New Sign-in Location!

Qingyun Sect.

Foot of Small Bamboo Peak.

Ye Xuan rubbed his throbbing temples.

After a long while, he finally recovered from the massive influx of information.

This System is definitely terrible at naming things.

What is this Low-tier Artifact Forging Technique?

If this thing were to get out!

Wouldn't those fire-wielding folks from Fenxiang Valley be so ashamed they'd jump into lava?

This is a dimensional strike.

Ye Xuan looked down at the refined iron flying sword beneath his feet.

What used to look like a decent mode of transport now just felt awkward.

Loose structure.

Spiritual Energy conductivity so low it was outrageous.

So many impurities, like a honeycomb briquette full of air bubbles.

"Trash."

Ye Xuan curled his lips, suppressing the urge to immediately smelt this broken sword and forge it anew.

No.

This is the back mountain of Small Bamboo Peak.

Even though it's at the foot of the mountain.

If he were to cause any fire or commotion.

That old woman Suigetsu would definitely come down.

At that point, forget forging artifacts, he'd probably be turned into lamp oil.

Gotta go, gotta go.

Ye Xuan stepped back onto the flying sword he despised so much and rose into the air, wobbling.

Flying just above the treetops.

Prioritizing being low-key.

Heyang City.

The most prosperous place within a hundred-mile radius.

While it couldn't compare to the international metropolises of his past life, it had its own unique ancient charm.

The streets were wide.

The crowds were bustling.

The cries of vendors rose and fell, filled with the lively atmosphere of the mortal world.

Ye Xuan turned into a particularly grand-looking restaurant.

Shanhaiyuan.

This was Heyang City's signature establishment.

Both high officials and passing cultivators liked to frequent this place.

The reason was simple.

The food was delicious!

Especially the stewed Mei fish.

It was simply superb.

"Waiter!"

"Bring me a stewed Mei fish, and a few of your signature dishes!"

Ye Xuan found a corner seat by the window.

"Right away!"

"Please wait a moment, it'll be here soon!"

The waiter shouted and retreated.

While waiting for the food.

Ye Xuan poured himself a cup of tea.

Although his eyes were on the window, his mind had long since wandered far away.

His fingers tapped lightly on the tabletop, producing a rhythmic tap-tap-tap.

He was reviewing.

Reviewing his current situation.

Over the past half-year.

Although he had stayed put on Great Bamboo Peak and hadn't gone out much, his gains were not small.

Firstly.

From a sign-in half a year ago, Ye Xuan obtained Low-tier Alchemy Mastery.

Just like today's artifact forging technique, it was a monster disguised in "low-tier" clothing.

Alchemy in the Zhu Xian World mostly involved simple mixtures of plant ash, and whether a pill could be formed depended entirely on luck.

But the alchemy mastery given by the System directly focused on purification, extraction, and fusion.

It could squeeze out 200% of the medicinal efficacy from an ordinary herb!

It didn't even require any precious thousand-year-old Spiritual Medicine.

Even with roadside weeds, combined with special techniques, one could refine pills that increased Spiritual Energy.

If such methods were revealed, they would undoubtedly stir up a bloody storm throughout the entire Cultivation World.

But a problem arose.

Ye Xuan gave a wry smile and took a sip of tea.

No matter how amazing the technique, it was useless without ingredients.

His half-year on Great Bamboo Peak had been quite stifling.

He had the skill but dared not use it.

Firstly, Great Bamboo Peak was sparsely populated, and everyone saw each other every day.

Especially his Master, Tian Buyi. Although he usually looked like a plump rich man, he was actually very shrewd.

If Ye Xuan suddenly produced a large pile of pills, how would he explain it?

Found them?

An old man in his dreams taught him?

Such excuses might fool a three-year-old, but fool Tian Buyi?

That would be asking for trouble.

Secondly, and most crucially—there were no materials.

Alchemy required herbs!

Although Great Bamboo Peak was vast and sparsely populated, it had nothing valuable.

