Chapter 6: Qi Cultivation Level 2

Half a month had gone by in the blink of an eye. During this half a month, Zhao Yu had drawn one talisman against evil spirits every day, but only succeeded five times. The success rate was merely one third. The successfully drawn talismans against evil spirits were all consumed by him to enhance his proficiency in drawing that talisman.

That night, Zhao Yu sat cross-legged, and with great difficulty, broke through a bottleneck while operating the Earth Elemental Skill. His mana surged by twenty percent in an instant.

"Cultivation Level: Earth Elemental Skill - Second Layer (0/100), Qi Refinement - Second Layer."

"I finally advanced to become a cultivator of the second layer of Qi Refinement!"

Zhao Yu opened his eyes, feeling the flow of mana within his body and revealing a hint of a smile.

"What a pity, there's no one to share this joy with!"

Zhao Yu let out a deep sigh as he looked around. The sight of some simple furniture around him couldn't help but evoke a sense of loneliness in his heart.

As long as Zhao Yu left the Market of Xiao Hei Mountain and went to the Ten Mortal Cities, he could become an esteemed cultivator and have no problems taking three wives and four concubines. Even old man Liu at his age had taken three young concubines who were sixteen.

Many low-level cultivators left the Market of Xiao Hei Mountain and went to the Ten Mortal Cities to take wives and bear children because they had no hope of advancing their cultivation.

After advancing to the second layer of Qi Refinement, Zhao Yu clearly felt that drawing the talisman against evil spirits became easier, and the success rate of drawing the talisman gradually increased to about thirty-five percent.

A month and a half later.

Zhao Yu swallowed a successfully drawn talisman against evil spirits, and countless experiences flooded his mind. Then, as if breaking through a bottleneck, he gained a new understanding in drawing talismans against evil spirits.

"Talisman Practice: 0th tier (30/100)."

"Talisman - Talisman against evil spirits: Proficient (0/400)."

Zhao Yu immediately began to draw another talisman against evil spirits and felt even more at ease as he successfully crafted it.

In the following days, Zhao Yu practiced martial arts, continued his cultivation, managed the Spirit Fields, and drew talismans against evil spirits.

Although Zhao Yu advanced to the second level of Qi Cultivation and reached proficiency in the talisman against evil spirits, due to his many responsibilities, he was still only able to draw one talisman a day. However, the success rate had increased to sixty percent.

Ten days later, early in the morning, Zhao Yu arrived at the Market with seven talismans against evil spirits and set up his stall, placing both the secret manuals and talismans on display.

"Talisman against evil spirits? How much for one talisman?"

A burly middle-aged man with a cold demeanor approached Zhao Yu's stall and immediately noticed the talismans against evil spirits.

Zhao Yu's eyes lit up, "One Spirit Stone each!"

The middle-aged man frowned slightly, "That's too expensive. I'll take them all for nine pieces of Spirit Sand each."

Zhao Yu shook his head slightly, "True Talisman Tower sells three pieces of Spirit Sand for one Spirit Stone, so my price is already very cheap."

"One Spirit Stone it is then, I'll take them all!"

The middle-aged man pulled out six Spirit Stones and handed them directly to Zhao Yu, then took the six talismans against evil spirits from the stall.

"I did it! I earned six Spirit Stones!"

Zhao Yu, clutching the six Spirit Stones, had excitement and elation in his eyes. Working as a spirit farmer for a year, without counting the Spirit Rice, he would only be able to get three Spirit Stones from the Cangling Sect. Including the Spirit Rice, priced at one Spirit Stone per catty, he could only get twelve Spirit Stones. Yet today, he made six Spirit Stones in one day.

After selling the talismans, cultivators occasionally passed by Zhao Yu's stall, looking down on the secret manuals he had on display.

Zhao Yu simply packed up his stall, replenished his Talisman Ink and Talisman Paper, and then went straight home.

Zhao Yu looked at the six Spirit Stones he had earned, his lips curling slightly into a smile, "Drawing talismans against evil spirits can make money, so I should prepare some Spirit Stones to leave this place! I'll move into the Market to live!"

The Spirit Fields were located at the edge of the Market of Xiao Hei Mountain where the concentration of Spiritual Energy was the lowest and did not compare in safety to living inside the Market. Zhao Yu had to spend a lot of time every day managing the Spirit Fields. If he didn't have to take care of the fields, he could draw two talismans against evil spirits per day.

