Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

The day after returning to the mine, Li Yuan went deep into the mine shaft.

The evil-gathering bowl disappeared after it was permanently installed, but the evil energy seeping from the cracks in the rock strata deep in the mine remains.

The concentration is not high, not as good as the Killing Essence Pill, but it has the advantage of being continuous.

Li Yuan sat cross-legged at the end of that secluded side road and first took two Sha Yuan Pills.

As the malevolent energy enters the body, the permanent "malevolent energy tempering" attribute responds automatically, drawing that cold, corrosive sensation between the fascia and bones, repeatedly scouring them.

Once the medicinal effects had mostly dissipated, Li Yuan switched to the Nourishing Vitality Technique.

Qi and blood surge out from the Qi and Blood Sea and circulate along the path of the exercise.

After completing the first move, Li Yuan noticed something different.

When the body is first tempered by evil energy, the muscles are in a special state. After being repeatedly washed by evil energy, the fascia and muscle fibers will become temporarily soft, like dough that has been kneaded, and more elastic than usual.

This state usually subsides in less than half an hour, and the muscles tighten again.

However, the effects of practicing the Nourishing Vitality Exercise during this window of opportunity are different from usual.

When the Qi and blood reach the muscles that have just been tempered, the penetration speed is significantly faster. Normally, the Qi and blood need to be slowly squeezed into the muscles, but now the soft muscle fibers are like channels that have been opened in advance, and the Qi and blood seep in as soon as they arrive, without any extra effort.

After completing the five exercises, the efficiency of qi and blood covering the whole body is nearly 30% higher than usual.

Li Yuan opened his eyes, then closed them again.

He didn't waste this window of opportunity and immediately started the second round.

The second time was faster than the first.

The muscles, which were in a relaxed state after being tempered by evil energy, are slowly fading away. However, the infusion of Qi and blood from the Nourishing Qi Gong slows down this fading process. The warming and nourishing Qi and blood keeps the muscle fibers flexible to a certain extent, and the two work together.

After the third run, the window of opportunity truly ends, and the muscles tighten up again.

But the effect of these three times is equivalent to five times normally.

In the following days, Li Yuan established a fixed rhythm.

Every day upon entering the mine, one first takes the Sha Yuan Dan to temper the body. After tempering, one intensively circulates the Yang Yuan Gong during the window of opportunity when the muscles are relaxed. After the window of opportunity, one switches back to normal cultivation.

The progress of the Nourishing Vitality Technique began to accelerate rapidly.

The bottlenecks that had accumulated over a long period of time during the mastery stage were gradually worn away by this double support.

On the fourth night.

Li Yuan sat cross-legged deep in a side passage of the mine, circulating his Qi-nourishing technique for the seventh time.

The Qi and blood flow along the route of the five postures to the final Returning to Origin posture. He has walked this step countless times, with the Qi and blood flowing back from the limbs and converging into the Sea of ​​Qi and Blood, repeating the cycle endlessly.

But this time, after completing the Guiyuan posture, the Qi and blood did not stop.

It continues to function within the body.

It wasn't Li Yuan guiding it; it was the Qi and blood flowing on their own.

The five stages of Qi and blood—Na Yuan, Yun Yuan, and Gui Yuan—were retraced from beginning to end. No special techniques were needed to drive it; the Qi and blood themselves had memorized the path.

Like a river that has breached all the dikes, it flows on its own from then on.

Li Yuan did not interfere, letting the Qi and blood circulate on their own.

After the second round, the third round immediately begins. The flow of qi and blood is not fast, but extremely even and solid, with every inch of muscle, every bone, and every meridian being evenly nourished.

A warm sensation spread through my body from the inside out, not the burning sensation I felt during cultivation, but a warmth that penetrated deep into my bones.

It felt like my whole body was soaking in warm water, and all the tense parts were slowly relaxing.

Li Yuan slowly finished his practice and opened his eyes.

【Technique: Nourishing Vital Energy Technique - Perfected (3200/3200)】

Consummation.

Li Yuan raised his hand, clenched his fist, released it, and then clenched his fist again.

It feels different from when I was at my peak.

