Spirit Gathering Ring

After reporting Wang De, Li Yuan received a reply telling him to wait for further notice.

Wang De also said he would keep an eye out for Rogue Cultivators carrying similar jade pendants, but such things were difficult to investigate. They could not possibly search people outright.

After returning home, Li Yuan took all the Spirit Stones from his sleeve and counted them on the table.

The monthly stipend he had just received, the patrol allowance, his share from hunting Demonic Beasts, and the Spirit Stones found on the Cultivator Bandits—all of it added up to a large pile on the table.

Especially the ones obtained from the Cultivator Bandits—there were a full forty-eight Spirit Stones.

Li Yuan put the Spirit Stones back into his sleeve, left his residence, and headed along East Street toward North Alley.

He first went to a Rogue Cultivator's stall that sold Talismans.

"Three Spirit Shield Talismans, three Fire Snake Talismans, and two Godly Movement Talismans."

It was not that he did not want to buy from Old Zhang's stall; it was simply that Old Zhang's Talismans were no longer useful to him.

The stall owner quoted a price. Li Yuan took out the Spirit Stones and neatly tucked the Talismans into his sleeve.

He then went to Old Sun's stall and bought two Origin Recovery Pills, Medicinal Pills used to quickly recover from injuries.

The Medicinal Pills and Talismans cost fifteen Spirit Stones altogether, equivalent to five months of wages for an ordinary Patrol Inspector.

Because Patrol Inspectors were bound by the Wang Family's contract, they actually earned less than some Rogue Cultivators.

After walking another half street along East Street, Li Yuan stopped before a stall.

That Spirit Gathering Ring was still there.

The bronze-yellow ring was mottled with rust, its Spirit Patterns half-hidden and half-visible. It lay unnoticed in the corner of the stall's display.

"How much for this?" Li Yuan pointed at the Spirit Gathering Ring.

The stall owner was that lean, wiry middle-aged Rogue Cultivator from last time. He looked up at Li Yuan and recognized him as the person who had asked about the price before.

"Still fifteen."

"Thirteen," Li Yuan said.

"No. Fifteen, fair to old and young alike."

"Fourteen."

The stall owner rubbed his hands together, hesitated for two breaths, then gritted his teeth.

"Fine."

Li Yuan took out fourteen Spirit Stones and arranged them on the stall cloth before putting the Spirit Gathering Ring into his sleeve.

After returning to his residence, Li Yuan slid the bolt into place, sat beside the bed, and took out the Spirit Gathering Ring.

[Detected equippable item: Spirit Gathering Ring (Complete)]

[Affix preview: Spirit Convergence (White)—During cultivation, expands the range of Spirit Qi absorption and increases the speed at which Spirit Qi flows in]

[Permanent condition preview: Absorb the Spirit Qi from ten Spirit Stones while equipped (0/10)]

[Current Equipment Slots full (2/2). Replace current equipment?]

Spirit Convergence. It expanded the range of Spirit Qi absorption and increased the speed at which Spirit Qi flowed in.

Its effect could not compare to the Spirit Qi Filtration and Circulation Acceleration he already possessed, but it could stack with them.

Moreover, its permanent condition was exceedingly simple—absorb the Spirit Qi from ten Spirit Stones.

If he absorbed them at full speed, the Spirit Qi from ten Spirit Stones could be finished in just a few days.

And once this Affix became permanent, it would be his fifth Permanent Affix of white grade or higher, allowing him to unlock a third Equipment Slot.

With a thought, Li Yuan removed the Iron Ox Technique.

At present, the boost from the Spirit Qi Condensation Affix was far greater than that of Viscera Strengthening.

He then equipped the Spirit Gathering Ring.

The copper ring turned into a dim yellow glimmer and sank into his wrist, leaving it faintly warm.

The next instant, Li Yuan sensed a subtle change in the Spirit Qi around him. The range he could perceive had expanded.

When he cultivated in the past, Spirit Qi surged toward him from all directions within roughly two or three zhang of his body. Now, that range had widened by another circle, and Spirit Qi within four or five zhang was gathering toward him.

The speed at which it flowed in had increased somewhat as well, though only by a limited amount.

Compared with the immediate effects of Spirit Qi Filtration and Circulation Acceleration, the enhancement from Spirit Convergence was indeed not very strong.

