110 Status

"What a pain," Wang Jun said as he exited the small room and met up with Elder Bai. "Did you catch all of that?"

"Most certainly," the white-haired man said. "It's too bad we don't have any concrete proof of their meddling. The mastermind—who is surely not Wang Chen—is far too skilled and leaves not a shred of evidence behind."

"We should be thankful he is so careful," Wang Jun said. "Otherwise, his actions would be so aggressive that all our attempts to profit in this city would collapse instantly. Even if the failure could be justified, it would be difficult for me to secure my position as a contender for the family's leadership. The only reason that he hasn't interfered enough is due to fear of me and my teacher, and I need to make sure that fear remains. The message today finally gave me an opportunity to show off."

"How did you manage to get the information destroyed so quickly?" Elder Bai asked Wang Jun. They were now back at his office and brewing tea.

"Simple," Wang Jun said. "Cha Ming and Huxian disappeared almost three years ago, and I was convinced foul play was involved. I was also convinced that they hadn't died. In the event that they had survived, to reduce their likelihood of being found, I commissioned the destruction of their information. When my cousin went digging, I didn't have to do anything."

Elder Bai chuckled at the revelation, and they moved on to proper business. "How is the permitting process proceeding?" Wang Jun asked.

"With great difficulty," the older man said. "Despite all our best efforts, I can't put our chances higher than fifty-fifty. The crown prince is highly favored by the king, but fortunately the third prince cares deeply about his father. The king is hesitant in showing favoritism. This gives us an intangible edge. The administrative staff in the palace doesn't dare take sides too heavily."

Wang Jun sighed. "Fifty-fifty is still acceptable. If we don't win, it just means that fate is a treacherous lady who likes to string along every good-looking man that comes her way. Now, what about our purchasing plan? How is it going?"

"It seems they haven't noticed yet," Elder Bai said. "We've been able to secure a twenty-percent discount on our purchases. However, I suspect it's only a matter of time until they uncover the truth. What price are we willing to tolerate?"

"Five percent above market price," Wang Jun replied. "Higher than that, and our finances can't take the hit. Let's hope that they don't spot us for some time."

They drank tea for another half hour. Wang Jun looked askance at Elder Bai, who sighed and shook his head.

"There is no need to look into her whereabouts further," Wang Jun said with a tinge of sadness in his voice. "If she's truly part of my story, then I will see her again one day. If not, consider it my loss in life."

***

"Cha Ming," a voice yelled out from behind a crowd in Central Square. Cha Ming recognized it as the voice of the middle-aged manager who he met at the Jade Bamboo Auction House. The man he didn't leave his name with.

That was fast, he thought. He wouldn't be here to cause trouble for me, would he?

Understanding that the man was much more powerful than him, he stopped and turned toward him. He clasped his palms together in greeting. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Cha Ming asked. "It's barely been an hour and a half since we last met."

"To make a delivery, of course," the man said. "The value of the package is substantial, so I must hand deliver it. It is a gift from the second young master. Take care not to lose it." He handed over a small wooden chest.

"What's this?" Cha Ming asked.

It's a core-transmission jade, the man sent to him mentally. Don't open to box here, or you'll invite trouble. To use it, pour your incandescent force into it and focus on the single mark, which is Second Young Master's. The object will take care of the rest. Do make sure you use it in private, as it would be a shame to have such a precious treasure stolen.

After saying these words, the man immediately left. Cha Ming put the box in his Clear Sky World, which was still under the guise of a bag of holding. He didn't return to the hotel immediately and instead continued to the Talisman Artist Guild. It was a relatively small building compared to many of the other guilds near Central Square. It wasn't as opulently decorated as the Spirit Doctor Association, nor as exquisitely crafted as the Spiritual Blacksmiths Association. It couldn't hold a candle to the Geomancer Guild, which obviously subscribed to the philosophy of building things that lasted millennia.

