Xu Mu seized the opportunity to escape, quickly moving away from the Thunderous Mountains.
"Damn, how is this guy so powerful?"
He had thought that with his years of accumulation, he had few rivals within the same realm.
After all, he had the "multiplier bonus" of the Crimson Sun Nine Luminaries and the bonus of the Samadhi True Fire Technique, making him a genuine user of solar fire.
Unexpectedly, he encountered a tough opponent right away.
At this moment, he was grimacing, his clothes were charred, and he had suffered some injuries. He
was mainly at a disadvantage due to his speed.
The lightning ball flew in front of him, and although the Crimson Sun Nine Luminaries and Samadhi True Fire Technique could withstand it, they couldn't stop the aftershocks of the explosion.
Fortunately, he had run fast enough, and the surrounding spiritual energy was chaotic, so that guy shouldn't be able to track him.
Just as he was about to find a place to heal his injuries, his gaze suddenly sharpened, and he said in a deep voice, "You've returned, what brings you here?"
The surroundings fell silent for a moment.
Only when his gaze fell upon him did a middle-aged man finally appear, the very cultivator who had just escaped.
The other man, thick-skinned, chuckled and said, "Fellow Daoist, your strength is extraordinary. You even know the art of observing qi."
"What do you want?" Xu Mu looked at him coldly.
The man smiled, cupped his hands, and said, "My name is Sun Zhijie. I was blind to your greatness just now. I didn't expect you to be so capable, able to contend with that tiger clan princess all by yourself.
I truly admire you. This is not something an ordinary rogue cultivator could do." Xu Mu sneered, "You led that princess here to me, do you expect me to thank you? I'm injured now, but I can still kill someone."
Sun Zhijie remained calm, smiling lightly, "Killing one person is no problem, but what about the other three?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the other two revealed themselves, surrounding Xu Mu.
Xu Mu glanced at them and exhaled.
The cruelty of the cultivation world was evident everywhere he went; people would kindly remind him of it.
"If you have the guts, come at me all at once," he said coldly, six flying swords swirling around him.
The three men exchanged glances, indeed somewhat wary.
But Xu Mu, as a rogue cultivator, was so powerful that they saw him as easy prey, perhaps possessing some treasure or powerful cultivation technique.
Taking advantage of his injury, the hyenas swarmed around him.
After exchanging glances, Sun Zhijie shouted, "Attack!"
The three attacked simultaneously, one of them using a rope, seemingly designed for control.
Xu Mu tried to cut the rope, but failed; instead, he was bound by his sword and pulled away, losing control.
If he only had one sword, he would likely be in serious trouble.
Xu Mu remained calm, descending from the air and wielding his other five swords, fighting and retreating, adjusting his stance to avoid being attacked from both sides.
His opponents were flying in the air; two of them used swords, but their swordsmanship was mediocre, lacking any sword intent—they might have hidden techniques.
The man using the rope used water magic, conjuring ice spikes to attack.
Xu Mu still had two defensive magic items, enough to block the attacks.
"Use your ultimate moves! Finish this quickly!" Sun Zhijie shouted.
The three of them simultaneously formed hand seals, quickly losing their chance to suppress Xu Mu.
This was exactly the moment Xu Mu had been waiting for.
The sword flashed instantly, fast and sharp, seemingly capable of slicing through anything in its path!
Sun Zhijie was the first to be struck, a swift diagonal slash from his waist to his shoulder, his expression turning to astonishment, frozen completely.
The other two panicked at the sight.
Seeing Xu Mu's next attack, they hastily retreated, exchanging a glance before turning and running.
Hyena packs lose their courage after the death of their leader, scattering in all directions.
Xu Mu breathed a sigh of relief, forcing himself to move, and went to loot the corpse before quickly fleeing the area.
Soon, the Tiger Woman, drawn by the commotion, arrived. Fortunately, Xu Mu was fast enough; otherwise, he would have been killed.
...
After finding a place to hide, Xu Mu quickly healed his wounds.
"Damn it, the mortal realm is truly a comfort zone. I went out and found it was raining all day."
Now that he was home, he didn't want to go out so easily again; he needed to accumulate, accumulate, and accumulate some more!
The sword he had honed for six years was gone again; he would have to hone it all over again.
