Chapter 34: Tallying the Spoils

Xue Yiniang was startled for a moment, then spoke earnestly, “The resources provided by the sect for cultivation are ultimately limited. Many things must be earned by one’s own efforts.”

“You’re still young, at the age to learn, so take advantage of your youth to acquire more skills. That’s the most important thing. If you want to forge steel, you must first be strong yourself. As long as your abilities are solid, you’ll never worry about earning spirit stones.” Xue Yiniang encouraged her warmly.

“Sister Xue.”

“I’ve made up my mind,” Jiang Min declared with determination. “I will venture out, just like you did. I am ready and will set off immediately.”

Xue Yiniang was a little surprised at these words.

Then, she cheerfully patted Jiang Min’s shoulder and smiled, her eyes curved, as if she saw her younger self in Jiang Min. The vast world, filled with dangers, but she was willing to brave them all for the sake of adventure.

“Sister Jiang, since your resolve is firm, I wish you a fruitful journey and that all your aspirations come true. Go and see the world outside.”

Jiang Min clasped her fists and smiled as well, her sincerity shining through. “Then I’ll borrow your auspicious words, Sister.”

The splendid world outside—she was truly looking forward to it...

She was in her prime, spring’s moon shining, human faces and peach blossoms glowing in harmony.

As she set out, she borrowed the East Wind!

...

A few days later.

The Jin Yun Kingdom.

A remote mountain ridge.

Inside a natural cave, Jiang Min took out the illusion array disc she had obtained from Li Mao, placed it at the cave entrance, and infused it with spiritual energy.

Buzz!

The disc rippled with a wave of spiritual energy. The surrounding scenery twisted momentarily before returning to normal.

Once the array that could conceal her presence was activated, Jiang Min felt at ease. She took out an exquisite spatial pouch, precisely the one belonging to Lin Mingyue.

“Now, let’s see what treasures are hidden in his pouch.”

After taking Lin Mingyue’s pouch, Jiang Min had been on edge, fearing someone would discover its absence. When facing the sect’s Discipline Hall steward, she worried she would be questioned, but the steward never mentioned it—whether out of indifference or for some other reason she could not say. Regardless, Jiang Min dared not inspect the contents within the sect walls. After bidding farewell to Xue Yiniang, she promptly reported her departure at the mountain gate and hurried away from the sect, traveling for several days before settling in a wild, secluded mountain.

She focused her mind.

All the items in the pouch spilled out onto the ground.

---

First, there were many spirit stones. Jiang Min counted over eight hundred low-grade stones and two middle-grade ones. Truly the wealth of a Foundation Establishment cultivator—or rather, a Foundation Establishment talisman master.

“Heh! I’ve struck it rich…”

Jiang Min laughed with delight, her eyes bright. She had never seen so many spirit stones and happily scooped them up with both hands.

The saying goes: those who kill and plunder wear golden belts.

Cruel as it is, it holds true.

“With these spirit stones, I finally don’t have to worry about the expenses of body refinement. Once the heat from recent events dies down, I’ll head to the market and buy all the necessary spiritual herbs.”

Jiang Min carefully stored the spirit stones and continued to inventory the pouch. The next big find was a collection of talismans drawn by Lin Mingyue. As a talisman master—and one who taught talisman arts—Lin Mingyue kept several boxes of completed talismans, covering all kinds. If sold, they would fetch a good sum of spirit stones.

Jiang Min sorted the talismans, keeping those she could use and setting aside the rest to sell in batches when the opportunity arose.

She continued, opening a jade box containing six sheets of talisman paper. These papers were different from regular talismans; their patterns were far more intricate. Just a few glances at the complex symbols made Jiang Min feel dizzy.

“Could these be... Dao Talismans, drawn only by Foundation Establishment cultivators?”

Dao Talismans were more profound than ordinary talismans, often used in sets and only drawable by cultivators at the Foundation Establishment stage or higher. Not only were they much more powerful, but they required no incantation—just a surge of spiritual energy to activate.

