Over the next few days, apart from his unwavering daily cultivation of Soul Power and honing of Soul Skills, Lin Yan devoted most of his remaining daytime efforts to investigating the mysterious piece of dead wood and the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern spores.
He set aside a quiet little corner in the backyard, spread fine sand over it, and arranged several containers made of different materials. He placed the three iridescent spores in a jade dish, a clay jar, and a wooden box respectively, carefully nourishing them with his own Soul Power each day. Meanwhile, he placed the piece of dead wood in a jade box lined with soft cotton cloth, likewise nurturing it with Soul Power.
It was a process that demanded tremendous patience and meticulous observation. The flow of Soul Power had to be extremely gentle and steady, like spring rain silently moistening all things. The slightest carelessness could make the Soul Power too fierce and destroy that Life Origin, as faint as a firefly's glow.
For the first few days, both the spores and the dead wood were like slumbering stones, showing no response to the Soul Power Lin Yan fed into them. If not for the continuous, faint resonance of his Martial Soul reminding him, he would almost have doubted his judgment.
Only at dusk on the fifth day, when Lin Yan slowly channeled a strand of pure Soul Power cultivated through the Supreme Purity Breathing Technique into the dead wood in the jade box as usual, did an unusual phenomenon finally appear.
On the gray-black, cracked surface of the wood, that trace of pale golden luster reappeared along a tiny fissure that had originally been almost invisible! This time, the luster was slightly clearer than before and lasted for roughly three breaths before slowly fading. What delighted Lin Yan even more was that, the instant the luster appeared, he clearly sensed that the dormant strand of Life Origin within the dead wood seemed to have grown a tiny bit stronger. Though it remained pitifully weak, it had most certainly strengthened!
"It worked!" Joy surged in Lin Yan's heart. This proved that his method was correct. The piece of dead wood truly held a hidden mystery and was not entirely lifeless. It was like a seed buried deep underground, on the verge of death, needing the right "moisture" and "sunlight" to regain its vitality. And Lin Yan's unique Soul Power, cultivated and refined through the Supreme Purity Breathing Technique, seemed to be precisely the nourishment it needed.
By comparison, the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern spores' response was much less remarkable. After several days of nourishment, the iridescent colors on the surfaces of the three spores seemed to have brightened by an almost imperceptible amount. Their life fluctuations remained faint and steady, without any clear signs of "awakening" like those the dead wood had shown. Lin Yan surmised that this might be related to the spores' own characteristics. The spores were offspring through which the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern reproduced. Their living structures were complete but in deep dormancy. Awakening them might require more unusual conditions or a much longer time; simple nourishment with Soul Power was far from enough to achieve quick results.
What the dead wood contains might be the remnant Life Origin of some ancient plant, while the spores are complete seeds of life. Their states are different, so naturally their responses differ, Lin Yan mused. The dead wood's revival is more like "repairing" and "activating," while the spores' germination requires "awakening" and "nurturing." I can't rush for results.
He carefully recorded his observations and conjectures in his notes. At the same time, he became even more cautious about nourishing the dead wood with Soul Power, doing so only twice a day, each session brief, to ensure he did not damage its foundation.
After dealing with these matters, Lin Yan would make time to inspect the medicine shop and listen to Uncle Zhang's and Brother Li's reports. Under his incentive policy, both assistants were full of drive, and the shop's business improved steadily. Its reputation had even improved considerably because Lin Yan occasionally guided them in identifying processing methods for some less common medicinal ingredients. The steady income put Lin Yan somewhat at ease, but he knew that these earnings were still a single hair from nine oxen compared with the vast resources a Soul Master needed for cultivation.
That afternoon, Lin Yan once again visited Spirit Hall in Nuoding City. Grandmaster Ma Xiunuo looked very pleased to see him.
"Shopkeeper Lin, back again?" Ma Xiunuo smilingly invited him to sit and personally poured him a cup of hot tea. Grandmaster Ma Xiunuo was quite warm toward this young man who had brought the Spirit Hall Branch a considerable income.
"Sorry to trouble you, Grandmaster Ma Xiunuo." Lin Yan accepted the teacup and thanked him. "I wanted to ask whether there's been any inside information lately. The variety of medicines in my shop has felt a little lacking recently, so I wanted to see whether you knew of any channels through which I could obtain some new formulas and research some new medicines."
"Hehe, that's a good thing." Ma Xiunuo stroked his beard, then seemed to remember something and said, "Speaking of information and resources, I do have a piece of news that might be useful to you."
Lin Yan's expression grew serious. "Please, Grandmaster."
"In a month, the branch of the Heaven Dou Auction House in our Fasinuo Province's capital will hold a medium-sized quarterly auction." A shrewd glint flashed through Ma Xiunuo's eyes. "Auctions like this are mainly aimed at Soul Masters and major merchants. The things there are far better than anything you'll see in a little place like Nuoding City. I hear quite a few good things will be appearing this time. Perhaps there'll be some formulas you want!"
"Is the information reliable, Grandmaster?" Lin Yan asked, forcibly suppressing his excitement.
"Of course it is." Ma Xiunuo nodded. "Our Spirit Hall received an invitation too. Auctions like this are a good opportunity to obtain resources, but..." His tone shifted, and he gave Lin Yan a meaningful look. "Competition is fierce as well. As for the prices, naturally, the boats rise with the water."
Lin Yan immediately understood Ma Xiunuo's hint. The auction was an opportunity, but only if he had enough Gold Soul Coins to back him up.
"Thank you for sharing this news, Grandmaster. It's extremely important to me." Lin Yan thanked him sincerely, then asked with seeming casualness, "Would I need any credentials to attend this auction?"
"Generally, you need an invitation issued by the auction house or a referral from a qualified merchant association or Soul Master group. Of course..." Ma Xiunuo smiled. "If you're interested, our Nuoding City Spirit Hall Branch can provide you with a letter of recommendation. You are our business partner, after all!"
"Then I'm sorry for the trouble of asking you to arrange that letter, Grandmaster."
Grandmaster Ma Xiunuo smiled. "Not a problem, not a problem. Come see me ten days before the auction begins to collect the letter."
After leaving Spirit Hall and returning to the Hundred Herbs Shop, Lin Yan took stock of his assets. The Hundred Herbs Shop's profits over nearly two years, after deducting necessary operating expenses, combined with all his previous savings and the proceeds from selling some of what he had brought back from the Star Dou Great Forest, came to a little over twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins. This was a huge sum for an ordinary family, but at a Soul Master auction, it might not even be enough to win a single decent Soul Beast material.
I can go take a look at the auction. Perhaps I can pick up a hidden bargain. I've already run out of aged whale rubber, and improving my physique has hit a bottleneck. I'll see whether I can find anything at the auction that can improve it. But I have to raise as much money as possible within a month! Otherwise, even if there's something good, I might not be able to buy it. Lin Yan made up his mind.
Back in the Hundred Herbs Shop's backyard, Lin Yan temporarily cleared his mind and devoted himself to cultivation instead. As he gradually circulated the Supreme Purity Breathing Technique, he also set aside some of his attention to continue nurturing the Iridescent Withering and Flourishing Fern spores and the Spirit-Nurturing Wood. Somehow, Lin Yan kept feeling that these spores and the dead wood could bring him something different.