Finally, he looked at the spoils of war. There were two storage bags in total. One contained materials from the demon beasts, and the other contained Sun Zhijie's entire fortune for daily use.
There were four magical artifacts in total: a magic-grade flying sword to replace the one that had been taken away by the rope;
two relatively intact defensive magical artifacts to replace the two slightly damaged ones he already possessed;
and finally, a spirit beast ring, worn around the neck of a demon beast. It could freely contract and tighten around the neck, and explode to control the beast, while also allowing for telepathic communication, facilitating taming and command.
"Interesting," Xu Mu observed, examining it closely.
He had seen this item in a spirit beast shop before, and it seemed more suited for keeping pets.
The neck-strangulation and explosion wouldn't be a threat to stronger demon beasts.
Its most useful function was telepathic communication, beneficial for raising young beasts.
If a bond could be cultivated from a young age, it would be fine; otherwise, the beast could easily devour its master.
In the cultivation world, every year there were cultivators killed by their own spirit beasts, severely impacting the spirit beast industry.
Otherwise, if it were absolutely safe, everyone in the cultivation world would have a pet beast, turning it into a game of beast taming.
Sun Zhijie probably fantasized about taming a demonic beast, which is why he wore the spirit beast ring.
Xu Mu felt it wasn't very useful, but it was interesting, so he kept it for now, thinking he might need it someday.
Then he emptied his storage bag, taking out four spirit stones and some medicinal herbs for refining Spirit Gathering Pills, only lacking Spirit Gathering Fruits.
There was also a paper book recording alchemy experience.
It was clear that Sun Zhijie was an alchemist; lacking a jade slip or other written magical artifact, he could only write on paper.
After glancing at it, Xu Mu burned the alchemy notes along with his clothes.
This gain was only so-so.
After all, he was just an ordinary rogue cultivator; it was hard to expect anything valuable from him.
"Sigh, overall, this trip was a loss; it's far less valuable than the 'Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist' that Lu Yiming gave me."
Looking back on the entire trip, he gained a bottle of Spirit Gathering Pills from his senior sister, half a precious Golden Saint Mushroom, a high-level spell, and the rare friendship he forged with Lu Yiming.
Having only learned about the market in Wulei City, all he did was
return. He planned to sell the materials, buy two Youth-Preserving Pills, and that would be it, costing him a six-year-old "Sword of the Eye. "
With a helpless sigh, Xu Mu stood up and dusted himself off.
"I'd better go home first and plan further."
...
Upon returning to Wulei City, he paid the entrance fee again, seemingly as a tax.
After selling the demon beast materials and two damaged defensive magic items, he added the previous 288 talisman coins, subtracted the 10 entrance fee, and ended up with 412 talisman coins.
Buying two Youth-Preserving Pills at the Qinglan Sect's treasure pavilion cost 360, leaving him with 52 talisman coins—not even enough to buy a low-grade spirit stone. He could only use that for the next entrance fee.
Overall, the result was satisfactory.
This trip was solely to find the market, and he was prepared to risk it for money.
It hadn't taken too long; only seven months had passed since he left.
"Alright, let's go home and continue farming. I should be able to break through to the seventh level of Qi Refining. I'll also learn 'Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist.' Although I won't have the 'Sword Showdown' skill anymore, it's still a pure upgrade."
With that, Xu Mu embarked on his journey home, returning to his comfort zone.
"After the rain in the empty mountains, autumn arrives in the evening. The bright moon shines between the pines, and the clear spring flows over the rocks..."
"These are the lines of poetry written by my young master," Li Zhihua said proudly.
"Your young master is so amazing!" a young girl exclaimed in amazement.
She was the eldest daughter of the Xiao family, a powerful clan in Taoshan County.
She had met the Li sisters, Li Zhiyuan and Li Zhihua, when she visited Taohua Temple to offer incense. Feeling that they shared similar interests, she often came to Taohua Temple to visit them.
"Of course! My young master is a cultivator favored by the immortals, possessing both talent and good looks!"
Li Zhihua made no attempt to hide her admiration and infatuation, constantly mentioning "my young master."
Originally, Xu Mu had arranged for them to be junior sisters, but they quickly revealed their true identities in daily life. They half-truthfully claimed that they had been saved by "the young master" and, to repay his kindness, had become his maids.
The young master was an old immortal's disciple, so the old immortal took them in as disciples as well.
