Chapter 46: Chapter 46 Accepting a Job

Translator: 549690339

In the Cultivation World, the speed at which cultivators progress in their cultivation mainly depends on their innate talent.

Some could advance a thousand miles in a single day, while others could only cover a mile in a thousand days. Given all other conditions are equal, the former would achieve much greater heights than the latter.

It is the same for Talisman Masters.

Some people may only be able to draw first-level talismans all their lives, never managing to break through to the second level.

But for some, drawing talismans is as easy as drinking water; as long as their cultivation level is sufficient and their spiritual power robust, they can effortlessly advance through the ranks of Talisman Masters—without facing any challenges at all.

Usually, cultivators who break through to the first level of Talisman Master before the age of fifteen and to the second level before the age of eighteen can be considered among the ranks of “Talismanic Geniuses.”

Although Yue Linger was a second-level Talisman Master, she had only barely managed to break through at the age of nineteen after starting university. She was still far from what people would call a “genius.”

However, this newcomer by her side, who went by the name Master Jiang Cheng, had actually reached the second level by the age of eighteen?

Being second-level at eighteen was definitely genius material!

Yue Linger was astonished by Jiang Cheng’s talent, while Zhou Yunshan across from her was staring at Jiang Cheng with eyes shining brightly.

If Jiang Cheng was a Talismanic Genius with exceptional talent, then perhaps he could truly repair her own Fluorescence Talisman!

“Jiang, my friend, no, Brother Jiang. Are you really not first-level, but second-level!?”

Jiang Cheng replied with a puzzled face, “I am neither first-level nor second-level.”

What…

Could it be…

He was actually third-level!

Yue Linger frowned deeply. She was only shocked for a moment before she realized something was amiss.

A third-level Talisman Master, limited by the strength of their spiritual power, could only be achieved by cultivators in the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Jiang Cheng was still cultivating his Qi; how could he possibly be third-level?

Zhou Yunshan, not knowing much about the way of talismans and unaware of the connection between the third level and Foundation Establishment, heard that Jiang Cheng was neither first-level nor second-level and immediately concluded that he must be third-level!

“Brother Jiang, please must repair my Fluorescence Talisman! If you think six thousand Spirit Stones is not enough, I can offer more!”

Zhou Yunshan took out a square “Reusable Fluorescent Talisman” and handed it over to Jiang Cheng with sincerity.

Jiang Cheng absentmindedly accepted it and said, “I’ll do my best, but I need to first see what the specific issue is with this talisman before I can come up with a repair plan.”

Just as Zhou Yunshan thought everything was going well, Yue Linger suddenly spoke up:

“Jiang, my friend, you cannot possibly be a third-level Talisman Master; what level are you exactly?”

Jiang Cheng was contemplative; he hadn’t claimed to be a third-level Talisman Master, so why was Yue, his friend, attributing that title to him?

However, since Yue Linger had doubts about his abilities, Jiang Cheng decided not to hide his skills any longer. He decisively took out his certificate of award and asked Yue Linger to take a look.

Yue Linger took Jiang Cheng’s certificate and fell into deep thought.

Seeing the unpredictable changes in Yue Linger’s expression, Zhou Yunshan was also very curious about Jiang Cheng’s certificate.

“Yue, my friend, may I take a look at that?”

Zhou Yunshan got the certificate but did not understand the true value of it, so he turned to Yue Linger to ask, “Yue, my friend, is this second-place certificate really that hard to obtain?”

Yue Linger was completely dumbfounded.

She had just wildly brainstormed, trying to guess where Jiang Cheng had sprung from as an unknown and superior expert.

Who would have thought that this guy was actually a pure rookie who hadn’t even passed the first-level Talisman Master exam!

“Zhou, my elder, forgive my bluntness, but this kind of second-place certificate in a talisman contest can be obtained by anyone who studies the knowledge of talismans seriously and practices a bit. Almost anyone could get it.”

Zhou Yunshan thought to himself: So, this means that Jiang Cheng’s certificate is just the proverbial ‘paper tiger,’ huh?

