Talisman Crafting

Back at his residence, he took out the booklet Old Zhang had left behind from his sleeve and opened the cover.

The handwritten characters were crooked and uneven, but every step was explained clearly.

The booklet contained three sections.

The first section covered the basic principles of talisman making. From how spirit qi was infused into talisman paper, to the direction in which spirit patterns flowed when cinnabar touched the paper, and then to the rhythm of sealing at the end of the stroke, it was all written in great detail. It was clearly the accumulated experience of Old Zhang's many years of drawing talismans.

The second section contained insights into making Cleaning Talismans and Warding Talismans. Several common mistakes were listed for every type of talisman.

The third section was not about talisman making. It listed three names and addresses, all shops that sold basic talisman-making materials.

"Wu's Talisman Materials, third alley entrance in the southern section of East Street. The talisman paper is of average quality, but it is cheap and reliable."

"Zhao Family Material Shop, middle section of North Alley. Their cinnabar is the best, but the prices are rather high."

"Granny Sun's Grocery Stall. No fixed location. She sells everything, and the quality varies wildly, but sometimes you can pick up something good."

Old Zhang had even left behind the merchants he had dealt with.

Li Yuan closed the booklet, and the Panel appeared:

[Detected equippable item: Talisman Crafting Manual (Complete)]

[Affix preview: Talisman Crafting Insight (White)—Time and spirit qi consumption during talisman making reduced by 10%]

[Permanent condition preview: Craft fifty Basic Talismans or five Low-grade First-Order Talismans (one low-grade talisman counts as ten Basic Talismans) (0/50)]

[Current Equipment Slots full (3/3). Replace current equipment?]

A White Trait. Talisman-making time and spirit qi consumption reduced by 10%.

The condition for making it permanent was also clear—make fifty Basic Talismans, or five Low-grade First-Order Talismans. One low-grade talisman counted as ten basic ones.

Cleaning Talismans and Warding Talismans were both Basic Talismans. Fireball Talismans and Ice Spike Talismans were the Low-grade First-Order ones.

Li Yuan put the booklet away and did not equip it in a hurry.

He would cultivate first.

He sat cross-legged on the bed and circulated the Spirit Guiding Art.

After completing one circulation cycle, Li Yuan did not continue with the Spirit Guiding Art. Instead, he switched to the Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art.

The route of his spirit qi changed accordingly.

After one cycle of the Spirit Guiding Art, he absorbed spiritual energy faster.

Then the Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art followed, reorganizing the spiritual energy absorbed by the Spirit Guiding Art. After his spirit qi circulated through the branch meridians, it returned to his dantian, its quality rising by a notch.

First, he used the Spirit Guiding Art to absorb large amounts of spiritual energy. Then, he used the Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art to sort and refine it.

The results were immediate.

After alternating between the two techniques for several cycles, Li Yuan could clearly sense the changes in his dantian's spirit qi. Its overall growth was somewhat slower than when he used the Spirit Guiding Art alone, but its density was greater than when he used either technique by itself.

Of course, this was also because of the Spirit Qi Filtration affix he had equipped. The impurities in the spiritual energy absorbed by the Spirit Guiding Art were negligible.

Without that affix, impure spiritual energy would have flowed through his limbs and bones, and the results would have been far inferior to what they were now.

The effect of the Hundred Rivers Return to Sea affix was especially obvious when he switched between the two techniques—from the circulation frequency of the Spirit Guiding Art to the Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art, his spirit qi barely faltered before naturally sliding into the other route.

Li Yuan settled into this alternating cultivation rhythm and completed another dozen or so cycles.

The spirit qi in his dantian had become much more abundant than before his cultivation, and its texture was heavier and denser.

When he finished, the sky outside the window had already darkened.

With a thought, the Panel appeared:

[Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art: Entry Level (0/200)]

It had reached Entry Level in about two hours.

The complete understanding imparted by equipment worked just as well for cultivation techniques, saving him the time of studying the art itself.

Combined with the boost from the Spirit Qi Condensation affix—his spirit qi density had already been a notch higher than others of the same realm—the resistance to spirit qi flowing through the branch meridians was lower when he circulated the Hundred Meridians Origin Return Art, and the connections between nodes were smoother as well.

Li Yuan put away the Panel and took out Old Zhang's manual.

The booklet stated it clearly—the core of talisman making was to inject spirit qi into talisman paper along specific patterns.

The flow of spirit qi determined the direction of the spirit patterns. The order of strokes determined how those spirit patterns were activated, while the rhythm of the final stroke controlled the talisman's stability.

It did not sound complicated, but there were many subtleties within.

The rate at which spirit qi was infused could not be too fast or too slow. If it was too fast, the spirit patterns would not have time to form, and the talisman paper would burn straight through. If it was too slow, the spirit qi would linger on the paper too long, causing the lines to blur and spread until the talisman ultimately failed.

