Too Terrifying

Whoosh.

Laughter seemed to come from all directions.

Shen Ping's body instantly froze. The small courtyard in front of him slowly faded. At some point, smoke was lingering around it. A graceful figure walked over barefooted. Her face under the white veil looked like Wang Yun, but also like Bai Yuying. In the end, she turned into Yu Yan.

Three meters.

Two meters.

As the beautiful figure approached, the thin and transparent gauze was faintly discernible. The ribbon at her waist fluttered, as if it was about to break free from her body in the next second.

Shen Ping stared unblinkingly at the graceful figure. Flames burned in his lower abdomen. At this moment, nothing could disturb him. There was only one thought left in his mind, and that was…

"Husband, walk to the paradise of the human world with me!"

The gauze fell. He could not help but want to pounce on her. However, at this moment, a gentle voice resounded in his ears like the morning bell. "Fellow Daoist Mu, we're all neighbors. Let's not mess with the younger generation."

Shen Ping shuddered and broke free from the charm. The small courtyard came back into view. Cold sweat broke out all over his body. He did not even dare to look in front of him. Instead, he immediately lowered his head and bowed. "Thank you, Fellow Daoist Feng. Thank you, Fellow Daoist Mu, for showing mercy. This junior's strength is weak. Please take care of me in the future."

"Hmph, Fellow Daoist Feng, you're really nosy. Boring!" As she spoke, she was already dozens of steps away.

Shen Ping remained where he was, not daring to move at all. Only when he heard the door open did he heave a sigh of relief. He turned to the side and thanked him respectfully again.

Fellow Daoist Feng smiled and said, "You're welcome."

Back in the house, he took a deep breath.

The female cultivator of the Heavenly Sound Pavilion. How terrifying. Just a charm technique had almost embarrassed him in front of everyone. Fortunately, this was Yunhe Alley. If he was in Red Willow Alley or the wilderness, it would be as easy as blowing off dust for the other party to kill him.

The eighth level of Qi Refinement. Facing such strength, he was no different from an ant. Originally, because Shen Ping had participated in the auction of the True Treasure Pavilion and had come into contact with higher-level information, he felt a sense of superiority.

But now, this superiority has collapsed.

He once again thought of He Qin. If that alchemist worked hard, putting aside whether he could reach the Foundation Establishment stage in the future, he would at least be able to advance to the late-stage Qi Refinement Realm. However, after being tainted by the female cultivators of the Heavenly Sound Pavilion, he had become a street rat that everyone hated. In the end, he died tragically in the wilderness.

At that time, he wanted to go to the Heavenly Sound Pavilion to give it a try. Now that he thought about it, it was fortunate that he was cautious and did not act rashly. Otherwise, it would be beyond redemption.

Facing such a crushing charm technique, how could he have the will to resist?

"Husband."

"W-what happened?"

Wang Yun and Bai Yuying walked out of the quiet room. When they saw that their husband's forehead was covered in sweat, they hurriedly went forward to ask.

Shen Ping shook his head. "I'm fine. Don't worry, I'm really fine."

Several days passed, the palpitations from encountering the female cultivators of the Heavenly Sound Pavilion slowly subsided.

On this day, Yu Yan returned after leaving for more than ten days. As usual, she took a bath to wash away her fatigue and killing intent. Then, she went upstairs to return the spirit stones. In the past few months, she had returned 12 mid-grade spirit stones one after another.

Shen Ping could tell that Yu Yan was very tired. Back at Red Willow Alley, Yu Yan rarely went out during winter. After moving to Yunhe Alley, she went out almost every month for at least three to five days, at most ten days to half a month.

Honestly, once cultivators went to Cloudy Mountain Swamp more often, that meant they weren't far from losing their lives. No one could guarantee that nothing would happen to them. Not even Foundation Establishment Cultivators could.

"Fellow Daoist Yu." Shen Ping could not help but say, "Cloudy Mountain Swamp's winter environment is harsh, and demon beasts rarely appear. It's better to wait until next year."

