Brother Xiaotian, I Want...

When Chu Xiaotian had recovered on his own earlier, Xia Xue had been so surprised that he possessed such enormous spiritual power that she hadn't noticed how quickly he recovered. Now they had refined talismans together and recovered together, and the difference was obvious. She had started recovering before Chu Xiaotian, yet he had finished before her. She knew all too well what that meant.

Chu Xiaotian didn't hide the truth from Xia Xue. He nodded and smiled. "I was half a quarter-hour faster than you."

Xia Xue froze. He had finished a full half a quarter-hour before her—a figure she found hard to accept. Since she had always been the only Alchemist in all of Greenwood Town, she'd had a little pride in that. But now, standing before Chu Xiaotian, that pride had vanished without a trace. What she couldn't understand was where he'd gotten all these cultivation techniques. When they'd first met, he'd been searching everywhere for cultivation techniques. Yet in such a short time, he'd reached this level. The difference was simply too great.

He's often away from the valley at night. Could he have met an expert outside who guided him? Or maybe he inherited some kind of legacy? Xia Xue wondered. The more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Otherwise, it was hard to explain how Chu Xiaotian had acquired such abilities in so little time.

"Good girl, Xiaoxue. Come here, and I'll teach you my method for recovering spiritual power. But don't tell anyone else, okay? Or you'll get a spanking." Seeing Xia Xue's astonished expression, Chu Xiaotian smiled smugly and crooked a finger at her, beckoning her to lean in and listen.

"Ah, Brother Xiaotian, you're really going to teach me that method? Aren't you afraid the senior who taught you your cultivation technique will punish you?" Xia Xue couldn't hide her delight, but she was also afraid Chu Xiaotian might be punished for it. Cultivation techniques couldn't be casually passed on to others; violators would be dealt with according to the sect rules. That was the first thing every martial artist on the Moon-Refining Continent learned when they received a cultivation technique.

"Of course not. You're my precious girl, not some outsider." Chu Xiaotian was taken aback, then realized Xia Xue had misunderstood. He only smiled and didn't bother explaining further. Given his situation, it was far more believable for Xia Xue to think he'd come across some fortuitous encounter than to explain that he'd come here from another world.

Xia Xue's face flushed scarlet. Chu Xiaotian's words made her shy, but they also made her very happy. Girls were always far too vulnerable to sweet talk. She pressed close to Chu Xiaotian and listened as he softly recited a string of instructions into her ear.

There were only the two of them in the valley, so Chu Xiaotian didn't really need to be so cautious. But Xia Xue's delicate fragrance intoxicated him, and he couldn't resist drawing a little closer. After a quarter of an hour, Xia Xue had mastered the instructions he'd given her, and the two of them resumed making talisman paper.

Two hours later, they had used up all the pulp Chu Xiaotian had prepared earlier. In front of them lay twenty-one sheets of yellow talisman paper.

Without a special cultivation technique, the best way to train one's spiritual power was to keep using it. After refining talisman paper for several hours, both of their spiritual power had increased considerably.

Now that the talisman paper was ready, the next step was to draw talismans and turn the paper into actual paper talismans. In the world Chu Xiaotian had come from, spiritual energy was scarce, so talismans were drawn with cinnabar. But here, there was no need for such a hassle. One could simply use spiritual power to draw in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, form a rune, and imprint it onto the talisman paper. The result was countless times more powerful than a talisman drawn with cinnabar. The paper's purpose was to hold the rune and keep the spiritual energy within it from dissipating over time. That was why talisman paper had to be made from Green Bamboo Grass and Ink Needle Grass: their properties helped preserve spiritual energy.

Xia Xue was captivated by Chu Xiaotian's description of the wonders of paper talismans. As he drew them, she sat nearby with her chin propped on her hand, watching quietly. Chu Xiaotian knew thousands of runes, but there weren't many he could draw right now that would be useful for tomorrow's fight over the Spirit Beast cub. The ones he wanted to make were Invisibility Talismans, Godly Speed Talismans, and Explosive Flame Talismans.

The Invisibility Talisman needed no explanation; it could make a person invisible. The lowest-grade version lasted about a minute, and the higher the grade, the longer it lasted. The Godly Speed Talisman could greatly increase a person's speed. The Divine Pace Guardian of old could travel a thousand li a day on foot thanks to this kind of talisman. Unlike the Invisibility Talisman, even the lowest-grade version could last a quarter of an hour. The Explosive Flame Talisman was an offensive talisman. A single sheet could conjure a small sea of fire. If an opponent accidentally fell into it, even an Essence-Transforming Realm expert would likely meet a grisly end.

