txolops Chapter 11 Making Puppets
Chapter 11 Making Puppets
"How many drawings are needed exactly?"
Ji Yun remained calm, but a hint of interest appeared on his face as he inquired in detail.
For him, drawing talismans was just a side job to earn food for cultivation; he couldn't let small things cause him to lose sight of the bigger picture and delay his own cultivation.
"Let's talk in detail on the second floor."
The old steward got up and led the way, taking Ji Yun to a quiet and elegant room on the second floor, where he then explained things in detail.
Master Zhao's talisman is well-paid.
The paper and ink used to draw the talismans were provided by the Zhao family's talisman shop.
The more tokens one completes, the higher one's salary; the fewer tokens one completes, the less salary one receives.
Talisman masters can decide for themselves, according to their ability, and draw as many talismans as they receive.
The only rule is that you must not resell the talismans made from the materials you receive from the shop.
However, talisman masters can purchase talisman materials separately, refine talismans, or sell them at stalls, or have them sold by talisman shops, and the shops will never interfere.
The salary is also chosen by the talisman master, and can be exchanged for spirit rice, spirit plants, pills, minerals, etc. produced by the Zhao family.
In addition, as a talisman master of the Zhao family, one can also purchase these products at low prices.
The old steward also listed many benefits and preferential treatments.
For example, waiving monthly rent and stall fees, or moving the empty islands to the city center, or granting entry qualifications for some market fairs, etc.
"This is an intentional effort to train talisman masters."
"But the system and the offerings made to the upper echelons are somewhat similar."
After careful consideration, Ji Yun discovered that Zhao Jiafu Shop's mechanism was extremely ingenious.
Regardless of the success rate of talisman drawing, talisman masters will not suffer losses.
Even if the success rate is extremely low, at most it's just a waste of effort, and you won't earn a penny.
The Zhao family's talisman shop will lose some talisman materials in the early stages, but if it can train a talisman master, it can fully recover its profits in the later stages.
After some discussion.
Ji Yun gladly accepted the gift and agreed to become a talisman master at the Zhao family's talisman shop.
He saw it very clearly.
Being a talisman master in the Zhao family is a title.
Once you accept this identity, you will be gradually absorbed into the Zhao family system and your interests will be linked to the Zhao family from then on.
After all, this kind of treatment to win people's hearts is probably the only one of its kind within a radius of hundreds of miles, enough to bind ordinary cultivators.
But Ji Yun was different from the others.
This is just a choice made after weighing the pros and cons. He is capable of repaying these favors, and both parties get what they need, so neither owes the other anything.
……
a few days later.
Ji Yun used his disguise skills to change his appearance and made several sales in the market, quietly selling the dirty items in his possession.
It's not just stolen goods.
He took stock of all his belongings and sold off everything that was useless.
"The atmosphere has definitely changed."
"It's not easy being a lone cultivator."
"At the slightest disturbance, they become like birds startled by the twang of a bow."
As Ji Yun walked slowly down the street, she could clearly sense the changes.
During this period, the atmosphere in the market became much more tense, with a sense of impending doom.
There are more independent practitioners setting up stalls on the streets.
The main street was bustling like never before, teeming with people, and the sounds of bargaining filled the air.
Many monks are selling off their possessions.
They sell the odds and ends they don't need on a daily basis to exchange for spirit sand, which they then use to buy protective magic items or talismans.
Even those rare and precious old items, and all sorts of strange and unusual "garbage" from the night sea, were brought out and displayed on the stalls for people to choose from.
Ji Yun also took the opportunity to make a move.
He sold a few mid-grade first-tier talismans with extreme caution.
Normally, these talismans only circulate among cultivators at the second level of Qi Refining.
However, the atmosphere has been tense lately, and many cultivators at the first level of Qi Refining are willing to spend a lot of money to buy them.
This led to a slight increase in prices.
One sheet can sell for fifty catties of spirit sand.
Moreover, demand exceeds supply; no matter how many shares are sold, someone immediately takes them.
After all, compared to those magical artifacts that cost hundreds of kilograms of spirit sand, talismans are cheaper and more affordable.
Selling mid-grade talismans is still profitable.
"You can do it occasionally in the future, but not too often, or it will easily cause trouble."
Ji Yun sighed softly. After all that fuss, he had almost emptied his storage bag.
