Night fell. The time had come.

Wen Jiu carefully arranged his entry-level talisman brush, the ink made from the blood of an entry-level ghost fish, and the gray talisman paper crafted from the skin of an entry-level demon.

As the dark energy flowed through the brush onto the talisman paper, he followed the technique recorded in the Yin Talisman Codex to carefully inscribe the rune patterns. Since this was his first attempt, Wen Jiu prioritized stability and precision over speed.

At the same time, he focused on grasping the "weight of intent" that the old talisman master had spoken of.

What was the weight of intent?

It was the sensation one experienced while inscribing the runes—something that could only be understood through practice, not mere explanation.

During this process, Wen Jiu channeled the majority of his mental strength into controlling the flow of dark energy.

This was the weight of method.

And the weight of stability.

Because the inscription of a rune had to be completed in one seamless stroke—any hesitation or pause could lead to failure.

Moments later, the first rune was successfully drawn.

Wen Jiu quickly lifted his brush and gasped for air, realizing he had been holding his breath the entire time to maintain his control.

Seeing that he had taken the first step, a smile spread across his face.

"Fortunately, my previous body tempering with Earthly Fiend Yin Qi has made my hands incredibly steady. And thanks to my past life, my mental strength is far greater than that of an ordinary person. Not to mention, my dark energy carries a natural corrosive effect…"

With a quiet sigh, Wen Jiu steadied his breathing, took a deep breath, held it, and resumed inscribing the runes with slow, deliberate strokes.

A basic entry-level Soul-Seizing Talisman required at least seventeen rune patterns of various sizes and shapes.

The further he progressed, the harder it became.

So, if he could avoid breathing, he would.

However—

When he reached the third rune, a brief lapse in focus caused him to release just a fraction too much dark energy.

It was only a tiny mistake, and he adjusted immediately, but when the third rune was completed, the talisman had already failed. The dark energy failed to circulate properly and could not connect or resonate with the previous two runes.

"Again!"

Wen Jiu crumpled the failed talisman paper and tossed it behind him, then picked up his brush and held his breath, starting anew.

Yet—

Two entire hours passed.

Twenty talisman papers.

Not a single success.

His best attempt reached only the sixth rune.

Taking a deep breath, Wen Jiu finally stopped.

After maintaining such intense concentration for so long, his head throbbed, and his mind felt sluggish.

He rested for about half an hour.

Until midnight.

At the stroke of midnight, the system tallied the day's progress.

The Black Ghoul continued to gain the same amount of experience from scavenging in the Land of Dismembered Corpses—48 points per day. In seven days, it would advance to the next stage.

Ignoring everything else, Wen Jiu focused on the experience gained from his attempts at crafting the Soul-Seizing Talisman.

[After nightfall, you inscribed twenty entry-level Soul-Seizing Talismans, all of which failed. Panel experience +1, Soul-Seizing Talisman experience +4.]

"One experience point for every five failed attempts."

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

He was quite satisfied with this outcome.

His biggest concern was that failure might yield no experience at all.

"There are still thirty talisman papers left. Even if they all fail, I can still gain six more experience points." Wen Jiu glanced at the gray talisman papers stacked neatly on the table.

Closing the experience panel, he continued his work.

As for his duties with the Night Patrol Division, Wen Jiu had already taken a sick leave.

After much consideration over the past few days, he knew that the stewards and elders of Fei Xian Peak were currently searching for something in the Land of Dismembered Corpses.

If the hidden traitor within Fei Xian Peak feared that the item would be discovered and decided to act recklessly, then Wen Jiu—just a mere second-layer Qi Refinement cultivator—would be in grave danger if he were present.

So, he was more than willing to forgo his salary.

Better to stay far away from trouble.

—

Over the following days—

Wen Jiu continued crafting talismans.

He maintained a pace of thirty per night, stopping only when the strain on his mind became unbearable.

His debt to Wang Nian had already reached forty low-grade spirit stones. To be honest, Wen Jiu was starting to feel embarrassed about borrowing more.

But surprisingly, Wang Nian took the initiative to ask if he needed more.

—

Then, on a particular morning—

While Wen Jiu had yet to recover from his overexertion, Liu Xiao unexpectedly appeared at his doorstep.

At that moment, Wang Nian happened to be delivering a bowl of bone broth for him.

"Wen, my dear brother! Hurry and wake up for some soup. My wife simmered these bones for ten whole hours—"

Liu Xiao glanced at the bowl in Wang Nian's hands, then at the overly attentive expression on his face.

His brow furrowed.

"Fellow Daoist Wang," Liu Xiao asked urgently, "Wen Jiu… he hasn't been afflicted by Yin Qi Devourment, has he?"

"No, he's fine."

