Chapter 59: Mastering the Skill of Heaven's Talisman

"Tal... Talisman?!"

Upon hearing Wu Xian's request, Zhang Jingqing was slightly taken aback at first, but the look he gave Wu Xian immediately carried a deeper meaning.

Don't let the Taoist priests of Mount Longhu in the world of The Outcast fool you; each one of them is more than capable of throwing fists, prioritizing close-quarters combat output to the point where they seem even more Quanzhen than the Quanzhen sect itself, which specializes in the cultivation of both temperament and physique.

In reality, however, the Heavenly Master Mansion lineage of Mount Longhu is the most orthodox Zhengyi talismanic Taoist sect, standing alongside the Gezao Mountain in Jiangnan and the Shangqing Sect of Mount Mao in fame and prestige.

If the mastery of thunder was the foundation by which Mount Longhu overawed the world of gifted practitioners, then talismans were the fundamental basis for the very existence of the entire Mount Longhu. To say that the profound truths contained within them pointed directly to the Great Dao would be no exaggeration at all.

And now, Wu Xian expressed a desire to learn talismanic arts from the Heavenly Master himself. To a certain extent, this request was even trickier to handle than wanting to learn the mastery of thunder, leaving Zhang Jingqing momentarily at a loss for how to reply.

Agreeing... was out of the question.

Yet if he were to refuse outright, he had just spoken rather loosely moments ago, and taking it back now would inevitably carry the suspicion of going back on his word, leaving him in quite a dilemma.

On the other side, seeing Zhang Jingqing fall into silence, Wu Xian seemed to guess the old man's thoughts and smiled as he spoke:

"Please rest assured, Heavenly Master. I have no intention of learning Mount Longhu's secret inherited talismanic arts. You only need to explain the most basic knowledge to me and answer a few doubts along the way. Surely, just doing that wouldn't violate the rules of Mount Longhu, would it?"

"...... Indeed it would not."

Zhang Jingqing nodded, then could not help asking: "But if it is merely that, my dear nephew, you could easily go to some black market in the community and purchase the corresponding Taoist scriptures on talismans. Yet you are using this to trade for a personal favor from the Heavenly Master Mansion—don't you think that's a bit of a waste?"

"Haha! Relying on oneself to painstakingly read Taoist scriptures and gain comprehension can never compare to having the Heavenly Master personally clear up one's doubts. This is the kind of fortuitous blessing ordinary practitioners wouldn't be able to exchange for in eight lifetimes! This junior is overjoyed, so how could I possibly call it a waste!"

Wu Xian laughed heartily, while effortlessly delivering a smooth piece of flattery that instantly curled the corners of Zhang Jingqing's mouth upward, clearly enjoying it immensely.

As the old saying went, how wonderful it would be if this fellow were my disciple.

Thinking this, the more Zhang Jingqing looked at Wu Xian, the more refined and clear-eyed the young man appeared. He felt that this youth possessed the bearing of an immortal, and he longed to kidnap him back to Mount Longhu on the spot to serve as the direct heir and successor to the next Heavenly Master.

Unfortunately, such thoughts could only remain in his mind. Leaving aside whether Wu Xian himself would be willing, just having Zuo Ruotong find out next door would probably cause the man to fight him to the death.

Sighing yet again in his heart, Zhang Jingqing quickly calmed his emotions and smiled at Wu Xian:

"Since that is the case, this poor Daoist will stay a few more days here at the Lu residence. If you, my nephew, encounter any perplexities regarding the path of talismans, you may come and ask at any time. I will naturally explain them to the best of my ability and will certainly not hide anything out of stinginess."

"Haha! The Heavenly Master is truly magnanimous! Then Zuo shall accept this favor on behalf of this disciple of mine!"

At that moment, Zuo Ruotong timely chimed in, then waved his hand toward Wu Xian:

"Axian, why aren't you thanking the Heavenly Master yet? The so-called Dao is not easily passed on; the Heavenly Master is teaching you as if you were his own disciple, so you must not be remiss!"

Hearing this, Wu Xian instantly grasped the intent and immediately executed a half-master salutation toward Zhang Jingqing, causing Zhang Zhiwei beside them to light up with a flash of delight in his eyes.

His reasoning was very simple: since Wu Xian performed a half-master bow to Zhang Jingqing, it was equivalent to him being half a disciple of the Heavenly Master Mansion, which mathematically made him his junior fellow apprentice.

And a senior brother privately wanting to spar and exchange techniques with a junior fellow apprentice had absolutely nothing wrong with it; even the master couldn't find fault with that!

Thinking of the sensation from his battle with Wu Xian just now, his entire body began to burn with excitement.

Meanwhile, the onlookers in the circle in the distance, upon seeing Wu Xian bow to Zhang Jingqing as a half-disciple, wore somewhat complex expressions.

