Chapter 30: Count the harvest!

“Are they dead!?”

Lu Changsheng’s heart leaped as the golden light brick fell.

He stared intently at the golden light brick, which stood like a small mountain where the three individuals had been.

Under this attack, the three couldn’t even let out a scream.

Several defensive Spells and the black shield Magical Artifact seemed non-existent the moment the golden light brick struck.

“Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!”

After a moment of愣, Lu Changsheng relaxed, certain of their demise. His emotions fluctuated slightly, and he panted heavily.

Although Talismans didn’t consume much Spiritual Qi, they drained one’s mental energy. Using nearly twenty Talismans at once was a significant drain on him.

Mainly, activating the Talisman Treasure golden light brick directly siphoned away most of his Spiritual Qi.

With a thought, Lu Changsheng put away the Talisman Treasure.

The massive golden light brick immediately retracted its treasure light, reverted to its original Talisman form, and flew back into Lu Changsheng’s hand.

Where the golden light brick had struck, a giant pit several zhang wide and deep remained.

The three rogue Cultivators had, at that moment, turned into three unrecognizable puddles of bloody flesh.

As for the black shield Magical Artifact, it was directly shattered and deformed by the golden light brick’s attack, becoming a mere lump of iron.

“Is this the power of a Talisman Treasure!? It’s terrifying!”

“I’m only at Lianqi Third Layer, so I can only unleash a fraction of its power.”

“If I were at Late Stage Qi Refining, or Foundation Establishment Stage, and could fully unleash the Talisman Treasure’s power, how astonishing would that be?”

Lu Changsheng looked at the three individuals reduced to meat paste in the giant pit, licked his somewhat dry lips, and was incredibly shocked.

This was his first time using a Talisman Treasure and witnessing its power.

He had initially thrown out more than ten Talismans, but all of them were blocked by the three individuals.

However, once the Talisman Treasure appeared, it crushed them with overwhelming force.

The three had no power to retaliate.

This not only showed Lu Changsheng the power of a Talisman Treasure but also gave him a glimpse into the strength of a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator.

He guessed that the power of the Talisman Treasure, activated by his Lianqi Third Layer, was roughly equivalent to a single strike from a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator.

Not daring to think too much, fearing that the commotion might attract others, Lu Changsheng suppressed his nausea and disgust, jumped into the deep pit, and retrieved the Storage Pouches from the three puddles of bloody flesh.

He used a cleansing Spell to remove the blood and flesh from the Storage Pouches, then used a Fire Talisman to destroy the traces of the meat paste.

Picking up the damaged and deformed iron lump shield and the Flying Dagger Magical Artifact nearby, he then used a Wind Control Talisman on himself, leaped out of the deep pit, and quickly left the area.

An hour later.

Lu Changsheng, having restored his original appearance, rode his horse a hundred li away from Niu Tou Mountain. Only after confirming that no one was pursuing him did he stop to rest and prepare to recover his Spiritual Qi.

“Hoo!”

“It’s a good thing I didn’t try to conserve. After activating the Talismans, I immediately used the Talisman Treasure.”

“Otherwise, relying only on Low Grade and Medium-Grade Talismans, it would have been impossible to kill these three.”

“This Cultivation World is truly incredibly dangerous. I’ve been so cautious, yet I was still targeted.”

“It seems I’ll have to be even more careful in the future.”

Lu Changsheng found a patch of woods to rest in, recalling the previous situation with lingering fear, and let out a long sigh of relief.

The thought that he had been so cautious yet still targeted elevated his understanding of the dangers in the Cultivation World to another level.

He felt that this Cultivation World was a naked jungle Law, where the strong preyed on the weak.

Without strength, one could encounter danger and accidents at any time and anywhere.

“It seems joining a force and relying on a powerful backing is the true Dao.”

“Although I’m dependent on the Lu Family, there’s at least some security.”

Lu Changsheng murmured to himself, realizing the benefits of having a Family force.

In a Family Sect, although one had to contribute to the collective, at least in the early stages, there were people to shield you from the wind and rain, standing in front.

After a brief meditation, Lu Changsheng couldn’t help but shake his head.

The Spiritual Qi in this mortal world was too thin.

It was too slow to recover through meditation; he didn’t know how long it would take.

He took out a Spirit Stone and began to meditate and recover.

After a long while, the crystal-clear Spirit Stone became much duller.

Spirit Stones were mostly used as currency, but they could also be used for Cultivation, absorbing the Spiritual Qi within to accelerate Cultivation.

However, for most Cultivators, directly using Spirit Stones for Cultivation was too wasteful.

It was more cost-effective to buy Spirit Rice, Spirit Tea, Spirit Wine, and other Spirit foods.

After using one Spirit Stone, Lu Changsheng’s Spiritual Qi was almost fully recovered.

