56: Bao Fu Pavilion, Mo Yuan Brush

"Welcome to the Precious Talisman Pavilion. May I ask what Senior needs? You may command this humble one."

As soon as he entered the main gate of the Precious Talisman Pavilion, a Qi Refining attendant came forward to greet him.

"I would like to take a look at some Talisman paper and Talisman brushes."

Su Ling said indifferently.

His stock of Talisman paper was nearly exhausted, and as for his Talisman brush, it was still the Dark-Tailed Fox hair brush he had used back in the Qi Refinement Stage.

While previously drawing a Medium Grade Vajra Talisman, Su Ling had discovered that the Rank of this Talisman brush was too low and its spiritual power conduction was too slow, resulting in a very low success rate.

He hadn't made many Talismans since then, so he hadn't thought about replacing it.

"Certainly, Senior, please come this way."

The attendant, his face beaming with smiles, bowed and led the way.

The Precious Talisman Pavilion specialized in the Talisman business, and customers who visited didn't always come to buy ready-made Talismans.

It was perfectly normal to have needs for Materials or tools.

Soon, the two entered an exhibition hall on the left that was a full two hundred square meters in size.

"Forgive my boldness, but are the Talisman paper and brushes Senior requires Entry-Level, or second or third tier?"

After they entered, the attendant asked tentatively.

In the Dao of Talisman making, Ranks are divided based on the power of the Talismans.

The first tier corresponds to the Qi Refinement Stage, the second tier to Foundation Establishment, and the third tier to Core Formation.

The tools and Materials used when drawing Talismans also differ.

For instance, a third-tier Talisman normally requires a corresponding Rank of Talisman brush and paper, combined with Talisman ink prepared from the blood of a Third-tier Demon Beast, to be successfully drawn.

As for the grade of the Talisman, it is determined by the difficulty of the attached Spell and one's personal proficiency.

Previously, Su Ling had used the blood of a Third-tier Golden Bone Beast but only managed to refine a first-tier Medium Grade Vajra Talisman.

The reason was that he hadn't actually cultivated the Vajra Technique himself and had drawn it entirely according to the 'Detailed Explanation of Basic Talismans'.

Furthermore, the Talisman paper and brush were both first-tier, and the beast blood had not been properly prepared.

"Second or third tier are both fine; it depends on the price."

Su Ling looked at the dazzling, treasure-gleaming display stands and said calmly.

"Certainly, Senior, please come this way."

The attendant understood and immediately led him to the counter on the right. "These are all made from the Star-Talisman Grass unique to the Yaoxing Sea, supplemented with Materials like Water-Rhythm Flower pollen and Azure Cloud Wood ash. Senior can choose based on the attributes of the Talismans you wish to refine."

"The price?"

"Second-tier Talisman paper is five Low-Grade Spirit Stones per sheet. Third-tier Talisman paper is fifty Spirit Stones per sheet."

The attendant replied respectfully.

Su Ling was somewhat taken aback; for first-tier Talisman paper, one could buy ten sheets for a single Spirit Stone.

When he first began practicing the Dao of Talisman making, he couldn't even produce one Talisman from ten sheets of paper.

After spending nearly five hundred Spirit Stones, he finally managed to reach the Entry-Level, where he could succeed in drawing one Talisman for every ten sheets of paper.

Including the consumed Talisman ink and the wear on the Talisman brush, the cost of each Talisman was roughly two Spirit Stones.

According to the prices in the Xuanming Sect, the profit on a first-tier Low Grade Talisman was thirty percent.

The selling price for a second-tier Talisman started at eighty Spirit Stones, with prices varying based on its power and effects.

With a rough estimate of a ten percent success rate, the cost would be over seventy Spirit Stones, with a profit of nearly fifteen percent.

Of course, this didn't account for the resources consumed while practicing second-tier Talismans.

As for the third tier, he wouldn't consider it for the time being.

After a brief thought, Su Ling said decisively, "Give me fifty sheets each of water, fire, and ice attribute Talisman paper."

"Um, Senior, the price for fire-attribute Talisman paper is seven Spirit Stones per sheet..."

"Why is that?"

"Senior, fire-attribute Talisman paper requires the addition of Scarlet Flame Powder to be refined. Scarlet Flame Stones are relatively rare, so..."

The attendant explained somewhat apologetically.

Hearing this, Su Ling also had a sudden realization.

