Is There Still Any Justice

The Green Robe Old Man's gaze was complex.

From what he had just witnessed, this kid definitely wasn't a fluke. The Green Robe Old Man knew very well that a cultivator with no prior experience in talisman crafting would normally need at least one to two months to successfully refine a First-Order Fireball Talisman.

Wei Suo had only taken seven days to succeed in his trial refinement of one. This could only mean one thing: the kid possessed great innate talent for talisman crafting. And with tens of thousands of years of experience, the Green Robe Old Man knew better than anyone what such talent meant at this particular time.

"Are your parents talisman crafters? Artifact refiners?" the Green Robe Old Man couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know. My parents went out to hunt demonic beasts when I was thirteen and never came back. They only left me a copy of the Purple Profound True Art," Wei Suo replied, looking at the Green Robe Old Man with some curiosity. "Why are you asking?"

"You can go try out this magic talisman first and see if it's a First-Order Fireball Talisman, just as I said," the Green Robe Old Man told Wei Suo. "As for anything else, we'll talk about it when you get back."

Wei Suo pocketed a freshly made magic talisman and left the west side of Lingyue City.

Lingyue City was currently under the jurisdiction of the Tianyi Sect. Any rogue cultivator could reside within Lingyue City by paying a certain amount of Spirit Stones, while ordinary mortals could earn residency by doing tasks for some sects.

For a small stone house like Wei Suo's, which had poor conditions and few facilities, the monthly rent was two Low-grade Spirit Stones. If rent wasn't paid for more than two months, they would be forced to live outside Lingyue City.

So, although it was called rent, it was essentially protection money. However, virtually all rogue cultivators in Lingyue City had no complaints.

This was because the Tianyi Sect had many skilled cultivators patrolling the city daily, ensuring its safety. In recent years, the number of demonic beasts in the wilderness had increased significantly compared to previous years. For example, five years ago, the Yellow Sand Canyon, which was only several mountain ranges away from Lingyue City, would absolutely not have had a second-order demonic beast like the Stone-tailed Wall Lizard.

If one didn't live within the city, besides the threat of demonic beasts, there was also the risk of being robbed and killed by other rogue cultivators. Therefore, almost all low-level rogue cultivators who could afford the rent vied to pay Spirit Stones and live in the city.

The only inconvenience was that flying and private duels were not allowed within the city.

Currently, Wei Suo didn't know any flight techniques. Moreover, with his current cultivation level, even if he learned some flight techniques, his True Essence would likely only be enough for him to fly for half an incense stick's time. For someone like him attempting to use talismans, it wouldn't count as a private duel. However, to avoid the hassle of questioning from the Tianyi Sect, Wei Suo still chose to leave the city.

Less than half a mile outside the city, Wei Suo saw a black wild cat desperately meowing on a crooked willow tree next to an abandoned house.

When the black wild cat saw Wei Suo stop, it bared its teeth, as if telling Wei Suo to scram and not disturb its mating calls.

"Heh heh!"

Wei Suo's eyes darted around. With a flick of his wrist, a boom echoed as a fireball the size of a winnowing basket blasted into the base of the willow tree, shattering the lower half of the tree and igniting a fierce blaze.

"Meow!"

The black wild cat was almost scared out of its wits. Its fur stood on end, and it leaped as if riding the wind, jumping from the upper half of the tree to a wall quite a distance away, trembling all over.

"Holy sh*t!"

Let alone the black wild cat, even Wei Suo himself was startled. As the fireball talisman was activated, the scattered heat made his skin feel a burning pain. The power of this First-Order Fireball Talisman seemed to be even greater than that of the fireball talisman from the beautiful girl with the silver outfit and perky buttocks.

"Damn it! This is too exaggerated!"

On a distant road, two people walking towards Lingyue City happened to witness this scene and were dumbfounded. "He's using a First-Order Fireball Talisman just to scare a wild cat? Is there any justice in this world!"

"I've hit the jackpot!"

"I've really hit the jackpot!"

Wei Suo practically floated back to his stone house on the west side of Lingyue City.

"Shui Ling'er, maybe you'll really become my wife then."

Seeing Wei Suo's demeanor upon entering, the Green Robe Old Man knew that Wei Suo's Fireball Talisman was definitely fine. However, Wei Suo's next action gave him a chill, leaving him speechless for a moment.

As if he had just found a pile of Spirit Stones, Wei Suo reached out and fondled the chests of the beauties in the pictures. Only then did he understand why the color of the chest areas in these pictures was different from other parts.

"Oh, right, Green-Haired Old Man," Wei Suo said, as if remembering something, looking at the Green Robe Old Man. "You said you had something to tell me after I tested the Fireball Talisman. What was it?"

"I was going to tell you that it's not time for you to get excited yet," the Green Robe Old Man said, giving Wei Suo a serious look. "Whether it's crafting talismans, alchemy, or artifact refining, the most important thing is the success rate. A talisman crafter with a success rate below twenty percent is still equivalent to trash; the value of the talismans they produce is less than the cost of the materials consumed."

Wei Suo was stunned. "Old man, so you're saying I still need to test my own success rate?"

"What do you think?" the Green Robe Old Man gave Wei Suo a cold glance.

Wei Suo stood before the rudimentary stone table with a solemn expression. This was related to his plan to get rich, so he had to take it seriously.

The first one: a stroke in the center of a rune was slightly off, and the entire talisman burst into flames. Fortunately, Wei Suo had gained experience and wasn't burned by the flames.

The second one: it was drawn perfectly, but he had no idea where the deviation occurred, and the talisman emitted no heat at all.

The third one: it was finally successful.

Wei Suo's entire body was drenched in sweat.

By the time he successfully refined the sixth First-Order Fireball Talisman, Wei Suo collapsed on the stone table, exhausted, too tired to even move his fingers.

The remaining Fire Scorpion Blood was enough to refine fourteen First-Order Fire Talismans. Wei Suo ruined eight and succeeded in six, taking over an hour in total, with a success rate of less than fifty percent.

This kind of talisman crafting required extreme mental concentration, consuming not only a huge amount of physical energy but also significant mental energy.

With a success rate of less than fifty percent, and being as tired as a dog, Wei Suo felt quite dejected at the moment.

However, the Green Robe Old Man was already calculating.

Wei Suo had no idea that even a professional talisman crafter would only have about a sixty percent success rate when crafting a familiar First-Order magic talisman. When crafting unfamiliar First-Order magic talismans, the success rate might be less than forty percent.

Yet, Wei Suo's current success rate was already close to fifty percent! And this was the first time he had successfully crafted talismans today. If he continued for a longer period, what would his success rate reach?

"Kid, are you dead? If you're not, how about we chat? You tell me some things, and I'll tell you some things," the Green Robe Old Man said after pondering for a while with a complex expression.

(Mmm, this chapter is for red ticket collection...)