Yu Yan crossed her arms in front of her chest and said, "Oh, it's really rare for Fellow Daoist Shen to say this. I thought you would only feel sorry for your wife and concubine."

Shen Ping hurriedly explained, "Ahem, I'm just worried about the cost of co-renting. Without Fellow Daoist Yu to share the burden, I'm under a lot of pressure."

Yu Yan chuckled. She turned around and went downstairs. "Don't worry. The team I joined is not weak. Moreover, the Spirit Protection Talisman you gave me can be used three times."

Shen Ping sighed faintly. Although Yunhe Alley was good, it was just a safe nest. It could not protect everyone.

...

Cultivation, talisman crafting, dual cultivation, and accompanying.

The daily arrangements were very full.

Among them, making talismans was the most important. After all, he still owes more than ten high-grade talismans to the True Treasure Pavilion. If he could not complete the mission, he would not be able to enter the True Treasure Pavilion in the future.

However, ever since his wife's favorability had broken through the upper limit, his experience in the Dao of Talisman had increased by three times every day. Originally, he needed about three years to reach the High-grade Perfection Stage. Now, he only needs one year.

Although he was restricted by his cultivation level and could not make higher-grade talismans, his experience in the Dao of Talismans had greatly increased, increasing his success rate in making high-grade talismans. He could even try to make Explosive Talismans, Ice Arrow Talismans, and even more complicated Earth Meteorite Talismans.

Apart from that, the spiritual energy increased by the high-grade spiritual root continued to increase. Combined with the help of the Yellow Spirit Pill, Shen Ping estimated that he would need more than a year to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refinement.

On this kind of day where he could feel improvement every moment, he paid no attention to what was going on outside. The thought of taking another concubine was thrown to the back of his mind.

At the beginning of February the following year. He finished making the remaining dozen or so high-grade talismans and went to the True Treasure Pavilion to sell them. He felt at ease.

Spring Embroidery Pavilion.

When Shopkeeper Chen saw Shen Ping, he said rather bitterly, "Fellow Daoist Shen, it's been a few months, but you haven't come to my place once."

Shen Ping laughed dryly and apologized, "I've been immersed in practicing the Dao of Talismans recently, so I really can't find the time."

Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Chen asked politely, "Fellow Daoist Shen, are you cultivating in the Talisman Treasure Hall?"

"Yes."

"The Talisman Treasure Hall is indeed a good place for rogue cultivators to improve. With Fellow Daoist Shen's many years of accumulation, you should be able to obtain something."

He was just saying that. Even though the advancement in the Dao of Talismans depended on hard work, that trace of fundamental natural talent determined the upper limit. There were so many Talisman Masters in the entire market, but very few of them could become high-grade.

However, Shen Ping smiled and said, "Shopkeeper Chen is right. I did gain something. Recently, I was lucky enough to successfully create a Golden Light Talisman."

Shopkeeper Chen was stunned. "Golden Light Talisman? Fellow Daoist Shen, you can make a Golden Light Talisman?"

Soon, Shen Ping took out the Golden Light Talisman. He did not plan to cut off contact with Shopkeeper Chen. He even had to tighten his relationship with him. After all, the other party's background was not low. He could obtain a lot of information about the Golden Sun Sect. Regardless of whether it was reliable or not, at least he had a channel to obtain information.

This was very important.

"I was just lucky. I spent a lot of materials and almost used up all my resources." Shen Ping said repeatedly.

A warm smile appeared on Shopkeeper Chen's face. "Congratulations to Fellow Daoist Shen for your success in Talisman Daoism. This first step is very crucial. It's not a big deal to spend some spirit stones. Talisman Masters are built on materials. If Fellow Daoist Shen can succeed, it's only a matter of time before you advance to become a High Grade Talisman Master.

"The current price of the Golden Light Talisman is 18 mid-grade spirit stones. I'll add another one for Fellow Daoist Shen. In the future, if Fellow Daoist Shen is able to craft high-grade talismans, I hope that you can take good care of the store."