Chapter 14: Elder Brother

The elder's eyes widened in disbelief. A top-tier talisman—how could that be possible?

From the talismans displayed at Lu An's stall, the elder could tell Lu An's skills were impressive. He had already held him in high regard, but he now realized he had underestimated him.

However, the elder frowned, sensing something odd.

"Although it has spiritual resonance, why is the light still blue?" he muttered.

Normally, a top-tier talisman would emit a golden light, yet this one showed no such phenomenon.

"Could it be a half-step top-tier?" he wondered. He wasn't sure if such a level existed, as his many years of experience had never shown him such a case.

Lu An, however, knew exactly what was going on. While excellent, the talisman was still a notch below top-tier. In his sea of consciousness, where he had practiced day and night, he had created top-tier talismans before, but their completion was not yet consistently above ninety percent.

Thus, it was no surprise that the talisman didn't reach the top-tier level now. But he wasn't discouraged—reaching that level was only a matter of time.

The crowd gasped as they saw the talisman.

"Blue light—it's still a superior talisman!" someone exclaimed.

"This is getting interesting," another added.

Seeing that the contest had reached this point, Li Ziyou smiled slightly and spoke. "Since both talismans are of superior quality, let's use the secret technique to count the number of talisman patterns. Elder, what do you think?"

He glanced at the elder, struggling to suppress a smile.

The elder's expression darkened. While Lu An's talisman, with its spiritual resonance, was clearly superior to Shen Mi's, the elder couldn't afford to hide the truth in front of the audience.

"Indeed," the elder nodded. "Shen Mi, use the talisman pattern technique and reveal the results."

Shen Mi, still engrossed in the elder's talisman-making methods, had been unaware of the audience's reactions. Only when the elder called his name did he snap back to reality.

"Alright, I'll perform the technique. Lu An, today you'll learn there are always skies beyond the sky and people beyond people."

Having just experienced the elder's talisman-making prowess, Shen Mi was deeply impressed. To him, even several Lu Ans combined couldn't match the elder's skills. Confidently, he made the boastful remark.

The elder's face darkened further, and the disciples of the Divine Talisman Pavilion exchanged awkward glances.

"What's Third Senior Brother doing?" one whispered. "The other party's talisman already produced spiritual resonance, and he's still making threats. Doesn't he know he's about to lose?"

Shen Mi remained unaware of their thoughts. He performed a strange hand seal and directed it at his talisman, which floated into the air, revealing its patterns like rays of Buddhist light.

Sixty-three patterns emerged.

Shen Mi's eyes gleamed with excitement. As expected, with the elder's guidance, his talisman reached a level beyond his usual capabilities.

The onlookers, unaware of the behind-the-scenes happenings, cheered loudly. The disciples of the Divine Talisman Pavilion, however, hung their heads, wishing they could disappear.

"This senior," a passerby asked Zhao Wenliang, "what does the number of patterns represent?"

"It's simple," Zhao Wenliang explained, adjusting his robe. "A first-tier talisman can have a maximum of one hundred patterns. Each set of twenty-five patterns corresponds to a quality level: inferior, middle, superior, and top-tier.

"Brother Shen achieved sixty-three patterns, which ranks him among the best in the superior category."

The passerby nodded in understanding, and the crowd's respect for the Divine Talisman Pavilion grew even more.

Lu An, unfamiliar with talisman patterns, remained unfazed. His talisman, while short of top-tier, was superior quality, and the pattern count would reflect that.

To Shen Mi, however, Lu An's calm demeanor was a provocation.

"Do you really think you can still win?" Shen Mi sneered.

Lu An raised an eyebrow, finding Shen Mi's arrogance both amusing and puzzling.

Shen Mi grew even more irritated. He had never encountered such audacity. Ignoring him was one thing, but to insult the elder's guidance—he couldn't let that go unpunished.

Suppressing his anger, Shen Mi spoke coldly, "Since you're so confident, let's raise the stakes."

Lu An nearly laughed aloud.

'Brother, can't you see the elder's eyes are practically shooting fire? You're about to lose, and you want to raise the stakes?'

Before Lu An could respond, the elder's stern voice interrupted.

"Shen Mi! Who gave you the authority to make decisions on your own?"

The elder was furious. Inside, he cursed the fact that such a fool existed within the Divine Talisman Pavilion.

"Elder," Shen Mi began, "this Lu An—"

"Impudence! Didn't I tell you to announce the results? Are you deaf?"

Shen Mi was stunned, only now realizing what the elder had intended. After Lu An's defeat, he would join the Divine Talisman Pavilion, and it wouldn't be appropriate to make things too awkward.

Feeling ashamed, Shen Mi finally obeyed, performing the secret technique on Lu An's talisman.

As Lu An's talisman floated into the air, the spiritual resonance spread across the area. Shen Mi's face fell.

"This… this can't be…"

Before he could finish, Lu An's talisman burst into bright light, and patterns began appearing in the air.

One, two… Seventy-five patterns emerged.

Seventy-five—the upper limit for a superior first-tier talisman. One more pattern, and it would have reached top-tier quality.

Shen Mi was dumbstruck.

'Lost? I lost, even with the elder personally guiding me?'

His earlier boasts and taunts now seemed utterly foolish. His face flushed with embarrassment, his once-proud demeanor shattered.

A voice broke the silence.

"Your talisman-making skills are impressive. If you have time in the future, feel free to discuss talismans with me."

The crowd quickly realized that although Shen Mi had lost, producing sixty-three patterns was still no small feat. Cheers erupted, the crowd finding the contest exciting and a topic for future conversation.

Shen Mi, surprised by Lu An's words, asked, "Why help me?"

If Lu An hadn't left him a way out, Shen Mi might have been driven to take more drastic measures.

Lu An waved his hand dismissively and pointed to Zhao Wenliang in the crowd. "My elder brother is an apprentice at the Divine Talisman Pavilion, and you are a teaching senior. I'll leave him in your care in the future."