Cultivation: Starting with Farming in the Spiritual Pivot Grotto

Chapter 5 Qi Refining Stage 2, Each Step Like a Formidable Fortress

Without having time to carefully examine "Essentials of Qi Cultivation," Li Ya hurriedly went to the north side of the town.

Based on my previous memory, I found a strange wonton stall in a secluded alley.

"What kind of filling are the wontons today?"

The elderly woman who was wrapping wontons smiled and replied, "Sir, these are pork wontons. Would you like a bowl?"

Do you have minced pork filling?

"Look at you, where can I find wontons with fragrant pork filling?"

"If I wish to eat it, I wonder if you, sir, have any way to get some?"

The stall owner looked troubled.

"If you really want to eat it, then come with my grandson!"

Suddenly, a boy of about half a size appeared from the shadows of the alley, and Li Ya quickly followed.

After having his waist tag checked, he arrived at a coffin shop. The shopkeeper lifted the lid of a shabby, thin wooden coffin in the corner, and Li Ya quickly lay down inside.

"Bang!"

The coffin lid was sealed, and the surroundings were quiet. Li Ya could only hear his own breathing.

To be honest, this coffin is actually quite comfortable to lie in. It would be great to buy one and use it as a bed someday.

The coffin then plummeted downwards, stopping after a while. When the lid was lifted, a cave came into view.

This is the Ghost Market.

Inside the dark and winding cave, there were low sheds and hidden stalls, and every vendor was acting suspiciously with sinister eyes.

Whether sitting or squatting, with goods half-hidden in front of them, their eyes are like those of hungry wolves, specifically targeting strangers and the weak to fleece.

Further inside, there is a market town built according to the shape of the cave, with various stilted buildings standing side by side.

The entrance fee to the city was one tael of copper coins. The market was relatively good in this respect; after paying the fee, at least one's personal safety was guaranteed.

Following his memory, Li Ya walked straight to a secluded stall.

The stall owner was a skinny old man, hidden in the shadows.

He glanced at Li Ya, his voice hoarse: "Once you place your bet, you are responsible for your own profits and losses, and you bear the consequences yourself."

A dozen or so Sumeru ritual implements were placed openly and honestly on the ground, each with a different design.

Before Baiyujing ruled the world with the Dao, the Sumeru Dharma artifacts were extremely precious in the Sub-World.

According to the Records of the Dao, a great cultivator in Baiyujing used his supreme supernatural powers to drag a small world into the Azure Lotus World, thus expanding the territory of this world.

The collision of the two worlds resulted in the formation of a large number of Sumeru stones.

Even though most of them are controlled by powerful families and sects, this Sumeru magic artifact is ultimately:

"The swallows that once graced the halls of immortals now fly into the homes of ordinary, wandering cultivators."

"Please, Spiritual Pivot, tell me, what is the value of all the items inside this vast collection of treasures?"

[The Spiritual Pivot will use the Sumeru artifact mentioned by the fellow Daoist as a limit to deduce its value.]

[Spiritual Energy Consumption: 49 strands of True Qi]

[Time required: Half an hour]

[Fellow Daoist, please confirm whether this deduction is valid?]

"yes!"

"May I ask, fellow traveler, what is the price of this ring?"

Li Ya pointed to a Sumeru ring with a green snake's tail, which looked extraordinary.

"Ten taels of moon toad coins."

This is like treating yourself like a fat pig to be slaughtered. One or two moon toad coins are worth a hundred taels of red copper coins, but when you actually go to exchange them, you often have to pay tens of taels more in red copper coins.

This moon toad coin is cast from refined silver and infused with the essence of the moon. Because the moonlight is at its best on the fifteenth of each month, it is shaped like a moon toad and weighs one tael.

As expected, no merchant is without guile. Li Ya did not haggle but asked the price of each item.

The stall owner wasn't annoyed; whenever Li Ya asked a question, he would immediately quote a price.

The stall owner sneered inwardly as he looked at Li Ya asking for the price.

"Another naive young man thinking he can snag a bargain."

"Young people these days are all looking for shortcuts, they don't work hard, and they think their destiny is in their hands."

"Don't you realize that if there were shortcuts, our ancestors would have taken them long ago? There wouldn't be a chance for you!"

The ash on the pipe flickered with each breath, and by the light of the fire, Li Ya could see the deeply lined face.

"May I ask, stall owner, how do these Sumeru magical artifacts differ from those from Qianjin Pavilion?"

