Novel Full Chapter 72 - 71: Permanent Flame Marrow Physique
Chapter 72: Chapter 71: Permanent Flame Marrow Physique
"Alright."
Li Yuan nodded. Without another word, Talisman Master Lu turned and placed the old talisman brush and the Fire Needle Skill manual on the table.
Li Yuan paid the Spirit Stones and tucked the two items into his sleeve.
Just as Talisman Master Lu was about to put his things away, he seemed to remember something and looked up at Li Yuan.
"By the way, do you have any connections with the Guard?"
"What kind of connections?" Li Yuan asked.
"Demon Beast hides," said Talisman Master Lu. "I’m looking to buy a batch of relatively intact Demon Beast hides to make talisman paper. I’ll pay the standard price."
"The Guard sells them for a bit less since they deal in large quantities. You’re on the Patrol Team, so I figured I’d ask if you had an in with them."
Li Yuan nodded.
"What quality are you looking for?"
"Ungraded, Tier One Low Grade, and Middle Grade will all do. I don’t need any Top Grade ones."
Li Yuan grunted in acknowledgment but said nothing more, simply putting the talisman paper and Spiritual Ink on the table back where they were.
After leaving Talisman Master Lu, Li Yuan stopped by Wu’s Talisman Materials to buy a few more crafting supplies.
Once outside, Li Yuan headed down the alley.
The streets were a little less crowded than in the past few days.
The few traveling merchant troupes that had set up canopies on East Street and in North Alley were gone. Some merchants remained, but their stalls were much emptier. They had clearly sold off a batch of their goods and were preparing to move on.
After leaving the market square, Li Yuan went straight to the Chaotic Stone Beach to the west.
The place hadn’t changed; the scorched craters and shattered rocks from his last visit were still there. With no one around, it was the perfect spot to test his new magic.
Li Yuan first took out the copy of the Fire Control Skill that Old Sun had given him and quickly read through it.
The spell for the Fire Control Skill was much shorter than the one for the Fireball Technique. Its focus wasn’t on power, but on precision.
Li Yuan put away the manual and sat down cross-legged. He first circulated his Red Fire Skill, imbuing his Spiritual Power with the Fire Element.
He then raised his hand.
A wisp of flame flickered to life at his fingertip.
It was unstable at first, flickering erratically as if it might go out at any moment. Li Yuan slowly circulated his Spiritual Power according to the Fire Control Skill’s method. The flame gradually stabilized, and its brightness became even.
Then a second wisp appeared, and a third.
Several slender flames hovered before his fingertips, their color gradually shifting from dark red to a brighter hue.
Li Yuan then practiced making the flames shrink, stretch, separate, and merge.
’This magic really isn’t hard.’
This was especially true for Li Yuan. He had already learned the Fireball, Fire Arrow, and Fire Escape Skills, and had reached the introductory level with his Red Fire Skill. For him, the Fire Control Skill was less a new ability and more a refinement of the fire he could already wield.
An hour later, Li Yuan could maintain a stable flame at his fingertips. He could just barely manage to concentrate it into a fine line or spread it into a thin sheet.
A panel flashed into view.
[Magic: Fire Control Skill - Introductory (0/200)]
Li Yuan extinguished the flame, stood up, and flexed his wrist before taking out the Fire Needle Skill manual.
The Fire Needle Skill was more difficult than the Fire Control Skill.
It wasn’t just about controlling the shape of the fire; it required compressing Fire Spiritual Power into a fine needle, with an emphasis on concentration and penetration.
After reading through the manual once, he began to practice according to the spell’s instructions.
Spiritual Power gathered in his palm. His first attempt failed.
The Fire Spiritual Power, which should have converged into a thin line, dispersed with a POP when it was only halfway gathered, breaking apart into a few sparks just beyond his palm.
Li Yuan didn’t stop; he immediately tried again.
He managed to form it this time, but it was neither thin nor stable enough. The fire needle veered off course the moment it left his hand, striking a piece of rubble and leaving only a faint scorch mark.
A third time, a fourth, a fifth.