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With the income from the Evil Warding Talismans, Zhao Yu was finally able to eat four jin of Spirit Rice every day to enhance his Martial Talent, and he began to absorb the Spiritual Power from the Spirit Stones to improve his Cultivation Level.

Zhao Yu also gave up the meticulous care of the Spirit Fields, dedicating himself entirely to drawing Evil Warding Talismans, managing to produce two talismans every day.

After ten days, Zhao Yu arrived at the Market with the newly drawn twelve Evil Warding Talismans, setting up his street stall.

A beautiful woman in yellow caught sight of the Evil Warding Talismans and her eyes lit up, she walked over and said, "Evil Warding Talismans? How much for one?"

"One Spirit Stone each!"

"I'll take three!"

"Alright!"

"…"

It wasn't long before Zhao Yu set up his stall that the twelve Evil Warding Talismans were sold out.

"Brother Hu, the Evil Warding Talismans seem to be selling better than before! Do you know why?"

After selling out of Evil Warding Talismans, Zhao Yu asked with some curiosity the stall owner beside him who sold Demon Beast Materials. He only knew that the stall owner's last name was Hu and had been selling Demon Beast Meat at this Market for many years, always well-informed.

Brother Hu said, "I heard that traces of the Spirit Flame Vermilion Fruit have been found in the Canglong Mountain range. Someone obtained the Spirit Flame Vermilion Fruit and sold it for thousands of Spirit Stones. Now many people are itching to head to Canglong Mountain to seek the Spirit Flame Vermilion Fruits, but there are Evil Spirits around the fruit, so the Evil Warding Talismans are almost sold out."

"Thanks, fellow Daoist!"

Zhao Yu suddenly remembered the large red house surrounded by Spirit Flame Vermilion Fruits deep in the jungle, and a chill surged in his heart, further fortifying his determination to leave the Spirit Fields.

The Spirit Fields were located on the outermost edge of the Xiaohei Mountain Market and, although it was rare for the Robber-cultivator Association to target those poor Spirit Farmers, it was easy to be attacked by Demon Beasts and Evil Spirits.

If he were to move inside the Market, there would be many Cultivators around, not to mention the Cangling Sect Law Enforcement Team – it would certainly be safer than living alone in the Spirit Fields.

After finishing up at the stall, Zhao Yu went straight to the Cangling Sect's department responsible for managing the cultivation of the Spirit Fields, paid a twelve Spirit Stone fine, and gave up his rights to continue cultivating the three mu of Spirit Fields.

Zhao Yu rented a house with a small courtyard on Huang Li Lane within the Xiaohei Mountain Market for the price of one Spirit Stone per month.

Zhao Yu looked at the large house built with bricks and stones and revealed a slight smile, "This is my new home!"

The concentration of Spiritual Energy in Huang Li Lane couldn't compare to the core area of Xiaohei Mountain Market, but it was still more than twice as rich as that of the Spirit Fields area. In such an environment, both the cultivation of Martial Arts and the Earth Elemental Skill would greatly benefit.

After settling in, Zhao Yu knocked on the gate of the house to his right.

The gate opened to reveal a young man in white, with a single ponytail, tall stature, handsome features, and a somewhat wary look at Zhao Yu.

"Fellow Daoist, I am Zhao Yu, I've just moved nearby and have come to visit. Here's a small token of goodwill, please accept it with a smile!"

Zhao Yu said with a slight smile, handing over an Evil Warding Talisman to the young man.

The handsome young man warmed up a bit after receiving the Evil Warding Talisman and said, "So you are Daoist Zhao; I am Li Yunhai, please come in and let's talk."

As Zhao Yu entered the room, he saw a tall and beautiful woman dressed in green, her looks slightly inferior to Su Bingyun, as well as a cute little girl about eleven or twelve years old with braided pigtails.

Li Yunhai introduced, "This is my wife Zheng Qiaoman, and this is our daughter Xianjiao!"

Zhao Yu said, "I've seen Mrs. Li!"

Zheng Qiaoman smiled gently and said, "Pleased to meet you, Daoist Zhao!"

After some idle polite chatting, Zhao Yu left the Li residence and knocked on the gate of the house to his left.

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