Mortal: I'm in Tianxing City, intelligence updates daily.

A talisman is a talisman created by high-level cultivators at the Core Formation stage or above, who seal a portion of the power of their natal magic weapon into special talisman paper.

It can exert some of the power of a magic weapon, while also having the convenience of a talisman.

Because refining a magical artifact damages its essence, very few cultivators, except those nearing the end of their lifespan, are willing to do so.

Therefore, this item is exceptionally precious, and its power is far beyond that of ordinary talismans.

The holder only needs to inject a small amount of mana to temporarily unleash power far exceeding their own level.

Even cultivators in the Qi Refining stage can activate it, and at crucial moments, this thing has the ability to turn the tide of battle.

The talisman that the man in white summoned was undoubtedly a magical treasure, judging from its aura.

Li Shizhou dared not linger any longer and hurriedly retreated, unleashing his bronze shield and talismans capable of withstanding a full-force attack from an early Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Seeing Li Shizhou's appearance, the man in white couldn't help but laugh loudly, "You must be this little slut's lover. What a fine young man, what a pity."

After he finished speaking, he made a sword-finger gesture with his fingers and flicked it lightly. The three-foot-long sword emitted a sharp sword cry and slashed towards Li Shizhou.

With a single sword strike, the intermediate-grade talisman exhausted its power, spontaneously combusted, and instantly turned to ashes, which were blown away by the wind without a trace.

With another sword strike, the bronze shield was cleaved in two, its spiritual light instantly dissipated, and it was rendered unusable on the spot.

Before Li Shizhou could even feel sorry for himself, the three-foot-long green sword spun in the air and slashed at him again. No matter how agile he was, he couldn't outrun the flying sword. His defensive magic artifacts were now reduced to just his silver armor, which could at most withstand one more sword strike.

Just then, the sound of a pipa suddenly rang out.

The three streaks of blood-red light pierced through the white-clad man and his protective shield from behind.

The man in white immediately collapsed to the ground, already dead.

The three-foot-long sword transformed back into a blue talisman, slowly drifting down from mid-air.

Li Shizhou let out a long sigh of relief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

In fact, after Yu Mengyou used the pipa to attack for the second time, she still had some magic power left in her body. She had deliberately removed the golden shield to confuse the man in white, but she had truly exhausted it this time.

Her face was pale, her chest heaving as she gasped for breath. Seeing this, Li Shizhou rushed over and pulled the woman, who was about to collapse, into his arms.

"I thought you wouldn't make a move and would just sit back and reap the benefits," Yu Mengyou said in a coquettish tone.

Li Shizhou replied irritably, "How could that be? Am I really that bad?"

That was the truth. Although he wasn't exactly a good person, he would never let his wife die before his eyes just for some resources, even if it was only temporary.

Once Yu Mengyou had regained some of her magical power, Li Shizhou gathered the spoils of war together.

After opening the storage bag and searching for a while, they indeed found a bright blue pill in a white jade bottle, which was the Foundation Establishment Pill.

The reason he followed her out of the city was not only to help Yu Mengyou, but also for this pill.

Now that his wish had come true, the lingering unease in his heart vanished completely, and he looked at it several times with great joy before putting it into his storage bag.

Besides the Foundation Establishment Pill, the most valuable loot was the talisman.

The white-robed man was killed by the two of them together, so they naturally couldn't give up the Foundation Establishment Pill. Li Shizhou handed the talisman to Yu Mengyou beside him.

Yu Mengyou didn't reach out to take it, but said calmly, "You can have everything. Just dig a deep hole and bury my senior brother."

The talisman was exactly what Li Shizhou desperately needed. Upon hearing this, he didn't stand on ceremony, carefully put the talisman away, and then dug a deep pit to bury the corpse.

The two stayed in the mass grave until midnight. Yu Mengyou regained her magical power, stood up, and said, "I must return to my sect. We'll meet again someday."

Li Shizhou paused for a moment and then said solemnly, "Take care."

Yu Mengyou looked somewhat dejected. She handed him a jade slip and then turned to leave.

As Yu Mengyou's figure gradually disappeared into the distance, the spiritual light of the Lianli Pearl in Li Shizhou's storage bag slowly dimmed, and a sense of loss rose in his heart.

"Bang bang"

After a moment of stunned silence, he slapped his head twice.

"How can we let women interfere with our cultivation?"

Pulling himself back to his senses, he used his divine sense to examine the jade slip, which contained information related to formations.

