The Spirit Gathering Stone

He suddenly thought of a question: could there be more high-grade spirit stones on the deserted island? A single high-grade spirit stone was worth several hundred years of his stipend. If there were ten, his grandfather, Han Daohe, wouldn't have to keep rushing around at his age.

He wished he could rush to the deserted island at once and continue searching for high-grade spirit stones.

After a while, Han Changming calmed down. High-grade spirit stones weren't cabbages that grew everywhere. They only appeared in medium-sized spirit stone mines. Small or tiny mines couldn't possibly produce them.

The Han Clan had searched the nearby islands several times already. If there had been a medium-sized spirit stone mine on the deserted island, they would have found it long ago.

Besides, this high-grade spirit stone was the same size as the spirit stones in circulation, which clearly meant it had been cut. Spirit stone ore had to be processed and cut into a standard size before it could be sold.

In other words, the waves had swept the high-grade spirit stone onto the deserted island, where a python swallowed it and slowly evolved into a demon beast.

Han Changming thought it over carefully, then shook his head. That explanation didn't make sense! Wild beasts couldn't absorb spiritual energy. Even if one swallowed a high-grade spirit stone, it wouldn't absorb the spiritual energy inside. How could it advance into a demon beast?

There were no spirit veins or spiritual treasures on the deserted island. How could an ordinary python advance into a demon beast?

It seemed the answer still lay in this high-grade spirit stone!

Han Changming suddenly thought of a possibility: it could absorb the spiritual energy inside spirit stones.

After a while, his expression grew intensely excited.

"Could it be a Spirit Gathering Stone? Ten thousand high-grade spirit stones wouldn't compare to a single Spirit Gathering Stone."

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his excitement, and set the green stone aside.

A little under a quarter of an hour later, he picked up the green stone and examined it carefully.

"That's right. It really is a Spirit Gathering Stone. No wonder the python evolved into a demon beast."

Spirit Gathering Stones were an extremely special kind of spirit stone in the cultivation world. They could continually absorb spiritual energy from heaven and earth and store it within themselves. The stored energy was equivalent to that of a high-grade spirit stone and could be used to replenish one's magical power. Once the energy inside a Spirit Gathering Stone was used up, it would continue absorbing and storing more. It could be reused, unlike ordinary spirit stones, which became useless once their spiritual energy was exhausted.

Owning a Spirit Gathering Stone was like owning an inexhaustible high-grade spirit stone. Though it absorbed spiritual energy slowly, it was still a treasure every cultivator dreamed of possessing. Its greatest use, however, was in setting up formations.

Han Changming guessed that the Spirit Gathering Stone's spiritual energy had been exhausted, so someone had thrown it into the sea. The waves carried it to the deserted island, where a python accidentally swallowed it. The stone slowly absorbed spiritual energy from heaven and earth, and the python's body was nourished by that energy over a long period until it gradually evolved into a demon beast.

"With this Spirit Gathering Stone, I won't have to spend so much time meditating to recover my magical power."

The Spirit Gathering Stone contained the spiritual energy of all five elements, so it wasn't suitable for cultivation. It was, however, useful for replenishing magical power.

When he spent an hour making talismans, Han Changming usually had to spend two hours meditating to recover his magical power. With this Spirit Gathering Stone, he wouldn't have to waste so much time on recovery.

His grandfather, Han Daohe, had just sent him a hundred bundles of Blank Talisman Paper and two boxes of Cinnabar, so Han Changming could now make talismans to his heart's content.

The Spirit Gathering Stone was far too valuable. An innocent man could bring disaster upon himself by possessing a jade treasure. He wouldn't tell anyone about it—not even his grandfather.

Everyone had their own secrets. He didn't think there was anything wrong with what he was doing.

He put away the Spirit Gathering Stone, sat cross-legged on the wooden bed, and meditated to regulate his breathing.

A little under a quarter of an hour later, he was in peak condition. He went to the wooden table, took out the talisman paper, Talisman Brush, and Cinnabar, and began making Water Shield Talismans. One blue rune after another appeared on the paper...

Two months passed in the blink of an eye.

