Sugar-Coated Bullets

Though the summons had been compulsory, the guard station had indeed offered a few sweeteners.

The equipment Wang Chen brought home included a Cloud Light Robe, a Wild Goose Feather Saber, three Exorcism Talismans, one Jia Ma Talisman, one Flying Flame Talisman, a bottle of Qi Replenishing Pills, and a bottle of Healing Pills.

As well as three books!

The robe and saber were both standard-issue low-grade Rank One Magic Tools.

Although he only had the right to use them and would have to return them to the guard station once the night patrol assignment ended, having two Magic Tools on him undoubtedly boosted his strength considerably.

There was no need to say much about Talismans and Pills; both could save his life at critical moments.

The three books were quite interesting: Record of Demonic Oddities, On Malevolent Spirits, and Night Watchman's Talk.

Record of Demonic Oddities and On Malevolent Spirits were both thick tomes. With illustrations and text, they listed several hundred common types of demons and Evil Creatures, explaining their traits.

Wang Chen spent an entire afternoon committing the contents of these two books to memory.

During the night patrol assignment, he was quite likely to encounter Demonic Beasts or malevolent spirits recorded in them.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles. Even if he could not win, he could still run or call for help.

If he did not even know what the enemy was, how could he respond correctly?

Therefore, Wang Chen considered these two books extremely valuable.

After advancing to the fourth layer of Qi Condensation, Wang Chen's Divine Soul had reached 3+8 points, the strongest among his four major attributes.

Aside from his extraordinarily keen perception, his reflexes and memory were far beyond those of ordinary people.

Memorizing this knowledge was not difficult for him.

With the help of Record of Demonic Oddities and On Malevolent Spirits, Wang Chen was also able to glimpse the profound foundations of the Yunyang Sect.

Both books were exquisitely printed and bound.

Their contents were detailed, their illustrations vivid, and they were easy to understand.

Without a dedicated group gathering, researching, and compiling such materials, it would have been impossible to produce them.

Wang Chen believed

that the Library Pavilion of the Yunyang Sect surely contained even richer and more detailed books of the same kind.

Posture is power!

As for Night Watchman's Talk, it was a work manual for Night Watchmen.

What a Night Watchman was required to do, and what they were forbidden from doing, was all explained clearly within!

This book contained far less material.

But Wang Chen felt that it was even more important than Record of Demonic Oddities and On Malevolent Spirits.

To that end, he spent the entire night studying and memorizing it carefully.

It felt as though he had returned to cramming for the college entrance exams in his Previous Life.

But if something went wrong with exam prep, at worst he would fail to get into university. If he failed to thoroughly understand these three books...

he might just lose his life!

Besides the equipment, Pills, Talismans, and books, Wang Chen was also allowed to choose two middle Qi Condensation stage spells for free.

Two Law Seeds bearing Oath Seal Curses appeared in his Sea of Consciousness.

Fire Crow Technique and Spirit Light Shield Armor!

The Fire Crow Technique was a fire-aspect spell.

Among the many mid-tier spells, it was known for its long attack range, powerful destructive force, and flexible versatility.

The caster could condense one or several fire crows to strike enemies. Once they hit their target, they produced an explosive blaze effect, inflicting considerable damage on both malevolent spirits and Demonic Beasts.

Many cultivators whose Five Elements affinity favored fire learned the Fire Crow Technique.

When used in actual combat, it could give opponents quite a headache.

However, this spell also placed fairly high demands on its caster.

Spirit Light Shield Armor, meanwhile, was a protective spell that middle Qi Condensation stage cultivators had to learn!

The Fire Crow Technique and Spirit Light Shield Armor were both highly valuable. If he had exchanged for them through normal channels at the Hall of Inherited Teachings using sect contributions, they would have cost at least two or three hundred Merit Points.

Yet now, Wang Chen had acquired them without spending a single Merit Point or Spirit Stone.

Precisely because of this, he instead became intensely wary.

