Witch, please have some self-respect!

If one were to take the test now, it would take a full day and night without rest, and without failing even once, to complete the engraving of ten talismans.

It would be too boastful to succeed on the first try.

He can't rely solely on good fortune to succeed; he'll have to fail three or four times as well.

Including the break time, it will take at least two days to complete the assessment.

"It's been such a long time, and we still need to adjust our mindset. We should be able to conduct the assessments in stages."

Shen Yun thought for a moment and realized that perhaps the Heavenly Craftsmanship Palace's assessment wouldn't be conducted by collecting all ten talisman stones at once, but rather in batches.

I haven't asked about it before, but I can ask when I have time.

Furthermore, he planned to wait until he reached the third level of Body Cultivation before considering the assessment; even at the second level of Body Cultivation, he could barely carve attribute runes.

Becoming an entry-level rune master is as easy as taking candy from a baby!

Upon further reflection, Shen Yun's mood instantly improved, and all her fatigue eased considerably.

Storing the Ice Mist Runestone in the custom-made cane adds another powerful life-saving trump card.

Shen Yun went into the courtyard, pulled the recliner into the sunlight, brewed a cup of spiritual tea, and lay down comfortably.

[Purple Thunder Breathing Technique (Minor Success 650/1000)] +1

By investing a little merit, the breathing technique will start operating on its own and can sustain it for more than half an hour.

With the current rate of progress achieved through both stat increases and natural growth, approximately twenty progress points can be gained per day.

In no time, he recovered.

Looking at the ancient scroll, Shen Yun figured that his breathing technique had broken through to the Great Perfection before the Demon Slaughtering Ceremony.

As he pondered, the fatigue from carving the talisman stones overwhelmed him, and Shen Yun fell asleep.

Su Wan'er walked out of the room, looked at her husband sleeping in the courtyard under the setting sun, and took a blanket to cover him.

Then I got busy cooking.

......

A few days later, Shen Yun went out to sell talisman stones again.

He kept one Golden Knife Talisman and one Ice Mist Talisman in his walking stick, and sold the remaining two.

With the addition of three protective runes, all of them were replaced with twenty-three ordinary source stones.

Gold is too heavy and far less convenient to carry than Originium.

One Originium is worth thirty taels of gold.

Now that his cane is filled with a large number of rune stones, he feels more confident and simply uses source stones as currency.

"Now that we have enough resources, we can continue to make rune stones to accumulate resources and focus more on cultivation to improve our cultivation level."

Shen Yun lay on the rocking chair, fanning himself with a fan.

He hadn't forgotten his purpose in learning how to make talismans: to buy resources and improve his cultivation level.

Do not put the cart before the horse.

"If you want to increase your cultivation speed, you can't just eat Blood Essence Pills like candy; you still need to buy Blood Food."

Shen Yun thought about the information he had gathered about blood food during this period.

Blood food is the flesh and blood of a great demon.

What is a great demon?

Only the demonic beasts of the Heavenly Forging Palace above the Blood Sea Realm can be called Great Demons.

Having advanced two major realms, one can imagine the extent to which it nourishes the body in the Nourishing Realm.

The problem is that this thing is not only expensive, but you also have to register with your real name to buy it, and there are purchase limits.

One per year.

To obtain a large amount of blood food, one must join a faction.

In the pursuit of spiritual advancement, one cannot avoid the hurdle of joining a powerful force.

In the entire Holy City, the only two powerful forces are the Heavenly Crafts Bureau and the Holy Sect of Fortune.

It's not that easy to get in.

People like Song Da, the Wei brothers, and Qiao Niang, who are independent cultivators, have no hope in this life.

Their current advanced cultivation levels are the result of over a decade or two of gradual improvement.

As you get older, it's good if you don't even regress, let alone reach new heights.

Although the Holy City is vast, without joining a faction, reaching the late stage of Body Cultivation is not difficult, but reaching the Blood Sea Realm is hopeless.

"After passing the Heavenly Craftsmanship Bureau's assessment, we'll decide whether to join the Heavenly Craftsmanship Bureau or the Holy Sect."

Shen Yun rocked back and forth in his rocking chair. He had never considered the possibility of not joining a faction and going it alone.

He wants to enjoy life, and he needs a powerful backer to find comfort.

Once you become an elder in the upper echelons, you'll enjoy endless wealth and glory.

If one were to go even further, perhaps even becoming a top-tier combatant or a sect patriarch...

That won't work; we need to find a stronger place.

"Come on, Brother Shen, let's play a game of chess."

Old Liu stood in the alley and shouted to Shen Yun through the low wall and small courtyard.

"Here we go."

Looking at the slightly dejected Old Liu, Shen Yun readily agreed.

The two sat down on a stone bench under a tree in the alley, each holding a piece, and began their epic duel.

"Brother, don't let one person become your only option. There are plenty of fish in the sea..."