So, although they were the young master's junior sisters, they still preferred to consider themselves his maids, serving him to repay his kindness.
Xiao Hongying nodded slightly with an awkward smile. The more she heard this, the more curious she became about the "young master" the two sisters mentioned.
"Alright, the strings are tuned," Li Zhiyuan said.
Hearing this, Xiao Hongying went over and smiled sweetly, "Thank you, Sister Zhiyuan. Sister Zhiyuan is so amazing; not only can you play, but you also know how to tune the strings."
Li Zhiyuan smiled slightly, "Living in the valley, you can only rely on yourself."
Li Zhihua chuckled from the side, "Sister went to great lengths to make the young master like you."
Li Zhiyuan glared at her, a little embarrassed and annoyed.
She was the more reserved type, unlike her younger sister who always expressed her feelings for the young master.
"Is the valley where you live... really that nice? Can you take me in to see it too?" Xiao Hongying couldn't help but ask.
Upon hearing this, the two sisters looked at each other awkwardly.
They kept showing off in front of others, but when people actually wanted to see it, they refused, since it was their private little nest, where many embarrassing memories were left.
"Um... without Young Master's guidance, we can't go in," Li Zhiyuan said somewhat hesitantly.
"Then when your young master returns, could you please tell him for me? He's been gone for a year, he should be back soon."
Seeing her persistence, the two sisters were hesitant and regretted saying too much.
But because they had Xiao Hongying as someone to talk to and share their thoughts with, they hadn't felt too empty and lonely this past year.
"Then let's wait for the young master to return... and see what he thinks," Li Zhiyuan said, forcing
a smile. "Yes, yes, it shouldn't be a problem if the young master takes Hongying to see the valley with him," Li Zhihua said with an awkward smile.
Actually, they hoped that Xu Mu would refuse, or that when Xu Mu returned to pick them up, Xiao Hongying wouldn't be there, and then they wouldn't have to worry about this issue.
Xiao Hongying, however, was unaware of their conflicted thoughts and simply nodded happily, looking forward to seeing the "Immortal Valley" they had described.
A valley that transcended the world, undisturbed by anyone, serene and beautiful, where one didn't need to worry about daily necessities, almost completely far removed from worldly troubles.
How could mortals not yearn for it?
Even the emperor would want to stay there if he knew.
Just then, a beautiful female Taoist priest in a dark blue robe rushed into the courtyard, smiling, "Zhiyuan, Zhihua, your young master has arrived."
"Huh?" The three looked over, unsure if they hadn't heard clearly or hadn't realized what was happening. The female Taoist
priest smiled and repeated, "Your young master has come to take you home."
"Really?!" The two sisters jumped up in surprise.
"Come on, let's go see him!" Xiao Hongying seemed even more excited than them.
The two sisters didn't care about anything else and hurriedly said, "Where is he? Take us there quickly."
"Let's pack our luggage first!" Li Zhiyuan remembered.
So the two hurriedly went back into the house and packed all their belongings.
"Please." The female Taoist priest smiled and gestured.
Xiao Hongying followed, emphasizing that she hoped the young master would take her to see the Immortal Valley.
Upon hearing this, the female Taoist priest immediately wanted a spot as well.
The two sisters had lived here for a year and were naturally familiar with the Taoist priests in the temple. Many of the priests also longed for the Valley of Immortals.
The two sisters could only nod vaguely, feeling guilty, and hurry on their way, hoping to see the young master as soon as possible.
...
Xu Mu was being received by Daoist Qingfeng in the main hall.
He appeared young at the time, apologizing for not being able to visit his "master" in person, claiming he was injured and would personally come to express his gratitude after he recovered.
He also brought a gift for the temple: some incense he had refined himself, designed to calm the mind and spirit, packaged in a sandalwood box.
"This incense is suitable for both meditation and sleep; please don't be shy,"
Daoist Qingfeng said after some polite exchanges, seeing he couldn't refuse, and instructed his disciple to accept the gift. He then sent for the sisters, Li Zhiyuan and Li Zhihua.
When the sisters arrived, they couldn't help but burst into tears of joy, hugging their zithers and rushing into the man's arms.
This scene caused onlookers to avert their gazes.
Xiao Hongying blushed shyly, stealing glances at the young master the sisters were talking about.
