Chapter 529: Exceptionally Fiery, Attracting Attention

Chapter 529: Exceptionally Fiery, Attracting Attention

Boom!

A thick bolt of lightning flashed through the courtyard, shattering a massive stone pillar that would take several people to encircle.

This scene left everyone, from the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator who had activated the talisman to the onlookers, gaping in astonishment.

After all, the stone pillars in the courtyard were made of specially refined green steel, an incredibly hard material that could withstand even the strongest attacks without sustaining much damage.

Yet, the lightning unleashed by the talisman had reduced it to rubble.

Such power was truly terrifying!

"This is the true might of a Core Formation Level Talisman..."

The Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator, holding the talisman in his hand, trembled slightly.

Though this attack had drained nearly half of his spiritual energy, its power was indeed terrifying.

He could feel that if he were struck by such a bolt of lightning, even a glancing blow would likely reduce him to ashes.

A great weapon of destruction—this was the terrifying power of Core Formation Level.

The Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was deeply shaken.

This was his first time using a Core Formation Level talisman. In the past, he had never had the chance to even touch such a high-level talisman.

It was only because the Treasure Pavilion had introduced new talismans that he had this opportunity to experience the might of a Core Formation Level talisman.

This power had made him realize just how terrifying the strength of Core Formation Realm cultivators truly was.

He had to get his hands on this powerful weapon!

With such a formidable talisman for protection, his chances of success in exploring the secret place would be greatly increased.

Even if his temporary teammates turned against him, he would have nothing to fear!

With this thought, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator gritted his teeth.

He asked, "How many spirit stones will it take to buy this Thunderbolt Talisman?"

He was prepared to spend all his spirit stones to acquire this talisman.

And, of course, the Gravity Talisman was also essential for him.

This exploration of the secret place could not fail; it was crucial to his chances of achieving Core Formation Realm.

No matter the cost, it would be worth it.

The Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was quite anxious as he asked his question.

Over the years, he had been frugal and had managed to save some spirit stones.

However, it was still a stretch to afford a true Core Formation Level talisman.

At the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion and the Thousand Mechanisms Workshop, such talismans were not within his reach.

It was only because the beautiful female attendant had mentioned that the Treasure Pavilion’s new talismans were of high quality and reasonably priced, with a discount for the first five buyers, that he dared to even consider it.

"This Thunderbolt Talisman is a lightning-attribute attack talisman, and it is priced slightly higher than the average Core Formation Level talisman.

At our Treasure Pavilion, it costs two hundred low-grade spirit stones.

Since you are the first customer to buy a new talisman today, you can enjoy a ten percent discount.

Therefore, this Thunderbolt Talisman will only cost you twenty low-grade spirit stones."

Upon hearing this, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was stunned.

The other cultivators watching from the sidelines were equally dumbfounded.

The entire spacious courtyard fell into a dead silence.

Everyone stared at the beautiful female attendant in disbelief, as if trying to determine whether she was joking.

It wasn’t that the price was too high, but rather, it was incredibly cheap!

"You, you said... this Thunderbolt Talisman only costs twenty low-grade spirit stones?"

A few moments later, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator regained his composure, his face filled with disbelief, and he stammered.

It was no wonder he was so taken aback; the beautiful female attendant’s words were simply too unbelievable.

A Core Formation Level lightning-attribute talisman for just twenty low-grade spirit stones.

Anyone would find it hard to believe.

"That’s right, Senior, you heard correctly. Because of the ten percent discount, this Thunderbolt Talisman will only cost you twenty low-grade spirit stones.

However, this discount is limited to the first talisman you buy.

If you want to purchase additional talismans, you will have to pay the full price.

Also, each person can only buy one of each type of talisman for now."

The beautiful female attendant explained.

These restrictions were naturally to prevent anyone from exploiting the system and reselling the talismans.

Hearing her confirmation, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was overjoyed.

Even if the ten percent discount only applied to the first talisman, it was still a tremendous deal for him.

He immediately said without hesitation, "I want to buy a Thunderbolt Talisman!"

