Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

The following evening, Li Yuan cooked the fifth bag of Changqing rice.

After finishing the fifth bag of Changqing rice, a notification popped up on the panel.

The conditions for permanentization of the "Valley Qi Concentration (Gray)" skill have been met.

Is it permanent?

Yes.

[Permanentization successful]

【谷气凝神 (gray)】 has become a permanent entry.

[Equipment consumed]

Panel Update:

[Permanent entries: Cleansing Constitution (gray), Grain Qi Concentration (gray), Spiritual Qi Filtering (white), Five Grains Nourishing Qi (white), Accelerated Circulation (white), Scaled Armor Protection (white), Spiritual Qi Gathering (white)]

Seven permanent entries.

With an empty slot in his equipment inventory, Li Yuan took out the Talisman Crafting Manual from his sleeve and equipped it.

The booklet transformed into light and merged into his body. The experience he had received from the equipment manual felt like a reunion with an old friend, and the feel for drawing talismans immediately became clear.

Current equipment slots: 3/3

[Equipped Items: Condensation Technique, Hundred Meridians Return to Origin Technique, Talisman Crafting Manual]

[Equipment Attributes: Spiritual Energy Condensation (Green), All Rivers Flow into the Sea (Blue), Talisman Crafting Insights (White)]

Li Yuan cleaned the table, spread out the talisman paper, dipped his brush in ink, and began making cleaning talismans and talismanic talismans.

There was a stack of talismans next to him, and Li Yuan went to Wu Ji Talisman Material to buy a lot more talismans.

Making the two types of talismans alternately doesn't have a high success rate; four cleansing talismans make one talisman, and seven talismans make one talisman.

However, the feel of each card is getting better.

The effects of the talisman-making enlightenment entries are not as noticeable as spiritual energy filtering or the acceleration of the circulation of energy, but you can feel that the transmission of spiritual energy from your fingertips to the tip of the pen is smoother, and the spiritual energy consumption of each stroke is less than when you don't equip it.

An hour later, Li Yuan put down his pen and stretched his wrists.

[First-Tier Rune Making: Beginner (82/100)]

[Cleansing Charm: Beginner (83/100)]

[Exorcism Talisman: Beginner (61/100)]

[Progress of Crafting Enlightenment (White) Permanentization: 16/50]

Progress is going quite fast. But a lot of materials are being consumed.

Unlike cultivation techniques, which can be mastered quickly once equipped, talisman-making requires hands-on practice. However, the speed of mastery far surpasses that of other cultivators.

For the next two days, Li Yuan maintained a fixed rhythm.

In the morning, Zhao Hu and Zheng Xiaoman were sent to patrol on their own, while I gathered at my residence to make talismans. I practiced making cleansing talismans and warding-off-evil talismans alternately, and my skills improved day by day.

In the afternoon, I went out to patrol half a street, and while I was at it, I kept an eye out for any stalls selling talisman-making related items.

The talisman crafting manual only contains two basic talismans: cleansing talismans and exorcism talismans. To create lower-grade first-tier combat talismans such as fireball talismans and ice cone talismans, a more systematic talisman-making method is required.

Li Yuan walked around East Street and North Alley twice, asking seven or eight vendors selling talismans or talisman materials.

The results were not ideal.

There are people who sell talisman-making methods, but they only sell the basics—how to draw spirit patterns, how to control the output of spirit power, and the principles of matching talisman paper and spirit ink. Old Zhang's booklet contains all of these things, so spending spirit stones to buy them is a pure waste.

Higher-level talisman-making techniques, such as the method for making first-tier low-grade combat talismans, are all kept secret and treasured.

However, Li Yuan did manage to buy a recipe for warning talismans from a random cultivator's stall. This cultivator was also selling over a dozen warning talismans as a bonus.

According to him, he can no longer make money by making these warning talismans, so he simply sold all the talismans and making methods he had accumulated.

Warning talismans are considered one of the more practical types of basic talismans. When placed in a certain location, they can sense fluctuations in nearby spiritual energy and issue a warning when something approaches. The method of making them is not difficult, though slightly more complicated than exorcism talismans, and the price is not expensive, only five spirit stones.

Li Yuan reached for the dozens of warning talismans, but the system panel did not respond.

Then he took out the spirit stones, put the recipe into his sleeve, and went to the shop to buy the materials needed for the warning talisman.

On the way back, Li Yuan turned into a secluded side alley.

The houses on both sides of this alley are rented by unemployed people. They were built when the Wang family first expanded the market, but now the market has less foot traffic and many houses are vacant.

Li Yuan had just turned a few steps inside when his pace suddenly slowed down.

