Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 24 Meritorious Service
"We'll discuss this later; don't tell anyone else about it."

Marching into Puyin Mountain was a major undertaking, second only to participating in the Nanbin War and relocating to Puxian County.

Li Qianxiong had to be cautious.

Because this is something that can actually kill people.

No matter how cautious the Li family is, they cannot guarantee that all the demon cultivators they encounter are minor demons in the Spirit Awakening stage.

Who knows, some powerful demons at the Bone Fusion stage or the Core Formation stage might come out to plunder.

Li Xiangming nodded, knowing that if this matter were to leak out, it would certainly cause turmoil within the family.

It's simply because it's too complicated. Who will hunt the monsters? Who will raise the spirit pets? Who will take the lion's share of the profits?
These all require constant discussion and repeated debate between the head of the family and the elders before a perfect solution can be formed.

Li Xiangming even felt that the chances of failure were high, and the clan elders would most likely not agree to advance into Puyin Mountain.

The reason is simple: the family has just experienced failures in both alchemy and weapon crafting, and may not be willing to go all in and invest in beast taming again.

However, this had nothing to do with Li Xiangming. When the patriarch asked him a question, he simply answered and offered what he thought was the best advice. Whether or not to implement it was a matter for the higher-ups.

Anyway, he proved his worth.

Li Qianxiong was very satisfied with the conversation and even gave Li Xiangming two days off to write a charter on how to develop the art of beast taming.

After leaving Changlin House, Li Xiangming thought for a moment and instead of going directly back to the small courtyard, he went to the Sutra Repository in the inner courtyard.

When Li Chengzhi saw Li Xiangming, he was quite surprised and asked several questions about his progress in practicing the Spirit Control Technique.

Li Xiangming answered each question in turn, and then explained the purpose of his trip: he wanted to exchange for a useful spell.

Spells are different from beast taming spells; they are numerous and complex. Li Chengzhi didn't have the time to help, so he pointed to the second floor and told him to find them himself.

The first floor is where various classics, treatises, miscellaneous studies, and strange tales are stored, while the second floor is where magic spells are concentrated.

As a former Golden Core family, the Li family had collected at least eight hundred to a thousand spells, which dazzled Li Xiangming. Of course, most of these spells were low-level spells.

In fact, spells or techniques do not have a ranking system. The Boundless Sword Sect once conducted an assessment, classifying all techniques in the world into three ranks: Heaven, Earth, and Human, with four grades in each rank. However, this assessment system was eventually abolished by them a few years later.

This is because the same spell can have vastly different effects in the hands of different people, making the rank of the spell meaningless.

However, many people still like to label their techniques. For example, the Li family adopted the Wuliang Sword Sect's version and assigned levels to each spell.

Li Xiangming stood before a mid-grade human-level spell called "Water Serpent Technique," lost in thought.

"Water Serpent Technique," as the name suggests, is a pure water-based spell. It describes a special technique for channeling energy, which can twist powerful spells into a thin, snake-like rope of magical power, killing people invisibly.

When used underwater, it is extremely effective.

Li Xiangming stopped because this spell was a good match for his Yin energy.

Yin Jin is known for its manipulation of magical power, and its use of the Water Snake Technique is even more covert.

The only problem is that "Water Serpent" is a small spell, which is evident from its rank. Its casting range is limited, and in actual combat, it may be necessary to get close to the target to achieve the desired effect.

After thinking for a moment, Li Xiangming decided to look at other options.

After a long while, Li Xiangming lowered his head and paced back and forth in front of the three bookshelves, hesitant to make a decision.

He set his sights on three spells: "Water Serpent Technique," "Cloud Water Shield," and "Subduing Wave Illusion Array."

Needless to say, "Water Serpent Technique" is a defensive spell, and according to the description, its effect is quite good. "Phantom Array of Subduing Waves" is a water-based illusion spell, and it is a rare sound illusion. It uses the sound of surging ocean currents to make the enemy hallucinate, thereby achieving the effect of easily strangling the enemy.

"Water Serpent Technique" and "Cloud Water Shield" are both conventional spells, one offensive and one defensive. What truly troubled Li Xiangming was the "Fubo Illusion Array".

Since exploring "Phantom Waves" with Li Xiangcheng, Li Xiangming has developed a certain interest in illusion.

However, the illusions in "Phantom Waves" are subpar, only good for show and have no practical effect in combat.

The "Fubo Illusion Array" might help him unlock the door to illusion magic and enrich his combat methods.

The refinement of illusion magic is also of great benefit to perfecting "Phantom Wave".

All of this made Li Xiangming very interested.

The problem is that illusion magic is a new thing for him, and he probably won't be able to get the hang of it in less than three to five years.

In other words, the "Fubo Illusion Array" has little effect in the short term and cannot enhance his strength, which goes against his original intention of coming to the Scripture Pavilion.