Li Ya tried his best to sound timid, like a fledgling bird just starting out in the world of cultivation.

"Kid, you might find Qianjin Pavilion empty, but here, everything is in stock. I definitely won't rip you off."

"But... I hope so."

The largest shop in the Ghost Market is called Qianjin Pavilion, which sells stolen goods.

The entire second basement floor of Qianjin Pavilion is a gambling den, where a popular game called "treasure gambling" involves auctioning off various rare magical artifacts of different origins, with the winner opening the treasure.

These are further divided into two types: visible treasures and hidden treasures.

After the auction, Qianjin Pavilion opened a betting pool for Mingbao, and gamblers placed their bets.

Those with the skill can open the Sumeru ritual implement themselves after winning the bid; those without the skill will have to spend a lot of money to hire someone to open it for them.

The value of the item is calculated on the spot, and the bettor can win money of equal value based on the amount wagered.

Hidden treasures are auctioned but not put on the market.

Li Ya had considered going to Qianjin Pavilion, but he only had that much money on him, and besides, bidding was too risky.

Who can say for sure how many deals will be finalized? If you're going, you should wait until you're more financially secure before going.

Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

He asked about the price of every Sumeru ritual implement on the stall, and even the cheapest one was beyond Li Ya's current budget.

The results of the deduction slowly appeared on the Ling Shu.

[Green Snake Ring: Twenty-five taels of red copper coins]

[Lotus Pouch: Thirty taels of Moon Toad Coins]

……

[Mountain King's Pouch: Forty-one taels of moon toad coins]

[Fellow Daoist, your request has been fulfilled. Would you like the Spiritual Pivot to continue deducing the methods for breaking the seals on the various Sumeru artifacts?]

"No need."

I never expected that this seemingly worn-out tiger-skin bag could be worth so much money. Either it has a lot of space inside, or it contains valuable items.

Either way, it's worth a try.

Perhaps because he had been loitering in front of the stall for too long, the stall owner finally got a little annoyed.

"Asking questions without buying anything, are you perhaps just making fun of this old man?"

Li Ya sneered inwardly. What a stingy old man. I hope you get to taste the stinky tea.

But on the surface, he feigned timidity and ignorance, and said in a low voice:

"No, no, I'm truly short of funds, sir, your price is too high..."

"Is the price too high?"

Old Ghost Head peeked out from the shadows.

"You think it's too expensive, but I think it's too cheap!"

Li Ya looked timid and turned to leave.

"Then...then I won't buy it...it's too expensive..."

The stall owner panicked when he saw Li Ya was about to leave.

He hasn't been able to sell a single one of these dead stock piled up for ten or fifteen days. Now that he's finally got a new one, how can he let it go?

"Hey, hey, hey! Come back, come back!"

The stall owner quickly called out to stop him, feigning impatience: "Looking at you like this, I guess I'm out of luck! I'll give you a discount."

"10% off".

Li Ya continued walking out without stopping, his voice weak: "Still expensive..."

The stall owner cursed the poor man in his heart, but he was reluctant to let go of this business.

"20% off, maximum 20% off."

Li Ya stopped and turned around, still timid, but whispered, "60% off... I'll buy it at 60% off..."

"What?!" The stall owner jumped up as if his tail had been stepped on.

"60% off? You think you can mess with me? Why don't you just rob me?"

"I wouldn't dare to rob it."

"Then forget it..." Li Ya was about to leave again.

"stop!"

The stall owner turned green with anger, stomped his foot angrily, and gritted his teeth: "Six and a half percent! Only six and a half percent!"

Li Ya was overjoyed, but his face remained calm.

He pretended to pick up the two most worn-out items.

The same small bag made of tiger skin, and the same ring with a green snake's tail.

After what seemed like a difficult decision, he put the ring down.

"How much does this tiger-skin bag cost?"

"Original price 600 taels, take it for 390 taels."

Li Ya reluctantly took out the money, stuffed the tiger-skin bag into his pocket, and turned to leave.

The stall owner watched his retreating figure and let out a smug sneer.

"Foolish boy, the formation inside has long been damaged. If it could be opened, would it be your turn? You'll never open it in your lifetime! You're so easy to fool!"

"Four hundred taels of silver, and today I can go to Hundred Flowers Lane to have tea with Fairy Bai Jie again."

Little did he know that the one who was truly deceived might not necessarily be Li Ya.

The Yunfu Sect has many servants, but none of them have a cultivation cave. When they need to cultivate to an important point, they will rent a quiet room in Qingfeng Cave.

