Chapter 14: The Streets (2)

  Yuan Futong walked away quickly, shaking his head as he went. "I'm speechless, I didn't expect to meet such a unique character. Just a few words and they're calling each other brothers, almost got taken for a ride. If he was in the antique business in his past life, he'd probably be rich by now."

  As he walked, the street was selling all sorts of things, and basically everything that could be used for cultivation was available. There were even various materials from the bodies of low-level spiritual beasts. Along the way, there were also several stall owners who greeted him like Wang Zui Gui, but Yuan Fu Tong didn't dare to linger. While browsing the items on the stalls, he kept walking forward without stopping. On the way, he only saw a few stalls selling scriptures, and most of them were basic cultivation methods for practicing Qi. The fundamental Qi-practicing techniques of the Five Elements, such as "Hui Chun Jue", "Rui Jin Jue", "Hou Tu Jue", "Xuan Shui Jue", and "Zhen Huo Jue". These techniques are the most common for cultivators to practice. As long as you have a corresponding spiritual root, you can cultivate them. Moreover, the techniques are very stable, with fewer opportunities to go astray or get possessed by evil spirits. The downside is that the cultivation speed is slow, and there are no powerful spells.

  The quality of a cultivation technique is mainly influenced by three factors. The first factor is the range of spiritual roots that the technique can adapt to. Some techniques can generally adapt to many types of spiritual roots, such as the Three Yangs Building Foundation technique practiced by Yuan Futong, which has strong adaptability. Before building the foundation, various spiritual roots can be cultivated, except for water and ice spiritual roots, which progress a bit slower. Other spiritual roots can also be cultivated, but fire spiritual root is more effective. Cultivators with mixed spiritual roots will choose one spiritual root as their main cultivation direction when breaking through the fourth layer of Qi Refining, such as Yuan Futong's choice of fire spiritual root. At this stage, the technique will transform into a unique skill that differs from general techniques and has stronger effects. Most families have techniques with broad adaptability to select talented children. There are also more specialized techniques sold in markets, which cannot be cultivated by people without corresponding spiritual roots, and directly determine the spiritual root to be cultivated.

  The second factor is the speed of cultivation. The difference in cultivation speed between different schools of practice is quite large. Good gongfa not only cultivates quickly, but also has a low degree of difficulty in breaking through bottlenecks. Some gongfa cultivate quickly, but it's hard to break through various bottlenecks, and there are fewer people who cultivate them. Basic gongfa cultivate slowly, and the difficulty of breaking through bottlenecks is not small, so few people choose to pass on their own lineage. However, for those who have just entered the cultivation world and don't have a good gongfa to choose from, this is also a path.

  The third factor is the power of Fa jue's cultivation. From the fourth layer of Qi Gong, cultivators begin to use their spiritual roots to transform spiritual energy into Fa Li, at which point the power of Fa jue becomes apparent, and the quality of the spiritual root also begins to affect the speed of cultivation. Therefore, people with four or five miscellaneous spiritual roots can only reach the level of Xian Tian Da Cheng, that is, the fourth layer of Qi Gong, and basically cannot progress further.

  After walking for a while without finding the book he wanted, Yuan Futong had no choice but to head in the direction Wang Zui Gui had pointed out. As he approached the end of the street, he indeed saw a stall with many books on display. The vendor was a Taoist-looking monk who sat quietly behind the stall, meditating. On his shoulder was a grey squirrel that lay still, its two eyes darting back and forth.

  Yuan Futong walked up to the stall and began browsing through the books on display. The content was indeed rich, with tomes on spiritual medicine, minerals, heavenly treasures, spiritual beasts, spiritual elixirs, magical instruments, flying swords, and various cultivation materials. Seeing that there were things he was looking for, Yuan Futong bowed his hands to the Taoist priest: "Sir, do you have more comprehensive books on spiritual medicine?"

  "It's on the stall, take a look and see if it suits you?"

  "Thank you." Yuan Futong picked up the "Thousand Herbs Classic" and flipped it open, reading the first two pages. As he tried to flip further, he couldn't turn the page anymore. There was a small spell on the book that would allow him to open it with just a bit of magical force. But it seemed clear that no one else was meant to read more than this. Upon reflection, it made sense - cultivators who had achieved spiritual awareness had extremely strong memories. Just flipping through once could help them remember a great deal, and so nobody would need to buy the book again.

