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Chapter 58: Talismanic Sword Seal
Chu Liang looked at Wen Yulong with a serious expression. "...?"
Wen Yulong gazed back at Chu Liang, sweating nervously.
The atmosphere in the room seemed to freeze for a moment.
Wen Yulong stammered, "S-senior Brother, I assure you that it's because I am aiming to maximize the power of the enchanted tool. The effects that I can produce will definitely be stronger than what others can do! So, the risks of failure will inevitably be higher... If you prefer a safer option, you can choose someone else to do it..."
"Seventy sword coins, and I'll let you make this for me," Chu Liang said suddenly.
This business model provided a convenient service for disciples that needed tool-making services as well as a great opportunity for disciples that were gifted in tool-making to gain experience.
For someone like Wen Yulong, who was young and yet had a long history of failures, to be allowed to take orders from customers... it meant that he was either the sect leader's grandson or that the Weapons Master had a high opinion of him. Either way, they believed it was worth having him here.
The Lifeforce Green Leaf was a rather precious material. Nevertheless, it was not that important to Chu Liang, so he didn't mind taking a gamble with it.
Still, the service fee had to be lowered.
Chu Liang knew that a portion of the tool-making fee went to the Hall of Weapons, and this part was non-negotiable. However, the rest of the fee was designated for the disciple, and that was negotiable.
So, Chu Liang made a small cut to the fee. If the enchanted tool were to be successfully made, Chu Liang would only need to pay seventy sword coins. If it were to fail, he could still retrieve the item. So, the risk was relatively acceptable.
Wen Yulong didn't hide his emotions; he immediately became teary-eyed.
"Senior Brother Chu, the portion of the fee reserved for me is only thirty sword coins..."
The cut Chu Liang had made struck a nerve with Wen Yulong. However, Chu Liang remained silent and just watched him quietly.
After some hesitation, Wen Yulong nodded and said, "All right, all right. I'll take up this request. Please rest assured I will definitely do my best."
It was evident that he hadn't received any requests for quite a while, so he was pretty excited for the opportunity to make something.
Chu Liang nodded softly and replied, "Then I'll entrust this to you, Junior Brother Wen."
He left behind the Lifeforce Green Leaf and the payment for the service. Then he stood up and left.
Despite the small reduction in the fee, the final amount still almost emptied his savings. Additionally, he was running out of Qi-Gathering Pills for his Large-Headed Doll. The urgency of making money suddenly weighed down on him.
"Sigh..."
As Chu Liang walked out of the Hall of Weapons, he couldn't help but sigh deeply.
Even a great hero, who could overturn rivers and seas, could not escape being hungry, cold, and poor. Money made the man; without money, it was hard to be a man.
When would Chu Liang finally achieve financial freedom with sword coins?
Back at Silver Sword Peak, he saw another small paper crane on the table. Chu Liang unfolded it to find a reply from Jiang Yuebai.
It contained just a few simple words: Today, after the sun has risen[1], at the old place.
...
"Senior Sister Jiang, it's been quite a while. I've missed you greatly."
Chu Liang met Jiang Xiaobai again in the waterfall cave on the Treasured Pagoda Peak.
Jiang Xiaobai was dressed in a simple wide-sleeved dress with her hair pinned up in a bun, exposing her fair, cloud-like temples. She was still as stunningly beautiful as ever.
Compared to the last two meetings, Jiang Xiaobai seemed much more relaxed in front of Chu Liang now.
Jiang Xiaobai snorted slightly and said, "Hmph, all I see is that you really want to learn divine skills."
"Well, isn't it all for the sake of chasing in the footsteps of my senior brothers and sisters?" Chu Liang replied without a change in expression.
"Fine, that's enough," Jiang Xiaobai said, becoming a little more serious. "Today, I'm going to teach you something more challenging. Be prepared."
Chu Liang nodded. "Okay."
After teaching Chu Liang the Hundred Swords Seal last time, Mount Shu's Fairy Jiang went through a brief period of self-doubt.
She knew that Chu Liang's exceptional innate talent was certainly a good thing. After all, she had discovered a talented disciple with great potential for the Mount Shu Sect. However, Chu Liang was excessively talented, which stirred up some doubts in her mind.
Before, Jiang Yuebai had always thought of herself as an extremely talented person. She hadn't been complacent because of it, but it had undoubtedly given her a sense of assurance that she was not inferior to any other genius of her generation.
Yet, witnessing Chu Liang's shocking feat of mastering the Hundred Swords Seal in just two tries had sown a seed of doubt in Jiang Yuebai's mind. She had taken a day to master the same technique, so she felt rather mediocre next to him...
For cultivators, their confidence could be a significant factor in their cultivation and even affect their Dao heart.
After contemplating for a while, Jiang Yuebai felt that she could not let her Dao heart be shaken. She tried convincing herself that perhaps the reason why Chu Liang managed to master it so smoothly was that he'd started learning the Hundred Swords Seal much later than she had, or maybe he was just naturally suited for this kind of divine skill.
