Iron Ox Technique

Morning sunlight spilled through the wooden window into the room. Li Yuan opened his eyes, ending a night of cultivation.

Back to the Peak Third Layer of Qi Refinement again. Next, I need to keep accumulating spirit power and prepare for a breakthrough.

It's just a pity that removing Spirit Stones can't increase the permanent progress.

Li Yuan rose from the bed and stretched his somewhat stiff limbs.

He had cultivated for the entire night. Though his mind was still fairly alert, his body was somewhat fatigued. The Clean Physique effect was quite good; after a whole night, he was still spotless, without even a speck of dust on his clothes.

He pushed open the wooden door. Outside, the sky was already bright.

Today was his day off, a perfect chance to relax and visit the market to see whether he could come across any items that could be equipped.

By the standards of his previous life, patrol work followed a five-days-on, one-day-off schedule, but overtime and extra duties were commonplace.

Li Yuan straightened his clothes and headed toward the market.

As he walked, Li Yuan continued calculating matters related to cultivation.

The condition for permanently unlocking the Vein-Clearing Pill was consuming ten Medicinal Pills of the same grade or higher. There was no way he could meet that condition anytime soon.

Taking the Vein-Clearing Pill as an example, one pill cost around two to three Spirit Stones in the market. Ten of them would cost more than twenty.

To permanently unlock the Vein-Clearing Pill, he would need at least twenty Spirit Stones.

For now, then, the Vein-Clearing Pill could only serve as a temporary boost, used to speed up the permanent progress of Spirit Qi Filtration.

Once Spirit Qi Filtration was permanently unlocked, he could consider other matters.

At that thought, Li Yuan could not help but sigh.

Poor. He was truly far too poor.

If he had enough Spirit Stones on hand, he could casually buy a few equippable items. With their Affixes stacked together, breaking through to Mid Qi Refinement would be no problem at all.

Unfortunately, reality did not allow it.

As he entered the market, Li Yuan clearly sensed that there were far more people than usual today.

Cultivators streamed endlessly along East Street. Several people crowded around many stalls, while the sounds of haggling rose and fell one after another.

Li Yuan proceeded along East Street, patrolling as he observed his surroundings.

There really were more people in the market, and most of the newcomers looked like Rogue Cultivators. Their clothes were plain, their auras mixed and impure; one look was enough to tell that they had spent years roaming outside.

It was probably because of the trouble in the Yuanheng Mountains.

Li Yuan thought to himself.

The Yuanheng Mountains had been anything but peaceful recently. Demonic Beasts appeared frequently, while Cultivator Bandits were active everywhere.

Those Rogue Cultivators who had once scraped out a living in the mountains had either been forced to leave or simply fled to the market to lie low for a while.

More people in the market was a good thing for the Wang Family. Stall rents and shop revenues would both increase.

But that was not necessarily good for the Guard Squad. With more people and more eyes, trouble would also multiply.

Li Yuan reined in his thoughts and continued onward.

When he reached the middle of East Street, an inconspicuous stall by the roadside caught his attention.

The stall was tiny, nothing more than a worn cloth mat spread across the ground. Several yellowed booklets and a jumble of miscellaneous trinkets lay atop it.

The stall owner was a gaunt middle-aged man, sitting off to the side in bored idleness.

Li Yuan's gaze fell upon the booklets, and his steps paused slightly.

Iron Ox Technique, Gold Jade Art, Bone Strengthening Technique.

They were all secular Vital Blood techniques, specifically used to temper the physique and strengthen the muscles and bones.

The original owner's memories contained some impressions of such techniques. They were common in the cultivation world, mostly methods used by mortal martial artists to strengthen their bodies. For cultivators, their cost-effectiveness was not particularly high.

Still, many cultivators at the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement, with no hope of Foundation Establishment, would learn a few to broaden their combat strength. The improvements were minor, but improvements nonetheless.

Some cultivators with no hope of breaking through also chose to practice them, though their numbers were few. Such cultivators were more inclined to keep accumulating Pure Spirit Power, or to buy breakthrough Medicinal Pills in hopes of finding a sliver of opportunity.

For that reason, these techniques had a small market among cultivators as well, though their prices were not high.

Li Yuan crouched before the stall and picked up one of the booklets.

Its pages had already yellowed, and its corners were worn.

[Detected equippable item]

[Item Affix grade: White]

[Note: Item does not belong to host. Cannot equip; detailed information unavailable.]

A secular technique that could provide a White Trait? Li Yuan's heart stirred, and he picked up the other two booklets as well.

The other two booklets were clearly much newer, but the System Panel did not appear. Li Yuan picked up the Iron Ox Technique again.

The stall owner looked at Li Yuan, then at the booklet in his hand, and lazily asked, "Fellow Daoist, interested in these techniques?"

"How much?" Li Yuan asked directly.

"Three Spirit Stones each." The stall owner held up three fingers. "Fair to young and old alike. No bargaining."

Li Yuan nodded slightly. The price was fairly reasonable. Without hesitation, he took three Spirit Stones from his sleeve and handed them over.

The stall owner accepted the Spirit Stones, a faint smile appearing on his face. "You're straightforward, Fellow Daoist. This technique is yours."

Li Yuan tucked the booklet into his sleeve, rose, and left.

After walking several dozen steps away, Li Yuan found a secluded corner and took out the booklet.

The instant the booklet entered his hand, that line of translucent text surfaced once more. This time, the contents were much more complete:

[Detected equippable item: Iron Ox Technique (Complete)]

[Affix preview: Viscera Strengthening (White)—strengthens the toughness of the five viscera and six bowels, raising their limit for withstanding spirit power impacts]

[Permanent unlock condition: Cultivate two secular techniques to Perfection]

[Current Equipment Slot (1/2). Equip?]

Viscera Strengthening.

Li Yuan looked at the name of the Affix, and a glimmer flashed through his eyes.

Strengthening the five viscera and six bowels, improving bodily function—though this effect did not directly aid cultivation like Spirit Qi Filtration and Circulation Acceleration, it was just as practical.

The five viscera and six bowels were the foundation of the human body. Once they were strengthened, not only could one withstand more intense cultivation, but the efficiency of spirit power circulation could also improve.

More importantly, the condition for permanently unlocking this Affix was cultivating two secular techniques to Perfection.

Secular techniques differed from cultivation techniques. With a foundation in cultivation, one could train far faster than an ordinary mortal.

As long as he was willing to put in the effort and practice diligently, reaching Perfection was only a matter of time.

Though it required two techniques to reach Perfection at once, it was already far easier than the Vein-Clearing Pill's condition of requiring ten Medicinal Pills of the same grade.

Li Yuan closed the Panel, stepped out of the corner, and continued patrolling along East Street.

As he walked, he kept an eye on the roadside stalls.

However, most stalls did not sell secular techniques.

Li Yuan walked through more than half the street and saw traces of secular techniques at only two or three stalls.

After finishing his patrol of East Street and North Alley, Li Yuan took another lap around West Street.

The morning quickly passed. The sun gradually climbed higher, and the market grew ever more crowded.