Afraid of missing out on the discount, he hurriedly said, "Senior, besides the Thunderbolt Talisman, do you need any other talismans?"

"How many spirit stones does a Gravity Talisman cost?"

"Our Pavilion has recently stocked Foundation Establishment Level Talismans, all priced at twenty low-grade spirit stones each."

"All Foundation Establishment Level Talismans are twenty low-grade spirit stones each?"

Hearing this, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was once again surprised. Without hesitation, he said, "Then give me one Gravity Talisman and one Life Force Talisman, and another Flame Talisman..."

In no time, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator spent most of his spirit stones, purchasing a total of seven talismans. Apart from the Core Formation Level Thunderbolt Talisman, the other six were all Foundation Establishment Level Talismans.

In fact, he really wanted to buy another Core Formation Level talisman, but unfortunately, his resources were limited, and he couldn't afford it.

At this moment, the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator deeply regretted not saving more spirit stones in the past. If he had, he could have bought all the new talismans in the Treasure Pavilion.

As the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator left with a mix of excitement and regret, the other cultivators who had been watching eagerly rushed forward, surrounding the beautiful female attendant.

"I want a Thunderbolt Talisman!"

"Give me a Life Force Talisman and a Flame Talisman!"

"I want one of each talisman!"

...

These cultivators had all witnessed firsthand the impressive power of the new talismans from the Treasure Pavilion. More importantly, the prices were much lower than those of the same level talismans sold by other shops.

They all knew that the Treasure Pavilion had set these low prices to promote the new talismans. Who knew if the prices would remain the same in a few days?

So, missing this opportunity would mean missing out on a great deal.

With this mindset, these cultivators who had seen the power of the new talismans emptied their spirit stone pouches, trying their best to buy as many new talismans as they could. Some even went back to inform their friends and family to come and buy talismans, fearing they might miss out on the deal if they were late.

As a result, in just one day, over half of the hundreds of talismans Lu Qing had refined were sold.

"Are you saying that the talismans refined by Daoist Lu are already in short supply?"

The Pavilion Master of the Treasure Pavilion was surprised when she heard Zi Yuan's report.

"Yes, Pavilion Master. The quality of the talismans refined by Senior Lu is too good, and we set the prices low. After the cultivators tested them, almost all of them made purchases. I even saw some cultivators who didn't have enough spirit stones run back to borrow more before returning to buy."

"If we hadn't set a limit of one talisman of each type per person, the hundreds of talismans refined by Senior Lu would have been sold out today."

"Even so, there are not many left. Less than a hundred, probably not enough for tomorrow's sales."

Zi Yuan reported slowly.

"I didn't expect the new talismans to be so popular on the first day."

The Pavilion Master of the Treasure Pavilion felt both excited and astonished. She had initially thought it would take several days of continuous promotion before the outside cultivators would gradually accept the new talismans.

But the development was far smoother than she had anticipated.

"Pavilion Master, what should we do next? Should we raise the prices of the talismans?" Zi Yuan asked.

"Absolutely not." The Pavilion Master shook her head. "Our biggest advantage is the price. If we raise the prices, we'll be no different from the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion and others. Our sales might even drop significantly. After all, we use low-grade spirit jade in our talismans, and some cultivators still care about that."

"But at the current trend, the remaining talismans won't be enough for tomorrow's sales. We need to ask Senior Lu to refine more. But when I went to his cave earlier, I saw a 'Do Not Disturb' sign. I was afraid he was in a critical stage of cultivation and didn't dare to disturb him."

"Daoist Lu is in cultivation..." The Pavilion Master pondered for a moment and then said, "This is my mistake. I shouldn't have disturbed him so soon. But the momentum of the new talismans is already strong, and we can't afford to lose it. I'll go and apologize to Daoist Lu and see if he can understand."

The Pavilion Master immediately headed to Lu Qing's cave.

After a few calls, Lu Qing woke from his meditation.

Learning about the success of the new talismans, he was also surprised.

"Daoist Lu, this is the situation. The talismans you refined are unexpectedly popular."

