Cultivation: I Can Reincarnate Into Various Worlds-Chapter 623 - 318, The Dao Principles of Fire, for Nascent Soul Grand Practitioners_2
"Even if cultivators possess immense Magic Power," Xu Xing stated bluntly, "after entering a Secret Realm to explore, they would need recovery Pills and Secret Techniques. Otherwise, it would take them a decade or so just to restore their Magic Power. The loss of other Taoist Treasures, Talismans, and so on, must also be factored in. During the most valuable one hundred years of the Louhai Secret Realm, most cultivators enter a dozen times at most. Therefore, while it might seem that adventurous cultivators make a fortune in the short term, ultimately, it's the cultivators who open shops that earn more. Of course, this is merely a conventional calculation. Opportunities and fortuitous encounters won't simply fall into the laps of shop-owning cultivators. They must enter Secret Realms and contend for them. Otherwise, the rent for shops wouldn't be so low. For instance, the Lingyin Gate rents my shop for one hundred years, and it only costs them 3,000,000 Spirit Shells. That's less valuable than the Third-grade Spirit Material, Earth Fire Paste, that I might casually collect."
"Daoist Chang... you are right. I will continue to operate the shop..." Elder Jiu Ling's expression dimmed somewhat upon hearing Xu Xing's words, and he nodded. "I shall take my leave first."
He offered a bow and departed from the Tiande Pawnshop, soon blending into the crowd of cultivators on the street.
Xu Xing immediately understood Elder Jiu Ling's true intentions. Elder Jiu Ling still wants to take a gamble. To strive for an eternal Immortal Journey! He only said he would give up because I was present and he lacked suitable teammates.
Not all cultivators in the world are like me, blessed with the Banished Immortal qualifications. If they don't strive for it, they will eventually be lost to time, becoming mere bones in a tomb, Xu Xing sighed internally. He was willing to remain securely at home instead of venturing into the Louhai Secret Realm to fight for opportunities because he possessed Banished Immortal qualifications and had condensed an Immortal Nascent. Steady progress would allow him to reach the Primordial Spirit realm. One more step beyond that, and he would reach the Upper Boundary Realm, where he could explore the other three realms. Elder Jiu Ling and the others clearly lacked his foundation and fallback options. Therefore, he didn't look down on Elder Jiu Ling. On the contrary, he respected cultivators like Elder Jiu Ling who dared to take risks.
As Xu Xing had expected.
「Half a month later」
Elder Jiu Ling's pawnshop and talisman shop displayed "For Rent" signs. And Elder Jiu Ling had also found a new teammate: none other than the Phantom Valley Ancestor, Lady Hua, whom Xu Xing had met at the Nascent Soul Creation Grand Ceremony.
"I've come this time, Daoist Chang, to request your help in refining a set of fourth-stage array—the Heaven Burial Blade Array!" In the Tiande Array Shop, Elder Jiu Ling took out an array diagram and handed it to Xu Xing.
"This array diagram is a secret of my Phantom Valley. Fortunately, with so many Nascent Soul Fellow Daoists gathered in the Five Mountain Market, we managed to collect all the necessary Spirit Materials," Lady Hua said with a smile.
Although the Five Mountain Market didn't boast as many cultivators as any major market of the Human Clan, the caliber of cultivators present was exceptionally high; they were all Ancestors and Sect Masters from various prominent families and sects. Nascent Souls were everywhere, and Dao Pills were as common as dogs. Some senior Nascent Soul Cultivators would consign precious Spirit Materials they couldn't use to pawnshops, facilitating exchanges. Consequently, the various Immortal Cultivation Arts experienced a brief period of prosperity in the Five Mountain Market.
"This array is a medium-grade fourth-stage array. It's quite difficult," Xu Xing stated after examining the diagram. "I can only guarantee a 40% success rate and would need two and a half years to deliver it."
"Two and a half years?" Elder Jiu Ling and Lady Hua exchanged a glance and nodded.
"We came to your shop, Daoist Chang, precisely because we trust your skills and integrity, Fellow Daoist Hua and I..." Elder Jiu Ling began. "Two and a half years it is, then," he said with a smile.
"For this Heaven Burial Blade Array, I'll charge 80% of the market price. What do you two Daoist friends think of that?" Xu Xing offered after a moment's thought, giving a slight discount. After all, they were from the same country and would frequently cross paths.
"Excellent." Elder Jiu Ling and Lady Hua performed a respectful salute.
「Two and a half years passed.」
As promised, Xu Xing delivered the eight Array Banners for the Heaven Burial Blade Array and earned a commission from Elder Jiu Ling and Lady Hua.
