44: Chapter 44 His alcohol tolerance is too high.

The brush tip danced across the paper, moving as swiftly as a dragon soaring and a snake leaping.

Talisman scripts and Dao patterns appeared in succession, intertwining and connecting with one another to form a seamless whole, leaving no room for a single flaw.

Chu Feng was fully focused, his mind completely immersed in the Dao of Talismans. All sounds from the outside world vanished, leaving only the faint rustling of the brush tip gliding across the talisman paper.

Before long, a Lightning Talisman was completed.

The talisman paper was covered in dense lightning patterns, with faint electric light shimmering between the lines. It was brimming with Spiritual Qi that seemed ready to overflow, clearly a top-tier piece among High Grade Profound Rank talismans.

During the Qi Refining stage, crafting Profound Rank spiritual talismans had been extremely draining for him.

But after Foundation Establishment, his Divine Thought became stronger and his mana more refined, making it much easier to draw such High Grade Profound Rank spiritual talismans.

Coupled with his comprehension of the first volume of the Heavenly Talisman Scripture, his talisman crafting became increasingly effortless, achieving a success rate of over eighty percent.

If this success rate were to get out, the entire world of the Dao of Talismans would be shaken.

One must know that for an ordinary High Grade Profound Rank talisman master, achieving a thirty percent success rate for High Grade spiritual talismans is already considered top-tier.

This is the difference between talent and Foundation.

Chu Feng set down his talisman brush, looking at the Lightning Talisman on the desk with a clear mind.

The Dao of Talismans is like climbing a mountain; every step reveals a different view.

He had only just reached the mountainside; although he could overlook the scenery below, the summit was still hidden in the clouds, and the distant mountain ranges were even more obscured in the depths of the sea of clouds, with no end in sight.

The path of cultivation is still very long.

Another hour passed, and Chu Feng picked up his brush again.

This time, he intended to try a new type of talisman. It used the essence soul of a Yao Beast as a guide, incorporating it into the talisman patterns so that, when activated, it could conjure a phantom image of the Yao Beast to assist in battle.

This talisman belonged to the Low Grade Earth Rank; its crafting difficulty was immense, and the requirements for Divine Sense strength and mana control were harsh.

He focused his mind once more, his brush tip flying as before, but at the most critical step,

as he incorporated a wisp of the Wind Wolf's essence soul into the talisman patterns, the talisman paper suddenly trembled violently, the scripts upon it flickering unsteadily.

Finally, with a soft "puff" sound, it turned into a handful of ash, scattering across the desk.

Another failure.

Chu Feng, however, felt not a shred of dejection; instead, a flicker of excitement ignited in his eyes.

Failure is a common occurrence; success is a pleasant surprise.

Every failure allowed him a deeper understanding of the talisman patterns and a more precise grasp of integrating essence souls with them.

"Again."

Chu Feng cleaned the desk, laid out new talisman paper, dipped his brush in ink, and tried again.

Outside the window, night quietly descended, and stars began to pop out one by one. The small courtyard was silent, with only the light in the talisman crafting room burning through the night, illuminating the youth's focused figure.

On the path to longevity, having a beautiful woman by his side, a Great Dao to pursue, and difficult problems to solve—such days were quite fulfilling.

As for what storms tomorrow might bring, or what ripples the future might hold, he would leave that for now.

At this moment, he only wanted to focus on crafting the talisman before him.

Unfortunately, in the end, Chu Feng still failed.

A Low Grade Earth Rank spiritual talisman was, after all, still too difficult for him at the moment.

Although his mindset was good, the repeated failures still left him feeling a bit stifled and frustrated.

He decided to find a way to vent.

Chu Feng straightened his robes and walked towards the quiet room in the west wing.

Before he could even knock, a cold, feminine voice came from inside: "What is it?"

"Immortal Master Miaoyi." Chu Feng stood outside the door.

The next second, the door slid open silently.

Jiang Miaoyi was still wearing a silver-white dress, sitting cross-legged on a prayer mat with her eyes closed, yet a faint Spiritual Pressure lingered around her.

That was the dignity that a Golden Core Cultivator inevitably exuded, even when trying their best to restrain their aura.

The furnishings in the quiet room were extremely simple: just a table, a prayer mat, and a long sword hanging on the wall, with no other clutter.

"I am going to the small courtyard next door." Chu Feng coughed lightly to explain his purpose.

Jiang Miaoyi slowly opened her eyes.

Her eyes were very pale, shimmering with a faint amber light in the dim room, and she was currently looking at Chu Feng calmly.

The gaze was not sharp, yet it made Chu Feng feel as though he had been seen through, inside and out; he could not hide a single thought.

"That Master Luoli is at the Middle Stage of the Golden Core, while you are only at the second level of Foundation Establishment. The disparity in your cultivation levels is vast."

Jiang Miaoyi spoke, her voice flat and waveless, "Even if she tries her best to restrain her Golden Core mana, you would simply be unable to withstand it. It is just like how you interact with your Qi Refining Dao Companion now."

Upon hearing this, Chu Feng's expression instantly became strange.

He did indeed have to deliberately restrain himself; after all, he was too strong now, but this matter...

"How does Immortal Master Miaoyi know that I and my Dao Companion..." Halfway through his sentence, Chu Feng realized he had misspoke and quickly stopped himself.

Jiang Miaoyi had already stood up, walked to a spot two steps away from Chu Feng, and stopped, saying indifferently: "I have no interest in your private affairs."

Chu Feng breathed a sigh of relief inwardly.

"I was merely reminding you." Jiang Miaoyi added.

Chu Feng suddenly realized and quickly cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for the advice, Immortal Master Miaoyi. I am going there not only for... uh, I also wanted to go over to taste some wine."

"Taste wine?"

The corners of Jiang Miaoyi's lips seemed to lift ever so slightly, the arc finally becoming more noticeable, "At this hour, you still have such refined interests."

She paused, then suddenly spoke, "How about we go together?"

Chu Feng was stunned; he had not expected her to say that, and subconsciously replied: "This... if Immortal Master Miaoyi does not mind..."

Realizing it was inappropriate after the words left his mouth, he added, "I just do not know what your tolerance for alcohol is, Immortal Master Miaoyi."

As soon as the words fell, Chu Feng's body stiffened abruptly.

The surrounding air seemed to instantly solidify into substance, like an invisible mountain pressing down on his head.

This pressure was not an aura deliberately released by Jiang Miaoyi, but a deeper, more terrifying power.

It was like an undercurrent beneath the deep sea—silent and traceless, yet capable of easily crushing a person into meat paste.

Chu Feng's breath hitched, and his spiritual power instinctively began to circulate to protect his body, but this strength was like an ant trying to shake a tree in the face of that pressure; it was completely useless.

Fortunately, this pressure only lasted for an instant before vanishing without a trace in the blink of an eye. The night breeze from under the corridor blew over again, carrying a hint of coolness.

Jiang Miaoyi's cold voice reached his ears, betraying not a hint of emotion: "It seems you cannot handle my tolerance."

Chu Feng's throat went dry.

Jiang Miaoyi stopped looking at him and turned back into the quiet room.

The moment before the door closed, she left behind one sentence: "Be careful, do not damage your Foundation."

Not until the door was completely shut did Chu Feng let out a long, turbid breath, and the tension in his back finally dissipated.

A Golden Core Great Perfection, an existence only half a step away from shattering the core to form an infant—truly too terrifying.

He shook his head, suppressed the distracting thoughts in his heart, and turned to walk towards the courtyard gate.

Soon, he arrived in front of the gate of the small courtyard next door.