Interpretation of Charms

Because the talisman testing needed to be synchronized, the number of batches remained unchanged at ten, but the number of people in each batch was reduced.

Now, there were only over two thousand people in each batch.

Moreover, the time allotted for each batch of talisman masters to draw their talismans remained the same as in the first round.

Obviously, the fluency and proficiency of crafting talismans were also factored into the speed test.

Among the first batch of talisman masters, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu still did not see Liu Chun's figure.

Once the time for the first batch of talisman masters was up, they left the stage one after another.

There was a total of one hundred talisman testing platforms. At this time, two hundred cultivators dressed in Lianying Hall attire came to the testing platforms at the very front of the venue holding storage rings. In groups of two, they stood on the left and right sides of each testing platform.

After cupping their hands in greeting to the onlookers, they each took out a bag of talismans that had just been collected from the talisman masters from their respective storage rings.

Then, they took out identical talismans from inside, showed them to the audience below the stage in a half-circle, and subsequently, the two individuals on the left and right simultaneously placed the talismans in their hands into the testing platform.

Perhaps it was agreed upon in advance, as the first talisman tested on every platform was a Fireball Talisman.

Within a single breath after being placed into the testing platform, the fire talisman was activated.

With a boom, the talisman within each testing platform spewed out a massive fireball.

Fortunately, there were barriers around the testing platforms, and all the energy was completely blocked inside.

The crowd could only see their visual effects and could not personally feel their power.

However, of course, the function of the testing platform did not stop there.

The so-called comparison of talisman energy naturally could not be judged solely by visual effects.

Next to the place where the talisman was placed on each testing platform stood a slender, transparent pillar, which looked very much like a thermometer to Lin Xiao.

After each talisman was triggered, a red light inside the transparent pillar would continuously shoot upward, eventually stopping at its peak.

This peak was exactly the peak energy of the tested talisman.

Obviously, whoever had the higher peak would have their count of qualified talismans increased by one.

After seeing the comparison of the peaks, the testing personnel would record on the side whose talisman passed this round of comparison.

After the first talisman, the Fireball Talisman, was tested, it was time for the next one, the Water Sword Talisman.

The testers first waited for the effects of the talisman inside the testing platform to dissipate before opening it. Then, after touching some unknown spot, the red light that had previously settled on the transparent pillar completely disappeared.

Then, they placed the second talisman, the Water Sword Talisman, into it.

The time it took to draw the talismans was much longer than the time they lasted once activated.

Therefore, the testing speed was still very fast.

As the ten talismans of each group finished testing, every testing platform produced a comparative result.

For most testing platforms, the number of qualified talismans basically resulted in one side having two or three stronger ones, while the other side had seven or eight that were stronger than the opponent's.

Only a few had a qualified count of five on both sides, or four on one side and six on the other.

If anyone had the exact same number of qualified talismans, they would wait until all the competitions in the second round were over. Then, they would compare the peak data of each talisman belonging to those who only had five qualified talismans, and eliminate the half with the poorer peak data among them.

Watching the successive batches of talisman masters concentrating on crafting talismans on stage, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu coincidentally shifted their gazes to the testing platforms that were bursting with various special effects.

Normally, Jiang Youfu did not have much opportunity to witness such offensive talismans, so this time it was quite an eye-opener for him.

"So this is what cultivators use to fight. I thought talismans were all like the ones in our sect, used for talking and running away."

Of course, he said this to Lin Xiao via voice transmission; he wouldn't dare mention their sect in a place with so many people.

Hearing this, Lin Xiao replied,

"Cultivation isn't just about fighting all the time. Naturally, our sect's talismans are more practical. Think about it, do we normally use voice transmission talismans more, or these offensive talismans?"

Jiang Youfu scratched his head,

"That's true, we've never even used offensive talismans. Usually, voice transmission talismans are consumed the most. I see Elder Liu making voice transmission talismans the most every day in the talisman crafting room, aside from the ones meant to be sold."

Lin Xiao patted Jiang Youfu on the shoulder and sent a voice transmission to him,

"However, even though we use them rarely, we still need to know how to use them. Otherwise, if we're out of practice at a critical moment, it will be troublesome. When we have time later, I'll practice more with you. Although we keep a low profile when we are out and about, there are too many lunatics in the world. We don't know when we might run into one, so we must be prepared."

"Lunatics?"

Jiang Youfu didn't quite understand. He secretly glanced around at the surrounding cultivators and asked,

"Why would there be a lot of lunatics? These people look pretty normal to me..."

Lin Xiao shook his head at him, sighed, and said,

"Sigh, Fuzi, you don't know. What the world lacks least are lunatics wearing human skin. Some people are only crazy towards themselves, but others are keen on taking their madness out on others. Honest people like us can only heighten our vigilance."

Finally, in the afternoon, when the seventh batch entered the venue, Lin Xiao and his companion finally spotted Liu Chun in the crowd.

"Elder Liu has come out, Brother Xiao!"

"I see him, I see him. Let's pay attention and see who collects his talisman bag later."

With Liu Chun's appearance, Lin Xiao and his companion finally stopped just staring at the testing platforms and instead focused all their attention on him.

On the stage, Liu Chun, who was making preparatory checks, suddenly felt that sensation of being watched again.

He glanced around at the audience in slight confusion but didn't find anything unusual.

Hiding in the sea of people, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu quickly averted their gazes the moment he looked toward the audience seating, pretending to look at something else.

Thus, a somewhat puzzled Liu Chun had no choice but to lower his head and wait for the gong to strike to begin.

In his heart, however, he thought that he would have to be extra careful once the competition was over.

After all, he was now someone carrying a massive sum of sect funds.

Just like that, with the sound of a gong, the drawing time for the seventh batch began.

However, although the time it took for the testing platforms to test a talisman was far faster than the time it took for the talisman masters to draw one, the efficiency of one hundred testing platforms was naturally still not that high.

By the time the seventh batch left the stage, the testing platforms were still testing the talismans of the fifth batch.

Fortunately, whether it was the audience or the participants here, they were all cultivators and didn't feel much about this passage of time.

Only occasionally would some Qi Condensation stage cultivators who were unwilling to eat Fasting Pills go grab a quick meal or something to take a break.

When the talisman masters of the seventh batch left the stage, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu's eyes remained fixed on the staff member who collected Liu Chun's talisman bag, never straying for a moment.

They watched him until he, carrying the storage ring containing Liu Chun's talisman bag, finally stepped onto a testing platform at dusk.