Cultivation: I can see the proficiency level

The snow-covered Luopo Mountain, covered in white, had its snow melted away after a few days of spring breeze.

As the spring sun shone high in the sky, snowflakes occasionally fell from the bamboo forest, revealing patches of green. Bai Jiuniang picked up a basket of fresh bamboo mushrooms in the bamboo forest and emerged from it.

Facing the turning figure in the upper courtyard, their eyes met, and the bamboo basket it had been holding with its demonic power instantly fell onto the wet mud.

The face of Cangsongzi, who had been dead for many years, was so bright and vivid, it was smashed into its eyes, giving it a kind of horror like a zombie coming back to life, making Bai Jiuniang's white fur stand on end.

The person before me clearly exudes the aura of Wang Mian.

His face, however, resembled that of an ancient pine tree.

It was incredibly bizarre.

"I'm sorry to have startled you. I just learned this face-changing technique, and I subconsciously thought of my master's face." Wang Mian wiped his cheek with his palm, and his face returned to its original state.

With another wipe of his cheek, his face transformed into Luo Yi's appearance, then into Zhou Shang's, and then into Tie Gu Sou's.

Bai Jiuniang was dumbfounded.

Living together day and night, inseparable, it had no idea where Wang Mian had learned such magic. When it suddenly saw him with Cangsongzi's face, it was terrified.

Noticing the doubt in Bai Jiuniang's eyes, Wang Mian explained, "Once you master the Dust Concealment Technique, you can change your appearance, and then you can even change your form."

He has always been diligent, and today he has mastered the art of concealing dust to a high level. Naturally, he also learned the art of changing faces. Who knew that Bai Jiuniang would see him just as he was casting the spell.

His hair stood on end, clearly he was terrified.

After some explanation, Bai Jiuniang finally relaxed completely, her bristling hair became smooth and even again, and she picked up the bamboo mushrooms that had been scattered on the ground.

Still annoyed and frightened, he threw several snowballs imbued with demonic power at Wang Mian, making him grimace, before stepping into the bamboo house.

"His courage is as small as his temper," Wang Mian murmured, rubbing his forehead.

Wang Mian, standing in place, changed his appearance several more times. He was very satisfied with this face-changing technique. With this technique, it would be much more convenient for him to walk around in the future, and he would no longer need to show his true face to others.

Even if they wanted to track him down, it wouldn't be as easy as before.

He then examined the changes in the gold medallion:

[Low-grade Qi Refining Method: After diligently practicing it once, the skill will be perfected. At this point, there is no further way to practice it, and no breakthrough is possible.]

[Accumulation: 100]

[Mastery of the Dust-Covering Technique: Through diligent practice a thousand times, the spell will be perfected, granting the ability to transform into other forms.]

[Mastering the Four Seasons Sword Technique: Practice diligently nine hundred times to acquire the essence of the Four Seasons Sword Technique.]

In recent days, Wang Mian has raised his cultivation to its limit, just a hair's breadth away from the fourth level of Qi Refining. Due to a deficiency in his cultivation technique, he is temporarily unable to break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, and the golden mark has appeared.

He had already consumed the Dragon Grass, and the medicinal effects were excellent. After being tempered, his tendons, bones, and skin were much stronger and more resilient than before, as if he had been reborn.

His swordsmanship was getting closer and closer to perfection, and he had also mastered the Dust-Covering Technique and even learned the Face-Changing Technique.

"The most urgent task is to obtain the subsequent cultivation techniques as soon as possible. The feeling of having them within reach yet being so far away is truly unbearable," Wang Mian sighed.

.........

At the foot of Luopo Mountain, there is Luhua Ferry Market.

After changing his clothes and dressing as an ordinary rogue cultivator, Wang Mian entered the market and searched around before finally finding the Bian Family Talisman Shop.

Wang Mian's purpose in descending the mountain was to scout out the location.

He had been harboring resentment for months, and he was determined to find an opportunity to give the Bian family a taste of their own medicine.

To strike a snake, strike its vital spot. Although the Bian Clan's roots are in Fenglei Valley, their most important industry is the talisman shop in Luhua Ferry Market.

Although the Bian family has a tradition of talisman making, there is currently only one person in the clan who can be called a talisman master. He is the very weakness that Wang Mian wants to strike.

Bian Zemin, with his fifth level of Qi Refining cultivation, possessed numerous talismans, but in the eyes of Bai Jiuniang and Wang Mian, he was not an insurmountable obstacle.

Once he had figured out their actions and they left the market, Wang Mian was ready to make his move.

I came here to find out what's going on.

