Chapter 678: Residual Talisman

The Five Elements spell talismans among high-level talismans were one thing, but the power of most high-level spells was not as strong as the power used by magic treasures. (Web)

This led to most cultivators basically giving up the continued cultivation of Five Elements spells once they reached Core Formation.

However, this did not mean that high-level spells were truly useless.

According to Han Li, there were many powerful Five Elements spells that, once cast, even Nascent Soul cultivators would not dare to block their edge head-on.

But these spells were not only difficult to cultivate, but even if one understood and mastered them, casting them was extremely cumbersome and troublesome.

With that time, it would be better to attack directly with magic treasures.

However, Han Li faintly heard other cultivators talk about how the Mulan people's spell masters seemed to have broken through this limitation. They had researched many powerful "Spirit Arts" that could be cast instantly.

This allowed low-tier spell masters to fight ordinary cultivators without using magic artifacts or talismans without falling behind.

And high-tier spell masters using magic treasures with the cooperation of Spirit Arts were even more like a tiger with wings, and it was unquestionable that they could steadily defeat cultivators of the same rank.

This was why the several major forces in Tiannan joined hands to resist the Mulan people, but could only protect themselves, unable to truly defeat the other party.

Ever since Han Li's Nascent Soul condensed, he had begun to study a few of the most superficial high-level spells with self-knowledge. He had indeed comprehended three or four, but of course, the casting speed was unbearable. He believed that if he really used these spells in a battle, unless he had a turtle shell that the enemy couldn't break, he would have been destroyed seven or eight times by a cultivator of the same rank before he could even cast half of the spell.

However, it was truly sharp and incomparable to use high-level talismans in coordination with magic treasures when fighting an enemy. If he threw out twenty or thirty high-level attack talismans in one breath like casting those low-tier talismans, let alone a cultivator of the same rank, even a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator would have to flee immediately upon seeing it.

After all, this was equivalent to suffering a joint strike from dozens of Nascent Soul cultivators; even if the attacked cultivator's cultivation technique and protective magic treasures were heaven-defying, as long as their cultivation base was limited to the Nascent Soul stage, they absolutely couldn't take it head-on.

But such an attack was just a thought; one attack consumed tens of thousands of spirit stones, and no one dared to attack so extravagantly.

Moreover, high-level talismans were also in a situation of having a market but no supply in the cultivation world, and most high-level talismans were also auxiliary in nature.

Han Li pondered while walking on the market street, looking at the larger magic artifact shops and grocery stores on both sides incessantly; generally, only large shops might have top-tier talisman-making brushes for sale.

There was no need to ask those slightly smaller shops. Eight or nine out of ten wouldn't have such obscure magic artifacts for sale, let alone top-tier ones.

Perhaps some small shops might truly hide some rare treasures, but Han Li was unwilling to waste time looking for them one by one. Otherwise, with so many shops in Tiantian City, even if he did nothing, he wouldn't be able to finish looking at them all in ten days or so.

Besides Han Li, other cultivators were also coming in and out of the shops on both sides, buying and selling things they wanted with various expressions.

Most of them were Foundation Establishment cultivators. Occasionally, a few Core Formation cultivators appeared.

As for Qi Condensation cultivators, apart from the cultivators of Tiantian City itself, there were very few foreign Qi Condensation cultivators.

Han Li had disguised his cultivation base as mid-stage Core Formation again, so although he met many cultivators on the road, they only looked at him with awe-filled eyes, which was only natural for those Foundation Establishment cultivators. As for the Core Formation cultivators, those who didn't know him just swept a glance and that was it.

As a result, Han Li didn't attract too much attention, slowly strolling through one large shop after another.

When Han Li walked out of a pavilion in disappointment again, more than half of the day had passed.

Looking at the somewhat darkened sky and the moonstones that were beginning to light up one after another in the various shops, Han Li became somewhat hesitant.

He pondered in his heart whether he should return to his residence or look at two more before going back.

But just at this moment, a noise came from not far ahead, as if someone had a dispute, and some nearby cultivators curiously gathered around.

Han Li frowned, immediately turned around with his hands behind his back and an expressionless face, intending to return to his residence.

But before he had walked two steps away, a vicious and harsh voice came over very loudly.

"Why, are you Falling Cloud Sect cultivators all so shameless? You broke something, and you want to leave without paying?"

"It's not that I won't pay, it's just that I bought other things just now, and I really don't have that many spirit stones on me. And this is just a low-tier mid-grade Fire Cloud Talisman, how can you ask for a price of three hundred spirit stones? At most, one hundred and some spirit stones would be the limit. Besides, didn't I leave my sect token here? I will borrow some spirit stones from other fellow disciples when I return to the inn and then come back." The voice of another younger man also retorted loudly with some annoyance.