Deep in the alley, Li Yuan's nose twitched slightly, and a faint bitter smell wafted in the air.

He recognized the smell; it was the same scent the medicine needed for the Concealing Breath Jade Pendant.

Li Yuan didn't stop walking; his fingers silently touched the spirit-detecting disc in his sleeve.

Spiritual energy flowed in, and perception expanded.

There was a very faint spiritual energy fluctuation around, probably around the second level of Qi Refining, and the source of the scent was also in a similar location.

Li Yuan used the spirit-detecting disc to pinpoint the house from which the scent was coming. Without turning back, he walked along West Street toward the patrol team's station.

-

The door to the patrol team's post was ajar. Li Yuan knocked, went in, and closed the door.

"In the side alley west of North Alley, I smelled the medicinal liquid used by the Concealing Breath Jade Pendant."

Wang De put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, tapped the table twice with his index finger, and after confirming the location, said...

"This person is already keeping an eye on things."

Li Yuan paused slightly.

Wang De picked up the teacup, took a sip, and put it down.

"The information you provided last time—Zhao Wu's jade pendant, the jade pendant of the Crow Claw Gang, and the formula for the medicine—we did manage to find two of them, but we reckon they were all peripheral members, so we didn't alert them."

Wang De didn't go on to elaborate on the details, but simply nodded.

"The one you found is one we've been keeping an eye on. We have to thank you for your previous intelligence; it saved us a lot of trouble."

Li Yuan didn't press the matter further and changed the subject to another issue.

"Captain Wang, why isn't there any talisman-making technique in the Scripture Pavilion?"

Wang De glanced at him.

"Want to learn talisman making?"

"I have that plan."

Wang De put the teacup aside, leaned back in his chair, and spoke in a flat tone.

"The Wang family's point is that the patrol team doesn't need talisman-making techniques. Your job is to patrol, and if you're given talisman-making techniques, won't you all be thinking about drawing talismans to earn spirit stones? Who will be able to patrol with peace of mind?"

Wang De paused, then added a sentence.

"Moreover, even the lowest-cost talisman-making technique requires a lot of spirit stones, and the Wang family doesn't need to spend that money on it."

That makes sense. The patrol team is the most basic position, and the Wang family provides them with practical basic skills and spells, with the aim of enabling the peripheral members to work, patrol, and deal with basic emergencies.

Talisman-making is a technical craft, and learning it inevitably distracts the patrol officer.

"If you really want to learn, you can ask the guards." Wang De tapped the table with his knuckles.

"The guard team has a high demand for talismans, and they consume a lot of them while patrolling and fighting monsters. Their channels are wider than the patrol team's, so they might be able to help you make connections."

Li Yuan nodded, responded, and left the main room.

After leaving the residence, Li Yuan walked along the North Alley towards his home.

When we arrived at the residential area, the wooden door to Fanghe next door was closed.

After Fang He joined the guard team, he spent most of his time patrolling outside, and could only be encountered occasionally when he returned to the market to rest.

Li Yuan knocked on Fang He's door twice, but no one answered; Fang He wasn't home.

He turned and walked towards Old Sun's stall.

Old Sun wasn't working on the medicine furnace today. He was squatting behind the stall, wiping a small copper measuring instrument with an old cloth, his movements delicate, as if he were polishing a precious treasure.

Li Yuan squatted down in front of the stall.

"Old Sun, do you know anyone who can make talismans?"

Old Sun looked up at him, but didn't stop making the cloth in his hands.

"Charm-making techniques? You want to learn them?"

"Yes, I've already mastered the basics, but I can only make a few types of talismans."

Old Sun put down the measuring instrument and rubbed his fingers together.

"I don't know how myself, but I happen to have a channel for it."

Old Sun gestured with his chin towards East Street.

"The craftsmen in the market, those who make pills, talismans, and artifacts, have a loose little circle among themselves. It's not a formal organization; it's just a place where people in the same trade exchange materials, share information, and occasionally help each other find business."

Are there any talisman makers inside?

"Yes, but it'll probably be difficult for you to learn," Old Sun shook his head. "I'll ask around for you, but I can't guarantee anyone will be willing to teach."

Old Sun folded the old cloth neatly and stuffed it into his pocket, then added another sentence.

"Talisman making is something that people who know how to do make a living from; it's not something you can learn just by spending a few spirit stones. You need to offer something that makes people feel it's worthwhile."

Li Yuan nodded.

"Just ask around for me, and let me know if you find out."

"No problem." Old Sun waved his hand at him and bent down to continue wiping his measuring instruments.

Li Yuan got up and left, walking along the North Alley towards his residence.