I have a panel that reduces proficiency.

Chapter 4 Food and Drink Symbols

The door was repaired, and the food was ready.

Fang Shi lifted the lid of the pot, and a fragrant aroma of rice wafted out.

The cooked rice from that Biling rice was distinct, with each grain showing a faint green hue, like a piece of jade laid out, which was quite beautiful.

He used a wooden spatula to loosen the rice and filled a bowl to the brim.

Even those who practice spiritual cultivation have rules for eating.

Unlike ordinary people who chat and laugh while chewing, or idly fiddle with their phones or computers.

One must concentrate fully, and with each mouthful of food, first taste it with the tip of your tongue, then grind the grains with your teeth, and finally mix it with your saliva before swallowing it slowly.

As you swallow, you should focus your mind on the food entering your stomach, feeling the subtle spiritual energy within the grains dissolve in your abdomen, like dew seeping into dry soil, nourishing your internal organs.

According to Fang Shi's understanding from his previous life, this is the key to behavioral psychology.

The rules themselves are not mysterious; what is mysterious is the daily adherence to them.

When eating, focus solely on the food, keeping your mind in the present moment, and paying attention to every bite and sip.

Over time, it became a habit.

When doing something, focus on it wholeheartedly, without distraction or wandering.

This habit, when applied to spiritual practice, means that whether meditating, drawing talismans, or performing hand seals, one can instantly enter a state of deep concentration without any distractions.

This is a method that achieves twice the result with half the effort; it may seem slow, but it is actually fast.

After practicing the "Seven Steps to Invite the Spirit," he also needs to eat in this way to maintain his condition and not let the effort of the ritual be wasted.

The proficiency level displayed on the panel confirmed this.

[Food Consumption and Guarding Proficiency +1]

[Eating in Moderation (Beginner): 91/100]

Let alone practicing after eating.

Today, I've already spent a lot of time on trivial matters.

He pondered the formation techniques, asked Li Daoyuan to buy rice, and walked half a street back and forth.

Every single thing is a product of time.

The remaining time must be used wisely, and not a single moment should be wasted.

After the meal, Fang Shi cleaned up the dishes and washed the pots and pans.

By the time everything was in place, it was already dark.

There were no lights or candles in the room, and it was pitch black. Let alone drawing talismans, even walking around would inevitably result in bumps and bruises.

Fang Shi then took out a talisman from his sleeve, slapped it against the wall, and the talisman stuck to the wall by itself, illuminating the entire room clearly.

This talisman is called the "Bright Light Talisman". One talisman can be used for three days, and if used sparingly, it can last for four or five days. It costs only half a grain of spirit and is a common item for rogue cultivators to use for lighting at night.

Then, Fang Shi arranged all the tools for drawing talismans.

On the table lay yellow paper and cinnabar, all ordinary items.

The only low-grade magic tool is the Spirit Wolf Small Brush – its tip is fine and its belly is full. When dipped in ink, it can hold and release it. In particular, it can amplify and reduce magic power, making the magic power as fine as a thread or a hair.

Fang Shi sat down at the table, spread the yellow paper out, and pressed down the four corners with a paperweight.

The cinnabar in the porcelain dish had dissolved, turning a bright red, like blood.

He picked up his pen, smoothed the tip on the edge of the dish, dipped it in cinnabar, and then gently scraped away the excess cinnabar on the edge of the dish.

What he was going to draw tonight was that "protective talisman".

This protective talisman is quite famous among practitioners.

Whether it's spiritual energy entering the body or magical power circulating through the meridians, it will put some strain on the meridians.

It's like a river channel. Originally narrow and winding, the water always bumps and jostles as it flows. Over time, the banks will collapse, the riverbed will become silted up, and the channels will be damaged.

Applying a protective talisman is like widening and straightening a river channel, allowing spiritual energy to flow smoothly into the body. This not only allows you to absorb more spiritual energy and magical power, but also reduces wear and tear on the meridians, protecting your foundation.

Therefore, those independent cultivators who could afford to use talismans could hardly live without them every day.

The protective talisman has three sections.

The upper section is called "Yin" (引), which spreads out in a fan shape, like a river flowing into the sea, with the intention of guiding spiritual energy into the talisman.

