Starting Cultivation During a Trip-Chapter 63: Jiang Hu’s Talisman, Utter Extinction
After that night, Jiang Hu was imprisoned for three years, and in the end, he was expelled from the sect, severing all ties of incense affinity.
He was framed by others, kept in the dark, tainted by human lives, his Dao Heart nearly collapsed. After three years in isolation, he was finally expelled from the sect.
The life in the Jianghu took a sharp downward turn; it seemed misfortune favored him immensely.
From that day on, he lost everything.
"During his three years of isolation, he attempted suicide twenty-one times, and each time he was saved," Shen Qingli said in a solemn voice.
"Though ignorance may be innocent, the murders he committed were real, and Maoshan could not tolerate him."
Speaking up to this point, a trace of sadness flickered in Shen Qingli’s eyes.
Since then, Jiang Hu’s heart demon took root and was hard to eradicate, causing issues in his cultivation, with days and nights inverted...
"In the way of Talisman, he is completely ruined."
"I didn’t expect... he had such a past," Zhang Fan mused.
This Jiang Hu was hard to reconcile with the carefree, nonchalant demeanor he typically displayed.
"That’s his protective color... his heart demon is too heavy, and one day he will enter the Great Night..." Shen Qingli sighed.
In the path of cultivation, it’s like treading on thin ice; once consciousness is disturbed, there’s a risk of entering the Great Night. Even the Celestial Master may experience a regression in cultivation.
"Immortals were once ordinary people; perhaps it’s heaven’s way to unleash endless tribulations on the weak-hearted?" Zhang Fan spoke in a deep voice.
"Ancestor Master Chunyang faced the difficulty of being lost and unranked, Pure Yang True Man had the calamity of being exiled to Lingnan, and Chen Xiyi had the distress of failing to be ranked as a knight... Throughout history, anyone who mastered Alchemy Dao endured worldly hardship, overcoming countless tribulations unscathed..." Shen Qingli sighed deeply.
"This tribulation of his... is too difficult!"
"Zhang Fan..."
At this moment, Shen Qingli suddenly called out, pulling Zhang Fan’s thoughts back.
"Recently, there’s been a significant event in our family. Could you help me keep him here to witness it?"
"The Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman?" Zhang Fan blurted out.
"Seems he mentioned it to you..." Shen Qingli looked meaningfully at the direction where Jiang Hu disappeared: "In the way of Talisman, he still has talent, but..."
"Perhaps the birth of this treasure will resonate with him."
"I understand," Zhang Fan nodded.
"I will arrange a guest room for you," Shen Qingli smiled gently, showing gratitude, then nodded and turned away.
"Zhang Fan..."
At this moment, Jiang Hu’s voice came from afar, prompting Zhang Fan to run over quickly.
"Finished unloading, these five big barrels of paper pulp are really heavy," Jiang Hu said, taking a long breath while leaning on the Five Spirits Rainbow Light.
This shipment from Night is not bright was all specially made paper pulp, sourced from Nanshan Peach Wood, undergoing more than thirty processes, and needs to bathe in moonlight on the mountain during the full moon every fifteenth of the month. During the Great Heat, it must soak for a month before being delivered.
These are the best materials for refining talisman paper, each barrel of wood pulp costs 200,000.
This shipment alone is worth millions, with just a commission of one percent.
"Ten thousand bucks... don’t worry about being penniless and disappointing the pretty girl in the alley," Jiang Hu grinned: "Let’s go."
"You didn’t spend all that money on foot baths, did you?" Zhang Fan shot him a sidelong glance.
Last time, he saw Jiang Hu had at least seven or eight VIP gold cards from nearby establishments in his drawer.
"Can I ask you a question?" Jiang Hu suddenly asked very seriously.
"What?" Zhang Fan responded, also becoming serious.
"If you meet a girl who doesn’t want a house, a car, a bank account, a diamond ring, and doesn’t want you to take her out for dinner, watch a movie, go shopping, or give gifts, and she doesn’t even disturb you..."
"She just wants to chat with you when you’re tired to relax your body and mind..."
"Would it be too much to give such a good girl 498 each time?"
"..."
"Is it too much?"
Faced with Jiang Hu’s question, Zhang Fan was speechless. Such a whimsical thought truly opened a new door for him.
"Don’t say I don’t take care of you."
While saying this, Jiang Hu pulled out a bright yellow talisman from his arms, folded into a triangle and wrapped with a red silk thread.
"What’s this?"
"Rise-up Talisman!" Jiang Hu whispered.
"Rise-up Talisman? What kind of talisman is that?" Zhang Fan looked intrigued.
These days, he had studied the Dao Secret Record carefully and had learned a lot about talismans, even some strange ones he was aware of.
For instance, the Fat-Eating Talisman, said to be written in talisman ink made from a special bug that only grows in a skeleton three years after burial, extremely rare.
Especially in modern times, with cremation common, it’s become almost impossible to find such a bug.
The Fat-Eating Talisman made from it, when placed three inches below the belly button, can make body fat decrease at a visibly fast speed. A powerful Talisman Master can make someone lose thirty to forty pounds a month.
It’s much more powerful than the slimming oil sold by the He Family back in the day and has no side effects.
"This is my exclusive recipe!" Jiang Hu lowered his voice, appearing mysterious.
"It’s made with bull spear powder, donkey spear powder, horse spear powder, oyster spear powder, tiger spear powder... a mixture of some powerful ingredients in talisman ink..."
"Oysters have spears?" Zhang Fan couldn’t help asking.
Jiang Hu shot him a sidelong glance and said blandly: "Anyway, this thing takes effort and materials. When used, burn it, mix the ash in water and drink it..."
"Its effects are only known to those who use it. I’ve been selling it for 1200 a piece online."
"This thing costs 1200? What exactly does it do?" Zhang Fan asked curiously.
"This can make an old clam produce pearls, make an iron tree bloom, a talisman alone is worth five blue pills," Jiang Hu whispered.
"That impressive?" Zhang Fan looked at the talisman in his hand.
"If I sell it online for 2000, I’m sure someone would buy it too."
"..."
"You’re just here to make a profit, aren’t you," Jiang Hu rolled his eyes.
"Let’s go."
Saying this, Jiang Hu beckoned Zhang Fan to get in the car.
"I hear the Shen Family’s Profound Mirror Treasure Talisman is almost complete. Let’s stay and have a look."
At this point, Zhang Fan changed the topic and suddenly spoke up.
"Almost complete?"
Jiang Hu was slightly stunned, then looked at the Shen Family’s rising incense.
"It’s been three generations, and they claim it’s almost done?"
"You don’t believe it?" Zhang Fan asked casually.
"Converging ten thousand talismans into one is not so easy," Jiang Hu sighed.
Originally from Maoshan, skilled in Talisman Dao, he naturally understood what those words implied.
Initially, cultivation is about addition, but later it becomes subtraction.
Every sect has its own talisman inheritance, and naturally attempts to merge their talismans into one, though these are tightly-kept secrets.
"Dragon Tiger Mountain is the furthest along..."
"Dragon Tiger Mountain!?" Zhang Fan’s heart stirred.
"In Talisman Dao, all roads lead to Dragon Tiger. Unfortunately, eighty years ago, during the great Daoist tribulation, the Dragon Tiger Zhang Family was wiped out," Jiang Hu sighed softly.
