Chapter 38 – The Accidental Guru

After his talisman was a success, a hint of a smile finally appeared on the talented man’s expressionless face. He held his first-ever Spring Recovery Talisman and came to Lynn Naya. “I’m returning the favor of borrowing the table with a talisman. Please accept it.”

Accept it?

Of course, Lynn Naya would accept it. This talisman, as its name suggested, could heal all wounds and restore a certain amount of spiritual energy, making it perfect for emergencies. In a market where a Light Body Talisman sold for one spirit stone, this thing could sell for at least one and a half or even two.

“Well, I can’t exactly refuse, can I?”

“Exactly.” The man wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He looked at Lynn Naya, his tone very certain. “You’re very impressive.”

Lynn Naya couldn’t agree with that. “You’re mistaken. I’m just an average person who’s a little more diligent than most.”

The talented man didn’t listen. “They said you refined a beast core in just two months, so your time learning talisman-making must be even shorter. Your talent is much greater than mine. Can I come and ask for guidance often in the future?”

Lynn Naya subconsciously wanted to refuse, but then she had a thought. She had some of Senior Sun’s notes. If she could help this talented man advance faster, she could release her other talismans sooner. So, she changed her mind and agreed. “It’s better to learn from others than to work alone. You’re more than welcome.”

Speaking of which, Lynn Naya had another idea. “Have you ever thought about taking on a disciple?”

“No,” the talented man answered bluntly. “I’m not at the level where I can take on a disciple yet. I don’t want to lead anyone astray.”

“You shouldn’t think like that. There are no other teachers, and it’s impossible for the cultivators from the Dao Palace to come down and take on disciples. You may think you don’t have the talent to teach, but maybe what your disciple is missing is a teacher just like you. And by taking on a disciple and teaching them, you can also review what you’ve learned and gain new insights. What’s more, if your disciple surpasses you, wouldn’t you have another person to walk the path with? It’s killing many birds with one stone. Why not?” Lynn Naya asked persuasively.

The talented man thought about it seriously and finally said, “Even though I think your suggestion has an ulterior motive, I admit you have convinced me. There are only a few mortal talisman masters, and the Dao Palace doesn’t pay much attention to us. The more people we have, the more high-grade talisman materials we can get. I’ll go back and think about it.”

Faced with the man’s straightforward answer, Lynn Naya found him to be very interesting.

He was very rigid and didn’t beat around the bush. He said whatever was on his mind. He seemed to be clueless about social norms, but if you thought about it, you would realize that he wasn’t clueless. He just didn’t want to waste time on such trivial things because his mind was only on making talismans.

He came to her house for talismans, said he wanted to talk to her about talismans, and now he was considering taking on a disciple to expand the talisman master community to get more high-grade materials from the Dao Palace to make more talismans.

Lynn Naya couldn’t help but respect this kind of academic talent. “By the way, what’s your name?”

“My last name is Qiao. Qiao Guanyuan.”

“I’m Lynn Naya. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Qiao Guanyuan nodded slightly. “I haven’t showered in three days. I’ll be going now. I’ll visit again another day.”

“Alright. I’m going to the Talisman Master Association to buy materials tonight. Remember to save some for me.” Talisman materials affected the success rate. It wasn’t a big deal for low-grade and mid-grade ones, but Lynn Naya had been trying to make high-grade talismans until she was sick of it, and she still hadn’t made any progress. She planned to change her materials and see if it would have a miraculous effect.

As she watched Qiao Guanyuan leave, Lynn Naya saw Xue Yong walk up to the grapevine and start studying the stone table.

Watching him touch, scratch, and knock on it, as if he wanted to lick it, Lynn Naya’s teeth ached. “I suggest you just throw this table away. It’ll save you a lot of trouble.”

“Why should I throw it away?” Xue Yong immediately became alert and shielded the table.

“Didn’t you say this table was useless before?”

“That was because my talent was low, not because of the treasure table!”

… Lynn Naya was amused. His attitude reminded her of when she used to take exams. Her family would take her to worship Buddha before the exam. If she did well, it was because Buddha had blessed her. If she did badly, it was because she was useless. It was a matter of belief. If it worked, it was because you believed. If it didn’t, it was because you didn’t. No matter what, it was all about self-justification.

But she was more practical now. “In the past, when two talisman masters came from this table, there were already a lot of people coming here. Now that Qiao Guanyuan has broken through here, no one in this courtyard will be able to live in peace.” The more people there were, the more attention she would get. It would not only affect her cultivation, but also make her a target.

Xue Yong wasn’t deaf to Lynn Naya’s worries, but he couldn’t bring himself to throw away the table. “Do we really have to throw it away?”

“I think we can just stop letting people in,” Zhou Yuan chimed in, having been drawn outside by the commotion. “We used to let everyone in, which is why the courtyard is always a mess.”

“But if we don’t let people in, they’ll definitely call us stingy and cold-hearted behind our backs,” Lin Qingwan worried. “This table isn’t much use to us anyway. We shouldn’t let it become a burden in the end.”

“Sigh.” Xue Yong sighed. He knew all this, of course, but it still hurt. “You really think we should throw it away?”

“It’s best if we do.” Lynn Naya said, her voice firm.

