"None of the Talismans are useful?" Jiang Man asked, surprised.

The Old Yellow Ox explained, "Beginner Talisman Making isn’t difficult at all. What kind of complex Talismans were you expecting?"

"Besides, the only parts of beginner Talisman Making that take time are the Outlining Skill and coordinating your force with Spiritual Qi."

"It requires a specialized operation method."

"That should be easy enough for you."

Jiang Man was delighted. "So, does that mean I’m a good fit for Talisman Making?"

The Old Yellow Ox shot Jiang Man a look. "Any Foundation Establishment cultivator is suited for the beginner stuff. It’s cheap and easy to pick up."

Jiang Man ignored the Old Yellow Ox’s comment and began to absorb the lesson.

After that, it was time to get hands-on and practice outlining.

’You can’t learn this just by thinking about it; you have to draw it, stroke by stroke.’

’Talent is no substitute for hard work.’

’This trade has to be profitable to some extent. Otherwise, what’s the point of learning a Minor?’

Jiang Man didn’t outline quickly. He was meticulous with every stroke and line.

It took him the entire night to master the nine types of outlining strokes for Talisman Making.

Then, he started to draw a Divine Movement Talisman.

The Divine Movement Talisman was extremely simple, consisting of only a few strokes.

He put brush to paper and completed it in one go.

The Talisman was a success.

’That simple?’

Next, Jiang Man switched to another type of Talisman: the Gravity Talisman.

Although it was a bit more difficult, he still succeeded on his first try.

In an instant, he had used up the ten sheets of talisman paper provided by the Talisman Making Courtyard.

Jiang Man felt he was ready to take the Entry Level assessment.

He went to ask about it.

The Entry Level course was one thousand.

The "Entering the Hall and the Room" level was two thousand.

The two assessments would cost one thousand in total.

’So to sell Talismans, I first have to spend forty-five hundred on lessons?’

Seeing Jiang Man’s hesitation, the person told him that if he was short on Spiritual Source, he could find work at the Talisman Making Courtyard once he reached the Entry Level.

Jiang Man shook his head, then paid five hundred for the assessment and another thousand for the related books.

’I finished the Beginner level in a day. Two days should be enough for the Entry Level, right?’

However, when he showed the books to the Old Yellow Ox, the response he got was, "This is ten times harder. You should prepare yourself."

Surprised, Jiang Man looked at the Talismans he could now learn to make.

Qi Concealment Talisman: Stabilizes the Spiritual Qi within the body. It’s typically used to quell disruptions in Spiritual Qi caused by deficiencies in one’s Physical Body or Spiritual Realm.

Concentration Talisman: Suppresses fluctuations in one’s Spirit caused by external influences, such as extreme fright or shock at another’s actions.

Immovable Talisman: Mostly used when the Physical Body is injured. It can provide basic hemostasis, stabilize the body, and has some pain-relieving effects.

Looking at the Talisman descriptions, Jiang Man shook his head. "They’re useful, but not by much."

Normal Cultivators rarely encountered such situations. The Immovable Talisman, on the other hand, seemed the most practical.

It could stop bleeding and relieve pain.

Jiang Man then looked closer. While the Divine Movement Talisman had only a few strokes, the Qi Concealment Talisman had dozens, and the Immovable Talisman surprisingly had over a hundred.

Furthermore, the nine-stroke Outlining Skill he had learned was nowhere near enough.

"The difficulty has really ramped up. This feels like it will take a lot of time," Jiang Man remarked, looking over the materials with a sigh.

His top priority was still to advance his Cultivation. Even if he had a Talent for this, it would still take up a significant amount of time.

It would hinder his Cultivation progress.

The Beginner level alone took an entire day. Entry Level would take at least several days, to say nothing of what came after.

After a moment’s hesitation, Jiang Man made up his mind. He would focus all his energy on improving his Cultivation and only study Talisman Making in his downtime, like when he was eating or chatting.

He wasn’t aiming to make money from it, just to score some extra points.

Once his Cultivation was higher, making money would surely be faster than with Talisman Making.

And so, Jiang Man began his Cultivation of the Visualization Skill.

As the days went by, he consumed one Elixir after another.

Five days later, Jiang Man bought another ten Elixirs.

His Spiritual Source decreased by five thousand seven hundred.

He had thirty-four thousand remaining.

Another five days passed, and Jiang Man felt his Spirit beginning to extend outward.

His perception of his surroundings grew increasingly sharp.

The second Spirit Gourd had opened.

Spiritual Second Layer.

Right on schedule, he bought Solid Essence Pills to enhance his Physical Body.

He spent eleven thousand four hundred on twenty Elixirs.

He had twenty-two thousand left.

「Ten days later, at the beginning of the second month.」

Jiang Man felt the density of his bones had increased significantly.

This improvement was on a completely different level from the enhancements during the Qi Refining stage.

He felt brimming with power.

Physical Body Second Layer.

’There’s less than a month until the second assessment.’

Jiang Man estimated that he should be able to advance to the second realm of Foundation Establishment by then.

