Lin Yi let Xiao He change back into her clothes, then he opened the door to the cave mansion, letting her leave first. After a while, he got up and left too.
With the effect of his title, his cultivation speed bonus had reached an astonishing 70%. This meant that the spiritual energy he absorbed had surpassed the Qi refining cultivator with lower-grade spiritual roots by about 70%.
After leaving, Lin Yi inevitably heard some cultivators discussing nearby, "Who is the Daoist friend who rented the cave mansion? He has been dual cultivating with a girl for two days, an absolute brute!"
"Even if it's an Outer Sect Disciple, it costs fifteen spirit stones a day. That's thirty spirit stones. What's the purpose? To take advantage of the concentrated spiritual energy inside the cave mansion and to feel comfortable?"
"I reckon it's an Inner Sect Disciple, they're the only ones who are rich and can afford plenty of spirit stones."
Listening to these discussions, Lin Yi acted as if nothing happened, handed over the token to the cave mansion manager, then slowly left. He was clearly not the beast they thought he was.
The cave mansion manager felt the aura emanating from Lin Yi and couldn't help but shake his head. He remembered that when this man entered, his aura seemed to be at the peak of Qi Refining Three Layers. But now, it was still at the third layer. He probably failed to break through.
The Qi Refining middle stage is not easy to break through. These Outer Sect Disciples hoped that the concentrated spiritual energy within the cave mansion could create miracles. However, no matter how rich the spiritual energy was, without sufficient spiritual root talent, it would be a waste.
Lin Yi and Xiao He met up at a nearby market, then returned to the Xun Fang Pavilion together. He also took back the five spirit stones that he had kept as a mortgage.
Yu Niang escorted Lin Yi to the door, leaning half her body against him, "Immortal Master, in the future, you must take good care of our home's Xiao He. Recently, the number of people asking about her is not small. Just two days ago, an Immortal Master came to secretly observe Xiao He for a long time. It seems he's a steward from your Liu Yun Sect."
Hearing this, Lin Yi's body suddenly tensed, but quickly relaxed. He casually asked, "Oh, Yu Niang, are you trying to raise the price? That Immortal Master probably just made up an excuse."
Yu Niang covered her mouth and laughed lightly, "I wouldn't lie. That Immortal Master looked rugged and even had a wine gourd hanging at his waist. If you don't believe me, you can ask Hong Yao. She spent a beautiful night with that Immortal Master."
"No need, rest assured, I will take good care of Miss Xiao He in the future." Lin Yi smiled and waved his hand, then left the Xun Fang Pavilion. His expression became gloomy.
In the past month, Zhang Yuan Cheng seemed to have given up. However, Lin Yi had not let down his guard. Unexpectedly, Zhang Yuan Cheng stopped targeting him and started focusing on Xiao He.
A number of possible scenarios flashed through Lin Yi's mind, and thinking about the worst possible outcome, his expression became a little ugly.
He sighed slightly. He just wanted to peacefully cultivate and develop steadily, but it seemed that Zhang Yuan Cheng was not willing to accept that he had settled down with his cultivation. It was as if he wanted to regain his status.
Looking at the current situation, Zhang Yuan Cheng's actions were escalating step by step. Although they hadn't directly harmed him yet, there was no guarantee this would be the case in the future. He had to seize the time to increase his cultivation levels.
Lin Yi strolled around the market in Qing Yun City, casually buying some things. Then he turned into a secluded place. After a while, a robust, energetic martial artist came over and bowed with a fist-cupped hand, "I am honored to meet Immortal Master."
"Brother Xu, I've told you, there's no need to be so polite." Lin Yi waved his hand and said. He then took out a portrait of Zhang Yuan Cheng from the package, "You don't need to set up a stall for the next few days. Just keep an eye on this man around the entrance of the Xun Fang Pavilion."
Xu Zhi Wu carefully examined the portrait and nodded slightly, "Immortal Master, I've memorized it. Do you want me to follow him?"
"There's no need for that, even looking at it too long would be inadvisable. That man is a cultivator, his cultivation level is higher than mine. We only need to keep an eye on whether he comes to Xun Fang Pavilion or not," Lin Yi replied with a shake of his head. He promptly cast a Raging Fire Talisman, burning that painting to ashes. The watchful gaze of an Innate Martial Artist would surely alert the cultivator.
