Making a Storybook

The moment he heard there was money to be made, Jin Yuanbao's eyes lit up instantly.

Lin Chen took two jade slips from his storage pouch and sat down cross-legged on the ground.

How could this childish little book compare to the web novels of his past life?

That line, "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river—don't bully a youth for being poor," carried so many people's dreams.

That line, "Sword, come!" made countless hearts race with boiling blood and murderous intent.

His mind was packed with classic novels; if he serialized them in this world, they would crush these childish little books.

Drawing on his memory, he engraved the story into the jade slips.

Of course, only a part—just enough to cut off at a critical moment.

He also used his well-honed Divine Seal Art to inscribe images, matching the text inside the jade slip.

Once he finished, he handed the jade slip to Jin Yuanbao. "Take a look, what do you think?"

Jin Yuanbao looked puzzled, took the jade slip, and casually began to browse.

The result: he was instantly immersed.

For a full half hour, he didn't move a muscle, but his expression shifted from excitement to gloom...

When he finally snapped out of it, Lin Chen had already engraved the second jade slip.

Jin Yuanbao was ecstatic; he saw a business opportunity and pressed urgently.

"Chen-ge, what's this story called?"

"Just call it Nine Mysteries Leaving Fire Against the Heavens." Lin Chen said it lightly.

Hearing that name, Jin Yuanbao's whole body shook, his scalp tingling.

It took him a long moment before he said gravely, "Chen-ge, how do you plan to sell it?"

"Simple. I'll give you the original regularly, you copy it into booklets. Split this big chunk of story into a hundred volumes, each volume you copy a hundred copies, limited edition sale..."

As Lin Chen explained, Jin Yuanbao felt like he'd been enlightened.

He realized that all his business tricks were nothing compared to Lin Chen.

This was a commercial genius.

One episode, a hundred copies; a hundred episodes total, that's ten thousand copies. If each copy sells for three spirit stones, my goodness...

Thirty thousand spirit stones!

And from what Lin Chen said, this story had a long way to go—thirty thousand spirit stones was just the beginning.

As for the cost, it was practically negligible.

Hahaha...

Jin Yuanbao's eyes turned into the shape of spirit stones, grinning stupidly, drool dripping down.

"Chen-ge, you're my second father! I'd call you godfather!"

Having done the math, Jin Yuanbao rushed forward and hugged Lin Chen's leg.

Lin Chen kicked him off and handed him the other jade slip.

"This one's called Overbearing Immortal Lord Falls in Love with Me. Same formula, sold specifically to female cultivators."

Before one surprise was over, Lin Chen pulled out another.

Jin Yuanbao quickly checked it.

Compared to the first one's fiery grandeur, this one leaned more toward romance.

But it still hooked him so much he couldn't stop.

"Good book, good book!"

Half an hour later, Jin Yuanbao kept exclaiming in delight. "Chen-ge, what comes next? Can I see the rest first?"

After reading these two stories, his heart itched unbearably.

Lin Chen smiled faintly. "After you finish copying them, send me a set. As for the sequel, we'll see how the market responds."

"Chen-ge, don't worry."

Jin Yuanbao thumped his chest loudly, grabbed the two jade slips, and rushed off in a hurry.

Lin Chen looked at the little book in his hand and couldn't help laughing. "So childish!"

He clasped his hands behind his back and returned to the open space on the mountaintop.

He worked straight until dark, finally finishing planting all the vegetable plots.

No one came for dinner, so he made do with a simple meal.

Afterward, he went back to his room, with three jade slips laid out before him.

Sword Control Art, Concealment Art, Eternal Spring Art.

These were all given to him by Ming Bufan.

"System, can I still exchange for cultivation, and is it necessary to cultivate techniques?"

[Of course it's necessary. Cultivating techniques, the conditions and environment for cultivation—these are all major factors affecting cultivation speed.]

[According to data calculations, the higher the grade of the technique and pills, and the deeper the level of comprehension, the faster the cultivation speed. In summary, high-grade techniques and pills can save spirit stones.]

At the mention of saving spirit stones, Lin Chen's eyes lit up immediately, and he grabbed the Eternal Spring Art.

"System, cultivate the Eternal Spring Art."