My proficiency in the Instrument Way has deepened considerably over these years. Soon, I'll no longer need to cooperate with the Lingyin Gate... In the quiet room of his artifact shop's backyard, Xu Xing's thoughts wandered as he gazed at the golden flame in his palm. The Dao of Pills and the Instrument Way are interconnected. With the Sun True Fire at his disposal, his foray into the Instrument Way had been quite smooth. The refinement of Array Banners, especially certain intricate details, also required techniques from the Instrument Way. Proficiency came with practice. Xu Xing estimated his current skill in the Instrument Way had reached the level of a third-rank instrument master. Independently refining a third-rank Artifact should not be difficult for him. However, he was still some way off from being able to refine a fourth-order Artifact. A fourth-order Artifact, also known as a Taoist Treasure, must contain at least one Nascent Soul-stage Dao Principle. Enabling a fourth-order Artifact to embody and carry Dao Principles, thereby becoming a Taoist Treasure, had always been a closely guarded secret among instrument masters. When Xu Xing refined fourth-stage arrays, his method also involved embedding Dao Principles into the components, allowing them to become Taoist Treasures. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂
However, by refining fourth-stage arrays over these years, I've finally achieved complete mastery over my Fire Dao Principle—or more accurately, the Yin Fire Principle... Xu Xing peered into his Sea of Consciousness and observed an additional cluster of black flames. This black flame was the manifestation of the Yin Fire Principle, signifying his successful mastery over this Dao Principle. Once my Cultivation reaches the peak of the Late Stage of Nascent Soul, I will be qualified to be called a Nascent Soul Grand Practitioner. A faint smile touched the corners of his lips. A Nascent Soul Grand Practitioner was a Nascent Soul Daoist Lord who had reached the pinnacle of the Nascent Soul Realm. Each one possessed the power to move mountains, boil seas, and alter celestial phenomena. Only upon reaching this realm and mastering a complete Dao Principle did a Nascent Soul Cultivator truly qualify to be called a Dao Lord.
With this alone, Li Taiyue, you still cannot defeat me... Xu Xing inwardly shook his head.
Five years after Wang He had exited the Louhai Secret Realm, Li Taiyue also emerged, having made significant gains. Not only had his cultivation advanced by a significant step, but he had also obtained numerous precious Resources. At this time, Li Taiyue had also intentionally spread word of the conflict between himself and Xu Xing, apparently intending to use Xu Xing as a whetstone. However, these rumors didn't affect the business at Xu Xing's two shops. After all, the various Nascent Soul Daoist Lords were not easily intimidated; a fellow cultivator of the same realm was not important enough for them to try and curry favor with.
If I encounter this Li Taiyue outside the Demon Island, I'll simply slay him with a casual strike. A cold glint flashed in Xu Xing's eyes. He buried this trace of displeasure deep in his heart and resumed his Cultivation.
「As time passed」
An increasing number of Dao Pill Cultivators entered the Louhai Secret Realm. There were likely five to six hundred Dao Pill Cultivators on the Demon Island. Unlike Nascent Soul Cultivators, who tended to hoard their treasures, Dao Pill Cultivators often sold their cherished Spirit Materials at low prices to acquire the resources needed for Nascent Soul formation. Thanks to this, Xu Xing's Tiande Pawnshop managed to acquire many valuable items on the cheap, with profits exceeding tens of millions of Spirit Shells. Of course, not every pawnshop reaped such profits as Xu Xing's did. The reason Xu Xing could secure so many good deals was largely related to his Blood Pills. Although the Blood Pill was not a Nascent Soul Spiritual Object, it was immensely useful for Dao Pill Cultivators to advance their Cultivation. Moreover, it was free of impurities, an immaculate Pill that wouldn't cause pill poison upon consumption.
"If I had known earlier that Daoist Chang's pawnshop was so profitable, I wouldn't have closed my own shop to become an adventurer," Elder Jiu Ling remarked, his gaze filled with envy as he watched the cultivators coming and going in the front hall from the Tiande Pawnshop's backyard.
"If Fellow Daoist Jiu Ling is envious, you're welcome to open a pawnshop again now," Xu Xing said with a smile, using his Magic Power to send cups of tea to Elder Jiu Ling and Lady Hua.
"It's not that simple," Elder Jiu Ling replied with a shake of his head and a wry smile. "Reputation is paramount for a pawnshop. Daoist Chang, you have your Array Shop and are a Fourth Level Array Master yourself. Many Daoist friends seek your assistance, so naturally, they patronize your pawnshop. Furthermore, you have abundant funds, Daoist Chang. Over these past decades, not a single cultivator has left your pawnshop because it lacked the funds for their transactions."
"Fellow Daoist Jiu Ling, you flatter me," Xu Xing replied with a modest smile, taking a sip of the hot tea from his Tea Cup.
"However, being an adventurer hasn't been a loss for me either," Elder Jiu Ling said, his tone shifting. "Today, I've come to you, Daoist Chang, hoping to pawn some items." As he spoke, Lady Hua retrieved a seven-foot Jade Box from her sleeve and placed it on the stone table.
"Please appraise this, Daoist Chang." Lady Hua extended a delicate hand, pushing the Jade Box towards Xu Xing.