Now, we have very few talismans left in our pavilion. I'm afraid we'll need you, Daoist Lu, to refine another batch."

"This is due to my poor planning. Please forgive me, Daoist Lu", the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Pavilion said earnestly.

Lu Qing smiled and replied, "Why do you say that? The new talismans are in high demand, which is a good thing. We should be happy about it. However..."

After some thought, Lu Qing continued, "I can refine a maximum of five hundred talismans a day. The rest of the time, I need to devote to cultivation. I hope you understand."

"Five hundred is more than enough!" the Pavilion Master of the Treasure Pavilion hurriedly responded, inwardly stunned.

From Lu Qing's words, it seemed that refining five hundred talismans in a day wasn't even his limit, and he still had time for cultivation.

"Starting from tomorrow, have Miss Zi Yuan come to collect the talismans at dawn. I'll start refining them right away."

"I'll take my leave then."

After the Pavilion Master left, Lu Qing returned to his cave and took out the spirit stones, beginning the refinement process immediately.

To be honest, he was quite pleased with the news the Pavilion Master had brought. After all, the better the talismans sold, the faster he could accumulate spirit stones. The faster he accumulated spirit stones, the closer he would be to entering the Great Tianyuan World, which was a good thing for him.

Refining talismans wasn't difficult for him. Moreover, when he refined talismans, he used the technique of dividing his consciousness, which also served as a form of mental training.

The next day came quickly. As Zi Yuan had predicted, the word of mouth had spread, and more cultivators came to the Treasure Pavilion to purchase talismans.

Fortunately, with the addition of the five hundred new talismans Lu Qing had refined, they managed to meet the demand.

In the following days, the number of people coming to the Treasure Pavilion to buy talismans remained steady. The influx of customers even boosted the sales of other treasures in the pavilion, such as magical artifacts and pills, bringing in a large amount of spirit stones in a short period!

Such unusual activity couldn't be hidden from the keen eyes of the other factions in Canglan City, especially those in competition with the Treasure Pavilion, like the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion and the Thousand Mechanisms Workshop.

In a secret chamber of the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion, several figures were looking at a few talismans placed on a table in front of them with serious expressions. If other cultivators were present, they would recognize these as the new talismans that had been selling like hotcakes at the Treasure Pavilion in recent days.

"Are these little things the reason why our Myriad Phenomena Pavilion has been deserted, with no extra customers for days?"

A robust, red-faced elder with wild hair and a beard looked at the plain-looking jade talismans on the table, his eyes filled with disbelief. In his perception, the aura emitted by these talismans was not strong. Most of them were only at the Foundation Establishment level, and the most powerful one was only at the Core Formation level.

He couldn't believe that these low- to mid-level talismans were the reason their business had dried up.

"Deputy Pavilion Master, you must not underestimate these talismans", a middle-aged man with a white face and a jade fan in his hand said.

"These talismans may look ordinary, but they are actually quite ingenious. Master Zhuo has already examined them and praised their refinement technique highly."

"Is that so, Master Zhuo?" the robust, red-faced elder turned to a black-haired elder sitting calmly nearby.

"Indeed. Although these talismans are of low rank and made from cheap and rough materials, their refinement technique is quite remarkable. They perfectly integrate the Fu Wen array into the spirit stones, allowing even the lowest-grade spirit stones to carry powerful Fu Wen energy and exert abilities beyond their rank. Such a miraculous refinement technique can only be the work of a master-level talisman maker", Master Zhuo replied.

"Master-level talisman maker!"

The robust, red-faced elder was enlightened.

"I see. It seems the Treasure Pavilion has used some means to recruit a master-level talisman maker. So, these recent troubles are all due to this unknown master?"

"Most likely", Master Zhuo nodded. "The carriers of these talismans are all low-grade spirit stones, making the refinement cost relatively low. That's why the Treasure Pavilion can sell them at such low prices. However, there's one thing I still don't understand."

"What is it?"

"Which master-level talisman maker would lower themselves so much, wasting their energy refining so many low-grade talismans?"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end