The method for the Fire Needle Skill was similar to the Fire Arrow Skill; both involved compressing Fire Spiritual Power into a long, thin line before releasing it. Since Li Yuan had a foundation in the Fire Arrow Skill, he quickly got the hang of it after a bit of practice.
Just then, the panel appeared.
[Flame Marrow Body (Green) Permanence Condition Met]
[Make Permanent?]
A thought crossed Li Yuan’s mind.
’Yes.’
The skill requirement for Flame Marrow Body didn’t state he had to reach the Introductory level, only that he had to learn it.
[Permanence Successful]
[Flame Marrow Body (Green) has become a permanent trait]
[Equipment Consumed]
In the next instant, a faint, warm current rose simultaneously from his spine, chest, and abdomen, spreading rapidly through his meridians.
Li Yuan tried casting a fire arrow. It felt a fraction smoother than before.
This was Li Yuan’s first permanent Green-level trait.
Not in a hurry to return to his quarters, Li Yuan decided to practice the Fire Needle Skill here until he reached the Introductory level.
About half an hour later, his palm grew hot as a long, slender fire needle steadily took shape.
Li Yuan flicked his hand, sending it flying.
HISS.
The fire needle crossed the distance in a flash, embedding itself straight into a fist-sized rock and leaving behind a tiny black dot.
There was none of the explosive impact of the Fireball Technique, nor the obvious puncture wound of the Fire Arrow Skill.
But it was incredibly fast.
And it consumed even less Spiritual Power.
Li Yuan practiced another seven or eight times. The needle’s trajectory grew steadily more stable, and he could consistently hit his intended targets.
The panel appeared once more.
[Magic: Fire Needle Skill - Introductory (0/200)]
Li Yuan didn’t bother changing his equipment. He simply stopped his practice and headed back to the market square.
Back in his room, Li Yuan bolted the door, sat down at the table, and counted his Spirit Stones.
After buying the old talisman brush, the magic skill, and some materials, plus a few other miscellaneous expenses, then adding in his monthly stipend and the reward from the mountain expedition, he now had a little over thirty left.
’It wasn’t a small amount, but the stones wouldn’t multiply on their own.’
Li Yuan swept the Spirit Stones back into their cloth pouch, his mind made up.
’I’ll go buy some medicinal pills later to speed up my cultivation.’
’I have enough traits and skills at my disposal for now. There’s no need to hoard a pile of Spirit Stones waiting for a lucky break.’
’It would be better to convert these Spirit Stones into actual cultivation progress.’
Having made his decision, Li Yuan closed his eyes and assessed his cultivation.
His Dantian felt substantial, filled to the brim for the Qi Refining Fifth Level.
During his time with the Guard, the combination of eating Demon Beast Flesh, his daily practice, and his various traits had caused his Spiritual Power to grow at an incredible rate.
Li Yuan opened his eyes and took the old talisman brush from his sleeve.
Its shaft was jet-black, worn to a glossy sheen from what was clearly long use.
As his fingertip touched the brush, the system panel appeared.
[Equippable Item Detected: Cyan Spirit Talisman Brush (Intact)]
[Trait Preview: Practice Makes Perfect (White) — Increases talisman crafting success rate by 20%. Grants a minor boost to proficiency gained upon successful crafting.]
[Permanence Condition Preview: Master any one talisman crafting art and its corresponding magic to the Perfection stage.]
Li Yuan’s gaze swept quickly over the trait’s description.
Then, his eyes fell to the last line.
’Master any one talisman crafting art and its corresponding magic to the Perfection stage.’
’The condition wasn’t simple, but compared to some traits that required specific scenarios or rare materials, this one at least had a clear path forward.’
’And the effect is quite powerful. A twenty percent increase to the success rate... If I could succeed with five out of ten attempts before, I’d now succeed with six.’
’Plus, the boost to proficiency gain would help me meet the permanence condition even faster.’
Li Yuan twirled the brush in his palm, his thoughts turning to the new one Talisman Master Lu had shown him.
’The same model, the same type of brush. Yet the new one triggered no reaction, while this old one carried a White trait.’
Li Yuan didn’t dwell on the thought, simply tucking the brush back into his sleeve.
’This brush was well worth the price.’