I am in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have a demonic beast clone!

Chapter 165 Zhou's Talisman Making!

Having made up his mind, Zhou Ding no longer hesitated.

He stood up and took one last look at Xiao Jin, who was curled up asleep in the corner of the quiet room, her aura steadily transforming.

The little creature's body was curled into a perfect circle, its dark golden scales rising and falling slightly with its even breathing. With each breath, a wisp of pure dragon demon power was absorbed into its body, slowly merging with its own primordial bloodline.

The sensations transmitted through the soul connection were like the peace and growth of a fetus in the womb, which brought Zhou Ding a sense of security.

He turned and walked out of the quiet room, through the corridor, and arrived at the door of Xin Ruyin's study.

The study door was not completely closed, leaving a gap about two fingers wide.

Through this gap, one can see Xin Ruyin sitting behind a desk piled high with jade slips and diagrams.

The afternoon sun shone through the window, casting a soft glow on her.

In one hand she held a newly unfurled ancient animal hide scroll, its surface yellowish and edges worn, clearly indicating its age; in the other hand she lightly traced lines in the air, pale golden magical threads flowing from her fingertips like nimble golden snakes, leaving fleeting trails in the air, simulating some kind of mysterious array.

Her expression was extremely focused, her brows were slightly furrowed, and she gently bit her lower lip with her pearly teeth. She was clearly immersed in the vast world of array formations in the "Qiankun Array Canon" and did not even notice Zhou Ding approaching.

Zhou Ding stood at the door for a moment, looking at her focused and earnest profile, a surge of tenderness welling up in his heart. Not wanting to interrupt her thoughts, he gently knocked on the door frame.

"Knock knock."

A crisp knock echoed in the quiet room. Xin Ruyin jolted awake, her shoulders trembling slightly as she snapped out of her reverie.

She looked up, her gaze still somewhat lost, as if she had just returned from another world.

Upon recognizing Zhou Ding, a gentle smile immediately appeared in his clear eyes, like spring water melting ice.

She put down the animal skin scroll in her hand, stood up, and said, "Zhou Lang? Weren't you cultivating in the quiet room? Is something the matter?"

Zhou Ding walked into the study and sat down in the chair by the window.

He didn't speak immediately. Instead, he looked at the swaying bamboo shadows outside the window and listened to the rustling of the bamboo leaves in the wind. After a moment of contemplation, he organized his thoughts before slowly speaking: "Ruyin, the divine sense cultivation technique I practice, the Great Evolution Technique, has been stuck at the peak of the third level for some time now."

His voice was calm, but Xin Ruyin could still detect a hint of seriousness in it. She walked to the chair next to him and sat down, not interrupting, but simply watching him quietly, waiting for him to continue.

Zhou Ding's gaze remained fixed on the window, as if looking into the distance: "Recently, I've been pondering this repeatedly, and I feel that my solitary cultivation has made little progress. That bottleneck is like an invisible high wall; no matter how I try to break through it, it remains unmoved."

Upon hearing this, Xin Ruyin's expression slightly hardened.

She knew about the "Great Evolution Technique," a profound and mysterious cultivation method that significantly enhanced spiritual awareness, but the later the stage, the more difficult it became to break through.

She herself was practicing this technique and knew its profound depth and the difficulty of achieving mastery. She asked with concern, "Has Zhou Lang thought of a solution?"

Zhou Ding finally turned his gaze away from the window and towards Xin Ruyin, his eyes filled with a clear and decisive look that came from deep thought: "I want to go out for a walk."

He paused, as if carefully choosing his words, "He sealed his cultivation and divine consciousness, and entered the world as a mortal to experience the vicissitudes of life, to refine his mind amidst the mundane world, and to seek an opportunity for breakthrough."

"Transforming into the mortal world?"

Xin Ruyin was slightly taken aback. She was familiar with this term; she had read about it in some ancient books. It was a method often used by ancient cultivators to break through mental bottlenecks, but very few people actually put it into practice.

She fell silent, her beautiful eyes lowered, her long eyelashes casting faint shadows on her eyelids.

She was exceptionally intelligent and instantly understood Zhou Ding's intention.

On the path of cultivation, especially at higher levels, it is often not just about accumulating magical power, but also about cultivating one's state of mind and refining one's soul.

Working in isolation is often less effective than gaining experience and learning from the world.

Especially for supreme techniques like the "Great Evolution Technique," which directly points to the origin of the soul, breaking through its bottleneck requires the perfection and sublimation of one's state of mind.

She remained silent for a moment, the only sound in the study being the rustling of bamboo leaves outside the window.

Then, she raised her head and looked at Zhou Ding, her gaze gentle yet firm: "I have also cultivated the Great Evolution Technique, and I know that the further you go in this technique, the more difficult it becomes. The bottleneck between the third and fourth levels is indeed extraordinary. Perhaps, entering the mortal world and experiencing the joys and sorrows of life is indeed a feasible way to break through this bottleneck."

