darknovel Chapter 18 Seclusion
Chapter 18 Seclusion
"Fellow Daoist, take another look at this Daoist technique!"
Seeing that Chen Bai was quite satisfied, the waiter then handed him another jade slip.
"This [Crimson Flame Spirit Guiding Technique] is a fire technique widely circulated among rogue cultivators in the Southern Region, taking its meaning from 'Crimson Ridge guides life, flames give birth'."
One can transform spiritual energy into three to five birds and beasts to attack enemies, and the number increases as the energy of the fetal breath is consumed.
Its advantages are that it is quick to cast spells and consumes little energy, making it more than enough to deal with ordinary spirits and ghosts.
The price is forty spirit stones.
Chen Bai nodded, clearly very satisfied.
"For defensive low-level Taoist techniques, you might want to check out this [Green Raincoat Protection Technique]. Although the name sounds rustic, it's the most commonly used life-saving method among loose cultivators of the embryonic breathing stage. It takes its ancient meaning from 'green raincoat to ward off miasma,' condensing a layer of spiritual energy around the body like wearing rain gear."
It can deflect some of the force of an attack and is also effective against evil miasma. It's quick to cast and consumes little energy. Price: Thirty-five spirit stones.
After reviewing the three spells, Chen Bai was about to accept them all when his gaze suddenly fell upon a slightly darker-colored jade slip on the bookshelf. A thought struck him: "Are there any control-type spells?"
The attendant thought for a moment and then took down another jade slip: "This [Binding Grass Spell] is one of the more practical spells among the lower-level spells. It was created by a rogue cultivator, taking its meaning from the binding of grass in the field. It can use grass seeds to generate vines through embryonic breathing to entangle the opponent."
The resilience of the vines depends on the variety of grass seeds and the quality of the embryonic breath. If it is used by a cultivator in the embryonic breath stage who practices the Five Elements Wood Technique, it is enough to trap an opponent of the same level for several breaths.
Price: Twenty-five spirit stones.
Chen Bai searched for several different control-type Taoist techniques, and after comparing them repeatedly, he found that the inferior Taoist technique recommended by the attendant was the simplest: "Wrap me up with this [Binding Grass Curse] too."
There are a total of four lower-level Taoist arts.
【Ge Xianweng's Illumination Technique】, 【Crimson Flame Spirit Guiding Technique】, 【Green Raincoat】, 【Grass Binding Spell】.
Two of the doors are given as a gift, and the other two require a price difference payment, totaling sixty spirit stones.
Chen Bai readily paid the spirit stones and put the five jade slips into his storage bag.
As we left Wanfa Pavilion, dusk was approaching.
As the sun sets, its orange-red afterglow spills onto the streets of Kokenyama Market, bathing everything in a warm glow.
Chen Bai stood in front of the pavilion, took a deep breath, and held the jade slip containing the "Fetal Breathing Scripture" in his hand, his eyes gleaming with barely suppressed excitement.
Eight hundred and sixty spirit stones can be exchanged for a superior cultivation technique and four inferior Daoist arts.
If this had happened half a month ago, he probably wouldn't have dreamed of such a situation, but now it has truly happened to Chen Bai.
It must be said that the mysteries of a person's destiny and the fortunes of each year are unpredictable, and even the high-hanging stars and the true immortals and Buddhas in the heavens may not be able to predict them accurately.
Mingzhenfang, inside the cabin.
After returning, Chen Bai took out the Sumeru storage bag given to him by Fairy Yueyi. Although the grayish cloth bag in his hand was inconspicuous, it was actually a low-grade magic artifact.
Since he had not yet mastered the fetal breathing technique, he was unable to successfully refine the storage bag. He had no choice but to pour out all the spirit stones inside and count them carefully once more.
"One thousand two hundred and sixty spirit stones, minus eight hundred and sixty spirit stones, leaves four hundred spirit stones."
Chen Bai did some quick calculations with his fingers, then glanced at the pile of spirit stones in front of him that had drastically decreased in number. After confirming that everything was correct, he began to plan what to do with the remaining spirit stones.