"Alright, alright, what kind of behavior is this in public?" Xu Mu chuckled, patting the two women's backs to comfort them.
The sisters wiped their eyes, blushing with embarrassment, and stepped away from his embrace.
Xu Mu cupped his hands to Qingfeng Daoist and said, "Thank you for taking care of my two junior sisters."
"Just junior sisters?" Qingfeng Daoist joked with a smile.
Xu Mu wasn't embarrassed and smiled faintly, "They are junior sisters and not junior sisters. What matters is that we understand each other and are content with what we have."
Qingfeng Daoist stroked his beard and chuckled, "You've truly mastered the Dao by following your master." "You
flatter me, Daoist Master. I'm just showing off my superficial knowledge." Xu Mu said modestly.
"Alright, they're eager to go home, so we won't keep you any longer," Qingfeng Daoist said.
It was already afternoon, and they had already eaten lunch, so there was no point in keeping guests.
"Thank you for taking us in, Daoist Master," the two sisters bowed politely together.
Xu Mu bowed to everyone present to thank them for their care, and then prepared to leave with the two sisters.
Xiao Hongying watched expectantly.
Li Zhiyuan felt a little awkward and had to bring up the matter with Xu Mu.
Xu Mu paused, then shook his head, saying, "I'm sorry, that's a secluded place for our sect's cultivation; it's not convenient for outsiders to disturb us."
This sounded incredibly cold, but it completely extinguished Xiao Hongying's hopes.
The two sisters secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but seeing the disappointment on Xiao Hongying's face, they felt a pang of shame.
If they hadn't boasted, things wouldn't have come to this.
"Alright then..." Xiao Hongying forced a smile, only able to watch them leave with regret.
Xu Mu nodded calmly, ignoring her emotions, and took his leave with the two sisters.
After leaving the Taoist temple, he glanced at the two sisters: "What did you say to her?"
The two lowered their heads like children who had done something wrong.
"I'm sorry, young master, we said many things we shouldn't have..."
they said, adding to each other's stories, truthfully recounting what they had done over the past year.
In reality, they couldn't help but boast to their sisters about how happy they were living in the valley.
However, it couldn't be said that it was out of a desire to show off; they weren't the type to boast. Perhaps it was a more complex longing that compelled them to express it in this way.
Thinking of this, Xu Mu patted the two girls' heads tenderly: "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."
"Yes!" The two sisters' eyes were filled with tears, and they cried with joy. They couldn't wait to go home and tell each other about their longing.
"Wow—home is so comfortable!"
Li Zhihua shouted as soon as they returned to the valley.
Xu Mu and Li Zhiyuan smiled.
Xu Mu felt even more strongly that in the cultivation world, one always had to be careful, being a low-level rogue cultivator.
Returning to the comfort zone of the mortal realm, he felt like a god, completely relaxed, and returning home felt even more comfortable.
At this moment, the small animals all ran over to welcome them.
Among them, the two tiger cubs had grown up and become adult tigers, driven out of the valley by the Tiger King, so they were no longer seen.
The rules for demon beasts were more cruel than those for humans.
Once the tiger cubs grew up, they had to find their own territory; the Tiger King wouldn't take them in just because they were his sons.
When the Tiger King grew old and his strength declined, they would probably turn around and seize the territory, driving the Tiger King away.
Xu Mu didn't interfere.
He also didn't care when the small animals fought each other.
He was the master of this place, not a community mediator, so apart from a few cleverer animals, the animals in the valley often changed, so it was hard to tell.
The most clever little animals were those who knew how to charm Li Zhiyuan and Li Zhihuan, earning their food and instantly elevating their status within the animal kingdom.
The highest-ranking were, of course, the Tiger King and the Spirit Monkey—those who served Xu Mu, received his rewards, and were the strongest.
When Xu Mu finally returned after a year, they rushed to fawn over him.
The sisters happily played with the animals, while Xu Mu merely dealt with them briefly before heading to check on his house.
After a year away, the house had become somewhat dilapidated; vines clung to the exterior walls, mushrooms sprouted in the corners, and some areas even had holes, likely gnawed by rats. It looked like it needed a complete renovation.
He used magic to clean the dust inside.
After playing with the animals for a while, the sisters went inside to tidy up, washing and drying what needed washing and drying.
It was afternoon, and the sun was shining brightly.
