The Miscellaneous Hall lay east of the Pawnshop. It specialized in making statues, as well as gold, silver, and copper ornaments, and employed the greatest number of menial workers.
The main reason was that the raw materials were relatively heavy and required a great deal of manpower to transport.
Under normal circumstances, large numbers of people entered and left the Miscellaneous Hall day and night. Its apprentices were mostly sturdy young men in their prime.
Yet for some unknown reason, the Miscellaneous Hall was now deathly silent. Every building had been sealed with strips of paper, with only the apprentices' dormitory doors left wide open.
Xu Hu, the Miscellaneous Hall's steward, wore a livid expression. Purple-red festering sores covered his hands, and tiny snakes could be seen writhing within them.
Under his watchful gaze, one bizarre "statue" after another was carried out from inside.
The statues seemed to have been transformed from living people. Their skin was incomparably smooth, as though they had truly been molded from clay, and they still wore the clothing of the Miscellaneous Hall.
What shocked Xu Hu most was that the Living Statues' bodies seemed to have been struck by something heavy. Their bones had twisted completely out of shape, yet not a single mark marred the flesh on the outside.
Wu Wanfeng appeared beside Xu Hu, tilting his head as he examined the Living Statues. He could not help asking, "Steward Xu, did something from the inner city get out?"
"I don't know."
"What did that thing even look like?"
"I don't know."
"They say the inner city..."
"Wu Wanfeng, do not try to learn too much. You'll be watched."
Xu Hu shot Wu Wanfeng a glance, then hoisted several Living Statues onto his shoulder, twisted off their heads, and tossed them into the furnace. He watched the corpses turn to ashes.
"Hehehe, looks like things can quiet down for a while."
Wu Wanfeng gave a strange laugh and stuck out his tongue to lick his exposed gums.
"They aren't actually dead yet, are they? Their bones have completely solidified into a prison, locking their consciousness inside. How interesting."
Xu Hu could not be bothered with Wu Wanfeng. After counting the few dozen surviving apprentice laborers, he hurriedly left the Miscellaneous Hall.
Bitingly cold winds swept up thick smoke. The furnace burned for more than ten days before finally stopping, leaving behind only several hundred pounds of Bone Ash, which was scattered across the fields.
Specks of snow drifted down. Next year's harvest would surely be abundant.
Li Mo had remained in secluded cultivation within the inner chamber.
He deliberately increased the concentration of Misty Spiritual Energy in the room, giving his entire body a faint burning sensation as he adapted to it.
As time passed, Li Mo gradually worked out a cultivation method unique to himself, one that could fully bring out the effects of his three Divine Abilities.
He first used Eidetic Memory to divide the spiritual power within his body into two streams.
Most of the spiritual power circulated through his meridians. After completing one Circulation Cycle, it returned to the Middle Dantian, then began anew from the Middle Dantian and repeated the process.
As the spiritual power continuously entered and exited the Middle Dantian, it was inevitably affected by the Multi-layered Dantian, becoming increasingly refined without him even noticing.
The other stream of spiritual power was responsible for drawing in ownerless Spiritual Qi from the outside world.
Finally, the Leakless Body ensured that no accidents occurred, maximizing his efficiency.
Li Mo was like a wild beast lurking in a cave, hibernating while digesting the thick layers of fat it had stored through autumn.
The insect chirping vanished, replaced by utter stillness.
Villages far from human habitation were decorated with lanterns and colored banners. Even if the people possessed Eternal Life, that did not mean their hearts did not yearn for the warmth of worldly fireworks.
On this day, the unending snowfall finally ceased.
The warm First Sun illuminated the mountains.
The hibernating beast within the inner chamber happened to awaken at just the right time.
Li Mo stretched lazily. Though he was bedraggled and unkempt, the faint aura around him had become wholly different from that of the Mortal Realm.
The Glass Jar lay toppled not far away, its Spiritual Qi long since completely depleted.
He lowered his head and picked up the Glass Jar. Since Han Cai had not asked him to return it, Miraculous Hands Medical Hall must have been wealthy enough not to care.
