquid could cool, he quickly dipped the Golden Silk Talisman Brush into the jade bottle. After it had absorbed enough talisman liquid, without any hesitation, he lifted the Golden Silk Talisman Brush and placed it onto a prepared golden-yellow talisman paper.

The Golden Silk Talisman Brush moved across the golden-yellow talisman paper like flowing clouds and water. As Wei Suo sketched the intricate talisman patterns, his deft brushwork even captivated the Green Robe Old Man.

The first layer of the Illusionary Light Talisman's patterns was extremely complex. If he were refining a Fireball Talisman, with Wei Suo's current speed, it would only take half a cup of tea's time to complete without any mistakes. Now, it had taken a full cup of tea, and the fine lines of the talisman finally connected to form a pattern resembling a blooming chrysanthemum. A crystalline radiance began to flow along every thread of the entire pattern.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Wei Suo's forehead. For him, what limited him in refining Fireball Talismans was neither the success rate nor the speed, but the rapid depletion of his spiritual sense under such intense concentration. If his spiritual sense couldn't endure, his judgment would falter, and the talisman would be a hundred percent failure.

With a light flick of his wrist, the brush tip instantly swirled into several fine, winding arcs before abruptly leaving the talisman paper.

Suddenly, all the talisman patterns on the entire paper flashed with light, giving the impression of flowers suddenly blooming.

"Damn it, it's finally done!"

Wei Suo froze for a moment, then let out a growl through gritted teeth.

The difficulty of refining the Illusionary Light Talisman was far beyond Wei Suo's expectations. He had spent a full two days, and this was only the first time he had successfully completed the first layer of the talisman.

"This guy actually managed to finish the first layer in two days?" The Green Robe Old Man had to admit that Wei Suo indeed possessed great talent in talisman refining. The people he had encountered before took at least seven to eight days to complete the first layer of this Illusionary Light Talisman on their first try. He also knew very well that the second layer was much simpler; those who could complete the first layer generally had a very high chance of success on the next layer, provided they didn't perform poorly. However, he still reminded Wei Suo in a cold tone, "You only have two sticks of incense's time left. Do you want to howl a bit more to celebrate or something?"

"Damn it!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Suo forgot all about his joy. His eyes darted around, and he immediately wiped the sweat from his forehead. After tidying his clothes slightly, he channeled a surge of True Essence into the half-finished Illusionary Light Talisman in his hand.

A layer of crystalline light screen suddenly shot out from the golden-yellow Illusionary Light Talisman, covered in deep blue talisman patterns. "Here it comes!" Spotting the direction projected by the crystalline light screen, Wei Suo immediately stood in front of it. As the crystalline light screen emitted by the Illusionary Light Talisman, controlled by his True Essence, shone upon him, he shouted, "Freeze!" A surge of True Essence struck a talisman pattern on the half-finished Illusionary Light Talisman. The crystalline light screen seemed to freeze in place, suddenly pausing before rapidly vanishing back into the talisman.

This step was called Image Condensation. The image that the Illusionary Light Talisman would display when used had to be completed at this very moment. Wei Suo chose to condense his own image because he thought that when facing enemies or demonic beasts, he could create several copies of himself to confuse them and make them unsure which one was the real him. This was because, as the Green Robe Old Man had later explained, the images created by this Illusionary Light Talisman were extremely lifelike. They would only distort and warp if struck by something, passing through them.

"Damn it, I must succeed!"

Once the Image Condensation was complete, Wei Suo immediately grabbed the half-finished Illusionary Light Talisman and placed it on the stone table. Simultaneously, he quickly poured True Essence into the Golden Silk Talisman Brush. The remaining liquid in the Golden Silk Talisman Brush was smoothly expelled. Then, Wei Suo immediately used the Golden Silk Talisman Brush to absorb the talisman liquid, which was made from the prepared Danqing Stone and Cuttlefish Fat, and quickly began sketching on the golden-yellow talisman paper.

Mysterious patterns flowed from Wei Suo's brush. As the green talisman liquid seeped into the talisman paper, it strangely combined with the previous blue patterns, forming a sapphire blue hue.

Droplets of sweat broke out on Wei Suo's forehead. The only thing that remained unchanged was the Golden Silk Talisman Brush in his hand, moving rapidly yet remaining incredibly stable.

"Damn it!" Wei Suo suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness. Although there weren't many talisman patterns left, he felt a sense of weakness.

Spiritual sense fatigue! Refining such an unfamiliar talisman that he had never successfully refined before consumed far more mental energy than refining his familiar Fireball Talismans.

Wei Suo gritted his teeth, forcing his eyes open wider, keeping his hands steady as he controlled the talisman brush, desperately concentrating his mind. Veins bulged on his forehead, yet his hand movements remained as gentle as a spring breeze. At this moment, he completely lacked his usual lewd and shameless demeanor.

"Finally done!"

As the Golden Silk Talisman Brush was lifted, all the talisman patterns on the entire talisman suddenly turned sapphire blue. Wei Suo slumped onto the chair, his back completely drenched, but his eyes shone with indescribable excitement.

The current Wei Suo was no longer the clueless rogue cultivator he was when he first started refining Fireball Talismans. Now, he didn't need to test it; just by looking at the soft glow and stable aura emanating from the talisman, he knew he had successfully refined this Illusionary Light Talisman.