The change at the peak of mastery is "more refined control"—the force is more accurately controlled and the fingers are distributed more evenly.

Perfection means "no longer needing to be controlled".

The body's Qi and blood circulate automatically, and the body knows how to distribute its energy. When making a fist, the muscles instinctively provide the optimal amount of force for each finger without the brain needing to coordinate.

Li Yuan stood up and took a few steps in the mine tunnel.

My steps are more stable than before, and my weight is distributed very evenly when my feet land, making almost no extra sound when I step on the gravel.

The cultivation of vital energy has been completed.

The conditions for making the Yangyuan Gong permanent are: perfecting the technique and accumulating 24 hours of practice in a state of abundant Qi and blood.

The technique has been perfected; it has just been achieved.

Li Yuan was not in a hurry. He removed the Soul-Illuminating Mirror, equipped himself with the Nourishing Vitality Technique, and continued to cultivate deep inside the mine.

For the next two days, he hardly left the mine.

They ate the monster meat from their storage bags, roasting it in the mine tunnels using fire control techniques. Occasionally, during breaks from cultivation, they would go out for a stroll, meet with Steward Liu to confirm that nothing had happened at the mine, and then go back inside.

When the Yangyuan Gong is in its perfect state, the Qi and blood circulate continuously, maintaining their abundance.

The panel appeared late at night the following day.

The conditions for the permanent generation of Qi and Blood (white) have been met.

Is it permanent?

Yes.

[Permanentization successful]

[The phrase "Qi and Blood Regenerate Naturally (White)" has become a permanent entry.]

[Equipment consumed]

The book on cultivating vital energy transformed into a warm white light in the storage bag and entered Li Yuan's body.

Li Yuan closed his eyes and sensed for a moment.

In the past, after the qi and blood were depleted, it was necessary to rely on eating, resting or other methods to recover.

Now, even if nothing is done, the body's energy and blood are being generated very slowly on their own.

It's not fast, but it never stops.

There is an empty slot in the equipment inventory.

Li Yuan put the Soul-Illuminating Mirror back in its original place.

Three equipment slots: Soul-Illuminating Mirror, Yuan-Gathering Technique, and Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

Although the Nourishing Vital Energy Technique is depleted, the regeneration of Qi and Blood has become permanent, so the effect remains unaffected.

A few days later, Manager Liu brought news of the trade fair.

"The day after tomorrow, same place."

Li Yuan made a list of the items that needed to be purchased that day.

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Five more types of demonic beast blood are needed.

The body-refining elixir requires three different recipes.

Materials for making talismans, replenished daily.

The day after tomorrow morning, Li Yuan left the mine and headed towards Shi'ao, where the trade fair was being held.

After crossing the gravel slope, it was clear from afar that this time the scale was different from the previous two.

There were almost twice as many people in Shi'ao as last time.

The independent cultivators were still the same independent cultivators, but now there were traveling merchants. At least five or six groups of merchants were scattered throughout the area, each laying out their goods on coarse cloth. Dwarf beasts were tied to the sides of the rocky hollows, carrying large and small bundles, some of them still unloading their goods.

Li Yuan walked into the venue and circled around the perimeter.

The selection of goods was indeed much richer than before. There were more types of pills, the quality of ores was also higher, and several stalls displayed things I had never seen before, which were exactly the body-refining elixirs I needed.

Li Yuan stopped in front of a traveling vendor's stall.

The stall displayed three different types of porcelain jars, three of each type. The mouths of the jars were sealed with wax, and each jar had a wooden plaque next to it with the recipe name and price written on it.

"Iron Bone Liquid, Black Armor Soup, Red Marrow Elixir," Li Yuan read aloud the words on the wooden sign.

The stall owner was a fat man in his early forties with a big smile on his face.

"All three are commercially available body-refining liquid formulas. Soaking for one time takes about two hours, and after soaking, the muscles and bones can be strengthened to a certain extent."

How much is one set?

"Iron Bone Liquid is four pieces, Black Armor Soup is three pieces, and Red Marrow Essence is five pieces. I'll give you a discount if you buy all three together, twenty-eight pieces."

Li Yuan did not bargain.