Han Li's figure paused abruptly after taking two steps. This man's voice sounded somewhat familiar, as if it were someone he knew in the Falling Cloud Sect.

Han Li touched his chin, pondered for a moment, and still turned back and walked toward the shop where the commotion came from.

No matter who it was, he should take a look first. After all, he was now one of the three great elders of the Falling Cloud Sect, so it was really not good to walk away pretending not to know.

A moment later, Han Li saw from afar that there were more than a dozen cultivators watching in front of a small grocery store, and a few cultivators were confronting each other inside.

Among them, one black-robed and heroic-looking man with an angry face was Sun Huo from Fire Cloud Peak, whom he had seen at the Sword Trial Assembly.

In the twenty years since they last met, this young man named Sun Huo hadn't changed much in appearance, but his cultivation base had improved quite a bit. And facing him were three unkind-looking local cultivators, who seemed to be the shopkeeper and assistants of this shop.

At this time, the shopkeeper-like cultivator with a short beard in the middle rolled his eyes and said to Sun Huo:

"A worthless plaque, what use do I have for it? What if you don't want this token, and return to the Falling Cloud Sect immediately after going back? Do you really think I would chase you to the Xi Kingdom from thousands of miles away? Stop talking nonsense. Since you don't have the spirit stones, take the things out of your storage pouch and mortgage them here. As for that Fire Cloud Talisman, do you think it's an ordinary mid-level talisman? It's a work of a talisman-making master in our Tiantian City. How can it be compared to ordinary Fire Cloud Talismans? Charging you three hundred spirit stones is already cheap for you. Are Falling Cloud Sect cultivators all poor ghosts?"

After saying this, the shopkeeper glanced at the wooden box held by an assistant on the side, revealing a look of pain on his face, as if he had truly suffered a great loss.

"Fine! The things are yours, you can say whatever you want. An ordinary Fire Cloud Talisman, and you can also say it's refined by a talisman-making master." Sun Huo was so angry that he laughed upon hearing this.

"Why, can you distinguish whether it's refined by a master or not? Or do you really not want to compensate for the shop's losses? Then don't blame me for notifying the law enforcement envoys of this city." The shopkeeper sneered and threatened unceremoniously.

Sun Huo's face turned pale and red upon hearing this.

If the law enforcement envoys of the Nine Nations Alliance came, who they would favor, he knew without asking.

Moreover, this matter was truly unclear. It seemed that he was destined to suffer this loss!

After his face turned cloudy and sunny for a good while, Sun Huo stomped his foot and suddenly patted the storage pouch at his waist.

Suddenly, a stack of talismans of various colors appeared in his hand, mostly low-level talismans of low and mid-grade.

"Although these talismans are not high in level, they are enough to temporarily cover two or three hundred spirit stones." Sun Huo said through gritted teeth.

The shopkeeper's expression softened upon hearing this and said:

"That's more like it!" Then he reached out to take the talismans.

"Eh, this one is not!"

Before the shopkeeper could get the talismans, Sun Huo's face suddenly changed as he swept his gaze across the talismans in his hand. He immediately withdrew his hand and pulled out a residual, half-broken yellow talisman paper from those talismans, and only then handed it over.

"Hmph! A piece of blank talisman paper broken like this, and you're still so nervous? Your Falling Cloud Sect is truly poor enough." The shopkeeper was stunned, then revealed a look of mockery and said. Then he grabbed forward with one hand again, intending to grab those talismans.

But at this moment, a figure flashed before his eyes, and a person suddenly intervened between the two and grabbed those talismans.

Sun Huo was startled, and the shopkeeper retreated a few steps in a hurry, shouting in shock and anger:

"Who is it? What are you doing?"

"Nothing! It's just that I've heard you say how the Falling Cloud Sect is this and that time and again. Can you say it again in front of me, Han?" The cultivator who intervened said coldly with an expressionless face.

As soon as he finished speaking, an astonishing aura was released from his body, and a huge spiritual pressure descended from the sky, immediately causing the nearby cultivators to change their expressions and retreat a few steps involuntarily. Some cultivators with shallower cultivation bases couldn't even stand steady and immediately knelt on the ground as if Mount Tai was pressing down on them.

And the two Core Formation cultivators who happened to pass by were slightly better, but after their bodies swayed, one of them was even more panicked and lost his voice:

"Nascent Soul cultivator! Senior, you..."

(Web) ===== CHAPTER 679 =====