CHAPTER 63: CHAPTER 63 TALISMAN CULTIVATORS’ ASSOCIATION_1

Jia Ren set up a large pot, ruthlessly slaughtered the Spirit Turtle, and threw the chopped turtle meat into the pot to simmer.

Before long, the rich scent of the meat wafted through the air.

He activated the Formation to prevent the aroma from escaping.

Formations are a good thing!

Setting up Formations in the Outer City is too conspicuous. Once I reach the Qi Refinement Seventh Level and enter the Inner City, I’ll set up a protective Formation around my residence first.

"Brother Jia, I’ve found a stone house in the Northern District, not far from where you live."

"Let’s use it as our transaction point in the Outer City."

A Sound Transmission Talisman was halted outside the Formation. Jia Ren received it, hearing Yang Shengwu’s voice.

Jia Ren opened the Cave Dwelling’s Formation. Seeing that Yang Shengwu hadn’t left yet, a Storage Bag was thrown over to him.

Inside were Blank Talisman Paper and materials for making Demon-transforming Spirit Ink.

"Brother Jia, you foresaw this trouble perfectly."

"Today, while purchasing Blank Talisman Paper, a Talisman Master approached me, inviting me to join the Talisman Cultivators’ Association."

"I thought it was a good thing at first, but it turned out to be a trap."

"The Talisman Master said I had to give up thirty percent of the Spirit Stones from sales to be recognized by the Talisman Cultivators’ Association."

The Talisman Cultivators’ Association?

An organization among the Talisman Masters of the Inner City?

Thirty percent of the profit is not a small asking price.

Could this be the reason Elder Wu left the Inner City?

Unfortunately, Elder Wu had left too early, and there was no way to ask him.

"It’s not thirty percent of the profit; it’s thirty percent of the Spirit Stones. For a Demon-Spotting Talisman sold for one Spirit Stone, they immediately take away Three Fragmented Spirits," Yang Shengwu explained.

The price is too high!

Thirty percent of the total price and thirty percent of the profit are not the same thing.

For a Demon-Spotting Talisman sold at one Spirit Stone, after subtracting Three Fragmented Spirits, only seven Fragmented Spirit Stones would remain. Maintaining a fifty percent success rate in Talisman Crafting, and deducting the cost of Five Broken Spirits for materials, Jia Ren could only earn Two Crystal Shards.

That was tantamount to taking away sixty percent of the profit.

If the Talisman Crafting success rate is low, it could even lead to losses...

This cut is lethal.

Did the talisman shop that sells Demon-Spotting Talismans make its move?

We Loose Cultivators can’t afford to provoke them. Setting up a stall in the Inner City would bring big trouble. Let’s move it to the Outer City.

The Outer City has a smaller circle, and hence, fewer troubles.

Jia Ren could not confirm if the Heavenly Talisman Shop was behind this, but he was certain they were involved.

Having sold over two hundred Demon-Spotting Talismans in recent days, he had essentially poached potential customers from the Heavenly Talisman Shop. With their revenue down by six or seven hundred Spirit Stones, the Heavenly Talisman Shop definitely wouldn’t sit idly by.

From now on, stability is the priority. I can accept earning fewer Spirit Stones.

In the following three days, Jia Ren focused on simmering Turtle Spirit Ointment and spent the rest of his time preparing the Demon-transforming Spirit Ink.

Making Spirit Ink was much less complex than Talisman Crafting. With the Proficiency Panel, getting started was simple.

After using up all the materials he had, he successfully improved the Demon-transforming Spirit Ink to Master Level, and the quality of his Demon-Spotting Talismans reached Elder Wu’s standard.

"The Turtle Spirit Ointment is ready!"

After three days of cooking, Jia Ren lifted out the turtle meat and extracted the creamy, beige ointment.

The quantity of Turtle Spirit Ointment had doubled from the last time, totaling twenty-one bottles.

"Time for closed-door cultivation!"

Without any hesitation, Jia Ren swallowed the Turtle Spirit Ointment and began his cultivation.

One bottle of Turtle Spirit Ointment added 15 points to his Cultivation Level progress, 20 points to his Cultivation Technique Proficiency Level, and increased his lifespan by just over a year.

I don’t have much time left on my Cave Dwelling rental.

Seeing no additional benefits from the Cave Dwelling, Jia Ren only renewed the Inner City Three-Day Token and rented the Cave Dwelling for three more days.

Setting aside all other concerns, he focused wholeheartedly on cultivation.

Six days later, Jia Ren opened his eyes. All twenty-one bottles of Turtle Spirit Ointment had been completely consumed.

His Cultivation Level progress had increased by 318 points, his Cultivation Technique Proficiency Level by 423 points, and his lifespan limit by twenty-one years.

In just seven days, he had gained more than half the Cultivation Level progress required for the Sixth Layer of Qi Refinement, with the Qi Refinement Seventh Level drawing ever closer.

Yet, the most important gain was the increase in lifespan.

