"Oh, is that so?" Elder Hao's face remained calm, making it hard to gauge his thoughts.

He knew well that Xu Zhixuan had surely exaggerated and embellished the story to some extent.

However, Xu Ping's refusal to join Shuize Sect and his unwillingness to sell them talismans was undoubtedly a fact nailed down.

"Elder Hao, how dare I deceive you? This matter is absolutely true, not a single false word!" Xu Zhixuan assured vehemently while patting his chest.

After a brief pause, his eyes shifted, and he started to embellish again: "Who knows, Xu Ping might have secretly allied with Luoyun Sect."

"Joining Luoyun Sect?"

Elder Hao frowned slightly, though he thought it was highly unlikely, it was not impossible.

If a third-level Talisman Master were to join Luoyun Sect, the damage to their sect could even be more severe than that caused by a Golden Core Cultivator.

During ordinary times, it might still be tolerable, but given the current tense situation, if talents like Xu Ping cannot be used by Shuize Sect, they must be dealt with to prevent future troubles.

Elder Hao pondered for a moment, his gaze fell back on Xu Zhixuan, before he slowly asked, "How confident are you in luring Xu Ping out of Thousand Leaves Mountain?"

He knew well, if Xu Ping continued to stay hidden in Thousand Leaves Mountain, it would indeed be hard to find an opportunity to strike.

But if he could be lured out, and caught off guard in an ambush, he'd have great confidence in preventing Xu Ping from deploying his talismans, solving him in one swift move.

"Lure out?"

Xu Zhixuan was stunned for a moment and showed a difficult expression, "Just based on my current thin friendship with him, I'm afraid it's quite challenging."

He realized clearly, the relationship with Xu Ping had almost been exhausted.

He even doubted whether he could step into the mountain gate if he went to Thousand Leaves Mountain.

"What if we use Core Formation Spiritual Objects as bait?" Elder Hao asked, his gaze intense.

"Core Formation Spiritual Objects?" Xu Zhixuan stirred sharply in his heart.

In the Cultivation Realm, unless you are a genius with a Celestial Spirit Root, almost no Foundation Establishment Cultivator can resist the temptation of Core Formation Spiritual Objects.

Xu Zhixuan lowered his head and pondered for a while before slowly speaking, "If we use Core Formation Spiritual Objects as the lure, the possibility of luring Xu Ping out of Thousand Leaves Mountain is quite high."

"But... fabricating a believable false story would indeed be difficult."

"Who said we have to use a false story?" Elder Hao said coldly.

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhixuan was startled and instinctively asked, "Could it be... you intend to use real Core Formation Spiritual Objects to lure him?"

...

...

Three months later.

Inside the cultivation room at Thousand Leaves Mountain.

"Poof!"

The semi-finished Golden Armor-Breaking Talisman being drafted suddenly caught fire, a violent stream of Geng Metal power surged out from the talisman.

"Creak...creak..."

This force left several deep marks on the sturdy wall.

"Failed again!"

Xu Ping was extremely frustrated, waving his hand to extinguish the flame.

He had spent three months crafting the Golden Armor-Breaking Talisman.

During this period, he wasted dozens of third-grade talisman papers, yet he hadn't even grasped the secret of the talisman, and success seemed far away.

However, after repeated attempts, he vaguely sensed the crux of the problem.

Though his mana barely met the requirements, his Divine Sense was somewhat lacking.

The feeling was akin to a child attempting to wield a heavy hammer, unable to exert force.

"Do I really have to break through to Late-Stage Foundation Establishment before trying again?" Xu Ping pondered secretly.

He knew well that once he broke through to Late-Stage Foundation Establishment, his Divine Sense would certainly receive a substantial boost.

By then, the success rate of crafting the Golden Armor-Breaking Talisman would surely increase.

Thinking this, Xu Ping shifted his thoughts and opened the proficiency panel.

[Realm: Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment: 87/100; Blood Demon Body Refining second level: 99/100]

"Just thirteen more points... At my current cultivation speed, it probably needs... about a year more."

Gazing at the numbers on the panel, Xu Ping estimated inwardly.

"A year!" he muttered softly to himself.

Since he didn't plan to leave Thousand Leaves Mountain involuntarily anytime soon, a year was neither long nor short, and would pass rather quickly.

Xu Ping gently waved his sleeve, sweeping up all the talisman paper, talisman pen, spiritual ink, and other items on the stone table.

Just as he was about to leave the cultivation room, Water Lake Rat greeted him with a fawning face:

"Master, your friend Gong Yang has come to visit, would you like to see him?"

"Gong Yang?"

"Invite him to the pavilion," Xu Ping nodded and said.

...

...

Inside the pavilion.

"Fellow Daoist Gong, please have some tea!" Xu Ping smiled and poured a cup of fragrant Spirit Tea for Gong Yang.

"Tha...thank you, Fellow Daoist Xu." Gong Yang appeared somewhat nervous and uneasy.

Since Xu Ping successfully slew the evil Golden Core, this was their first meeting.

Now, both in terms of status and power, they're vastly disparate, making Gong Yang momentarily lost, unsure how to face Xu Ping.

Xu Ping naturally noticed Gong Yang's restraint, so he smiled and half-jokingly said:

"Fellow Daoist Gong being so courteous, could it be like others, here to ask for a third-grade talisman?"

"Let me say first, I haven't crafted one yet!"

Upon hearing this joke, Gong Yang's heart immediately eased, the barrier and unfamiliarity vanished instantly.

A slight smile involuntarily appeared on his face: "Of course not."

"Good, I'm glad it's not."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.