Chapter 14: Symbol Magic
"Zhou family is talking nonsense."
"No one believes their bullshits."
In Lin Die's courtyard, Lin Ying was cursing at Zhou family, believing that they were talking nonsense. She thought old man Zhou Quan probably never even fought against the Iron Wood Demon Wolf, so there was no injury or defeat - they simply betrayed the Lin family.
"Old Ten, forget it, Dad must have a plan"
"Yes, Lin Ying, don't get too excited"
Lin Jiang also nodded, he didn't believe the Zhou family's words either. But even if he didn't, now was not the time to act. The Lin family's foundation was still unstable. Among the Lin family descendants, there were only four in the Foundation Building Period, not capable.
Lin Batian probably saw this too, that was why he didn't blow up and chose to tolerate it.
"I will remember this grudge, it's not that easy to resolve"
Lin Ying was still very angry. Blood was thicker than water. Several Lin family juniors had died, they were all her younger siblings and nieces. This grudge must be avenged.
"We will talk about the grudge later, let's focus on healing first"
"Third Sister, take good rest. I'll go back first. Lin Ying, do you want to rest at home or come with me to Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa?"
"Let me go and check on Mom"
"Let's go together."
Lin Jiang nodded, and then returned to Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa with Lin Ying. Zhuang Rong found out that the two families wouldn't fight and felt relieved.
She didn't care about seeking revenge or not, she only worried about her children. The Zhou family was not weak, if they really fought, the Lin family would suffer losses.
Lin Batian knew Lin Ying was at Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa, so he sent some medicine for her injuries and instructed her to take good care of herself.
Lin Ying's injuries were not serious, she just needed rest. It was estimated that she would fully recover in two to three months at most. She was currently lively and active.
However, Lin Ying wanted to take the opportunity to be lazy. At Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa, she was the most favored. In front of her was her mother, and beside her was her older brother. She enjoyed being showered with love and didn't want to recover too quickly.
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At Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa, Lin Jiang stood by the window. In front of him, Zhuang Rong and Lin Ying were chatting by the fire, and they even caught and roasted several chickens and ducks from the farm. Lin Ying's ability to cause trouble was not inferior to two mischievous cats.
This scene was heartwarming and made Lin Jiang feel comfortable. If possible, he wanted to maintain this kind of life forever. However, in reality, Lin Jiang was considering how to leave the Lin family.
He was already forty-five years old. In recent years, he had been growing a beard to make himself look more mature and older, in order to conceal his secret. Otherwise, he would still look seventeen, which was abnormal. Even for cultivators who took good care of themselves, it would be difficult to achieve this.
Lin Jiang could disguise himself as a middle-aged person, but what about when he became old? Once he reached the age of sixty in the Qi Refining Period, his vitality would start to decline rapidly and he would age quickly, unless he spent a lot of money to buy an Appearance Adjustment Pill.
But Lin Jiang was a man, and men rarely cared about their appearance. The main purchasers of Appearance Adjustment Pills were usually women, like Zhuang Rong.
Even if Lin Jiang used this excuse, it couldn't delay for long. The lifespan of cultivators was usually around one hundred years, and even those who practiced good health preservation could only live to one hundred and twenty at most. And those were the few exceptions.
Lin Jiang didn't think he could reach the Foundation Building stage before the age of one hundred. Even if he tried his best, his aptitude was still a factor to consider.
So Lin Jiang had been thinking about this problem for a long time, how to break free, and where to go after that. Without the protection of the Lin family, he would have to face many problems in the future, such as safety and income.
Right now, he was relying on the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa. He didn't have to worry about food and drink, and he had abundant cultivation resources. He even had some savings every year. But what would he do after he lost this property? These were all questions he needed to carefully consider.
"I still need to use the Appearance Fixing Pill. This way, I can delay aging for several decades. Zhuang Rong has been good to me, and I must take care of her in her old age. Then I can save money and break free. By that time, I can go to Anhua City or other major cultivation cities, start a business or open a shop."
After considering for a long time, Lin Jiang made up his mind. The most important thing about using the Appearance Adjustment Pill was to take care of Zhuang Rong in her old age. Lin Jiang saw Zhuang Rong's love for him and it was deeply ingrained in his heart. He had to repay her kindness.
