Forging Immortality through the Dao Seed

The sky was already getting dark.

Langya County.

Following the route in his memory, Zhang Jing arrived directly in front of the palace where Senior Brother Yan lived.

Knock, Knock!

He gently knocked on the door, but unexpectedly made a huge noise, like a drum, echoing throughout the county.

Then—boom!

The cast bronze door collapsed.

Having witnessed this, Zhang Jing drew back his neck, slightly embarrassed.

Only then did he remember that after he had broken through to the middle stage of Qi Refinement, his body had undergone a tremendous transformation. The terrifying strength it now contained was beyond imagination.

It was all the door's fault. It looked quite heavy and caused him to unconsciously use his full strength.

Thud, thud—

Footsteps suddenly sounded, accompanied by an angry shout.

"Which blind demon has the audacity to come here?!"

Not long after.

Senior Brother Yan stood in front of the palace door with a blank look, pointed to the fallen bronze door on the ground, and asked Zhang Jing:

"Junior Brother, please don't tell me this is your doing."

"Senior Brother Yan, I apologize," Zhang Jing replied in a soft, embarrassed voice, "But your door really is quite flimsy, maybe you should replace it..."

Upon hearing this.

Senior Brother Yan almost burst into laughter.

"My door is flimsy—hm?" He stopped midway through his sentence, suddenly realizing, noticing the aura on Zhang Jing, he asked in surprise: "Junior Brother, have you broken through? Middle-stage of Qi Refinement!"

"Thanks to your help, Senior Brother, I broke through to the fourth level of Qi Refinement last night." Zhang Jing answered with a smile.

In a split second.

Senior Brother Yan walked around Zhang Jing and exclaimed: "Well done, Junior Brother, it seems like you're about to catch up with those two folks in cultivation too."

As soon as he finished speaking.

Zhang Jing understood whom he was referring to.

Seeing Senior Brother Yan say this, he couldn't help but curiously ask:

"Senior Brother, what is the current cultivation level of those two?"

"As far as I know, they should have just entered the fifth level of Qi Refinement, although their actual performance seems a bit exaggerated. You might not be very clear about this since you're focused on Talisman Making. Those two have gained quite a reputation on the frontline of the battlefield."

After saying this, as if something came to his mind, Senior Brother Yan looked at Zhang Jing and smirked:

"However, you're not bad yourself, Junior Brother."

"I didn't expect that while I was away, you almost turned the whole low-grade talisman market in the Linshi Market upside down."

"Senior Brother, you overstate." Zhang Jing shook his head and laughed.

"Alright, Junior Brother," Senior Brother Yan led Zhang Jing into the palace and asked curiously: "Is there something you need from me?"

Upon hearing the main question.

Zhang Jing became serious and said: "Senior Brother, I want to buy some middle-grade spiritual paper."

"I had an inkling as soon as I saw you'd broken through, Junior Brother. Just wait a moment."

Senior Brother Yan revealed a knowing expression.

He walked directly to a bronze table, his hand swiped gently over his storage bag at his waist.

Suddenly, a thick stack of spiritual paper appeared on the table, each page brimming with a very obvious spiritual power and looking incredibly dense and rough.

"Junior Brother, how much spiritual paper do you need? If it's just tens of sheets, I can give them to you temporarily. But if you need more, you're going to have to use Tao Merits to purchase them. Senior Brother Li is currently away, overseeing the battlefield and has yet to return, I don't have the authority to decide your monthly quota of middle-grade spiritual paper."

Senior Brother Yan apologized.

After thinking for a while, Zhang Jing finally replied: "Then, Senior Brother, can you please give me one hundred sheets of middle-grade spiritual paper for now."

Waiting for Senior Brother Li to return and then get the middle-grade spiritual paper with his assigned quota wouldn't be realistic.

His other senior brother was still waiting for his middle-grade talisman.

Luckily, the cost of middle-grade spiritual paper wasn't too expensive for his current financial situation. The Thousand Law Pavilion sells two sheets for one Tao Merits. The team's price definitely shouldn't exceed that.

Zhang Jing thought.

On the other hand.

Senior Brother Yan counted one hundred sheets of middle-grade spiritual paper and handed them to Zhang Jing:

"Junior Brother, it's good that you don't need much for now. You can take these spiritual papers first. There's no hurry to pay the Tao Merits. Once Senior Brother Li returns and confirms your spiritual paper quota, the amount can be directly deducted from there."

