Chapter 527: Terrifying Refinement Efficiency and the Furious Master Qiu

Chapter 527: Terrifying Refinement Efficiency and the Furious Master Qiu

Splash!

Another nine spirit jade pieces were successfully refined into talismans, landing in Lu Qing’s hands.

However, this time he wasn’t refining Thunder Shock Talismans, but a wood-elemental Foundation Establishment-level talisman.

Named the Life Essence Talisman, it could replenish the user’s life essence, making it an excellent healing talisman.

After all, Ziyuan had mentioned that in the talisman market, the demand for Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment-level talismans was the highest.

Refining Qi Condensation-level talismans was too much of a waste for Lu Qing.

So, in addition to the Golden Core-level talismans, he also refined a batch of Foundation Establishment-level talismans.

After a quick inspection, he found no flaws in the newly refined talismans and casually placed them aside.

The talismans fell with a few crisp sounds.

By Lu Qing’s side, there was already a small pile of talismans, numbering in the hundreds at a glance.

If the owner of the Treasure Pavilion saw this scene, he would undoubtedly be shocked.

After all, Lu Qing’s refinement efficiency was truly astonishing. In such a short time, he had already refined so many talismans.

Fortunately, the spirit energy in the cave dwelling was abundant; otherwise, it might not have been able to support Lu Qing’s continuous, high-intensity refinement.

Looking at the pile of talismans beside him, Lu Qing fell into deep thought.

The owner of the Treasure Pavilion had asked him to refine a batch of talismans. This should be enough for now.

After all, it was still unknown how well these talismans would sell.

If they didn’t sell well, it would be a waste of materials.

After some consideration, Lu Qing decided to take a break for the moment.

After all, refining Foundation Establishment and Initial Golden Core-level talismans was simple for him.

If more were needed later, he could always refine more.

After making his decision, Lu Qing put away the pile of talismans.

He closed his eyes, preparing to meditate and cultivate.

Refining talismans was just a means for him to accumulate spirit stones.

His ultimate goal was to enhance his cultivation.

Therefore, Lu Qing planned to spend only a few hours each day refining talismans, using the rest of his time for closed-door cultivation.

After all, he was not far from breaking through.

As Lu Qing cultivated, the spirit energy in the cave dwelling was absorbed in large quantities, refined and extracted by the Five Elements Gourd, and transformed into pure magical power.

Fortunately, the cave dwelling provided by the Treasure Pavilion was indeed formidable.

Even with two high-grade spirit beast cores and Lu Qing’s exceptional Perfect Golden Core absorbing spirit energy for cultivation, it could still keep up.

However, Lu Qing was not surprised.

According to the Treasure Pavilion, the cave dwelling for the chief talismanist was originally intended for Primordial Soul Realm experts.

It could supply the cultivation needs of a Primordial Soul Realm expert.

Compared to that, the amount of spirit energy absorbed by the three of them was still far from the level of a Primordial Soul Realm expert, so there was no problem.

Time passed quickly during cultivation.

After an unknown period, Lu Qing was suddenly awakened by a faint array fluctuation.

He slowly concluded his cultivation and discovered that someone was calling him from outside the cave dwelling.

However, he ignored it for the moment and first checked his internal condition.

Upon sensing it, he felt elated.

This deep cultivation session had significantly advanced his cultivation.

He was getting closer and closer to breaking through.

At this rate, in no more than ten days, he should be able to formally break through to the Fourth Transformation of the Golden Core realm.

At that time, his strength would experience another significant boost.

It was important to note that the transition from the Third Transformation of the Golden Core to the Fourth Transformation was a critical point.

It marked the shift from the early Golden Core stage to the mid-Golden Core stage.

For a Core Formation Realm cultivator, crossing this threshold meant a transformation.

Given Lu Qing’s foundation with his Perfect Golden Core, once he transformed, it would be a terrifying enhancement.

He was already looking forward to the day of his breakthrough.

At that moment, the array fluctuation from outside the cave dwelling came again.

Lu Qing calmed his mind, opened the defensive array, and stepped out.

"Senior Lu, have I disturbed your cultivation?"

Outside the cave dwelling, it was Ziyuan who was calling Lu Qing.

"No problem, is there something the owner needs to discuss with me?" Lu Qing asked.

"The owner has invited Senior Lu to the private room for an important discussion."

"I’ll go now."

Lu Qing nodded, closed the cave dwelling, and followed Ziyuan to the owner’s private room.

On the way, Lu Qing realized that his closed-door cultivation and talisman refinement had only taken a day.

"Daoist Lu, please sit down."

In the private room, the owner of the Treasure Pavilion greeted Lu Qing with a smile.

"Owner, what is the reason for summoning me here?" Lu Qing asked.

