Chapter 80: Two Years (1/5)

Instead, he put on a show for others, turning the profits he gained from his spiritual fields into spirit stones earned through his craft. By revealing another skill, he could avoid suspicion about the origin of his wealth. He concealed his strongest abilities, deliberately exposing the less important ones to mask what truly mattered. Such tactics were familiar to He Song; naturally, he wielded them with ease.

If he wished to use the vast spirit stones from his spiritual fields without arousing suspicion, learning a craft that seemed ordinary to others and unlikely to invite envy was the best choice. After much contemplation, He Song finally settled on becoming a talisman master.

He chose this profession not for any other reason but because the talismans he crafted could be used in conjunction with array techniques. The way of arrays involved inscribing array patterns within a medium, while the way of talismans required drawing talisman scripts on its surface. Though array patterns and talisman scripts were not strictly the same, mastery of one branch often led to proficiency in another. Since He Song already knew how to inscribe array patterns, he could swiftly learn the art of talisman crafting.

Rapid mastery of talisman making meant he could quickly explain the source of his spirit stones. Two years hence, He Song would be able to fully command the layout of the Five Elements Array. Once he successfully deployed it, his spiritual fields would yield enormous profits. At that point, if he were to learn another craft to conceal the origin of his wealth, speed would be his foremost concern.

Other arts—alchemy, artifact forging, beast taming—would require much time to reach the level where he could earn spirit stones. Like his array studies, it would take at least three years to reach competency. But with talismans, thanks to his foundation, He Song could likely become proficient within two years, and begin displaying his identity as a talisman master.

By then, his first crop of spirit rice would have just been planted. A year later, when the rice matured, he would harvest ten thousand catties of spiritual grain. Meanwhile, his status as a talisman master would provide the perfect cover for the sudden flood of spirit stones.

As a talisman master, what harm was there in possessing more spirit stones than others? After all, they were earned through the hard labor of making and selling talismans.

Moreover, as there were many talisman masters in the cultivation world, a talisman master at the Qi Refining stage would not draw undue attention. Coupled with the respectable income of a talisman master, He Song's wealth would not arouse suspicion. Thus, talisman crafting became his top choice. The other arts could be studied at leisure in the future; after all, what he lacked least was time.

Still, though he had chosen his public identity, He Song felt a pang of helplessness as he glanced at the few spirit stones left in his storage pouch.

He was almost out of spirit stones!

When he opened his spiritual fields, he had set up five arrays—four Spirit Gathering Arrays and one Concealment Array. He brought back one Spirit Gathering Array and one Concealment Array to use in his residence, which also required arrays for maintenance.

The five arrays in his fields consumed twenty-five spirit stones annually. At the time, he had only thirty-some stones left. After returning from the fields, barely a dozen remained. Of those, ten had to be reserved for the Spirit Gathering and Concealment Arrays in his meditation chamber.

Had he not kept a few stones for himself, he might have been left destitute, unable even to afford ordinary rice, let alone spiritual rice.

To learn talisman crafting, he would need to purchase the introductory tome, costing a hundred spirit stones. Talisman paper, brushes, and ink—all these supplies had to be bought. After tallying up the expenses, He Song realized he would need more than a hundred spirit stones.

He pondered for a long time.

"So be it, so be it. If I must wait two years, then two years it shall be. At worst, I'll store the spiritual rice I cultivate and sell it once I've mastered talisman crafting." Shaking his head, He Song sighed softly, his expression tinged with resignation. There was nothing he could do; his annual stipend was simply too low.

Only when he needed to spend spirit stones did he realize that his yearly income of just over a hundred stones was far from sufficient. He resolved to store the spiritual rice after harvest, waiting until later to sell it. Otherwise, if he sold it too soon and someone noticed the sudden influx of spirit stones, the consequences could be dire.

For the sake of caution, He Song decided to wait. Waiting would minimize his risk. Even if his profits were not maximized, it mattered little.

After all, as one who pursued longevity, time was what He Song had in abundance. Only those whose lives were short needed to seize every moment. For He Song, time had never been scarce.

If the passage of time could reduce risk, he would not hesitate to wait. Once his decision was made, He Song settled down to study the methods for arranging the Five Elements Array.

As the first killing array and defensive formation he would learn, the Five Elements Array was much more difficult to arrange than the Spirit Gathering and Concealment Arrays. This was why, despite having already mastered two arrays and gained experience, He Song still needed three years to learn the Five Elements Array.

Time flowed swiftly, years passed like a shuttle. Two years slipped by in the blink of an eye.

During these two years, Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market was far from peaceful. Though He Song spent each day within the market, news from the outside would occasionally reach him, keeping him informed of the situation around Bamboo Mountain.

Three years ago, after the law enforcement team from Immortal City left Bamboo Mountain, they were ambushed, resulting in three deaths and two serious injuries. Since then, the law enforcement team of Qingyuan Immortal City launched repeated campaigns against the demonic cultivators.

Unfortunately, there was no Foundation Establishment expert in Qingyuan Immortal City's law enforcement team. In their clashes with the demonic cultivators, the team's losses were considerable, though the demonic cultivators suffered even more.

Now, three years later, the struggle between the law enforcement team and the demonic cultivators had not ended. In fact, it seemed to intensify. This was evident from the team's recruitment of rogue cultivators within Qingyuan Immortal City.

The demonic cultivators were powerful; the law enforcement team would not have recruited rogue cultivators unless they were desperately short-handed.

When He Song first heard the news, he was astonished by the number and strength of the demonic cultivators. Yet his astonishment aside, the matter had little impact on He Song himself.

He had remained within the market for two years, venturing outside only once.