’Reaching the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment in six months.’

’That’s not slow at all.’

But the immediate priority was to collect his monthly stipend of six thousand Spiritual Source.

Spiritual Source increased by six thousand.

Twenty-eight thousand remaining.

’Cultivation is so expensive.’

’And Chang Qiweng is coming in less than a month. I still have to pay him fourteen thousand.’

’I need to be more frugal. I have to save at least fourteen thousand.’

——

「Inner Sect.」

Before a bamboo house, Yu Wanyi knelt respectfully.

On the bluestone steps of the bamboo house stood a Fairy. Her dark hair was partly swept up, held by a slanted White Jade Hairpin. A few stray locks, stirred by the mountain breeze, brushed against her snow-white skin.

Her phoenix eyes were slightly upturned, the outer corners tinged with a faint crimson. Her gaze shimmered like rippling water, and her expression held a mix of languor and resignation.

"Is this person you’ve invested in really worth all this trouble?" the woman asked.

"Of course," Yu Wanyi said, her voice firm.

"Why?" the woman asked.

"I suspect he’s an excellent sugar baby. His future potential is limitless," Yu Wanyi whispered.

The woman was silent for a moment. "An excellent sugar baby? Only you would come up with such a reason. It’s absurd."

"Master, please give me a spot," Yu Wanyi pleaded.

"What do I get out of it?" the woman asked.

Yu Wanyi thought for a moment. "Tonight, I’ll go over to Master Uncle Xiang’s... no, to Xiang Tianlin’s place, and set it on fire. I’ll burn his house down."

The woman looked at Yu Wanyi and was silent for a long time before letting out a sigh. "Fine. If he successfully passes the preliminary selection, consider the spot a gift. If he fails, I’ll deduct the cost from your future resources."

"Your path to the Golden Core Realm will become much harder."

"Thank you, Master." Yu Wanyi didn’t hesitate in the slightest.

’One has to see things through to the end. Besides, the potential return on this investment is just too massive.’

She believed that anyone else kneeling in her place would have made the same choice.

A Token was then tossed in front of Yu Wanyi. "He won’t have to participate in the Outer Sect’s annual assessment at the end of August. Use this Token to go to the selection assessment for the Secret Realm instead."

"However, there’s a minimum requirement for the selection. One must be at least in the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment to enter."

"If he can’t even get in, it counts as a failure."

"Furthermore, it involves actual combat. If he can’t distinguish himself among the other Early Stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, that also counts as a failure."

"It involves the application of numerous Magic Skills."

"Just think back to what your own skill level was when you were in the Foundation Establishment Ninth Courtyard."

Yu Wanyi didn’t bother thinking about it. ’In any case,’ she thought, ’I certainly didn’t score a ninety-eight on the March assessment.’

——

Jiang Man was taken aback when he received the Copper Token.

"You got the spot?"

"I got it. The rest is up to you. I paid a heavy price for this," Yu Wanyi said with a straight face. "You can’t participate in the assessment at the end of August. In exchange, you might lose your ranking on the Seven Peaks and miss out on a Magic Skill."

"But if you succeed, the rewards will definitely be greater than a high ranking on the Seven Peaks."

"You need to think it over carefully—whether you’ll go or not."

"And this is just the preliminary selection; there should be more rounds after this."

Jiang Man thought for a moment, then asked curiously, "What do you get for passing the selection?"

"A Cultivation Skill—either Middle Grade or Top-grade. But there’s no telling which one you’d get," said Yu Wanyi.

’A Cultivation Skill.’ Jiang Man felt that a Cultivation Skill was exactly what he was missing. As for Magic Skills, he had the Celestial Heart Seal. He might not be able to win with it, but he wouldn’t easily lose either.

In the end, he decided to go.

"Your cultivation partner will be pulling some strings for you, right?" Yu Wanyi asked.

Jiang Man was speechless. "..."

He explained, "My Cultivation depends entirely on my own hard work."

"I understand," Yu Wanyi said, nodding emphatically.

Then she left.

Jiang Man fell silent.

He turned and asked the Old Yellow Ox, "Do you think she really understood?"

"Probably," said the Old Yellow Ox.

Jiang Man shook his head and decided to focus on making a final push to the Early Stage of Foundation Establishment.

「Late in the second month.」

Wei Beichuan arrived at the Ninth Courtyard and quietly took a seat.

His current ranking was rather low, but he expected it to be near the top in just a few days.

Especially when he saw the exhausted faces of those ranked ahead of him.

He felt there was no suspense in this assessment at all.

There wasn’t a single person here worthy of his effort.

Nevertheless, he would still give it his all.

The sooner these people witnessed his brilliance, the better.

For now, all he had to do was lie low and bide his time.

After the assessment, he would make a stunning debut.

By the annual assessment, he would claim the number one spot in the Ninth Courtyard.

When Yan Yiqiu entered, she found the disciples in a worrisome state.

In the past, she would have reprimanded them.

But...

Now, she felt a sense of anticipation.

She wanted to see whether these people had actually progressed or regressed.