“This spiritual liquid is like nectar of creation for spirit plants… but what would happen if a living creature drank it?”

  A flicker of anticipation arose in Lu Chi's heart.

  If this spiritual liquid could be consumed directly, using it to accelerate spiritual power circulation and temper the meridians… wouldn't that mean even with poor aptitude, one could forcibly cultivate a mid? to high?grade spiritual root?

  But in the end, he didn't act rashly.

  For safety's sake, it was better to test it on another living being first.

  Lu Chi's gaze swept around the courtyard and finally landed on the old locust tree outside the wall.

  On a branch, a gray?brown sparrow was perched, tilting its head as it pecked at bugs on the bark.

  The sparrow was small, usually foraging in the bushes at the market's edge.

  Its temperament wasn't fierce, but it could still be considered a living creature.

  Among the cultivators in the market, most were cautious.

  Domesticated animals were rare, let alone casually catching them for experiments.

  This sparrow was the best choice.

  Lu Chi focused his mind.

  He took out a small porcelain dish and, with considerable effort, condensed another drop of spiritual liquid into it.

  With a light pinch of his fingers, a thread of spiritual power turned into an invisible silk thread.

  Quietly, he lifted the sparrow and gently placed it beside the dish.

  The sparrow was so startled it flapped its wings, but it was gently held down by his spiritual power.

  It could only tilt its head and suspiciously sniff the spiritual liquid in the dish.

  After a while, it extended its small beak and tentatively pecked once.

  Lu Chi held his breath and watched intently.

  The sparrow drank one drop, blinked, seemed fine, then lowered its head and cleanly pecked up the remaining spiritual liquid in the dish.

  Afterward, it fluffed its feathers, flapped its wings, and flew back to the tree branch, continuing to tilt its head and peck at bugs.

  Its demeanor was no different from before.

  There was no sudden surge of spiritual nature, no rotting flesh, no bursting death—it was just like having taken a sip of dew.

  The corner of Lu Chi's mouth twitched.

  The last trace of wishful thinking in his heart completely vanished.

  So, the spiritual liquid born from this [Dew?Gathering]? talent had miraculous effects on spirit plants, but for ordinary living creatures, it offered no benefit.

  It neither harmed the body nor aided cultivation.

  It was purely for plants.

  Even so, the use of this heaven?sent talent was already clear.

  Though Lu Chi felt some regret in his heart, he wasn't discouraged.

  One drop of spiritual liquid could rapidly mature spirit plants, growing them to the quality of a hundred or even a thousand years.

  In the future, whether for personal use, selling in the market, or using it for alchemy, it could be exchanged for vast amounts of spirit stones, medicinal pills, and talisman materials.

  Cultivating spirit rice to nourish the body, Green Sprout Grass to refine Qi?Nourishing Pills, Purple Calyx Flowers to ward off evil and calm the spirit, Moondrop Vine to condense dew and nourish the meridians…

  As long as spirit plants were produced continuously, he could continuously exchange for resources, forcibly making up for his poor aptitude through hard work.

  In the future, if he could even mature high?grade spirit herbs, what worry would there be for Foundation Establishment or Golden Core?

  I'm daydreaming again… Foundation Establishment, Golden Core—they're still hundreds of thousands of miles away…

  Lu Chi reined in his thoughts, forcefully suppressing the chaotic notions, and sat cross?legged.

  Activating [Dew?Gathering]? consumed far more of his essence, energy, and spirit than he had imagined.

  His brow felt slightly swollen, and his dantian was somewhat empty.

  If he didn't recover promptly, he was afraid he wouldn't be able to draw another talisman today.

  Lu Chi closed his eyes and regulated his breathing, slowly circulating energy according to that nameless technique.

  His breath was long one moment, short the next, dragging extremely slowly.

  Spiritual energy seeped into his meridians like fine threads, but intermittently.

  The speed at which it replenished the deficit was even slower.

  Quite some time passed before he finally recovered a bit of vitality.

  While regulating his breathing, he carefully calculated in his heart how to allocate his time each day from now on.

  Spirit farming couldn't be neglected—only when mature could it be exchanged for spirit stones and pills.

  Talisman?drawing was his current way to earn a living—his Talisman Master profession experience still needed to be accumulated.