There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

An immortal sect was no charity hall, much less one that would freely hand benefits to Outer Sect disciples.

The more the guard station gave, the more dangerous this job was!

Wang Chen could already smell the Sugar-Coated Bullets.

Therefore, over the next few days, he no longer drilled the Heavenly Dragon Vajra Righteous Dharma and Vajra Fist, nor did he continue studying the Illustrated Guide to Basic Talismans.

Aside from his daily cultivation of the Five Elements Technique and tending to his Spirit Field, he devoted most of his time to Spirit Light Shield Armor.

He was determined to achieve initial mastery within three days!

Wang Chen knew full well that his 3-point Spiritual Root and comprehension were his greatest obstacles in learning and mastering cultivation techniques and spells.

And Spirit Light Shield Armor was a spell of the middle Qi Condensation stage.

The difficulty of achieving initial mastery was bound to be quite high.

So despite the urgency of the matter, he did not rush for quick success. Instead, he patiently contemplated the Law Seed.

At the same time, Wang Chen painfully emptied out his Storage Bag and went to Yunyang City to buy a packet of Cloud Mist Spirit Tea.

Then he knocked on the door of Village Chief Grand Uncle Sun's home and sought guidance from the old cultivator.

Wang Chen could have gone to the Hall of Inherited Teachings instead.

And sought advice from the Elder of Inherited Teachings.

But a mere packet of Cloud Mist Spirit Tea would not even earn him a proper glance from the man.

After learning why Wang Chen had come, Grand Uncle Sun stroked his long white beard and smiled. "For such a small matter, you could have just come to me directly. Why bring a gift?"

Wang Chen replied respectfully, "It's only proper to show filial respect to you, Elder."

With an elder in the family, one possessed a treasure. This old man had eaten more salt than Wang Chen had eaten rice.

To have lived safely past ninety and still appear so hale and hearty, he surely had a deep grasp of the way of Cowardly Cultivation.

Wang Chen believed the other man would certainly be able to give him proper guidance.

"Mm."

Grand Uncle Sun was very pleased with Wang Chen's attitude. "Fine, then. Ask whatever questions you have. Spirit Light Shield Armor is something I'm skilled in as well."

Wang Chen immediately laid out every problem he had encountered, one by one.

Though Grand Uncle Sun looked frail and withered with age, his mind remained sharp. He answered all of Wang Chen's questions without holding anything back.

He also shared quite a few insights from cultivating Spirit Light Shield Armor.

Wang Chen felt as though the clouds had parted and the moonlight had emerged!

He felt that coming to Grand Uncle Sun had truly been the right choice.

The old man's cultivation experience was simply too rich.

Finally, Wang Chen asked, "Grand Uncle Sun, do you know anything about the Fire Crow Technique?"

Grand Uncle Sun shook his head. "My Five Elements affinity is water."

Water overcame fire, and cultivators with a water-dominant affinity generally did not practice fire-element spells.

The old man could neither laugh nor cry. "Don't treat me like an Elder of Inherited Teachings!"

Wang Chen chuckled—he really had intended to freeload some experience.

When people were poor, even their ambitions shrank.

Even so, Wang Chen had gained a great deal.

He even mooched a meal from the old man.

That evening, as soon as Wang Chen returned home, he went to the quiet room.

Inside, he cast aside all distracting thoughts and guided the Mana from his Dantian through his entire body.

His five fingers formed hand seals in unison. The moment Wang Chen sensed a flicker of spiritual light, he suddenly thrust his right palm forward.

"Guard!"

With a deep shout, pure Mana surged from his palm, condensing into a shield before it, shimmering with brilliant light.

Spirit Light Shield Armor (Initial Mastery): 0/100

He had succeeded!

In just two days, Wang Chen had grasped the casting trick of Spirit Light Shield Armor.

This spell had been added to his Skill Bar.

And he still had one more day to raise Spirit Light Shield Armor's proficiency.

So he could wield this spell more skillfully to protect himself!

The second update is here—please vote.