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

"Oh, Junior Brother, I've heard that you're trading talismans for the demon cores at a loss?" Senior Brother Yan suddenly looked at Zhang Jing.

"Senior Brother, the demon cores have a special use for me."

Zhang Jing ambiguously replied.

"It's all right, everyone has secrets," Senior Brother Yan said causally, his aged face breaking into a sly smile as he advised, "I just want to remind you that Senior Brother Li will be back soon. He surely will have plenty of high-grade Demon Cores. If you need any by then, you can go directly to him."

"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Brother!"

Zhang Jing gratefully acknowledged, a surge of excitement suddenly sparked within his heart.

High-grade Demon Cores!

If he could purchase even one from Senior Brother Li, he would be set!

In no time...

Watching Zhang Jing's figure slowly disappear into the darkness, Senior Brother Yan could not help but call after him with a hint of worry on his face.

"Junior Brother, crafting a Middle-Grade Charm isn't as easy as crafting a lower-grade talisman. The success rate is typically low, so do not entertain any other thoughts."

"I understand, thank you, Senior Brother!"

...

This was a talisman shop.

Within the Talisman Making Room on the second floor...

Zhang Jing's expression was unreadable.

Fully invoking it, the divine red light formed a cloud-like apparition and engulfed him from above.

His Dharma Seeds were shining radiantly in his sense of sea!

Unlike before, his Qi Refinement at the intermediate stage was now strong enough to support Zhang Jing's full force exertion for hours on end. For that reason, he now spared no expense.

A thick sheet of middle-grade Spiritual Paper was laid out on the table.

Zhang Jing delicately raised his Spirit Pen and began to sketch out the Dao Patterns for the Middle-Grade Charm, which he had memorized.

Just as Senior Brother Yan had warned him...

If the difficulty level of designing Dao Patterns for a lower-grade talisman was one, then for a Middle-Grade Charm, it would be a hundred. The two couldn't even be compared.

Whilst crafting the Middle-Grade Charm...

Zhang Jing had to ensure the accuracy of each stroke of Dao Pattern and keep the Spiritual Sense and Spiritual Power entirely steady. He also had to pay attention to the Dao Pattern he had just drawn.

The more he proceeded, every one of his lines seemed to be outlined on top of countless precisely drawn Dao Patterns.

Under the influence of one another, the Dao Patterns secretly gave off a wild breath. It gave Zhang Jing the feeling of dancing on a knife's edge.

Time passed slowly.

Upon the attest of the last stroke, a tremendous wave of Spiritual Power unexpectedly erupted from the Spiritual Paper.

Completion of the Middle-Grade Defense Charm - the Heavy Star Talisman!

At this moment...

Despite the double reinforcement of the divine red light and Dharma Seeds, Zhang Jing was drenched in sweat.

Fortunately, he was greeted with initial success.

...

Time unknowingly slipped away over the night.

Zhang Jing, looking dispirited, left the Talisman Making Room.

Having experimented the whole night...

He roughly figured out the successful rate of crafting a Middle-Grade Charm under his Dao Seeds and divine light.

Thirty percent!

Moreover, the credit for most of this thirty percent should go to the divine red light.

Holding the few Middle-Grade Charms he had made in his hands, Zhang Jing was full of emotion.

He made some calculations and found that, given his current success rate of thirty percent, crafting a Middle-Grade Charm would be far more profitable than crafting lower-grade talismans in terms of gaining Tao Merits.

Each Middle-Grade Charm could earn a dozen Tao Merits.

The cost would absolutely not exceed two Tao Merits.

If he could form an Origin Talisman in the future, that would be even more dramatic. As long as his Spiritual Power could withstand it and there was no problem with his Spiritual Sense, he could easily make one to two thousand Tao Merits in a day.

In ten days, that would be a top-grade legacy.

This would be far more relaxed and faster than his current hard work of collecting Demon Cores.

Zhang Jing fantasized as he softly walked downstairs.

He slowly opened the shop's main entrance.

Outside the door stood a somewhat familiar woman who seemed like she had been waiting for a while.

Upon seeing Zhang Jing...

A hint of excitement flashed across the woman's eyes as she carefully and quietly asked...

"Master, would you like more Mist Root Spirit Ginseng?"