Most importantly, the beginning was always the hardest. With the experience of this first successful attempt, the second and third talismans would certainly not be as difficult to refine as this one.

"Wahaha!"

Two days later, another exceptionally lewd laugh erupted in Wei Suo's stone hut.

In the dingy little stone hut stood two almost identical Wei Suos. The only difference was that one Wei Suo held nothing in his hands, while the other Wei Suo held five golden-yellow Illusionary Light Talismans.

The one holding the five Illusionary Light Talismans was naturally Wei Suo's true body. He reached out and touched the illusionary image created by the Illusionary Light Talisman. His touch felt like passing through a water curtain, and ripples like water waves spread across the surface of the "Wei Suo."

"It's so lifelike, haha. It should be enough to fool those dim-witted demonic beasts."

In the span of two days, Wei Suo had refined six more Illusionary Light Talismans. With the six Illusionary Light Talismans, he couldn't resist using one to check the effect. The current result was very satisfactory. If you didn't touch it, as long as he stood still, it was truly impossible to tell the real from the fake at first glance.

"That's right, old man. Just creating myself isn't very interesting. I need to create something else." Holding the Illusionary Light Talismans that created five phantom images of himself, Wei Suo was still not satisfied. He said to the Green Robe Old Man, "I need to create some powerful techniques or demonic beasts or something to scare my opponents. Maybe if I encounter someone timid, they'll be scared away directly."

"That's a good idea. Now, if you can find a powerful cultivator within two sticks of incense's time to cast a technique for you to condense an image, or find a level four or five demonic beast that's willing to let you condense its image, you'll definitely be able to scare people when you go out." The Green Robe Old Man gave Wei Suo a sideways glance. To be honest, he thought Wei Suo's choice to condense his own image was already a very clever one. Originally, his intention in telling Wei Suo the method for refining the Illusionary Light Talisman was merely to let Wei Suo train his talisman refining skills and spiritual sense.

"That is indeed a problem." Wei Suo's face lengthened slightly. If he were in some powerful sect, he certainly wouldn't have trouble finding a master to cast a technique or a powerful demonic beast to condense an image. But the crucial point was that he was a lone rogue cultivator. Even if he could cast powerful techniques himself, he wouldn't have the time to control the Image Condensation and cast the technique simultaneously.

"Two sticks of incense's time... what could be done in time?" But suddenly, Wei Suo chuckled. Looking at the Green Robe Old Man with a very lewd expression, he said, "Old man, what do you think would be the reaction of my opponent if, when fighting someone, a herd of Big White Pigs suddenly ran around them?"

"Holy crap!" The Green Robe Old Man froze for a moment, almost falling to the ground.

"Wahaha!"

A half-finished Illusionary Light Talisman took shape in Wei Suo's hand again. Then, Wei Suo quickly ran out. After rounding two small alleys, he saw a pen containing dozens of fat white pigs. Wei Suo chuckled, and the crystalline light screen enveloped the herd of white pigs. Immediately, Wei Suo quickly ran back to his stone hut. With a chilling laugh, a brand new golden-yellow Illusionary Light Talisman was freshly produced.

The Green Robe Old Man was speechless.

Wei Suo had actually refined not just one, but two Big White Pig Illusionary Light Talismans. He couldn't help but wonder what the reaction of an opponent would be if, during a fight with Wei Suo, they suddenly saw a herd of Big White Pigs charging towards them.

However, after a moment of self-satisfaction, Wei Suo lay on the bed, feeling a bit dejected. "Old man, when do you think I'll finally reach the fourth level of the Sea of Consciousness Realm? I've already practiced my Golden Snake Lightning Art, and I'm only one step away from practicing the next level after reaching the fourth level of the Sea of Consciousness Realm. Why do I feel like the efficiency of absorbing Spirit Stones and spiritual energy isn't as good as before?"

Hearing Wei Suo say this, the Green Robe Old Man also became a bit serious. He nodded and said, "Unless there are miraculous pills, the time to break through to the fourth level of the Sea of Consciousness Realm cannot be shortened. The reason your efficiency in absorbing Spirit Stones and spiritual energy is not as good as before is that the True Essence and spiritual energy in your body are always in a very abundant state. Cultivation is like eating; if you want to eat more, you need to eat more and move more, eat a little more each day to expand your appetite, and do more physical labor. If you want to cultivate faster, you must try your best to use your True Essence, constantly utilize your True Essence, consume it, and then replenish it. This will improve the circulation of True Essence in your body, just like how appetite easily increases. If you are full and don't move, your cultivation efficiency will naturally be poor."

"You mean I need to go fight more demonic beasts, and my cultivation speed will increase?" Wei Suo's eyes lit up. "No wonder they say powerful cultivators are forged through battle, not by squatting at home and cultivating."

"This should improve your absorption of spiritual energy and speed up your advancement." The Green Robe Old Man glanced at Wei Suo. "However, theoretically, it's not necessary to consume True Essence by fighting demonic beasts. You could also just stand there and desperately cast Azure Water Blades at a wall, depleting your True Essence before returning to cultivate."

"Damn, do you think I'm stupid? Fight air instead of killing demonic beasts to earn Spirit Stones? True Essence also needs to be replenished with Spirit Stones and Qi Replenishing Powder, you know." Wei Suo exclaimed, "Damn it, I'll go get some demonic beasts tomorrow."