Chapter 13 Undercurrent
Jiang He spread out the cloth and placed seven breath-suppressing talismans and one auspicious talisman on it.

It makes sense that my predecessor used to earn spirit stones by using these talismans.

It is not easy to refine a first-grade, mid-quality talisman, and it is usually refined by cultivators in the middle stage of Qi training.

However, these talismans are difficult to refine and they are also common talismans for cultivators in the early stages of Qi training, so they have to buy them from others.

The price is not high either, after all, it is supplied to the low-end market.

One spirit stone for two cards. According to the experience of my predecessor, I can generally make a profit of thirty to forty spirit stones a month.

If you want to make big money, you have to rely on first-grade, top-quality talismans. Talismans of this level already have considerable power and are mostly used for killing. They are also rare, unlike low-grade talismans that are widely circulated.

It was a pity that his predecessor had never refined a top-grade talisman, let alone him.

From time to time, groups of wandering cultivators passed by his stall on the road, but no one stopped.

Jiang He sat where he was, regulating his breathing and practicing Yiqi Jue.

Waiting for the first business to come.

The previous incarnation's foundation was good, but due to long-term neglect of practice, the spiritual energy in Dantian was loose and not condensed.

If you want to break through to the later stage of Qi training, you need to continuously refine the spiritual energy and condense the vast amount of spiritual energy into a ball until the spiritual energy turns into liquid and breaks through the foundation-building stage.

In the later stages of Qi training, the cultivator's combat effectiveness undergoes a qualitative change.

According to the predecessor's current cultivation progress, it will take two years to break through.

However, in the original text, Lin Chi had many adventures in Qingmu City and broke through from the fourth level of Qi training to the seventh level of Qi training in just one year.

He couldn't remember most of the adventures, but he still had some impression of one key plot point.

That is the Jingyuan Jade.

Jingyuan Jade, which is generally produced with a very low probability in large spirit stone mines, can effectively help cultivators refine spiritual energy.

It looks just like ordinary jade, and is extremely rare, with a restrained aura. Therefore, few people in the world of immortal cultivation know about it.

But the effect it can exert is very powerful. In the Qi training stage, the spiritual energy needs to be transformed into liquid, and in the foundation building stage, the spiritual liquid needs to be transformed into pills. Both stages require the refinement of spiritual energy.

The effect of Jingyuan Jade can be imagined.

Several hundred years ago, there was a large spiritual stone mine near Qingmu City. After the mining was completed, some cultivators stayed at the original site and continued to absorb independent cultivators over the course of several hundred years, eventually forming the Qingmu City of today.

However, the Jingyuan jade in the mine was not discovered and was taken away by a small snake.

Even though the little snake is not good at cultivation now, it has become a demon beast in the foundation-building stage with the help of this Jingyuan Jade.

"Why are there only two kinds of talismans here?"

Two young monks in tight clothes came up to his stall and bent over to examine the talismans.

His face was childish, and there was blood from the monster still on his robe.

It seems that he is a monk who makes a living by hunting monsters. Such monks are usually not too old.

The reason is quite simple.

Firstly, it is because hunting monsters is dangerous and the average life expectancy is low. Secondly, young people are brave and aggressive and have high morale.

Qingmu City has been peaceful for a long time, and many old monks have long lost their fighting spirit.

Another monk pulled his companion's sleeve and whispered, "I'm afraid your skills are not good enough. Let's go to another place."

The two monks were hesitant and were about to leave.

Jiang He spoke calmly:
"If you focus on one art, you will become good at it. I have been studying the Breath-Suppressing Talisman and the Good Luck-Attracting Talisman for decades. When I was young, I hunted countless monsters. When I was middle-aged, I combined my experience to improve these two talismans. I can't say that they are much better than those drawn by other cultivators, but in this Dongfang City, I am afraid that no one can be much better than me." As he spoke, the condensed spiritual energy that he had cultivated in the morning flowed out from his fingertips.
"Young man, I have probably drawn more talismans than you have eaten any spiritual rice."

The young monk had his doubts at first, but when he saw the spiritual energy at his fingertips was as condensed as moonlight, it was clearly the symbol of a monk in the late stage of Qi training.

They are not fools who blindly believe others' boasting and buy things on their own.

But instead of buying talismans from other cultivators in the middle stage of Qi training, why not buy the one in front of you that is in the late stage of Qi training?
This is just like the brand effect: products from companies with stronger strength are obviously more likely to gain the trust of customers.

The two monks discussed it and finally spent three spirit stones to buy six breath-suppressing talismans.

Jiang He looked at the backs of the two monks as they left, and the suppressed smile on his lips finally broke out.

He deliberately displayed his spiritual power because he saw that these two cultivators in the early stage of Qi training did not have the vision to do so and would misjudge his cultivation level.

After all, cultivators in the late stage of Qi training are rare in the market, and can be regarded as a golden signboard.

It’s still easier to make money from young people.

Jiang He felt no guilt about impersonating the immortal Lao Deng, and thought happily.

As the sun rises, the flow of people in the market becomes more and more dense.

Jiang He was also unable to maintain his previous state of practice. Once the environment became noisy, it was difficult for him to keep an eye on his stall.

If you are not careful, it may be taken away by others.

After practicing for a whole morning, I only refined a few strands of spiritual energy. It will take me a long time to break through to the later stage.

Fortunately, my predecessor has reached the sixth level for so many years, and the spiritual energy in my dantian is still abundant. Now I just need to refine it slowly.

When Jiang He was bored, a red arc of light passed over Dongfang City and headed straight for Qingmu City.

This caused the casual cultivators in the market to look at him with envy.

Together with Jiang He, I watched the time go away.

This is the sword-flying realm of a foundation-building cultivator. This is the lifetime goal of most casual cultivators.

"Damn, damn."

The old cultivator who was selling pills nearby hurriedly put away the pills, rolled up the animal skin and put it on his back.

"Fellow Daoist, what's going on?" Jiang He asked the old cultivator curiously.

The casual cultivator looked to be in his seventies or eighties, with an old and haggard appearance, and a strong smell of herbs. He glanced at Jiang He and sneered:
"The cultivators in Qingmu City have been lax for too long. The arc of light of that foundation-building cultivator is red, and although his speed is fast, he occasionally stumbles. It is obvious that he used the blood escape method to escape. Someone dared to attack the foundation-building cultivator of Wuya Sect, which means that something big is going to happen."

When Jiang He heard this, his heart moved.

Wuya Sect is the ruler behind Qingmu City. There are dozens of foundation-building cultivators in the sect, and even a great cultivator in the Jindan stage.

In the entire Dajin immortal cultivation world, a Jindan stage cultivator can be considered a hegemon. How could someone in Qingmu City attack the foundation-building cultivators of Wuya Sect?

"Thank you for the reminder, fellow Taoist." Jiang He bowed to express his gratitude, while muttering to himself.

Could this be the plot point in the original text?

But he remembered very clearly that the turmoil in Aoki Castle occurred a year later, with the massacre of the Zhao family as the fuse.

When did he, the butterfly, flap his wings and bring about the change?

The old cultivator pondered for a while and said, "Fellow Daoist seems to be a cultivator in the late stage of Qi training? I am Tang Ge, and I am at the eighth level of Qi training. If there is any change in Qingmu City, we cultivators should stick together for warmth."

This old man looks unremarkable, but he is actually a cultivator at the eighth level of Qi training, and also a free-spirited alchemist.

(End of this chapter)