Immortality and cultivation begin with drawing talismans...

Chapter 66 Wooden Armor Binding Spirit Array

Tianxuan City.

Within the bustling immortal city, pavilions, towers, bridges, and corridors are arranged in a well-organized manner, with upturned eaves, carved beams, painted rafters, and vivid and delicate painted patterns, as if they were alive.

In the center of Xianchengfang, two tall pavilions stand tall.

The True Treasure Pavilion and the Many Treasure Pavilion are the iconic buildings of the two major sects, respectively.

"Master Lin Fu".

Upon entering Zhenbaolou, they encountered Manager Miao, an old acquaintance from Qingzhushan Market. After seeing that Yun Yao had brought him there, Manager Miao bowed respectfully.

"Greetings, senior."

In the cultivation world, cultivation level is paramount. Even Manager Miao couldn't help but feel restrained when he encountered a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"Manager Miao."

Lin Chang'an, who was following behind, smiled and nodded to Manager Miao. He never expected that he would run into old acquaintances after moving to Tianxuan City.

We went straight to the third floor.

"Lin Chang'an, a rogue cultivator and a top-grade talisman master, has an innocent background and once assisted the sect in eradicating the remnants of the demonic sect. Now, with my introduction, he has come to purchase an array."

As Yun Yao's cold voice echoed, the shopkeeper, holding Lin Chang'an's identity token, greeted them with a fawning smile.

"Yes, yes, with Senior Sister Yun vouching for him, Master Lin's identity is naturally perfectly innocent."

Upon seeing this, Lin Chang'an couldn't help but nod in approval. No wonder array formations rarely see the outside world; everyone who buys an array formation must have their identity verified.

With Yun Yao, a disciple personally taught by a Golden Core elder of the sect, guaranteeing his safety, the manager on the third floor did not hesitate and invited him to sit inside with a smile, while Yun Yao went up to the fourth floor alone.

"Master Lin, what type of formation do you want? Is it good for offense? Or defense? Or something that combines both?"

Faced with the gaunt shopkeeper's smiling demeanor, Lin Chang'an knew that the man was only being polite because of Yun Yao. He didn't dare to be presumptuous, and instead politely cupped his hands in greeting:
"Shopkeeper, I would like a wood-attribute formation."

Although he was not very familiar with the formations, Lin Chang'an knew that only by matching his own characteristics could he unleash greater power.

"I see. Fellow Daoist, please take a look at our True Treasure Pavilion's three sets of formations."

The gaunt shopkeeper, with a proud smile on his face, gently raised his hand, and three large wooden boxes flew out from the barrier behind him.

This was also the first time Lin Chang'an had seen the complete formation, and his eyes lit up.

As the box was opened, each set of formations contained a corresponding number of formation plates and flags, shimmering with spiritual light.

"These three are all first-tier high-grade wood-attribute formations. Judging from your cultivation level, you must be seeking a demon core. The first formation is both offensive and defensive, with immense power. The second..."

As the shopkeeper explained in detail, Lin Chang'an suddenly understood how to use the formation.

Hearing about these three formations, Lin Chang'an frowned slightly. All three formations were of the first-tier high-grade and were quite powerful, but they were clearly not enough for him to deal with second-tier demonic beasts.

The shopkeeper seemed to have seen through his thoughts and couldn't help but rub his hands together and smile slightly.

“Fellow Daoist, each set of first-tier high-grade arrays is worth around 1,800 spirit stones. Above that, there are quasi-second-tier arrays that can be used by late-stage Qi Refining cultivators, but the price is…”

Seeing the shopkeeper's smiling face as he rubbed his hands together, Lin Chang'an suddenly realized that the shopkeeper was worried about the high price. However, he still cautiously inquired:
"I wonder what the price is for this near-second-tier wood-attribute trapping formation?"

When the shopkeeper held up three fingers, Lin Chang'an fell silent.

You should know that a top-grade magic weapon only costs around a thousand spirit stones, but the price of an array has doubled.

This near-second-tier item, to put it bluntly, is the same as his first-tier high-quality talisman. It uses second-tier materials, but due to poor craftsmanship or other issues, it has not reached the second-tier standard.

Three thousand spirit stones—that's almost enough for half a Foundation Establishment Pill. Ordinary cultivators really can't afford that many spirit stones.

After all, preparing for Foundation Establishment requires a significant amount of spirit stones.

"Three thousand spirit stones!"