  Cultivation also couldn't be abandoned.

  With a lower?grade spiritual root, progress was slow to begin with.

  If he didn't practice diligently, even reaching the middle stage of Qi Refinement might take years.

  All three were indispensable…

  Lu Chi suddenly felt that a single day was too short.

  Even if he didn't eat or sleep, from now on, he would inevitably attend to one thing and lose another.

  Twelve hours… was simply too little.

  Once his spiritual power had recovered seventy or eighty percent, he opened his eyes.

  Giving up on further meditation and cultivation, he stood, brushed the dust from his robes, and walked toward the inner room.

  He took out talisman paper, a talisman brush, and spirit ink from his storage pouch, rolled up his sleeves, took a deep breath, and dipped the brush in ink.

  He had already made up his mind.

  He himself only had a lower?grade spiritual root, and his technique was just a common find from a broken temple.

  Cultivation was originally as slow as a turtle crawling.

  Forcing speed would only lead to an unstable foundation, backfiring instead.

  Since that was the case, he might as well put cultivation at the lowest priority.

  Nine cycles of breathing exercises a day to stabilize his foundation would suffice.

  For the rest of the time, he would draw talismans first, then condense spiritual liquid to mature spirit plants.

  With his mind settled, only the soft rustling of the talisman brush on paper remained in the room.

  As night deepened, until all sounds ceased, it still did not stop.

  Time slipped quietly away, and several days passed in the blink of an eye.

  On this day, Lu Chi shook out the dark talisman robe and draped it over his shoulders. The moon?concealing patterns at the hem shimmered faintly in the morning light.

  He then walked to the corner of the courtyard, his gaze falling upon the three patches of freshly turned soil.

  After days of nourishment from the spiritual liquid, the Moon?Dew Vine had already stretched over ten feet long. Its vine was crystal clear, and dewdrops forming at the tips of its leaves seemed to hold moonlight within, spiritual light flowing unceasingly.

  The Verdant Sprout Grass stalks stood nearly half a man's height, straight and upright, glowing with a green radiance. The tips of their ears were just beginning to show, faint medicinal fragrance drifting on the breeze.

  The Purple?Calyx Flower buds were plump and ready to bloom, their purple hue rich and intense. The edges of the petals gleamed with a subtle sheen, as if they would burst into full bloom in just a few more days.

  Such vigorous growth, if sold directly in the market district, would surely attract many spirit farmers and alchemists competing to inquire.

  A faint stirring arose in Lu Chi's heart, and he sighed inwardly: If Zhou Jinyan saw them like this, he'd probably be so shocked his jaw would drop.

  The other man had farmed for years and had seen every state of spirit plant growth, yet he had certainly never witnessed any spirit plant growing from seed to such a spiritually abundant, superior state in just a few short days.

  The thought shifted, and he murmured to himself: "For this period of time, it's best not to let anyone else set foot in this small courtyard."

  The matter of the spiritual liquid was too bizarre. If noticed, not only would it be hard to explain, but attracting covetous eyes would bring more loss than gain.

  Considering this, Lu Chi raised his hand and took several stacks of talisman paper from his storage pouch, pasting them on the four corners of the courtyard wall, inside and outside the door, above and below the windows.

  The outermost layer consisted of three mid?grade Warning Talismans, their surfaces crimson like blood. The moment an outsider forced their way in, they would immediately glow red as an alert.

  The middle layer was a combination of Aura?Concealing Talismans and Silence Talismans, masking the spiritual fluctuations and sounds within the courtyard. Even if a late?stage Qi Refinement cultivator passed by, it would be difficult to detect anything unusual.

  The innermost layer held two Binding Formation Talismans he had drawn himself, their patterns interwoven into a net. Once activated, they could trap any intruder, giving him ample time to respond.

  After placing the talismans, Lu Chi walked a circle around the courtyard to confirm there were no gaps, then nodded in satisfaction. He turned and went back inside, picking up the storage pouch he had already packed from the desk, hefting its weight in his hand.

  Inside were precisely the talismans he had diligently drawn over the past few days—mostly mid?grade, of stable quality. Only a small portion was kept for himself; the rest were all to be handed over to Moon?Veil Pavilion for sale.

