noffsinger Chapter 16 The Valley of Cold Mist
Chapter 16 The Valley of Cold Mist
That day, Chen Santai had just come out of the home of a rogue cultivator. The head of the household was an old man in his fifties with a cultivation level of the second level of Qi Refining. He had lived in Qiyuan Town for about twenty years. His surname was Wang, and he was known as Old Man Wang.
Old Wang escorted Chen Santai to the door, bowing as he said, "Fellow Daoist Chen, your skills are truly exceptional! They far surpass those of Li Daoyuan back then!"
Chen Santai straightened his back and said, "Fellow Daoist Wang, you flatter me."
Old Wang said, "It's not an overstatement, it's the truth! The array that Li Daoyuan built would break down in a month and a half at most, and that Huang Daoist is even worse, it's bound to break down every ten days or half a month. Each repair requires three fragments of spiritual energy, and if you repair it two or three times a month, that's seven or eight fragments. Who can withstand that? But the array that you built, Fellow Daoist Chen, I've been using it for almost two months and it's only developed a minor problem. The spiritual energy flows even more smoothly than before! Old Liang's family next door also had their array built by you, and he said you even added Dao patterns to the array's core to divert the spiritual energy, making it much more durable than before. Did you figure that out yourself?"
Chen Santai said, "No, it's Dean Zhou Yan who gave me good guidance. I just followed his instructions."
Old Wang said, "That's because Fellow Daoist Chen is so skilled. Even with guidance, someone else might not be able to do it. Fellow Daoist Chen has a bright future ahead of him, a truly bright future!"
Chen Santai exchanged a few more polite words with him before taking his leave.
Winter had arrived, and although there was no heavy snow in Qiyuan Town, the winter was still bone-chillingly cold.
Withered vines climbed the walls of several houses, shivering in the cold wind.
Chen Santai bid farewell to Wang Laoshuan and walked alone towards the Sanpan Villa.
As he passed through the first courtyard and was about to head towards the side hall, he suddenly heard someone call out from behind, "Fellow Daoist Chen, please wait."
Chen Santai turned around and saw a fat Taoist priest in his fifties emerge from under the corridor. He was wearing a worn-out blue Taoist robe and had a wooden plaque tied around his waist with the four characters "Sanpan Guan Zhao" engraved on it.
It was Manager Zhao, who was in charge of the allocation of spiritual energy. His name was Zhao Xiuqi, and he was a prominent figure in Qiyuan Town.
Chen Santai stopped and asked, "Manager Zhao, what can I do for you?"
Zhao Xiuqi walked closer and lowered his voice, saying, "Fellow Daoist Chen, you've been diligently practicing array formations lately, but there are some things you still need to be mindful of."
Chen Santai asked, "What sense of propriety?"
Zhao Xiuqi said, "We managers all have powerful backers, and we have to offer tribute the fragments of spirit we obtain. The modifications to the Spirit Locking Array must be restrained; we can't extract too much spiritual energy. You should know that."
Chen Santai's expression remained unchanged as he said, "Manager Zhao, do you dare say that to Dean Zhou Yan?"
Zhao Xiuqi was taken aback, a hint of unease flashing across his face, before saying, "I'm only telling you this. Dean Zhou will eventually return to Sanpan Temple to cultivate; he's a celestial being and won't stay in Qiyuan Town for long. But you, Fellow Daoist Chen, are the one who needs to stay."
Chen Santai sneered and said, "So you're afraid? I only listen to Dean Zhou."
Zhao Xiuqi's face darkened, and his voice turned cold: "Fellow Daoist Chen, what has bewitched you?"
Chen Santai suddenly chuckled and said, "Manager Zhao, all I know is that my son only spent two thousand spirit fragments to enter the inner sanctum. His classmate Zhao Yuan spent over ten thousand spirit fragments and still couldn't. At this rate, I'm afraid he'll never be able to reach the mid-stage of Qi Refining, right?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiuqi's expression changed drastically. A flush of color rose to his chubby face, like burning coals: "Didn't you also spend two thousand spirit fragments on that child? You don't know when to back down. See if you'll have another two thousand spirit fragments to spend later!"
Having said that, he flicked his sleeve, turned around, and left.
Chen Santai looked in the direction he had left, shook his head, and turned to continue walking inside.
After passing through the second courtyard and turning into the side hall, Zhou Yan was sitting in a grand chair, holding a cup of tea and slowly sipping it.
Seeing Chen Santai enter, he put down his teacup and asked, "How is it?"
Chen Santai bowed and said, "Dean, the arrays of the seven families have been repaired today and are all in order. As for the modified patterns, following your guidance, one node has been optimized, drawing in three-tenths more spiritual energy and diverting it to your residence."
Zhou Yan nodded slightly and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
Chen Santai hesitated for a moment, then said, "Dean, when I came in just now, Steward Zhao Xiuqi stopped me."
Zhou Yan asked, "What did he say?"