[Ding! Deducting eighteen gold coins, exchanging for eighteen years of cultivation. Eternal Spring Art—Beginner.]

A roar echoed in Lin Chen's mind, as if the clouds had parted to reveal a clear sky.

His understanding of cultivation and life instantly reached a new level.

He also understood Ming Bufan's intention.

Although the Eternal Spring Art was a Yellow-grade mid-tier technique, its strength lay in its low threshold and solid foundation.

It could cultivate a surging vitality, which was excellent for extending one's lifespan.

If one could cultivate it to the Great Perfection realm, even a Qi Condensation realm cultivator could extend their lifespan to two hundred years.

Because he had five-element spiritual roots, outsiders believed he would likely remain stuck at the Qi Condensation realm for life.

Thus, Ming Bufan had put considerable thought into choosing this technique for him.

"System, if I cultivate the Eternal Spring Art to the Ultimate realm, what effects will it have?"

[Eternal youth, undying for a thousand years.]

Whoa!

Lin Chen's eyes sparkled. "How many spirit stones do I need to cultivate it to the Ultimate realm?"

[Proficiency requires 50 spirit stones, adding ten years of lifespan. Minor Success: 500 spirit stones, adding twenty years. Major Success: 5,000 spirit stones, adding thirty years. Perfection: 50,000 spirit stones, adding forty years. Ultimate: 500,000 spirit stones, adding nine hundred years of lifespan.]

Holy crap!

Lin Chen nearly bit his tongue. "And this is what you call a bonus?"

[Host, please do not doubt the system's professionalism. The Eternal Spring Art is too low-grade, so the bonuses are limited. Only the Ultimate realm, transcending the ordinary, will bring a significant improvement.]

Fine.

Lin Chen was speechless. He had eight hundred spirit stones in his pocket, which he'd thought was a huge fortune.

But compared to what was needed to exchange for cultivation, it was barely a drop in the bucket.

In that instant, his desire to earn money flared up again.

Once he had a foothold, he would expand the market.

He felt that relying solely on the Green Mountain Sect couldn't support him.

A moment later, he cultivated the Sword Control Art, the Concealment Art, and the Eternal Spring Art all to the Proficiency realm.

His spirit stones dwindled to six hundred and fifty.

Lin Chen summed up his gains over this period.

He now had the Body Tempering Art for physical training. Though at the Beginner level, it granted ten thousand jin of strength, and low-grade magic tools could not harm him.

Flame First Solution was at the Beginner level, allowing him to condense crimson flames.

Eternal Spring Art—Proficiency.

Concealment Art—Proficiency. Those within the same major realm could not see through his cultivation level.

Sword Control Art—Proficiency. He could attack with a flying sword or ride it to fly.

Thinking of all this, Lin Chen couldn't suppress the excitement in his heart.

He directly refined the high-grade magic tool longsword given by his third senior brother, Qi Ruming.

Ming Bufan had once told him that if he wanted a lifebound treasure, it had to be at least a spirit tool.

Magic tools were not recommended for refining into lifebound treasures.

They could easily shatter in battle, damaging one's own cultivation.

Lin Chen obediently followed the advice. After a simple refinement, he headed straight out.

Activating the Sword Control Art, the longsword steadily floated in midair.

He raised a finger, and the flying sword shot out with a whoosh, instantly striking a large boulder ten meters away.

The boulder exploded, and the flying sword returned.

"Not bad power!"

Lin Chen was very satisfied. He controlled the flying sword to return and land at his feet.

He lightly stepped onto it, formed a sword seal with his hand, and said, "Rise!"

The flying sword slowly rose into the air.

Two meters, three meters, eight meters, ten meters...

Following the cultivation memories he had exchanged for, he easily flew a hundred meters into the air.

Mastery-level proficiency allowed him to soar freely midair, even performing some highly difficult maneuvers.

If he still had a weapon in hand, he could even fight while airborne.

Once he started playing, he couldn't stop.

A quarter of an hour later, Lin Chen felt a sudden emptiness inside him.

"Not good, my spiritual power is exhausted!"

He cried out in alarm as the flying sword lost control.

Lin Chen let out a scream, and together with his sword, he plummeted from a hundred meters high.