Chapter 30: Counting the Spoils!

“Are they dead!?”

Lu Changsheng’s heart skipped a beat as the Golden Light Brick fell with a thunderous impact.

He stared intently at where the three figures had been standing, now hidden beneath the mountain-like Golden Light Brick.

The three couldn’t even scream under this devastating blow.

Several defensive spells and a black shield Artifact vanished like they never existed when the Golden Light Brick struck.

“Huff! Huff! Huff!”

After a brief moment of shock, certain they were dead, Lu Changsheng relaxed. His emotions stirred as he caught his breath.

Though talismans didn’t drain much Qi, they taxed the mind. Using about twenty at once took its toll on him.

Mainly, activating the Golden Light Brick Talisman Treasure had drained over half his Qi in one go.

Lu Changsheng focused his mind and put away the Talisman Treasure.

The massive Golden Light Brick immediately dimmed its glow, returning to its talisman form and flying back into Lu Changsheng’s hand.

Where the Golden Light Brick had struck, a huge crater several zhang wide and deep remained.

The three robber cultivators had been reduced to three bloody, pulpy messes in an instant.

As for the black shield Artifact, it had been smashed and warped under the Golden Light Brick’s attack, turned into a lump of metal.

“So this is the power of a Talisman Treasure!? It’s terrifying!”

“I’m only at the third level of Qi Condensation, so I could only unleash part of its power.”

“If I were Late-Stage Qi Condensation or Foundation Establishment, fully unleashing the Talisman Treasure’s might… how much more devastating would it be…”

Lu Changsheng looked at the three pulverized bodies in the huge crater, licking his dry lips, utterly shocked.

This was his first time using a Talisman Treasure, witnessing its power firsthand.

He had thrown over ten talismans earlier, all blocked by the three.

But once the Talisman Treasure came out, it crushed them effortlessly.

The three had no chance to fight back.

This not only showed Lu Changsheng the might of Talisman Treasures but also gave him a glimpse of a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s power.

He guessed the power he’d unleashed at Qi Condensation third level was roughly equivalent to a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s strike.

Not daring to think too much, fearing the commotion might attract others, Lu Changsheng fought his nausea and jumped into the deep pit. He fished out the three Storage Bags from the bloody pulp.

He used a cleaning spell to remove the blood and flesh from the Storage Bags, then used a fire talisman to erase any remaining traces.

Picking up the damaged shield and flying knife Artifacts nearby, he used a wind-riding talisman on himself, leapt out of the crater, and quickly left the area.

An hour later.

Lu Changsheng, back to his original appearance, rode his horse a hundred li away from Bull Head Mountain. Only after making sure no one was pursuing did he stop to rest and recover his Qi.

“Whew!”

“Good thing I didn’t try to save resources and used the Talisman Treasure right after activating the talismans.”

“Otherwise, with just low and Mid-Tier talismans, killing these three would’ve been impossible.”

“This cultivation world is truly dangerous. Even being so careful, I still got targeted.”

“Looks like I’ll have to be even more cautious in the future.”

Lu Changsheng found a grove to rest, recalling the earlier events with lingering fear. He let out a long sigh.

Realizing he’d been targeted despite his caution, his understanding of the cultivation world’s dangers rose to a new level.

He felt this cultivation world was governed by the raw law of the jungle, where the strong preyed on the weak.

Without strength, one could encounter danger and accidents at any moment.

“Seems joining a powerful faction and having strong backing is the way to go.”

“Though I’m dependent on others in the Lu Family, at least there’s some guarantee of safety.”

Lu Changsheng muttered, realizing the benefits of having family backing.

In a family or sect, though one must contribute to the collective, at least in the early stages, there’s someone to shield you from the wind and rain, standing in front.

After meditating briefly, Lu Changsheng couldn’t help but shake his head.

The Qi in the mortal world was too thin.

Trying to recover through meditation would be too slow; who knows how long it’d take.

He took out a Spirit Stone and started meditating to recover.

After a while, the clear, translucent Spirit Stone became much dimmer.

Spirit Stones were mostly used as currency, but they could also be used for cultivation, absorbing their Qi to speed up practice.

However, for most cultivators, using Spirit Stones directly for cultivation was too wasteful.

It was more cost-effective to buy Spirit Rice, Spirit Tea, spirit wine, and other spiritual foods.

After using one Spirit Stone, Lu Changsheng’s Qi was mostly recovered.