Han Changming sat at the wooden table, staring intently at the blue sheet of talisman paper before him.

Eighteen blue runes covered the paper, forming the shape of a droplet. Spiritual light flowed across them, and the spiritual energy remained steady. It was clearly a Water Shield Talisman.

Han Changming let out a soft breath, his face bright with delight.

With the Spirit Gathering Stone in hand, he could make talismans more than twice as often each day. With a steady supply of Blank Talisman Paper as well, his talisman-making skills improved rapidly.

His success rate with Water Shield Talismans had risen from less than one in ten to two in ten. Once it reached three in ten, he would become a First-Rank Low-Grade Talisman Maker.

The Spirit Gathering Stone absorbed spiritual energy rather slowly. As long as Han Changming kept quiet, no one would know he had one.

Han Changming put away his talisman-making tools and walked outside.

A man in his thirties paced along the cobblestone path, holding an ancient scroll in his hand.

The man was handsome, with bright eyes, red lips, and white teeth. He was dressed like a scholar.

He was Han Changming's eighteenth uncle, Han Deyun.

He practiced a relatively rare Confucian cultivation method, which required him to read a large number of Confucian classics and cultivate a righteous aura. The stronger his righteous aura, the faster he could cultivate the Confucian method.

"Congratulations on advancing to the seventh level of Qi Refining, Eighteenth Uncle." Han Changming beamed and congratulated Han Deyun.

Han Deyun had secluded himself for a year and successfully advanced from the sixth level of Qi Refining to the seventh.

Han Deyun looked up from his book, smiled faintly at Han Changming, and said, "I have you to thank for guarding Red Shrimp Island and looking after the Spirit Grain and spirit herbs. Otherwise, I couldn't have focused on cultivating in seclusion. By the way, has anything happened lately?"

"Nothing much. If anything comes up that I can't handle, I'll tell you, Eighteenth Uncle. I've grown up and can help shoulder the family's burdens now. Oh, and we're almost out of Spirit Grain."

Han Changming's words were deliberately vague. Even if the matter of the demon python came to light someday, Han Deyun would at most think Han Changming had wanted to keep the python's corpse for himself. That wouldn't be surprising, after all, since Han Changming had killed the demon python himself.

Han Changming and Han Deyun usually ate Spirit Grain as their staple food. As for Bigu Pills, they only took those while in seclusion.

They had to return to the clan to collect their Spirit Grain. The amount they received depended on their cultivation level, and they collected a year's supply at a time.

Han Changming was at the fourth level of Qi Refining. Each month, he could collect two spirit stones and twenty catties of first-grade low-quality Spirit Grain. Han Deyun was at the seventh level of Qi Refining, so he could collect eight spirit stones and eighty catties of first-grade low-quality Spirit Grain each month. The higher one's cultivation, the more cultivation resources the clan provided.

"I was about to head back to the clan. Changming, is there anything you need? I can bring it back for you."

Han Deyun had been at the sixth level of Qi Refining, but now that he had advanced to the seventh, he needed to return to the clan. The clan elders would verify his advancement before raising his stipend, so he had to go back and collect his supplies himself.

"Eighteenth Uncle, please exchange my spirit stones for Blank Talisman Paper and get me two boxes of Cinnabar. That's all I need."

"All right. I'll set off after lunch. Changming, you need to cultivate diligently and advance to the fifth level of Qi Refining as soon as possible. Don't slack off. Do you understand?" Han Deyun's expression was stern, his tone grave.

Han Changming nodded earnestly. "I understand, Eighteenth Uncle. Your nephew won't slack off."

Han Deyun nodded, then asked about Han Changming's daily life. Han Changming answered honestly, but didn't mention the Spirit Gathering Stone.

"Resources, companions, cultivation methods, and a place to cultivate—mastering a skill is certainly important, but you have to manage your time wisely and make sure it doesn't interfere with your cultivation. I'll bring back some extra Blank Talisman Paper for you."

"Thank you, Eighteenth Uncle. It's getting late, so I'll go cook. You can get back to reading your classics!"

After lunch, Han Deyun gave him a few instructions, then rode off Red Shrimp Island on the Green Wind Gourd.