Cultivation is Creation-Chapter 168: Victory Loves Preparation

One thing you quickly learn in a cultivation sect is that there are always two economies running in parallel – the official one and the unofficial one. The Azure Peak Sect was no exception.

The Heavenly Treasures Pavilion was the sect's official store, a gleaming three-story building of white stone and blue-tiled roofs where disciples could exchange their hard-earned contribution points for cultivation resources. It was elegant, organized, but since there was no haggling allowed, it was absolutely no fun at all.

The Sect Marketplace, on the other hand... now that was where things got interesting.

"Fresh spirit herbs! Gathered this morning from the eastern mountains!"

"Talismans! Get your talismans here!"

"Beast cores! Still warm from the beast!"

The marketplace was built in concentric circles, with the more expensive and prestigious stalls closer to the center. Outer disciples like me usually stuck to the outer rings, where prices were more reasonable and the shopkeepers less likely to look at you like something they'd scraped off their immortal boot.

"Master," Azure's voice held a note of amusement as we watched a young disciple argue with a merchant about whether a "grade-A beast core" was actually from a mouse spirit, "your heart rate suggests you're enjoying this chaos."

He wasn't wrong. There was something nostalgic about marketplaces – they felt the same whether you were in a modern city, a cultivation world, or anywhere else really. The only real difference was that here, when someone shouted "These prices are robbery!", they might actually mean it literally.

My storage ring contained 10,750 spirit stones. It wasn't a huge fortune by sect standards, but it was enough to make me a target for the wrong kind of attention.

"Young cultivator!" a voice called out. "Yes, you! Come see these excellent formation materials!"

I turned to find an old man gesturing enthusiastically from behind a stall covered in various stones, metals, and what appeared to be... were those dragon scales? No, probably just cleverly painted lizard scales. The real thing would have attracted a lot more attention.

"I'm fine, thank—" I started to decline, but then I caught sight of something actually interesting among his wares. "Is that Earth Essence?"

The merchant's eyes lit up. "Ah, you have good taste! Yes, yes, genuine Earth Essence, perfect for any earth-attribute formations or pills. Very rare, very powerful..."

I somehow doubted it was as rare as he claimed, considering I was currently carrying some in my storage ring, but it was useful to know the market price.

"How much?" I asked, trying to sound only mildly interested.

"For such a discerning customer? Only 5000 spirit stones!"

I actually laughed out loud at that. "5000? For unrefined Earth Essence? I could get better prices in Three Rivers Town."

The merchant's smile didn't waver. "Ah, but this is special grade Earth Essence! Notice the perfect crystalline structure, the rich brown color..."

"The completely standard purity level," I countered, "and the slightly uneven qi distribution that shows it hasn't been properly stabilized."

His eyes narrowed slightly. Not in anger, but in that particular way merchants get when they realize they're dealing with someone who actually knows what they're talking about.

"You seem quite knowledgeable about Earth Essence," he said carefully.

"I should be. I have some right here." I pulled out the jade box from my storage ring, opening it just enough to let him see the contents. "I was actually thinking of selling it, and since you mentioned 5000 spirit stones..."

"Now, now," he held up his hands placatingly, "let's not be hasty. You’re right, 5000 spirit stones is a little high, perhaps we could discuss a fair price?"

What followed was fifteen minutes of intense haggling that would have made Wei Lin proud.

"4000 spirit stones," the merchant finally said, "and that's my final offer."

Anything greater than 3000 spirit stones was good enough for me, after all, that was the price that elder Chen Yong was selling essence for. But I pretended to think about it for a moment before nodding.

"Deal."

We made the exchange quickly and efficiently. The spirit stones went into my storage ring while he carefully examined the Earth Essence.

"You know," he said as he packed it away, "you drive a hard bargain for an outer disciple."

"And you're remarkably well-informed about cultivation materials for a 'simple merchant'."

The Sect Marketplace was run mainly by current sect disciples hoping to sell off resources and former disciples who decided to switch to the merchant life, but still wanted a connection to the sect.

He grinned, dropping the weathered old man act for a moment to reveal sharp eyes and sharper wit. "Perhaps we could do business again sometime?"

"Perhaps," I agreed noncommittally. Rule one of cultivation world markets – never commit to anything unless you're prepared for it to turn into a dramatic subplot.