Li Ya was always uneasy about other places, so he finally gritted his teeth and rented a room in Qingfeng Cave. Once inside, there were protective laws that separated the inside from the outside.

This Qingfeng Cave is the business of an elder of the Yunfu Sect. In order to curry favor with this elder, some outer disciples would occasionally patronize the business.

"Which business under the Yunfu Sect doesn't have the shadow of those high-ups? Ordinary people can't touch it."

Li Ya calmed down and placed the jade tablet in the mouth of the bronze lion behind the door, just as the shopkeeper had instructed.

A flash of inspiration appeared, enveloping the entire quiet room.

The quiet room was not large, but it was fully equipped with a bed, a futon, an incense burner, and other amenities.

"According to the shopkeeper, the quiet room itself isn't expensive; what's expensive is the calming incense burning in the incense burner."

As he spoke, he took out the mountain tiger bag he had bought from the ghost market, and embedded two small Sumeru stones in the eyes of the fierce tiger with its piercing eyes and white forehead.

The tiny snail-shaped body slowly climbed up to the top, its fleshy feet enveloping the Sumeru stone.

Its mouthparts were placed on the Sumeru Stone, and a thin gray mist was exhaled from it. The Sumeru Stone began to melt away little by little and was swallowed bit by bit.

As the Sumeru Stone continued to dissolve, the restrictions on it lost their support and began to crumble.

If the Sumeru stone on an ordinary Sumeru ritual implement is damaged, the space inside will be instantly shattered by spatial turbulence.

Where else can one find something like the conch shell, which can take away the Sumeru Stone without damaging what it contains?

Seeing that the "Fangcunluo" event would take a while to finish, Li Ya sat quietly to the side and took out "Essentials of Qi Refining" to study it carefully.

The Qi Refining Ceremony has twelve levels. The first five levels open all the meridians, clear all the orifices, strengthen the muscles and bones, invigorate the internal organs, and improve the blood and marrow. Ordinary cultivators can achieve these levels through meditation and diligent practice, though it may take a little longer.

Those with abundant wealth have a constant supply of elixirs and spiritual foods, which naturally makes them much faster.

"No wonder the Yunfu Sect set the examination at the sixth level of Qi Refining."

Li Ya suddenly realized that, starting from the sixth level, cultivators not only need to compete on resources and background, but also need to preliminarily determine their future cultivation path.

Starting from the sixth level, disciples of the Yunfu Sect have their masters select suitable cultivation methods, spiritual energy, and talismans based on their destiny, attributes, cultivation techniques, and personality...

All these details are secrets kept by each school and sect.

The purpose of expending so much effort on these things is to make up for the disciple's shortcomings and enhance his strengths.

"No wonder the great sects can prosper for generations. Even if ordinary rogue cultivators know these things, without the help of their masters, it would be as difficult as climbing to heaven on their own."

There are eighty-one paths to the Golden Elixir in the world. The Yunfu Sect follows the path of the Wood Azure Dragon Thunder Star Elixir, which focuses on wood magic, is paired with the Azure Dragon of the East, and draws in the primordial energy of thunder.

Ultimately, all of this is to align with this path.

Next comes the gathering and refining of the corresponding special spiritual energy, transforming it into the corresponding true energy, cultivating a wisp of the Five Elements True Nature, and filling the Qi Sea, Dantian, and numerous meridians and acupoints.

The seventh level of Qi cultivation determines one's destiny, and a natal object is buried in the main acupoint to obtain its essence.

The Qi Refining Eighth Stage involves rebuilding the Spirit Palace, embedding spiritual objects in various acupoints within the body, connecting these spiritual objects with one's natal object, and creating a Daoist altar on the spiritual platform. The shape and dimensions of the Daoist altar are all secrets of each family.

The nine points of Qi cultivation lead to the spiritual resonance, where a deity is enshrined in the spiritual altar, becoming one's natal deity.

To condense a true talisman at the eleventh level of Qi Refining, one must select a main talisman from the eighty-one Golden Core Paths and condense a true talisman seed.

The twelve stages of Qi Refining forge the foundation of the Dao, with True Talisman Seeds as the master and a varying number of Spirit Talismans as servants, thus forging the foundation of the Great Dao.

"This has clearly blocked the path for all independent cultivators beyond the sixth level of Qi Refining."

"If it were me, I would also think that I could obtain it simply by absorbing spiritual energy."

"In this world without spiritual roots, it seems even less friendly to rogue cultivators."