He took out the Storage Bags from the three men and began counting his gains.

“Good thing these three had Storage Bags, or this would’ve been a big loss.”

“Wonder what’s in these Storage Bags, hope it’s enough to make up for my expenses.”

His earlier attack cost him thirty to forty Spirit Stones worth of talismans alone.

As for the cost of using the Talisman Treasure, even Lu Changsheng couldn’t estimate it.

But it was worth at least a hundred Spirit Stones.

If these three were broke, it’d be a huge loss.

Moments later, Lu Changsheng sorted out 103 Spirit Stones from the three Storage Bags.

A Flying Sword Artifact and a bell Artifact.

Three bottles of fasting pills, one bottle of Yellow Dragon pills, one bottle of Clear Spirit pills, and three bottles of unidentified potions.

Fifteen low-Tier first-tier talismans, six Mid-Tier first-tier talismans, and one High-Tier talisman.

Plus some books and various miscellaneous items.

“This Flying Sword, bell, and flying knife all look like low-Tier Artifacts. They should fetch about fifty Spirit Stones each.”

“Though this shield is a Artifact, all its formations are broken. It can only be sold as scrap. Not sure how much it’s worth now.”

“But these three Storage Bags should be worth about 150 Spirit Stones.”

“Adding all these odds and ends, the total should be around 500 Spirit Stones, I guess.”

After counting the three men’s belongings, Lu Changsheng’s mood improved significantly.

Smacking his lips, he exclaimed, “Indeed, murder and arson bring gold belts. No matter where, robbery is always the quickest way to make money.”

When he first arrived at the Lu Family as a son-in-law, he only got two Spirit Stones a month.

As a Talisman Master, he made just ten Spirit Stones a month.

Today’s sale of 100 talismans equaled a month’s work, earning him about 100 Spirit Stones after costs.

How could that compare to the simplicity and speed of robbing and killing?

However, Lu Changsheng had no intention of making money through robbery and murder.

Aside from his moral principles preventing him from killing innocents indiscriminately.

It was also too dangerous, not fitting his style of doing things.

With the system at his disposal, why would he need to resort to such risky, underhanded methods that put his life on the line?

Marrying wives, taking concubines, and having children was the right path!

Besides, he was just a weakling at the third level of Qi Condensation, relying on talismans and Talisman Treasures to win this battle.

After organizing everything, Lu Changsheng picked up the foot-long Flying Sword Artifact and tried to use it.

Cultivators at the third level of Qi Condensation could use the ‘Control Object Technique’ to wield Artifacts.

Previously, Lu Changsheng had been rewarded with a Flying Sword at the Lu Family for being the first to have a child.

But he hadn’t experienced it, selling it to make talismans instead.

Now, with a Flying Sword in hand, he couldn’t resist the urge to try it out.

“Whoosh—”

Under Lu Changsheng’s control, the Flying Sword immediately turned into a streak of silver light and shot out.

Ordinary Artifacts didn’t need to be refined; they could be controlled with the Control Object Technique.

Spirit Tools used by Foundation Establishment cultivators had spiritual nature and needed to be refined and bound before they could be controlled.

Some high-end Artifacts made by advanced artificers required special Control Object Techniques to use.

However, such Artifacts were quite high-end, and this Flying Sword clearly wasn’t in that category.

Under Lu Changsheng’s control, the Flying Sword moved like a silver dragon, its sword qi flaring, slicing through the surrounding trees as if they were tofu.

Then with a ‘puff’ sound, it easily pierced through a huge rock, turning into a silver light and returning to Lu Changsheng.

“As expected of a Artifact!”

“Its power is no less than basic spells, but it consumes much less. In a duel between cultivators, having a Artifact or not makes a world of difference!”

After briefly experiencing the Flying Sword, Lu Changsheng’s face lit up with joy as he exclaimed in praise.

If he were to use a spell like Fireball, his Qi would be nearly depleted after four or five uses.

But wielding the Flying Sword, he estimated he could use it for about a quarter of an hour, making multiple attacks.

Due to his limited Qi, Lu Changsheng didn’t try the other Artifacts. He put away the Flying Sword and rode his horse towards the Red Whale Gang.

He planned to meet up with Li Feiyu, then return home to settle his family before heading back to Qingzhu Mountain early.

It was too dangerous outside. Better to lay low at the Lu Family, improve his strength, and focus on having more children. That was the right path.