The only building that was comparable to the Talisman Artist Guild was the alchemy workshop. This was very surprising to Cha Ming, who had been told that most alchemists were insufferable and ostentatious. However, it meshed well with the philanthropic display he had seen when he entered Central Square. This was a good sign—it likely wouldn't be too difficult to secure medicinal pills.

Medicinal pills, wealth, and techniques, Cha Ming thought. I need all of these to get more powerful. And to get these, I need status. Getting my talisman artist qualification should allow me to build sufficient status.

While he had a small fortune in spirit-stone ore, he was reluctant to spend too much of it, lest he arouse suspicion. The preferred way was for him to generate as much of his own wealth as possible.

With this thought, he pushed open the door to the Talisman Artist Guild. The entrance of the small building was a storefront which displayed a large variety of wares. Hundreds of talismans were stored behind glass cases. They were separated by both element and grade, and anyone could walk around and inspect them freely—without touching, of course. Activating a talisman would not only lead to the loss of the product but could also cause significant damage to the storefront.

As he walked to the serving desk, the grade of talismans on display increased. As such, the amount of display space allocated to each individual talisman increased as well. Near the desk, he saw a display which contained twenty magic talismans. Twelve were least-grade talismans, six were low grade, and two were mid grade. There were no high-grade talismans. He wasn't sure if this was due to the lack of artists at a sufficient grade or if these items were too precious to display.

Curious, Cha Ming extended his incandescent force to the glass case, only to discover that it was being repelled. The clear material encasing the talismans was rejecting spiritual force like oil did water. Which was unfortunate, because without accessing the case, he would not be able to survey the talismans with great enough accuracy. As such, he could only commit the superficial lines and characters to memory for the Inferno Talisman, the Respite Talisman, the Earth Dragon Talisman, the Frost Dragon Talisman, and the Hundred-Blade Talisman. It was only a cursory examination; he knew that it would be difficult to replicate them without further study.

The other talismans were far too intricate to study on such a basic level, with intertwined lines and circular relationships that could not be represented in two dimensions. The characters posed no problems, of course, but even the simplest least-grade talismans took advantage of an array embedded within the sheet of paper that regulated the usage of the runic characters. Which, he noticed, were drawn with poor quality in all twenty talismans he observed.

"What can I do for you today?" a young man who had just ended a calligraphy exercise asked from the counter. He was about the same age as Cha Ming. A bronze badge with the number six was situated on his chest. The badge was inscribed with a variety of runic characters that said "Certified by the Quicksilver Talisman Association."

"I'd like to apply to join the association," Cha Ming said.

"Of course," the man said. "Please give me your qualification jade, and I will proceed with the application."

Cha Ming blushed slightly. "I'm afraid I don't have a qualification jade."

The man raised his eyebrows. "Have you never taken an exam before?" Cha Ming shook his head. "Are you knowledgeable in talisman arts?"

"Somewhat," Cha Ming said. "Is there a way to take exams here?"

"Of course," the man replied. "However, you will need to start from the first level examination. Exams up to sixth grade are conducted in groups, while the higher examinations are conducted on an individual basis. The fee for the first-grade examination is one mid-grade spirit stone, and you must supply your own materials."

Cha Ming thought the price rather high but was unable to determine if things were simply more expensive in this kingdom or if the occupation was simply lucrative.

Should I really be wasting my time like this? he thought. Taking exams one by one at his level was far too troublesome. He spread out his incandescent force softly and non-intrusively, sensing seven other people with incandescent force on the premises. One small location was completely isolated from his intrusion. Judging by the furniture outside, it was the office of the guild leader.

"Song Bao, I'll be taking care of this fellow Daoist," said a voice from a room in the back. It was transmitted using incandescent force, one of the seven Cha Ming had sensed. Before long, a man wearing red robes and long silver hair appeared. He wore a silver badge on his chest with the character for "middle" on it, symbolizing his status as a mid-grade talisman master. The man clasped his hands together and bowed slightly. "Greetings, fellow Daoist, what can I do for you today?"