As he entered the shop, a young female cultivator greeted him. Wang Mian looked around and then focused his gaze on the middle-aged cultivator holding a talisman brush. He used the Dust Concealing Technique to suppress the murderous intent in his heart.

"Fellow Daoist, what kind of talismans would you like to see?" the female cultivator asked with a smile.

Following her to the counter, Wang Mian asked, "I've heard that your store has a mid-grade talisman master, and I've come here because of that reputation, hoping to purchase a mid-grade offensive talisman with greater power."

The talismans used for Qi Refining Level 1 are collectively called Level 1, which are further divided into Low Grade, Medium Grade, and High Grade.

Talisman masters are also divided into lower, middle and upper grades, each with their own unique talismans, whether defensive, offensive, or cultivation-aiding, and so on.

Most of the talismans Wang Mian had previously acquired were low-grade talismans, while mid-grade talismans were several times more valuable than low-grade ones and were usually used by cultivators at the fourth, fifth, or sixth level of Qi Refining.

"Wanqing, go brew this fellow Daoist a pot of tea. Leave this to me." Bian Zemin put down his talisman brush when he heard that they wanted to purchase a mid-grade talisman.

These talismans are all made by him, and it would be more accurate for him to introduce and recommend them.

"Fellow Daoist, all the talismans in this shop are made by me. How about I introduce them to you?" Bian Zemin said with a smile, "There are two offensive talismans in the shop: the Earth Dragon Talisman and the Water Sword Talisman. Their power is comparable to a full-force attack from a fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator."

After saying that, he took out two completely different talismans from his storage bag and handed them to Wang Mian for inspection: "Fellow Daoist, please take a look."

The power of talismans drawn by talisman masters usually does not exceed the range of their own cultivation level. If it does, the success rate of creating a successful talisman will become extremely low.

Just like Bian Zemin, the talismans he draws are all around the fifth level of Qi Refining, and not every talisman can be drawn successfully, especially offensive and defensive talismans, which are extremely difficult to draw.

Bian Zemin's success rate for creating mid-grade talismans is only around 10-20%.

These mid-grade talismans are sold to mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators to offset the cost of their creation. Even members of the Bian clan rarely possess such talismans, only carrying second-grade ones.

"The power is sufficient. May I ask, senior, does your shop have any defensive talismans of the same level?" Wang Mian asked again.

He completely disguised himself as a customer buying talismans, addressing the other party as "senior" against his will, while in reality he was only trying to gather information.

Bian Zemin shook his head.

"I am skilled at drawing talismans to aid cultivation, followed by offensive talismans. As for defensive talismans, the shop only has low-grade defensive talismans, Xuanjia Talisman, Thick Earth Talisman, and Golden Shield Talisman. There are no mid-grade ones at the moment." Bian Zemin told the customer the truth.

Each talisman master has their own specialty, and even if they lie, they cannot produce the talisman that the customer wants to buy.

Finding other talisman shops to exchange for them and reselling them at a higher price is pointless. Customers aren't stupid; they'll ask about prices elsewhere. Besides, cultivators usually know the price of talismans when they buy them.

"Senior, what are the prices of the Earth Dragon Talisman and the Water Sword Talisman?" Wang Mian asked calmly, looking at the talismans in his hand, which were filled with spiritual energy and had intricate patterns.

Bian Zemin led him to sit down and offered him some fine tea.

Only then did he speak: "According to market price, each one is worth fifty spirit stones."

Talismans are categorized by type, and their value varies depending on their effectiveness. Among them, the three categories of defense, offense, and cultivation are the most valuable, and their value also varies depending on the extent of their effect.

For example, the price difference between two talismans, one comparable to a strike at the ninth level of Qi Refining and the other comparable to a full-force strike at the ninth level of Qi Refining, can be significant.

"Senior, I've come here because of your reputation. Surely you won't refuse to spend a single spirit stone?" Wang Mian asked, adopting the bargaining manner typical of a rogue cultivator. "If this talisman proves effective, I'll definitely have to come back to your shop again."

Bian Zemin also gleaned a lot of information.

This person is most likely from a small, independent group of cultivators who have found some spiritual object and need a powerful talisman to deal with the threat.

"Fellow Daoist, these two talismans are not easy to draw and have great power. You should understand their value." Bian Zemin did not budge. With the family facing internal and external troubles, having an extra spirit stone was a good thing.

They chatted back and forth, finishing a pot of spiritual tea, and were still haggling over the price.

After much discussion, Wang Mian bought two talismans for ninety-six spirit stones. After the transaction was completed, Bian Zemin happily saw him off.

Bian Zemin never imagined that these two masterpieces he had personally created would ultimately be used against him.