Crunch.

Biting into a qi burst pill, Liu Xun grabbed upon the thin horsetail brush as he dipped it into the blood-red ink. He slowly mimicked Senior Gan's strokes. Writing upon the 'Purple' with his utmost attention. Each stroke consisted of faint qi. Since Liu Xun himself was an ax user with savage beast qi rather than sword qi, the quality of the qi imbued into the talisman with the intent of creating a purple sword was rather lackluster.

Un...

Un?

Un-leash me.....

What, what is this?

Liu Xun was confused by the process so far as a voice sweeps into his mind as he began to write upon the 'Sword' word. He initially intended to write upon the 'Sword' word, but each time he tries a voice disrupts his thoughts.

Write me....let me help...

What are these thoughts...who are you?

Create my image...allow me to exert my strength...

The voice continues to beckon upon him as he tries to complete the talisman. Liu Xun stumbled upon his brush writing as his hands remained rooted on the spot. Uncertainty clouded his mind as his initially clear thoughts wavered.

"Hmm, what is up Liu Xun? Why have you stopped?"

Senior Gan turned over as he finished off his next talisman. He saw the black-robed boy remain rooted on the spot with a confused look on his face. This was rather unexpected. He had always thought that Liu Xun was the brightest of the bunch, despite having the lowest cultivation level. Liu Xun had always display thinking and combat skills way beyond his cultivation level, being a third stage qi gathering after merely 2-3 weeks was also a feat in and of itself. Perhaps, talisman crafting was not his thing, the old man thought.

Liu Xun was still deeply perturbed by the words clouding upon his mind as red savage qi slowly leaked upon his fingertips. His brush slowly waved in another fashion, slowly writing a different word.

!!!

Senior Gan was deeply shocked by the revelation that the youth had. Is he actually trying to make a talisman stylized to his own fighting style? This is a very honorable thing and quite a few geniuses such as Senior Dongyang have managed to achieve it. Yet, there were many risks. If one were not careful, the product would be a failure. And that is the better and most common outcome, at worst the cultivator may face cultivation deviation while talisman crafting and end up harming themselves or even possibly dying!

"H-hey, Liu Xun! You should probably stop, you may face backlash!"

Gan Xinjian shouted out exasperatedly as he watched the youth continue to write with a dazed look. The youth ignored his words as he kept on writing as if being stuck in limbo. Senior Gan would like to pry the youth off the brush, but he acknowledged that this could possibly be a state of enlightenment that most cultivators would never see in their lives. He did not want to disrupt the youth unnecessarily as it may cause more harm than good. The old man thus watched the youth as he continued to write slowly with red savage qi pouring into the yellow piece of paper.

--

Swiiiish.

And finally, the last stroke was completed on the talisman. It was only after a short while that the young man regained his consciousness as he was woken up from his dazed dreamy state.

"Huh, what happened? I was writing a 'Purple Sword Qi' talisman..."

He said out in a slightly panicked and disoriented tone. Before his eyes was a yellow talisman, on it was blood-red ink yet the word written on it were very different. "Purple" was still the starting word, yet the next two were "Crimson" and "Ax". The borders of the talisman were decorated with intricate designs that seemed like devils were encroaching upon the talisman. Beside him, the yellow-robed old man looked at the youth with intrigued eyes.

"Impressive..." he said out with a short pause. "I would not have expected that you would have obtained a small enlightenment and actually end up creating your own auxiliary weapon talisman. This would be largely useful to yourself."

He then looked at the design as he had a complex expression.

"Well, you better not show this off to anyone or teach anybody. Anyone who looks at this talisman would probably think it is a devilish item. Still, this would be one of your most useful trump cards considering it is vastly compatible with your weapon arts and qi type. It could probably rival an essence foundation cultivator if they were not expecting it! Very impressive for a third stage qi gathering!"

He continuously praised. This was indeed a very surprising achievement. Liu Xun himself had no previous contact with talismans, to be able to produce an auxiliary talisman on his first try meant he had quite an affinity for talisman arts. Not to mention, he still had his other cheats in his system which he had not utilized at this moment. Liu Xun himself was rather dazed and tired after creating that singular talisman. In the end, the young man kept this talisman in his sleeve as he planned to use it in a critical moment.

"Hey, young man. What are your plans for the future?"

The old man suddenly asked an unrelated question.

"Hmm, plans?"

Liu Xun was unsure how to respond to the question. To be honest, he was clueless about what he wanted to do in the future. Cultivation is a goal yet there were many ways to achieve the dao, not all ways would be easy or reach the end. Yet, all of these paths were assumed to be equally valid for different people.