"It’s like this, I’ve thought about it and have a rough plan, so I wanted to discuss it with you."

"You came up with a plan so quickly?"

"It’s actually quite simple. I plan to engage in a talisman price war with the other major trading houses."

"Price War of Talismans?" Lu Qing raised an eyebrow.

"Exactly. Our greatest advantage now lies in the talismans you have refined, which have low costs but no reduction in power. Even if we set the price of the talismans lower, we can still make a considerable profit. Therefore, we should leverage this advantage to the fullest by flooding the market with low-priced talismans and capturing the talisman market."

"An excellent plan, Pavilion Master."

Lu Qing was not surprised by this plan from the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Pavilion. In fact, one of the reasons he approached the Treasure Pavilion was to collaborate and sell a large number of talismans. He aimed to quickly accumulate spirit stones by leveraging the cost advantage.

However, he hadn’t expected that things would develop even better than he had anticipated.

"However, this strategy requires a large number of talismans as a foundation. It will put significant pressure on you, Lu Daoist. How long do you think it will take you to refine and prepare the talismans?"

"Need a large number of talismans, huh..."

Lu Qing pondered for a moment and then took out a storage bag from his chest.

"Pavilion Master, I tried refining some talismans yesterday after I returned. Take a look and see if it’s enough for now."

"Oh, you’ve already refined some talismans? Lu Daoist is indeed diligent. How many talismans have you refined?"

The Pavilion Master was somewhat surprised. She took the storage bag and probed it with her mind.

The next moment, she was completely stunned.

At that moment, Lu Qing’s words reached her ears.

"It’s not a lot, about a hundred Golden Core talismans and over three hundred Foundation Establishment talismans. Each talisman can be used at least ten times, so there’s no need to worry about their power."

"A hundred Golden Core talismans and over three hundred Foundation Establishment talismans?"

The Pavilion Master was filled with disbelief. Her rational mind told her that this was impossible. However, the sensation from the storage bag in her hand confirmed that this was indeed true. The hundreds of talismans were right there in her hand.

"Lu Daoist, did you refine all these hundreds of talismans yesterday after you returned?"

The Pavilion Master stared at Lu Qing with wide eyes.

"Yes, Pavilion Master asked me to prepare early, so I refined a batch of talismans."

"To refine hundreds of talismans in just one day, including a hundred Golden Core talismans..."

The Pavilion Master was utterly amazed, and her gaze toward Lu Qing was as if she were looking at a monster.

Ziyuan, standing nearby, also had her mouth agape in shock.

She couldn’t have heard wrong, could she? Senior Lu refined hundreds of talismans in just one day!

To put it in perspective, Master Qiu and others usually took several days to refine a single talisman. The difference was unimaginable.

No wonder Senior Lu said that the Thunder Shock Talisman he gave her was just a small trinket he refined casually. At the time, Ziyuan thought it was just something he said to make her feel better. Now, it was clear that Senior Lu was speaking the truth. For him, a Golden Core talisman was indeed something he could refine with ease!

The Pavilion Master stared at Lu Qing in a daze. When she finally came to her senses, a surge of joy filled her heart.

"Excellent! Truly excellent! I never thought that Lu Daoist’s efficiency in refining talismans would be so high. Even a genuine master of talisman refinement would be hard-pressed to match you!"

The Pavilion Master was not flattering him. While the Treasure Pavilion did not have a master of talisman refinement on staff, she had seen genuine masters before. When she was still in the Tianyuan Great World, her family had a master of talisman refinement serving as a retainer. She knew very well that even a true master of talisman refinement could not match Lu Qing’s efficiency.

"I dare not accept such praise. The cultivation technique I practice is quite unique, and I have a bit of talent, which allows me to refine talismans quickly", Lu Qing modestly replied.

The reason he could refine talismans so quickly was due to his Perfect Golden Core. His divine soul was far stronger than that of a typical Core Formation Realm cultivator. Even the Golden Cores of those born with innate Dao seeds, the pride of heaven, could not compare to his.

The Perfect Golden Core allowed Lu Qing to perfectly control all his power, ensuring that he made no mistakes when inscribing and refining talismans. Additionally, he had cultivated the Mind Division Technique of the Puppet Sect to its highest level, allowing him to focus on nine tasks simultaneously.

With these advantages, his efficiency in refining talismans was truly extraordinary.

"Pavilion Master, do you think these talismans are enough? If not, I can go back and refine more", Lu Qing asked.

"Enough, more than enough! These are already more than sufficient for the first phase of our plan!" the Pavilion Master quickly replied.

Originally, when she asked Lu Qing to prepare a batch of talismans in advance, she had only expected a few dozen at most. She had planned to give him half a month to prepare, as refining talismans was a mentally taxing process. Even with Lu Qing’s high speed, it was logical to assume that he could only refine a limited number in a day.

