amaotonovel Chapter 1365 Interception!
Chapter 1365 Interception!
Since making a deal with Xuanzhen Daoist, Qin Hao has been delivering twenty basic high-level talismans—ten Golden Gang Talismans and ten Armor-Piercing Golden Arrow Talismans—to Steward Liu of the External Affairs Hall every month.
With his current 40%-50% success rate in talisman making, coupled with the real-time optimization of the talisman-making rhythm by the AI, it is not difficult for him to draw hundreds of talismans per month. However, he deliberately controls the output: firstly, to avoid being too sensational - a Qi Refining cultivator can stably produce twenty low-level high-grade talismans per month, which is enough to make Xuanzhen Daoist pay attention. Any more would only attract unnecessary trouble.
Secondly, his monthly income of 600 low-grade spirit stones was just enough to support his cultivation expenses for purchasing Qi Gathering Pills, and he could also save some spirit stones for future use, so he didn't need to expose his strength excessively.
Unbeknownst to Qin Hao, even so, his output delighted Xuanzhen Daoist. Previously, the Foundation Establishment stage talisman makers of Qingxu Sect could only draw a maximum of fifty basic high-level talismans per month, and there were often failures and losses. Qin Hao, a Qi Refining stage cultivator, being able to consistently produce twenty talismans was already far beyond expectations.
Xuanzhen Daoist even privately instructed Steward Liu to make sure to meet all of Qin Hao's talisman-making needs.
Time flies, and a year of arduous training has passed in the blink of an eye.
Qin Hao practiced the improved "Sharp Metal Technique" daily, and with the aid of Qi Gathering Pills, his cultivation steadily improved, finally breaking through to the eleventh level of Qi Refining.
The metallic magical power within his body became increasingly solid, and the range of his divine sense expanded to about thirty feet.
During this period, he scanned and entered all the books in the outer sect library of Qingxu Sect that were open to Qi Refining disciples into the database through the intelligent brain. The database was further enriched, which not only allowed for more accurate improvement of cultivation methods and optimization of talismans, but also enabled preliminary analysis of their structural principles. However, whether the data was only from Qingxu Sect was correct still needed to be verified.
To obtain higher-level scriptures, one either needs to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage and become an inner disciple, or be personally selected by the Golden Core Ancestor as a "key training target." Outer disciples have no right to access them at all.
"It seems I have no choice but to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage first." Qin Hao took out a jade bottle from his pocket and poured out a pill that emitted a faint purple light—it was the Foundation Establishment Pill distributed by Qingxu Sect after the Ascension Conference.
He was able to keep this Foundation Establishment Pill entirely because of his initial plan: if he hadn't attracted Xuanzhen Daoist's attention with his "talisman-making talent," this Foundation Establishment Pill would probably have been exchanged for by Foundation Establishment cultivators under the pretext of "fair trade," just like Han Li did in Huangfeng Valley.
Even so, Qin Hao knew in his heart that with his three spiritual roots, his success rate in breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage with just one Foundation Establishment Pill was less than 30%, which was far from enough.
"The Crimson Forbidden Land...it seems I have no choice but to make a trip there."
Besides the Foundation Establishment Pill, Qin Hao had another reason why he absolutely had to go to the Crimson Forbidden Land—that golden box.
The golden chest in the Crimson Forbidden Land is the key to opening the Heavenly Origin Pagoda, but only those at the Nascent Soul stage can enter.
Later, after breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage, Nangong Wan re-entered the Crimson Forbidden Land and used the golden box to open the restrictions of the Heavenly Origin Pagoda, taking away many treasures, one of which was the "Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman".
The power of the "Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman" lies in the fact that it is one of the few things in the human realm, besides Nascent Soul cultivators, that can mobilize the primordial energy of heaven and earth. Even Nascent Soul cultivators like Xiang Zhili covet it. Its power is self-evident.
For Qin Hao, without a heaven-defying treasure like the little green bottle, improving talismans with the AI is his greatest reliance. If he can analyze the principle of the "Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman's" ability to mobilize the energy of heaven and earth, or draw the "Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman," he might be able to fight against a Nascent Soul cultivator with the Divine Transformation stage!
"I must get my hands on this Six Ding Heavenly Armor Talisman." Without further hesitation, Qin Hao put the Foundation Establishment Pill into his mouth, sat cross-legged on the bed, and began to refine it using the Sharp Metal Technique.
The Foundation Building Pill melts instantly upon entering the mouth, transforming into a powerful medicinal force that flows like a warm stream down the throat into the dantian.
