Chapter 124

Chapter 124: Attempting the Refinement of the Thunder Talisman

Chen Yang marveled at the wondrous transformation of the spirit pearl. This meant his acquired mystical ability could be further refined, with a much higher ceiling.

Lingrui possessed both talent and diligence in cultivation, with outstanding temperament and willpower. Refining the spirit pearl acted as the final touch, completing his previously intangible fortune.

"Excellent. Now three Yang youths hold keys to the Condensing Essence stage," Chen Yang mused privately.

Yang Lingrui had mastered the "Book of Seeking the Spirit in Darkness" profoundly. With enhanced fortune and access to Gathering Qi to Condensing Essence methods, his advancement seemed inevitable.

Yang Lingshu would join Wanhuamen in two years. As a direct disciple learning the Spiritual Communication Technique, refining the spirit pearl in his Qi Palace would smooth his path. Breaking through to Condensing Essence within twenty years appeared feasible.

Then there was Yuanhong. The "Black Snake Swallows Clouds" fit him perfectly. Combined with the Hall of Divine Governance’s Transformation Pill, reaching the Twelfth Level would let him ascend like a cloud-riding flood dragon.

These three would ensure the Yang Family’s prosperity for a century.

Threads of wish power drifted into Chen Yang as he contemplated. The Hall of Yang’s Lineage and its stone tablet now stood at Song Mountain’s foot and Sanglu Valley.

People under Yang rule replaced household ethereal gods with carved Cheng Yang tablets, honoring their protectors. Continuous incense from these sites allowed Chen Yang to absorb dozens of wish strands daily in the ancestral hall – enough to form two or three complete wish currents each day.

"This barrier’s tougher than expected." Chen Yang shifted his awareness, sensing the invisible obstruction above. Fist-sized wish energy accumulated through months of devotion surged forward.

*Thud. Hiss.*

The impact scattered, the energy returning to him. Three daily attempts left a faint dent through persistent strikes. True breakthrough remained distant, but Chen Yang stayed patient. Reaching Condensing Essence required steady progress, like water wearing through stone. Compared to human cultivators’ perilous paths, his method felt safe and gradual.

After refining the pearl, Yang Lingrui rose from meditation. "My gratitude for this treasure, Immortal Master."

Though less visibly affected than Yang Lingshu, he sensed mysterious energies stirring whenever practicing his cultivation methods.

“In this exploration, my brother found some stone treasures in the Black Snake Secret Treasure to present to the Immortal Master.”

Yang Lingrui stepped forward, holding four blue crystals discovered by Yang Linghu in the cold pool area of the black snake, and offered them to Chen Yang.

Chen Yang pulled the four crystals to him from a distance and extended his consciousness to examine them.

“They are not mysterious stones, but a type of spiritual ore formed due to the special environment.”

Being stone-related, Chen Yang quickly understood the origin and use of these crystals.

These crystals came from the cold pool area within the hidden treasure, and they had the ability to condense cold essence. If refined with the appropriate methods, they could become a fine spiritual treasure.

He could consume them, but these four crystals were clearly not at the core of this type of spiritual ore and were not mysterious stones; eating them would only slightly increase his spiritual power.

Given his current realm was capped, this extra spiritual power would be of no use to him.

After thinking for a moment, a person popped into his mind, leading to a better solution.

Chen Yang communicated with Yang Lingrui, instructing him to take one of the crystals when he traded talismans with the Fengling cultivator next year.

This person practices the ice path, and these four blue crystals would greatly benefit his technique cultivation.

Yang Lingrui accepted the order and exited the ancestral hall.

After he left, Chen Yang’s mind moved, and he took out the spiritual treasure paintbrush from his storage bag.

After breaking through to Perfected Gathering Qi, he spent three fixed hours daily challenging his realm, and the rest of the time continued studying the Talisman Technique.

Previously, due to being restricted by his realm, he had no way to work on the two talismans related to Perfected Gathering Qi, but now he could finally attempt their refinement.

Just when the He Family had sent over the ancient willow, Chen Yang instructed Yang Lingqing to take about ten pieces of bark from it.

The bark of this ancient willow appeared incredibly thin but possessed greater toughness than many spiritual papers Chen Yang had previously used.

Moreover, this bark had a natural affinity for spiritual ink, enhancing the probability of successful talisman creation during both the drawing and refining processes.

Among the Talisman Inheritance received by the Yang Family, the two most difficult talismans to refine were the thunder talisman and the spiritual concealment talisman.

Of these, the thunder talisman possessed the greatest killing power and ferocity. Due to the extreme, fierce nature of Thunder techniques, and its innate ability to counter evil techniques, this talisman proved exceedingly effective against many evil techniques.

After emerging from seclusion, Chen Yang had attempted to use previous talisman papers, but they could not withstand the energy of the thunder talisman and could only practice the drawing patterns without chanting the technique.

Now that he had the support of this ancient willow treasure, Chen Yang could formally begin refining a complete thunder talisman!

Crackle—

Chen Yang silently recited the talisman chant, and the moment he touched the ancient willow bark with the paintbrush, a spark of thunder flame ignited.

As he continued to draw, the ancestral hall flickered with waves of bright blue light.

Yang Lingqing and Old Yu stood around the ancestral hall in silent agreement, each employing their techniques to cover the beam of light produced by Chen Yang’s talisman crafting.

The process of drawing the thunder talisman was exceedingly long.

After three whole days, Chen Yang barely managed to stamp the intricate patterns of the talisman technique onto the ancient willow bark.

Even with his current spiritual awareness, this level of intensity left him feeling somewhat fatigued, and he could only glimpse a fraction of how powerful this talisman truly was.

Each stroke brought with it a sharp, burning sensation.

The thunder flame surged; he had to maintain complete focus to control the path of the paintbrush. Any moment of carelessness could lead to losing control.

“The He Family really timed this gift well; it’s precisely this perfect ancient willow bark for Gathering Qi. If it were made of any other talisman paper, it would likely not withstand even a single stroke’s might,” Chen Yang thought to himself.

Once the drawing was finished, the next phase would be an even more challenging refinement stage.

If this had been before, Chen Yang would have surely felt uncertain, but now he possessed sufficient cultivation level and had begun to grasp the power of wishes, giving him a solid 60% confidence.

“Rise!”

Gathering his energy, Chen Yang settled his focus slightly before beginning to channel his spiritual power into refining the thunder talisman.

Crash!

As expected, trouble emerged almost instantly.

A small blue bolt of lightning flashed, swirling in the air before striking directly at Chen Yang.

“Armor!”

With a thought, the dark outer armor enveloped him in an instant.

Smash!

The lightning struck down and dispersed upon hitting the hard armor.