As I finished speaking, the surrounding crowd seemed to heave a collective sigh of relief.
The assistant director and some crew members then helped Director Li up from the ground.
After Director Li got up, someone handed him a cloth to stop the bleeding.
But Director Li paid it no mind and asked me, "Mr. Qin, have they forgiven us?"
"For the time being, yes. Once you've repaired their graves, replaced the urns, and burned some spirit money, this matter should be settled."
"That's good, that's good…"
Director Li finally seemed to unburden himself, his worried expression vanishing and a smile appearing on his face.
With the matter resolved,
Uncle-Master also got up and said, "Alright, it's time for us to leave."
As soon as Uncle-Master spoke, Director Li stopped us, saying, "Everyone, you've helped our crew immensely. Please stay the night, and tomorrow our entire crew will host you properly."
Uncle-Master waved his hand, "No need for hosting. Just try to film fewer 'god-tier' dramas in the future. We have important matters to attend to tomorrow and must leave early in the morning!"
Indeed, we had urgent business.
It concerned the welfare of the entire world, far more important than his hospitality.
I also said to Li Shiyao, "Shiyao, if you encounter any more problems later, just give me a call.
I also look forward to your new works. Goodbye!"
Li Shiyao understood our profession and knew she couldn't keep us.
She didn't try to persuade us further.
She simply said to us, "Travel safely, and be careful!"
I smiled and waved.
Old Mo also waved, "Let's go!"
With that, Old Mo and I followed Uncle-Master's footsteps.
The group watched us, seeing us off with repeated gestures.
After a short while, we disappeared into the woods.
We didn't dwell on the events of the night.
It was a minor matter, a mere gesture of help.
Uncle-Master hadn't even considered it a big deal,
having been too lazy to say much throughout.
What we didn't expect was that this incident would make us famous throughout the entertainment industry.
In fact, the scene of me taking action was even captured on film.
Within a single night, the news had spread throughout the entire entertainment circle.
When Li Shiyao, Director Li, and the others returned to the hotel, their phones were nearly overloaded.
Everyone wanted to get to know "experts" like us.
But we had already found a small, unassuming inn to stay in.
One person, one room, each only a few square meters.
They didn't even have windows.
This didn't matter much to us; having a place to sleep was enough.
We planned to leave at six in the morning, and Uncle-Master had also told us to rest early.
After settling in, I found myself unable to sleep.
So, I took out the divine fire talisman and began to study it.
This was a talisman I had spent the most time researching, but I had made little headway.
It was no wonder the Dao Alliance was willing to offer such a heavenly-ranked fire talisman as a prize.
It was likely they had already exhausted their research on it and, finding no further breakthroughs, decided to use it as a prize.
I studied the inscription on the divine fire talisman, tracing each stroke.
I drew dozens of them without any effect.
There were no incantations, only illustrations, making it impossible to imbue the talisman with magical power.
Unless one possessed astonishing comprehension, one could only understand the method through observation and imbue the talisman with spiritual energy.
Looking at the talisman, I felt that continuing to draw them in the same way, even for another ten thousand attempts, would be futile.
"I need to change my approach. Talismans draw upon the power of heaven and earth through incantations to release their magical force.
This is a fire talisman, so when drawing it, I should use fire-attribute spiritual energy…"
I stared at the talisman, constantly reflecting and scrutinizing.
My eyes scanned the divine fire talisman repeatedly.
Once, twice, thrice…
I could remember every detail, but I still couldn't infuse each character with talismanic power.
It was a case of having form but lacking spirit.
How could I solve this problem?
Looking at the divine fire talisman, I recalled what my master had said when first teaching me how to draw talismans.
"When drawing a talisman, your mind must be calm, sincere, and connected. Your strokes should be unwavering, executed in a single breath."
Though it was a simple sentence, it contained the ultimate essence of talisman drawing.
With this in mind, I began to enter a state of self-forgetfulness.
I let myself feel the focus and sincerity I had when drawing my first talisman.
Forgetting impatience and delusions, I simply aimed to draw the talisman well…
I didn't pick up my brush until a long time later.
At this moment, my gaze was sharp, and my heart became incredibly firm.
I picked up the brush and drew, letting my intuition guide me.
Ignoring the so-called "details" and intricacies of the divine fire talisman, I followed my own heart and understanding.
I released fire-attribute spiritual energy, infusing it into the brush tip.
My brush danced like a dragon and snake, marking the head, tail, and core of the talisman in one fluid motion…
The talisman was complete. I stopped drawing and looked at it.
I found that the divine fire talisman I had drawn this time was, if not worlds apart, almost entirely unrelated to the divine fire talisman I had obtained.
I was stunned.
After all the effort and anticipation, I had created something like this?
I was momentarily bewildered.
But since it was already drawn, I had to try and see if it worked.
I blew on it to dry the liquid, then formed a sword finger and pointed it at the talisman.
This action is called "opening the talisman" or "dotting the talisman."
It is a method to determine if the talisman is successfully drawn and if it has condensed spiritual energy.
With trepidation, I pointed my sword finger at the talisman.
With a soft "bang,"
the runes on the surface of the talisman suddenly flashed red, and each character emitted a faint red glow.
Seeing this, my heart suddenly leaped.
I could hardly believe it myself.
It was successful, it was actually successful…