"Friend Chen, you also know my style. I always give a fixed price and never bargain. However, there is room for research on your matter."
The shopkeeper stroked his non-existent beard and spoke slowly.
"What do you mean? Just say it if you have something to say. Why are you still acting like a woman after not seeing each other for a few days?"
Chen Lin was anxious and his tone was a little bad.
The shopkeeper remained calm and glared at him, saying, "With your mentality, it's no wonder that your cultivation has not made any progress. Immortal cultivators must avoid being impatient for quick success and instant benefits. You must be calm and composed in everything you do, otherwise you will easily go astray and fall into the devil's way!"
Chen Lin was stunned.
Then he clasped his fists and said, "Fellow Daoist Zhang is absolutely right. I am grateful for your advice."
Regardless of whether the other person is squinting or not, this sentence makes a lot of sense.
The shopkeeper gave Chen Lin a teachable look, and then slowly said, "What is your success rate in refining this fireball talisman?"
He didn't understand why the other party asked this question, but it was not something that could not be discussed. Chen Lin immediately replied, "One percent!"
"Only 10%? It's a little less, but with your cultivation level, it's already rare to be able to refine a first-level mid-grade talisman. As your proficiency increases, it will improve."
The other party was talking to himself, and Chen Lin didn't know how to interrupt, so he could only wait in silence for what to say next.
"Fellow Daoist Chen, are you interested in joining our Zhang family?"
Suddenly, the other party raised his head and said something that stunned Chen Lin.
"What do you mean? Could it be that one of the young ladies in your Zhang family has taken a fancy to me and wants me to marry into their family?"
Chen Lin immediately imagined countless scenes in his mind.
The Zhang family the other party mentioned refers to the Zhang family, one of the five major families of immortal cultivation, the one whose foundation-building expert had just disappeared.
Even if there are no strong foundation-building masters, they are still the five major families after all, and their foundation is still strong, which cannot be compared with ordinary forces.
The most important thing is that the other party has elixirs in his hands, which is what he lacks most now.
In order to escape from this place, it is not impossible to sacrifice yourself.
"You have a nice idea!"
The shopkeeper was amused by Chen Lin's words.
Then he sneered and said, "How can a toad like you be a match for Miss Zhang? If you are willing to marry a mortal without spiritual roots, I can help you find someone else."
Seeing the shopkeeper's tone that seemed both true and false, Chen Lin immediately shook his head.
"Forget about being a mortal. We have nothing in common. It's better to be single. What did Daoist Zhang mean by what he said before?"
The shopkeeper's expression straightened, and he said, "You may have heard the rumors. Our Zhang family has had some problems recently, and we are recruiting a large number of talents with various skills. Since Fellow Daoist Chen can refine a first-level mid-grade talisman, he has met the conditions for recruitment. If you are interested, I can report to the family and invite you to become our family's exclusive talisman master."
Chen Lin was somewhat tempted, "What are the benefits of becoming an exclusive talisman master?"
No matter marrying into the wife's family or becoming an exclusive talisman master, as long as he can get the elixir, it will be fine.
"As for the benefits, of course there are many. Not only can you provide more talisman refining methods for free, but you can also receive corresponding spirit stones as monthly wages every month. You can also get the talisman making master of our Zhang family to teach you the way of talisman making. It can be said that there are many benefits."
The shopkeeper said proudly, stroking his chin.
"With so many benefits, I'm afraid it's not that easy to get them. Are there any restrictions?"
There is no free lunch in the world. The more benefits you get, the more price you have to pay. Chen Lin is well aware of this.
The shopkeeper sneered and said, "The conditions are very generous. You just need to sign the inner demon oath and never betray the family for the rest of your life!"
really.
Chen Lin sneered in his heart.
It is impossible to expect these people to be kind-hearted; it is pure wishful thinking.
This is not recruiting any exclusive talisman masters, it is simply recruiting domestic slaves and signing indentures!
The binding force of the Inner Demon Oath on cultivators is extremely strong, far exceeding any careful contract in the previous life, and it is almost impossible to break.
"Forget it. I'm used to being free and I don't like being constrained. Thank you for your kindness, Brother Zhang."
Chen Lin refused directly.
I didn't even bother to ask if I could provide a share for purchasing pills.
He absolutely could not swear the oath to his inner demon. If he did, he would not be able to leave here.
The shopkeeper didn't care about Chen Lin's attitude. Instead, he looked at him deeply and said, "Fellow Daoist Chen, Kaiyuan City is becoming increasingly unstable. I advise you to think carefully about it. If you don't rely on us, the immortal cultivation families, I'm afraid your future life will not be easy!"
Chen Lin was stunned for a moment.
Then he cupped his hands.
"Thank you for your reminder, boss. I'll think about it again."