The Heavenly Master Mansion and the San-yi Sect, the two leading orthodox forces of the mystical world in the present era, seemed to have grown even closer in their relationship.

For heretical and evil paths such as the Quanyin sect, this was undoubtedly disastrous news, but for other gifted practitioner factions, it might not necessarily be good news either...

Of course, not everyone felt this way. At least the host of this place, the Lu family, was genuinely overjoyed.

After all, the most promising eldest young master of their household, Lu Jin, was a disciple of the San-yi Sect and enjoyed an extremely close friendship with that monstrous talent named Wu Xian.

As long as this relationship was properly maintained in the future, the Lu family remaining prosperous for another few decades would be an absolute certainty.

With this thought, the worldly-wise Elder Lu let out another shout and once again invited everyone back to the Lu estate to partake in the banquet.

What! You say you already ate yesterday?

Heh, one can only say that poverty limits your imagination.

For prominent and wealthy clans like the Four Major Families, celebrating the family head's grand birthday without holding a continuous flowing banquet for ten days and ten nights meant you were too embarrassed to go out and meet people.

In comparison, the Lu family was already being quite low-key, but it was still impossible for them to end the banquet after just a single day.

Aside from this, the major sects and gifted factions would also engage in private exchanges with one another, as well as various business interactions.

After all, such an opportunity was rare; it wasn't every day that so many practitioners could gather in one place. At the very least, they would stay at the Lu residence for a few more days before leaving in succession.

Thus evening fell, and the banquet commenced once more. Compared to yesterday, Wu Xian and Zhang Zhiwei became the absolute focal points for everyone. Nearly all the younger generation, and even masters within the circle, would step up to exchange a few words with them, making them red-hot figures of the moment.

There was no helping it; anyone with half a brain could see that in less than twenty years at most, the two youths before them would inevitably become top-tier figures in the practitioner world.

Combined with the fact that they each stood behind Mount Longhu and the San-yi Sect, they could be said to possess both strength and backing, fully meeting all the criteria of major heavyweights.

When facing such individuals, if one could not eliminate them before they grew up, one had to find a way to befriend them, preferably establishing some sort of connection.

For instance, the head of the Lu family, one of the Four Major Families, even wanted to play matchmaker for Wu Xian, stating that he had a daughter at home who was naturally beautiful, elegant, and intelligent—truly a fine match.

Although Wu Xian had no intention of becoming a pampered son-in-law for the Lu family, after hearing the family head's description, he couldn't help feeling rather curious about this Lu family young miss who had never appeared in the original work.

Later, through indirect inquiries with the Lu family brothers, he found out that this so-called elegant and intelligent fine match was still an eight-year-old little girl this year.

Even if people married early in the Republican era, this motherfucking pace was practically asking to be put against a wall and shot!

Returning to the main subject.

Over the next half-month or so, Wu Xian ran over to the Heavenly Master Zhang Jingqing almost every day to seek instruction on the foundational knowledge of talismans.

Because the reincarnator Wu Xian had unlocked the third-order genetic lock, his brain domain development far surpassed that of ordinary people. This resulted in exceptionally agile thinking skills and an extremely rapid speed of knowledge absorption.

Sometimes, he was even able to draw inferences from one instance and articulate insights that left even Zhang Jingqing astonished, turning this short-lived teaching arrangement into a much more pleasant experience rather than the dry and tedious ordeal one might have imagined.

Apart from consulting the Old Heavenly Master on the way of talismans, Wu Xian also specially requested Zuo Ruotong to help introduce him, visiting the leaders or higher-ups of various sects such as the Shangqing Sect of Mount Mao, the Liangshan Great Shamans, the Northeast Horse Immortals, the Jishi Hall, the Wuhou Sect, and the Tiangong Hall, to learn the most fundamental knowledge of their respective schools.

Out of respect for Zuo Ruotong, and given that these were only foundational teachings, these sects did not hold back their teachings either. Much like Heavenly Master Zhang Jingqing, they patiently cleared up Wu Xian's doubts with very cordial attitudes, clearly wishing to plant a seed of good karma with this future top-tier expert.

Yet if anyone possessed the ability to foresee the future, they would discover that among the sects Wu Xian had visited during this period, either they had once produced a "creator" of the Eight Extraordinary Skills, or the techniques within their sects bore striking similarities to the abilities manifested by the Eight Extraordinary Skills.

This made Wu Xian's true objective glaringly obvious.

......

A month later, the inner courtyard of the San-yi Sect.

At this very moment, Wu Xian was staying in his own private room, sitting cross-legged on the bed in a five-hearts-toward-the-sky meditation posture, with his eyes closed in concentration.

After a long while, he opened his eyes and simultaneously raised the index finger of his right hand, beginning to trace and glide through the empty air. He left behind trails of flickering blue residual light, which were finally guided by his Qi to converge into an ancient, profound, and abstruse talisman.

"Tian Tong Lu... I've finally crossed the threshold into mastery."