Chapter 3: The Crazy Guy Selling Talismans

Words : 1963 Updated : May 15th, 2025

After thanking Ava, Keanu went back to school again. He didn't really have anywhere else to go in this unfamiliar city, so school was his only option. Plus, he could always pick up something new there, and even though the world's spiritual energy was thin, the school seemed just a little better than outside. After his last class, he didn't even bother going to see Joy. Grades didn't matter to him. Whether he got a perfect score or a zero, it was all the same. He didn't see the point in listening to some woman nagging. Even though he hadn't started cultivating, his memory was insanely good. If he wanted to learn anything, he'd just hit the library. Over the next few days, Keanu either cultivated or hung out in the library, sometimes dropping in on classes he actually liked. He couldn't care less about skipping too many classes or not getting a diploma. Originally, his dorm housed four people, but one roommate was always at the gaming room, another lived with his girlfriend off-campus, and the third had a home in the city. Keanu sometimes spent whole nights cultivating in the woods on campus, so the dorm was usually empty. Actually, Keanu stayed in the dorm the most. He'd crash there every three days or so to get a decent night's sleep, and spent the rest of his time cultivating. Even though he knew cultivating here probably wouldn't get him anywhere, and that he might not even make it to Foundation Establishment if he tried for the rest of his life. He just didn't know what else to do with himself. His crazy-good memory meant he could remember anything he liked after reading it just once, so he saved a ton of time. Keanu had always kept a low profile in his past life, and now, in this strange place, he was even more low-key. Still, because of that whole love letter thing, people started calling him the "Under-the-Bed Lover." He didn't care at all- he just went about his business as usual. At first, people thought he was pretty shameless for still showing up at the cafeteria and library like nothing happened. But after a while, no one even noticed him anymore. He was just another nobody in the crowd. Two months passed, and Keanu finally managed to reach Level One Energy Cultivation. That was thanks to blowing all twenty grand Ava had given him on herbs, which he boiled into soup, and grinding day and night on cultivation. But he knew that without some outside help, Level One might be as far as he'd ever get. Even if his cultivation was slow, he still got a lot out of his time at the library. In two months, he not only completed the elementary to high school curriculum but also browsed books on medicine and esoteric topics. Though he found these subjects rather superficial, they weren't entirely without merit, given his current Level One state. When summer break came, the library closed for renovations, so Keanu had nowhere to hang out. On top of that, he was basically broke- he only had about two hundred bucks left. If he didn't find a summer job, he'd have trouble just feeding himself, and he wouldn't be able to buy herbs for cultivation. But getting a regular job just wasn't gonna cut it for Keanu. Cultivation had become a habit, providing him with direction, but money was essential. Besides, the meager salary from a job wouldn't suffice for his cultivation needs. He knew how to make pills, but at Level One, he couldn't actually do it yet- and even if he could, where was he supposed to find spiritual herbs or a pill furnace here? So he gave up on making pills and remembered he could still make talismans. At Level One, he couldn't create advanced talismans, but he could manage simple ones like the "Clarity Talisman," "Banishment Talisman," "Protective Talisman," and even basic "Fireball Talismans." He picked up some supplies for making talismans. There were papers, a wolf-hair brush, cinnabar, and so on. Real talismans needed monster skin and blood, but since there were no monsters here, he just had to make do with cinnabar and chicken blood, plus a little of his own mix. Although he couldn't craft high-grade talismans, these simple ones were feasible. Fortunately, high-grade yellow paper mixed with a few herbs sufficed as talisman paper. Yet, this venture depleted his remaining funds. Keanu brewed cinnabar, chicken blood, and some inexpensive herbs into a subtly fragrant crafting mixture. With just a few hundred bucks left, he only had enough stuff to make a little over thirty talismans, assuming he didn't mess any up. Despite being at Level One, Keanu was an expert in crafting Level Five Talismans before. Now, these talismans didn't even qualify as a grade. Out of thirty-something sets of materials, he ended up making eight talismans, two each of the Clarity, Banishment, Protective, and Fireball types. One of the Clarity Talismans he made in a lucky burst actually came out almost First Level, a surprise inside a surprise. These eight talismans took him half a month to complete, averaging less than one per day. The next step was to try to sell them. He knew selling talismans was seen as pushing superstition around here, but the authorities mostly ignored it. Ninos had a large flea market known as the Hallbergs Antique Market, where various antiques and oddities were sold, and some, like Keanu, sold talismans. Keanu had checked out the other talismans for sale- just plain yellow paper with no spiritual energy, going for like ten to maybe a few dozen bucks each, almost never over a hundred. There was no way he was selling his talismans that cheap—if that was the case, he might as well just get a normal job. To avoid recognition and potential disruption to his peaceful cultivation life, or worse, becoming a test subject, Keanu put on some huge sunglasses and a cap pulled way down over his face. Then he went to his destination and set up a little stall in the corner. He spread his talismans out on a black cloth and started his business. Though Ninos had many city inspectors, none patrolled this place, which saved Keanu a lot of trouble. While others relied on selling large quantities of yellow paper talismans, Keanu knew his talismans required discerning buyers. Only people who knew what they were doing would even consider buying them. "Hey, look, a 'Banishment Talisman.' What's this? Hey dude, how much for your 'Banishment Talisman'?" A guy and a girl walked up to Keanu's stall, and the guy asked. Keanu was surprised someone asked about the price as soon as he set up shop. He jumped up and said excitedly, "They're all ten thousand each." "You're nuts..." the guy said, and the two of them just walked off without looking back, leaving Keanu standing there, speechless.

Chapter 3: The Crazy Guy Selling Talismans

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