  The first two pages of this Ben Cao Gang Mu introduce the ghosts of Ku Teng and Yue Ling Cao. Above is a diagram of the spiritual grass, below are a few lines of introduction to the year of identification of the spiritual grass, as well as the basic purchase price for each year. However, there is no introduction to the effect of the spiritual medicine, let alone its properties or place of origin.

  "Are there other books like this?"

  "But if you want something more detailed, it's going to be a lot more expensive."

  "It also depends on whether the thing is worth it."

  The Taoist took out a book from his waist Kunlun bag and handed it to Yuan Futong. "Take a look, is this satisfactory?"

  Yuan Futong took the book and opened this "Ben Cao Jing". Still can only read two pages. The first two pages are about Huafangcao and Qixincao. This book is much thicker than that "Qian Cao Jing", it seems to have many more kinds of spiritual medicine. It also includes the growing environment and approximate production place of the spiritual medicine. Yuan Futong took a look, seeing no introduction to the medicinal properties and uses, still somewhat dissatisfied.

  "Is there a better way?"

  "It seems that young master has high requirements. This 'Ben Cao Jing' is already the best and most comprehensive spiritual medicine book in this market. You have enough herbs to use, what's the point of asking for something even better?"

  "Oh, how many spirit stones does this 'Ben Cao Jing' cost?"

  Five hundred.

  "It's so expensive, what about this one?" Yuan Futong asked, pointing at the Thousand Grass Scripture he had just put down.

  Two hundred

  "How can it be so different?"

  "Ordinary cultivators usually buy books separately, mainly to understand spiritual medicine, so as not to miss treasures when entering the inner mountain of the Sleeping Dragon or other spiritual realms. This 'Ben Cao Jing' has the producing areas and growing environments of various spiritual medicines, which is very helpful for finding spiritual medicines. That's why it's so expensive. Little brother, if you want to collect medicine to earn some spirit stones, this book of mine will be enough."

  "Oh, I see. So now I'm embarrassed and don't want to buy an incomplete one, so I'll just come back next time."

  "Hey little brother, wait a minute! How much can you take out of 'Ben Cao Jing'?"

  "I don't have many spirit stones on me, maybe next time." Yuan Futong said as he walked away, leaving the stall.

  Yuan Futong left, and the Taoist sat down again. The squirrel jumped onto his shoulder once more, but after a while, it ran off again.

  Yuan Futong turned around again, bought a few books about minerals and famous magical instruments in the middle, and then turned to another street. There were not many pedestrians on this street, Yuan Futong looked back and saw that no one was paying attention, so he turned into a shop.

  This store is what Yuan Futong has been paying attention to for a long time. The decoration style of the store should be the industry of Hui Chun Valley introduced by Wang Zui Gui. The two-story attic is decorated with vines, full of spring atmosphere. Entering the store, a middle-aged woman sat behind the counter. Seeing Yuan Futong coming in, she stood up and greeted: "Young master wants to buy something?"

  "I want to enter the inner mountains of Suolong to practice, I'd like to buy some books that introduce spiritual medicine, does anyone know if there are any here?"

  "Where does the young master want to go for training? Is it to buy a special introduction to the products of Suzong Mountain or an introduction to all?"

  "Since we've already bought it, might as well buy a complete set."

  "Xiao Yun, bring the spiritual medicine books and let this young man take a few." The woman shouted towards the back and then turned to Yuan Fu Tong and said: "Young master, please wait for a moment. Please sit over there."

  "Oh, thank you." Yuan Futong sat down beside the woman in a corner of the shop.

  "My humble surname is Yan, what is your noble surname?"

  "I dare not, I'm just a humble surname Yuan. Madame Yan, I've heard that this is the estate of Hui Chun Valley, surely you must have a vast collection of classics on this aspect?"

  "Hehe, you're overpraising. However, in terms of medicinal materials, dan medicine, and spiritual medicine classics, we are quite good. Young master has come to the right place to buy classics."

  "How many spirit stones does it usually take for an ordinary ancient book?"

  "It depends on what kind of books Mr. Yuan wants to buy. The prices of different books vary greatly."

  "How much does the best one cost? It's got its origin and medicinal properties all introduced."

  "Does the young master want a medicinal introduction? That would be expensive."

  "How much does it cost?"

  "The most complete one requires 1,500 spirit stones. There are several nearby countries that produce spiritual medicine, including the properties and places of origin of each spiritual realm."

  "Oh," Yuan Futong murmured, his expression unchanging.

  "Bring me those things and let me take a look first."

