Longevity with a Turtle

Chapter 48: Chapter 47: Magical Artifacts and Elixirs

Chen Jianghe fell into deep thought.

Little Black’s Cultivation speed had given him a pleasant surprise, providing him with more confidence about leaving the Yun Family in the future.

With his extended lifespan, he certainly couldn’t stay in one place for too long. Otherwise, his unchanging appearance over decades would easily draw suspicion.

He was now halfway through his twenty-ninth year, soon to turn thirty.

According to his previous plan, he intended to leave the Yun Family before turning sixty to seek another place to settle.

This was because he was confident in raising his Cultivation to the Sixth-Layer Qi Refining by then, giving him a certain degree of self-preservation capability when he left.

Now, however, he could move that timeline forward.

He had already grasped the entry level of the Talisman Dao. It wouldn’t take long for him to become a Lower-Grade Talisman Master, which would provide him with a substantial extra source of income.

This would absolutely allow him to reach the Sixth-Layer Qi Refining by fifty years old, or perhaps even break through to Late-Stage Qi Refining.

Moreover, Little Black possessed the Third Transformation Demon Ascension Technique, and his Cultivation speed was exceptionally fast. Within twenty years, as long as the resources kept up, he should be able to grow to Late-Stage Tier One.

Therefore, looking at it now, leaving the Yun Family at fifty years old would be the safest option. Not only would he have the strength to protect himself, but he would also have accumulated a certain amount of wealth.

Having made up his mind, he continued to read the Yun Family Magazine. It took him half a month to carefully read through it all, page by page.

This gave him a certain understanding of elixirs and Magical Artifacts.

The Qi Nourishing Pill was an elixir used to assist Early-Stage Qi Refining. A single pill was equivalent to two years of bitter Cultivation, but it took a year to expel the Pill Poison.

Once a Cultivator reached Mid-Stage Qi Refining, however, the efficacy of the Qi Nourishing Pill became merely a drop in the bucket.

At this stage, they would need the Middle-Grade Spirit Pill, the Qi Storage Pill.

The Qi Storage Pill could help Five-Element Mixed Spirit Root cultivators break through the bottleneck from Early-Stage Qi Refining to Mid-Stage Qi Refining.

It was also an indispensable Cultivation Spirit Pill for Mid-Stage Qi Refining cultivators. One Qi Storage Pill equated to a year and a half of bitter Cultivation and required more than half a year to expel the Pill Poison.

For those at Mid-Stage Qi Refining aiming to break through to Late-Stage Qi Refining, cultivators with talents below the Three-Element True Spirit Root were best advised to prepare a High-Grade Spiritual Pill—the Misfortune-Breaking Pill.

Of course, it was possible to break through without consuming the Misfortune-Breaking Pill, but it would require a long time to overcome the bottleneck and carried the risk of failure.

”Compared to elixirs, Magical Artifacts are outrageously expensive!” Chen Jianghe sighed inwardly.

An ordinary Lower-Grade Spiritual Artifact Flying Sword was priced as high as ten Spirit Stones, and Defensive Spiritual Artifacts of the same grade were generally two to three times the price of Attack Spiritual Artifacts.

Those at Early-Stage Qi Refining didn’t even need to think about Magical Artifacts; only upon reaching Mid-Stage Qi Refining could they accumulate enough wealth to purchase a Lower-Grade Spiritual Artifact.

However, if a Mid-Stage Qi Refining cultivator used a Lower-Grade Spiritual Artifact, they would feel somewhat restricted and unable to unleash their full strength.

Yet Middle-Grade Spiritual Artifacts were so expensive that Mid-Stage Qi Refining cultivators simply couldn’t afford them.

Generally speaking, only Direct Descendants of a family or Immortal Sect Disciples could use Magical Artifacts corresponding to their Cultivation Realm.

”Magical Artifacts are too expensive. Otherwise, having one for protection when I leave the Yun Family would make things much safer,” Chen Jianghe sighed, shaking his head. He didn’t dare fantasize about owning a Magical Artifact anytime soon; he could only wait until he had an abundance of Spirit Stones in the future.

He placed the Jade Scroll back into his pouch and tucked it away securely on his person. He still had to return it when the time came.

Next, he tidied up his desk, took out the High-Quality Yellow Paper, and sliced it, cutting it all down into Talisman Paper.

He then brought out the unfinished box of Spiritual Ink and poured some into his inkstone.

Finally, he ground the ink and moistened his brush.

He now only had sixty-eight grains of Spiritual Sand to his name, and he had to buy Qi Nourishing Pills for Little Black after the new year.

Moreover, on this year’s New Year’s Eve, he absolutely had to visit Yu Daniu’s home.