Lin Chang'an hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and nodded, saying:

"Fortunately, I helped eliminate the remnants of the Demonic Cult when I was in the Green Bamboo Mountain Market, and sold a lot of spirit stones, as well as this damaged array. I wonder how much it cost?"

When Lin Chang'an took out the damaged array he had obtained from defeating Ge Li in the Qingzhushan market, the shopkeeper examined it carefully and finally shook his head, saying, "It's a first-grade high-quality array. The cost of repairing it is not small. It's worth at most a thousand spirit stones."

Good heavens! Hearing that Yun Yao's attack broke through the formation and resulted in a direct loss of eight hundred spirit stones, Lin Chang'an felt a pang of heartache. He should have told Yun Yao to go easy on him.

However, this formation is truly a consumable item, far more easily damaged than magical artifacts.

“Okay, I have 1,800 spirit stones here. I will use talismans to make up the remaining 200 spirit stones.”

Lin Chang'an looked completely drained, while the shopkeeper's face was full of smiles, though he also seemed a little envious of Lin Chang'an's good fortune.

Three thousand spirit stones—that's not a fortune an ordinary cultivator could have. But since the other person risked their life for it, he wasn't envious.

"Fellow Daoist Lin, this wooden armor binding spirit array is incredibly powerful. Here are the instructions for its use and precautions for its setup. If there is any damage, my True Treasure Pavilion offers fair prices for repairs."

When Lin Chang'an saw the description of the formation's power in the jade slip, he was secretly shocked. The spirit stones he had spent were indeed well worth it, but this formation was not something that ordinary people could afford to use.

Normally, when a magical artifact is purchased, it only consumes the cultivator's magical power.

However, this formation is different. Once the formation is set up, the formation plate needs to be inlaid with spirit stones, and each use consumes a large number of spirit stones.

Moreover, because the materials used in the near-second-tier formation are all second-tier, using low-grade spirit stones can only unleash 70-80% of its power at most. Mid-grade spirit stones are required to unleash its full power.

"Even a mid-grade spirit stone would be more expensive; it would cost at least 150 low-grade spirit stones to exchange for one."

In other words, this formation consumes hundreds of low-grade spirit stones just for using it once.

"No wonder it's so powerful; it's all made from spirit stones."

After storing the array in his storage bag, just as Lin Chang'an was about to take his leave, a maid respectfully brought him a storage bag.

"Master Lin, this was given to you by Uncle Yun. He said that he has never forgotten the kindness he showed when you were in Foundation Establishment."

Lin Chang'an nodded slightly, accepted the storage bag, and turned to leave.

At this moment, on the fourth floor of Zhenbao Tower, a pair of eyes watched Lin Chang'an's figure disappear, and Yun Yao couldn't help but sigh softly.

I had no choice in the matter. The high spirits I had when I first stepped into the Foundation Establishment stage now seem utterly ridiculous.

"So Foundation Establishment cultivators are nothing more than caged birds kept by those in power."

Turning her head to look at the fiery red and gilded banners representing the Li Huo Palace within the Immortal City, Yun Yao's eyes gradually turned cold.

……

Upon returning to his cave, Lin Chang'an opened the storage bag Yun Yao had given him and couldn't help but show a look of astonishment.

"These are eight mid-grade spirit stones, and this jade slip contains Yun Yao's insights from her foundation-building process."

Although he has no shortage of spirit stones, others are unaware of this.

For him, the most precious thing was this jade slip containing his insights on Foundation Establishment.

This filled Lin Chang'an with mixed emotions. They had given Yun Yao their full support when she was building her foundation, and now it was his turn.

He had already repaid the favors of the past with a spell and a high-grade first-tier talisman. Now, he was just like Yun Yao back then, striving to establish his foundation with the help of others.

"I owe this a huge favor."

Having known each other for over thirty years, their friendship, though not as profound as sharing hardships and prosperity, is still rare and precious.

Although he didn't know what Yun Yao had encountered, Lin Chang'an knew that only those who had reached the Foundation Establishment stage could access higher-level circles.

Once he establishes his foundation, he won't need Yun Yao's guarantee when he goes to buy formations today.

"Now that we have all the magical artifacts, cultivation, spells, and formations, and even the cultivation techniques for Foundation Establishment, it's time to start planning for the demon core."

At this moment, Lin Chang'an's eyes flickered as he looked through Tianxuan City towards the mysterious cloud and mist mountain range in the distance.

Second-tier monster!

Next Monday and Tuesday, I hope all fellow cultivators will remember to help read it; it's the last PK.

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(End of this chapter)