His lifespan limit had risen from ninety-seven to one hundred eighteen years, and the upper limit of his daily Skill Breaking Points increased.

Can Turtle Spirit Ointment be improved further?

The lifespan limit in the Qi Refinement Realm is one hundred fifty years, so there should still be room for improvement.

Jia Ren still had two Spirit Turtles in his possession, which together were not as potent as the one he had just consumed. Combined with the Elixirs at hand, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to reach the peak of the Sixth Layer of Qi Refinement.

"It’s time to leave!"

The rental price for Cave Dwellings was not low, and renting for too long might attract unwanted attention.

Jia Ren went to the Insect Breeding Room of the Cave Dwelling and looked at the three Green Silk Worms that had not yet hatched, then turned his gaze to the Exotic Black Mosquitoes.

Have you laid eggs?

Without a little pressure, you won’t know to work harder.

In the Spiritual Liquid cultivating the Exotic Black Mosquitoes, he could see countless slender eggs, numbering over a hundred.

Most of them were viable, not dead eggs.

Jia Ren finally had Exotic Black Mosquitoes that truly belonged to him.

"Not bad!"

"It’s time to send you on your way."

With the Exotic Black Mosquitoes having laid their eggs, their value was exhausted. Jia Ren dared not keep them by his side, lest the Mosquito Daoist take the opportunity to come knocking.

"Spirit Contract Mark!"

Jia Ren applied the Spirit Contract Mark to each of the Exotic Black Mosquito eggs, imprinting them with a controlling seal.

If all the Exotic Black Mosquitoes are cultivated successfully, they could reach at least half the strength of the Mosquito Daoist. Even in the Late Stage of Qi Refinement, one could fight.

This will be a trump card in battle.

"Daoist friend, will you renew the rental of the Cave Dwelling?" The Cave Dwelling Steward knocked on the door and asked as usual.

"No Spirit Stones. I won’t renew."

A Cultivator at the Sixth Layer of Qi Refinement renting a Cave Dwelling every day would certainly be seen as easy prey.

I should never assume that just because the Cave Dwellings belong to the Five Elements Sect, I’m absolutely safe.

Jia Ren fobbed off the Steward with a few casual words and quickly left.

A pauper dares to rent a Cave Dwelling!

The Steward took out a small notebook and crossed off Jia Ren’s name.

I can’t stay in the Outer City too long. After my Cultivation Level breaks through, I can move to the Inner City.

I wonder how the Demon-Spotting Talisman business has been recently?

Jia Ren first went to the stone house Yang Shengwu rented in the Outer City. Before he got close, he saw from afar that the stone house was on the verge of collapse, scorched all over, and still emitting wisps of smoke.

The ground was a mess, littered with bloodstains and craters from a fight.

A fierce battle had taken place here.

Yang Shengwu’s blood?

Jia Ren decisively sent a Sound Transmission Talisman to Yang Shengwu to inquire about the situation.

A moment later, the Sound Transmission Talisman carried a reply.

It’s a relief he’s not dead.

"I didn’t expect the Talisman Cultivators’ Association to make a move against me. I nearly capsized in a gutter."

The Talisman Cultivators’ Association?

Why would they take action?

I’ve retreated to the Outer City. Does the Talisman Cultivators’ Association still not wish to give me a way out?

Jia Ren was both shocked and angry. He had originally thought that by following Elder Wu’s example, selling only in the Outer City wouldn’t be a big problem.

Unexpectedly, trouble had still found its way to him.

"The first day I went to the Outer City to sell, I only sold twelve Demon-Spotting Talismans; the drop-off was too great. Wanting to earn more Spirit Stones, I contacted a few demon-hunting Loose Cultivators to come buy in the Outer City."

"They helped spread the word that Demon-Spotting Talismans could be bought in the Outer City for one Spirit Stone. More and more Loose Cultivators came to buy, and business gradually improved."

"Selling Demon-Spotting Talismans in the Outer City still doesn’t count as breaking the rules."

"But the Talisman Cultivators’ Association still came knocking, telling me to stop selling Demon-Spotting Talismans."

"I thought it was just a warning, but no sooner had I left the Market than I was ambushed. If not for my many years of demon hunting and rich combat experience, I might have perished."

Yang Shengwu had clearly learned his lesson. Not wanting to bring trouble to Jia Ren, he hadn’t shown himself and always used Sound Transmission Talismans to convey information.

If the Talisman Cultivators’ Association dared to make a move, they must have sent at least a Qi Refinement Seventh Level Cultivator.

The battle wasn’t as easy as Yang Shengwu described. It must have been a fight to the death.

Indeed, the world of Cultivators is cruel.

Even retreating to do business in the Outer City couldn’t prevent a fatal disaster.

If Yang Shengwu hadn’t been selling Demon-Spotting Talismans for me, I might have been the one ambushed today.

"Don’t sell any Demon-Spotting Talismans for now. Lie low for a while."

I’ll remember this grudge for now.