Shen Yun deliberately lost a move and offered words of comfort.

Qiao Niang has already gone on an adventure in the wilderness.

He had explicitly refused Lao Liu's offer before going, and he had been depressed these past few days.

"The more you care about someone, the more prone you are to feeling insecure and anxious about losing them..."

"You don't necessarily need him, you just don't want your efforts to be in vain..."

"If you really can't let go, Lao Liu, go into the city and chat with the fairies of the Palace of Delightful Desire to ease your suffering."

After drinking the duck soup from his previous life, Shen Yun felt much better, and Old Liu was dominating the chessboard again.

"We can't go to the Palace of Delightful Desires. At our age, once we've been drained, we can't make up for it. We can go to the Hall of Melodious Music to listen to some music, though."

Old Liu analyzed it with an air of seriousness.

Sure enough, a man will never be honest unless he's hung on the wall.

Miaoyinfang was a place where people listened to music in brothels.

Old Liu, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, naturally understands these things, and may even have been there before.

The two began to discuss, and it was said that many of those in the Hall of Desire and the Hall of Melodious Sound were disciples of the Holy Sect who practiced special methods.

"This Demon-Slaying Ceremony has been fraught with twists and turns, and I've heard that there may be further changes. It's not certain that Qiaoniang will be safe on her journey."

The topic of conversation between men changed quickly, and Lao Liu started talking about the current situation in the Holy City.

"How so?"

Shen Yun realized that Lao Liu had heard inside information.

These days, the news from the outside world is generally positive; the barbaric demon race is no longer a threat and has become prey.

"I heard from the stewards at the management office that something has happened at Jinyan Mountain. The Lord of the Heavenly Demon Temple of the Demon Clan has descended and gathered many powerful demons."

Old Liu looked around to make sure no one was around, then lowered his voice and said.

"Palace Master? Could there really be a demigod's legacy on Golden Rock Mountain? Won't it affect the Holy City?"

Shen Yun's hand trembled. The Palace Master of the Heavenly Demon Palace was a figure at the level of the Sect Master of the Holy Sect.

The sect leader of Zixiao Sect also visited a few days ago, along with the hall master of Tianyao Holy Palace.

This is unusual!

"Don't worry, at most they'll cause trouble in Jinyan Mountain. They don't have the ability to attack the Holy City."

Old Liu wasn't as worried as Shen Yun about this.

The Holy City has been at peace for a long time, and apart from testing and maintenance, the city's protective formation has not been activated for many years.

As one of the top cities in the Azure Fiend Secret Realm, once the city's protective formation is activated, even if all the great demons of the Heavenly Demon Holy Temple were to arrive together, they would not be able to break it.

"This is actually a good thing. Great demons that are rarely seen in the past are appearing in large numbers. I heard that Cang Motong, the true disciple of my Holy Sect, and Xiao Yifan, the Demon-Suppressing Thunder Lord, joined forces to kill two great demons. This means that the sect can have two more flesh and blood medicinal fields."

Old Liu wore a proud expression.

Hearing that familiar name again, Shen Yun felt uneasy.

The place where Xiao Yifan was was in even more chaos!

Although he had been keeping an eye on this person who was suspected to be his nephew these days, Xiao Yifan had been staying at Jinyan Mountain.

We didn't have a chance to meet.

Fortunately, it was all the disciples who took action; the Holy Master, Sect Master, and Elders did not move, and the situation remained under control.

Another thing that amazed Shen Yun was that the Zixiao Sect sounded like a righteous sect, while their Holy Sect was a demonic sect.

However, they did not detect any hostile relationship between the different sects in it.

When asked, Lao Liu stammered and couldn't give a clear answer.

Shen Yun asked in a low voice, "Old Liu, I heard that there's a black market in the Holy City, where you can find everything from cultivation techniques and pills to spiritual plants, blood-based foods, and magical artifacts, and it's even cheaper than the Holy Treasure Pavilion?"

"What, you want to go to the black market?" Old Liu looked at Shen Yun with surprise.

"However, I must give you a piece of advice: the black markets are all located thirty miles outside the city, in a wild and unruly place with no order whatsoever."

Even if you buy something, you might not be able to bring it back. Given your abilities, you might end up losing both your money and your possessions.

Old Liu was puzzled. He inquired about the black market. Was his old friend secretly working on something?

Shen Yun shook his head: "I don't have the money to go sightseeing. I just heard that there is such a place."

I also learned a lot about the black market from Lao Liu. In the lawless wilderness, murder and robbery are commonplace, and it is indeed dangerous.

If it were inside the city, that would be fine, but Shen Yun didn't plan to go outside the city.

Going to the black market is not as reliable as breaking through to the next level, getting certified as an advanced talisman master, and joining the Heavenly Craftsmanship Palace or the Holy Sect.

It's not worth the risk.