After cleaning, Xu Mu went to tend to the medicinal herb garden.
The medicinal herb field had been abandoned for a year and was now covered with weeds, requiring weeding and reclamation.
Before leaving, there were still some unripe first-grade spiritual herbs in the field, but they had vanished without a trace, undoubtedly eaten by the small animals long ago.
He didn't bother to investigate, as this was something he had expected.
The most important thing was the fertilizer.
He had stored the fertilizer away, so now he could plant the spiritual herbs directly.
After confirming that the fertilizer was fine, he took out a few hoes and began to till the field again.
Birds chirped in the trees, the men tilled the field, and the women did laundry and cooked, returning to the peaceful rural life.
When night fell, after dinner, the three of them lay together on a lawn in the valley, watching the moon and counting the stars, their heads close together, full of contentment and happiness.
...
Morning.
The faint sunlight shone on the valley.
Xu Mu returned to his daily routine: farming, cultivating, sharpening his sword, and lighting the fire.
Although the lower-level fire of the Samadhi True Fire had been lit, he still needed to continue cultivating it, making the fire burn brighter and brighter, which would help with alchemy and combat.
Taking time out of his busy schedule, he disguised himself as an old man and went into the village to collect manure. At the same time, he used an illusion to let his "apprentice" make an appearance.
This phantom couldn't speak, nor could anyone touch him, so he only needed to make an appearance before finding an excuse to send the "apprentice" away, lest the villagers expose him.
Later, this apprentice would replace him, preventing him from being mistaken for a deity for someone so old.
Then, as usual, he would treat the villagers.
He hadn't been there for a year, and the villagers missed him.
Now, spring had turned to autumn, several old men had passed away, and Zhang Xiucai had entered his sixties. His eldest son had married, and his youngest daughter had also married.
His second son, Zhang Yu'an, was just twenty, studying diligently for the imperial examinations, and was still unmarried.
When Xu Mu saw him, he had matured considerably, but also looked much more tired.
Obtaining official rank was difficult; everyone pursuing this path felt the competition and pressure from all sides.
"Sir, do you think... I have such a fortunate appearance?" he asked sincerely.
Xu Mu shook his head calmly: "You're eager to find an answer for your future, but I can't give you that.
Just remember, the path is under your own feet; don't be fixated on the outcome."
After a moment of contemplation, Zhang Yu'an bowed respectfully.
Whether he had grasped anything was of no concern to Xu Mu.
He could spout off as much道理 (principles/reasoning) as he wanted, but theory was one thing, application was another.
After dealing with the villagers, Xu Mu approached Zhang Xiucai for tea, wanting to ask for his help.
"Buying manure?" Zhang Xiucai asked in surprise.
Xu Mu nodded: "I need to expand my medicinal herb garden, which requires a large amount of manure for irrigation. Bishi Village alone isn't enough."
Zhang Xiucai scratched his head, saying, "The villagers also need manure, so we can't give you all of it..."
"No problem, manure is gold in the land, how could I be greedy?" Xu Mu laughed.
Zhang Xiucai nodded and immediately said he would contact the county's manure factory to buy manure.
He would definitely buy manure from city dwellers; rural people not only need it for their own use but might even have to pay to buy it to ensure a harvest.
Many people specialize in the manure trade, amassing great wealth—it's not an industry easily entered by ordinary people.
Xu Mu did all this to cultivate more Grade Two spiritual herbs in preparation for practicing his second-stage alchemy technique.
Originally, with the ancient divine cauldron, he should have already mastered the second-stage alchemy technique, but alchemy is a technical skill that requires not only learning but also practice.
Practice requires a large amount of materials, which is the key reason why many alchemists stop at the first stage.
Xu Mu could grow them himself, but he didn't know if the spiritual energy in the valley was sufficient to nourish so many herbs.
Therefore, he could only focus on fertilizer, trying to expand production.
He entrusted the manure matter to Zhang Xiucai; if things went smoothly, he would provide funds to continuously purchase manure.
…
After finishing with the fertilizer matter, Xu Mu began renovating his house.
Living in this valley was inconvenient in many ways; without some skill, it would be impossible to live there comfortably.
Li Zhihua assisted him, pouring him tea when needed, showing meticulous care.
Li Zhiyuan was responsible for housework, gentle and virtuous.