The connection between every stroke was even more critical. If the residual spirit qi left behind at the end of one stroke was not properly controlled, it would interfere with the start of the next. At best, the pattern would skew; at worst, the entire talisman would be ruined.

After reading it, Li Yuan calculated the spirit stones he had on hand.

He had already spent a considerable portion of the large haul taken from the cultivator bandits—on the Spirit Gathering Ring, talismans, medicinal pills, and more. There were noticeably fewer spirit stones left in his sleeve than before.

However, basic talisman-making materials were cheap. The cheapest yellow talisman paper cost one spirit stone for a hundred sheets. A small bottle of ordinary cinnabar cost half a spirit stone, enough for dozens of talismans. Spirit ink was somewhat more expensive, at one spirit stone per small bottle, but little was needed, and one bottle would last a long time.

A complete set would cost only three or four spirit stones, enough for a beginner to practice with for quite some time.

Li Yuan left his residence and followed East Street to the third alley entrance in its southern section.

Wu's Talisman Materials was not large. Its storefront was narrow, squeezed between two larger shops, easy to miss if one was not paying attention.

There was not much in the shop, but everything was neatly arranged. On the left was a row of talisman paper of various grades, from the cheapest yellow paper to somewhat better Spirit Pattern Paper, arranged from low to high price. On the right were cinnabar, spirit ink, and several supplementary materials, all stored in small porcelain bottles or cloth bags.

A man in his forties sat behind the counter. He had an ordinary face, and when he saw Li Yuan enter, he glanced at his waist token before politely rising to his feet.

"Deputy Captain Li, what do you need?"

"Twenty sheets of yellow talisman paper, one bottle of ordinary cinnabar, one bottle of spirit ink, and one Fine-Hair Brush."

The shopkeeper quickly gathered the items and wrapped them in oiled paper.

"Four spirit stones in total."

Li Yuan paid the spirit stones. After returning to his residence, he removed the Iron Ox Technique with a thought, then equipped Old Zhang's manual.

The booklet turned into a faint ray of light and merged into his body.

Just as Li Yuan had guessed, the entire booklet fused into him, even including the names and addresses Old Zhang had written down.

Li Yuan had considered tearing out that page to see whether the rest could still be equipped, but he did not dare try it.

Unlike when he had equipped cultivation manuals before, what was imparted this time was not a cultivation art or circulation route, but a vast amount of experience—all the experience Old Zhang had written in the booklet. Compared to merely reading it, this infusion was far more powerful, as though Old Zhang were personally teaching him at every moment.

After the infusion was complete, Li Yuan's fingers twitched slightly. A strange feeling rose within him—it was as though he had already drawn countless talismans and knew the weight of every stroke by heart, yet when he truly picked up the brush, his fingers were completely unfamiliar with it.

[Equipped: Talisman Crafting Manual]

[Obtained affix: Talisman Crafting Insight (White)—Time and spirit qi consumption during talisman making reduced by 10%]

[Permanent progress: 0/50]

Li Yuan picked up the Fine-Hair Brush. Spirit qi surged from his fingertips. With a turn of his wrist, the spirit qi traced an arc as he began making a Cleaning Talisman.

The experience infused into his mind guided the direction and force of every movement, but his finger muscles were doing this for the first time. Halfway through the arc, the angle of his wrist shifted slightly, and the flow of spirit qi across the talisman paper crooked with it.

The cinnabar spread across the paper in a blot. What should have been an even, fine line became a blurry red stain.

It was ruined.

Li Yuan put down the brush and set that talisman paper aside.

He picked up a second sheet, dipped the brush in cinnabar again, and lowered it to the paper.

It was ruined again.

The third sheet... the fourth... the fifth...

Five in a row were ruined.

Li Yuan put down the brush, looked at the five failed talismans on the table, rotated his wrist, stacked the wasted papers aside, and picked up the sixth sheet.

Spirit qi flowed from his fingertips, while the cinnabar slowly spread across the talisman paper.

Li Yuan's wrist kept turning, growing smoother and smoother.

Spirit qi slowly withdrew from the brush tip. The end of the pattern naturally narrowed, and the final dot landed in the center of the talisman paper.

The Cleaning Talisman was complete.

[Detected item: Cleaning Talisman (Complete)]

"So talismans I craft myself can be equipped too?"

Joy appeared on Li Yuan's face. If his guess was correct, then he would have a stable way of obtaining affixes.

But he could not make a judgment yet. He still needed to try making a Warding Talisman.

The Panel displayed a prompt.

[Tier 1 Talisman Crafting Art: Not Entry Level (9/100)]

[Cleaning Talisman: Not Entry Level (12/100)]

[Talisman Crafting Insight (White) permanent progress: 1/50]