Yu Mengyou also took into account his skill level in formations and made special arrangements, which was obviously a careful preparation.

However, Li Shizhou glanced at the jade slip briefly and then put it away, because the most important thing right now was to establish his foundation.

Now his cultivation level is not far from the peak of Qi Refining, which is the thirteenth level of Qi Refining, and he also has a Foundation Establishment Pill. The only thing he lacks now is a cultivation technique that can help him establish his foundation.

He had two jade slips containing cultivation techniques.

One of the records contained the "Yi Wood Rejuvenation Technique" cultivated by the original owner. Its power was mediocre, and it was an incomplete copy, containing only the Qi refining part.

The other one was obtained from Qi Boyuan. Although it contained the Foundation Establishment part, Li Shizhou's spiritual root did not match it.

There wasn't even a jade slip in Senior Brother Yu Mengyou's storage bag.

Therefore, we need to make further plans regarding the subsequent cultivation methods.

In the world of cultivation, there are generally three ways for independent cultivators to obtain Foundation Establishment techniques.

Firstly, one could try to buy from other cultivators, but not only were the prices exorbitant, the cultivation techniques were mostly of poor quality.

Secondly, one could seek refuge with a cultivation family. However, cultivation families are short of resources and will naturally favor their own members. Outsiders will find it extremely difficult to gain recognition. Although they may have a place to stay, they will not be as free as independent cultivators, and the cultivation techniques they can obtain will likely be subpar.

Thirdly, one could join a powerful sect or star palace, but this path either requires high aptitude or guidance from someone.

Taking the Star Palace as an example, there are many descendants of its disciples and children of its affiliated families, so it is necessary to select the best candidates.

Furthermore, it governs dozens of secular kingdoms, which can continuously provide celestial seedlings with impeccable backgrounds.

Therefore, the entry requirements for independent cultivators are quite high, and they also need a Foundation Establishment cultivator as a guarantor.

In the past, the original owner would have found it extremely difficult to overcome the hurdle of aptitude, let alone recognize any Foundation Establishment seniors, and would have had no hope of entering the Star Palace.

Things are different now. His aptitude has improved after consuming the Blood Spirit Fruit. Although he still doesn't have a Foundation Establishment senior to recommend him, he has daily intelligence and is not short of spirit stones. At worst, he can buy a spot on the black market.

"It's time to go back to Tianxing City."

......

Seven days later.

into the night.

Stars hang low over the plains, and the cold moon hangs like a hook.

Li Shizhou, draped in a black cloak, flew at low altitude on a flying sword, now less than two hundred miles from Chenyu Immortal Workshop.

He was playing with a piece of white jade the size of an egg in his hand. This was something he had found when he took the array from Qi Boyuan's ancestral home. It was also a piece of jade with spiritual eyes.

No wonder the Qi family was able to build a cultivator's cave dwelling in Qianyang City, a place with scarce spiritual energy.

However, its size and quality are far inferior to the one obtained before, and it can only be used by Qi Refining cultivators.

After flying on the sword for a while, they could faintly hear explosions not far ahead, as if people were fighting.

With a thought, he manipulated the black cloak to conceal his figure and slowly flew forward.

When they reached a distance of thirty feet from the source of the sound, five figures came into view on the ground.

Two of the boys in blue looked exactly alike, appeared to be fifteen or sixteen years old, and had a Qi Refining Level 9 cultivation; they were likely twins.

The two were surrounded by three black-clad monks, two men and one woman.

The three black-clad cultivators who surrounded them had a cultivation level of at least ten levels of Qi Refining, while the other two were at twelve levels.

Despite being outnumbered and outmatched in both cultivation level, the two blue-clad youths, though somewhat disheveled, were still able to hold their own for the time being.

One of the boys had a scarlet gourd floating above his head, from which more than ten fist-sized flames spewed out every breath.

Another boy manipulated a dark shield, constantly deflecting various attacks.

Both of them wore a blue jade pendant that shimmered with spiritual light at their waists.

"Lingxi Pendant".

Li Shizhou recognized the item at a glance. The Spirit Rhinoceros Pendant could store a cultivator's own mana. During combat, one only needed to think to quickly replenish mana in the dantian. It was quite expensive, and if he could get his hands on it, it would be of great benefit to him.

In the past, Li Shizhou would have avoided such things as robbing cultivators, killing people, and stealing treasures. However, now that he has plenty of resources, he wouldn't mind playing the role of the predator if given the chance.

He slowly flew closer, hiding ten feet away to observe the situation.