Chapter 86: Chapter 86 Running Away
Lu’s Talisman Shop.

“Greetings, fellow Daoist, what can I do for you?”

As soon as Wang Chen stepped into the shop, the square-faced shopkeeper behind the counter immediately greeted him warmly, “Our store just got a new batch of above-average Qi Cultivation tier talismans, would you like to take a look?”

Wang Chen looked around and asked, “Shopkeeper, do you buy magical talismans here?”

The façade of this talisman shop was very small, much inferior to the one he usually frequented to purchase talisman crafting materials.

But a small shop has its advantages.

For a minor cultivator at the fourth tier of Qi Cultivation like him to come in, he was still treated with utmost courtesy.

Moreover, small shopkeepers are the most flexible in doing business.

“We do!”

The square-faced shopkeeper replied without hesitation, “As long as the quality is fine, the price is negotiable!”

“Hmm.”

Wang Chen nodded, took out two stacks of talismans from his storage bag, and laid them on the counter.

A hundred tales in a stack!

The square-faced shopkeeper was immediately surprised.

He thought Wang Chen, ordinary as he appeared with a rather common cultivation level, was likely there to sell a few talismans in a pinch.

He had seen many low-level cultivators like this.

He never expected that Wang Chen would produce two hundred magical talismans in one go!

Any competent shopkeeper would not be lacking in discernment.

Thus, he estimated the number of talismans at a glance.

The square-faced shopkeeper became even more polite, “May I take a closer look?”

After receiving Wang Chen’s permission, the owner of the talisman shop began to carefully inspect the two stacks of talismans.

The more he looked, the more astonished he became.

Both stacks were Meteor Fire Talismans, but there was a clear difference in quality.

The Meteor Fire Talismans on the left had bright ink and were imbued with spiritual light, the quality was truly excellent.

It was rare that every single one of the hundred talismans was of such quality, almost as if they were printed.

It was nearly impossible to find a fault!

Of course, talismans must be made by a Talisman Maker, with each stroke bringing forth true manifestation—printing was not an option.

Such skill in a Talisman Maker qualified them to be honored guests of the Purple Mansion families!

The one hundred Meteor Fire Talismans on the right were a bit lesser in quality.

But they were still passable.

After inspecting all two hundred magical talismans, the square-faced shopkeeper pondered for a moment before cautiously saying, “Fellow Daoist, for this stack of Meteor Fire Talismans, I offer ninety Fragmented Spirit Stones each, and for this stack, seventy Fragmented Spirit Stones each. What do you think?”

The Meteor Fire Talisman was one of the most commonly used magical talismans among cultivators, with a basic selling price of about one Low Spirit Stone each.

Very stable.

The purchasing price at talisman shops was usually sixty to seventy Fragmented Spirit Stones.

And for an ordinary Talisman Maker, the cost to make one Meteor Fire Talisman was around forty to fifty Fragmented Spirit Stones.

The square-faced shopkeeper offered high prices of ninety and seventy Fragmented Spirit Stones for each of the two stacks of Meteor Fire Talismans purely because the quality was outstanding enough to profit from.

The prices for such talismans were very transparent, and he dared not to randomly slash the price.

Otherwise, Wang Chen could simply go to another shop.

“I want one hundred Low Spirit Stones…”

Wang Chen said, “Plus the talisman paper and spiritual ink worth seventy Low Spirit Stones.”

The two hundred talismans he brought were half created when he was at the Mastery Level of Talisman Crafting Technique.

The rest were at the Minor Achievement level.

As for the pieces at the Great Achievement level, Wang Chen planned to keep them for his own use, considering selling them only after accumulating a larger quantity.

Although Wang Chen asked for ten more Low Spirit Stones,

because some of the spirit stones were compensated with talisman paper and spiritual ink, the square-faced shopkeeper agreed after some thought.

Both parties were very pleased.

The square-faced shopkeeper clearly intended to establish a good cooperative relationship with Wang Chen or rather the Talisman Maker behind Wang Chen, even giving a few extra sheets of talisman paper.

Then he respectfully saw Wang Chen out the door.

Wang Chen was quite satisfied as well.

From the start of his initial steps in Talisman Crafting to now, he had spent a total of just over a hundred Spirit Stones on gaining experience.

He had almost made that back with this sale.

The key was that his skill in the technique had reached Great Achievement, and it wouldn’t take much time to break through to Grandmaster level.

The cost of crafting talismans will decrease even further in the future,

if Wang Chen is willing to do so.

He could easily make a fortune with his talisman crafting technique.

But this wasn’t Wang Chen’s true pursuit after all.

…

When Wang Chen returned to his home,

he hadn’t even entered the door when he suddenly saw a carriage parked in front of Old Sun’s house.

People were going in and out, moving things!

What’s going on?

Wang Chen thought for a moment, then decided to go over and have a look.

He saw several people standing in Old Sun’s yard, the door wide open.

There were both adults and children, making the place quite lively.

But Wang Chen didn’t recognize a single one of them!

“Who are you looking for?”

At that moment, a middle-aged man noticed him and walked up to the door to ask, “Can I help you with something?”

Wang Chen bowed and said, “I am a neighbor living to the north, may I ask if Old Sun is here?”

It had only been two days since he left.

How did Old Sun’s house seem like it had changed owners?

“You mean Old Sun.”

The middle-aged man smiled and said, “He has transferred the spirit fields and the house to me.”

Wang Chen was startled, “Where did he go then?”

“You are Wang Chen, right?”

The middle-aged man did not directly answer his question but instead took out a letter, “This is from Old Sun for you, he said you will understand after reading it.”

“Thank you.”

Wang Chen took the letter sealed with a wax stamp, then returned to his own home full of confusion,

even forgetting to ask the new neighbor’s name.

Sitting in his room, Wang Chen opened Old Sun’s letter.

In the letter, Old Sun told him that he had left the Cloud Sun Sect with his wife and stepson, taken the Four Seas Commerce Association’s flying warship to the mortal world, and would never return.

Renouncing his sect for a mortal life!

Wang Chen had never expected Old Sun to make such a choice.

To flee to the mortal realm!

Usually, it was mortals who desperately wanted to enter the immortal cultivation world, and very few cultivators chose to settle in the mortal realm.

For cultivators, the mortal realm without spiritual energy was undoubtedly a wasteland and a hostile place!

If one had a lot of spirit food and pills to use, the situation would be somewhat better, at least they could maintain their cultivation level.

But they had to be cautious about casting spells, so as not to deplete their energy excessively.

However, without these cultivation resources, a cultivator’s realm would quickly decline.

Eventually becoming indistinguishable from mortals,

and their lifespan would be greatly reduced as well.

And Old Sun wasn’t young anymore!

But in the letter, Old Sun also provided a detailed explanation.

He felt that the Cloud Sun Sect was becoming increasingly harsh towards outer sect cultivators, and as a lowly spiritual plant farmer like himself, the burden was growing too great, making leaving an inevitable choice.

Also, his stepson had insufficient elemental aptitude and no possibility of immortal cultivation.

This was another reason that prompted Old Sun to leave.

However, what really made him decide was another matter,

a matter related to Wang Chen!

Old Sun also expressed his gratitude and guilt towards Wang Chen in the letter, saying he could never repay him in this lifetime and could only hope to serve him in the next life.

He also reminded Wang Chen that one cannot judge a person’s heart by their face!

It was apparent that the old spiritual plant farmer had been very emotional while writing the letter, as the handwriting was quite sloppy.

After reading the letter, Wang Chen sat in silence for a long time.

Then he brought his palms together, activated his mana, and in an instant turned the letter into ashes!

———

The second update is here.