Three Yang Talisman

"Close your eyes. I'm about to cast the spell."

Zhou Ye held a talisman in one hand and formed a spell seal with the other, preparing to cast it.

Seeing how solemn Zhou Ye looked, Gao Xian was intensely curious. Zhou Ye was surely a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, and he was skilled with talismans. Why did casting one still require so much fuss?

Unable to hold back, he asked, "Mr. Zhou, is that the Lesser Yang Talisman?"

"Dream on. You think ten Low-grade Spirit Stones will get you a Lesser Yang Talisman?"

Zhou Ye looked thoroughly disdainful. "One Yang, Three Yang, Six Yang, Nine Yang, and Nine Yang turns into Lesser Yang. This is a Three Yang Talisman. If you want a Lesser Yang Talisman, you'll need ten Mid-grade Spirit Stones, at least."

"Huh?"

Gao Xian was astonished. "A Three Yang Talisman costs that much?"

"If you want to buy a Three Yang Talisman, it's five Low-grade Spirit Stones. Having me cast it for you personally—that's the price."

Zhou Ye sounded a little impatient. "A Three Yang Talisman also needs to be activated with yang energy, and it takes a tremendous toll on the mind. If I weren't doing this for Xu Mingyuan's sake, you think your ten Low-grade Spirit Stones could hire me? Keep dreaming!"

Gao Xian could only smile awkwardly. The old man was taking his money and still had a terrible temper, but Gao Xian needed him to do the work. How could he dare complain?

"Close your eyes."

Zhou Ye's withered hand swept across Gao Xian's face. While Gao Xian's eyes were shut, he pressed the Three Yang Talisman to the center of his brow.

The talisman instantly turned into a ball of flame, and the room blazed with light.

Even with his eyes closed, Gao Xian could clearly feel the fiery glow. Then the center of his brow began to burn.

It was as if a red-hot branding iron had been pressed against his skin. The searing pain pierced deep into his brow, and the sudden agony made Gao Xian cry out.

Fortunately, the pain passed quickly. When Gao Xian opened his eyes, he saw the Three Yang Talisman crumbling into ash that scattered through the air.

He hurriedly touched the center of his brow. It felt smooth, with nothing out of the ordinary, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Look at you, scared out of your wits. I've been practicing talisman arts for sixty years. You think I'd make a mistake?"

Zhou Ye sat grandly in his chair, speaking in the hoary tone of a seasoned elder and putting on the full airs of a master.

He did look very old, with a face full of wrinkles, unhealthy pallor to his skin, and dark circles under his eyes. He seemed utterly exhausted.

Gao Xian could only smile ingratiatingly. "Thank you, Mr. Zhou."

Still a little uneasy, he asked, "Mr. Zhou, has all the evil energy been removed?"

"More or less. The Three Yang Talisman is effective, but there's always a little evil energy left behind. Just be careful."

Zhou Ye waved a hand. "I'm tired. You can go. I won't see you out."

"Thank you for your effort, sir."

But Gao Xian didn't want to leave. The evil energy hadn't been completely removed, and he couldn't feel at ease.

He walked over and plopped down in the chair beside Zhou Ye. "Mr. Zhou, how can I get rid of the evil energy completely?"

"The evil energy entered from the outside and worked its way in, becoming entangled with your vital essence, energy, and spirit. A talisman can't penetrate the soul, after all. You should find a pure-yang spell to practice. Once your yang energy is strong enough, it'll naturally dispel the remnants."

Zhou Ye had a bad temper, but seeing Gao Xian's humble, respectful manner, he still offered a few words of guidance.

"Wouldn't using another Three Yang Talisman work?"

"Talisman power is fierce. Too many will injure you."

Zhou Ye looked unconcerned. "You're only in your twenties, and your yang energy is still strong. A little evil energy left behind is nothing. Other people wander around Soaring Snake Mountain all year without fearing Evil Spirits. What's there to be afraid of?"

Zhou Ye made it sound easy, but Gao Xian didn't dare take it lightly.

In his previous life, he'd always been careful. He kept goji berries steeping in his thermos year-round, got a checkup every year, and thought twice before drinking even a glass of iced cola, afraid his blood sugar would rise.

Now evil energy was clinging to him. The old man said it was nothing, but that was because it wasn't clinging to him. His life was his own; he couldn't afford to be careless.

"Sir, I... I'm scared."

Gao Xian didn't hide his fear. He thought it made him seem more sincere.

He spoke cautiously. "I don't even know where to learn a pure-yang spell. I was wondering if you'd teach me your Three Yang Talisman?"

"You want to learn talisman-making!"

Zhou Ye burst out laughing. "Of the hundred arts of cultivation, alchemy, artifact crafting, talisman-making, and formation-setting come first. Those four arts are also the most complicated. You know Alchemy Art, which is enough to make you rich. Splitting your focus to learn talisman-making isn't a smart choice."

"I mainly want to get rid of the evil energy," Gao Xian explained. "I don't mean anything else. Please don't misunderstand."

He added for emphasis, "I can pay tuition."

Zhou Ye had been about to refuse outright. This kid had struggled to come up with ten Spirit Stones—how much money could he possibly have?