He first set aside one hundred spirit stones, pondering, "If I continue to rent a low-level cave in the market to cultivate, it will take approximately one hundred days to reach the stage of 'Qi Induction' and fullness of the dantian. This expense is unavoidable."
As for the remaining three hundred spirit stones, he temporarily set them aside for later use.
Now that the embryonic breathing technique is ready and there is no shortage of spirit stones, the most important thing now is to improve one's own cultivation.
The following day, Kokenyama Market.
Two people stood in front of the stone gate of Cave No. 2, Grade A.
Wei Bo was summoned early in the morning, only to learn upon arrival that Chen Bai was going into seclusion again, and this time for quite a while. A worried look appeared on his face: "Brother Bai, is there anything you need me to do? I will certainly do as you say!"
Chen Bai, dressed in a light blue Taoist robe with a cloth bag hanging from his waist and no other ornaments, looked refreshed and ready for seclusion. After a moment's thought, he took out about ten Qi-gathering talismans from his sleeve and handed them to Wei Bo, saying, "During my seclusion, all the spirit stones earned from the sale of these talismans will belong to Brother Wei."
"How can I accept this?" Wei Bo quickly declined. These ten or so talismans were worth several spirit stones. He was just helping Brother Bai set up a stall to sell talismans, and he had already received a lot of dividends from him. How could he possibly accept more benefits?
"Brother Wei, there's no need for you to refuse. I also have something I need you to do."
Chen Bai stuffed the talisman into Wei Bo's hand and said, "This time I will be in seclusion for two to three months. If anyone comes looking for me during this time—especially Fairy Yueyi—please inform her that I am in seclusion and cannot meet her. She will visit me after I come out of seclusion."
Hearing the seriousness in his voice, Wei Bo stopped refusing and carefully put away the talisman. He said solemnly, "Don't worry, Brother Bai, I will definitely pass on this message. But you must also be careful. Cultivation should not be rushed; letting things take their natural course is the right thing to do."
"I understand," Chen Bai nodded.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Wei Bo took his leave. Chen Bai watched his figure disappear at the end of the market street before turning around and pressing the mechanism to close the stone gate.
With a dull rumble, the stone gate slowly closed, shutting out all the noise from the outside world.
The cave became quiet.
The luminous pearls on the cave ceiling cast a cool, clear light, illuminating the four walls. On the jade platform in the very center, the spirit-gathering array patterns flickered slightly, and wisps of milky-white spiritual energy overflowed from them, forming a thin mist on the surface.
Beneath this jade platform lies a ley line connecting to the Little Sword Mountain, hence the abundance of spiritual energy, sufficient to meet the needs of ordinary Nascent Soul cultivators seeking breakthroughs. Chen Bai had also spent a considerable sum to reserve this Grade A No. 2 cave dwelling, which naturally boasts a higher concentration of spiritual energy compared to his previous lower-grade cave dwelling.
Chen Bai walked to the jade platform and sat down cross-legged.
He didn't rush to enter meditation, but instead took out the items from the Sumeru Storage Bag one by one and arranged them neatly within easy reach.
The five jade slips are: "The Embryonic Breathing Classic", "Ge Xianweng's Illumination Technique", "The Vermilion Flame Spirit Guiding Technique", "The Green Raincoat Protection Method", and "The Grass Binding Incantation".
A jade bottle containing dozens of fasting pills, which he bought at the market before entering his cave. They weren't worth much, but they would save him the trouble of eating every day. There was also a dusty storage bag, containing only a few hundred spirit stones left.
He held the bag in his hand and examined it for a moment.
This low-grade magic artifact can only be opened freely by refining it with spiritual consciousness. He hasn't even achieved embryonic breathing yet, let alone spiritual consciousness. He can only use it as an ordinary cloth bag—every time he needs to access something, he has to empty everything out, which is really inconvenient.
"Once I've refined its spiritual consciousness, I'll refine it first," Chen Bai muttered to himself, setting the storage bag aside.
After everything was in order, he took a deep breath and placed the jade slip of the "Fetal Breathing Sutra" between his eyebrows.
A flash of inspiration.