Mortal Cultivator: Lin Tianzun

Chapter 63: The Spirit Egg Recognizes its Master, the Market Chases its Dream
After leaving the shop, Lin Fan wandered through the streets of Lingshou Mountain Market, searching everywhere, and finally found a cave that satisfied him greatly.

This cave is meticulously crafted. The Spirit Gathering Array acts like a nimble and voracious spirit catcher, frantically absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, filling the cave with a rich, swirling spiritual mist, creating an ideal environment for cultivation. The Soundproofing Array acts like an impenetrable barrier, completely isolating the clamor of the outside world and creating a tranquil and peaceful haven. The defensive array holds even greater secrets: should any uninvited guest attempt to enter, it instantly triggers a powerful defensive force, safeguarding the cave's safety.

This cave's comprehensive functions naturally came at a high price, costing fifteen low-level spirit stones a month. However, Lin Fan, thinking he'd need to spend the next while here researching the unique monster egg and sorting out the gains from his trip to the market, didn't hesitate and readily rented the cave.

Entering the cave, Lin Fan gently closed the stone door, completely shutting out the outside world. He first paced the cave, inspecting it, confirming that all the formations were functioning properly. Then, he came to the center of the cave, sat cross-legged, and gently placed the box containing the monster egg in front of him. At this moment, the Qiankun Creation Cauldron in his dantian seemed to sense the monster egg's approach and vibrated slightly, as if urgently urging Lin Fan to act.

Lin Fan quickly cleared a space in the center of the room. He then pulled out several rune-carved spirit jades from his storage bag and embedded them into the ground at specific locations. He then took out spirit sand and traced intricate lines along the jades. A simple yet highly effective spirit beast recognition formation took shape. While relatively simple, this formation played a crucial role in establishing a connection with a spirit beast.

Everything ready, Lin Fan gently placed the goose-yellow monster egg in the center of the magic circle. Illuminated by the array's dim light, the monster egg became even more mysterious. With a solemn expression, he channeled his inner mana, forcing out a drop of blood essence. This drop, crimson like blood jade, slowly floated in mid-air, enveloped by the mana.

Lin Fan's hands moved rapidly like phantoms, muttering to himself as obscure spells flowed from his lips. As the spells were unleashed, the magic circle shone brightly, wrapping tightly around the monster egg like a thread. Simultaneously, the drop of blood essence, drawn by the light, slowly approached the monster egg.

The drop of blood, embodying Lin Fan's essence, fell precisely onto the monster egg, guided by the light. Instantly, like hot oil dripping into boiling water, strange ripples appeared on the surface of the monster egg, and in the blink of an eye, it absorbed the essence and blood completely.

Almost instantly, a strange feeling washed over Lin Fan. He seemed to be able to "sense" the faint yet vibrant pulse of life within the monster egg. A subtle connection quietly forged between him and the monster egg. This connection, like an invisible thread, tightly bound him to the unborn being within the egg.

Lin Fan was delighted. This meant the spirit beast's master recognition formation was initially effective. He attempted to use this newly established connection to transmit a gentle thought into the egg, as if whispering a gentle greeting to an ignorant being. Meanwhile, he closely monitored the monster egg's movements, eagerly anticipating any changes that might occur.

In his cave dwelling at the Spirit Beast Mountain Market, Lin Fan guarded the monster egg day after day. He eagerly anticipated the moment the shell would crack and a new life would be born. Every day, he would sit by the magic circle early, staring intently at the monster egg, as if his focused gaze could speed up its hatching process.

However, time passed relentlessly, day after day, month after month, and the monster egg still showed no signs of hatching. They waited and waited, but the monster egg still lay quietly in the center of the magic circle, its surface showing no signs of change except for the occasional flicker of light.

A year slipped by quietly, and Lin Fan finally realized he couldn't wait any longer. He knew he still had much to accomplish in his cultivation, and collecting spiritual herbs to refine elixirs to improve his cultivation couldn't be delayed any longer.

Lin Fan packed his bag, took one last look at the demon beast egg, which held so much hope, and carefully placed it in his spirit beast bag. He took a deep breath and walked out of the cave. Sunlight shone on his resolute face as he once again embarked on the long journey of collecting spiritual herbs.

A month later, after a long journey, Lin Fan finally appeared at the Qingxu Gate Market. The moment he entered the market, he keenly noticed that it was not large, and was quite similar in size to the Huangfeng Valley Market he had visited before.

The entire market town consists of a single street, flanked by attics of varying sizes, scattered along the terrain. These attics vary in style: some are simple and elegant, their eaves intricately carved with cloud patterns, appearing even more sturdy with the passage of time; others exude a fresh, simple elegance, their wooden structures emitting a subtle woody fragrance, lending a sense of rusticity.

