Second-Tier Talisman Master

Early morning at the Song Clan Talisman Shop.

The shop had only recently opened, and no customers had arrived yet. Song Yixue curled up in a sandalwood armchair behind the counter, silently lost in thought.

It had been half a year since she came to Azure Luan Immortal City. She had always felt like a piece of duckweed drifting with the current, unable to find a place where her heart could rest.

When she was with the Lineage, she had devoted herself to arduous cultivation, thinking only of reaching Foundation Establishment one day and lending her strength to the Lineage.

But to her surprise, when an unforeseen calamity struck, the Lineage could not even protect itself. It had been forced to seek shelter in Azure Luan Immortal City, barely clinging to life.

With Brother Mo's help, she had lived a fairly settled life these past months. Yet the crushing pressure brought by the Ji Household had never ceased to weigh on her heart.

When will these days ever end? Even if I reach Foundation Establishment, what good will it do?

Recently, the Lineage had reduced its support considerably. If Brother Mo's high-grade talismans had not kept it going, the talisman shop probably would not have lasted much longer!

Brother Mo should have gone to attempt Foundation Establishment recently. I wonder if he succeeded?

Third Brother said Brother Mo has Four Spirit Roots. Even with a genuine Foundation Establishment Pill, his chances are probably slim...

As Song Yixue's thoughts wandered, a figure appeared at the door.

As soon as he entered, the man said with an easy swagger, "An honored guest has arrived. If the proprietress doesn't come out to greet him now, what is she waiting for?"

Song Yixue flew into a rage at his words and was about to scold him when she was startled to find that he looked somewhat familiar.

She looked closely and saw that his build and features bore a striking resemblance to Brother Mo's. He simply looked younger, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

"Are you Brother Mo?" Song Yixue asked, her voice trembling slightly with disbelief.

Mo Wen laughed. "Who else would it be? Sister Yixue, I've succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment!"

Song Yixue excitedly ran up to Mo Wen and looked him up and down for quite a while before breaking into a smile.

Her smile was pure. She was happy from the bottom of her heart that Mo Wen had succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment, without a trace of anything else.

Looking at her smiling face, Mo Wen could not help feeling an impulse to take her in his arms, to cherish and care for her.

When most high-level cultivators admired female cultivators, they paid little attention to outward appearances. After all, there were no ugly female cultivators!

What these high-level cultivators valued more were a female cultivator's charm and bearing. These inner qualities represented the strength and perfection of her soul.

In Mo Wen's eyes, Song Yixue was like a lotus swaying in the wind, her beauty touched with purity, her purity touched with allure, and her allure touched with cool pride.

Normally, Song Yixue's quiet, refined nature lent her an air of detachment, as though nothing in the world could weigh on her mind.

Today, startled by the news that Mo Wen had reached Foundation Establishment, Song Yixue finally showed a little of her true nature, revealing her charm to the fullest.

Mo Wen's heart truly fluttered. He stared at the graceful woman before him, entranced for a moment.

Song Yixue soon noticed Mo Wen's lapse. A blush spread across her cheeks, and she said with a gentle reproach, "Brother Mo, you're teasing me on purpose. I'm not talking to you anymore!"

Mo Wen finally came to his senses. His old face felt a little hot, and he hurriedly said, "Don't be angry, Sister. I was only joking. Please forgive me."

"I'm happy today, so I'll let you off this once!" Song Yixue said, unable to hold back a giggle, her whole bearing even more captivating.

Mo Wen gathered his thoughts and asked Song Yixue how she had been.

"Not bad, I suppose. With your high-grade talismans as the shop's attraction, Brother Mo, we can always draw in some customers. It's just that the clan has sent us less than half as many middle- and low-grade talismans as before. Now we're relying entirely on buying talismans from low-grade talisman masters to keep going, so our profits have fallen quite a bit."

"As for that fellow Ji Yuan, he may be recovering from his injuries. He hasn't sent anyone to harass us either."

At the mention of Ji Yuan, Song Yixue's expression dimmed slightly.

"Don't worry. Now that I've reached Foundation Establishment, I'm more than capable of keeping you safe." Mo Wen offered her a word of comfort, then took a high-grade Message Transmission Talisman from his robes and said gently, "If anyone causes trouble, use this Message Transmission Talisman to notify me. I'll come as quickly as I can."

Song Yixue gave Mo Wen a long look and accepted the Message Transmission Talisman without refusing.

The two chatted for a while longer. When Mo Wen saw customers beginning to arrive, he said goodbye and left.

After returning home, Mo Wen did not cultivate. Instead, he hurried to make a batch of talismans, some high-grade and some middle-grade. With his current attainments in the Talisman Dao, he no longer needed to draw middle-grade talismans. But Song Yixue needed them, so spending a little time on them was no trouble!

Once the talismans were finished, Mo Wen immediately made a trip to the Song Clan Talisman Shop. This time, he did not ask Song Yixue to pay him on the spot, instead telling her to buy some high-grade pills to aid her cultivation first.

Though a sheet of window paper still lay between them, each had sensed something of the other's feelings. Song Yixue did not refuse, but the look she gave Mo Wen grew a little more intense.

Only after offering Song Yixue some words of encouragement did Mo Wen return to his cave abode and resume his arduous cultivation. With his current strength, he was still far from a match for the Ji Household. He could only cultivate in secret and hone his edge.

Time flew, and another half year passed in the blink of an eye. After cultivating diligently during this time, Mo Wen had improved in every aspect. His overall strength was no longer weak among Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivators.

On this day, he had just drawn a high-grade Spirit-Concentrating Talisman when he felt his sea of consciousness shake violently. A wealth of experience and skill in drawing talismans appeared out of nowhere, and his understanding of the Talisman Dao rose to another level!

Have I broken through to become a second-tier talisman master? Mo Wen was overjoyed.

He immediately opened the Attribute Panel:

Host: Mo Wen

Talent: Heavenly Dao Rewards Diligence (you reap what you sow; effort always brings a reward!)

Age: (62/134)

Spirit Roots: Four Spirit Roots (wood 42, metal 31, fire 25, water 11)

Cultivation: Qi Refining Limit Breaking (62417/100000)

Cultivation Methods: Azure Wood Instruction (perfection 13258/50000), Sun Essence and Moon Radiance Life-Praying Technique (proficient 30421/1000000), Hundred Transformations Heart Scripture Qi Refining Chapter (great accomplishment 3028/10000), Ten Thousand Blood True Body Instruction (beginner 2435/10000)

Law Techniques: Black Tortoise Armor (proficient 2736/5000), Fire Crow Technique (proficient 2279/5000), Meteor Arrow (proficient 1245/5000), Six Paths Killing Fist (beginner 9563/10000)

Sword Dao: Flowing Light Sword Technique (great accomplishment 15386/50000)

Talisman Dao: second-tier low-grade (1/30000)

Heavenly Demon Mysterious Talismans (not yet begun 31/10000)

"Thirty thousand experience points just for second-tier low-grade? That's way too hard!" Mo Wen could not help lamenting.

Since transmigrating, he had spent five years raising his Talisman Dao to the second tier. If the requirements doubled successively for second-tier middle-grade and high-grade, he would need 210,000 experience points to reach the peak of the second tier!

Even if he devoted himself entirely to the Talisman Dao, he could not grind out 210,000 experience points without forty or fifty years!

"No wonder there are so few third-tier talisman masters in the whole vast Azure Luan Immortal City!"

Mo Wen let out a long sigh and began planning how to obtain a second-tier Talisman Dao inheritance.