Chen Santai then recounted Zhao Xiuqi's words in detail, concluding, "He told me to be more restrained and not to draw too much spiritual energy."
Zhou Yan smiled faintly and said, "Just focus on your array and don't worry about him. Elder Xuanmu has just taken office and is at the height of his power. He will handle the affairs of Qiyuan Town. There's no need to pay attention to people like Zhao Xiuqi."
Upon hearing this, Chen Santai felt reassured and bowed, saying, "Yes, then I will take my leave."
After Chen Santai left the side hall, the sound of his footsteps gradually faded away.
Zhou Yan was left alone in the side hall.
He picked up his teacup, took another sip, and stared at the bare branches outside the window for a long time.
Suddenly, that sinister voice echoed in his mind: "Are you ready? It's been two months."
Zhou Yan put down his teacup, his expression unchanged, and replied in his mind, "Senior, it's still a little short."
The voice turned colder, asking, "How much longer?"
Zhou Yan said, "Wait until after winter, when the first spring thunder sounds."
The voice said, "Two months? Not bad. There is an insect that lives in the decaying wood of spring streams, shaped like a golden beetle with red stripes on its back. It hibernates seven days before the Awakening of Insects, and dies upon hearing the first thunder, its vapor turning into smoke. Therefore, woodcutters call it the 'Thunder-Struck Insect'."
Zhou Yan recalled the scene of the rogue cultivators swarming to their burrows like insects when the three bells rang, and sighed inwardly, but thought to himself, "It's better to die than to die myself."
"Don't worry, senior, I won't dare to delay."
The sea of consciousness returned to silence.
Zhou Yan leaned back in his chair and slowly closed his eyes.
Outside the window, bare branches swayed gently in the cold wind, and the distant Sanpan Mountain was faintly visible in the thick fog.
……
Meanwhile, on Fang Shi's side...
He sat cross-legged on the futon, closed his eyes and circulated his internal energy, completely unaware of the power struggles and infighting outside.
【Small Water Cloud Technique (Proficient): 0/200】
After mastering the "Small Water Cloud Technique," he felt the spiritual energy flowing smoothly through his meridians, like a stream flowing into a wide riverbed, without any of the initial stagnation.
The spiritual energy flows through the meridians, like clouds drifting in the sky, flowing freely, like water overflowing a beach, dense and long.
Fang Shi tried circulating his qi throughout his body and felt completely comfortable, like plunging into a cool stream on a hot day, feeling cool from head to toe, with every pore on his body opening up, an indescribable feeling of exhilaration.
He carefully sensed it and was secretly surprised—the efficiency of refining magical power had more than doubled compared to when he first started.
At the initial pace, it would normally take about five years to progress from the second to the third level of Qi Refining.
Now that I've mastered the skill, my speed has doubled, and I can break through in two and a half years.
That's not all. If you can earn more spirit stones in the future, you won't need to work and you can achieve success in a little over a year and two months.
However, the most important thing is not speed.
Fang Shi knew clearly in his heart that if he could not master the "Small Water Cloud Technique", he would never be able to break through to the fourth level of Qi Refining.
Although he is currently only at the second level of Qi Refining, there are no more bottlenecks on the road to the middle level of Qi Refining.
Fang Shi opened his eyes and exhaled a long breath.
The wild rice in the two ceramic pots in the corner had grown taller and the ears of rice had swelled up a bit more. They were green and heavy, and their edges shimmered with a faint golden light.
In a few more days, we will be able to harvest them.
……
The next morning, as dawn broke.
Fang Shi practiced the seven steps of summoning spirits in the courtyard, his movements becoming so familiar that they couldn't be more practiced.
[Seven Steps to Summon Spirits Proficiency +1]
【Seven Steps to Invoking Spirits (Beginner): 69/100】
He stopped and glanced at the panel.
After a month and a half of training, Qingling Qibu's level increased from 63 to 69, and he is still 31 points away from breaking through.
At this rate, it will take more than half a year to go from beginner to expert (100 points).
Fang Shi knew that rituals became increasingly difficult as they progressed, so he didn't hold out much hope.
Like the other three rituals.
【摄食守中（入门）：94/100】——从前的92到94，一个半月涨了2点。
【偃卧归根（入门）：98/100】——从97到98，涨了1点。
【徐行守中（入门）：90/100】——从89到90，涨了1点。
The further you go, the more difficult it becomes to improve.
The rituals of cultivation are rules used by cultivators to calm their minds and enter the Dao; everyone knows them and everyone can do them.
These things are easy to get started with, but difficult to master.
Most people spend their whole lives doing this, but it's just going through the motions; very few actually gain much from it.
Those who achieve anything are even rarer.
Before Fang Shi had a proficiency panel, he was only in his early forties when he performed these rituals.
The points listed below were all corrected and refined over the past three years.
He had never heard of any rogue cultivator achieving anything in these rituals, which meant they had probably gone astray like he had, without even realizing it.
Therefore, Fang Shi did not actually expect to improve his Ling Qi Bu skill to the point of proficiency.