He had forgotten that the Canglang Plane was rich in water spiritual energy but had fewer fire-attribute products.

Consequently, the price of all fire-attribute products was a notch higher than other attributes.

"It's fine, we'll go with that price."

The water spiritual energy in the Canglang Plane was dense, and water-system Spells were very popular.

Correspondingly, the market for water-system Talismans was extremely stable.

Fire-system Talismans were relatively scarce and expensive.

Before purchasing the Talisman paper, Su Ling had already decided on his direction.

"Certainly, Senior, please wait a moment."

The attendant beamed and quickly went behind the counter, carefully taking out the three types of Talisman paper and putting them into three brocade boxes. "Would Senior also like to look at Talisman brushes?"

"Mm."

Su Ling nodded indifferently.

"Then, this humble one will take Senior to see them first, and we can settle everything together later."

The attendant hurriedly carried the three brocade boxes and led Su Ling to the other side.

"The Azure Bamboo Brush uses the soft feathers from under the wings of the second-tier Yao Beast, the Azure Feathered Crane, for its tip, paired with the Purple Jade Bamboo abundant on Emerald Bamboo Island for its handle. Magic power conduction is extremely smooth, increasing the Talisman-making success rate by ten percent... The price is three hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

"The sable hair brush uses the tail hair of the second-tier Yao Beast, the Water Spirit Mink, for its tip, paired with a handle made of Blue Water Coral Stone. It can increase the success rate of water-system Talismans by fifteen percent... The price is only four hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

"..."

The attendant introduced four or five Talisman brushes to Su Ling in a row, one of which was a third-tier brush called the Jasper Wolf Hair Brush, which he claimed could increase the success rate by thirty percent.

The price soared directly to two thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Listening to the attendant's introduction, Su Ling activated his Immortal Eye of Treasure Appraisal to verify.

The descriptions were fairly honest, only the success rate was somewhat exaggerated.

The so-called thirty percent was actually only fifteen percent.

However, it wasn't surprising; success rate was a matter of probability after all.

As long as they didn't exaggerate twenty or thirty percent into fifty or sixty percent, no one would likely notice.

After all, whether a Talisman succeeded or not mainly depended on personal skill.

Su Ling listened noncommittally, his gaze sweeping over the other Talisman brushes in the counter.

After a moment, his eyes brightened slightly.

[ink abyss brush, fifth-tier Talisman brush, in a self-concealing state. Requires continuous nourishment with magic power for ten days before its spirituality can be activated.]

In a corner of the counter, a Talisman brush that was pitch-black and lacked any luster lay quietly.

The listed price was only five hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

A fifth-tier Talisman brush!

It was actually only five hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones?!

Su Ling's heart stirred, and he asked casually, "That brush looks quite nice. What grade is it?"

The attendant glanced at it, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes. "Oh, that's a third-tier Talisman brush left for sale by a descendant of a declined Family, called the ink jade brush. The original price was three thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, but it has gone unnoticed for ten years, so the price has dropped to five hundred Spirit Stones."

"Why is that?"

"Senior might not know, but although this brush is third-tier, for some reason, even the top Talisman Makers in our shop cannot successfully draw Talismans with it."

"It's actually that strange?"

"Isn't it? It has the grade of a third-tier but can't draw Talismans. Our Precious Talisman Pavilion is built on integrity; we won't cheat our customers on this."

"Precious Talisman Pavilion, truly commendable!"

Su Ling nodded noncommittally. The Immortal Eye of Treasure Appraisal indicated that the ink abyss brush required continuous nourishment with magic power for ten days.

A Talisman brush was not a Magical Artifact or Magic Treasure; normally, it could only be used to draw Talismans.

Without knowing the secret, who would bother to nourish a third-tier Talisman brush for no reason?

No wonder even the top Talisman Makers of the Precious Talisman Pavilion couldn't use it.

Su Ling then pointed at the sable hair brush and smiled, "In that case, I'll take this sable hair brush. I also need ten pieces of second-tier Basic Talisman Ink."

One piece of second-tier Basic Talisman Ink was worth ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones and could draw about thirty Talismans.

So-called Basic Talisman Ink was attribute-less Talisman ink.

If there was an attribute requirement, one could add the corresponding Yao Beast blood themselves to prepare it.

Su Ling naturally did not lack the skills and Yao blood for this.