But it was enough.

Li Yuan took out a Spirit Stone, held it in his hand, sat cross-legged, and began cultivating.

By the latter half of the night, the Spirit Stone in Li Yuan's hand had turned dull and gray. Its Spirit Qi had already been drained dry.

[Spirit Convergence (White) permanent progress: 3/10]

After draining three Spirit Stones, the progress had only reached three. At this rate, he still needed seven more. There was no rush; he could absorb them while traveling as well.

Li Yuan then rose to his feet and stood in the cleared space inside the room.

The fifth form of the Nurturing Origin Technique—Origin Return.

Once, twice, three times.

After reaching the Qi Refining Fifth Layer, his cultivation of mundane martial arts had sped up considerably again.

The Panel displayed a notification.

[Nurturing Origin Technique: Mastery (0/800)]

Li Yuan finished the technique and stood still, slowly exhaling a long breath of stale air. These past days, he had focused primarily on cultivating Spirit Qi and neglected his mundane martial arts.

Yet it had taken him only nearly a month. The speed was not slow.

Unlike the changes when the Iron Ox Technique reached Mastery, the most direct sensation after the Nurturing Origin Technique reached Mastery was that the activity of his Vital Blood had changed.

His Vital Blood had once been like a quiet river within his body, flowing wherever it flowed. Now, it was as though countless undercurrents had appeared in that river. When the Vital Blood reached his fingertips, it no longer dispersed. Instead, it automatically swirled back, forming a small cycle at the ends.

Li Yuan put away the Panel and sat cross-legged again.

Holding a Spirit Stone and circulating the Spirit Guiding Art, he continued advancing the permanent progress of the Spirit Gathering Ring.

The next morning, outside the East Gate of the market.

The sky had only just brightened, and the air carried the damp, cool scent of grass.

By the time Li Yuan arrived, quite a few people had already gathered at the assembly point.

Three patrol squads, along with members of the Wang Family, made over thirty people in total, standing by the roadside in groups of two and three.

Li Yuan spotted He Shou at once. He stood at the front of the group, speaking in low tones with a Wang Family member clad in a blue-gray robe.

Li Yuan's gaze swept over the crowd before pausing near the rear.

Fang He.

Fang He saw Li Yuan as well and gave him a nod.

Li Yuan walked over and stood beside Fang He.

"You're here too?"

"Mm." Fang He rolled his neck. "I happen to be from the Monster Hunting Squad, so I have experience with this."

Li Yuan swept his gaze over the group again but did not see Zhou Dazhuang.

After a while longer, everyone had arrived.

A man stepped out at the very front of the group.

He was in his forties, tall and lean, with cold, sharp features. His blue-gray robe was of finer material than those worn by the other Wang Family members. A longsword hung at his waist, its scabbard dark silver and devoid of unnecessary decoration.

His aura was steady and restrained, yet Li Yuan could sense that this man's aura surpassed everyone present.

The captain of the Guard Squad, a Wang Family member. Rumor had it that he possessed cultivation at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement, two layers higher than Wang De, the captain of the Patrol Squad.

"Set out."

His voice was not loud, yet the surrounding chatter immediately fell silent.

The group began moving, advancing southwest along the dirt road south of the market.

Li Yuan had walked this road more than once. Its first stretch overlapped with their previous patrol route. Wild grass grew thickly on both sides of the Yellow Earth Road, while scattered low shrubs swayed gently in the morning breeze.

Li Yuan held a Spirit Stone in his hand. Even while traveling, he was absorbing the Spirit Qi within it, though it was far slower than during cultivation.

After walking for roughly half an hour, the dirt road came to an end.

The group did not stop. They stepped directly over broken stones and wild grass, continuing southwest. The terrain began to rise and fall, while the thickets grew denser. In some places, thorny vines and short trees tangled together so tightly that they had to turn sideways to squeeze through.

The Guard Squad captain at the front walked ahead. His pace was not fast, but it was extremely steady. He seemed thoroughly familiar with the route, never hesitating whenever they reached a fork.

Li Yuan noticed that the group's route had not been chosen at random.

Rather than cutting straight toward the Yuanheng Mountains, they were following an arcing detour, deliberately avoiding certain areas.