Gu Xiu sat by the window of a bustling restaurant in the heart of the city, savoring the establishment’s delicacies while observing the conversations drifting through the air.

"Did you hear about the Homage of Ten Thousand Rhymes yesterday?"

"Of course I heard! They say the talisman masters went crazy. Many dropped to their knees on the spot, weeping and wailing, proclaiming that the Talisman Dao Supreme had descended and that the Talisman Path would return to the pinnacle of The Six Paths!"

"What do you think this Homage of Ten Thousand Rhymes is all about? Could it really be the descent of a Talisman Dao Supreme?"

"Who can say for sure? But I heard that during the phenomenon, all those Heavenly Dao Rhymes were oriented toward our Cloud Firmament City!"

"What? Does that mean the Supreme descended right here?"

"It's unclear. Heavenly Dao Rhymes can only be perceived by those on the Talisman Path, and those who can see them clearly are exceedingly rare. Who knows if it's true? But one thing is certain—Cloud Firmament City is going to be lively for a while."

Hearing these discussions, Gu Xiu raised an eyebrow slightly.

When he discovered yesterday that he could trigger the Homage of Ten Thousand Rhymes, he had anticipated that the event would cause a stir. It seemed his expectations were correct. In Cloud Firmament City, rumors were flying thick and fast—some true, some false.

"Fellow Daoist, are you the one who claimed to have a large quantity of talismans to sell?"

A plump man dressed in fine brocade robes arrived at Gu Xiu's table.

Gu Xiu recognized him immediately. This was Cheng Fushou, the manager in charge of miscellaneous affairs at the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion. They had dealt with each other yesterday; the materials Gu Xiu used were purchased through him.

However, at this moment, Cheng Fushou could not connect this ordinary-looking cultivator with "Feng Bugui," the man Su Rumei had specifically instructed him to watch for.

Gu Xiu was wearing the Three-Body Mask.

His appearance had been completely altered.

Seeing Gu Xiu nod in confirmation, Cheng Fushou sat down and asked eagerly, "May I ask how many talismans Fellow Daoist considers 'a large quantity'?"

"Seven thousand."

"How many???"

Cheng Fushou, who had just settled into his seat, shot back up as if his chair were on fire. He stared at Gu Xiu in utter astonishment.

Gu Xiu repeated calmly, "Seven thousand talismans."

"You... you really have that many?"

Gu Xiu wasn't surprised by the reaction. Without a word, he swept his hand over the table, retrieving several hundred talismans from his storage ring and stacking them in neat piles. He only stopped because the table ran out of space.

Cheng Fushou swallowed hard.

Truth be told, seven thousand talismans wasn't an astronomical number in the grand scheme of things. The Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion in Cloud Firmament City could move that volume in a day or two.

But the problem wasn't demand. It was supply.

Talismans were difficult to create. Even a first-rank talisman required considerable time and focus. The Pavilion’s internal team of masters couldn't keep up with the daily demand, forcing them to constantly post notices for external purchases.

Most independent cultivators sold in small batches—a few sheets, maybe a dozen. A hundred was considered a bulk sale.

The real volume usually came from partnerships with sects. Unfortunately, their largest supplier, the Azure Mystic Sacred Land, had recently cut off their talisman supply due to internal issues.

This shortage was catastrophic. While low-rank talismans were cheap, they drove foot traffic. Without them, customers stopped coming, hurting sales across the board.

This supply crisis was currently the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion's biggest headache.

When Cheng Fushou heard someone had a "large quantity," he had rushed over expecting a few hundred sheets. He hadn't dared to dream of a number like seven thousand.

"Manager Cheng, can your Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion handle this?" Gu Xiu asked.

"Of course we can!" Cheng Fushou nodded vigorously, recovering his composure. "Not just seven thousand—if you have the means, Fellow Daoist, even seventy thousand would be no problem!"

This wasn't an exaggeration. The merchant associations in Cloud Firmament City understood one simple principle: whoever controlled the supply of low-rank talismans controlled the market.

Although this cultivator looked unremarkable, producing seven thousand talismans implied he had a powerful channel behind him.

Gu Xiu nodded. "In that case, Manager Cheng, name your price."

"Well..." Cheng Fushou glanced at the stacks on the table, calculating. "According to our pavilion's fixed price list... six spirit stones per sheet?"

Ordinary first-rank talismans generally retailed for eight to ten spirit stones. The unified buyback price was six.

Gu Xiu shook his head immediately. "No."

"Seven?" Cheng Fushou gritted his teeth.

"I want ten."

"That's impossible!" Cheng Fushou rejected it instantly. "We sell them publicly for ten! Some shops even sell them for eight! Buying them at ten would mean we're working for nothing!"

"There are differences even among first-rank talismans," Gu Xiu said calmly. "Our talismans are not ordinary."

He deliberately emphasized 'our,' reinforcing Cheng Fushou's suspicion that a larger organization was involved.

Cheng Fushou shook his head again. "A first-rank talisman is a first-rank talisman. Unless it's one in ten thousand—a Perfect Dao Talisman—the price difference wouldn't..."

His voice trailed off.

His eyes widened.

Gu Xiu had picked up one of the talismans and casually flipped it over.

Cheng Fushou recognized it as a standard Spirit Gathering Talisman. However, the inscribed patterns were exceptionally intricate, and a faint, distinct fluctuation emanated from the paper.

"This... is this a Perfect Dao Talisman?" Cheng Fushou exclaimed.

He quickly tried to temper his excitement. "A Perfect Dao Talisman indeed has higher value, but they are rare. Surely not all of yours are..."

He choked on his words.

Gu Xiu began flipping through the stack.

One by one.

Every single sheet carried those same profound fluctuations.

"All... All of them are Perfect Dao Talismans?"

Cheng Fushou's face was a mask of shock. His gaze toward Gu Xiu shifted from assessment to fear.

How was this possible?

Perfect Dao Talismans were accidents of brilliance—rare strokes of luck for even the best masters. But this man had produced hundreds... thousands... and they were all Perfect Dao?

Unbidden, Cheng Fushou’s mind raced back to the Homage of Ten Thousand Rhymes that had shocked the city yesterday.

It was hard not to make the connection.

"Mine aren't ordinary Perfect Dao Talismans, but flawless ones," Gu Xiu said. "Ten low-grade spirit stones per sheet. Your Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion won't lose out."

It was a fair assessment. An ordinary Perfect Dao Talisman could fetch a premium, but a flawless one? The retail price could easily reach fifteen spirit stones. Buying at ten guaranteed a profit of five stones per sale.

For Gu Xiu, selling them at this price was partly to repay Su Rumei’s earlier courtesy, but mostly about speed.

With the right materials, mass-producing these talismans was effortless for him. Why play games with artificial scarcity? It was better to sell quickly, move volume, and accumulate resources instantly.

The material cost was roughly two spirit stones. Selling at ten meant a net profit of eight. Seven thousand sheets equaled fifty-six thousand spirit stones in pure profit.

And once the channel was established? Seventy thousand? Seven hundred thousand?

For Gu Xiu, this was just the beginning.

Across the table, Manager Cheng was no longer hesitating. His merchant's intuition was screaming at him that this was the deal of a lifetime.

"Fellow Daoist, we'll take them!"

Cheng Fushou's voice trembled with excitement.

"We'll take all of them! However many you have, the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion wants them all!"