  The ten low?grade spirit stones obtained from his previous transaction with Cao Zhen had already been completely spent—on pills, the storage pouch, cultivation… it had flowed out like water. Now that his purse was empty, he naturally had to start thinking about spirit stones again.

  Lu Chi pushed the door open, flicked his sleeve, summoned wind under his feet, and rose into the air, heading straight for East Street in the market district.

  In front of the pavilion, the scene was vastly different from opening day.

  That day had been crowded and bustling, but now it was much quieter. Only a few cultivators lingered before the display shelves, either browsing in low voices or carefully examining talismans they had picked up.

  The Moon?Veil Pavilion disciple behind the counter, seeing few customers, leaned against it dozing. Only when a guest approached would he lazily rise to greet them.

  Lu Chi swept his gaze over the scene and understood in his heart.

  This quietness was actually reasonable. On opening day, most cultivators came to see the spectacle, join the excitement, and perhaps buy a few cheap talismans to try out.

  Those with genuine long?term needs had already made purchases during those first few days. Talismans could be repaired and used for months or even half a year; they wouldn't return so quickly.

  The small crowd now didn't mean Moon?Veil Pavilion's business was poor.

  However, judging with Lu Chi's current perspective, Liu Qing's talismans, while steady, truly lacked any stunning qualities.

  Their quality was average, the patterns clear, and spiritual intent sufficient, but compared to the mid?grade goods from the market's established talisman shops, the gap wasn't significant.

  Moon?Veil Pavilion's real advantage lay solely in price—low prices, high volume, attracting a customer base of rogue cultivators and those at the lower levels.

  But in the long run, relying on price alone offered no strategic depth. Once the Luo Family Talisman Shop or other stores launched price counterattacks or introduced talismans of superior quality, Moon?Veil Pavilion would be forced into a passive position.

  Just as Lu Chi's foot crossed the threshold, he suddenly sensed a familiar aura approaching from not far behind, carrying a deliberately restrained yet unconcealable sharpness.

  He turned his head slightly to look and saw Liu Qing walking slowly from the street corner, a storage pouch bulging at his waist—clearly, he too had brought goods.

  Though his face still held a trace of pallor, that habitual arrogance had already crept back between his brows. The corners of his mouth even bore his usual faint, cold smile, as if the embarrassment of days past had never happened.

  "Brother Lu? What a coincidence, your timing." Liu Qing's voice was neither loud nor soft, carrying a tone of superiority yet feigning calm composure.

  Lu Chi’s expression remained calm as he gave a faint nod.

  Liu Qing snorted lightly, his gaze drifting deliberately toward the bulge in the other’s sleeve where the storage pouch was vaguely visible. His heart sank: How many talismans did this guy bring today? Judging by how full it looks, it must be quite a few.

  Although the disturbance from a few days ago had passed, Liu Qing felt as if a fuse had been lit inside him. He had hardly left his home since, pushing himself relentlessly, drawing mid?grade talismans day and night.

  Finished talismans piled up on his desk, their quality noticeably steadier than before, even hinting at a breakthrough. He had even attempted to draw a high?grade talisman—though, of course, he ultimately failed.

  He knew his position as Chief was in jeopardy. If he didn’t produce some real skill soon, that newcomer, “Talisman Master Lu,” would likely surpass him.

  Today happened to be when he had accumulated a batch of goods. He intended to deliver them personally to Moon?Veil Pavilion for sale and, by the way, see how the shop was doing lately.

  Seeing Lu Chi’s calm gaze fixed on him, Liu Qing felt an inexplicable pang of unease and instinctively took half a step back.

  The thought arose, and he immediately felt it was wrong: Why should I be afraid of him?

  He lifted his chin, his expression turning cold, a glint of challenge in his eyes. Cupping his hands, he said, “Brother Lu, you’ve arrived just in time. I’ve brought a few talismans today myself. Shall we take a look together?”

  Lu Chi’s face showed no emotion. “Certainly. Please, Talisman Master Liu.”

  In truth, he no longer regarded Liu Qing as a concern. His mind was instead occupied with the three troublemakers from that day—had Qin Suniang managed to extract any information from them about the mastermind behind the incident?