Unsheathed

Du Yu didn't dare to draw his saber, so he chose to snap off a tree branch before squatting down to draw the two talismans on the ground. He then used his mind's voice to teach Chen Ping'an the corresponding mantras used to activate these talismans.

The Stele Carrying Talisman could conceal one's presence and aura exceptionally well, causing one to appear like an old tortoise carrying a stele, remaining completely still for one thousand years and thus appearing lifeless.

However, one's ability to observe the outside world would also be restricted when using this talisman, with one's range of observation reduced drastically. After all, there were few things in the world that could be perfect with no compromise.

The Stele Carrying Talisman was one of the trump cards for Militarian cultivators of the Ghost Axe Palace who were skilled at assassination.

As for the Snow Soil Talisman, this was a talisman that many formation cultivators in the mountains dreamed of obtaining. This talisman was also known as the Flying Bird Seal Script, and it had a long history and was the signature skill of the Ghost Axe Palace's founding ancestor. However, disciples of the Ghost Axe Palace were largely only able to scratch the surface of this talisman, with few being able to master its essence. It was the same case for Du Yu, but his mother was indeed very skilled with this talisman. In fact, she was the most skilled at drawing the Snow Soil Talisman in the past three hundred years of the Ghost Axe Palace's history.

Du Yu's mother had once secretly taught the Snow Soil Talisman to a powerful cultivator from a top-notch immortal force, allowing that cultivator's Dao power to rise significantly. After the Ghost Axe Palace learned of this, it had still yet to say anything when an immortal force that was enemies with the powerful cultivator had run over to condemn their actions. Both parties had been extremely displeased, and the matter had eventually been left unsettled.

Afterward, the ancestral hall's punishment of Du Yu's mother had simply been reflecting in seclusion for ten years. To cultivators, a mere ten years would pass in the blink of an eye. In other words, this so-called punishment was nothing but a small slap on the wrist. Not only that, but the area where Du Yu's mother was asked to reflect in seclusion was a place brimming with spiritual energy and with extremely good feng shui. It was only afterward that Du Yu had learned that the powerful cultivator who had learned the Snow Soil Talisman from his mother had secretly paid a visit to the Ghost Axe Palace, most likely pleading for leniency for his mother.

In the beginning, Du Yu had been worried that the young wanderer was actually unskilled at the Dao of talismans and was only coveting the two talismans with the mindset that learning more skills wouldn't hurt. As such, Du Yu was already mentally prepared to waste his breath and act as an annoyed old teacher. Unexpectedly, however, the young wanderer simply stood there and listened to him explain the talisman, from the main principles of the talisman to the specifics of the corresponding mantra and then to the fine details. He didn't ask a single question, and he simply asked Du Yu to repeat the explanation three times.

When repeating the explanation the second time, Du Yu inadvertently forgot to repeat an insignificant sentence due to his strong familiarity with the talisman. However, he saw the young wanderer narrow his eyes and slightly raise his hiking pole that had initially been resting on the ground. Du Yu was so terrified that he almost slapped himself in the face, and he hurriedly rectified the situation by repeating the missed sentence word for word.

After Du Yu repeated the explanation three times...

Chen Ping'an looked down at the two talismans on the ground.

Du Yu didn't even dare to breathe too loudly.