Studying Spells

As soon as the bag's mouth was opened, the Outer Disciple eagerly struck it with a spell seal.

Fueled by his magic power, the bag's mouth suddenly widened, and a suction force burst out from within.

The row of Piebald Horse carcasses on the ground was immediately swept up by the force and sucked into the bag.

Seeing this, the Outer Disciple tied the bag shut again.

It returned to its original palm-sized shape, and he hung it back at his waist.

"A Hundred Treasure Pouch!"

Ma Xingyuan nearly drooled at the sight.

This thing was far more advanced than a Storage Bag.

A Storage Bag simply couldn't hold so many Piebald Horse carcasses.

An ordinary Storage Bag was doing well if it had a volume of one cubic meter.

A mid-grade Storage Bag held only three cubic meters.

A high-grade Storage Bag held ten.

Only a top-grade Storage Bag had a capacity of thirty cubic meters.

There were many kinds of storage magical treasures, and the Storage Bag was the lowest grade.

These Storage Bags usually circulated among Menial Disciples and Outer Disciples.

A Hundred Treasure Pouch was different. It was standard equipment for cultivators at or above Foundation Establishment.

"So this is a Hundred Treasure Pouch?"

After hearing this, Li Yunjing couldn't help showing his envy.

This was the first time he had seen one in person.

He couldn't help coveting it.

Li Yunjing knew this item surely didn't belong to the Outer Disciple himself.

Outer Disciples couldn't afford such a treasure. The sect must have lent it to him to make transporting supplies easier.

"All right! We're leaving. You two take good care of the horses. Also, pay attention: a few mares are due to give birth soon. The young Piebald Horses need special care, so make sure they don't die."

Before leaving, Hou Boyan reminded Li Yunjing and Ma Xingyuan once again.

"Yes! Steward Hou, don't worry! We'll both do our jobs diligently."

Li Yunjing and Ma Xingyuan didn't dare slack off. They quickly nodded in reply.

"Mm! Oh, right. In three days, an Inner Disciple from the sect will come to Qiongze Peak to give a lecture. We'll make your day off three days from now. You two should come listen to the senior sister's lesson as well!"

Perhaps satisfied with Li Yunjing and Ma Xingyuan's attitude, Hou Boyan went out of his way to say a few more words.

"Thank you for the guidance, Steward Hou!"

Li Yunjing and Ma Xingyuan were somewhat overwhelmed by the unexpected kindness. They hadn't imagined this burly, fearsome man had such a side to him.

After Hou Boyan and the other Outer Disciples left, Li Yunjing finished entering the records. With nothing else to do, he and Ma Xingyuan shared a few drinks.

As long as they took good care of the Piebald Horses, there was little else to do here, and no one came to manage them.

Once the horses were looked after, they had plenty of free time.

Ma Xingyuan seemed to have some Spirit Stones. He'd gone to another part of Qiongze Peak and somehow traded with someone for a gourd of fine wine.

Thanks to him, Li Yunjing got to have a few drinks too.

As for food, their territory naturally wasn't completely barren.

There was a half-acre garden in the courtyard where they lived, planted by a senior brother who had stayed there before, so they had no shortage of food.

"Ah! I don't know what we should do at the end of the month. Should we hand over Contribution Points?"

After a few cups of wine, Ma Xingyuan's face flushed red, and he grew troubled.

"What's the hurry? We've only been here three days. There's plenty of time. We can decide when the time comes."

Li Yunjing gave a cold laugh.

Over the past three days, his cultivation had progressed far more slowly than before.

Compared to their lodgings at the Menial Hall, the environment here was like heaven and earth apart.

The difference in spiritual energy concentration was at least fivefold.

It could be said that Qiongze Peak was one of the most barren peaks in the Divine Firmament Mountain Range.

During these three days, besides his regular Qi Refining, Li Yunjing had also begun studying spells.

The spells mastered at the Qi Refining Realm were all minor ones.

Li Yunjing had a Five Elements Spiritual Root, and his aptitude was quite good.

He had learned the five most basic Five Elements arts: Flying Flame Technique, Azure Wood Art, Clear Spirit Art, Falling Rock Technique, and Cold Star Sword Art.

These five minor spells had all been gifts from the sect.

To learn more advanced spells, he would have to spend Contribution Points to exchange for them.

Everything in the sect required Contribution Points. With enough of them, Foundation Establishment wasn't beyond reach—not even the Golden Core Realm would be a mere illusion.

In just three days, Li Yunjing had learned all five spells and reached the stage of initial mastery.

For Li Yunjing to master spells so quickly was absolutely astonishing.

An ordinary disciple of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect starting from scratch would need ten days or half a month to learn each minor spell.

Ma Xingyuan was the same. Before joining the sect, he had been a Rogue Cultivator, but he'd been the sort who barely counted as one.

He wasn't much stronger than Li Yunjing.

These past few days, Ma Xingyuan had also been studying hard, learning the contents of the Divine Firmament Jade Records.

By now, he had only just managed to learn the Flying Flame Technique. He could conjure a fireball the size of a human head to attack his enemies.

His comprehension was far worse than Li Yunjing's.

Having made such progress in three days, Li Yunjing naturally wasn't worried about whether Yang Chun would give him a hard time at the end of the month.

In his view, he might as well turn the act into reality, join the Ten Thousand Laws Society, and seize its influence among the Menial Disciples.

Yang Chun was a Menial Disciple with a cultivation base of only the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm.

If it weren't for his seniority and the many helpers at his beck and call, Li Yunjing wouldn't have given him a second thought.

A small fry like him could be dealt with if the opportunity arose.

From the very beginning, Li Yunjing had never planned to become anyone's underling or pay protection money!

"Ah! There's nothing I can do anyway. I'll listen to you."

Ma Xingyuan gulped down another mouthful of wine and sighed.

Over the past few days, since being assigned to work with Li Yunjing, he had seen Li Yunjing handle everything neatly and properly. It had earned Ma Xingyuan's admiration.

Li Yunjing also took the lead in their daily work.

Now that their future was at stake, Ma Xingyuan had no idea what to do, so he was still accustomed to following Li Yunjing's advice.

"Don't worry. Do you think I'd let you get the short end of the stick?"

Li Yunjing chuckled, then lowered his voice. "What's Yang Chun, anyway? He's only at the third layer of the Qi Refining Realm, just like you!"

"That's true! But I came from a Rogue Cultivator background and don't know any powerful spells. Yang Chun joined the sect early, so he must have learned some formidable techniques. And with so many people on their side, I really can't afford to provoke that bastard."

Ma Xingyuan shook his head slightly and spoke with lingering resentment.

That day, the two of them drank a little too much.

Li Yunjing lay on his bed, his gaze icy as he began to consider how to deal with the situation...

Over the next three days, Li Yunjing rearranged his schedule.

Besides his regular tasks of raising the Piebald Horses and cleaning the stables, he unfailingly spent time each day combining what he had learned of Martial Dao Cultivation with his Qi Refining Realm cultivation and putting it into practice.