Therefore, this time, she planned to teach Chu Liang an extremely challenging divine skill to thoroughly test his abilities.
"Talismanic Sword Seal?" Chu Liang uttered, feeling a bit startled after hearing the name of the technique that Jiang Xiaobai was about to teach him.
Of course, it wasn't because he hadn't heard of it before. Rather, it was because this was an extremely famous technique.
Divine skills like the Hundred Swords Seal weren't exclusive to the Mount Shu Sect. Members of other sects and even those unconventional sword cultivators might know them.
The Talismanic Sword Seal, on the other hand, had been created by the ancestors of the Mount Shu Sect and was a secret technique exclusive to the disciples of the Mount Shu Sect.
In the Mount Shu Sect, it was a compulsory course for disciples at the Golden Core Realm, but usually, only the disciples at the Realm of the Five Elements could master it. As for disciples at the level of the first three realms, they wouldn't even consider learning this technique because it was still too early for them; they wouldn't even be able to comprehend it if they tried.
Does Senior Sister Jiang think that highly of me?
Seeing Chu Liang's surprised expression, Jiang Xiaobai smiled faintly and asked, "How about it? Do you have the confidence that you'll be able to learn it?"
"With Senior Sister Jiang teaching me, I am, of course, confident I'll be able to," Chu Liang replied, always mindful to reel in his emotions.
"The Talismanic Sword Seal is said to be profound and difficult to learn, but unlike immortal arts, you don't need to comprehend any principles of the Great Dao, nor do you need to have an extremely high cultivation level. Therefore, it should be possible to master it in the Spiritual Awareness Realm," Jiang Xiaobai explained.
She added in her mind, Well, theoretically.
Chu Liang could only nod in response.
After that, Miss Jiang's small classroom was back in session.
The theory behind the Talismanic Sword Seal was relatively easy to understand. It involved using a sword to write characters[2] in midair to communicate with spirits. The next step was to execute the Sword Manipulation Technique, allowing the caster's flying sword to charge forth with the innate power of the characters. The combination of sword qi and a talisman had a formidable destructive power.
Moreover, as long as the caster was strong enough, one sword seal could have many characters and turn into a Ten-Character Talismanic Sword or a Hundred-Character Talismanic Sword. It was said that a formidable swordsman in Mount Shu Sect once combined the Ten Thousand Swords Seal with the Talismanic Sword Seal, unleashing a strike that manifested a Hundred-Thousand-Character Talismanic Sword.
The sword suppressed the heavens and the earth; it had a sword qi that shook the nine provinces and a supreme power capable of destroying mountains and seas. A Talismanic Sword Seal that had been cultivated to such a high level was just as powerful as an immortal art.
After finding out about that, Chu Liang couldn't help but yearn to learn the Talismanic Sword Seal.
However, what Jiang Xiaobai asked next immediately made Chu Liang lose his eagerness.
"Can you make talismans?"
"Uh..." Chu Liang uttered. fr(e)e
He could only shake his head in response.
Seeing Chu Liang's bewildered expression, Jiang Yuebai was secretly delighted.
She had already reached the Golden Core Realm before she started learning the Talismanic Sword Seal. Moreover, she had been familiar with the talisman-making process. So, it had taken her just twelve days to finish learning the technique, setting a record as the fastest one to do so among her generation of disciples in the Mount Shu Sect.
Chu Liang seemed like a novice in all aspects, so mastering the Talismanic Sword Seal in twelve days would obviously be an impossible feat for him... It would be very difficult just to learn how to make talismans in that short period.
It seems like I've won this time, Jiang Yuebai thought happily.
Then she suddenly felt rather puzzled by her own thoughts.
Huh? Why do I care so much about this?
He's clearly just a junior brother at the mid-stage of the Spiritual Awareness Realm. It's a matter of course that I should win against him!
Upon realizing that, Jiang Yuebai reminded herself to stay calm.
Chu Liang noticed the flickering emotions in Jiang Xiaobai's eyes, but he couldn't tell what she was thinking about.
Regardless, he handed her a jar of Honey Syrup Tea.
"Senior Sister Jiang, thank you for the explanation. Here, have a drink. This is a beverage I bought from the foot of the mountain, and it has a very pleasant taste."
"Hm?" Jiang Xiaobai took the tea and had a sip. Her eyes immediately lit up. "Indeed, it's delicious!"
Seeing Jiang Xiaobai's happy expression, Chu Liang remembered his teacher's review earlier and thought that this sweet beverage seemed to be favored by women.
A light bulb suddenly lit up in his mind.
"Senior Sister Jiang, if you like it, I can bring this beverage here for you often in the future. However..." Chu Liang said, "can you help me with a small favor in return?"
1. Period of 7-9am ☜
2. This is referring to Chinese characters, not English ones. They are often words on their own or paired with one or more characters to form a different meaning. ☜