"Junior brother!"
Seeing that Zhang Jing still did not believe him, the man could only explain with a wry smile:
"I truly mean no harm."
"You were just selling talismans at the Thousand Techniques Pavilion, so you must have noticed. Higher Vehicle Quality talismans are in short supply even there. Especially lately, their supply has been particularly tight. If someone like me wants to buy several dozen at once, they won't sell them for the time being."
"Ah, let me tell you the truth."
The man sighed and continued:
"I recently rented a shop here to sell talismans and talisman-making materials. I've already contacted the talisman makers I'll be working with. All I'm missing now is some superior-quality talismans to give the shop a respectable front. I swear on my Dao heart that not half a word of what I've said is false."
So that was it.
Zhang Jing's expression eased slightly, and he said with a smile, "I understand. Please wait a moment, senior brother. I'll see whether I have any left."
With that, he made a show of searching his Storage Bag.
While Zhang Jing rummaged across from him,
the man looked at Zhang Jing's youthful face and asked with seeming casualness, "Junior brother, have you joined a Mission Team? With such a strong talent for Talisman Making, you'd probably be buried for nothing in an ordinary team."
"You haven't reached Middle Qi Refining yet. That's exactly how an ordinary Mission Team holds your talent back."
"As it happens, my Jiaya Squad ranks fifteenth in the Outer Court. We have plenty of powerful members and abundant cultivation resources. If you'd like to switch allegiances, I can introduce you! Then we'll all be on the same side."
By the end,
the man's tone was full of enticement.
Hearing this,
Zhang Jing immediately understood. This senior brother's claim that he was paying high prices for Higher Vehicle Quality talismans to bolster his shop's image might not be false, but his real aim was actually to lure Zhang Jing into the Jiaya Squad.
Had the Talisman Making ability I'd shown been too outstanding?
At this thought,
he took five Star-Attracting Talismans and five Scorching Sun Talismans from his Storage Bag, handed them to the man before him, and said apologetically:
"I'm terribly sorry, senior brother. These are all I have left. Just give me twenty Dao Merit."
"Also, I appreciate your kindness, but I'm currently in the Luodu Squad and have no plans to switch Mission Teams for now. I hope you'll understand."
The man's expression turned startled at his words.
He accepted the talismans, counted them, and said sheepishly:
"Luodu... that was presumptuous of me. Just pretend you never heard what I said."
"Take out your Identity Jade Token, junior brother. I'll transfer the Dao Merit to you."
After confirming that he had received twenty Dao Merit, Zhang Jing could not help asking with a smile:
"Senior brother, will you need more of these Higher Vehicle Quality talismans in the future?"
"Of course."
The man pointed to a shop a short distance behind him and said very politely, "Sorry for the trouble, junior brother, but please try to set aside ten Defense Talismans and ten offensive talismans for me each month. I'll still buy them at this price."
"Rest assured, senior brother. I certainly won't let your sincerity go unrewarded. I'll take my leave now."
Zhang Jing cupped his hands, then turned and left.
Behind him, the man watched Zhang Jing's retreating figure and inwardly grumbled:
Damn it, why are all these monstrous prodigies in those colossal top-ten squads? Can't they spare us a few?
Judging by his age, that junior brother should have entered the Dao Academy in the previous intake.
To have mastered Talisman Making to such an outrageous degree in just three years, he was surely destined to become an Inner Academy member of the Thousand Techniques Pavilion.
What a shame he was not a member of his own squad!
Otherwise, there would be no worrying about high-quality talismans in the future...
Meanwhile,
Zhang Jing was walking briskly toward the entrance he had come through.
He did not intend to sell the remaining talismans.
The senior brother who had suddenly appeared had given him a warning. His cultivation was still low; he had better take it easy.
Then it occurred to him that he had used up his Purple Spirit Pills, and the Thousand Techniques Pavilion's pill shop was not far from there. He might as well buy some spirit pills.
Cultivation was the foundation of everything in the Dao Academy. Zhang Jing understood that very clearly.
He had no trouble selling the talismans he made now, and would only earn more and more Dao Merit in the future. Naturally, he would not begrudge spending Dao Merit on spirit pills.
Zhang Jing glanced at his Identity Spirit Pendant.
