Chapter Sixty-Three: How Could There Be So Many Talismans

Forcing himself to wield the Banner of a Thousand Souls brought a tremendous drain on both cultivation and vital blood. As soon as the flames vanished, the sinister winds and ghostly aura howled, quickly withdrawing into the banner.

“You wretched little thing, die!”

At that moment, the two illusory shadows of Xiao Wenzi were dissipating, and the elder, his cultivation and vital energy nearly spent, looked terribly pale. Nonetheless, as a master of the Thirteenth Heaven, he could see that Xiao Wenzi’s secret technique was not the legendary Trifold Purity, but only a feint with little substance. Yet this very trick had nearly cost him his life, and now, consumed by resentment, he ground his teeth, snatched back the Banner of a Thousand Souls, and flicked his finger, sending his flying sword slashing furiously at Xiao Wenzi.

In his view, the adversary was merely the spirit beast of a Qi Refinement cultivator—how powerful could it be? He couldn’t fathom how such a minor demon mosquito had brought so many demonfire talismans, but surely it wasn’t an endless supply. Though injured and with most of his spiritual power depleted, he was determined to vent his wrath. This pesky mosquito had to die. As for its master, who had just broken through to the Eleventh Heaven and looked rather fetching, she could be captured and enjoyed at leisure.

So the elder reasoned. With his cultivation and the mid-grade flying sword acquired from a Foundation Establishment predecessor’s storage pouch, dealing with a newly advanced, unstable little girl would be no trouble. At worst, he would expend a bit more vital energy. Once he subdued her, the dual-cultivation secret art learned from the demonic cultivator’s corpse would let him quickly recover.

While pondering, the elder recalled his inferior magic weapon, slapped his storage pouch, and summoned a gleaming, golden mid-grade longsword, sending it slashing ruthlessly at Xiao Wenzi.

Facing the dazzling, murderous sword light of the mid-grade Vajra Sword, Xiao Wenzi sighed with regret—it was a pity he hadn’t managed to kill the old wretch in one blow and had instead enraged him completely. Still, Xiao Wenzi remained calm; after all, he had plenty of system coins left to exchange for talismans.

With a thought, sixty fourth-heaven system coins vanished, and a palm-sized, green talisman appeared before him. Infusing it with demon spirit power, he activated the Demon Wind Talisman, which transformed into a tornado to meet the flying sword. At the same moment, Xiao Wenzi invoked Swift Demon Art, darting obliquely away with great speed.

He had no intention of fleeing. He was confident the Demon Wind Talisman would temporarily block the sword, giving him a chance to circle to the elder’s other side and launch a deadly assault.

A surge of demonic energy roared as the black wind howled. The tornado conjured by the Demon Wind Talisman, though not reaching the heavens, had an impressive momentum; upon contact, it swept the flying sword into its vortex.

The elder’s expression changed drastically. He had been barely able to wield the mid-grade weapon, which was why he’d hesitated to use it earlier. Now, caught in the demon wind, the Vajra Sword could not break free.

A gray shadow flickered. Xiao Wenzi, using Swift Demon Art, seized the chance to circle the tornado and appeared several meters to the elder’s right.

A sharp slicing sound filled the air as several thin wing blades shot from his protective aura, aiming for the elder’s brow, chest, and other vital points. Terrified, the elder abandoned his attempt to recall the Vajra Sword and instead used his remaining spiritual power to raise his protective light again.

Having reached the early fifth layer of the Demon Qi Realm, Xiao Wenzi, a transmigrator with an innately strong soul and further tempered demon sense, now rivaled ordinary cultivators of the sixth or seventh layer. In pure combat power, he was not inferior to those at the Sixth Heaven. With repeated clashing sounds, the elder’s protective barrier twisted and buckled, but his much higher cultivation kept it from breaking.

Xiao Wenzi had not expected the wing blades to kill the elder. Even as he unleashed them, he split his focus to exchange for a Demonfire Talisman. Activating it swiftly, he exchanged for another, again and again, and soon three or four Demonfire Talismans appeared in succession.

“This… this can’t be! How can there be so many talismans?”

As four demonic fireballs surged toward him, the elder’s already pale face betrayed despair. His vital blood dangerously depleted, if he forced the Banner of a Thousand Souls again, he would suffer deadly backlash. Yet without it, his protective aura stood no chance.

With a hiss, the fireballs struck his shield. The searing terror engulfed him, forcing him to draw the banner again and spit several mouthfuls of blood onto it. The sinister wind and ghostly aura surged, and grimacing, malevolent specters emerged just as his shield shattered, enveloping him.

But this time, four undiminished fireballs struck in rapid succession—the combined force rivaling the spell attacks of a Qi Refinement cultivator at the peak. The ghostly figures shrank back in terror.

“Old wretch, let’s see you survive this!”

This was a rare opportunity, and Xiao Wenzi, well aware of the importance of striking a fallen foe, did not relent. He exchanged for three more Demonfire Talismans and hurled them as fireballs at the elder within the sinister winds.

It wasn’t that Xiao Wenzi didn’t want to exchange more talismans and finish the enemy in one stroke. Unfortunately, he had already consumed much of his demon spirit power when practicing the Demon Shadow Art earlier. The attack had come so suddenly that he hadn’t had time to replenish himself before the battle began. The exertion of using Demon Shadow Art and raising his protective barrier further drained him. If activating talismans required more spiritual power, he would have collapsed long ago.

Fortunately, the treasures available for exchange included not only pills, talismans, and demon stones, but also Demon Spirit Dew that could instantly restore his cultivation. Of course, not the ordinary dew exchanged for with mortal blood, but mid-grade Demon Spirit Dew obtained with cultivator’s blood.

Low-grade Demon Spirit Dew could no longer instantly restore his power—he needed the mid-grade kind.

Seven Demonfire Talismans, their flames raging, were more than enough to make the elder suffer. Xiao Wenzi seized the chance to retreat and quickly exchanged for two drops of Demon Spirit Dew, swallowing them down.

The demon fire seared the sinister winds, melting them like early snow in sunlight. The weaker specters vaporized instantly. Amid the drifting mist and wailing cries—now mingled with the elder’s own screams—it was clear he had suffered severe backlash.

By the time Xiao Wenzi finished absorbing the two drops of mid-grade Demon Spirit Dew and his power surged back to its peak, the flames and sinister winds had dissipated, revealing the battered elder within.

Now, the elder’s arm was mangled, his chest and back torn with bloody gashes, his hair scorched, and his robes in tatters. Clutching a black banner, his aura was so feeble that he was now weaker than a cultivator of the Ninth Heaven.

Meanwhile, the tornado spawned by the Demon Wind Talisman had exhausted its power, and the mid-grade Vajra Sword lay on the ground, its light dim but its soul mark intact.

The elder’s gaze toward Xiao Wenzi was filled with terror and venomous hatred. Ravaged by ghostly backlash, gravely wounded, and with his cultivation all but gone, he dared no longer linger. With a gesture, the sword on the ground flew swiftly to his feet—clearly, he intended to make his escape.