High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pill
While cultivating diligently behind closed doors at home, he also kept an eye on the Mo Household's situation.
Ever since word spread that Ancestor Yifeng had passed away, cultivators had been spotted near Jingxiu Mountain. On the surface, they all appeared to be Rogue Cultivators, but they were actually backed by cultivation Lineages.
Ever since the Mo Household sealed the mountain, its protective formation, the Golden Wind and Raging Fire Grand Formation, had remained active. Built atop a Spirit Vein node, it needed only the spiritual power of the earth vein to sustain its daily operation. If no outsiders attacked it, the power of Jingxiu Mountain's second-tier, middle-grade Spirit Vein could sustain it for at least three years.
Of course, the forces coveting Jingxiu Mountain would never allow the Mo Household to keep drawing on the Spirit Vein until it ran dry. But none of them wanted to be the bird that stuck its head out, either. After all, the Mo Household's Golden Wind and Raging Fire Grand Formation was no mere decoration. Even a Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivator would have to expend considerable effort to break it!
These days, no one was a fool, and no one wanted to sew a wedding dress for someone else. Thus, with the various forces keeping one another in check, Jingxiu Mountain instead enjoyed a spell of peace and calm.
But this situation could not last long. If the forces coveting Jingxiu Mountain reached an agreement, the Mo Household would likely face a calamity that would drown it beneath the waves.
For now, Mo Wen had no other choice but to cultivate diligently behind closed doors at home. If the situation at Jingxiu Mountain changed drastically, it would not be too late for him to get involved then.
The days passed, and Mo Wen's physique, Law Power, and Divine Sense grew stronger bit by bit. Though each improvement was small, they accumulated over time, gradually surpassing Qi Refining and approaching the level of Foundation Establishment.
This was especially true of his spiritual perception. As a middle-grade talisman master, Mo Wen had already been far stronger in that regard than ordinary cultivators. As he broke past his limits, his spiritual perception grew ever stronger, transforming into the rudiment of Divine Sense. Now, he could extend that rudimentary Divine Sense outside his body, though only a short distance of about one zhang.
Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator with the poorest foundation could extend their Divine Sense around ten zhang. Mo Wen's rudimentary Divine Sense could only reach one zhang, far short of a true Foundation Establishment cultivator's. Even so, his abilities in combat, talisman crafting, and other pursuits had improved noticeably with the aid of his Divine Sense.
Time flowed by, and before he knew it, the Double Ninth Festival had arrived. That morning, Mo Wen used the Hundred Transformations Heart Sutra to change his build and appearance, then headed straight to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.
"Fellow Daoist, what do you need?" the maid receiving him asked gently.
Mo Wen took out his honored guest token and showed it to her. In a hoarse voice, he said, "I'm here for the Fate-Forging Gathering."
"Forgive my oversight. I didn't realize an honored guest was before me. Please follow me," the maid said respectfully.
Led by the maid, Mo Wen entered an underground hall.
The hall was not particularly large, measuring roughly ten zhang across. More than twenty cultivators had already arrived, each with a powerful presence, clearly no ordinary person.
Mo Wen found an empty seat and sat down, quietly waiting for the Fate-Forging Gathering to begin.
The Hundred Treasures Pavilion's Fate-Forging Gathering was highly regarded in the upper circles of Red Leaf Market, but the requirements for entry were so high that fewer than a hundred cultivators in all were qualified to attend.
By the hour of the snake, the number of cultivators attending in the hall had grown to over fifty.
Before long, a female cultivator dressed in a rainbow-colored gown entered the hall and gave the attendees a graceful bow.
She was strikingly beautiful, with a graceful figure, and every gesture carried a soul-bewitching charm.
"I am Yu Liuli. Greetings, fellow Daoists. I will be hosting this Fate-Forging Gathering, and I hope for everyone's support," the female cultivator said in a sweet voice.
"Greetings, Fairy Liuli."
"You're too courteous, Fairy."
"..."
Yu Liuli seemed to have a wide circle of acquaintances, as quite a few cultivators in the hall responded warmly to her greeting.
Mo Wen was wearing a false face and had no desire to make acquaintances, so he sat in his seat feigning indifference, without saying a word.
Before long, Yu Liuli took the first auction item out of her storage ring.
"Fellow Daoists, our Hundred Treasures Pavilion holds the Fate-Forging Gathering primarily to thank you for your generous support in the past. The first auction item is three High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills. I hope they will be of help to you on your Dao Paths," Yu Liuli said with a lovely smile.
The moment she spoke, an uproar broke out among the cultivators in the hall.
When Qi Refining cultivators attempted Foundation Establishment, they needed to draw Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi into their bodies to provide the power to break through the three barriers. During this process, however, the sudden influx of vast amounts of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi placed tremendous pressure on their meridians. Without a means of protecting them, the strain could cause their meridians to shatter and kill them on the spot!
Meridian-Protecting Pills protected the meridians, preventing cultivators from being injured when Spiritual Qi entered their bodies. With a Meridian-Protecting Pill's protection, even if a cultivator failed at Foundation Establishment, they would suffer serious injuries at worst, but their life would not be in danger.
Many Qi Refining cultivators nearing the limit of their Qi and Blood would find a way to purchase a Meridian-Protecting Pill and attempt Foundation Establishment on their own if they could not obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill and spiritual objects for Foundation Establishment. Although the odds of succeeding with this method were less than one in ten thousand, anyone would give it a try if their life was not at risk.
The higher the quality of a Meridian-Protecting Pill, the better it protected the meridians. If a cultivator took a High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pill, the harm to their body after a failed Foundation Establishment attempt would be reduced to a minimum, and they could recover after a few years of recuperation.
But High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills were extremely difficult to refine, and few ever made their way to a small place like Red Leaf Market. By putting up three at once, the Hundred Treasures Pavilion had certainly shown its sincerity.
"High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills, with a starting price of one thousand Spirit Stones each. Those interested, please place your bids!" Yu Liuli gestured for the bidding to begin.
"One thousand one hundred Spirit Stones!"
"One thousand two hundred!"
"..."
The market price of a High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pill was around two thousand Spirit Stones, which was not all that expensive. But the pill shops in Red Leaf Market simply did not sell pills of such high quality.
If the Rogue Cultivators here wanted to buy a High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pill, they had to travel to Azure Luan Immortal City, seven thousand li away. Over such a long distance, the chances of encountering Bandit Cultivators were extremely high. Without sufficient strength, making the trip was practically courting death!
Thus, as soon as the High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills appeared, the cultivators began competing for them. Before long, the bidding price soared past two thousand five hundred Spirit Stones.
Seeing this, Mo Wen could not help clicking his tongue!
Fortunately, I only need to break past my limits to reach Foundation Establishment. Otherwise, just getting a Foundation Establishment Pill would be harder than scaling the heavens! Besides, with my Spirit Root aptitude, reaching Foundation Establishment with a single Foundation Establishment Pill would be impossible!
With the cultivators vying for them, all three High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills sold for the steep price of over three thousand Spirit Stones each. For the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, the price was certainly a handsome profit! But the cultivators who bought the High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills had definitely not lost out either!
One High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pill was equivalent to a chance at Foundation Establishment plus a life. What did spending a few extra Spirit Stones matter?
Had some of the cultivators not been looking forward to the auction items that followed, the price of the High-Grade Meridian-Protecting Pills would certainly have climbed even higher.