With these two adorable cats by his side, every day was fulfilling and happy.
After more than a month of busy work, the house was finally renovated, and the medicinal herb field was recultivated and expanded.
The spiritual herbs were planted, and they awaited the harvest.
"This is the life of cultivation," Xu Mu sighed.
The immortals that mortals fantasize about should actually look like this.
Cultivating the mind and spirit, seeking the Dao and truth, not scheming and fighting to the death for cultivation resources.
Unfortunately, this was just his personal wish; the reality was that resources were limited, and people's hearts were unpredictable, leading to constant struggle for cultivation.
"Thanks to you, young master, we have this kind of life," Li Zhihua chuckled.
"You and I are a pair, envying neither mandarin ducks nor immortals,"
Li Zhiyuan smiled, hooking her arm around Xu Mu's. "What pair? It's the three of us!" Li Zhihua immediately emphasized.
"Yes, yes," Li Zhiyuan nodded.
Xu Mu smiled and patted their heads.
If only they could live like this forever.
After everything was on track, Xu Mu began cultivating the "Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist."
This technique was crucial; it could be used not only for escaping but also for traveling.
His trip to the cultivation world, lasting a year, actually involved very little actual business; the real time was spent on the journey.
He flew from Five Thunder City to the mortal border on his sword, but limited by his Qi Chain stage's speed and mana, it took him nearly a month.
Returning to Taoshan County on horseback took another four months. This entire journey would take five months, while the
shelf
life of the Spirit Gathering Fruit is only six months at most, barely enough to cover the time.
However, a round trip taking ten months was a huge waste of time and unfavorable for business.
If he could fly, the journey would be significantly shorter.
The "Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist" technique is more advanced than sword control. If mastered, it would not only consume less mana but also increase speed.
Combined with Qi-restoring pills, it would be enough to support his flight in the mortal realm, greatly shortening the journey.
As the saying goes, to get rich, build roads first; transportation is the most important thing in business.
If roads can't be built, then switch from horseback riding to flying.
*Rustling...
* A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves.
Xu Mu closed his eyes, sensing the air currents in the forest, then moved swiftly through the woods.
The key to the "Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist" technique lies in comprehending the essence of wind and the lightness of clouds and mist.
It's not just swordsmanship that has an essence; all Daoist arts have essences. To comprehend even one of them makes one a genius in that path.
Unfortunately, Xu Mu's comprehension has always been poor.
Therefore, he doesn't expect to become a genius in the Daoist arts of wind; he only hopes to persevere, grasp the basics, and learn the technique—that would be enough for him.
...
Two years later, Xu Mu successfully broke through to the seventh level of Qi Refining.
The effects of the two sisters' Youth Preservation Pills had just worn off, and he had just taken two new ones, which would last for another five years, so he didn't need to rush to the cultivation world.
Although he had run out of spirit stones, he didn't plan to plant any more Spirit Gathering Fruits, but instead focused on researching the "Composting Technique" to cultivate other Grade Two spiritual herbs.
It's alright to slow down my cultivation; I'll focus on mastering the second-stage alchemy technique and the "Thousand Miles of Clouds and Mist" first.
...
Four years later, Li Zhiyuan was 35 and Li Zhihua was 33.
That day, Xu Mu was about to leave again.
"I'll be back as soon as possible," he said softly.
"Take care on your journey, young master."
"Come back soon..."
The two sisters bid him a reluctant farewell.
Xu Mu smiled, embraced them briefly, and then turned to leave.
This time, he didn't drift downstream; instead, he soared into the air, transforming into a wisp of smoke and disappearing into the sky.
He was like a cloud, a wisp of smoke, riding the wind.
Similar to Earth Escape Technique, one is in the earth, the other in the wind.
He had put a lot of effort into this technique, spending a long time specifically researching it.
Fortunately, the effect was quite good, at least much better than Earth Escape Technique.
This indicated that his affinity for wind was significantly higher than for earth, but slightly lower than for fire.
His high affinity for the fire element was likely due to the enhancement from the *Samadhi True Fire Technique*, as he hadn't shown any related talent before mastering this technique.
The key to the *Samadhi True Fire Technique* wasn't the fire element itself, but rather "calming the mind and cultivating qi," his strength, which allowed him to master the Samadhi True Fire, ultimately contributing to his fire element affinity.