"Yeah, do you want to join a large sect, wander around like a vagrant cultivator or perhaps seek a form of special cultivation?"

Senior Gan continued in greater detail.

"Hmm, I would probably join a large sect...perhaps the Thousand Blossoms Sect."

"Thousand Blossoms Sect, huh...I guess it makes sense. It is indeed the largest, most powerful, and richest sect around the Xin Country. Their leader, Sword Temperance Dao Lord Tian Kun, is a very reputable man. I have also known him for a while."

"Oh Senior Gan, you know the famous core inversion sword cultivator senior?"

"Yeah, I was saved by him once when I was young. I owe that man a very great favor that I am unable to repay. He insists that I do not have to repay it, yet I always feel indebted to him."

"Oh, that senior seems to have assisted you a great deal."

"Yes, back then he was not the sect leader but just an elder. He saved me from a monstrous foe who had killed my parents and wiped my entire village. He repelled that monstrosity and brought me to an orphanage. Back then, I wished to join the Thousand Blossoms Sect as well. I was fuelled by revenge. Alas, my potential and roots were poor and I was not accepted. Senior Tian Kun still provided me aid by giving me the leftover scripts and teaching me some skills which he had picked up. In the end, most of what I know now and taught you were once given to me by the Dao Lord himself. I wandered around as a vagrant cultivator, but I still offer my services to the Thousand Blossoms Sect due to my debt towards him. Once he became the sect leader, he had actually invited me to join them. I was very proud to be recognized by him, but I could not bother him any further. And I guess, I have gotten to enjoy the life of freedom."

The old man spoke of himself humbly as he described his long journey as a cultivator. Obtaining mediocre resources as a vagrant cultivator, picking up small tips and tricks as he lived through every battle by the edge. Gan Xinjian's life was filled with struggles and excitement. Liu Xun could feel the essence of a true cultivator emitting from the old man himself. He may not have the cultivation base like others his age, but his wits, experience, and abilities are definitely up to par with the rest or perhaps even better.

"Anyways, I have told you all of this because I trust you. If you require to use my name to gain leverage to enter the Thousand Blossoms Sect, don't hesitate to do so. I believe that you will definitely become a great cultivator. Much greater than me, perhaps even greater than Lord Tian Kun himself!"

The old man exclaimed with excitement. Liu Xun felt embarrassed at his excessive praise, it was a first that someone who was not his family had such high expectations for himself.

"I am very humbled by your words. Senior should not expect too much out of me, lest you be disappointed."

He replied in a perfunctory tone, knowing that this praise is perhaps too much to expect of himself.

"No, I am sure you will become someone big. Just survive! And I would like to ask a small favor if possible."

The old man continued to insist, while actually bringing forth a request.

"A favor?"

Liu Xun was confused, he had not expected that the senior would request something from a qi gathering cultivator like him.

"I have looked at the stars for the past few nights. They have pointed my fate towards something ominous. Chances are, I would not be able to leave this mountain range alive."

The old man delivered a large bomb, he then continued his words.

"I would like to ask this of you. Should you live, while I die. I would like for you to deliver the wooden spirit compass, the large batch of qi burst pills, talismans, and artifacts in my storage bag to the Thousand Blossoms Sect. I have borrowed a large amount of it from the sect and I would like to repay the sect leader even if it is on my deathbed. You can take some of the resources that I own should I no longer need them, I trust you."

Liu Xun felt troubled. He had not expected that his minor acts of assisting and talking to the old man could easily obtain the shrewd man's trust. Yet, this was not really the case. Senior Gan had always been observing Liu Xun himself. The way he acted, his shrewdness and maturity in handling fights, his judgment while siding with Millie, and such. It had fascinated the old man that such a young yet astute and battle-hardy youth existed from a small secular family. This decision was definitely not sudden and also not without reason. Anyways, this was all under the premise that something happened to the old man while Liu Xun remained safe. This scenario was highly unlikely. Anyways, the two separated shortly after that as the youth was exhausted.

He then retired back into a corner to undergo meditation to slowly restore his qi as he expended a great deal creating that talisman. Senior Gan then continued to produce more talismans to increase his reserves. In the end, it was only a few hours later when everybody was awake that the group decided to continue their exploration of the Yin Frost Basin. Even though it was almost time for the group to split up, they had decided to stick together for a while longer since the situation in the basin seemed uncertain and possibly very dangerous.

A new day of exploration has just begun.