Cha Ming bowed back. "My name is Du Cha Ming, and I would like to join the association as a talisman artist, but I have never taken an examination. Will this be possible?"

"It's definitely possible, fellow Daoist," the man said. "My name is Feng Huoshan. I can directly assess your capabilities all the way to ninth-grade artist. Is this sufficient for you, or will you be applying for another rank?"

"I believe I might be able to apply for master qualification, but I am unsure what an examination for this would entail," Cha Ming said.

"Very well. Explaining it to you is not a problem," Feng Huoshan said. "In order to gain your qualification, you must simply participate in an exam that takes place twice per year. The next exam is in two months. Within the span of three days, those testees must produce ten different magic talismans of, at minimum, least grade. The exam tests both one's versatility and one's ability to achieve a thirty-three-percent success rate while crafting."

Cha Ming scratched his head, embarrassed. "Unfortunately, I only know four types. Is there a place where I can learn additional talisman formulas?"

"Most certainly," the man replied. "However, you must complete a ninth-grade artist examination, and you must then buy a library card and library credit. If you have money, you can study in the library."

So straightforward, Cha Ming thought. He had expected the association to hoard its knowledge.

"I'll have to trouble you, then," Cha Ming said. "Do you sell liquified elemental essence here? If so, how much does ten taels cost?"

While he wanted to buy more, he only had a limited amount of mid-grade spirit stones left from the bandits' belongings. He also wasn't sure if exchanging ore was possible like it would be at the Jade Bamboo Auction House. That is, if he were inclined to trade it there.

"That would be 125 mid-grade spirit stones," Feng Huoshan said. Then, seeing Cha Ming place 125 mid-grade spirit stones on the table, he quickly pulled a vial out from his robes. "It's troublesome to get it from the back, so this is from my personal stock. Please, follow me to a room in the back where we won't be interrupted."

They passed a library, a common room, a brush maker, and what looked a board that listed assignments. Soon they arrived in a room containing a writing desk and a mannequin of sorts.

"You would normally need to take the exams one by one," Huoshan explained. "But we make an exception for foundation-establishment cultivators, as their strong souls allow them to master mortal-grade talismans very quickly." He motioned to the seat. "The exam is quite simple. You have one hour to craft ten different ninth-grade talismans. If you can complete these at greater than 60% peak effectiveness, you pass."

Cha Ming scrunched his brows when he heard this. He had never drawn ninth-grade talismans. Mortal-grade talismans normally contained between one and three complementary characters. While he knew a wide array of characters, he had never drawn them as talismans before.

Cha Ming sat down on the chair and soaked up liquified elemental essence into his brush. It drank greedily until there was nothing left in the large vial. It looked rather small for something containing ten taels, but liquified elemental essence was quite heavy for a liquid.

After filling his brush, he rummaged through his mental space, summoning the various characters he'd mastered in Fuxi's Library. With a wave of his hand, the weakest nine thousand disappeared. Then, the weakest nine hundred of these remaining ones vanished. Soon, he selected what he saw as the most powerful basic characters that could be imprinted onto a talisman. After all, not all runes could be used on their own for a desired effect. The word "massive" was hardly useable on its own, and neither was "miniscule."

He settled on characters like "absolute zero" and "sublimation," extreme characters that denoted powerful, high-energy changes. They were the most complex to paint, but they had the highest chance of qualifying as ninth-grade talismans.

***

Feng Huoshan was bored. He had brought this fellow Daoist here out of respect for his cultivation base, but now the young man had chosen to sit still for fifteen minutes, wasting his valuable time. Still, it was impolite to do anything else but wait, so wait he did.

Suddenly the young man moved. His brush flowed with elegant grace, painting a marvelous blue pattern onto the provided talisman papers. The character resembled calligraphy. Unusual calligraphy, because he did not recognize the character.

