Chapter 39: The Use of Secret Methods

With that, he took out a Concealment Talisman from his storage bag and presented it to Lu Xuan. "With full purple patterns, a perfect-grade talisman!"

"This... this is your work?" Lu Xuan asked in shock, her face turning pale.

"Indeed."

Lu Xuan's expression changed several times before she suddenly chuckled. "Impossible. You must have obtained it from somewhere else."

Lu An was not angry. He simply replied, "Why don't you go find one yourself? If you can locate it, that will count as your win."

Lu Xuan was at a loss for words. Perfect-grade purple-patterned talismans are not something people typically sell. If she asked the Sect Master, he might be able to draw one, but why would the Sect Master assist her in drawing talismans?

She couldn't figure out where Lu An's talisman came from, but she refused to believe it was drawn by Lu An himself.

Lu An, however, didn't care about her doubts and declared loudly, "Do you concede?"

Lu Xuan had no choice but to step aside, though she was reluctant.

"Don't let me catch you making excuses!"

Lu An smiled slightly, unconcerned, and stepped onto the Transmission Platform.

"Since you are not convinced, I will make sure you are convinced."

He turned to the distant Sect Master and said, "Please prepare a set of materials for drawing Concealment Talismans. I plan to use this talisman to explain the secrets of talisman patterns."

The Sect Master smiled and nodded. "Certainly."

Lu Xuan was puzzled. Could it be that he planned to draw talismans on the spot?

At this moment, two disciples, a man and a woman, came to Lu Xuan's side and said:

"Sister, how could someone of his age possibly draw a purple-patterned talisman? Even Senior Brother cannot achieve this, so he must be just bluffing."

"That's right. Senior Brother's talent in talisman techniques is exceptional, unmatched by anyone of his generation. This person is certainly inferior."

After belittling Lu An for a moment, their conversation shifted to Lu Xuan.

"Sister, I'm not trying to meddle, but Senior Brother has been pursuing you for so long. Aren't you moved at all?"

"I know you are focused on the path of talismans, but you can't neglect personal matters as well. The so-called law, partner, wealth, and position, finding the right partner is also crucial. I think Senior Brother would be a good match."

Lu Xuan's expression darkened. These two were acting as matchmakers for Senior Brother again.

She only had admiration for Senior Brother, and there had never been any romantic feelings involved.

However, she was too irritated to explain and simply snapped, "Noisy!"

The two knew her temper well and dared not say more.

Soon, the materials for drawing talismans on the platform were prepared. Lu An picked up the talisman brush and addressed the crowd below:

"Since the Sect Master invited me to explain the secrets of talisman patterns, I will do so here. How much you can comprehend depends on yourselves."

The crowd below became noisy with discussions.

"Such grandiose claims! One would think that the new version of talisman pattern secrets was created by him."

"Indeed. Who knows where he came from? I'm surprised the Sect Master let him give a lecture."

They did not know that the improved talisman pattern secrets were from Lu An. They only knew that this technique had suddenly spread within the sect and became all the rage.

In their minds, such a marvelous technique must have been created by the Sect Master.

Only Shen Mi wore a cold smile and thought to himself, "Hmph, this secret technique was indeed invented by Mr. Lu. Let's see your expressions later."

Lu An no longer wasted words. He made a hand seal, and the talisman brush began to emit a radiant glow.

"The Concealment Talisman has a total of a hundred patterns, divided into nine strokes."

"Each stroke must show at least eleven talisman patterns to be considered complete."

"To determine whether each stroke meets the requirement, we will use the secret talisman technique I'm explaining."

With that, he touched the brush to the talisman paper, and the first stroke was completed in no time.

The stroke was exceptionally smooth, flowing seamlessly from start to finish without any excess.

The crowd below was slightly surprised upon seeing this.

"This Lu An seems to have some skill. He doesn't seem like an incapable person."

"Indeed, this stroke really shows some mastery. It's better than most people."

…

Lu An appeared indifferent and asked the crowd below, "Do you know how many talisman patterns this stroke will display?"

The murmuring below quieted down. Some answered:

"Seven or eight. The flow of spiritual energy is smooth. If it maintains this level, it might be an excellent talisman."

"I think it's more than that. At least nine. With my eye, I can't see any problems with this stroke."

Lu Xuan also speculated on how many talisman patterns this stroke might show. An excellent talisman? Although it was quite different from the purple patterns, it was still impressive.

Unconsciously, her impression of Lu An began to change.

Unexpectedly, Lu An shook his head and said slowly, "I'll tell you, this stroke shows zero talisman patterns."

Hearing this, the crowd below erupted again, with many refuting the claim.

"Impossible! Given the smoothness of this stroke, if it's zero, I'll clean the beast dung at Beast-Controlling Cliff for a month!"

"I also find it impossible. If it's truly zero, I'll go with you."

Others also protested, but they did not speak recklessly.

Beast-Controlling Cliff was where the Spirit Talisman Sect kept its large transport beasts. The dung they produced was incredibly foul-smelling, and no one wanted to go there regularly.

Lu Xuan's mastery in talismans far surpassed that of most, but even with her skills, she could not see any issue with the stroke.

"Words alone are not enough. Everyone can see for themselves."

Lu An performed the talisman pattern secret technique, and a beam of golden light hit the talisman paper.

The light from the stroke flickered, seeming to generate talisman patterns but always falling short by a fraction.

In the end, a cluster of mottled light spots appeared in the air, but they did not connect into a complete line.

The crowd below gasped. The result was indeed as Lu An had said: not a single complete talisman pattern was visible.

But what were these mottled light spots?

The disciples displayed puzzled expressions, and even Lu Xuan was no exception.

Especially the two disciples who had previously spoken about cleaning beast dung, their faces turned ashen.

Lu An remained unperturbed, everything was as he had expected.

He pointed to the gaps between the two light spots and explained slowly, "Look here. Although this part appears extremely smooth, there is actually a severe blockage, causing the spiritual energy to be unable to pass through or even to flow backward."

The crowd below looked where he pointed and indeed noticed a hint of an issue.

Lu An continued, "Other parts have similar problems. Some are due to blockages, while others have overly large channels, leading to severe loss of spiritual power and rendering them ineffective."

"Overall, this stroke, although it looks impressive, is essentially superficial and lacking in substance."

"How can such a stroke display any talisman patterns?"

The disciples below listened attentively and suddenly understood. Some even spoke out unconsciously:

"With so many problems with this stroke, how can it be corrected?"

Lu An did not keep them guessing and smiled slightly. "Where there are light spots, the stronger the light, the smaller the issue. For the broken sections, they need to be completely redone. You just need to follow this rule and check them one by one."

Everyone nodded in agreement, but though they understood in principle, implementing it was another challenge.

Even if they found the problem areas, how to correct them depended on their understanding of talisman techniques.

For those with weak fundamentals, there was a possibility of making things worse with each attempt.

"Can Mr. Lu accomplish this?"

A disciple below asked.

Lu An smiled slightly, then suddenly picked up the brush and began to work on the talisman paper.

In just a moment, not only had he corrected the previous stroke, but he also completed the remaining eight strokes.

"Whoosh—"

The talisman, seemingly activated by no wind, emitted a melodious spiritual sound, and even the edges were covered in purple patterns.

Seeing this, Lu An finally set down the brush and addressed the crowd, "To achieve this, it's quite simple."

"There's nothing to it, just practice makes perfect."