After parting ways with Xu Zhi Wu, he left Qing Yun City. Ever since achieving success in talisman crafting, he hadn't travelled by carriage. Instead, he used the Swift Movement Talisman, coupled with the Gale Step technique, to get around. It was much faster than a carriage, and also gave him the chance to practice his Gale Step.
Unfortunately, it was a pity that Swift Movement Talisman, like the Amulet, couldn't be accumulated for multiple uses. Otherwise, with unrestricted usage, they might even reach the speed of light.
The fastest way to boost cultivation levels is to cultivate in a cave mansion, but that requires ample spirit stone resources. He had earned sixty spirit stones from talisman crafting and spent thirty on renting a cave mansion, leaving him only with thirty stones.
Lin Yi resolved to use all these spirit stones the next day, purchasing talisman crafting materials and to strive to craft more talisman templates to exchange for spirit stones needed for cultivation.
If he were to buy from the small market, these spirit stones could almost be enough to purchase the materials for crafting two hundred talismans. He also had some materials left at home.
He planned to use all of them to craft Raging Fire Talismans. This offensive talisman was widely appreciated by cultivators. Whether for making a quick escape or going on the offense, it had remarkable effects.
Some cultivators firmly believed the best defense is a solid offense. When facing an enemy, just tossing a bundle of Raging Fire Talismans, ensuring either he dies, or they perish.
Having returned home, Lin Yi glanced at the Spirit Rice in the spiritual field that was almost mature. He had a premonition that after the Spirit Rice matured, that fellow Zhang Yuan Cheng would not sit idly by. Most likely, he would do something with the spiritual field. Despite that, he had already prepared himself for any actions.
He gave a bitter smile. What was happening to him? His life was finally secure, yet troubles kept coming, one after another. It was like being an Outer Sect Disciple with no rights.
As for Inner Sect Disciples, as long as they didn't court death, they could cultivate in peace within the sect until their death, and no one would disturb them. Of course, they had to regularly complete some sect tasks because no sect would provide resources for cultivation for free.
After dinner, Lin Yi began to focus on crafting talismans. He frequently crafted Raging Fire Talismans. After he elevated his Junior Talisman Craftmanship to Proficiency Level and the additional effect of the [Talisman Craftmanship Novice] title, his current success rate of crafting Raging Fire Talisman had reached 70 to 80 percent.
The experience points for the [Talisman Craftmanship Novice] title can increase by one point with every ten talismans crafted. The good news was that even failed attempts would count, and crafting a new talisman would also give additional experience points.
With his current total experience points at over 80, he planned to level up his title as soon as possible, thereby gaining a higher success rate and increased power. As a result, the price could also be increased.
By early hours, Lin Yi managed to craft the remaining thirty talisman templates in his home into Raging Fire Talismans, with twenty-three successful outputs, achieving a success rate of over 70 percent.
After a good sleep, the next morning, he took all his wealth, a little over thirty spirit stones, and went to the nearby small market. He first bought out two stalls, obtaining a total of eighty talisman crafting materials, which cost him eleven spirit stones.
As he continued to browse, Lin Yi noticed a familiar figure. The beast hunter had set up a stall again. His Diamond Sutra and Gale Step had reached the proficiency level, all thanks to this senior brother's beast meat.
However, whereas his meat stall was largely overlooked in the past, it was now surrounded by many people. Lin Yi squeezed in for a look and found a small cage on the stall. Inside the cage was a small purple rodent-like creature, jumping up and down, very lively.
At that moment, Lin Yi heard the buzz of conversation around him, "Tsk, I heard monster beasts are very protective of their offspring. I can't believe there are those who would abandon their children."
"Well, if you had a child with a severe illness, would you abandon it? Didn't you hear what the senior brother said? This purple mink's parents are renowned monster beasts, Lightning Minks, who are as quick as a flash, killing people in an instant. Unfortunately, the child they gave birth to had a regressive bloodline, becoming an ordinary mink. No point in keeping such a wasteful creature around."