Who would have thought that the chief talisman master he had invited would be so extraordinary, capable of refining hundreds of high-quality talismans in just one day?

It was hard to fathom how his mental fortitude could withstand such a feat.

If it weren't for the fact that Lu Qing didn't possess the special aura of a powerful Primordial Soul, and if her secret techniques and mystic abilities hadn't given any warning, the owner of the Treasure Pavilion might have suspected that Lu Qing was actually a seasoned Primordial Soul expert in disguise.

However...

The owner of the Treasure Pavilion tightened her grip on the storage bag.

Lu Qing had indeed given her a tremendous surprise this time.

With these hundreds of talismans, not only could her plan be executed flawlessly, but it wouldn't take as long as she had anticipated.

Indeed, the unusual fluctuations in her divination powers had a reason.

This young Golden Core cultivator was truly the one who could change her destiny!

"That's great. If you run out of talismans, just let me know, and I can refine more at any time. I'm not particularly skilled in business, but I can at least provide you with these talismans."

"We can't say that. This time, the Treasure Pavilion is entirely relying on you, Brother Lu."

After handing over the refined talismans to the owner of the Treasure Pavilion, Lu Qing took his leave.

Although he valued spirit stones greatly, he believed that professional matters should be handled by professionals. The Treasure Pavilion was far more adept at selling talismans than he was.

His only responsibility was to ensure a steady supply of talismans; he didn't want to be overly involved in the business side of things.

Moreover, after cultivating in his cave abode last night and feeling his cultivation advance, Lu Qing now had a stronger desire to continue his seclusion and practice.

He wanted to break through his bottleneck and reach the Fourth Transformation of the Golden Core as soon as possible.

Upon returning to his cave abode, Lu Qing hung a "Do Not Disturb" sign.

He then activated the defensive array within his cave and entered a state of seclusion.

This time, he planned to remain in seclusion until he broke through, unless something extremely important came up.

Meanwhile, the Treasure Pavilion began its operations.

First, they removed all the talismans that were previously on sale and replaced them with the ones refined by Lu Qing.

They also sent a portion of these talismans to the branch pavilions in other districts for trial sales.

Next, they waited for customers to arrive.

However, when the original talismans were taken off the shelves, a small incident occurred.

The talisman masters whose talismans were removed from the shelves came to inquire about what was happening.

Among them, Master Qiu's reaction was the most intense.

"Ziyuan, what's going on? Why did the front hall remove all the talismans I refined?!"

Master Qiu immediately rushed to Ziyuan, who had been promoted by the owner to manage the front hall, and demanded answers with a fierce demeanor.

"Master Qiu, please calm down. This is the decision of the owner. We are launching a new batch of talismans.

The currently available talismans will be temporarily removed from sale.

Once the new talismans gain popularity and sales stabilize, the original talismans will be gradually reintroduced."

Ziyuan smiled and patiently explained.

"New talismans? Are they the ones refined by that chief talisman master?" Master Qiu's expression changed.

"Indeed, they are the talismans refined by Senior Lu", Ziyuan nodded.

Master Qiu fell silent for a moment.

However, he quickly regained his composure: "Even if we are to introduce Senior Lu's talismans, there's no reason to remove ours!

Do you know that the talismans I refine are among the best in quality and the most popular in the pavilion?!"

"This is a direct order from the owner. I am just following her instructions."

Despite Master Qiu's intimidating manner, Ziyuan continued to smile and patiently respond.

Internally, however, she couldn't help but feel disdain.

This old man had the nerve to complain.

Every time he refined talismans, he always demanded the most expensive and precious materials.

As a result, the talismans he produced were naturally of high quality.

However, with such high costs, the pavilion barely made a profit from selling them.

On the contrary, this old man, who received a share of the profits, always had a full stomach.

Worse still, not only did he behave this way, but his disciples and apprentices did the same.

They loved using the best materials and often wasted them, sometimes even keeping them for themselves.

In the past, the owner had tolerated him and his lineage because the pavilion lacked excellent talisman masters.

Now, with the arrival of Senior Lu, this old man's days were numbered.

Ziyuan was well aware of the internal dynamics but wasn't about to be so kind as to warn Master Qiu.

She simply fobbed him off, attributing everything to the owner's orders.

In short, the talismans refined by Master Qiu and the others would inevitably be taken off the shelves for the time being.

When they would be reintroduced was yet to be determined.

Frustrated by Ziyuan's evasive answers and lack of results, Master Qiu finally lost his patience.

With a wave of his sleeve, he declared, "I can't reason with you. I'll go find the owner myself!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end