The Pioneer of the "Pay-to-Win" Style

Aside from Advanced Talisman, mid- to low-level Talisman are not without value.

The total amount of spiritual power a person can output instantly is limited. However, if the same amount of spiritual power is used to activate a low- to mid-level Talisman, the resulting damage is in no way inferior to, and may even exceed, that of a high-level spell.

This is the fundamental concept behind the ""Pay-to-Win" Style" strategy that was briefly popular a few years ago.

"If I can't beat them, I'll just spend money!"

That period was the happiest time of Shopkeeper Wang. Even now, when he thinks about it, he can't help but smile, a shrewd businessman's grin spreading across his face.

However, just as is an eternal truth, happy days are always short-lived.

Within a few months, the spendthrift ""Pay-to-Win" Style" player who had once made a dazzling debut like a comet... cough cough, the big spenders, also left him as quickly as a comet.

As for why its existence was so brief?

That's because those spendthrift kids were all dragged home by their elders, given a good beating, and then locked up in Xiao Hei!

Do you really think low- to mid-level Talisman are free?

"So many years have passed, I wonder if those old buddies from back then have been released? I really miss them."

Shopkeeper Wang wiped away the tears welling in his eyes, pulling himself out of his reverie. He looked at Bell, worried that the latter might lose interest in buying the Talisman because of Zhao's 'lazy' remarks.

Fortunately, Bell did not show any similar intention.

Although Bell didn't know the specifics of the China Cultivator World, he did know about the Britain Magical World.

Although not as widespread as Talisman in China, magical scrolls did briefly appear in the British Wizarding World throughout history. However, with the widespread use of Wand, magical scrolls quickly disappeared.

Based on this, it's not hard to imagine the current situation facing Talisman.

However, Bell's intention in purchasing the Talisman was not for use, but for research. He wanted to see if he could apply this knowledge to other areas and make breakthroughs in those fields.

Following behind Shopkeeper Wang, the group arrived at a corner of the shop.

The counter was covered in dust, and there were no staff members standing by. Inside the counter, there were rows of Talisman made of unknown materials.

These Talisman are about the size of a palm, with intricate patterns depicted on the front. If you look closely, you'll find that these patterns are composed of smaller symbols that resemble China characters.

"Han Dan! You lazy bum, you're slacking off again while I'm not looking! Didn't I tell you to clean every counter spotless? Why is there so much dust here?"

Shopkeeper Wang attempted to defuse the awkward situation by shirking responsibility.

"But you clearly said..."

"Shut up! If you dare to argue again, you'll get half your dinner tonight!"

Shopkeeper Wang was growing increasingly dissatisfied with the Earth Demon race. That damned Han Dan, eating his food, living in his house, and now, all he was doing was making him take the blame, and he dared to make excuses!?

"Ahem. Brother, don't let the age of these Talisman fool you, their quality is absolutely guaranteed, they'll make a loud noise when you throw them! If you see one you like, just tell me, and I can make the decision and give you a discount."

It was rare to find a clueless foreigner willing to buy Talisman, Shopkeeper Wang decided that as long as he didn't lose money, he would make sure the other party bought more, even if it was cheaper.

These Talisman are no ordinary items; each one has witnessed countless years. Even if you don't use them, they'll still be valuable antiques you won't regret buying!

Bell was at a loss for words, unsure where to begin his rant. So all these Talisman were just like firecrackers? Throwing them out just to make a noise?

After carefully reading the descriptions of the various Talisman, Bell turned to look at Shopkeeper Wang.

"Brother, to be honest, I'm very interested in these Talisman. But as you know, this is my first time in China, and I don't know much about their Talisman."

So, could I try it out? Of course, I'll pay for it all at the final settlement.

Also, are there any books on making Talisman available for sale?

"Bell asked."

"If you want to buy books, you can go to Four Seas Bookstore; they have all kinds of books."

Zhao Youde interrupted first.

Before Zhao could speak, Shopkeeper Wang was forced to swallow back the words that were about to escape his lips. He had originally intended to say "yes."

It's a joke. As long as the money is right, let alone a few books, even if he were to change the business of his Treasure Pavilion into a bookstore from today onwards, Wang Defu wouldn't even bat an eye.

Although the book business was no longer viable, Shopkeeper Wang was determined not to let the Talisman business fall through.

"Brother, as your Gege, I have to say something to you. What kind of relationship do we have? If you want to test the power of the Talisman, then go ahead and try! But if you mention money to me again, I'll get angry, you know?"

Shopkeeper Wang spoke with great enthusiasm.

"What's our relationship? We have nothing!"

Bell couldn't help but mentally curse.

He was starting to not want to talk to Shopkeeper Wang anymore. He was afraid that if they continued talking, Shanna might be influenced by him and become more shameless.

You know, my younger sister is at the age where she is most easily influenced by the outside world.

Led by Shopkeeper Wang, Bell called his parents and they all went to the testing ground in the backyard of the Treasure Pavilion.

Because customers often request to test the power of magical artifacts when purchasing them, the Treasure Pavilion has prepared several practice areas in its backyard specifically for testing the power of these artifacts.

"Brother, this is a low-level training ground. You can use those targets in the distance to test the power of low-level Talisman. Depending on the color, from light to dark, the maximum damage those targets can withstand varies."

After leaving the shop lobby, Shopkeeper Wang led the Bell family into the nearest practice room.

"You idiot, hurry up and take out all the Talisman from your belly so Brother Bell can test them!"

Shopkeeper Wang kicked Han Dan in the leg and scolded him.

"Dude, you know I've never used these targets before, so I don't know how much damage they can withstand. Could I test them myself first, so I have a better idea?"

Bell made the request again.

"Certainly..."

Boom!

Before Shopkeeper Wang could finish speaking, Bell snapped his fingers, and various types of targets in the distance burst into flames.

The Bell used was his own creation, the "Ignition Curse," which was a byproduct of his research into the Undying Flame.

Both the "Flame Spell" and the "Explosion Curse" are area-of-effect (AoE Curses. Therefore, they share the drawback of AoE Curses: relatively low single-target damage.

To compensate for the lack of single-target attacks in fire Curses, Bell invented the Ignition Curse.

Based on his experience in developing the Undying Flame, he transformed the nature of the magic into "releasing a large amount of heat to burn the target upon contact with it".

Because it only takes effect upon contact with the target, the Ignition Curse also has the advantage of being stealthy.

Invented at the same time as the Ignition Curse was the Freezing Curse, which absorbs a large amount of heat upon contact with the target.