Wang Nian freed up one hand and knocked on the door.

Liu Xiao became even more puzzled. "Then why?"

Since when did a steward personally deliver food to an apprentice disciple? That didn't seem right. Not only had he never seen such a thing happen, but he had never even heard of it before.

However, Wang Nian didn't explain anything—he simply smiled.

Soon, Wen Jiu got up, opened the door, and after bowing to both of them, he thanked them while taking the soup bowl from Wang Nian's hands.

"As long as you're alright," Liu Xiao said, giving Wen Jiu a quick once-over. He had been worried that practicing the Yin Province Corpse-Nurturing Technique might have caused Wen Jiu's body to be invaded by Yin energy. But seeing that Wen Jiu was fine, he was relieved.

Then, Liu Xiao changed the subject. "Steward Mu asked me to relay a message—Li Ye has been sent to Lianwu Mountain."

"Lianwu Mountain?"

"A small mountain fifty miles from Feixian Peak. There's a loose cultivator marketplace there, and Feixian Peak has some businesses in that area. From now on, he'll be the steward there. As for when he can return… definitely not within the next three years."

Three years. That was already the shortest possible timeframe. After all, Li Ye still had a mentor who was an official of the talisman chamber.

Liu Xiao continued, "After three years, when Li Ye returns, how you deal with him will be up to you. Just remember what Steward Mu told you!"

"Thank you, Brother Liu!" Wen Jiu quickly bowed in gratitude.

"Steward Mu also asked me to remind you—if you're practicing Yin arts, don't rush it. The Yin Province Corpse-Nurturing Technique takes a serious toll on the body.

Don't ruin your future for the sake of temporary gains."

With that, before Wen Jiu could even nod, Liu Xiao swiftly took off on his sword, as if he was in a great hurry.

His destination—

The Forsaken Corpse Grounds.

The moment Liu Xiao left, Wang Nian urged Wen Jiu to try the soup. "Go on, have a taste. My wife specially made this for you."

"Thank you, Brother Wang! And thank you, Sister-in-law!" Wen Jiu said gratefully, though his mind was still on the Forsaken Corpse Grounds.

Because just yesterday, Wang Nian had told him that aside from himself, all the other gravekeepers had been interrogated in detail once again.

And today, Liu Xiao had rushed off in such a hurry.

What was going on?

Before he could dwell on it any further, Wang Nian suddenly spoke, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Brother Wen, do you still have enough talisman paper?"

"I do, I do," Wen Jiu quickly nodded, smiling helplessly.

After all, just yesterday, Wang Nian had bought him a hundred sheets in one go.

…

A few days passed in the blink of an eye.

That night—

After his Soul-Reaping Talisman proficiency reached thirty-five, and after failing one hundred seventy-five times in a row, Wen Jiu finally succeeded in drawing his first entry-level Soul-Reaping Talisman.

Although it was only the most basic first-tier, lower-grade version—barely strong enough to kill a second-layer Qi Refinement cultivator—it was still an exciting breakthrough for Wen Jiu.

Because Wang Nian had once told him that the most talented first-tier talisman master in Feixian Peak had taken five whole years to achieve this.

And yet, he—

Had walked the same five- or even ten-year path in just seven days.

Encouraged, Wen Jiu drew five more talismans.

Four failed.

One succeeded.

A success rate of twenty percent—not high, but each successful Soul-Reaping Talisman granted 5 experience points in his daily calculations.

Right now, his proficiency had reached 40 points in the "Minor Accomplishment" stage. That meant if he succeeded thirty-two more times, he would reach "Major Accomplishment."

Once he achieved that, his success rate would surely improve significantly.

The quality of his Soul-Reaping Talismans would also rise.

By then—

He would have a new foundation of strength.

In battle, if someone tried to take him down by "capturing the leader first," he'd simply fling ten or so Soul-Reaping Talismans their way.

Who cares about Li Ye?

Who cares about a third-layer Qi Refinement cultivator?

Dead, without question.

Even an official steward? He wouldn't fear them either.

At worst, he'd just throw more talismans.

"Still, the fact that I can draw Soul-Reaping Talismans must be kept secret. Advancing to an entry-level talisman master so quickly might not necessarily be a good thing."

Showing off was fine, but overexposing his skills could backfire.

After thinking it over, Wen Jiu decided to continue keeping it under wraps.

As for talisman paper—

He decided he would keep borrowing it in the future.

But not too much. His plan was to use borrowed spirit stones as a cover, creating a false image. Once his Black Ghoul reached the Upper Realm and the Forsaken Corpse Grounds incident blew over, then he would reveal to Wang Nian and Mu Canglong that he had become a first-tier Yin Talisman Master.

Until then, he needed to grind out more experience.

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