It displayed two hundred and fifty-eight Dao Merit.
Fifty Dao Merit came from this month's newly issued reward from the Dao Academy, another hundred Dao Merit came from the talismans he had just sold, and the remaining hundred and nine Dao Merit was left over from last time.
Wait! There seemed to be one Dao Merit missing!
After thinking it over,
Zhang Jing immediately realized that the Heavenly Craft Pavilion must have quietly deducted that one Dao Merit-for the Spirit-Concentrating Meditation Cushion at the very beginning.
Half a quarter of an hour later,
Zhang Jing slowly approached an extremely spacious, lavishly furnished shop.
Merely standing at the entrance, he could faintly smell wisps of pill fragrance from within. It was immensely enticing.
A young man in green robes stood in the entryway, looking as though he had been waiting for some time. He looked at Zhang Jing with a beaming smile:
"Junior brother, what pills would you like to buy?"
"Senior brother, I'd like to buy some spirit pills to aid cultivation," Zhang Jing said, neither servile nor overbearing.
"This way, junior brother."
With that,
the green-robed young man led Zhang Jing straight toward a counter inside.
As he walked, he quietly introduced the pills to Zhang Jing:
"Junior brother, we have many kinds of spirit pills here for aiding cultivation. The most commonly used and cheapest are Purple Spirit Pills. A bottle of ten costs twelve Dao Merit. We also have some High-Grade Spirit Pills, such as Origin Water Pills, Three Yangs Nurturing Life Pills, and Green Grain Spirit-Boosting Pills, which are rather more expensive."
As he spoke, the two arrived at a counter.
Zhang Jing's gaze swept past the Purple Spirit Pills and went straight to the spirit pills the man had just introduced.
I'd earned a great deal of Dao Merit today. Couldn't I indulge a little?
Yet the next moment, he withdrew his gaze.
This senior brother really hadn't lied. They were indeed rather expensive!
Origin Water Pill, twenty-eight Dao Merit each.
Three Yangs Nurturing Life Pill, twenty-four Dao Merit each.
Green Grain Spirit-Boosting Pill, eighteen Dao Merit each.
"May I ask, senior brother, why are these spirit pills over twenty times more expensive than Purple Spirit Pills?" Zhang Jing clicked his tongue slightly.
"Haha, junior brother, naturally it's because the spiritual ingredients used to refine them are expensive."
The green-robed young man grinned. Seemingly long accustomed to such questions, he explained:
"Purple Spirit Pills are refined primarily from that wisp of purple qi at sunrise, supplemented by various spirit medicines such as spirit ginseng and vermilion fruit. The ingredients are all readily available, so naturally they're cheap."
"High-Grade Spirit Pills are different. Take Origin Water Pills, for example. Their main ingredient is Origin Water Essence, which condenses in the deepest reaches of the thousand-li Dragon Marsh Lake. It's extraordinarily precious, so naturally the pills are extremely expensive too. In fact, this price already includes a special discount from the Thousand Techniques Pavilion for Dao Academy disciples."
"In the outside world, they're supreme treasures for aiding the cultivation of water-affinity cultivators. No amount of Spirit Stones could buy even one."
"Senior brother, how do their effects compare with Purple Spirit Pills?"
Zhang Jing asked again.
"The two cannot be mentioned in the same breath."
"I understand. Thank you, senior brother." Zhang Jing took out his Identity Spirit Pendant and said calmly, "Sorry for the trouble, but please get me two bottles of Purple Spirit Pills and... one Origin Water Pill."
Hm?
The man gave Zhang Jing a surprised look at his words, seemingly not having expected him to buy an Origin Water Pill.
"Are you sure, junior brother?"
Zhang Jing nodded.
"One moment, junior brother."
Before long,
Zhang Jing accepted the spirit pills, turned, and headed outside, not daring to take another look.
After buying spirit paper and spirit ink next, he walked straight out of the Thousand Techniques Pavilion.
On the Spirit Crane's back,
Zhang Jing could not help looking toward the Thousand Techniques Pavilion again, then shook his head.
Still poor... better hurry back and make talismans.
--
P.S. I overslept during the day today, so I'm posting 5,000 words for now. I'm still staying up late writing the extra 4,000 words. You'll be able to read them tomorrow morning.