Mortal Cultivation: Starting from Hiding in the Cultivation Techniques Pavilion

"Isn't that Senior Brother Zhang Yao from the inner sect?"

"That's right, Senior Brother Zhang is a master at drawing talismans. Who's that next to him?"

"He's just an outer disciple, how dare he take on this job?"

"Shh, keep your voice down. If it's interesting, just watch."

Zhang Yao and the old man both looked at Su Xiaoyuan at this moment.

Su Xiaoyuan hesitated for a moment.

He understood the principle that "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down," and he originally didn't want to make things too conspicuous.

He wanted to complete the task, collect his reward, and leave quietly; keeping a low profile was what he preferred.

But now that this has happened, are you just going to turn around and leave? Absolutely not! You have to see a return on the work you did all night.

I'm not leaving. I'm going to have to go head-to-head with this guy... Fine, I'll be arrogant for once.

He said, "If we exclude the talisman maker's own mistakes, the success rate of my talisman... should be over 90%."

"Impossible!" Zhang Yao's voice suddenly rose, drawing the attention of the surrounding disciples.

"A success rate of over 90% is practically a perfect rune."

He stared at Su Xiaoyuan: "Perfect runes are extremely rare in this world. Each one is the result of countless refinements by master rune makers. How dare you, an outer disciple, claim that your rune success rate is over 90%?"

The old man behind the counter was also looking at Su Xiaoyuan, seemingly waiting for her response.

Su Xiaoyuan shrugged as she met their gazes.

"Whether what the disciple said is true or not, we can find out by having a talisman maker test it on the spot. However, I also tried to draw one myself last night, so it should be the same."

"Oh?" The old man raised his eyebrows. "You can also make talismans?"

It's important to understand that while the art of talisman making isn't exactly profound, it's certainly not something anyone can master just by picking up a pen.

It requires a precise control over spiritual energy, a deep understanding of the structure of runes, and a great deal of practical experience.

An outer disciple is too busy doing chores and earning spirit stones to have the time and energy to study talisman making.

Su Xiaoyuan didn't explain further, but directly took out the Frost Talisman from her bosom and placed it on the counter.

The old man and Zhang Yao's gazes fell on the talisman, and their expressions changed simultaneously!

The old man gasped.

Zhang Yao was also stunned, and subconsciously reached out to take the talisman.

But the old man was faster and snatched it away first!

"this……"

The old man frowned as he stroked the patterns on the surface of the talisman, his expression growing more excited the more he examined it.

"You drew a second-tier talisman using a piece of yellow talisman paper?"

Su Xiaoyuan blinked, confused. "Is there... a problem?"

The old man raised his head and looked at him with the eyes of someone looking at a monster: "Don't you know that second-tier talismans need to be drawn on white talisman paper?"

Su Xiaoyuan was taken aback; he really didn't know...

He had read books about drawing talismans at the Gongfa Pavilion, but he had almost no recollection of what kind of talisman paper to use.

Seeing his blank expression, the old man explained, "Talisman paper is graded. The most common yellow talisman paper is loose in texture and has a weak capacity to hold spiritual energy, so it can usually only be used to draw first-tier talismans. White talisman paper is made of high-quality materials and can be used to draw second-tier talismans, while higher-tier talismans require talisman silk woven from spirit silkworm silk or talisman skin tanned from the hides of certain demonic beasts."

He pointed to the ice talisman: "Your talisman uses the most ordinary yellow talisman paper and the most ordinary cinnabar. Normally, the talisman paper would fail because it couldn't withstand the second-tier talisman patterns, but you actually succeeded?"

The old man shook his head and pointed to a slightly whitish spot on the edge of the talisman: "Spiritual energy is slowly dissipating from here. This is because the material of the yellow talisman paper cannot support high-quality talisman patterns. When the spiritual energy circulates within the talisman patterns, some of it seeps out through the pores of the paper. If white talisman paper were used, the power of this talisman could be increased by at least 20%."

Su Xiaoyuan suddenly realized.

No wonder he failed when he first tried to draw it last night. He originally thought it was because his technique was not skilled enough, but now it seems that the limitations of the materials themselves were also an important reason.

The old man stared intently at Su Xiaoyuan: "Didn't your master, who taught you talisman-making, tell you these things?"

Su Xiaoyuan shook her head: "I don't have a master."

The old man's surprise deepened: "Then who taught you your talisman-making skills?"

You can't believe what Su Xiaoyuan says, even if I tell you. Have you ever seen the system?

He cupped his hands in greeting: "Replying to senior, I have been working in the Cultivation Techniques Pavilion and have read many books on talisman making. I had some ideas in mind, so I thought I would try to draw them myself. It was purely by chance that I was able to draw them successfully."

"The Cultivation Techniques Pavilion?" The old man looked him up and down, then suddenly realized, "You're that proofreader?"

"It is indeed I, the junior."

The old man smiled with relief: "I never believed in self-taught individuals, but after meeting you today..."

He then shook his head and said to Zhang Yao, "Are you convinced now, kid?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yao not only did not show any anger or resentment, but instead laughed.

"Senior Fang, I've long understood the principle that there are always people better than you, so there's no question of whether I'm convinced or not."

He turned to Su Xiaoyuan and said, "Even so, I still want to see for myself what this junior brother's 99% success rate rune will actually be like."

He took out an ice talisman from his pocket and placed it on the counter: "This is a finished product that I drew according to my own improvements. Let's have a contest on the spot and see how it goes. That way, I can be convinced of its effectiveness."

The old man laughed heartily: "Easy!"

He waved to the side: "Wei Hang, come on, let's make one now."

A middle-aged man who looked to be in his forties, who had been sitting to the side, walked over.

This person also wore an inner disciple's jade badge at his waist, had a dignified appearance, and rarely smiled.

Without saying a word, he took out a white talisman and a piece of fine cinnabar from his storage bag at his waist. He also poured out a few drops of emerald green spiritual herb juice from a small jade bottle, mixed it into the cinnabar, and began grinding.

The entire second-floor hall fell silent, and everyone's eyes were focused on his hands.

This process of making talismans on the spot is quite rare.

While grinding the ink, Wei Hang carefully observed the newly drawn runes. After looking at them several times, he had a clear understanding of them.

He picked up the talisman brush, dipped it in cinnabar, and took a deep breath.

Then he quickly put pen to paper, the tip moving smoothly across the white talisman paper like mercury spilling onto the ground.

His wrists were steady and powerful, each turn clean and crisp, without the slightest hesitation.

The spiritual energy flowed evenly into the talismanic patterns along the tip of the brush, and a faint spiritual light emanated from the surface of the talismanic paper.

A low murmur arose from the crowd of onlookers.

A true expert's skill is immediately apparent.

Everyone present could see Wei Hang's skill in making talismans.

Solid, steady, and experienced – you can't develop this kind of feel for it without ten years of practice.

Su Xiaoyuan watched intently; this was the first time he had ever seen someone else make talismans.

This person's movements were indeed standard and graceful; the talisman pen in his hands was as steady as a machine.

With the final stroke, Wei Hang gently lifted his wrist, and the tip of the brush left the talisman paper.

The spiritual light on the talisman suddenly shone brightly, then quickly receded and returned to silence.

Wei Hang put down his talisman brush, gently picked up the newly drawn ice talisman, blew on the not-yet-completely-dry cinnabar, and then placed it flat on the counter, next to Zhang Yao's talisman.