At first, the medicinal power gently nourished the golden magic power in the dantian. The originally somewhat impure magic power gradually became pure under the cleansing effect of the medicinal power, like turbid river water being filtered and revealing a crystal-clear luster.
Qin Hao dared not delay and immediately activated the "Sharp Metal Technique" to guide the medicinal power along the meridians. Wherever the medicinal power passed, the meridian walls were slightly stretched, and the widening effect was more than ten times stronger than that of the Golden Marrow Pill.
[AI: The Foundation Building Pill's potency has been detected to be too excessive. It is recommended to guide the energy in three stages: first, nourish the dantian; second, widen the meridians; third, refine mana. The current potency loss rate is 15%. The energy circulation route needs to be adjusted to reduce loss.]
The AI's notification sounded in his mind, and Qin Hao immediately followed the instructions, adjusting the rhythm of his mana circulation and dividing the medicinal power into three streams, which he then injected into his dantian, meridians, and sea of consciousness respectively.
Within his dantian, the golden magical power, nourished by the medicinal properties, churned like boiling water. With each churn, the density of the magical power increased, and the originally scattered magical power particles gradually condensed into tiny droplets. Although it had not yet reached the "liquid magical power" realm of the Foundation Establishment stage, it was still more than twice as pure as when he was at the eleventh level of Qi Refining.
Within the meridians, the medicinal power continuously washed over the meridian walls, expelling the subtle impurities left over from previous cultivation, making the meridians more resilient and increasing the speed of mana circulation by 20%; within the sea of consciousness, the medicinal power transformed into a pale white mist, nourishing the divine sense, which originally had a range of eighty feet, slowly expanding to thirty feet, and the clarity of the divine sense also greatly improved, allowing one to clearly perceive the subtle sounds of ants crawling outside the wooden house.
Seven days later, the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill was basically refined, and Qin Hao's cultivation successfully broke through to the twelfth level of Qi Refining. The golden mana in his dantian had condensed into a semi-liquid "mana paste", only one step away from the liquid mana of the Foundation Establishment stage.
Unfortunately, the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill ultimately failed to break through the "shackles" between Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment, and the Foundation Establishment was not successfully achieved.
When Deacon Liu informed Xuanzhen Daoist that Qin Hao had failed to establish himself using the Foundation Establishment Pill, Xuanzhen Daoist could not hide his disappointment. He sighed, "The aptitude of three spiritual roots is ultimately still lacking."
Even so, he still summoned Qin Hao and gently encouraged him: "Foundation building is not something that can be accomplished in a day, so you don't need to be discouraged. The reason why this Foundation Building Pill failed is that the opportunity has not yet arrived. When the sect has the opportunity in the future, I will try to get another one for you. You must not waste your talent for making talismans. Continue to study it. In the future, you may be able to make up for your lack of talent with the way of talismans."
"Thank you for your concern, Master Uncle. I will certainly live up to your expectations." Qin Hao bowed deeply, his face full of gratitude, but he had already made up his mind.
After leaving the Qingxu Hall, Qin Hao fell into deep thought: the Crimson Forbidden Land was a notorious "meat grinder" for cultivators, not only with powerful demonic beasts, but also with cultivators from other sects vying for resources. His current setup—the top-tier ordinary attack magic weapon Golden Light Blade, the top-tier ordinary defense magic weapon Xuan Turtle Shield Talisman, a Gray Sword Talisman, plus the Golden Gang Talisman and the Armor-Piercing Golden Arrow Talisman—was sufficient to deal with cultivators at the twelfth level of Qi Refining, but it was still insufficient when surrounded by a large number of late-stage Qi Refining cultivators.
"There's still a year and a half before the Crimson Forbidden Land opens, which is enough time for me to prepare some more trump cards."
Qin Hao pondered—to obtain talisman treasures or top-grade magic artifacts, he had to go out and seek opportunities; the monthly spirit stones from Qingxu Sect alone were far from enough.
Increasing the production of primary and high-level talismans would inevitably expose an excessively high success rate, and since the Golden Gang Talisman and Armor-Piercing Golden Arrow Talisman are already registered with Xuanzhen Daoist, selling them to the public rashly would inevitably arouse his suspicion.
"AI, what is the success rate of drawing the improved Flame Bullet Talisman now?" Qin Hao suddenly thought—the Flame Bullet Talisman is an upgraded version of the Fire Bullet Talisman, belonging to the primary high-level fire attribute talisman. He possesses the three spiritual roots of metal, earth, and fire. Although he mainly cultivates metal attribute techniques, he has no difficulty in casting fire attribute spells. Moreover, the Flame Bullet Talisman is in high demand in the market and is unlikely to arouse suspicion.
