The last talisman shook
This final talisman was actually an exceedingly rare Stealth Talisman.
What was a Stealth Talisman?
The Stealth Talisman was a tremendously powerful type of talisman. Using it, one could move without leaving the slightest trace — no fluctuations of any kind.
Invisible to the naked eye, inaudible to the ear, imperceptible to divine sense. It blended seamlessly into the natural rhythm of the void, utterly undetectable.
Only someone with extraordinarily powerful divine sense could pick up on the faintest of ripples and notice something was amiss.
Generally speaking, the Stealth Talisman was a favorite among assassins. But it was exceedingly difficult to craft, and the ones that had survived through the ages were vanishingly rare.
The value of a single Stealth Talisman far exceeded that of an attack or defense talisman of the same grade.
The Stealth Talisman could be used not only for assassinating others — when you found yourself in danger or needed to flee for your life, you could likewise use it to evade pursuit.
Whether for offense or defense, the Stealth Talisman was a nearly perfect talisman.
Of course, against particularly powerful opponents, even the Stealth Talisman might not prove effective.
Then again, the same was true of any attack or defense talisman — if your opponent far exceeded your own level, none of them would do you a lick of good.
By comparison, the Stealth Talisman still held a clear edge.
"No wonder
Jiang Chen shuddered at the thought.
What if Shu Wanqing had used this Stealth Talisman to sneak into Myriad Dragon City? Fortunately, the mountain gate was protected by the Nine Subtlety Flight Formation.
The Nine Subtlety Flight Formation couldn't fully counter Shu Wanqing, but if he tried to force his way through, it would definitely produce detectable fluctuations.
"Shu Wanqing must have tried before. He simply couldn't break through the Nine Subtlety Flight Formation undetected, so he didn't risk it."
That was Jiang Chen's guess.
If Shu Wanqing wanted to deal with him, a stealth assassination would have been the obvious best approach. Why bother traveling all the way to assassinate the Barbarian Tribe's Prince instead?
"The art of talismans truly possesses miraculous power. Fortunately, back in that battle, I gained the upper hand first and trapped him with the Nine Palaces Illusion Map. Otherwise, if he had activated this Stealth Talisman and vanished without a trace, hunting him down would have been nearly impossible."
Everything was a contest of measure and countermeasure.
The Nine Palaces Illusion Map was powerful enough to trap Shu Wanqing, which meant Shu Wanqing couldn't deploy the Stealth Talisman. Even if he had activated it, it wouldn't have helped.
Within a formation array, the Stealth Talisman couldn't reach its full potential. Using it might not produce the best results.
Of course, in Jiang Chen's estimation, the more likely explanation was that Shu Wanqing had simply been contemptuous of him.
After all, given Shu Wanqing's temperament, once he'd been trapped, he probably hadn't even believed Jiang Chen had any real way to take his life. So he likely never seriously considered using the Stealth Talisman.
And when Jiang Chen ambushed him, everything happened too fast — he simply had no time to activate it.
After sustaining his injuries, his cultivation had plummeted, and he probably couldn't have drawn out the Stealth Talisman's full power anyway. So Shu Wanqing had never used it from beginning to end.
"Heh, his loss is my gain."
Jiang Chen examined the Stealth Talisman. It had clearly been used at least two or three times already, but it should still have three or four uses left.
"This Stealth Talisman — I'll be keeping it for myself."
Jiang Chen carefully placed the Stealth Talisman, along with one Heavenly True Essence Talisman and one Heavenly Armor Talisman, into his Storage Ring.
These three talismans would become his standard equipment from now on — always to be carried. When facing truly powerful opponents, in truly grueling battles, they would come in handy.
As for the remaining Heavenly Armor Talisman, Jiang Chen would consider who to gift it to later.
Regardless, all treasures had to be put to maximum use — none could go to waste.
Having catalogued the four talismans, Jiang Chen realized they were merely the tip of the iceberg of Shu Wanqing's collection. Of course, while most of the other items would be considered remarkable treasures by anyone else, Jiang Chen wasn't particularly impressed. Especially the items meant for Emperor realm cultivators — he sorted those out entirely, planning to distribute them as rewards to his subordinates.
Shu Wanqing had amassed a vast collection, and the old man seemed to have had a hoarding obsession. Every corner of the Storage Ring was packed to the brim.
Even the combined treasures of a hundred Emperor realm cultivators probably wouldn't match the holdings of a single Heavenly realm powerhouse like Shu Wanqing.
"Heavenly realm powerhouses truly excel at amassing wealth," Jiang Chen had to admit.
He continued his inventory. Anything related to pills, he couldn't be bothered with. He might glance at other treasures, but finished pills held no interest for him — he wouldn't even deign to look.
After a cursory sort, he set them aside.
But Jiang Chen had to admit that these pills were actually quite impressive. For any Emperor realm cultivator, these pills of Shu Wanqing's would represent a tremendous opportunity.
Jiang Chen planned to distribute these finished pills to everyone as circumstances warranted, little by little.
Keeping them wasn't useless — it was simply that he didn't want to use them himself. When it came to pills, Jiang Chen only trusted himself. If he was going to take pills, they would be the ones he refined.