The middle section is called "turning," which is the core of the talisman. The pattern is the most complex, with more than thirty strokes of varying sizes, all interlocked like gears meshing. When spiritual energy arrives here, it must turn from scattered to gathered, and from the outside to the inside.

The next section is "Return," with the pattern returning to simplicity, consisting of only three horizontal lines, each shorter than the last, like steps descending one after another, guiding spiritual energy back into the meridians.

When drawing a talisman, the entire process, from the first stroke to the last, must be completed in one go. If there is even the slightest hesitation or delay in between, it is unacceptable.

The magic power on the talisman was then severed, rendering it useless.

Fang Shi took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

Put pen to paper.

The moment the pen tip touched the paper, the magic power in his fingertips flowed along the pen shaft and tip, seeping into the cinnabar and falling onto the yellow paper along with the strokes.

Driven by magical power, the cinnabar was no longer its usual red color, but instead faintly glowed with golden light, like a red-hot iron bar leaving lines on the paper.

He drew the fan shape at the top very quickly.

The brushstrokes spread outwards from the center, in concentric circles, like ripples spreading outwards.

Each circle is slightly wider than the previous one, gradually becoming more sparse and narrower, creating a very neat and orderly appearance.

The middle section is the most demanding.

The thirty-odd strokes, seemingly chaotic, are in fact each with its own place and direction.

Some slant to the left, like willow leaves swaying in the wind.

Some hook back to the right, like an iron hook hanging upside down.

Some are straightforward, like arrows piercing the sky.

Some are winding and meandering, like snakes slithering through the grass.

The length, angle, and curvature of each stroke are fixed, with no deviation whatsoever.

Fine beads of sweat were already visible on Fang Shi's forehead.

He maintained his composure, his magical power flowing continuously.

The stroke extends to the left, then hooks slightly at the end, before turning back to the right to draw an arc, pausing gently at the end of the arc.

With a slight lift of the wrist, the pen tip remains pressed against the paper, narrowly bypassing a blank space before falling back down, marking the beginning of the next stroke.

This technique is called "Flying Crossing," a skillful technique for drawing talismans that relies on the elasticity of the brush tip, the dexterity of the wrist, and the control of magical power.

The pen can leap across blank spaces without leaving the paper, and the magic is like a halo that does not stain the paper yellow.

Fang Shi spent eight years drawing talismans before he could barely get the hang of it.

After finishing the middle section, he didn't dare to rest and immediately moved on to the next section.

The three horizontal lines are all shorter and heavier than the last.

The first strike is as light as a feather, the second as steady as a rock, and the third as heavy as a thousand pounds.

As he finished the last stroke, he suddenly lifted the pen, and the instant the pen tip left the paper, he released a burst of magical power from his fingertips. A flash of golden light appeared on the talisman, and then disappeared.

[Proficiency in Protective Charm +1]

【Protective Charm (Proficient): 10/200】

It became.

A fragment of spirit has been obtained.

Fang Shi let out a long breath, put the pen on the pen holder, and then realized that his back was soaked with sweat.

It's not that drawing talismans is particularly strenuous, but rather that it drains the mind and spirit—the strokes cannot be broken, the magical power cannot be interrupted, and one must maintain tension from beginning to end.

Just like a tightrope walker, one wrong step can lead to utter ruin.

He examined the protective talisman closely.

After the cinnabar dries completely, its color changes from golden red to dark ochre, and it has a faint metallic luster under bright light.

The lines are clear, the brushstrokes are continuous, without any breaks, hesitations, or ink bleeding.

It is a fragment of spirit.

Fang Shi felt the fatigue in his body's meridians.

A feeling of soreness and distension spread up the meridians from my fingertips, past my wrist, to my shoulders and neck, and then throughout my body.

Fortunately, I can draw one more.

Fang Shi thought to himself: Once I finish the second drawing, I'll reach my limit and have to rest.

If I push myself any further, I'm afraid I won't be able to draw many talismans tomorrow, and I'll have to rest the day after.

The gap in the Twenty-Three Shattered Spirits won't wait for anyone.

Once I've saved enough, I'll start cultivating the "Minor Water Cloud Technique".