Dao of the World Walker (Xianxia) Book 2

It had been a week since Yang returned to his body.

He was on his way to the outer sect hall again, this time after breakfast, the bundle under his arm considerably larger than anything he had carried there before. His routine had settled into something he could almost describe as stable, though he was not naive enough about himself to think it would last. He knew his own patterns. Sooner or later something would catch his attention completely and the meals would start getting skipped and the socialising would fall away again. But for now, he was managing.

He was taking all three meals at the food hall and as for socializing, Ye Xuan had a talent for being at the food hall at the same time as Yang at least once daily, and through Ye Xuan’s steadily expanding circle of outer sect acquaintances Yang was rarely eating alone anymore. He had met more disciples in this past week than in all his previous months at the sect combined.

The rest of his time had been split between practicing the Heavenly Diversion and talismans, and he had had considerably more success with one than the other.

The Heavenly Diversion remained as resistant as the first night. The channels were widening, he was certain of that, the headaches arriving slightly later each session before reaching the same peak, but it was slow work measured in very small increments. Patience was the only tool available to him there.

Talismans on the other hand were an entirely different matter.

Most talismans required two things above all else: precise qi control and the correct sequence of every stroke and character. His seventeen years of card inscription had improved the former beyond what any outer sect disciple his age would normally possess, and his memory was solid enough to hold the latter without difficulty. Together they had produced results that had surprised even him.

The only ceiling to his successes was his cultivation realm. He could not create talismans above the level his own cultivation could support, and with the majority of his qi being redirected away from his dantian by the Heavenly Diversion that limit sat firmly at the second stage of Qi Condensation. He had managed to push slightly above his own level due to the precision of his qi application, almost no wastage in each stroke, but there was a hard boundary beyond which technique alone could not carry him through.

But within that boundary, he had been very productive.

Five hundred qi barrier talismans. One hundred and fifty stone skin talismans, which hardened the skin uniformly across the entire body, useful in sustained combat where the damage was distributed. One hundred and twenty iron skin talismans, which concentrated the effect into a denser shell just above the skin, better for absorbing a single heavy impact but more brittle under prolonged abuse. A hundred earth wall talismans, a hundred ice shell talismans. Fifty fireball talismans, which had felt nostalgic in a way he had not expected. He had attempted lightning talismans and had to stop immediately. His cultivation was nowhere near high enough to be playing with lightning so he left the rather tempting element alone for now.

His sole offensive and defensive mix talisman ran to three hundred and fifty deflection talismans, which reflected roughly seventy percent of an attack back at its source, the duration scaling with the severity of the incoming strike. He had also produced silencing talismans and immobility talismans, both basic but consistently useful.

He had hundreds of each. He would keep a few sets on his person, but he had no reason nor desire to leave the sect for now. Better to convert the rest into points.

He reached the outer sect hall and made his way to Senior Brother Bo Yu.

”Senior Brother Bo Yu.”

Senior Brother Bo Yu looked up from behind the desk. ”Junior Brother Yang. Two visits in one week. I hope everything is alright.”

”Everything is fine, Senior Brother. This time I am here to sell talismans.”

”Ah. I heard from Junior Sister Wei Wei that you sold quite a lot of illumination talismans while I was in closed door cultivation.”

”I did. But I have brought better ones this time.”

He reached into his sleeve and drew out the first bundle. Then a second. Then another. Then several more, stacking them on the desk between them.

Senior Brother Bo Yu’s eyes widened slightly as the pile grew. He picked up one of the bundles and looked through it. ”Junior Brother Yang. You created all of these yourself?”

”Any time not spent in cultivation I was practicing talismans.”

Senior Brother Bo Yu set down the first bundle and picked up another. ”Junior Sister Wei Wei mentioned you had some talent in this area.” He paused, looking at the stack. ”I think she may have been understating it. Creating this many perfect talismans so soon after joining the sect is rare. I cannot think of anyone who could have managed it this quickly.” He looked at Yang directly. ”You have genuine talent in the talisman arts, Junior Brother.”

”Thank you, Senior Brother.”

”Let me go through all of them and I will tell you the total.”

Yang waited while Senior Brother Bo Yu worked through each bundle methodically, checking the quality of each talisman against the sect’s standards. It took some time. When Senior Brother Bo Yu finally looked up his expression was one Yang could only describe as quietly startled.

”Junior Brother,” he said, keeping his voice low. ”These are all perfect. Every one of them acceptable.” He set the last bundle down and began counting.

”Qi barrier talismans, five hundred pieces. Fifteen points each. Stone skin, one hundred and fifty pieces, six points each. Iron skin, one hundred and twenty pieces, five points each. Earth wall, one hundred pieces, ten points each. Ice shell, one hundred pieces, twelve points each. Fireball talismans, fifty pieces, twenty points each. Deflection talismans, three hundred and fifty pieces, thirty points each. Silencing and Immobility talismans, hundred pieces each type, four and ten points each.”

He looked at his calculation and then at Yang. ”The total is twenty-four thousand one hundred points.”

Yang stood very still for a moment.

”Junior Brother,” Senior Brother Bo Yu said noticing his shock, ”your illumination talismans were the most basic variety, the kind sold in shops outside the sect. These are different. Qi barrier, deflection, silencing, immobility and fireball will be some of the most sought after in the outer sect. The fireball talisman, will find buyers in the inner sect as well if you can eventually make them at sufficient power. The other four are more specialised but they all have their place.” He paused. ”I will be honest with you. I have processed larger point transactions in the outer sect, but this is the first time I have had to transfer this many points to a disciple so new to the sect.” He said it with a small smile. ”Your token, please.”

Yang passed it over and watched the transfer complete.

He had seven points remaining from before, after buying the Heaven-Refining Soul Sutra. He now had twenty-four thousand one hundred and seven.

He thanked Senior Brother Bo Yu and walked back out into the morning.

Now he understood why people practiced professions.

He looked at the token and felt a very strong pull toward simply going back to his cave and producing more talismans. He recognised the feeling and set it aside firmly. He was here to cultivate, not to become a talisman seller. The talismans were a means, not an end.

He turned his thoughts toward what to do with the points instead. He had a stable way of earning them back now, which changed what he could afford to consider. What he needed most was something to offset the cultivation slowdown the Heavenly Diversion was causing. With most of his qi being diverted away from his dantian his realm advancement was going to be slow, and he was already at only the second stage of Qi Condensation with a very long road ahead before Foundation Establishment. Anything that improved his cultivation speed would multiply in value over that distance.

The problem was that such things were rarely cheap. Treasures that improved cultivation speed were considered exactly that, treasures, and their prices reflected it. Twenty-four thousand points felt like a large number until he set it against what something truly useful in that area might cost. There was another option he had been turning over in his mind as well, but he had not fully thought it through yet.

He was still thinking when he turned the last corner toward his cave residence and stopped.

Someone was standing at the entrance.

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