Destiny in Cinders

The shopkeeper could easily tell what the young Dustdawner had his eyes on. He laughed and said, "It is a precious item indeed, harvested from a mature goldfur bear 150 years of age. Its fur and skin have been sold to the owner of Honor Pavilion. They were worth thousands of silver. If you wish to acquire the paw, Master Xuan..."

He had wanted to say that pawning the mirror wouldn't be enough for the paw, so An Jing would have to sell the mirror without a chance of redeeming it or pawn it along with other rare items from Dustdawn. But the thing that happened next caused him to widen his eyes in shock. Before he even spoke, An Jing took out a stack of talismans.

"Talismans of this quality?!" Both Manager Li and the shopkeeper of Fullyield drew a cold breath at the sight. Though the talismans didn't seem particularly potent and only contained typical techniques, the patterns on them were a sure sign that they were produced by a large clan! The strokes were clear and flowed well, making it so that even someone with the slightest hint of vigor would be able to use them!

Talismans, unlike most other items, were no different from unleashed techniques. A decently made talisman could be activated by those who reached the Silk Aura Stage with the slightest bit of qi essence. The more badly they were made, the more qi essence one would have to expend to activate a talisman. Sometimes, the cost was even higher than a normal execution of the technique would require. While that could still make up for some weaknesses, a good talisman did that without the hefty cost.

Truly high quality talismans were those that could be used by non-martialists just by using natural vigor! Not many people in Grand Chen could reach the Aura Realm and become proper martialists, but there were quite a few martial practitioners that could use the vigor in their bodies. These practitioners were incredibly limited in what they could do. As they were unable to access any arcane techniques, talismans were the only way.

However, talismans cost precious ingredients to make. Not to mention, only distinguished officials were proficient enough to draw the right patterns and knew how they functioned. As such, good talismans were typically relegated for strategic use only. Few if any actually made their way into the market. The types that one could actually buy were typically drawn by officials who used to hold imperial titles or unaffiliated esotericists. Quality aside, the types of talismans that they could draw were usually not the useful kind.

An Jing's talismans, however, were different. They were drawn in clear and regular fashion, a sign of the work of a masterful scribe. They were masterworks of the highest caliber.

The shopkeeper of Fullyield even managed to spot a focus talisman in the stack. On the martial path, everything from circulating vigor or honing the mind required calm and focus. Talented people were able to enter a focused state just by closing their eyes and engaging their mind's eye. Those less talented, on the other hand, needed aids such as incense, music, cold jade platforms and focus talismans.

Talismans of this type had wide-ranging applications and were always in demand; they were even better than normal currency! Even the most talented of folks could use focus talismans to reduce mistakes in combat or prevent the loss of control during a breakthrough.

Normally, talismans were sold in sets of five or nine. An Jing had nine of them, all of the finest quality, which held an immense value.

The shopkeeper bent down and spoke in a most respectful tone. "Are you certain that you want to sell this set of focus talismans? They must have been given to you by your noble clan to help you with your breakthroughs! Please do not do anything that would hinder your future progress!"

"I am selling them, so let's not waste words. With my talent, I won't need these talismans at all!" An Jing said with his nose proud and high.

The shopkeeper didn't seem to take any offense and smiled brightly. "That's true indeed! I was a fool! I'll send for someone immediately. Please take a seat for now. Liu, serve the finest tea we have!"

An Jing instantly became an important client of Fullyield Pawn Shop. Manager Li seemed quite glad that he got to taste tea of this quality, something that he normally wouldn't be able to even get a sip of. How could he have known that the rich Dustdawner lad actually had a whole stack of quality talismans in his possession?! No doubt, An Jing's fictional tribe had to have a master talisman scribe!

Sigh, it's such a shame. If I had marked the restaurant bill as paid before telling the young master, he might've used the talismans to settle the bill on the spot! Manager Li thought back at how easily the youth spent his money and imagined how mighty his tribe must have been. He felt bad about not being able to ingratiate himself even more with this promising young man.

Now that Fullyield's shopkeeper notified the main branch, the one who would deal with An Jing moving forward would definitely be the supervisor of the three northern border regions or someone of similar rank. Only someone of that station would be able to establish some kind of cooperative relationship with a large Dustdawn tribe. Fortunately, An Jing still owed Manager Li a favor for the introduction. There might still be something in it for him in the future.

An Jing would be pleased to know what was racing through their minds. All of this was going according to plan. Though Fullyield's reputation was decent, he wouldn't bet his entire future on other people's charity. He believed that as long as he offered enough benefits, nobody, no matter how reputable, would be able to resist him.

That was why he didn't really care about the prices that were offered for the mirror or the talismans. The mirror might be precious, but it was only a common object with no special properties. It wouldn't be worth antagonizing the fictional tribe that An Jing came from just to make a larger profit. The mirror was only there for him to send a signal that he had a wealthy and powerful tribe behind him.

While the talismans were useful, they were consumables at the end of the day. The effects weren't particularly potent either. They were only valued for being very well made. It also showed that the so-called tribe had a talisman scribe among them, which also implied the existence of powerful martialists too. Only the most braindead of fools would choose to offend a talisman-crafting tribe.

When it came to the mirror and talismans, those were not just one-off purchases. The mirror was an expensive family heirloom that couldn't be easily sold off despite its value. However, Dustdawn mirrors did fetch good prices in Grand Chen with the correct buyer. The talismans were even more significant. No company would turn down the chance to establish good relations with a talisman supplier.

As long as An Jing gradually revealed the kinds of goods he had, even the fiercest of merchants would regain their reason and make sure An Jing was satisfied with the transaction to pave the road for more business in the future.

An Jing didn't think that day was far off either. He was quite happy with the identity he had forged for himself and would like to keep it. He could build a reputation and familiarity with a few companies by selling the mirror and talismans.

As for what it cost him to procure those items, the advanced production technology in Skysource made such "precious mirrors" a mere pittance to produce. Skysource's talisman technology was also incredibly developed to the point they were able to produce focus talismans for mass consumption. Though they weren't dirt cheap, they only cost ten merits for five or sixteen merits for a set of nine. Once converted, that was worth less than a hundred liang of silver.

A huge reason that every person in Skysource could cultivate was its advanced technology. Focus talismans were so common in Skysource that they were considered one of many common aids like incense. Many cultivators used them since their childhood and were used to having extra clear states of mind while their baseline state of mind was not that stable. In fact, some of them even suffered withdrawals after going for a while without using focus talismans. Perhaps this was one of the ways corporations maintained a firm hold on the masses.

"Master Xuan, the spirit items you want will be delivered to your room in the inn briefly," said the shopkeeper when he left the back room. "The leader of the hunters that supplied the goldfur bear paw just so happens to have a son who is about to make a breakthrough! He agreed to the trade immediately and is even willing to throw in a fang of the goldfur bear for free as a token of goodwill."

An Jing was genuinely delighted by the unexpected gift. He laughed heartily and said, "If there's a chance, I would love to meet these hunters one day!"

Everything seemed to wrap up well for all parties involved. Blessed Virtue Garden earned An Jing's friendship and brought profitable business to Fullyield. An Jing got his hands on the spirit items he wanted and barely spent any real money. The hunters also managed to procure focus talismans that they would never have expected to be able to purchase!

Soon, An Jing was on his way back to the inn in a carriage that the shopkeeper had hailed for him. A short time later, a few armed guards and a courier delivered the goldfur bear paw straight to his room.