7: Show the talent of the talisman master

The next day.

On the way to the Talisman Hall, Liu Xuan opened the Spirit Stone bag given by Lin Xue'er and took a look.

Ten milky-white Spirit Stones lay quietly in the bag.

Lin Xue'er previously earned five Spirit Stones a month, but her expenses were quite high; she probably hadn't saved much over the years.

Giving away ten Spirit Stones just like that; Liu Xuan had to admit his luck was good. Lin Xue'er truly treated him as her Dao Companion.

The Talisman Hall was located at the foot of the mountain, not far from the small courtyard. Upon arriving, Liu Xuan clearly felt that there were fewer people.

Alchemy, Artifacts, Talismans, and Formations—these four Cultivation arts were the most prestigious and lucrative. As long as one achieved success in any one of them, there would be no need to run around and toil for Cultivation resources.

With such great benefits, yet little internal competition, it meant the threshold was extremely high. For those without talent, spending any amount of time and energy would be futile.

"What are you doing here?"

"This is the Talisman Hall. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter!"

Just as Liu Xuan reached the entrance, he was stopped by several people wearing martial arts attire with long blades at their waists.

The Talisman Hall was primarily a place for Talisman Masters to live and practice Talisman Drawing; they liked peace and quiet, and generally, Utility Disciples were not allowed to enter or leave at will without reason.

"I am Liu Xuan. I am here to learn Talisman Drawing."

Liu Xuan stopped and stated his purpose.

"Follow me!"

The guards seemed very familiar with Liu Xuan's situation; one of them led Liu Xuan inside.

Entering the Talisman Hall area, Liu Xuan clearly felt that the concentration of Spiritual Qi in the air had increased by a level. If he could live inside, his Cultivation speed would definitely accelerate significantly.

Arriving at a small building along the way, the guard pointed to the crowd lining up in front and said:

"That is the registration desk for the Talisman Drawing course. You can go over there yourself."

'To think there are so many people signing up!'

Thinking about it, that made sense. Talisman Masters were so profitable that those with the conditions would naturally want to try.

What if he had talent as a Talisman Master?

Risking ten Spirit Stones for a chance to become a Talisman Master was a great deal!

The reason why the spots for Red Pine Sect Outer Sect Disciples were so sought after was partly due to the various learning courses available.

The cost of learning Talisman Drawing on one's own was extremely high. A basic Talisman brush cost no less than twenty Spirit Stones, a stack of one hundred practice Talisman papers cost at least one Spirit Stone, and the lowest grade Talisman ink cost at least one Spirit Stone per bottle.

These were not the most expensive things; the most expensive was the guidance of a Talisman Master. One month of guidance from a First-Rank Low-Grade Talisman Master cost at least ten Spirit Stones.

If one wanted to learn Talismans alone, the cost would be several times higher.

Liu Xuan queued up, handed over the Spirit Stones, received a token, and was then led to a room in the small building.

The spacious room contained dozens of desks, giving it the feeling of a classroom from his school days, only more spacious.

A young woman in a palace-style dress sat at the front of the classroom, flipping through a book, not looking at the people below at all.

"Senior Sister Qin, everyone has arrived!"

Qin Yun put down the book in her hand, swept her gaze over the crowd below, and nodded slightly.

"Then let us begin!"

"In the way of Talismans, the most fundamental element is the Talisman rune."

"Only by comprehending the most basic runes can one draw a Talisman."

Qin Yun raised her brush and drew three complex runes in the air. "These three runes are the simplest ones for drawing a non-graded Dust-Avoiding Talisman. Copy them."

Perhaps due to the use of some Magical Artifact, the three gray runes remained suspended in mid-air.

After speaking, Qin Yun picked up her book again and started reading, not even glancing at the people below.

The Disciples carefully observed the three runes in the air.

It was too difficult!

They were winding, extremely complex, and forcing oneself to watch them caused a feeling of dizziness, as if the runes were shifting.

