Chapter Eighteen: Spiritual Realm

  Yuan Futong bought the most basic nine-palace array, a nine-face flag that forms a nine-palace array. It has defensive, hallucinatory and spirit-gathering effects. However, none of these effects are very strong, probably now with his own full-powered strike using a magic tool, he can break through it. He bought this just to prevent others from disturbing him when refining the elixir.

  Sitting down to start meditating, Yuan Fugong discovered that the spiritual energy in this town was indeed much denser than in ordinary towns. The entire town seemed to have a spirit-gathering array underneath it, and cultivating here would be faster. It's just unknown how dense the spiritual energy of the caves of various sects is, it must be much denser than this. With such a density of spiritual energy, there are already people who spend spirit stones to rent places to open shops and cultivate. Not to mention the headquarters of those large sects. No wonder so many people want to become sect disciples, every time the Immortal Ascension Conference is held, the competition is so fierce.

  I can now be considered a decent loose cultivator who has managed to stand firm in the cultivation world. There are less than four years left until the Immortal Ascension Conference. In these four years, apart from enhancing my cultivation and continuing to refine pills, I also need to learn some life-saving combat techniques. The future battles will likely be even more intense, so I'll take advantage of this period to practice a few killer moves, which will help me stand out at the Immortal Ascension Conference.

  Yuan Futong's current cultivation has just reached the 7th layer of Qi Refining, which is already qualified to participate in the Ascension Conference. However, among loose cultivators and family cultivators, there are many high-level Qi Refining experts who want to enter the four major sects, so the competition at the Ascension Conference will be extremely fierce and bloody.

  Yuan Xing had been qualified to participate more than 20 years ago, but he never dared to go on stage. The success rate of low-level cultivators at the Ascension Conference is too low. Yuan Xing only dared to prepare this time when he reached the 11th layer of Qi Refining, and the sword-shaped talisman and golden bell were his trump cards.

  However, due to a fierce battle with Gui Dao Ren, his top-grade artifact was damaged, and the talisman was used once. He failed to seize the opportunity and died in body and soul. From Yuan Xing's preparations, it can be seen how cruel the Ascension Conference is. Without sufficient preparation, Yuan Futong estimates that he may also die at the conference.

  The next morning, Jiang Xiaotie got up early and cleaned the downstairs. When he saw Yuan Futong coming down, he ran over to ask for his well-being.

  "Good morning, young master."

  Yuan Futong took a look at the store and nodded in satisfaction.

  "Good."

  Seeing Yuan Futong nodding in satisfaction, Jiang Xiaotie was also very happy. He took out a small booklet from his bosom and handed it to Yuan Futong.

  "This is the price of pills collected from various pill shops by my brother yesterday, and it was sent over this morning."

  "Oh, haha, thoughtful." He took over the booklet, which listed the prices of elixirs from various markets, with some even noting the quality and customer reviews. Looks like Jiang Xiaotong put in some effort.

  "Alright, thank you on behalf of my brother. This spirit stone is his reward." Yuan Fu Tong knew the emperor's logic of not underestimating hungry soldiers, after all, a little favor would bring great convenience to himself.

  Jiang Xiao Tie received the Ling Stone and thanked him repeatedly.

  "You go prepare some paper and make some labels. Write down the names of the medicinal herbs, I'll come to set the prices later." Yuan Futong instructed.

  Jiang Xiao Tie quickly prepared the pen and ink, the paper had already been cut to size, all that was left was for Yuan Fu Tong to write down the names and prices of the medicinal pellets. Seeing Jiang Xiao Tie being so meticulous, Yuan Fu Tong felt a sense of comfort in his heart, it seemed he had indeed hired the right person.

  Dan medicine labels are done, Jiang Xiao Tie goes to paste the labels on the corresponding Dan medicine cabinets. Yuan Fu Tong starts thinking about the name of the shop. In the past, when he was in Fengyi City, the name of his medical clinic was called "Miaoshou Hall", where ordinary people studied a lot of pharmacology and consolidated their basic knowledge. Now that he is no longer treating patients, what should he call it if he sells medicine? After thinking for half a day, he wrote three big characters "Bai Zhi Tang" on the signboard, then added a forbidden mark, and the signboard was done. This world does not have the story of White Lady, nor will anyone know the allusion of this name, but looking at this name can always make oneself nostalgic.

  Yuan Futong hung up the plaque and then wrote a notice which he posted on the gate.

  "This store operates various elixirs needed during the Qi Refining stage. You can buy finished products or we can provide materials for refining. We also collect spiritual herbs and single prescriptions. Prices are negotiable."

  After finishing this and other store-style notices, Yuan Futong posted the notice and turned around to arrange Jiang Xiaotie.

  "Xiao Tie, just stay in the store. If someone comes to buy dan medicine, it's on the shelf, you can give it to them. The prices are all marked. Remember how much is sold. If someone wants dan medicine that we don't have in stock, notify me and I'll take care of it. Record everything in the account book, including what's missing. Let me know every evening. As for food, let's just have the shops from the ordinary people's district deliver it."

  "Alright, young master." Jiang Xiao Tie replied.

  "And also, if someone comes to sell spiritual medicine, you should entertain them well. This is a transmission token, if someone comes, use it to notify me." Yuan Futong handed over a token paper to Jiang Xiaotie. The transmission token is a commonly used short-distance communication tool in the cultivation world, equivalent to a walkie-talkie in the previous life. After injecting spiritual power, ordinary people can also use it, which is very convenient. If the person being contacted has an array protection or siege, it's useless. Midway communication has a higher-level transmission token that can stay outside someone else's array and receive it after coming out. Generally, when sending messages to closed-door cultivators, that kind of transmission token is used. Giving Jiang Xiaotie this transmission token allows him to contact himself at any time, and he can also go to the market to take a stroll, and come back if something happens."