He needed to return the Yun Family Magazine. Yu Daniu had explicitly told him to return it on New Year’s Eve, and his underlying meaning couldn’t be any clearer.

He just wanted to use this opportunity to catch up and reminisce.

Yu Daniu had five children. If Chen Jianghe was going to visit, how could he show up empty-handed?

Drawing Spirit Talismans to earn Spirit Stones was quite an urgent matter.

Fifteen minutes later.

The ink was ground, and the brush was moist.

He picked up the Lower-Grade Peach Wood Talisman Pen. With a calm demeanor and a burning gaze, he made swift and smooth strokes, effortlessly drawing a Water Arrow Talisman onto the Talisman Paper.

Before he became proficient at drawing Water Arrow Talismans, he wasn’t prepared to attempt other Water Element Lower-Grade Spirit Talismans.

As for Spirit Talismans of other elements, or things like Amulets, there was no need to even think about them before obtaining a Tier One Talisman Dao Inheritance.

Attempting the Talisman Dao without an inheritance was strictly limited to drawing Spirit Talismans matching the Cultivation Technique Attribute one cultivated.

Five months passed by in a flash.

Under the candlelight of the night, inside the Upturned Boat on the lake, Chen Jianghe’s shadow was stretched long, reaching out of the cabin and merging with the dark horizon.

He withdrew his strength and lifted the pen. Watching a brilliant light flash across the Talisman Paper, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

”A forty percent success rate isn’t bad,” he remarked.

Over these five months, he had consumed a total of thirty-five pieces of Talisman Paper, averaging seven pieces a month.

His Magical Power was sufficient to draw Lower-Grade Spiritual Talismans three times, but the mental exhaustion was hard to sustain.

The Spiritual Qi in the Inner Waters was abundant, so his Magical Power recovered at a decent rate. However, recovering his heart and mind and adjusting his mental state took seven to eight days.

As the number of times he drew the Water Arrow Talisman increased, his success rate steadily rose—from less than twenty percent at the very beginning to forty percent now.

Thirty-five pieces of Talisman Paper had yielded seven completed Water Arrow Talismans, which left him very satisfied.

It was just that his Spiritual Ink was almost running out again.

His proficiency was still too low, leading him to waste a lot of Spiritual Ink.

Otherwise, a single box of Spiritual Ink would be enough to draw fifty Lower-Grade Spiritual Talismans.

”I still have sixty-two pieces of Talisman Paper, so I don’t need to buy more for now. The Spiritual Ink can be used seven or eight more times, so I’ll need to buy another box.

”Seven Water Arrow Talismans sold back at a twenty percent discount will yield nearly six Spirit Stones. That’s enough to buy Qi Nourishing Pills for Little Black, as well as some Spiritual Ink,” he calculated in his head.

Chen Jianghe didn’t plan on keeping the Water Arrow Talismans. Since he wasn’t leaving Jingyue Lake, he wouldn’t need them at all.

It would be better to exchange them all for Spirit Stones to enhance his own strength.

Earning nearly six Spirit Stones in five months yielded a far greater profit than breeding Little Cyan Fish. Even at his current Talisman Success Rate, he could net ten Spirit Stones over a year.

No wonder the Workshop Association sold Talisman-Making Materials. With such impressive profits, it was natural that many Senior Fishermen and Farmers would try to test their Talisman Dao talent.

There were even radical Basic-Level Fishermen and Farmers who would forgo buying Cultivation Resources, choosing instead to save up Spirit Stones to purchase talisman-making tools and materials.

After all, once one reached the entry level of the Talisman Dao, all the spent Spirit Stones would be earned back.

Looking at it this way, if Zhou Miaoyun’s Talisman Dao Skills were about to improve to Tier One Middle Grade, then she indeed had what it took to become the foundation for the Zhou Family to establish a foothold in the Qinghe Marketplace.

The income of a Lower-Grade Talisman Master was definitely much higher than that of someone merely at the entry level of the Talisman Dao, let alone a Middle-Grade Talisman Master.

Moreover, the higher one’s Cultivation, the more robust their Magical Power and Spiritual Power would be, which in turn would increase the number of Spirit Talismans they could draw.

New Year’s Eve arrived.

Chen Jianghe packed up simply and greeted Little Black, telling him not to expose himself above the surface of the lake. While he was away, Little Black was to burrow into the mud at the bottom of the lake as much as possible.

After all, if he was around and someone came, he could always use the Spirit Platform Mark to notify Little Black to hide deep underwater.

Now that he was heading to Huxing Island, he couldn’t bring Little Black along. He could only have him hide at the bottom of the lake to avoid any accidents.

The Upturned Boat followed a fleet of vessels heading toward Huxing Island.

However, the two oars lay idle by the sides of the boat; Chen Jianghe was using his Magical Power to propel the Upturned Boat across the water.