On the streets, all manner of immortal cultivators came and went, their expressions varying. Some hurried, eagerly weaving through the crowds with a clear goal in mind; others strolled leisurely, their gazes freely wandering between the street stalls and shops, enjoying the bustling atmosphere of the market. Lin Fan strolled leisurely around the streets, his sharp eyes fixed on the largest shop in the area—Qingfeng Pavilion.

Lin Fan walked steadily into Qingfeng Pavilion. The moment he entered the main hall, a vast room, several dozen feet in size, came into view. The room was exceptionally bright, its ceiling inlaid with several luminous pearls that emitted a soft glow, illuminating every corner with exquisite detail. In the center of the hall stood an exquisitely crafted counter, carved from a single block of spiritual jade. Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, and a faint emanation of spiritual energy flowed through it, making it clear that this was the checkout area. All around, neatly arranged rows of shelves crafted from ancient woods stood. These ancient trees had seen countless years, and their grain exuded an ancient aura, as if telling stories of the past. The shelves were filled with a dazzling array of various immortal cultivation supplies, a sight to behold.

From top-level magical weapons that flash with sharp light and emit powerful pressure, to high-quality elixirs with rich fragrance that can instantly improve cultivation, to medium-level talismans with exquisite drawings that can exert miraculous effects at critical moments, everything is available here, fully demonstrating the strong foundation of Qingfeng Pavilion.

In the hall, several waiters in standard robes bustled about. These waiters, both men and women, mostly looked no more than a teenager, their faces still a touch immature. Their cultivation levels were generally not high, mostly remaining at the eighth or ninth level of Qi training. Some were enthusiastically introducing products to other cultivators, while others were tidying the shelves, ensuring the various cultivation supplies were neatly arranged.

Lin Fan walked over to the counter and pulled out a jade slip he had prepared from his storage bag. He handed it over and said, "Everything I need is recorded on this jade slip. Please see if you can find it here."

A man dressed in brocade robes hurried forward. He had a kind face, benevolent eyes, and a calm and shrewd expression. He was obviously the manager of the counter. He took the jade slip with both hands, bowed slightly, and said with a perfect smile, "Please wait a moment, my dear guest. Let me take a look."

After saying this, he injected a wisp of spiritual energy into the jade slip and carefully browsed through its contents. As he read deeper, his brows furrowed slightly. After a moment, he raised his head and said to Lin Fan, "Excuse me, sir, we don't have most of what you want. We only have about ten or so varieties." The manager said apologetically.

"Okay, you can get it. How many spirit stones?" Lin Fan asked calmly without changing his expression.

"Eight hundred and fifty spirit stones, distinguished guest." The steward quickly quoted the price.

A short while later, the steward hurried back, carefully carrying a brocade box. He gently placed the box on the counter and said to Lin Fan with a smile, "Dear guest, please open it and take a look."

Lin Fan reached out and slowly opened the brocade box. His eyes swept through the box one by one, carefully counting the items inside, confirming that the quality and quantity of each spiritual medicine met his requirements. Then he nodded and said, "No problem." As he spoke, he took out the corresponding number of spirit stones from the storage bag and handed them to the manager.

The steward took the spirit stone and after checking it carefully, the smile on his face became even wider: "Thank you for your patronage. If you have any other needs in the future, you are welcome to visit Qingfeng Pavilion at any time." Lin Fan put away the brocade box, nodded slightly, turned and left the counter, and continued to search for other potentially useful materials for cultivating immortals in Qingfeng Pavilion.

Lin Fan searched shop after shop in the market, leaving no corner untouched where he might find a spiritual medicine. However, despite his tireless efforts and relentless pursuit of opportunities, by the time night fell and the sky was already dark, his harvest was still meager. He barely managed to buy three seedlings of the spiritual medicine required for the recipe.

Looking at the hard-earned seedlings in his hands, Lin Fan felt a slight pity, but his eyes remained resolute. He knew that difficulties and setbacks were the norm on the path to immortality, and this obstacle was not enough to stop him.

Lin Fan then quickly exited the restricted airspace of the market town. Reaching an open area, he muttered something, and a flash of light appeared before his eyes. A shimmering flying sword appeared beneath his feet. With a light leap, he landed firmly on the sword, forming hand seals and summoning his magical power. The sword soared into the sky like an arrow, tracing a brilliant trail across the night sky as it raced towards the next market town.

After several hours, Lin Fan noticed his mana was draining considerably and decided to take a short rest. He slowed his flying sword and circled above a dense forest dotted with jagged rocks. Below him, a forest of strange rocks rose in various shapes. Some pierced the sky like sharp swords, while others resembled giant beasts crouching on the ground. The moonlight illuminated the area, creating a mysterious and eerie atmosphere. The dense forest was thick with lush trees, their branches intertwined, and occasionally, the roars of unknown beasts could be heard. Lin Fan spotted a relatively flat boulder and slowly descended, intending to recover his mana and regroup before continuing on his journey.

(End of this chapter)