Dust-Avoiding Talisman! Liu Xuan looked left and right, and seeing that no one noticed him, he raised his brush and slowly drew it out.

Liu Xuan possessed the level of a First-Rank Peak Talisman Master; a mere non-graded Talisman was not difficult at all.

It was a pity that the Talisman paper and Talisman ink on the table were for practice and were of non-graded quality; otherwise, Liu Xuan could have attempted to draw a First-Rank Low Grade Talisman.

The Dust-Avoiding Talisman was non-graded, but it was not without value; in the shops, they sold for one Spirit Stone for ten.

Liu Xuan was short on money right now and couldn't afford to waste them.

The cost of one Dust-Avoiding Talisman was less than three silver coins, but it could sell for the price of one gold coin—a profit of over three times. No wonder everyone wanted to become a Talisman Master.

The Talisman Drawing course provided a stack of non-graded Talisman paper and a bottle of non-graded Talisman ink, enough to draw one hundred Dust-Avoiding Talismans.

Just by relying on this, Liu Xuan could earn back his tuition fees.

He secretly drew ten Dust-Avoiding Talismans, but when Liu Xuan wanted to continue, he suddenly couldn't.

His magic power was insufficient, and his Divine Soul was also somewhat exhausted.

Talisman Drawing was not just simple painting; it required magic power to support it and also consumed the Divine Soul.

Liu Xuan's Cultivation was only at the Qi Refining First Layer, so he could not support long periods of drawing, even for just non-graded Dust-Avoiding Talismans.

After adjusting his breath and waiting for his magic power to recover a bit, Liu Xuan continued to secretly draw Talismans.

When the two-hour course ended, Liu Xuan had drawn a total of twenty Dust-Avoiding Talismans, all of which he secretly stuffed into his pockets.

None of the other forty-nine people in the room managed to successfully draw a single rune, and they left one by one, dejected.

"My Spirit Stones! Just like that, they're gone."

"If I had known, I wouldn't have come. Since when was being a Talisman Master so easy?"

"Forget it, forget it. Just treat it as giving up the thought."

After just one lesson, many people had already lost confidence.

...

Five days later.

"Hahaha!"

"Teacher, I succeeded!"

A student excitedly held up a piece of Talisman paper that was faintly emitting spiritual light and shouted loudly.

This could not yet be considered a Talisman; he had only successfully drawn a rune, and it had no effect.

Qin Yun put down her book, looked over with interest, and nodded in satisfaction, saying, "To successfully draw a rune in five days is indeed not bad!"

"Keep working hard! As long as you can successfully draw three runes within a month, you can truly begin to learn Talisman Drawing."

The rest of the people in the classroom looked at this lucky person, casting envious glances.

To be able to successfully draw a rune in five days—if this was his first time attending the course, he might really have the talent to become a Talisman Master.

"Teacher, I have also successfully drawn it!"

Liu Xuan had already secretly drawn ninety Dust-Avoiding Talismans; the remaining ten pieces of Talisman paper had to be used for drawing runes.

Five days was just right; it allowed him to reveal his talent without being too excessive.

"Oh?"

Qin Yun was somewhat surprised. There were actually two students in this batch with talent for Talisman Drawing?

"Bring it here and let me see," she instructed.

Liu Xuan held up a piece of Talisman paper to show Qin Yun. In order to appear like a complete beginner, he deliberately made the lines of the rune not so perfect, only reaching a level that barely counted as a success.

"Not bad! Not bad! It is indeed a success."

"It is just that the connection of the lines is not perfect enough and still needs further refinement."

"Continue to study the other two runes and strive to succeed within a month!"

Cultivating a talented Disciple would also bring benefits to Qin Yun. Having two people in one batch with the opportunity to advance made her especially satisfied.

"Teacher, I have succeeded with all three runes!"

Liu Xuan held up two other pieces of Talisman paper, each with a different rune drawn on it, to show her.

"What!?!"

Qin Yun could no longer remain calm; she dropped her book, stood up, and walked toward Liu Xuan.