[AI: Considering the host's Qi Refining Level 12 cultivation, fire attribute spiritual root affinity (medium), and talisman-making experience, the success rate of the improved Flame Bullet Talisman is estimated to be between 30% and 40%. Improvement directions: Increase the explosion radius by 10%, and increase the flame temperature by 10%.]
"The success rate is 10% lower than that of metal-attribute talismans, but it's still acceptable." Qin Hao took out fire-attribute talisman-making materials from his storage bag. He sat upright at his desk, focused his mind, and began to draw the improved Fireball Talisman pattern according to the AI's analysis.
Dipping the talisman brush in cinnabar, the first stroke was made on the crimson talisman paper—the core of the Flame Bullet Talisman is the "Flame Array Eye," which requires the use of spiral patterns to gather fire-attribute magic power.
Qin Hao strictly followed the AI's instructions to "inject 0.3 wisps of fire-attribute mana into each circle of the pattern," controlling the talisman brush with his fingertips to slowly outline the spiral patterns. When he reached the center of the array's core, he injected a wisp of fire-attribute mana, and the crimson flame talisman instantly glowed with a faint red light, the patterns pulsating as if they had come alive.
[AI: Detected slightly too much fire-attribute mana injection. Reduce by 0.05 slivers to prevent the talisman from spontaneously combusting.]
Qin Hao immediately adjusted his mana output, channeling the excess mana to the edge of the talisman. Finally, a fireball talisman glowing red was completed—after being infused with mana, the talisman transformed into a fist-sized fireball. The flames on the surface of the fireball were more condensed and hotter than those of an ordinary fireball talisman, and a noticeable burning sensation could be felt when one got close.
Qin Hao nodded in satisfaction. The power of this improved Flame Bullet Talisman was not much lower than that of the Armor-Piercing Golden Arrow Talisman, and its explosive effect was even better when dealing with multiple targets.
For the next two weeks, Qin Hao immersed himself in talisman making every day. Although he failed at making nearly a hundred talisman papers, he successfully drew fifty improved versions of the Flame Bullet Talisman.
He then submitted a request to Deacon Liu to leave the premises, explaining that there were still some worldly matters to attend to.
Steward Liu dared not delay and immediately reported the news to Taoist Xuanzhen.
Xuanzhen Daoist pondered for a moment and muttered to himself, "He is still young at heart. He has been in the sect for more than a year and has never left Qingling Mountain. He is already quite composed."
"With his cultivation at the twelfth level of Qi Refining, plus the improved talismans he carries, as long as he doesn't actively provoke Foundation Establishment cultivators, ordinary evil cultivators or demonic beasts should be no match for him. Letting him go out and experience some hardships and see the cruelty of the outside world will actually benefit his future cultivation."
Ultimately, Master Xuanzhen approved the application and even gave Qin Hao a "Qingxu Sect Token," instructing him: "If you encounter danger, you can crush the token, and the sect will sense your location and send someone to support you."
Qin Hao thanked Xuanzhen Daoist, then rode the Golden Blade, transforming into a pale golden streak of light, and left Qingling Mountain.
But as soon as he flew out of the Qingxu Sect's territory, he keenly sensed three faint fluctuations of magical power behind him, hanging him from a distance—the other party was obviously deliberately concealing their aura, and if it weren't for his greatly enhanced divine sense after breaking through to the twelfth level of Qi Refining, he wouldn't have been able to detect them at all.
"You're courting death." Qin Hao's face darkened, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
Instead of retaliating directly, he surveyed the terrain, then harnessed his golden blade and flew towards the nearby mountains.
The Qingling Mountains are densely forested and frequented by many monsters, making them a good place to hide.
A moment later, Qin Hao's figure disappeared into the depths of the dense forest in the mountains. Three figures followed closely behind, descending from the sky and landing where Qin Hao had disappeared—the leader was a tall, thin cultivator at the twelfth level of Qi Refining, wielding a high-grade flying sword; on either side were two cultivators at the eleventh level of Qi Refining, one holding a short sword and the other a shield.
"Where is he? Where did he go?" The cultivator holding the short sword looked around, his brows furrowed.
"What's the panic?" The tall, thin cultivator snorted coldly, spreading his divine sense, but only sensing the presence of ordinary insects and beasts.
"He definitely didn't go far."
"Brother, do you think this kid ate the Foundation Establishment Pill?" the shield-wielding cultivator asked, his eyes filled with greed.
A ruthless glint flashed in the tall, thin cultivator's eyes: "Foundation Establishment Pills are so precious, would you take one if you weren't confident of advancing?"
