Chapter 733: I, Chu Liang, Invest In This Project (II)

Chu Liang and his teacher descended from the clouds and arrived at the entrance of the Talismanic Sect.

However, the entrance gates no longer existed. Faint traces suggested that a pavilion had once stood here, but now, only a desolate cliffside remained. The building had likely been built against the mountain wall, but now, a massive, pitch-black cavity marred the surface of the mountain.

"This is the place. Huan Leisheng escaped using a talismanic script and merged into the mountain," Di Nufeng said. "I even blasted through the rock, but I still couldn't track his trail."

"Go sniff it out," Chu Liang said, releasing the Golden-Furred Hou.

Big Head let out a howl, leaping into the middle of the scorched mountain wall, where he sniffed around amidst the lingering scent of burnt rock.

The Golden-Furred Hou was now a powerful sixth-realm spirit beast. As it sniffed, it quickly picked up a faint trail and dove into a hole in the mountain’s surface. It traversed the path inside, leading Chu Liang and his teacher to the other side, where a waterfall crashed down from the cliffs.

The thunderous roar of the waterfall echoed endlessly.

Di Nufeng glanced at it and asked, "Did that bastard hide in the water when I was chasing him?"

"No..." Chu Liang examined it for a moment before shaking his head. "The waterfall is not real."

With that, he waved his hands, and the waterfall before them unraveled under his glowing fingertips, dissolving into countless talismanic inscriptions.

"An illusory technique?" Di Nufeng frowned.

"No, this is a terrain created with talismanic scripts," Chu Liang explained. "If it were purely an illusion, how could it deceive you, esteemed teacher? His mastery of the Dao of Talisman-Making must be incredibly high for him to be able to escape this way."

So it turned out that Huan Leisheng had been able to reshape the terrain using talismanic scripts, continuously creating a cover for his escape. No wonder his teacher had failed to catch him even with her immense cultivation power.

"This entire Mount Nao is one massive talismanic formation," Chu Liang concluded after surveying their surroundings. "It’s like his own personal hidden realm. Within it, he wields the ability almost on par with creation-level abilities. Even a powerful cultivator at the eighth realm wouldn’t be able to track him down so easily."

"Then what should we do?" Di Nufeng asked.

"Creating a formation like this is no easy feat. He’s invested too much effort into it to simply abandon it," Chu Liang said. "If we only damage the outer terrain, he won’t care at all, as he can restore it with talismanic script in no time. But if we strike at the formation’s core, he won’t be able to sit still and do nothing."

As he spoke, Chu Liang closed his eyes slightly. His divine sense flowed along the talismanic script’s spiritual veins, unraveling the formation layer by layer.

Although he had not committed himself to studying the Dao of Talisman-Making since he had acquired the Talisman of Life Restoration from the Celestial Talisman Master’s Hidden Realm, he had nonetheless gained considerable insight into its profound mysteries. As a result, tackling and deciphering this formation was no difficult task.

Before long, Chu Liang and his teacher followed the spiritual vein running through the mountain and arrived at a gently flowing stream.

"The true core of the talismanic formation lies beneath this stream," Chu Liang said. "Esteemed Teacher, if you cut off the water flow, you can dismantle his entire formation."

This talismanic formation was exceptionally sturdy, and destroying its foundation of spiritual veins would be no easy task. However, with his esteemed teacher present, such brute-force matters were hardly a concern.

"Heh…" Di Nufeng let out a sinister chuckle as she rolled up her sleeves, preparing to take action.

Just then, a voice called out, pleading, "Wait! You two, please show some mercy!"

With a swoosh, a flash of light streaked through the air.

A middle-aged man in wide robes and flowing sleeves emerged from the stream. He wore a black gauze cap, and his refined features exuded the elegance of a scholar. As he looked at Chu Liang and his teacher, who were on the verge of destroying everything, his eyes brimmed with helplessness.

He had thought Di Nufeng was domineering enough on her own and had barely managed to shake her off. Who could have expected that she would return to Mount Shu and then come back here with someone that has a brain?

He screamed inwardly,

Isn’t this just cheating?

…

Moments later, the middle-aged man sat on the ground, his face filled with dejection.

"I am Huan Leisheng, sect leader of the Talismanic Sect," he muttered. "Knowing that Di Nufeng of Mount Shu would come to collect debts, I sent all my disciples away to hide. But I couldn’t bring myself to abandon the foundation we built here on Mount Nao, so I stayed here by myself."

Chu Liang praised, "This grand talismanic formation on Mount Nao is truly exquisite. Sect Leader Huan Leisheng, you are truly a genius in this field."

"I didn’t expect to run into Young Hero Chu. As expected of someone who obtained a legacy from the Celestial Talisman Master’s Hidden Realm!" Huan Leisheng said, unable to conceal his envy.

