The marketplace.
As the opening of the wilderness expedition drew closer, the marketplace finally experienced a rare surge of activity.
The streets were filled with cultivators setting up stalls and shouting to sell their wares.
"I have these Qi-boosting pills; not only do they regulate your energy flow, but they also enhance your magical power."
"Mid-grade First-Rank Golden Light talisman, anyone want to trade?"
"How is that enough... Hey, don't leave, come on, trade with me! Isn't that possible?"
Disguised, Lin Chang'an blended into the crowd, eyeing the pills he had just traded for, nodding to himself in satisfaction.
With so many wandering cultivators around, although it caused some chaos, it also worked to his advantage—he could fish in troubled waters.
Or rather, he didn't need to risk going to the black market. During the daytime in the marketplace, with so many cultivators and outside wandering sect members present, various merchant guilds would seize the opportunity.
His few mid-grade Golden Light talismans might look suspicious on a single person, but tossed into the market, they wouldn't even cause a ripple.
"Whether or not there's some conspiracy, I must take advantage of this busy period to clear out my stock. Only by strengthening myself can I secure peace."
Blending with the crowd, Lin Chang'an, disguised as a wandering cultivator, slipped through a secluded alley and changed his outfit and appearance again.
Having lived here for twenty years, he knew the alleyways like the back of his hand.
After repeating this a few times, in less than a day he had almost cleared out his stock.
"A mid-grade First-Rank Fireball talisman. I'll trade you three for two of my mid-grade First-Rank Golden Light talismans."
"Are you joking, fellow cultivator?"
Finally, at a stall, Lin Chang'an revealed his true identity and haggled with the visiting stall owner.
In the end, they traded two for two, with the other party adding a bottle of Fasting Pills.
Apparently satisfied with this deal, Lin Chang'an then went to a tavern owned by the Zhou family and leaned by the window, ordering a table full of spirit wine and spirit meat.
As an external talisman craftsman employed by the Zhou family, he enjoyed certain discounts in their tavern businesses.
Following the principle of not wasting such benefits, Lin Chang'an deliberately took a longer route through the streets to get here.
Inside the bustling tavern—
"Have you heard? The Shen couple also got a Black Wind Wolf cub."
"So what? Black Wind Wolves are First-Rank demonic beasts, but nowhere near as fierce as the Flame Tiger. I heard several demon hunting squads are teaming up."
"You clearly don't know anything. Look at how many Black Wind Wolf cubs have appeared in the marketplace recently."
An older cultivator with a long beard boasted loudly, drawing curious looks from the others at the table.
"You're young and only seeing one side of things. So many cubs clearly mean someone's moved a large wolf den. Do you think ordinary demon hunting squads could pull that off? Plus, the beast-taming Zhou family even claims they have two Second-Rank Black Wind Wolf cubs in their clan. Guess what that means."
For a moment, the tavern buzzed with envious chatter.
"This time, the Zhou family really hit the jackpot."
"Who else but the Zhou family has the guts for such a big move in this marketplace?"
Listening to all this, Lin Chang'an felt a flicker of unease—if even he sensed something off, surely the Zhou family had noticed long ago.
"I'm just an external talisman craftsman. If something goes wrong, my contract only requires me to supply talismans. I'm not like those cultivators risking their lives."
With that thought that someone else would take the blame if things went south, Lin Chang'an ate and drank his fill and headed home.
He was only a Fourth-Layer Qi Refinement cultivator; worrying too much was useless. Only by increasing his own strength could he secure his future.
For several days, to outsiders Lin Chang'an only occasionally visited the marketplace; most of the time he was diligently cultivating or teaching apprentices.
In his secret chamber—
Lin Chang'an slowly opened his eyes, feeling the subtle increase in his magical power, and sighed in wonder.
"What kind of life was I living before? If I'd had spirit stones and pills helping me every day, I'd have broken through long ago."
No pain like a sharp contrast—he now consumed more cultivation resources in one month than he used to in half a year.
Habitually, he opened his status panel to check his progress.
Name: Lin Chang'anLifespan: 40/98Realm: Qi Refinement, Layer 4 (2/100)Cultivation Technique: Changchun Gong (Mastery: 869/1000)Skills: Golden Light Talisman (Mastery 18/1000), Divine Movement Talisman (Mastery 1/1000)Spells: Fireball Spell (Mastery 458/1000), Breath Suppression (Mastery 219/1000), Invisibility (Mastery 130/1000), Object Repulsion (Proficient 488/500) …
Looking at his realm, Lin Chang'an smiled.
"As my mastery of Changchun Gong increases, my cultivation speed is accelerating."
Thanks to the notes his junior sister had given him, his understanding of Changchun Gong was advancing rapidly—after all, it was a technique for late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators.
But before long, memories of the recent marketplace chaos and a vague unease dampened his mood.
"At this pace, breaking through to Fifth Layer Qi Refinement will still take two or three years. But with the wilderness expedition imminent, the marketplace probably won't stay peaceful for long."
"I have to speed up my cultivation. Right now, I only know how to make Golden Light Talismans at mid-grade First-Rank level; I need to learn one or two more types of mid-grade talisman crafting techniques. That way I can quietly accumulate cultivation resources."
Having experienced the speed boost from spirit stones, he wasn't going back to slow cultivation.
Especially at his age, he couldn't afford to waste time.
With that in mind, Lin Chang'an took out all the spirit stones he had exchanged over the past few days from his storage pouch.
With a clatter, a pile of sparkling spirit stones appeared in his lap.
"In just three months, I've earned over ninety spirit stones. And that's not even counting the pills I exchanged for cultivation. Who would believe that?"
Even Lin Chang'an was wide-eyed and amazed at the amount.
An average mid-grade First-Rank talisman craftsman, ignoring costs, would only earn about a dozen spirit stones a month. But in his locked-in crafting state, he could make over a hundred.
"Every wilderness expedition is a rare golden era. Normally scarce treasures like magical tools, spirit pets, and cultivation arts—even Foundation Establishment pills—appear."
This was also his chance.
He didn't dare hope for Foundation Establishment pills, but talisman crafting techniques were definitely tempting.
"To be safe, I'll secretly learn one or two other types of mid-grade First-Rank talismans. This will prevent giving myself away, since some senior talisman crafters can tell if talismans come from the same hand, even within the same type."
Talismans could be offensive, defensive, escape, and more; each type used different materials and techniques. Even if made by the same person, it was hard to detect.
But talismans of the exact same type were easier to identify.
So recently, the buyers he sold or traded with were mostly demon hunters—these cultivators used the talismans themselves and consumed them rapidly.
"At least I need to learn one or two other types of mid-grade First-Rank talismans. Without neglecting my cultivation, I can probably earn about a hundred spirit stones a month, ignoring costs."
Lin Chang'an pondered this. Although his spiritual root talent was poor, he could make up for it with spirit stones. His urgent task was to increase his cultivation to survive in this turbulent cultivation world.
He had wasted forty years; if he didn't fight now, he might as well return to the mundane world and enjoy wealth.
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