"The Foundation Establishment Pill must still be on him. If we can capture him, we can not only get the Foundation Establishment Pill, but the talismans and spirit stones on him will be enough for the three of us brothers to cultivate for many years, and we might even be able to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage!"
Just then, a pale golden blade of energy suddenly shot out from behind the big tree on the left, heading straight for the shield-wielding cultivator's back!
"Watch out!" The tall, thin cultivator reacted quickly, swinging his sword to block. With a clang, the blade energy was deflected by the flying sword, but it also startled the cultivator holding the shield, causing him to break out in a cold sweat.
Qin Hao emerged from behind the tree, a golden blade in his hand, and coldly looked at the three: "You three have been following me all this way, just for my Foundation Establishment Pill?"
"Since you've discovered us, let's be frank." The tall, thin cultivator gripped his flying sword, his body surging with magical power. "If you know what's good for you, hand over the Foundation Establishment Pill, talismans, and spirit stones, and I might consider sparing your life; otherwise, don't blame us three brothers for being impolite!"
Qin Hao's lips curled into a cold smile: "Just you guys?"
Before he finished speaking, he suddenly pulled out three improved fireball talismans with his left hand and infused them with magic power—three fist-sized fireballs, carrying a scorching aura, rushed straight towards the three of them.
"Not good! It's a fire-attribute talisman!" The tall, thin cultivator's expression changed drastically. He hadn't expected Qin Hao to carry a fire-attribute talisman. He hurriedly shouted, "Quick, dodge!"
The three quickly scattered to avoid the fireball, which landed on the ground and exploded with a "boom." The flames spread instantly, burning the surrounding trees and creating a sea of fire that restricted their movement.
The tall, thin cultivator was both shocked and furious: "How can this fireball talisman be so powerful? The explosion radius is so large?"
He dared not be careless, and summoned his flying sword, which transformed into a streak of cold light, heading straight for Qin Hao's face—this was his strongest attack, aiming for a swift victory.
Qin Hao remained calm and activated the Xuan Tie Scale Armor. With a clang, the flying sword struck the scale armor, leaving only a shallow mark.
At the same time, he took out five armor-piercing golden arrow talismans, which, after being activated, transformed into five golden arrows that struck the limbs and heart of the tall, thin cultivator respectively.
"Damn it!" The tall, thin cultivator was forced to retract his flying sword to parry the arrow's energy, but the penetrating power of the arrow's energy far exceeded his expectations. His flying sword was shaken and retreated repeatedly, causing his blood and qi to surge.
Seeing this, the Qi Refining Stage 11 cultivators on both sides seized the opportunity to attack from both sides—the cultivator with the shield raised his shield to block Qin Hao's side, while the cultivator with the short sword circled around behind Qin Hao, the short sword gleaming coldly, and stabbed towards Qin Hao's back.
Qin Hao had already sensed them. He locked onto the two with his divine sense, took out two Golden Qi Talismans, stuck one on his body to form a golden shield for double protection, and threw the other behind him—the golden shield blocked the attack of the short sword magic weapon.
With a clang, the dagger was deflected.
"Attack together! He won't last long!" the tall, thin cultivator gritted his teeth, activating his flying sword again. At the same time, he took out a talisman, activated it, and threw it at Qin Hao—intending to use a human wave tactic to deplete Qin Hao's mana and talismans.
A cold glint flashed in Qin Hao's eyes as he took out the gray sword talisman from his storage bag.
After being infused with magical power, the talisman transformed into a three-foot-long gray sword, its blade gleaming with a faint gray light and exuding a pressure far exceeding that of top-tier magical artifacts, heading straight for the tall, thin cultivator.
"A talisman treasure!" The tall, thin cultivator's face turned pale, his eyes filled with fear—he hadn't expected Qin Hao to possess a talisman treasure.
He tried to dodge, but it was too late. The gray dagger pierced through his flying sword and plunged into his chest.
"Pfft!" The tall, thin cultivator spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes filled with resentment, and his body slumped to the ground, his breath fading away.
The remaining two cultivators were terrified when they saw their leader killed and turned to run away.
Qin Hao wouldn't give them a chance. He controlled the gray sword and instantly caught up with the two of them, piercing their hearts one by one.
Moments later, the dense forest of the Black Wind Mountains returned to calm, leaving only three corpses and a burning sea of fire.
Qin Hao put away the gray sword and talisman, then checked the three men's storage bags—they contained only about a hundred low-grade spirit stones and some ordinary talismans and magical artifacts, nothing else of value. Without lingering, he used flames to incinerate the corpses, then rode his golden blade, transforming into a golden light and disappearing into the horizon. (End of Chapter)