Moreover, the "Fubo Illusion Array" costs 4000 merit points to exchange. Once selected, one has to give up the other two skills—he can't possibly spend all his merit points on spells.

"Ugh."

With a sigh, Li Xiangming reluctantly left the cabinet containing the "Fubo Illusion Array." He had thought he had secured 5000 merit points, but upon arriving here, he realized he was short of it. The Scripture Pavilion did indeed contain many excellent spells, but they all required even more merit points.

Finally, Li Xiangming settled for second best and chose "The True Explanation of Illusion," a skill worth 400 merit points.

The book "True Explanation of Illusion" records many minor illusions that can easily fool ordinary people, but they have little practical value against cultivators.

However, it's not bad for beginners.

In addition, he also mastered the "Water Serpent Technique" and the "Cloud Water Shield" in one go. These two spells cost 800 merit points each.

After leaving the Sutra Repository, Li Xiangming went to the Hall of Merit.

Unlike cultivation techniques, consumable resources such as pills and talismans cannot be exchanged at any time; they require a permit from the Merit Hall.

The person stationed at the Hall of Merit is Uncle Thirteen, Li Qianting, a middle-aged man with a slightly bald head but a kind face, who is at the eighth level of Qi Refining.

"Xiangming? Long time no see. What are you looking for?"

Li Qianting greeted him with a smile.

Li Xiangming quickly returned the greeting. Although Li Qianting was easy to talk to, he had a bad temper and acted impulsively when he was young. He was known as "Desperate Thirteen" on the battlefield of the Nanbin demon clan.

However, despite his desperate efforts, Li Qianting did not have a good ending. His foundation was damaged by a demon cultivator, his cultivation stagnated, and he became dejected. It was not until he resolved his inner conflict and took care of the family's Hall of Merit that his temper improved.

Oh, by the way, Li Xianghua is Li Qianting's eldest son.

"This junior has come to exchange some talismans."

Li Xiangming has no shortage of pills now, and he still has quite a few Huangya Pills. Moreover, his cultivation is progressing very slowly now, and he is almost ready to stop using pills.

Conversely, the more talismans the better.

There is a consensus in the cultivation world that talismans are an important alternative to magic. They don't need to be very powerful, but they must be plentiful and diverse. Only in this way can they exert their greatest effect.

In the last battle, Li Xiangming tricked the old man with a water talisman.

Unfortunately, the Water Talisman came from the hands of Fairy Green Cloud, and the Li family did not have it, nor could it be sold in Pushui Market.

Shaking his head, Li Xiangming filled out 10 Explosive Talismans.

The Fiery Talisman is an instant-cast talisman with area-of-effect damage. It is the most commonly used combat talisman in the cultivation world and is quite valuable, requiring 100 merit points to exchange for one.

In addition, he filled out two Gold-Splitting Talismans, one Immobilization Talisman, one Barrier-Breaking Talisman, and one Mist-Concealing Talisman.

The Split Gold Talisman is also a combat talisman, slightly less valuable than the Fiery Talisman, costing 80 merit points each; the Immobilize Talisman slows down cultivators, with the effect being more pronounced the lower the cultivation level, costing 120 merit points each; the Barrier Breaking Talisman effectively counters illusions, costing 100 merit points each; the Mist Concealment Talisman releases a layer of mist to conceal one's form, costing 150 merit points each. This item can suppress divine sense, but the mist's range is too small and abrupt, making it easy to be detected. However, if combined with the Mist Movement Technique, the effect is unparalleled.

These talismans cost a total of 1530 merit points.

Adding the 2600 merit points needed to exchange for spells, Li Xiangming couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

The achievements accumulated over several months were suddenly reduced by four-fifths.

After changing the talismans, Li Xiangming gritted his teeth and went to his third uncle, Li Qianwang, to have him forge a batch of slender iron arrows from ordinary iron to serve as hidden weapons.

Upon hearing Li Xiangming's request, Li Qianwang's face darkened: "Me, a dignified weapon refiner, you want me to make toys for you?"

"Third Uncle, please don't misunderstand, I really am useful!"

Li Xiangming hurriedly took out the newly acquired hidden arrow and handed it to Li Qianwang.

Li Qianwang examined the weapon for a while, then frowned and said, "What use is a hidden weapon made of ordinary iron? Isn't this a waste of this magical artifact?"

“I’m short of money.”

Li Xiangming lowered his head in embarrassment.

Actually, he still had some merits, but he wanted to save them to exchange for the "Fubo Illusion Array" later.

As for the power of the hidden weapons forged from ordinary iron, he didn't care; as long as they served a restraining effect, that was enough.

He wasn't that arrogant to kill someone with a hidden blade.

"I'll make you twelve Frost Iron Arrows, so use them sparingly."

"free?"

"Get lost, come back tomorrow to pick it up."

Li Xiangming was overjoyed, cupped his hands in greeting, and scurried away from the weapon-refining room.

(End of this chapter)