Although the Glass Jar could only store Variant Spiritual Energy, it was still a magic artifact at least.
Unfortunately, his Storage Bag was too small. The Glass Jar alone occupied nearly half its space.
Li Mo rang the Bronze Bell by the wall, signaling for a menial worker to bring hot water for washing. At the same time, he sorted through the gains from his first secluded cultivation.
He looked toward his Middle Dantian. Waxy granules had appeared within the flesh-tumor-like Dantian.
This showed that the Middle Dantian had begun to be eroded by the Misty Spiritual Energy. Even if he dispersed the Nourishing Origin Fundamental Scripture, his Dantian would no longer be able to contain other Variant Spiritual Energy.
With the aid of his Divine Abilities, the Middle Dantian had become even more stable, and a new Protective Layer was taking shape. Its rudimentary form could already be seen.
Li Mo's cultivation had reached roughly sixty strands of spiritual power. He had completed nearly half of Childhood Stage Layer 1.
In his spare time, he had also developed combat techniques for Universal Skill, lest he encounter danger in the strange and bizarre Smelting Town.
Li Mo poured Miasma Spiritual Power into the magic finger of his right hand. Pale yellow mist spread from his fingertip, then turned into translucent threads.
He tugged at them hard. The threads formed from spiritual power were exceptionally tough and had inherited the unique corrosiveness of Miasma Spiritual Power.
Li Mo flicked his hand casually.
When the threads touched the furniture, they turned into illusory mist, then instantly solidified again, neatly slicing off a corner of the wooden table.
Li Mo withdrew the Miasma Silk Thread. His magic finger bent as it gathered force, and grains of dust appeared at his fingertip.
With a mere lift of his hand, the fired dust would be enough to pierce through flesh and blood. Unfortunately, it consumed a great deal of spiritual power; after five uses, his Dantian would be drained dry.
The Miasma Silk Thread was suited for facing enemies head-on. So long as it was not damaged, its consumption could be ignored.
Li Mo had developed Universal Skill as much as he could, but he still felt his methods were too scant. After all, he had only mastered a single auxiliary Spell.
As he pondered, a menial worker delivered a waist-high wooden tub and filled it with hot water, causing mist to billow through the room.
Li Mo asked the worker whether anything had happened at the Pawnshop during the months he had spent in secluded cultivation.
The worker knew little. Their range of movement was limited, so much of what they knew was merely hearsay.
Yet after piecing the fragments together in his mind, Li Mo realized that trouble had befallen the Pawnshop.
The Pawnshop was like an isolated island. Many areas within had been sealed off, and even menial workers were forbidden from entering or leaving them. Daily necessities were piled in the corridors, where stewards would collect them.
Li Mo watched the worker's retreating back. The inner chamber remained cold and deserted.
He checked his dry rations. They were enough to last him more than half a year in the inner chamber, but he lacked the Beast Blood needed for Paint Green Clothes at the Entry Level.
Li Mo soaked in the hot water, scrubbing his body with a towel. As the grime washed away, his exposed skin was as delicate as an infant's.
When he touched his chest, he suddenly noticed granules clinging to the surface of his skin.
Li Mo pinched one of the granules. After being subjected to external force, it unexpectedly changed from solid to gas, turning into faint Variant Spiritual Energy.
His expression froze in astonishment, and then he understood.
When Li Mo cultivated, the Multi-layered Dantian absorbed Impure Spiritual Energy.
However, Divine Abilities had limits. As a result, part of the Impure Spiritual Energy was treated as a Foreign Object by the Leakless Body and forcibly expelled from his body.
It ultimately formed crystalline Spiritual Qi.
Li Mo examined the Spiritual Energy Crystal and said uncertainly, "If I have Spirit Stones, getting Beast Blood shouldn't be difficult, right?"
"Ah, forget it. Better to keep my head down..."
"Wait!!!"
Li Mo suddenly discovered a crucial problem.
If the Pawnshop had sealed off areas not to protect the people inside, but because danger might descend again within those boundaries—
Then remaining entrenched in the inner chamber was actually an unwise move.
Because the source of danger could move.
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