Now, using the Thousand-Mile Cloud Leap, he could fly a mile in a single breath, greatly enhancing his running ability.
Moreover, flying not only increased his speed but also shortened his distance; neither mountains nor rivers could hinder his progress, making travel much easier. He
would fly for a while, then stop to rest and recover his mana. With this intermittent flying and stopping
, the journey that would normally take four months was completed in just six days, reaching the edge of the cultivation world.
"Truly a high-grade product!"
Xu Mu couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
The time was reduced by dozens of times.
However, the consumption was quite high, using a total of 12 Qi-restoring pills.
That's 24 for the round trip.
Although he refines some Qi-restoring pills every year, this one round trip will wipe out three years' worth of his inventory, which is really painful.
"It seems this trick can only be used once every four years at most, otherwise the cost is too high, I can't afford it."
He didn't want to spend money to buy Qi-restoring pills again. He
was already poor, and he had to spend money to buy youth-preserving pills, raise twin sisters, and buy spirit stones for cultivation. Where would he find spare money for anything else?
...
He arrived in Five Thunder City again.
Although he killed Sun Zhijie last time, he was just a rogue cultivator with no connections,
so killing him was no big deal. In cases like Nanlian Valley, it was locals who robbed him, making it impossible for him to continue doing business there.
That's the good thing about Five Thunder City; there are no powerful families bullying others, everyone relies on their own strength.
After paying 10 talismans to enter the city, he needed to consider where to set up his stall.
Setting up a stall required a place where people would rob, steal, and extort.
This was the drawback of Five Thunder City; doing business there would be much riskier.
Prime locations required stall fees and offered little protection; there was still a possibility of being robbed.
So, after thinking for a moment, Xu Mu set up his stall on a street not far from the teahouse, where there was foot traffic and no stall fees.
Just as he set up his stall, an old man approached and said coldly, "Fellow Daoist, I saw this spot first."
Xu Mu glanced at him; he was at the ninth level of Qi Refining.
However, he wasn't intimidated and said calmly, "Just because you see it doesn't mean it's yours. Don't you know the first come, first served? Why don't you take a look at the treasure pavilion of the Qinglan Sect?"
The old man's face darkened: "You've got guts."
With that, he stormed off.
There were rules in the city: private fights were forbidden, or you would be punished.
Once you were outside the city, no one cared what you did.
Xu Mu was now capable of both fighting and running away, so he wasn't afraid of retaliation and ignored him, continuing to set up his stall.
In a place like this, if you didn't dare to fight, you'd be missing out on even the best opportunities.
...
This time, he brought 13 Spirit Gathering Fruits and corresponding auxiliary medicines, with six flying swords hovering behind him as a deterrent.
With his current strength, he was qualified to draw his sword; any rogue cultivators who wanted to cause trouble would have to think twice.
The reason for so many Spirit Gathering Fruits is that the expanded production plan of the medicinal herb field has been successful, now allowing for the cultivation of four Grade Two spiritual herbs at a time.
A single Spirit Gathering herb typically yields three to five Spirit Gathering Fruits. However,
his Spirit Gathering herb's yield is lower due to the concentration of spiritual energy in the Medicine God Valley, producing a maximum of only four fruits.
After distributing two to the small animals as a reward, he had 13 left.
This achievement is already a significant breakthrough.
The key lies in the spiritual fertilizer.
Using the "Jade Purity Qi Observation Technique" and applying the principles of Qimen Dunjia, he found the best Spirit Gathering point in the valley.
By burying the spiritual fertilizer in the ground, it will be nourished by spiritual energy during composting, thus cultivating more Grade Two spiritual herbs.
Finally, he plans to raise the price; originally 60 talismans per fruit, he will now sell it for 65.
Market prices are determined by supply and demand.
Since there are many more independent cultivators here who want to make money and improve their cultivation, there's no worry about sales; he can simply set up his stall for a few more days.
In the end, out of respect for his six flying swords, the rogue cultivators were quite agreeable.
Those who could afford them bought them, and those who couldn't, left after failing to negotiate the price.
In the end, including the auxiliary medicines, he sold them for 1064 talisman coins.
Adding the 52 talisman coins he had left, and subtracting the 10 entrance fee coins, he finally had 1106 talisman coins.
A great harvest.