Only three mid-grade magic artifacts remain, along with an ordinary flying sword for daily use and some talisman-making tools.
In exchange, they received 500 catties of spirit sand.
This amount of money is enough to set up a small array to hide the secret room.
No need to worry about the specific formation.
He randomly pulled out a demonic sect formation from his past life's memories and decided to use it for now.
……
Five days later.
My own empty island, in a secret room.
Ji Yun took out a set of array discs and all the necessary items for setting up the array from his storage bag.
This array disc was a secondhand item he purchased. After restoration, it is now in excellent condition and can be used normally.
He set up the array plates one by one, and then took out a main material that he had purchased at great expense and placed it in the center of the array.
Then came the fine-tuning.
It took almost half an hour to finally set up the formation.
"It should be feasible."
"Let's give it a try."
Ji Yun took a deep breath and took out a spirit stone from his storage bag, placing it into the array's core.
The art of formations is unfathomable.
The slightest mistake could cause the formation to fail.
However, the two cultivation worlds of the past and present lives are not the same, and the characteristics of immortal materials also have many differences.
In addition, the set he put together was very cost-effective, mostly consisting of junk that cultivators had picked up from the Night Sea and then refurbished.
These factors combined.
This resulted in him having only a 70% chance of success.
Whether it is feasible or not remains to be seen after the operation begins.
"rise!"
He made a hand seal to channel in spiritual energy.
The entire formation suddenly activated.
A barely perceptible fluctuation of spiritual energy emanated from the center of the formation, only to vanish without a trace in an instant.
It was as if nothing had happened.
Deep inside the secret room, everything remained the same, calm and peaceful, without the slightest sign of anything amiss.
"It's done."
Ji Yun nodded in satisfaction.
The biggest change is that nothing has changed, indicating that the formation has taken effect.
This formation is an isolation formation.
It can isolate all spiritual energy fluctuations and anomalies within the coverage area of the array, and no one in the bottom of the Night Sea can detect it.
This formation originated from the Demonic Sect.
In addition to isolating fluctuations, it also has many other functions such as early warning, spirit control, soul suppression, and imprisonment.
However, additional magical materials are needed.
Ji Yun currently has no extra spirit sand, so he can only treat it as an ordinary isolation formation for the time being.
……
Five more days have passed.
Ji Yun sat cross-legged in the secret room, slowly finished his practice, and opened his eyes to look ahead.
On the futon opposite.
At the same time, a beautiful and graceful female cultivator with a mole on the corner of her lip opened her eyes.
Her eyes were slightly sluggish, but her spiritual energy flowed normally, and she exuded a unique charm.
"From today onwards."
"Your name is Li Meier."
Ji Yun spoke, word by word.
Li Meier remained silent, staring intently at Ji Yun, her expression unnatural.
But there was no other way.
Given the current conditions, it is already quite remarkable that she was able to successfully refine the artifact, preserving her cultivation level and a certain degree of autonomy.
After all, Ji Yun was only at the first level of Qi Refining.
He was able to refine it to this level entirely thanks to his rich experience in the Golden Elixir in his previous life.
No one from the bottom of the Night Sea could have done better than him.
"From now on, you will be stationed in the secret chamber and work with the formation I have set up to protect this floating island."
"If an outsider forces their way in and triggers the alert, you should immediately kill the intruder without holding back."
Ji Yun gave another order.
Although Li Meier's expression was sluggish, she retained a great deal of combat memories.
Two days ago, Ji Yun took her out to a secluded and deserted place to conduct an experiment.
She can cast the spells she used in her previous life, and she can also smoothly activate the two magical artifacts she was used to.
His combat strength is not as good as it was in life.
But it's more than enough for guarding the house.
In the future, when Li Meier goes out to do things, she will be able to protect her own floating island from being stolen.
In addition, it has many other ingenious uses.
Most importantly, as long as she is present, Ji Yun can boldly sell mid-grade first-tier talismans.
She is a Qi Refining Level 2 cultivator, so selling mid-grade Tier 1 talismans is perfectly reasonable for her, and no one will cause her any trouble because of it.
But Ji Yun couldn't do that.
He is only at the first level of Qi Refining. If someone discovers that he has a large number of high-level talismans, it will inevitably cause trouble.