Although mastering it can repair fatigued meridians and accelerate his cultivation speed, if it takes several years to break through, it's better to focus his energy elsewhere.
Finding other ways to make money, earning more spirit fragments, and buying some pills to aid cultivation might be more practical.
Just like using the Qi-stealing patterns of the Purifying Yuan Array to grow wild rice, that was a way for him to make money.
In a few days, the wild rice should be ripe.
Let him give it a try when the time comes.
As he was thinking, he suddenly heard a rapid, forceful knocking on the courtyard gate, accompanied by a familiar voice: "Brother Fang! Brother Fang! Open the door! Big business has arrived!"
Fang Shi recognized Wu Tong's voice, so he went over and opened the door latch.
As soon as the door opened, a gust of cold wind carried a figure inside.
It was Wu Tong.
He was wearing a tattered cotton-padded coat that he had picked up from somewhere; it was large and old, and looked rather loose on his body.
With only a level one Qi Refining cultivation, he was so cold in this weather that he kept shrinking his neck.
Fang asked, "What kind of business?"
Wu Tong rubbed his hands together, exhaled a puff of white breath, and said, "Brother Fang, do you know about 'Cold Mist Ravine'?"
Fang Shi said, "I know. Fifty miles north of Qiyuan Town, in the desolate wilderness, there is a valley that is often shrouded in cold mist in winter, hence the name."
Wu Tong said, "Yes! That's it! I heard that this winter, a herb called 'Frost Spirit Grass' grew in the 'Cold Mist Ravine,' growing on the cliff face where the cold mist is thickest. This herb can be used to make 'Breakthrough Pills,' which help Qi Refining cultivators break through bottlenecks! The Three Plates Temple's pharmacy sells ten Frost Spirit Grass fragments for every Frost Spirit Grass!"
Fang Shidao: "Ten Soul Shards?"
Wu Tong became more and more excited as he spoke: "Brother Fang, you don't know, the other day there was a rogue cultivator who spent the whole day in 'Cold Mist Valley' gathering twenty plants! Twenty plants! That's two hundred spirit fragments! He earned two hundred spirit fragments in just one day! My goodness, I don't even see that many spirit fragments in a whole year!"
Fang asked, "Is that place dangerous?"
Wu Tong said, "Of course it's dangerous. The Great Wilderness is full of monsters, poisonous insects, and miasma—what doesn't it have? But I've heard that the monsters in 'Frosty Mist Valley' stay in their caves during winter and don't come out. As long as you don't provoke them, you'll be fine. There are no poisonous insects or miasma either. But the frost mist is formed from spiritual energy condensing into droplets when it cools. It's chilly when you inhale it; even someone at the first level of Qi Refining can't withstand it. But Brother Fang, you're at the second level of Qi Refining, and you cultivate the 'Minor Water Cloud Technique,' so you'll definitely be fine!"
Fang Shi remained silent, lost in thought.
Two hundred spirit fragments is indeed a big deal.
He couldn't earn that much even if he sold talismans for a month.
But the Great Wilderness is no joke; his parents went there years ago and never came back.
Seeing that he didn't speak, Wu Tong stamped his feet anxiously and said, "Brother Fang! This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! The 'Frost Spirit Grass' only grows for a few days; once it's gone, it's gone forever! I've already found out that quite a few people are going these days, mostly independent cultivators, going in groups of three or five. If you want to go, I'll help you find some reliable companions. It's better to go alone than to go alone!"
Fang Shidao said, "Will you help me find it?"
Wu Tong patted his chest and said, "Brother Fang, don't worry! I may not have many other skills, but I'm good at recognizing people. I'll find you a few clean-cut guys who won't cause you any trouble."
Fang Shi said, "Come with me into the inner room first."
Wu Tong was puzzled, but still said, "Okay, Brother Fang."
He then followed Fang Shi into the house.
Fang Shi sat down in front of the talisman table, spread out the yellow paper, ground the cinnabar, and picked up the spirit wolf hair brush.
Wu Tong stood aside, not knowing what he was going to do, and watched quietly.
Fang Shi meticulously drew the protective talisman from beginning to end, stroke by stroke.
After finishing the drawing, he picked up the talisman and casually handed it to Wu Tong.
[Proficiency in Protective Charm +1]
【Protective Charm (Proficient): 32/200】
Fang Shi asked, "Did you understand?"
Wu Tong took the talisman and examined it several times. He scratched his head and said sheepishly, "I don't understand it."
Fang Shi said, "If you can't even understand talismans, how do you know if there are any intricacies in the herb-gathering trade that you don't understand?"
Wu Tong was taken aback, and the excitement on his face slowly faded, as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water.
He lowered his head, rubbing the cuffs of his tattered cotton-padded jacket, and after a long while said, "Brother Fang, I acted impulsively. When I heard 200 spirit stones, my mind went blank, and I came here without thinking."
He looked up at Fang Shi, then cautiously asked, "Brother Fang, you mean... you're not going?"
Fang swore, "No..."