Moving on, I headed toward the section dedicated to medicinal pills. This was where things got really interesting – and by interesting, I mean potentially lethal if you bought from the wrong vendor.

The problem with medicinal pills is that quality control is... let's say 'variable'. Sure, the sect had official suppliers, but their prices were astronomical. Most disciples bought from independent alchemists, accepting the slightly higher risk of explosion in exchange for not bankrupting themselves.

"Young cultivator!" a voice called out. "You look like someone who appreciates quality pills!"

I turned to see a plump woman with laugh lines around her eyes managing a neat, well-organized stall. Her products were arranged in clear crystal containers, each labeled with both name and effect. More importantly, each pill gave off steady, consistent qi readings when Azure scanned them.

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"I appreciate pills that won't turn my organs inside out," I replied honestly.

She laughed. "Then you've come to the right place! Madam Zhang guarantees all her products. No explosions, no unexpected mutations, no spontaneous combustion!"

"The fact that you have to specify that is somewhat concerning."

"In this business? It's just good practice." She gestured at her wares. "What are you looking for? I have everything from basic qi recovery to advanced beast resistance."

I examined the displays carefully. "Qi Recovery Pills, Blood Replenishing Pills, and maybe some Detoxification Pills."

"Ah," her eyes twinkled knowingly, "preparing for a dangerous mission?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only disciples heading into real danger buy detox pills. They're expensive and have a short shelf life – not worth it unless you're expecting poison."

She wasn't wrong. Detoxification Pills were basically the cultivation world equivalent of anti-venom, except they worked on pretty much any poison a Qi Condensation realm beast might use. The downside was that they only lasted about a month even in a storage ring before starting to degrade.

"How much for twenty Qi Recovery Pills?" I asked.

"Normally 120 spirit stones each, but for bulk orders..." she did some quick mental math, "2000 for the set."

I raised an eyebrow. "The market rate is 100 per pill."

"The market rate is for pills that might give you indigestion. Mine are guaranteed clean."

She had a point. I'd read enough cultivation novels to know that bad pills could do everything from simply not working to actually reversing your cultivation. And these did have remarkably stable qi patterns...

"I'll take twenty," I decided. "And ten Blood Replenishing Pills."

She nodded approvingly. "A sensible combination. The blood pills are also 100 each, but I'll throw in an extra one for buying both types."

I considered my options. The woodweave seal could handle most injuries, but it used red sun energy. The blue sun's healing ability was even better, but using that outside the sect would definitely attract attention. Having backup healing options just made sense.

"Deal. And three Detoxification Pills."

Her eyebrows rose slightly. "Those are 1000 each. You sure you want to spend that much?"

"Better expensive than dead," I replied.

She laughed. "True enough! Though I hope you don't end up needing them."

The total came to 6000 spirit stones, which was... not insignificant. But considering these pills might mean the difference between life and death? Worth every spirit stone.

As I was putting away my purchases, a commotion caught my attention. A group of inner disciples were arguing with a talisman seller, their voices carrying across the marketplace.

"What do you mean these are genuine Thunderclap Talismans?" one of them demanded. "We used them in training yesterday!"

The merchant, a thin man with nervous eyes, kept bowing apologetically. "Honored disciples, I assure you there must be some mistake. All my talismans are genuine..."

"Then why did they fizzle out instead of producing lightning?"

"Ah," the merchant's eyes lit up with understanding. "Did you perhaps try to use them in the sect's training grounds?"

The inner disciples exchanged glances. "Of course we did. Where else would we test them?"

"Then that's the problem! The training grounds have formation arrays that suppress external energies. My talismans work perfectly fine outside..."

I left them to their argument, though it was an interesting reminder about how formations and talismans interacted.

See, there's this ongoing debate in the cultivation world about talismans versus formations. Both are ways of storing and releasing spiritual energy, but they work very differently.

Talismans are like spiritual grenades – pre-packaged effects that anyone with enough cultivation can trigger. Draw the right symbols, infuse them with qi, and boom (sometimes literally). They're quick, reliable, and perfect for when you need an effect right now and don't care about efficiency.

Formations, on the other hand, are more like spiritual machines. They're complex, take time to set up, but they're far more efficient and versatile. A good formation master can create effects that would take dozens of talismans to match, and they can maintain those effects for much longer.

