Chapter 431: Chapter 205: Hundred Li Grand Market, Combination of Qi Blood and Fake Pill (Part 2)
For example, one of the Eastern Domainâs specialties, a Portable Array Plate with the Tier Three Defensive Array known as the Nine Orifice Linked Array, was priced at 240,000 Spirit Stones.
Another example was the Profound Light Cloud-Plated Spirit Shield, which required sixty wisps of True Essence to activate and possessed a Spirit Ascension Form. It was priced at 320,000 Spirit Stones.
...
They were all expensive, but much more practical by comparison.
Xiao Chen had his eye on that Array Plate. After all, he was practically a Loose Cultivator now; he had no sect-mates to stand watch while he slept, and no one to act as a Protector while he cultivated.
Although he had the Blade of Night, he couldnât rely entirely on this trump card.
If he could set up a Defense Array where he rested, it would significantly increase his personal safety.
He then went on to visit many other shops.
He saw all sorts of Spiritual Ornaments, Spirit Beasts, and Spirit Wines.
âOh, White Jade Little Cyan Dragon.â
Inside an old, established distillery, Xiao Chen spotted the specialty from the Ten Thousand Immortals Archipelago that could help one condense their True Essence.
Sure enough, it wasnât that expensive. A small, gourd-sized portion cost only three hundred Spirit Stones, while a large, full jar was just two thousand.
He bought eight large jars without hesitation. With the Vast Sea Ring, his storage space was now large enough that he no longer had to worry about running out of room.
âBy the time I finish these eight jars of wine, Iâll probably be close to reaching the Middle Stage of the Golden Core Realm.â
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Speaking of which, it was about time for Xiao Chen to start planning ahead for the minor bottlenecks.
If he didnât want to get stuck in the Early Stage of the Golden Core Realm for many years like other Cultivators, he would have to start collecting Spiritual Objects that aided cultivation in advance.
The cultivation process of the Golden Core Stage had one significant difference from the Foundation Establishment Stage.
Namely, it no longer had Nine Minor Realms, but only four levels: Early Stage, Middle Stage, Late Stage, and Great Perfection.
However, that wasnât always the case.
According to the records in the Yellow Springs Secret Scripture, upon reaching the Golden Core Realm, only Celestial Level and some Earth Level Cultivation Techniques still retained the division into Nine Minor Realms.
All Profound and Yellow Level Cultivation Techniques were left with only four stages.
The advantage of this was obvious: one no longer needed to break through layer by layer.
A Cultivator only needed to follow their Cultivation Technique step-by-step to directly cultivate their current stage to completion.
However, this also presented a problem: without the layer-by-layer division, the entire difficulty of breaking through was concentrated into the subsequent minor bottlenecks.
While not an insurmountable barrierâone could slowly grind through it over timeâit was still common for cultivators to be held back by a minor bottleneck for decades, or even one or two hundred years.
In fact, it wasnât unheard of for some to encounter an accident midway and get stuck for the rest of their lives, unable to make any further progress.
Xiao Chen didnât place much hope in his own so-called invincible talent and world-shaking comprehension.
He knew very well that if he wanted to break through quickly, it was best to prepare early.
âI just hope my luck isnât too bad on this trip to the Hundred Herbs Secret Realm.â
âHopefully, besides the Purple Gold Bodhi, Iâll also run into a suitable Tier Three Wood Element Spiritual Object.â
âAlso, the Eastern Domain has numerous Secret Realms.â
âBesides the soon-to-open Hundred Herbs Secret Realm, there are many other good places.â
âFrom now on, I canât just cultivate behind closed doors all the time. I should get out more.â
âI need to meet some fellow cultivators, gather information, and actively seek out opportunities.â
"Hey, whatâs that?"
Just as he was thinking about cultivation, Xiao Chen caught sight of a six-foot-tall stone stele out of the corner of his eye.
He moved closer for a better look and saw that the item had quite a history.
It was a Sword Stele left behind four thousand years ago by the renowned Silver-faced True Monarch of the Divine Splitting Sword Pavilion.
The handful of inscriptions on its surface had been personally carved by the True Monarch and contained a sliver of his Sword Intent.
If a Sword Cultivator could comprehend the Sword Intent within, it would be a significant boon to their own cultivation.
However, while items imbued with a True Monarchâs Sword Intent were not common, they werenât exceptionally rare, either.
Because of this, the price listed beneath the Sword Stele was not particularly expensiveâforty thousand Spirit Stones.
âWhat a fortunate coincidence.â
Xiao Chenâs eyes immediately lit up. This was a real treasure.
He had previously succeeded in awakening the Spiritual Mechanism of his Wind and Thunder Dual Swords, but unfortunately, he had lacked both the time and the right Spiritual Objects to proceed.
He had been putting off their final refinement until now.
âNow that Iâve stumbled upon this Sword Stele, I canât possibly pass it up.â
âIt shouldnât be long before I have two more Spiritual Artifacts in my arsenal.â
But speaking of awakening a Spiritual Mechanism, Xiao Chenâs thoughts turned to his own Fake Pill.
After breaking through to the Golden Core Realm, all the Magical Power in his Dantian had converted into True Essence.
The problem, however, was that the Fake Pill still stored the original Magical Power, rendering it almost useless in an instant.
The original purpose of a Fake Pill was to provide a path for advancement for Foundation Establishment Cultivators who had no hope of Core Formation.
Aside from the cost, the reason Fake Pills were so rare in the Southern Domain was that many promising young cultivators with Celestial Spirit Roots would never consider wasting time on Fake Pill Formation.
They would aim directly for a true Golden Core.
âI almost forgot the important business at hand.â
Having already formed a Fake Pill, Xiao Chen was naturally unwilling to let it go to waste. âThe Grand Market is happening today. This is the perfect chance to see if I can find a solution.â
Although he hadnât heard of any such methods in the Southern Domain, the Eastern Domain was more advanced, so perhaps he could find a solution here.
At this thought, he immediately quickened his pace.
He now only gave the dazzling array of goods at the market a cursory glance to see what was new and broaden his horizons, no longer stopping to examine them in detail.
However, after visiting dozens of shops in a row, he still hadnât found any relevant Secret Techniques.
It seemed that even in the Eastern Domain, few people bothered to research how to upgrade a Fake Pill.
At the same time, during his search, Xiao Chen also made a surprising discovery: he had seen almost no Spiritual Objects related to cultivation.