It turned out that when the ruins of the Celestial Talisman Sect revealed a hidden realm, the Talismanic Sect had also sought a share of the treasure.

Strictly speaking, the founding fathers of the Talismanic Sect were merely a minor offshoot of the ancient Celestial Talisman Sect. However, with the main sect’s legacy nearly lost, they now held the most complete cultivation techniques rooted in the Dao of Talisman-Making.

Yet, as a small and humble sect, the Talismanic Sect had no say in such matters.

In the end, the Celestial Talisman Master’s Hidden Realm was seized by several sects in the Divine Nine and the Terrestrial Ten, who turned it into a training ground for their young disciples. It was there that Chu Liang inherited the cultivation legacy of the Celestial Talisman Sect—the Talisman of Life Restoration.

Huan Leisheng had heard about this before.

Chu Liang said with a modest wave of his hand, "It was just a stroke of luck."

"You don’t have to be so humble, Young Hero Chu. We all know your talent is unparalleled," Huan Leisheng replied with a flattering smile.

Di Nufeng, watching from the side, snapped impatiently, "I dare you to smile again!"

Huan Leisheng instantly stiffened, not daring to show even the slightest hint of a smile.

"Do you think we came here for small talk?" Di Nufeng barked. "After all the effort we spent, we should charge you an interest of thirty percent of your debt!"

The moment Huan Leisheng heard this, his expression darkened with sorrow. He pleaded, "Peak Master Feng, Young Hero Chu, forget about the interest—we don’t even have a single grain of savings left in the

Talisman Sect

…"

"Mister Huan, your debt isn’t a small amount," Chu Liang said, feigning helplessness. "If it were just pocket change, we wouldn’t care whether we got it back or not. But you’ve owed this massive sum for three months past the deadline, and now you’re telling us you’re broke? This behavior is a little outrageous."

Huan Leisheng replied, "But Young Hero Chu, it’s the truth. Honestly, there is a reason why I am buried in debt."

"Rubbish!" Di Nufeng shot him a sharp look. "Every debtor has a sob story. I don't want to hear it!"

"Esteemed teacher, at least hear him out," Chu Liang advised from the side. "Let's not get angry. Mister Huan doesn’t seem unreasonable. Even if he can't pay in spirit-stones, surely he has something else he can offer as collateral."

"With how poor he looks, what could he possibly have?" Di Nufeng shouted. "Don’t stop me! I’ll wipe out his entire family!"

Chu Liang called out, "Esteemed Teacher! We're here to ask for money, not to take lives!"

Huan Leisheng felt speechless as he watched Chu Liang and his teacher exchange words in perfect harmony, each one following the other's lead as if it were a well-rehearsed performance.

"

Haaaaa!

"

He let out a deep sigh before finally saying, "Please follow me."

With a wave of his hand, Huan Leisheng parted the stream before them, revealing a deep cavern. He led them inside and they descended further into the cave, until they reached the lowest level, where a place of dazzling light awaited.

In the center stood a jade stone table, shaped like a wheel and engraved with intricate talismanic script.

"Young Hero Chu, this is the legendary artifact I spent twenty years creating—the Celestial Talismanic Wheel!" Huan Leisheng said, pointing to the wheel-like table with pride. "If not for this project, I would never have burned through so many resources and fallen into such massive debt!"

Seeing how strange the item appeared, Chu Liang asked, "What exactly is this?"

"The talismans we use now are all manually drawn and infused with spiritual energy, a process that is slow and inefficient," Huan Leisheng explained, lifting his hand. "But once my Celestial Talismanic Wheel is fully functional..."

As he spoke, he pulled out a blank yellow talisman paper and flicked it onto the wheel.

Swoosh!

The wheel spun, engraving talismanic script onto the paper in an instant. A fresh, glowing red talisman was created in the blink of an eye.

"In mere moments, a talisman is formed! And by adjusting the script combinations, different effects can be achieved. With just one person overseeing the Celestial Talismanic Wheel, it can create talismans at a speed that rivals a thousand talisman specialists! Young Hero Chu, can you imagine what that would be like?"

"So you plan to use this piece of junk to pay off your debt?" Di Nufeng asked, eyeing the Celestial Talismanic Wheel.

"This artifact is not for sale!" Huan Leisheng protested. "It’s my life’s work! But… if you lend me a bit more money, I can share a portion of its future profits with you."

"You still dare to bargain?!" Di Nufeng, already irritated by the old man, couldn’t hold back any longer upon hearing his nonsense.

She was about to erupt, and Huan Leisheng swore he could already see his late grandmother standing by the yellow springs[1] and waving him over.

However, Chu Liang, who had been contemplating for a long time while gazing at the glow of the Celestial Talismanic Wheel, suddenly declared with absolute certainty, "This project of yours... I will invest in it!"

1. The Chinese underworld has yellow springs so he's seeing the dead. Refer to Link. ☜