Of the three talismans, the easiest to draw was undoubtedly the Explosive Flame Talisman. It looked terrifyingly powerful, but its rune was far simpler than those of the other two. Chu Xiaotian decided to start with that one. He'd only heard of it before and had never actually drawn one, but since the rune was comparatively simple, he didn't fail. Carefully controlling his spiritual power, he succeeded on his very first try.

Drawing a talisman took far more out of him than making the paper. After drawing just one, Chu Xiaotian had used up most of his spiritual power and had to sit cross-legged to recover. Once he'd recovered, he continued drawing. After an hour and a half, five Explosive Flame Talismans lay before him. The rune looked a little like a burning flame, living up to its name.

"Brother Xiaotian, are these things really as powerful as you said?" Looking at the five tiny sheets of yellow paper in Chu Xiaotian's hand, Xia Xue seriously doubted his claim that they could kill an Essence-Transforming Realm expert.

Chu Xiaotian had his doubts too—not about the talismans' power, but about himself. After all, it was his first time drawing one, and the process had gone so smoothly that it didn't feel real. So he decided to test it.

Paper talismans were easy to use. Any martial artist with even a little spiritual power could activate one by touching its rune with their spiritual power, then throw it. Chu Xiaotian took out an Explosive Flame Talisman and tossed it onto the ground in front of them. A flash of yellow light streaked past as it landed in the grass ten meters away.

"Boom!" A thunderous blast rang out. Under Xia Xue's disbelieving gaze, the little yellow sheet exploded, and a ring of fire, a full zhang wide, appeared before them. Even from several meters away, they could feel the waves of scorching heat rolling off it. The grass within five meters of the ring quickly turned yellow and withered; the blades closest to it even caught fire. The flames burned for a full minute. When the fire died and the smoke cleared, a huge pit shimmering with seven-colored light lay before them. The Explosive Flame Talisman's heat had melted the ground, turning the soil into multicolored glaze. It had only burned away a layer about two cun thick, but the temperature it had reached was plain to see.

Xia Xue was completely stunned. Her little mouth formed a cute "O" as she stared at the seven-colored pit ahead. She blinked twice, then turned back after a long moment and gazed at the four talismans remaining in Chu Xiaotian's hand, her eyes full of longing. Her adorable expression made Chu Xiaotian feel extremely pleased with himself. Any man holding something so appealing to a girl would have a hard time not feeling smug.

"Brother Xiaotian, I want them." Xia Xue stared at the talismans in Chu Xiaotian's hand for a long time, then spoke in a sweet voice, a little shy and a little hopeful.

The words men most loved hearing from women were "I want them." So Chu Xiaotian handed Xia Xue an Explosive Flame Talisman almost without hesitation.

"Brother Xiaotian, I want more." He'd given her only one of the four talismans. Xia Xue shot Chu Xiaotian a dissatisfied, plaintive look and spoke again in her sweet voice.

A bead of cold sweat appeared on Chu Xiaotian's forehead. Those were the words men feared most from women. So he didn't give Xia Xue another Explosive Flame Talisman. Of course, that wasn't the real reason. He needed to save them for tomorrow.

"Be good, Xiaoxue. Once I get that little Spirit Beast cub tomorrow, I'll give you as many as you want, all right?" Seeing Xia Xue's plaintive expression, Chu Xiaotian could only explain what he intended to use the talismans for.

"Ah, Brother Xiaotian, you're going after that Spirit Beast cub tomorrow too? There'll be so many experts there. It's dangerous for you!" Xia Xue stared at Chu Xiaotian in surprise, her face full of worry. He hadn't told her what he was planning, so his sudden announcement came as quite a shock.

With Chu Xiaotian's strength, he could handle Pi-Hai Realm experts, but he'd be in danger against Essence-Transforming Realm experts. The entire Huang Family was gathering to seize the Spirit Beast cub, and they had more than a dozen Essence-Transforming Realm experts. Even the family's only Poxue Realm expert had come here. Facing such strength, how could Chu Xiaotian possibly get the cub? One careless mistake, and he could lose his life.

"Don't worry. If it's too dangerous, I won't take the risk. You haven't married me yet, so I can't bear to die. Besides, once I've drawn the Invisibility and Godly Speed Talismans, they might not even be able to find me." Chu Xiaotian placed his hands on Xia Xue's shoulders and rested his forehead against hers. Looking into her eyes, he spoke softly.

Xia Xue was still a little worried, but she didn't try to stop Chu Xiaotian again. She knew that sometimes a woman only needed to stand behind her man and support him quietly. Besides, after seeing how powerful the Explosive Flame Talisman was, she had far more confidence in his Invisibility and Godly Speed Talismans. Given how wondrous those things were, they should be able to help Chu Xiaotian escape safely.

Chu Xiaotian teased Xia Xue for a while longer, putting her mind at ease before beginning to draw the other two kinds of talismans.