The downside? Setup time. Try telling a charging spirit beast to wait while you draw out a proper formation array. That's why most cultivators use both – talismans for immediate effects, formations for anything they can plan in advance.

"Young cultivator!" A voice called out as I passed one of the smaller stalls. "You look like someone who appreciates quality talismans!"

It was a cheerful-looking woman who somehow managed to make the standard inner disciple robes look like comfortable casual wear. Her stall was small but well-organized, with different types of talismans arranged in neat rows.

"I'm looking for explosive talismans," I said, approaching her stall. "Something suitable for Qi Condensation realm combat."

"Ah, another one heading to Floating Reed Village?" She pulled out a tray of red paper talismans. "These should serve you well – standard fire-attribute explosive talismans, good blast radius, minimal spiritual feedback."

I picked up one of the talismans, examining the brush strokes. The work was clean and precise, with no energy leakage. Basic, but well-made.

"How much?"

"One hundred spirit stones each. But for you..." she smiled, "I'll do ninety if you buy ten or more."

I ended up buying twenty. They weren't as powerful as my explosive seed rune, but they wouldn't drain my precious red sun energy either. Sometimes quantity had a quality all its own.

The final item on my shopping list were formation flags.

I made my way to a shop specializing in formation materials. Unlike the outdoor stalls, this was a proper building with "Clear Sky Formation Supplies" written above the door in glowing characters.

The interior was cool and quiet, a welcome respite from the market's chaos. Shelves lined the walls, holding everything from basic inscription tools to exotic materials I couldn't even identify. The prices made me glad I'd just sold that Earth Essence.

"Welcome to Clear Sky," a young woman greeted me from behind the counter. "Oh! A formation guild token? Please, come this way to our certified practitioner section."

She led me to a separate room where the really interesting supplies were kept. Formation flags, high-grade inscription tools, resonance crystals... this was the good stuff.

"I'm looking for formation flags," I told her. "Suitable for combat."

"Single use or reusable?"

"Reusable."

Single-use flags were cheaper, but they had an annoying tendency to disintegrate at exactly the wrong moment.

She nodded and brought out several options. "These are our most popular combat-grade flags. The red series is optimized for offensive formations, while the blue is better for defensive work. We also have these black flags for containment formations, though they're mainly used for beast capture..."

I examined them carefully. The craftsmanship was excellent – each flag was made of spiritual silk with formation-conductive threads woven through in precise patterns. They were essentially blank slates, ready to accept whatever formation I wanted to inscribe.

"Four of the blue series," I decided. They'd work perfectly as anchor points for the Symphony Shield. With these, I could extend the formation's coverage significantly, though probably not enough for the entire village. Still, better than nothing.

"Excellent choice," she said. "That will be 4000 spirit stones."

I haggled for a short while, getting the price down to 3700 spirit stones.

Handing over the spirit stones, my thoughts were already on how to modify the Symphony Shield to work with multiple anchor points. The basic formation was solid, but it would need adjustments to maintain stability over a larger area...

Before leaving the marketplace, I found myself drawn to a weapons display. The shop itself was modest, but the items it held were anything but. Swords of various lengths hung on the walls. Spears stood in elegant racks, their hafts inscribed with delicate formations.

"Interested in upgrading your arsenal, young cultivator?" The weapon smith was a burly man with arms thick as tree trunks, which made the delicate way he handled a nearby sword all the more impressive.

I was tempted, I'll admit. A proper spiritual weapon would be useful, especially given what we might face at the village. But...

"The prices?" I asked, already wincing internally.

"This basic spiritual sword starts at 10,000 spirit stones," he said, gesturing to what was clearly one of his simpler pieces. "Though for someone of your cultivation level, I'd recommend something more suited to qi condensation, perhaps this..."

I stopped listening as he reached for another weapon. 10,000 spirit stones for a basic sword? That was almost more than I'd had even before today's shopping. Besides, I hadn't properly trained in any weapon forms more than the basic forms.

Buying an expensive spiritual weapon without the skills to use it would be like buying a formation flag without knowing how to inscribe formations – a waste of resources and potentially dangerous.

"Another time, perhaps," I said politely, backing away before he could start explaining the payment plans I'm sure he offered. Some disciples spent years paying off their weapon loans, and I had enough problems without adding "spiritually-enforced debt" to the list.

“Master, what now?” Azure asked as I glanced back at the stall.

“Time to say goodbye…”