  Yuan Futong and Mrs. Yan were talking, when a man and a woman entered from the doorway. The man was dressed in white, with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, exuding an air of elegance. The woman wore palace attire, with an oval-shaped face and a petite figure. As they stepped inside, they stopped at the entrance and saw Mrs. Yan and Yuan Futong sitting on one side. The man spoke up: "Which one is the shopkeeper?"

  "I am. What are you two buying?" Mrs. Yan stood up and replied with a slight bow of her head, apologizing to Yuan Futong.

  "I've heard that the elixirs from Huichun Valley are the best and most comprehensive. I wonder if they have any Lingyun Dan."

  "Lingling Dan is available, but not much. Don't know how much the two of you need."

  The two men and women heard that there was a sale of Dan medicine, the woman's face was very happy. With an expectant look at the man. The man was apparently somewhat unexpected, looking hesitant. For a while, he did not respond to Mr. Yan's words.

  At this time, a maidservant dressed as a young woman brought out several volumes of illustrations from the inner room and walked to the side of Mrs. Yan. Mrs. Yan made some arrangements in her ear. The maidservant came over and said softly to Yuan Fu Tong: "Young master, please excuse me, these few volumes are the shop's classics about spiritual medicine, young master, please go to the side room to browse through them, see which one is suitable, and Mrs. Yan will come again to discuss with you."

  "Alright, you lead the way."

  Yuan Futong followed the maid to the side room and sat down beside the table. Xiaoyun put down a few albums and said softly, "Young Master, take a look first, Aunt Yan will be over soon."

  "It doesn't matter, you go ahead and attend to your business first, I'll just take a look." Yuan Futong waved his hand, dismissing the maid. He began to examine the few volumes of diagrams. However, by his ear, he heard the man's voice again. "I wonder how many spirit stones one Light Spirit Pill would cost?"

  "Heh heh, the Lingshen Dan is needed to break through the 7th layer of Qi training, so it's naturally more expensive. One pill costs 200 spirit stones. How many pills does the young master want?"

  "Isn't it expensive?"

  "Hehe, our elixirs here are a bit more expensive than elsewhere, but the quality is better, and the chances of breaking through are higher when using them."

  "Yes, Long, the elixir from Hui Chun Valley is the most popular one. Can you buy a few for me?" The woman who had been silent all along saw that the man was hesitating and quickly spoke up to beg him. Her voice was soft as silk, with an inexplicable charm. Even Yuan Fu Tong in the side room was moved by her words and felt an urge to buy it for her. He quickly circulated his spiritual energy to calm himself down. Yuan Fu Tong understood that this woman might have cultivated a charming technique, one that she was born with. His own power was too low, and although she wasn't speaking to him, he was still affected.

  "Alright, alright, I'll buy it for you then." As the main object of temptation for women, men's willpower is even more unable to withstand the test. Hurriedly agreed.

  "Do you have five Lingdan now?"

  "Heh heh, what a coincidence! We just so happen to have five left in stock. I'll go get two for you right away. Please wait for a moment, take a seat over here."

  He led the two of them to where Yuan Futong had just been sitting, arranged for them to sit down, and turned around to enter the house. Xiaoyun brought over two cups of fragrant tea and placed them in front of the two people.

  After a while, Mrs. Yan walked out with a jade bottle and came before the two of them, placing the jade bottle on the table.

  "Let the two of you try it on and see if it fits your heart's desire."

  The man picked up the jade bottle, put it under his nose and smelled it, then poured out a pill from the jade bottle and looked at it in his hand. He put the elixir back, nodded his head in satisfaction. Took down the Qiankun bag from his waist. With a wave of his hand, ten middle-grade spirit stones were placed on the table.

  "Good, as expected it's top-grade. This is a Spirit Stone."

  Mrs. Yan glanced at the Ling stone on the table and waved her hand to put it away.

  "Alright, payment and goods are settled. Do you two need anything else?"

  "That's all for now. We're leaving." The man hastily replied. The woman opened her mouth, but didn't say anything.

  "You two take your time. If you need anything else, come back later."

  "Definitely."

  After sending two people out of the store, Mrs. Yan came to the side room. Yuan Fu Tong had already looked at several examples of the atlas.

  "Which one of them has caught your eye, sir?"

  "This one will do." Yuan Futong said, pointing to a copy of the "Spirit Medicine Manual". This manual fully met Yuan Futong's needs, introducing the medicinal properties and uses of spiritual medicines, as well as the elixirs that could be refined from them. It could supplement Yuan Futong's lacking foundation in alchemy.