The shopkeeper shook his head, looking like you are an ungrateful kid.
After leaving Zhang's Business, Chen Lin went around other shops and bought a large bag of materials.
He only went back after spending almost all his fortune.
The snow is still heavy.
The snow on the ground was more than a foot thick, making it difficult even for cultivators to walk.
We basically didn't meet any people along the way. Occasionally there were a few, but they were all monks who were in the middle to late stages of Qi training and had learned the art of flying.
Chen Lin was also very envious of the art of flying. If he learned this spell, his ability to survive in the wild would be greatly enhanced.
Unfortunately, this spell requires at least the middle stage of Qi training to learn, and it is said to be very difficult to learn.
At present, we should focus on improving our cultivation.
Alchemy must be put on the agenda immediately.
After returning home, Chen Lin made a fire and cooked, and after eating, he started making talismans.
What he made was a powerful talisman, a lower-grade first-level talisman, one of only two types of talismans that the original owner knew how to make.
The Fireball Talisman has no profit and wastes a lot of time, so it can only be put on hold for the time being.
Although the Power Talisman is cheap, the original owner has already mastered it and the success rate can reach 30%. Combined with his talent of hitting the target ten times, the success rate is as high as 40%. Excluding the cost, he can earn about two spirit stones for every ten materials.
Get up early and stay up late, and you can refine twenty sets of materials a day.
That means four spirit stones are deposited into the account!
You must first use this skill to earn enough spirit stones to buy materials before you can start trying to make pills.
Chen Lin hung a Do Not Disturb sign outside the door and began to make talismans day and night.
Flash.
Ten days passed.
Chen Lin had dark circles under his eyes. He looked at the thick stack of talismans in his hand and felt quite a sense of accomplishment.
The snow outside has become much thicker, and there is no sign of it stopping.
If this continues, I won’t be able to leave the house in a few days.
Chen Lin opened the window and looked at the snowflakes flying in the sky worriedly. It took him a long time to look away.
However, the investigation he had been worried about did not happen, which made him feel a lot more relaxed.
It took a lot of effort to open the door. After simply clearing the snow, Chen Lin staggered towards the market.
Zhang's Commercial Bank branch.
The room was warm, but empty.
Chen Lin took out all the power talismans and placed them on the counter.
"You've actually raised the success rate of the Power Talisman to 40%. That's progress!"
By calculating the refining time, the shopkeeper Zhang Mazi was able to calculate his success rate.
Very surprised.
This kind of low-level talisman could not possibly be coveted, so Chen Lin did not conceal it at all.
He nodded and said, "Yes, since I refined the Fireball Talisman, my understanding of talisman making has deepened."
Zhang Mazi naturally had no idea that Chen Lin was no longer the same Chen Lin, and that he had the talent to hit the target ten times. He just thought that Chen Lin had suddenly become enlightened and his potential had been tapped.
As he handed the spirit stones used to purchase the Power Talisman to Chen Lin, he sneered and stared at Chen Lin.
Chen Lin felt a little scared when he saw it.
"What are you looking at? You don't want to rob me, do you?"
Chen Lin put the spirit stone into his pocket and held it in his hand, looking at the other party vigilantly.
Zhang Mazi sneered and said, "Do you think I'm a poor guy like you? Is this little bit of spiritual stones worth my effort?"
Chen Lin also knew that given the other party's status, it was impossible for him to be interested in this little money, he just wanted to ease the atmosphere.
"So what do you see me doing?"
Zhang Mazi stroked his nonexistent beard and said, "I have a cousin who has been widowed for many years. Although she is older, uglier, fatter, and has a bad temper, she has reached the fourth level of Qi training and has a younger brother who is in the late stage of Qi training. If Fellow Daoist Chen is interested, I can introduce her to you."
…
Chen Lin's face was as black as the bottom of a pot.
Resisting the urge to punch the man's pockmarked face, he coldly refused, "Thank you for your kindness, shopkeeper. I really can't afford to marry a young lady from the Zhang family."
He could sacrifice himself to improve his cultivation, but not to this extent.
I thought the other party would be unhappy if I said this, but unexpectedly, after Zhang Mazi thought about it, he showed an expression of deep agreement.
He squinted his eyes and sneered as he nodded, "Fellow Daoist Chen is indeed self-aware. You are right. I took it for granted. With your conditions, my cousin would definitely not be interested in you. If I really asked to introduce you to someone, I would probably be scolded. So just pretend I never said anything about it."
Chen Lin opened his mouth.
I was speechless.
He secretly cursed the other party for looking down on him. He didn't even have the mood to buy materials here and just turned around and left.
When he walked out of the door, his chest was still heaving with anger.
But when I thought that these people were just a bunch of puppets, my anger subsided a lot.