She reached out and gently grasped Zhou Ding's hand. His hands, calloused from years of drawing array patterns, were unusually warm. "Since you have such a heart, Zhou Lang, go in peace."

Her words were gentle, yet carried an unwavering support: "You don't need to worry about anything in the cave. I will take good care of the cave and Xiaomei, and I will also devote myself to studying the 'Qiankun Array Scripture' and the Forbidden Yuan Black Box. You just focus on pursuing your path; I'll take care of things at home."

She paused slightly, a teasing smile appearing on her lips. "By the time you come back, I might have already broken half of the seal on that black box."

Feeling the warmth from Xin Ruyin's palm and hearing her unreserved support and trust in her words, Zhou Ding felt an indescribable surge of emotion and guilt.

Over the years, he has been traveling around seeking opportunities and breaking through his cultivation level, so he hasn't had much time to spend with her.

But she always silently stayed behind, managing the cave, studying formations, supporting his every decision, never complaining, and never hindering him.

She was like a quiet kapok tree, independent and unattached, yet always standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

He reached out and gently pulled Xin Ruyin into his arms, resting his chin on her smooth forehead, the faint, refreshing fragrance of her hair lingering around his nose.

His voice was slightly hoarse and full of affection: "Ruyin, these years—you've had a tough time."

Xin Ruyin nestled against his broad chest, feeling his strong heartbeat; the steady rhythm brought her a sense of peace.

She gently shook her head, her voice as soft as a dream: "Why do you say such a thing, Zhou Lang?"

Her gaze drifted into the distance, as if recalling that rainy night many years ago. "If it weren't for Zhou Lang's rescue back then, I would have already died from the reversed meridians caused by my Dragon Roar Body, turning into a handful of dust. You gave me a new life, allowing me to see a wider world and come into contact with the Dao of Array Formations that I've always dreamed of. Now, every day I live, everything I do is in the hope of helping you as much as possible, so that you can walk more steadily and further on your path to the Great Dao."

She raised her head, her clear eyes looking directly into Zhou Ding's eyes, "This is—the meaning of my life."

Her words were calm and sincere, without flowery language, yet they contained the deepest emotions and the most steadfast beliefs.

Zhou Ding's heart surged with emotion, as if a warm current was flowing through his chest, and he could no longer suppress his feelings. He lowered his head, gently lifted Xin Ruyin's chin, looked into her clear, affectionate eyes, and kissed her deeply.

Xin Ruyin let out a soft moan, and two beautiful blushes instantly rose on her cheeks, even her ears turning pink.

She didn't flinch, but closed her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling slightly as she passionately responded. At that moment, all words seemed superfluous; a thousand unspoken emotions were contained in this deep, tender kiss.

After a long while, their lips parted, and both of them were breathing slightly erratically.

Xin Ruyin buried her face in Zhou Ding's chest, her ears still red, but she still held him tightly, as if she wanted to forever engrave this moment of warmth in her heart.

The next morning, as dawn broke.

The first rays of morning light shone through the window and fell on the floor of the quiet room.

Zhou Ding changed into a simple gray cloth robe, even with several patches.

The robe was of rough texture and dull color, a stark contrast to the blue robe he wore in Tianxing City.

He stood in the center of the quiet room, closed his eyes, and slowly activated the sealing secret technique of the "Great Evolution Technique" within his body, sealing his vast, ocean-like magical power and boundless, abyss-like divine consciousness layer upon layer in the depths of his dantian and sea of ​​consciousness, like binding ropes.

That powerful feeling of control and keen insight receded like the tide, replaced by a long-lost sense of...

-

The frailty and ordinariness of an ordinary person.

He slowly opened his eyes, the sharpness and depth in his gaze that belonged to a high-level cultivator replaced by a plain, wooden expression.

At this moment, he appeared outwardly calm, with his cultivation level fluctuating only around the mid-stage of Qi Refining, and even somewhat unstable, making him no different from the most common and lowest-level rogue cultivators in Tianxing City.

He even made subtle adjustments to his appearance—his complexion became sallow, as if he had been malnourished for a long time; his eyes also became somewhat dull and lifeless, as if he were a young rogue cultivator who was dull-witted, struggling to make a living, and had given up much hope for the path of immortality.

He looked at himself in the bronze mirror and nodded in satisfaction. This appearance was exactly the effect he wanted; he would be lost in a crowd.

He took one last look at the familiar courtyard and pavilions of Yunwu Cave, and Ziguang lingered for a moment in the direction of Xinruyin's quiet room.

He could sense a gaze silently watching him through the crack in the window behind that door. He didn't turn around, but took a deep breath, then resolutely turned around, riding an extremely ordinary, even somewhat unsteady, earth-yellow escape light, like countless low-level cultivators leaving Tianxing City to make a living, merging into the endless torrent of escape lights in the early morning, flying towards the distance.

