Hundred Arts of Cultivation

In Ping'er's heart, whenever one obtained Spirit Stones, the first thought would surely be to convert them into one's own cultivation.

At the Qi Refining Early Stage, the speed of one's cultivation progress was what mattered most.

But she did not know.

He Song was completely different from her and from all other cultivators.

Cultivators fought fate against Heaven. To live long, they had to turn everything that could be converted into cultivation into their own cultivation.

If they failed to break through and extend their lifespan before their allotted years ran out, they would die and vanish from the Dao.

Thus.

Under the threat of death, cultivators would generally invest all the resources they acquired into improving their cultivation.

Only by continuously raising their cultivation could they gain greater strength and a longer lifespan.

That was why cultivators loved shouting things like, "My fate is mine, not Heaven's," "Defy Heaven," and "Cultivators who do not contend will die."

Their lifespans were right there before them.

If they did not contend, would they not die?

However.

He Song was different from them.

Already immortal and ageless, with an endless lifespan, death was no longer a shackle upon him.

Knowing that he possessed inexhaustible years, He Song still hoped that his cultivation could grow swiftly.

But in truth, it was not quite so urgent.

He Song naturally knew that using Spirit Stones could increase his cultivation speed.

But knowing was one thing.

Actually doing it was another.

Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market was very safe.

Nor had any large-scale conflicts between cultivators occurred in the region controlled by the Thick Earth Sect.

Although an Ore Vein had been discovered nearby, causing a group of Foundation Establishment families to fight until their brains were scrambled, once the Thick Earth Sect stepped in, that dispute was quickly settled.

From this, it could be seen.

The four immortal cities controlled by the Thick Earth Sect, as well as the Immortal Markets under those four cities, were generally fairly safe.

In such a relatively safe environment, there was absolutely nothing wrong with He Song's idea of saving Spirit Stones and prioritizing the purchase of introductory books on the Hundred Arts of Cultivation in order to earn even more Spirit Stones.

He Song and Ping'er viewed the matter from their respective perspectives.

Neither of them was wrong.

But Ping'er found it difficult to understand He Song's thoughts at that moment.

Therefore.

After leading He Song into the VIP Hall and serving him a pot of fine tea, Ping'er left with a belly full of doubts to prepare the things he needed.

The VIP Hall was not large, but every piece of furniture within was exceptionally exquisite.

He Song could even sense faint ripples of spiritual energy from those furnishings.

This meant that the materials used to make them were all spiritual materials. Though they did not appear particularly old, spiritual materials were still spiritual materials, infinitely more precious than ordinary mortal wood.

His fingers lightly stroked the tabletop before him, and a trace of envy appeared in He Song's eyes.

When would he be able to use furniture made from spiritual materials like this?

This Spirit Skill Pavilion was truly wealthy.

He picked up the teacup before him and took a light sip.

Fine tea!

He Song's eyes lit up.

After entering his stomach, the tea actually transformed into wisps of spiritual power that merged into his body, allowing his cultivation to increase by a sliver.

If he could drink this tea year after year, He Song felt that his cultivation speed would become much faster than before.

He simply did not know what this tea was called.

If he had Spirit Stones in the future, he would have to buy some as well.

Having made up his mind.

He Song drank his tea as he waited for Ping'er to return.

Ping'er did not make him wait long.

Very soon.

She arrived at He Song's side carrying a tray filled with all kinds of books.

Setting the tray on the table, Ping'er casually picked up the book closest to her and said.

"This is the Alchemy Primer. It contains three pill formulas—for the Fasting Pill, Qi Nourishing Pill, and Minor Spirit Ascension Pill—as well as all manner of common knowledge regarding alchemy."

"This is the Artifact Refining Primer. It contains the methods for refining one offensive and one defensive Magic Artifact, along with all manner of common knowledge regarding artifact refining."

"This is the Talisman Dao Primer. It contains the crafting methods for three talismans—the Thick Earth Talisman, Golden Sword Talisman, and Divine Movement Talisman—as well as all manner of common knowledge regarding talisman crafting."

"This is the Array Dao Primer. It contains the formation diagrams for three arrays—the Spirit Gathering Array, Five Elements Array, and Mysterious Trace Array—as well as all manner of common knowledge regarding the Dao of arrays."

"This is the Beast Taming Primer. It contains methods for luring beasts, enticing beasts, and taming beasts, as well as methods and common knowledge for producing the items needed to lure demonic beasts."

"This is..."

As Ping'er's pleasant voice explained beside him, He Song's gaze swept over one book after another.

The Alchemy Primer contained three pill formulas. The Fasting Pill was not ranked, the Qi Nourishing Pill was used by Qi Refining Early Stage cultivators to increase their cultivation, while the Minor Spirit Ascension Pill was used to help cultivators break through the bottleneck of the Qi Refining Middle Stage.

But alchemy required far too many things.

An alchemy furnace and all kinds of precious medicinal ingredients were things He Song simply could not afford, so he ignored it outright.

He Song likewise ignored the Artifact Refining Primer.

Artifact refining also required an artifact refining furnace and all kinds of precious ores, things He Song still could not afford.

He Song felt that the Talisman Dao Primer had some potential.

The Thick Earth Talisman was for protection, the Golden Sword Talisman for attacking, and the Divine Movement Talisman for running away. It was simply perfect!

But... the talisman brush, talisman ink, and talisman paper made He Song shrink back.

He could not afford them!

He Song placed the Array Dao Primer within his range of consideration.

For no other reason than that learning arrays did not require too many additional Spirit Stones.

Setting up an array involved inscribing array patterns upon Spirit Stones or other carriers, then placing them into specific positions using special methods. Only then could an array be formed.

Once an array was set up, it only required the Spirit Stones to be replaced at regular intervals in order to keep running indefinitely.

Furthermore, setting up arrays did not require purchasing all kinds of expensive materials for practice.

Because of this, He Song became interested in the Array Dao Primer as well.

As for the Beast Taming Primer, after hearing about all the various materials required for luring, enticing, and taming beasts, He Song already had his answer.

Luring demonic beasts also required special materials.

Moreover, because beast taming was common in the cultivation world, those special materials were quite expensive.

The Spirit Stones spent to truly tame a beast would probably be enough to buy a demonic beast token from the Spirit Beast Pavilion.

The Spirit Beast Pavilion was a place that specialized in capturing demonic beasts and selling their beast tokens.

As long as a cultivator held a demonic beast's token, that beast's life rested upon a single thought of the cultivator, and there was no need to worry about resistance.

He Song did not interrupt Ping'er.

Instead, he continued listening.

Before long, He Song had gained some understanding of the introductory texts for the Hundred Arts of Cultivation.

After a long while.

Only when the voice beside him suddenly stopped did He Song raise his head to look at Ping'er. Seeing her gazing at him with a resentful expression, He Song thought for a moment before handing her a cup of tea.

"Ahem, thank you for explaining everything, Fellow Daoist Ping'er. Have some tea to soothe your throat first."