Therefore, for the past half-year, Ye Xuan had been like a beggar guarding a mountain of gold.

Secondly.

Today's sign-in granted him Low-tier Artifact Forging Technique.

Similar to Low-tier Alchemy Mastery.

Although Low-tier Artifact Forging Technique was powerful, it also required materials to be effective.

Therefore.

The current situation was clear.

He had the techniques.

The immediate priority was to diligently collect resources.

"Resources..."

Ye Xuan muttered to himself.

Alchemy required a large amount of herbs.

Even ordinary medicinal ingredients could cause a qualitative change through sheer quantity.

Not to mention artifact forging.

To forge powerful Magic Treasures, one absolutely needed powerful spiritual materials.

Where could he get them?

Several locations flashed through Ye Xuan's mind.

Ten Thousand Bat Cave?

Which was also the location of Blood Dripping Cave.

There were bound to be good things there. Old Man Black Heart's former lair; even a speck of dust leaking out would be enough for him.

But that place is also a meat grinder.

Not to mention how difficult those blood-sucking bats are to deal with.

Just the demonic cultists lurking there, the remnants of the Blood Refining Hall, would be enough trouble for me.

I'm here to make money, not to throw my life away.

Pass.

Western Death Marsh?

There's the Heavenly Emperor's Treasury, Divine Medicine, and the Divine Beast Yellow Bird there.

But that's even more ridiculous.

Even an expert at the Shangqing Realm would be skinned alive entering that place.

My body, at the Yuqing Realm, would probably be poisoned to death by the toxic gas before I even saw the mud.

Same, pass.

Ye Xuan rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

It was like holding a ten-billion check but not being able to find a bank to cash it.

"System, open the panel."

Ye Xuan chanted in his mind.

A semi-transparent light screen, visible only to him, instantly unfolded.

[Host: Ye Xuan]
[Race: Human Race (Innate Dao Body)]
[Realm: Yuqing Realm Layer 5 (Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao)]
[Cultivation Method: Tai Chi Xuan Qing Dao]
[Skills: Low-tier Alchemy Mastery, Low-tier Artifact Forging Technique]
[Magic Treasure: Fine Iron Flying Sword (Trash Quality, Recommend Destruction)]
[Items: None]
[Current Sign-in Location: Tianyuan Mountain (Not Signed In)]

Looking at the system's evaluation in the Magic Treasure section.

Ye Xuan's mouth twitched.

Trash quality...

You're so noble, so amazing.

Soon.

Ye Xuan's gaze shifted downwards, towards the last line on the panel.

Tianyuan Mountain.

This was the next sign-in point designated by the System.

Since there was no time limit, it meant he could take his time strolling over there.

The key question was, what kind of place was Tianyuan Mountain?

Ye Xuan closed his eyes and began frantically searching his mental database.

When he was at Great Bamboo Peak, he had read quite a few miscellaneous books about geography in the Scripture Depository.

A moment later.

Ye Xuan's eyes snapped open, a glint of light flashing in them.

He remembered!

Tianyuan Mountain!

Located in the northern part of the Central Plains, about three thousand li from Heyang City.

It wasn't a famous mountain or a great river, nor was the Spiritual Energy particularly abundant, so no major sect occupied it.

But precisely because of this, it had become a paradise for rogue cultivators!

All sorts of people, a mixed bag.

Rumor had it that there was a huge underground marketplace there, specializing in trading all sorts of shady items or things that major sects disdained.

Rogue cultivators might be poor, but they were numerous and resourceful.

They often dug up all sorts of strange ores and herbs in the deep mountains and old forests.

But because they didn't know their value or lacked the ability to process them, they would often sell them at low prices.

Wasn't this a treasure trove tailor-made for him?

He had Low-tier Alchemy Mastery and Low-tier Artifact Forging Technique, which could turn many things into treasures!

As long as he went there.

He could not only sign in, but also become a merchant!

Acquire raw materials at low prices, process them into pills and magic treasures, and then sell them at high prices...

Perfect!