Instead of choosing those large, prosperous islands teeming with high-level cultivators, he flew north for thousands of miles based on information sifted from the Xuanhai Alliance's intelligence, eventually landing in a relatively remote island chain region with moderate spiritual energy concentration, where mortals and cultivators coexisted.

This place is called the "White Sand Islands", which consists of dozens of islands of varying sizes, like a string of pearls scattered on the blue sea.

On the largest main island, "Baisha Island," there is a small but bustling market town called "Baisha Market."

The market town is situated on a gentle slope, with various shops and stalls lining the cobblestone streets, selling low-grade pills, talismans, magical artifacts, materials, and more.

Most of the cultivators coming and going here are at the Qi Refining stage. Occasionally, you might see a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, who is already a remarkable expert and will often attract awe-inspiring glances.

Core Formation cultivators are almost legendary figures in this place; one might not see one even once in a hundred years.

Zhou Ding wandered around the market and finally rented a small street-facing room of only a dozen square meters at the end of a secluded alley. The room was in a remote location, had a low rent, and was only a small space.

The hut was dilapidated; the door was loose and couldn't be closed properly, and several roof tiles were missing, so it would inevitably leak when it rained. Cobwebs covered the corners, and a thick layer of dust had accumulated on the floor.

Without using any magic, he personally went to the general store at the market entrance to fetch clean water, find a broom and rag, and spent a whole day meticulously cleaning the house inside and out, down to the smallest nook and cranny.

He bought some cheap tung oil and repainted the doors and windows. He also found some blue tiles and, using a wobbly ladder, repaired the leaks in the roof.

The next day, a crooked sign made of ordinary pine wood, with the four large characters "Zhou Ji Makes Talismans" written on it in charcoal, was hung above the door.

The four characters were written somewhat clumsily, with uneven strokes, exuding a rustic charm that contrasted sharply with the shop signs in the market, which were full of spirit and had flowing, elegant characters.

There were no fancy decorations, no spiritual energy fluctuations, and even the words on the signboard looked like they were written by a beginner, but that was exactly the effect Zhou Ding wanted.

And so the shop opened.

There were no firecrackers, no guests, only the occasional curious or indifferent glance from a monk passing by the alley entrance.

Zhou Ding sat behind the counter, with a plain yellow paper in front of him. He held the cheapest talisman pen, dipped it in talisman ink made of cinnabar and a small amount of low-level demon beast blood, and began to draw the most basic "cleaning talisman", "dust removal talisman", "fire-igniting talisman" and other basic talismans commonly used by Qi Refining stage cultivators.

With his original cultivation level and mastery of talismans, he could draw hundreds of these talismans in the blink of an eye, and each one would be of the highest quality.

But at this moment, he sealed his cultivation and divine sense, and used only the eyesight and strength of a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator to draw it.

His movements were slow, even somewhat clumsy, like that of an apprentice who had just begun learning talisman making, each stroke carrying a sense of trial and uncertainty.

Several times, the spiritual energy at the tip of the pen did not flow smoothly, and the runes on the talisman paper would flash slightly before dimming, indicating failure.

He wasn't impatient; he simply calmly changed to a new sheet of yellow paper, dipped his brush in ink again, and started writing again.

With each stroke of his pen, he was extremely focused, his mind completely immersed in the simple lines of the runes, feeling the fusion of ink and paper, feeling the faint, almost negligible spiritual power flowing within the runes, and feeling the most primitive, unadulterated "rune making" itself.

He was no longer the formidable late-stage Core Formation cultivator who dared to confront even Nascent Soul cultivators head-on.

At this moment, he was just a Qi Refining stage rogue cultivator named "Zhou Ding," with mediocre talent, who barely made a living by making low-level talismans.

He would secretly rejoice at the successful creation of a "cleansing talisman," and frown slightly at the sight of a discarded talisman.

He would carefully explain the uses of the talismans to every customer who came to his shop. He would haggle with customers over a few spirit stones. After closing up shop, he would eat a plate of pickled vegetables and gnaw on a hard steamed bun, thinking about how many days he would have enough ink for tomorrow's talismans.

The path to transcending the mundane begins in this humble "Zhou's Talisman Making" shop.

He planned to use this time of mortal life to experience the various aspects of life, temper his mind, and also to study the art of talisman making.

He had possessed the Heavenly Talisman Scripture for decades, but he had always been busy with cultivation and battles. Although he had occasionally dabbled in it, he had never been able to put everything aside and devote himself wholeheartedly to the study of the most basic talismanic arts as he was now.

Perhaps, when his mindset and talisman skills settle and sublimate in the ordinary world, reaching a certain critical point, the bottleneck of the "Great Evolution Technique" that has troubled him for so long will naturally loosen.