  "Haha, young master has a good eye. This is used by disciples who learn alchemy within the sect, and the spiritual medicine on it is the most comprehensive. However, it's usually not sold outside."

  "Oh, what's this?" Yuan Futong looked somewhat puzzled and his face was slightly unpleasant.

  "Hehe, it seems Xiaoyun picked up the wrong one."

  "Now that it's out, there's no need to put it back. I've taken a liking to this one, so let's discuss the price."

  "The young master really wants to buy it, and this is no small sum of money."

  "How much?"

  "Three thousand spirit stones."

  "So it was actually because you were afraid I wouldn't be able to afford it."

  "There, young master has misunderstood." Madam Yan explained, "I think it's better for the young master to choose this Spiritual Medicine Compendium instead. The introduction is also very detailed."

  "It's fine, just this one. However, I don't have that many spirit stones, can you exchange for this thing?" As he spoke, Yuan Fu Tong reached into his pocket and took out the Wind Spirit Grass that Yuan Xing had snatched earlier.

  "Fēng Líng Cǎo?" Madame Yan was somewhat surprised. "Young Master, may I take a look?"

  Seeing the reaction of Yan Furen, Yuan Futong's heart was greatly settled. He also didn't know what this herb was used for, but all the spiritual medicines in Yuan Xing's乾坤bag were stored in jade boxes. Only this one wasn't packed up. Recalling his conversation with Gu Dao Ren, this should be the Feng Ling Cao that the two of them had fought over. But Yuan Futong couldn't confirm its value, so he might as well try it out.

  "Is the young master really going to exchange this Wind Spirit Grass for that 'Spirit Medicine Manual'?" Madam Yan asked after carefully considering it for a moment.

  "I'd like to sell this spiritual grass to your esteemed shop, Mrs. Yan can name a price." Yuan Fu Tong was now certain that he could get his hands on the "Spiritual Medicine Manual", it was just a matter of whether he could exchange for something else or not. He knew that this thing would definitely be sold at a loss, but he had no choice now, and could only use things he didn't need at present to exchange for useful ones; once his cultivation and knowledge improved, these external objects would still be easy to find.

  "Hehe, thank you, young master, for your patronage of our humble shop. Xiaoyun, bring tea quickly." Mrs. Yan had already recovered from her initial excitement and began to think about how much profit she could gain from this.

  Xiao Yun brought up the tea and Yuan Futong took a light sip. He didn't say a word, waiting for Mrs. Yuan to name a price.

  "Where did you get this Wind Spirit Grass, sir?"

  "My friend acquired it by chance, and now I'm forced to sell it due to financial difficulties. I hope the lady won't disappoint me." Yuan Futong evaded a response. Mrs. Yan saw that Yuan Futong was unwilling to take the bait, fearing he would change his mind and not sell, so she had to make an offer first.

  "How about this, I'll give you the book and add another thousand spirit stones. What do you think, young master?"

  "Hehe, after reading this book I want to learn some alchemy, are there any good cauldrons in the store?"

  "Sir wants to learn alchemy? That's great, we have a dan ding in the store that isn't too good, sir take a look and see if it suits your taste?"

  "Okay, let me take a look."

  Mrs. Yan took out an ancient bronze tripod from behind her. The color was antique and fragrant, with a very regular shape. There were not many patterns on it, but it looked like the alchemy furnace of Lao Jun in the previous life's "Journey to the West", only much simpler and smaller, about the size of a basin. From the spiritual energy, it should be a medium-grade magic instrument.

  "What a fine tripod! I wonder how much it's worth?"

  "Since you like it, let's drink together and exchange this Wind Spirit Grass."

  "Alright then, thank you, madam." He said, putting away the book and the tripod.

  "Hehe, young master, if you need anything in the future, just come."

  "Alright, alright."

  He walked out of the side room and saw the two cups of fragrant tea beside his seat, sighed in his heart, lifted his spirits, and walked out of the store.

  Mrs. Shen looked at Yuan Futong leaving and whispered: "Another foolish bird who thinks he can refine the elixir."

  Out of the door, I saw the two men and women from the side of Baizhen Pavilion just now. The woman's face was full of joy, but the man called Rulong had a painful expression. The woman was coquettishly trying to balance the man's mood. Behind them, a small squirrel followed. The two were being sweet and didn't notice.

  Yuan Futong was startled when he saw the squirrel. He didn't dare to follow it any further, but instead watched it from a distance and thought of a plan.