Dao Talismans varied in strength, but any type was more than enough to deal with cultivators below Foundation Establishment.

“These symbols look a bit like Jia Wu…”

Jiang Min tried to identify the set but, not being versed in talisman arts, could only guess—they might be Six Jia Yang Talismans or something similar. Seeing six sheets in the box, she assumed it was a complete set.

She found several more boxes, each containing full sets of Dao Talismans whose functions were unknown.

“If I can’t recognize them now, I’ll keep them for later when I can.”

Jiang Min carefully stored the sets of Dao Talismans and continued her inventory. Lin Mingyue’s pouch contained many books, almost all about talisman arts. Among them was the annotated “Treatise on Spirit Talismans,” a book Jiang Min had long wanted to read. As she flipped through, she found pages densely packed with tiny notes—Lin Mingyue’s reading jottings and teaching insights. It was a pity that his character was lacking; no matter how earnestly he taught, he was unworthy of the title of teacher.

“With these books and notes, combined with the fragments of Lin Mingyue’s memories, I can teach myself the art of talismans!”

Finally, Jiang Min inventoried the cultivation and spell manuals in the pouch. The cultivation method, “Record of the Four Extremes,” was for those with four spiritual roots—useless to her. The rest of the spells were almost all for Foundation Establishment, except for one scroll suitable for her level.

“Meteor Fire Rain?”

“Isn’t this the spell carved on the stone tablet in Spirit Gathering Valley? Lin Mingyue actually had a simplified version.”

Jiang Min’s face lit up with joy. Back when she trained in Spirit Gathering Valley, she had foregone learning the martial arts from the stone tablet to quickly advance her cultivation. She often regretted it, but now, unexpectedly, she had obtained one of those spells from Lin Mingyue.

Seeing that the rest of the items were trivial, Jiang Min stored everything away, leaving only the jade slip containing the “Meteor Fire Rain” spell in her hand.

She pressed the jade slip to her forehead.

---

Her consciousness entered the world within the jade slip.

“Nine Heavens Scarlet Fire, transforms into meteors.

Swiftly fall, breaking myriad forms…”

Within the jade slip, besides the spell’s formula, a figure of golden light sat cross-legged, forming mysterious hand seals. Paths of light illuminated within the figure’s body, showing the method of spiritual energy circulation. As the seals changed, fireballs gathered above the golden figure’s head and then hurled down with the force of a torrential rain.

The power of this spell lay not only in the fierce flames but also in the speed of the meteors. If unleashed with force, its might would be formidable. Of course, its true strength depended on the caster’s cultivation.

In the days that followed,

Jiang Min stayed in the cave, practicing the Meteor Fire Rain spell, hoping to have the strength to face enemies in the future.

Half a month later.

Jiang Min sat cross-legged, eyes closed, pondering the subtleties of the spell. Suddenly, she opened her eyes, formed a hand seal, and shifted it several times. As the cave’s temperature rose, several clusters of fire soon gathered before her.

When the fireballs formed—

Whoosh!

A small green shadow darted away from Jiang Min’s side, hiding behind a distant rock. It was an ordinary little grass, now wedged in a crevice, trembling, terrified of the fireballs.

Jiang Min had brought the little grass with her to prevent it from being stolen by unscrupulous people. This sentient grass survived mainly by absorbing spiritual energy. Besides that, each morning it took in a thread of golden crow’s purple energy and occasionally sipped dew. It was easy to care for when kept close.

Though fire does not restrain wood, wood surely fears fire.

The grass disliked the intense fire spiritual energy.

Seeing the grass so timid, Jiang Min grinned mischievously, directing the fireballs not to crash down but to fly towards the grass.

!!!

The grass was so frightened its leaves stood straight, circled in the air, and darted into Jiang Min’s arms, shivering, its once-vibrant green leaves now limp.

Seeing this, Jiang Min stopped teasing it and willed the fireballs to trail blazing tails, smashing rapidly onto the open ground in the cave.