  "Got it." Jiang Xiao Tie had apparently also seen this kind of talisman paper and knew how to use it. This way, Yuan Fu Tong was also at ease.

  Yuan Futong left the store after entrusting Jiang Xiaotie with its affairs. It wasn't because he was at ease, but rather that there were no valuable items in the store. The medicinal pills placed on the shelves were all basic dan medicines used for cultivation below the fourth layer. Even if Jiang Xiaotie were to steal or encounter thieves, there wouldn't be much to take. The truly valuable items were all stored in the Qiankun bag. This was also a test for Jiang Xiaotie, as Yuan Futong had cast a tracking spell on him, the "Zhui Qi" technique recorded by the Turtle Daoist. This was a tracing technique that left a mark of spiritual energy on a person's body, allowing one to track them through this point of spiritual energy. With Jiang Xiaotie's cultivation level, it was impossible for him to detect this spell. This was something Yuan Futong could only use after reaching the seventh layer of Qi Refining, far more advanced than the medicinal powder used by those robbers in Nanhuafang Market, which was then tracked with the help of a mouse that smelled fragrances.

  Yuan Futong wanted to buy some low-grade medicinal materials, which were used to refine Nourishing Qi Pills, Benefiting Qi Pills and other commonly used pills. These pills had the largest consumption and were also the most used by Yuan Futong when he was practicing his skills. Fortunately, Lin Qianshan's Qiankun bag had a large amount of low-grade medicinal materials, which were originally accumulated to exchange for pills, but were taken over by Yuan Futong, who received his savings. Now that Yuan Futong's low-grade medicinal materials are almost used up, he came out to replenish some.

  Yuan Futong didn't linger in the shopping district for long, as most of the shops here had the function of collecting high-grade spiritual medicine. High-grade spiritual medicine was also a hard currency in the cultivation world and was highly sought after. The sources of high-grade spiritual medicine were divided into three parts: one was from mountain collection. After all, there were many unexplored areas in this world, and many spiritual medicines grew in the wilderness. As long as you were willing to look for them, you could find a considerable amount of spiritual medicines. Therefore, most cultivators needed to have some knowledge of spiritual medicine, so that when they traveled and adventured, they could gain some extra rewards.

  The second source of spiritual medicine is the cultivation of various sects and families. The demand for spiritual medicine from the sects is particularly large, so major sects and some large families will set aside large tracts of land to cultivate all kinds of spiritual medicine. Especially the four major sects, which have been established for thousands of years, have very large-scale medicinal gardens within their sects, with strict management, rich variety, and a stable source.

  The last source is the spiritual realm. The spiritual realm is a unique place in this world. It is said that it was left behind by the ancient cultivators of the past. There are five spiritual realms within the Great Song Dynasty, namely Xia Danxia Realm, Xia Bifeng Realm, Xia Taoyuan Realm, Fanjing Realm, and Yunxiao Realm. The first three are small spiritual realms, while the last two are large spiritual realms. It is said that these spiritual realms were opened up by the powerful techniques and divine abilities of the predecessors, creating a small world with situations vastly different from the outside world. Although they border the mortal realm, they are relatively independent. Within the spiritual realm, the spiritual energy is extremely dense, and various heavenly treasures are produced. There are also large quantities of spiritual herbs growing, many of which are rarely seen in the outside world, and the growth period of these spiritual herbs seems to be much shorter than in the outside world. Every time the spiritual realm opens, a large number of thousand-year-old spiritual herbs mature. Many people speculate that the flow of time within the spiritual realm is also different from the outside world, involving mysterious time arrays that are beyond the capabilities of modern cultivators. There are also many spiritual beasts living within the spiritual realm, as well as various restrictions and traps left behind by the predecessors, plus the mutual struggles among the cultivators who enter the spiritual realm. The spiritual realm contains both great benefits and great dangers.

  The Xiaoling Realm opens once every 50 years, and only Qi Refining stage cultivators can enter. No matter how high their cultivation is, they cannot enter if they are not in the Qi Refining stage. In the past, there was a precedent where a Yuan Ying stage expert tried to force his way into the realm but was killed by the array. Therefore, no one dares to violate the rules and enter. The Daling Realm opens once every 100 years, and only Foundation Building stage cultivators can enter. When the realm is open, it will be open for 100 days, after which everyone inside will be automatically teleported out. Only 500 people can enter the Xiaoling Realm, while only 100 people can enter the Daling Realm. There was once a struggle over the realms, but in the end, the four major sects and three scattered Yuan Ying stage experts jointly established the rules.

  When the Small Spiritual Realm opens, each of the four sects sends 80 people, and the remaining 180 quotas are available to loose cultivators and family disciples, which can be purchased with spirit stones in the Loose Cultivator Alliance. In the Great Spiritual Realm, one sect has 16 quotas, and the other three are also sold by the Loose Cultivator Alliance. The Loose Cultivator Alliance is a loose alliance of three Yuan Ying-level loose cultivators, without a fixed residence, fixed inheritance, or interference in the behavior of alliance members. It serves loose cultivators through a large commercial organization, responsible for securing key benefits for them, such as the right to enter the Spiritual Realm, the allocation of foundation-building pills, and providing a path for advancement for loose cultivators outside the sects.

  In the market, most of the elixirs traded were made from medicinal materials collected outside. High-grade elixirs were rare to come by, and low-grade ones were abundant. Yuan Futong spent half a morning browsing through the stalls and managed to buy all the necessary medicinal materials for the Nourishing Qi Pellet and the Beneficial Qi Pellet. Just as he was about to see if he could exchange some good medicinal materials, the transmission talisman on his body rang.