“Actually, we don’t have to throw it away. We can sell it,” Scarface Qing said, coming over. “Weren’t those people from the Talisman Master Association obsessed with this table a few days ago? If we sell it to them, we might be able to make a huge profit.” His mind was already calculating.

“We won’t even take money. We’ll just tell them to sell their talismans to us at a discount in the future. That’s a steady stream of income, which is much more profitable than a one-time deal.”

Scarface Qing’s plan was approved by everyone in the courtyard. Although they still felt it was a shame, after weighing the pros and cons, this was probably the best outcome.

But they didn’t expect that the table would end up staying in their courtyard. The people from the Talisman Master Association signed a contract with Scarface Qing but didn’t move the table. They said that if they moved it, the Feng Shuiwould be gone, and it would lose its effect.

As for the people who would come to harass them in the future, it was even easier to deal with them. The table belonged to the Talisman Master Association now. They themselves could only come on the first day of every month.

If anyone else dared to sneak in and let their dirty aura contaminate the treasure table, the Talisman Master Association would refuse to sell them talismans, and they could just make them themselves.

Talismans were very popular in the cultivator market right now. Almost everyone who could afford it had a Light Body Talisman for escape.

There were also Spiritual Fire Talismans and the recently-appearing Spring Recovery Talismans, for which people were lining up to get. With these things, they had a better chance of surviving. Anyone with a bit of sense wouldn’t dare to offend the Talisman Master Association.

So, the table stayed, and Lynn Naya’s courtyard became peaceful again.

Since the people from the Talisman Master Association were so loyal, Lynn Naya wasn’t stingy either. When the Talisman Master Association officially opened its doors to take on disciples and invited her to be a teacher, she gladly accepted.

She had all those insights in her hands. She thought that teaching one person was the same as teaching a group. They could learn as much as they were capable of.

*

In the herb forest, after another day of practicing martial arts, Lynn Naya wiped the sweat from her forehead as she looked at the shattered wood in front of her.

After two months of practice, she had finally mastered the basic martial art, the Green Spirit Sword Technique, that the Dao Palace had given her. After getting the hang of it, she was much more comfortable.

But she still couldn’t control it perfectly. She guessed it was enough to deal with a cultivator in the first layer of QiCondensation. As for the rest, she would have to take it slow.

After checking the Cold Moon Grass in the field and making sure there were no issues, Lynn Naya put a Cleanse Talisman on herself and headed down the mountain.

Today was her first day of teaching at the Talisman Academy. At the very least, being presentable was a good idea.

The Talisman Academy was in the quiet southern area at the foot of the mountain. The buildings were newly built, with large houses and courtyards, and a few more flowers and plants. Nothing too flashy.

When Lynn Naya arrived, there were already a lot of people inside. Some were reading, some were chatting, and some were playing around. As a newcomer, she didn’t attract much attention at first. But when she sat down in the teacher’s seat at the very front, all eyes were on her.

“Who is that?” someone whispered below.

“The only person who can sit there must be a teacher.”

“I’ve never seen this teacher before. Have you?”

“No, this is my first time too.”

“Oh, I remember now. I know who she is. It’s Talisman Master Lynn from the eastern area.”

“Talisman Master Lynn? I’ve never heard of her.”

“She’s the one with the treasure table in her house.”

They didn’t know her name, but once they heard about the table, everyone around her went, “Oh!” and suddenly understood. “So it’s her!”

This time, the way they looked at Lynn Naya was filled with a sense of excitement, as if they had finally met someone they had heard about for a long time.

Lynn Naya, who had heard all the whispers, thought, So I got carried by a table, huh?

Thinking about the origin of the table legend and how things had unfolded, Lynn Naya found it all quite amazing.

She thought that perhaps many of the myths and legends she had heard about in the past had started from a similar coincidence.

This was a good thing. At least people still had some sense of wonder.

Lynn Naya waited in the teacher’s seat until the class bell rang. Then she took out the notes she had prepared the night before and began to speak.

She wasn’t a talented person. Before she could make a Cleanse Talisman, she stumbled and fumbled for a very long time. Every wasted talisman paper was a little bit of experience she had accumulated.

She didn’t know how to talk about grand theories and abstract concepts. She could only tell the people below the experience she had gained bit by bit.

Maybe practical experience was the most effective teaching material. At first, there was some noise below, but gradually, the whispers died down, and the room became quieter. The only sound was Lynn Naya’s voice. After a while, some people in the class were inspired and took out their talisman materials to practice on the spot.

If they failed, they would try again.

If they failed again, they would try again.

The more they drew, the clearer their hearts became. Finally, everything became clear, and a light shone from their brushes.

The light from a low-grade talisman wasn’t very noticeable, but with so many people, the person who reacted before the person who had succeeded was her deskmate. “Yun, did you just succeed?!”

This single statement caused a thousand ripples. Everyone in the front and back looked at the stunned woman in the middle. The new talisman in front of her was quickly picked up and passed around. Everyone wanted to confirm if it was real.

In the end, the talisman was real. Someone had indeed crossed the threshold and become a talisman master right in front of them.

Talisman Master Lynn!

Everyone’s eyes immediately turned to the teacher on the podium. But the podium was already empty. The class bell had rung without anyone noticing, and the lecture was over.