Is it truly a ninth-grade talisman that he is painting? Time would tell. The testing mannequins were very accurate, and regardless of the effect, they would assess it accordingly. Even something subtle like healing or weakening could be assessed.

A few minutes passed, and the obscure character was completed. The talisman paper turned a light shade of blue, complementing the mixture of blue and white that composed the talisman. The temperature of the room quickly plunged.

Natural phenomena on creation? he thought. This shouldn't be possible before magic grade.

The young man didn't pause and moved on to the next talisman, swiftly taking advantage of every moment. Huoshan didn't understand this character, either, but he knew it had something to do with earth. Many characters had commonalities, radicals that combined into characters. Just like before, the character solidified. The cold in the room was soaked up into the yellowish-brown talisman. The humidity in the air was absorbed as well.

Talisman after talisman produced their own phenomena. It wasn't until the sixth that the man realized two frightening things. First, the young man could paint in five elements. This was a rare but prestigious thing in Quicksilver City. Second, he hadn't failed a single time in their production. This meant that his skill level was definitely at least master level. That is, as far as runes were concerned.

Cha Ming finished fifteen minutes before the time ran out, despite having taken fifteen minutes to do what Huoshan could only assume was adjust his frame of mind. "Congratulations, you've finished the first part. However, we must still test these talismans on the testing mannequin to validate the result."

"Must we?" the boy asked. He seemed pained at the thought of using these talismans.

He's a foundation-establishment expert for heaven's sake, Huoshan thought. Why is he such a miser?

"Yes, it's a necessity," Huoshan replied. Normally he could have used his spiritual force and knowledge of characters to determine the result. Unfortunately, he didn't know a single one of these characters. He was truly curious to see their effect. "You may begin."

***

Cha Ming was nervous. It wasn't that he was worried about money, but rather that he wasn't entirely sure what constituted a ninth-grade talisman. His education with Elder Ling had been cut short, and he was sorely lacking in what should be basic knowledge. Besides, even if these were legitimate talismans, he wasn't sure what the man meant by sixty-percent efficiency. Was there such a thing as efficiency? Why hadn't he heard about this before?

Gritting his teeth, he threw the first light-blue talisman out at the mannequin. The room was suddenly transformed into a freezing icebox. The mannequin was frozen solid, but a display at the back of the room showed measurements.

Half-Step Magic Talisman. Efficiency—97%.

Cha Ming was pleasantly surprised. He had indeed made a mistake—the characters he had chosen were too powerful. What a mannequin, he thought. I wish I had one.

One after another, he threw the talismans out. One absorbed moisture and power, another poisoned the mannequin. Another sliced it in half, and another burned it to ashes. The mannequin recovered quickly every time. Naturally, these talismans would not have such a pronounced effect against him personally, but he would still need to divert some qi to defend against them. He decided then and there that he would make a large number of basic talismans in his spare time, as their effects in large amounts could be devastating.

Finally, the last talisman was expended. Each talisman he painted had been a half-step magic talisman with an efficiency ranging between ninety-five and one hundred percent. Only one, an Inferno Talisman, had achieved a perfect score.

"Congratulations!" Huoshan said. Then he handed him a bronze medal with a nine on it. "Here is your qualification. With this, you can go get a library card and will have access to all our facilities."

"Excellent," Cha Ming said. "Thanks for the trouble."

"Not at all, the pleasure is mine," Huoshan said. "In the future, I wouldn't mind buying some of these talismans off you. Perhaps I could glean some insights from them."

Cha Ming instantly realized that the characters he used might not have been familiar to the man.

"Naturally," Cha Ming said. "Can I trouble you with something, however? I am looking to exchange spirit-stone ore for spirit stones. Is there a place I should visit?"

"Spirit-stone ore, you say?" The man contemplated for a while before replying. "With small amounts, you can go to auction houses. For quantities greater than one thousand jin, you can go to the commodity exchange in Central Square.

"Much obliged," Cha Ming said. "Then if you'll excuse me, I'll be back tomorrow."