Now, Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa earned more than eight hundred spirit stones every year. With Lin Jiang's expenses, he could save about five hundred spirit stones each year. After several decades, it wouldn't be difficult for him to take away tens of thousands of spirit stones when he left. This amount of money was already a lot, enough for Lin Jiang to settle down elsewhere.
"We also need to find another protection technique. I think symbol magic is quite good."
Immediately, Lin Jiang considered the issue of safety. In fact, over the past two years, Lin Jiang had increased his practice of spells and swordsmanship. Although he hadn't had much actual combat experience, Lin Jiang felt that he was doing well in the mid-stage of Qi Refining. After all, other cultivators hadn't invested as much time in spells and swordsmanship. Months and years of practice would definitely not be in vain.
But it was still not enough. After all, with his cultivation limited, it was useless to face someone at a higher realm, no matter how proficient his spells were. The strength between both sides was incomparable.
So, other means were still needed. What Lin Jiang thought of was symbol magic. Among the Four Arts of Cultivating Immortals – Pills, Talismans, Items, and Formations – only symbol magic could directly increase a cultivator's combat power. A single spiritual talisman only required a bit of spiritual consciousness and spiritual energy to activate.
Over the years, he had bought many spiritual talismans. Besides the Rain Talismans used for farming, there were also some expensive talismans for killing enemies and protecting oneself. With Lin Jiang's financial resources, he definitely couldn't buy them in large quantities. Therefore, drawing talismans himself was the best choice.
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"Hey, do you want to learn symbol magic?"
When Lin Ying heard that Lin Jiang wanted to learn to draw talismans, her eyes brightened instantly because she was a Talisman Maker.
Lin Batian was strict with his children. When they reached the Foundation Building Period, they were required to choose a craft to learn among Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation. Lin Die chose alchemy, while Lin Ying chose to learn symbol drawing. They had been studying for a few years and had made some progress.
"Jiang-er, symbol magic is a good choice. Your grandfather was an excellent talisman maker. His skills reached the middle grade of the second level. Your dowry was earned from the symbols he made. If you want to learn, I can pass on the symbol magic that your grandfather left behind."
Zhuang Rong also agreed. Her father was able to provide her with a generous dowry because he was an outstanding talisman maker.
Although Alchemy was the most profitable among Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation, if one became proficient in the other three crafts, they would also never lack money.
"Thank you, Mother. It would be great if my sister can teach me the basics."
Lin Jiang didn't decline. The cultivation methods in the world of immortals were tricky. It was almost impossible to learn them without a foundation. The requirements for talent were too high.
Lin Ying's ability to learn was also due to Lin Batian's efforts. The Lin family specifically recruited a talisman maker as an advisor and paid a hefty sum to persuade him to teach Lin Ying the real skills.
"Hehe, no problem. But remember, if you don't listen along the way, you'll get a spanking. As a master, it's my duty to punish you."
Lin Ying laughed loudly and then pretended to be profound, assuming the posture of an old sage, gesturing towards Lin Jiang and causing Zhuang Rong to burst into laughter.
After that, Zhuang Rong also took out the talisman making experiences left by her father from the bottom of the box and gave them to Lin Jiang. She didn't give these things to Lin Ying, which made Lin Ying unhappy. However, she quickly felt better because she wasn't very good at drawing symbols. She preferred cultivation and the exhilaration that came with breakthroughs in her realm.
Lin Jiang bought talisman paper, a talisman pen, and talisman ink, and started learning how to draw symbols with Lin Ying. He studied for two hours during the day and practiced for two hours by himself at night. Because of this, Lin Jiang delegated most of his other tasks, like farming, to Lin Baohua. For things that mortals couldn't do, he would buy spiritual talismans as substitutes.
It was unclear if it was a family hereditary talent, but Lin Jiang's talent for drawing symbols was clearly higher than Lin Ying's. In just half a month, he successfully drew his first spiritual talisman, while Lin Ying took a whole year back then.
This made Lin Ying even more unhappy. How come she didn't inherit this talent from the same parents?
While Lin Ying was recuperating for three months at the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa, Lin Jiang had already learned how to draw five types of spiritual talismans. It took Lin Ying six years to learn how to draw the same five types of spiritual talismans.