He took out the Storage Pouches he had taken from the three individuals and began to tally his gains.

“It’s a good thing those three had Storage Pouches, otherwise this would have been a huge loss.”

“I wonder what’s in their Storage Pouches, and if it’s enough to cover my losses.”

His previous attack, just the bundle of Talismans, was worth thirty to forty Spirit Stones.

As for the consumption of a single Talisman Treasure strike, Lu Changsheng himself couldn’t estimate it.

But it was worth at least a hundred Spirit Stones.

If these three were poor, it would have been a disastrous loss.

A moment later, Lu Changsheng sorted out one hundred and three Spirit Stones from the three Storage Pouches.

A Flying Sword Magical Artifact and a bell Magical Artifact.

Three bottles of Grain Abstinence Pills, one bottle of Yellow Dragon Pill, one bottle of Clear Spirit Pill, and three bottles of unknown elixirs in jars.

Fifteen Low-Grade First-Order Talismans, six Mid-Grade First-Order Talismans, and one High-Grade Talisman.

As well as several books, scattered items, and various miscellaneous things.

“This Flying Sword, bell, and Flying Dagger all appear to be Low Grade Magical Artifacts; they should each sell for around fifty Spirit Stones.”

“Although this shield is a Magical Artifact, all its Restrictions are damaged, so it can only be sold as scrap. I don’t know how much it’s worth.”

“But these three Storage Pouches alone are worth about one hundred and fifty Spirit Stones.”

“Adding these scattered items, the total should be about five hundred Spirit Stones, right?”

After tallying the three individuals’ possessions, Lu Changsheng’s mood improved significantly.

He smacked his lips and exclaimed, “Indeed, murder and arson make a golden belt. No matter where, killing and plundering are always the fastest ways to get rich.”

He recalled when he first arrived at the Lu Family, becoming a live-in son-in-Law, and only received two Spirit Stones a month.

As a Talismans Master, he only earned ten Spirit Stones a month.

The hundred Talismans he sold today were equivalent to a month’s worth of drawing, and after deducting costs, he only earned about a hundred Spirit Stones.

How could that compare to the simplicity and speed of killing and plundering treasures?

However, Lu Changsheng had no intention of earning money through murder and plundering.

Not to mention his moral compass, which prevented him from committing acts of indiscriminate killing.

It was also too dangerous and didn’t align with his way of doing things.

With the System on him, why would he need to engage in such crooked ways that risked his life?

Marrying wives, taking concubines, and having children was the Righteous Path!

Moreover, he was just a weakling at Lianqi Third Layer, and only won this battle by relying on Talismans and Talisman Treasures.

After organizing everything, Lu Changsheng took the foot-long Flying Sword Magical Artifact and tried to control it.

Cultivators at Lianqi Third Layer could control Magical Artifacts with the ‘Lesser art of controlling object’.

Previously, Lu Changsheng was rewarded with a Flying Sword in the Lu Family for having his first child.

But he sold it for Talismans before he could even try it out.

Now with a Flying Sword in hand, he naturally felt an itch to try playing with it.

“Whoosh—”

Under Lu Changsheng’s control, the Flying Sword immediately transformed into a silver streak of light and shot out.

Ordinary Magical Artifacts did not require refining; they could be controlled with the Lesser art of controlling object.

Spiritual Artifacts used by Foundation Establishment Great Cultivators, which possessed spirituality, required refining and recognizing their master before they could be controlled.

There were also some high-end Magical Artifacts crafted by Artifact Refiners that required specialized Lesser art of controlling object to control.

However, those Magical Artifacts were also relatively high-end, and this Flying Sword was clearly not among them.

Under Lu Changsheng’s control, the Flying Sword was like a silver Dragon, its Sword Qi surging, slicing through the surrounding trees as if they were tofu.

Then, with a ’thump,’ it easily passed through a large rock, turning into a silver light, and returned to Lu Changsheng’s front.

“As expected of a Magical Artifact!”

“Its power is no less than that of Elementary Spells, but its consumption is much less. If two Cultivators were to duel, having a Magical Artifact and not having one would be a world of difference!”

After a brief experience with the Flying Sword, Lu Changsheng’s face showed joy, and he exclaimed in admiration.

If he used a Spell like Fireball Technique, his Spiritual Qi would be almost depleted after four or five uses.

But if he controlled the Flying Sword, he estimated he could control it for fifteen minutes, performing multiple attacks.

Due to limited Spiritual Qi, Lu Changsheng didn’t try other Magical Artifacts. He put away the Flying Sword and rode his horse towards Crimson Whale Gang.

He planned to rendezvous with Li Feiyu, then go home to settle his Family, and then return to Qingzhu Mountain as soon as possible.

The outside world was still too dangerous. It was best to bide his time in the Lu Family, improve his strength, and have more children.