Then he reconsidered. Gao Xian was an alchemist, after all, and could make plenty of money. With this fat sheep walking right up to him, he'd be a fool not to fleece him.

After a moment's thought, Zhou Ye said, "The Lesser Yang Talisman is incredibly complicated. It takes at least ten or twenty years to master. You only want to remove the evil energy, so there's no need to learn the Lesser Yang Talisman.

"I have a True Yang Method that's quick to learn. As long as you practice it diligently, it'll be more than enough to dispel any evil energy."

"That's wonderful. Please teach it to me."

Gao Xian stood and bowed respectfully, looking entirely sincere in his desire to learn.

Zhou Ye smiled. "No need to be so polite. Just pay up.

"Oh, how many Spirit Stones would that be?" Gao Xian sighed inwardly. Every cultivator was greedy. Personal connections and appeals to sentiment were useless.

"Fifty Low-grade Spirit Stones."

"Huh?"

At the price, Gao Xian's heart sank to rock bottom. This old man was even more ruthless than Boss Zhu.

He cautiously asked, "Senior, could you lower the price a little? I really don't have that many Spirit Stones."

"Knowledge isn't given away lightly."

Zhou Ye was a little displeased. "My exclusive secret art costs only fifty Low-grade Spirit Stones. Is that expensive?

"It takes fifty Spirit Stones just to make one Six Yang Talisman!

"If it weren't for your teacher's sake, would I pass on my secret art to you?"

Gao Xian thought the old man was full of hot air. One talisman costing fifty Spirit Stones—several times more than his White Plum Needles—was just absurd.

But there was no way he could call the old man out on it.

After years of getting beaten down by society, Gao Xian understood one thing: you couldn't persuade someone who wouldn't listen. Even if you gained the upper hand for a moment, you'd only make things worse without solving anything.

Seeing Gao Xian's troubled expression, Zhou Ye kindly offered, "For your master's sake, I can let you pay in installments. Put down ten Spirit Stones first, then five a month. You'll have paid it all off in a year."

Gao Xian almost laughed. Everyone was so practiced at charging interest. How impressive!

He already owed Boss Zhu a mountain of debt. If he went into debt to Old Zhou too, he might as well give up on living.

Gao Xian even suspected Old Zhou was deliberately scaring him, creating a need where none existed.

But he didn't dare take that gamble. His life was on the line, after all.

Gao Xian studied Old Zhou and noticed the dark circles beneath his eyes and his depleted, weak appearance. He looked a lot like Old Wang.

An idea struck him.

"Senior, your yang energy seems a little weak."

Zhou Ye's expression turned displeased. "Obviously. I use my yang energy and vital essence to make talismans, leaving myself depleted. What's strange about my yang energy being low?"

"Please don't be angry, Senior. I have a medicine here that strengthens the spirit and boosts yang energy. It works exceptionally well. Why not give it a try?"

Gao Xian took a small box of Deer Antler Powder from his backpack and respectfully offered it to Zhou Ye with both hands.

Zhou Ye opened the box, pinched up a blue pill, and sniffed it. His face darkened. "You think dyeing it blue will fool me? This is Deer Antler Powder!"

"Senior, I wouldn't dare deceive you. You'll know once you try it."

Gao Xian's expression was utterly sincere. He had immense confidence in his master-level Deer Antler Powder.

Zhou Ye might be a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, but with his depleted, kidney-deficient appearance, Deer Antler Powder would definitely work wonders.

Seeing Gao Xian so confident, Zhou Ye grew a little curious.

He wouldn't dare eat a pill offered by a stranger. But he'd seen Gao Xian several times at Xu Mingyuan's place and knew him fairly well.

Even so, Zhou Ye still used the Appraisal Technique.

Light flickered in Zhou Ye's eyes. He could faintly see through the pill's outer layer to its material, and he could also smell the various subtle medicinal aromas inside.

Judging by all its characteristics, he could tell with complete certainty that the blue pill was Deer Antler Powder and that it wasn't poisonous.

The Appraisal Technique mainly enhanced the senses, allowing one to analyze items like pills and magical artifacts in depth.

What it could reveal depended on the user's skill.

Zhou Ye was confident that a minor cultivator like Gao Xian couldn't fool his Appraisal Technique.

He swallowed a pill of Deer Antler Powder. "Fine, I'll try your Deer Antler Powder. It's not like you can turn this stuff into something else—"

Before he could finish, he felt a warm current spread through his body. First his kidneys grew warm, then heat suffused his entire body.

The warmth was yang without being harsh, as if all his internal organs were soaking in a hot spring. His spirits lifted, and he felt a rush of vitality he hadn't experienced in a long time.

Zhou Ye immediately realized the Deer Antler Powder in his hand was special. He asked Gao Xian in surprise, "Did you make this?"

Gao Xian felt smug. Deer Antler Powder was a middle-aged and elderly man's salvation. Once Zhou Ye tried the little blue pill, he'd never be able to give it up!

On the surface, though, he lowered his eyes and wore an expression of respectful humility. "My skills are crude. I hope you'll give me some pointers, Senior."