Facing Yue Linger’s explanation, Jiang Cheng seriously refuted her, “Yue, just now you said something that wasn’t quite right. It wasn’t that I practiced casually, but seriously and with diligence, and ultimately, it was with genuine strength that I earned that award certificate.”

Yue Linger sarcastically retorted: If serious practice gets you only a second-class award, then that’s where the real problem lies! You might as well not have explained at all!

Although Zhou Yunshan didn’t understand talismans, he wasn’t foolish. Listening to the exchange between Jiang Cheng and Yue Linger, he roughly guessed Jiang Cheng’s proficiency in talisman crafting.

Most likely, he had no proficiency whatsoever.

Zhou Yunshan once again pinned his hopes of repairing the Fluorescence Talisman on Yue Linger.

Compared to Jiang Cheng’s shoddy award certificate, Yue Linger’s second-tier Talisman Master Certificate was the real deal.

“Yue, do you think there’s any hope for this talisman of mine?”

Yue Linger took a deep breath and said, “Zhou, what I am about to say might be a bit hurtful, so please bear with me.”

Zhou Yunshan: “Speak freely.”

Yue Linger said, “Zhou, your Fluorescence Talisman is meant to provide illumination and brightness near the fishhook when you fish at night, right?”

“That’s right.” Zhou Yunshan nodded.

“Your problem now is that you can’t catch any fish with this talisman, right?”

“That’s right.” Zhou Yunshan nodded again.

Yue Linger took a deep breath, calming herself, and slowly said, “So, what I mean is, is there a possibility that this Fluorescence Talisman isn’t actually broken, and that it’s just you who is failing to catch fish?”

“Impossible!” Zhou Yunshan immediately dismissed Yue Linger’s speculation.

He added excitedly, “Yue, you might not realize this, but I, Zhou Yunshan, was once the night fishing champion of Wuyue City! Back in the day, with this Fluorescence Talisman, I was unstoppable. Even the Dragon King of the East Sea, if it was in the water, I could fish it up. So how could it be my fault? It’s definitely this talisman that’s broken!”

Yue Linger wasn’t someone with a bad temper, but facing the obstinate Zhou Yunshan, she always felt a fire burning inside her.

“Zhou, you must have talked to other Talisman Masters before, right? Did they, just like me, fail to find any problems with this talisman?”

“Yes, but how did you know what they said?”

“Because this talisman isn’t broken! How can us Talisman Masters repair something that isn’t broken?”

“How can it not be broken? If it wasn’t broken, why can’t I catch fish anymore?”

“Zhou, forgive my bluntness, but if you can’t catch fish, you should look more into your own issues rather than avoiding reality and blaming it on the fishing equipment!”

Zhou Yunshan’s face turned red, and his forehead veins throbbed as he argued, “Yue, you don’t understand fishing at all! The business of a fisherman, how could it be so simple?” He went on with incomprehensible words about “position selection for fishing,” “air forces,” and the like…

Yue Linger didn’t want to argue with Zhou Yunshan anymore.

She finally understood why a first-level Fluorescence Talisman could command such a high price of six thousand Spirit Stones.

Because although Talisman Masters could craft talismans, they couldn’t solve the spiritual problems of their clients.

Tired, just let it be destroyed.

“I feel that this Fluorescence Talisman truly has some issues,” Jiang Cheng spoke up.

Like grasping at straws, Zhou Yunshan exclaimed, “Jiang, you mean…?”

As a game balance designer, Jiang Cheng always prioritized balance in his work.

Fishing, in game terms, is essentially a “lottery.” Since it’s a “lottery,” naturally there’s a corresponding “drop rate program” in the game to control the odds.

Drop rates vary, but it’s impossible for there to be none!

If Zhou Yunshan really couldn’t catch any fish, then it’s likely a bug in the “Immortal Gods” system caused his fishing drop rate to plummet drastically.

Jiang Cheng fiddled with the Reusable Fluorescent Talisman in his hand.

“My point is, this Fluorescence Talisman, which can’t catch any fish, I can fix it.”