Han Li walked back to his room with joy, clutching the wooden box containing the "Golden Bamboo Pen." He had exchanged three bottles of "Yellow Dragon Pills" and four bottles of "Golden Marrow Pills" from the girl for this treasure and the bag of Seven Star Grass seeds. Afterwards, he casually bought some cinnabar from other stalls and hurried back, eager to begin his talisman-making endeavor.
Entering the small building by breaking the prohibition, Han Li saw the little monk still meditating. He didn't want to disturb him, so he went upstairs and returned to his room.
After arranging the talisman paper and cinnabar on the table, Han Li took out the Golden Bamboo Pen and began to immerse himself in the creation of the "Mind-calming Talisman."
Following the method of talisman-making as described in the Mind-calming Art, Han Li infused his spiritual power through the pen's handle held in his right hand, then lightly dipped the pen tip in some cinnabar and began drawing the talisman on a piece of paper.
After a quarter of an hour, Han Li stood up with a pleased expression, stretching his slightly sore waist. He looked at the shimmering talisman on the table with delight.
From the appearance, this talisman was identical to the one used by Inkmaster, although the spiritual energy contained within was slightly weaker. Nevertheless, it was much stronger than the inferior products Han Li had made in his previous practice sessions, which lacked any spiritual power.
Excitedly examining the newly made talisman, Han Li prepared to try the Mind-calming Art. However, before he could cast the spell, the spiritual power on the talisman suddenly became chaotic, showing signs of erupting.
Startled, Han Li hastily threw the talisman away.
With a "puff," the Mind-calming Talisman inexplicably ignited in mid-air, turning into a fireball and burning to ashes.
Han Li stared blankly at the empty space, speechless. After a while, he sighed, realizing that the talisman had failed.
Feeling somewhat discouraged, but not losing confidence, Han Li believed that the talisman he had just made was very close to success. He was confident that with a little more effort, he would definitely succeed next time.
For the rest of the day, Han Li made one Mind-calming Talisman after another, but each one failed continuously.
Some of the talismans he made either burned on their own or exploded suddenly, while others lost their spiritual power as soon as they were drawn, becoming useless scraps of paper.
When Han Li looked at the last talisman he had just completed, which exploded into smithereens with a "pop," he, who had always been calm, couldn't help but look up at the ceiling and curse:
"Damn heavens, are you mocking me? Twelve talismans in a row, and I couldn't succeed once! This is just a basic Mind-calming Talisman of the lower rank! Could it be that today is not the right day?"
After saying this, Han Li felt a lot better, and his mood improved slightly.
After thinking for a moment, Han Li glanced at the table with only half of the cinnabar left and the Golden Bamboo Pen. He felt that the problem did not lie with these things. Because he had smoothly infused his spiritual power into the pen handle, and the cinnabar became spiritually energetic when painted on the talisman paper, unlike fake products.
Unable to think of a reason for a while, Han Li decided to ask the little monk to see if he could enlighten him. At this moment, Han Li realized that having someone like a senior to guide him on the path of cultivation was really important, and he began to think about apprenticing himself to a master.