"I'll take them all."

After paying with spirit stones, the nine porcelain jars were put into storage bags.

Next is the blood of the demon beast.

Li Yuan went from stall to stall in the venue asking. Most stalls didn't have this kind of thing; the blood of demonic beasts wasn't very useful to independent cultivators, and few people specifically kept it.

But things change when there are more itinerant merchants.

Two bottles were found at a general store stall, one containing the blood of a swamp toad and the other the blood of a stone turtle. Another general store selling talisman-making materials had three kinds of blood—the blood of a red-tailed fire weasel, a blue-maned wind wolf, and a spiny-tailed lizard. These were auxiliary materials occasionally used in talisman-making, but in small quantities, with only one small bottle of each.

Five types, plus the previous four, make a total of nine.

Li Yuan carefully collected all the blood bottles and replenished a batch of blue-patterned paper and spirit ink.

After leaving the stone valley, Li Yuan walked along the gravel slope towards the mine.

After returning to the low house, Li Yuan closed the door and took out everything from the storage bag.

Nine small porcelain bottles were lined up on the table.

Gray iguana, iron-backed hyena, horned lizard, and one-horned badger – these four species were collected when I was stationed at the He family's residence.

Swamp toad, stone turtle, red-tailed fire weasel, blue-maned wind wolf, and spiny-tailed lizard—these are the five species I bought at the trade fair today.

Blood from nine types of low-grade first-tier or higher demonic beasts.

Li Yuan took out a Vajra Talisman from his storage bag and placed it on the table.

With a thought, he removed the Soul-Illuminating Mirror and equipped himself with the Vajra Talisman.

[Equipment Successfully]

[Acquired entry: Iron Membrane Protection (White)]

[Permanentization Condition: Consume the blood of nine different Tier 1 low-grade or higher demonic beasts (0/9)]

Li Yuan uncorked the first porcelain bottle.

The blood of the gray iguana is cold and has an earthy smell.

He tilted his head back and took a swig.

The moment the blood entered his throat, a cold liquid slid down his esophagus into his stomach. It wasn't just ordinary cold; it was the sensation of the residual demonic power in the beast's blood spreading along the stomach wall, accompanied by a slight stinging pain.

[Permanentization Progress: 1/9]

The second bottle. Ironback hyena blood, thick and black, warmer than that of lizards. It has a rough, granular texture when you taste it, like swallowing a mouthful of hot sand.

[Permanentization Progress: 2/9]

The third bottle, the fourth bottle, the fifth bottle.

The blood of each monster tastes different. The blood of the horned lizard has a metallic taste, the blood of the one-horned badger has a sulfurous taste, and the blood of the swamp toad is bitter and astringent.

Li Yuan gulped it down mouthful by mouthful, his expression unchanged.

Li Yuan picked up the last bottle of spiny-tailed lizard blood. It was dark green in color, viscous in texture, and had an odor that was somewhere between bitter and sour.

Li Yuan tilted his head back and finished drinking, then placed the empty bottle on the table.

The blood of all nine demonic beasts entered his stomach.

The panel appeared.

The conditions for permanent iron-coated body protection (white) have been met.

Is it permanent?

Yes.

[Permanentization successful]

[Iron membrane protection (white) has become a permanent entry]

[Equipment consumed]

At the same instant, a powerful force penetrated from the surface of the skin inward.

It wasn't just a change in one place; the skin all over my body tightened up at the same time.

It felt like there was an extremely thin membrane between the skin and muscles; you couldn't touch it or see it, but you could clearly feel its presence. Li Yuan raised his hand and pressed it on his forearm. The feeling when he touched it with his fingertips was different from before—the elasticity under the skin was stronger, and the rebound speed after pressing it was faster.

The meridians also change.

When spiritual energy circulates in the meridians, the meridian walls are much stronger than before. Previously, when fully activating the cultivation technique, there would occasionally be a slight swelling sensation in the meridians, which was the extreme reaction of spiritual energy impacting the meridian walls. Now, that swelling sensation has disappeared, the meridians' resilience has increased, and the same amount of spiritual energy impact becomes much easier.

Li Yuan stood up, clenched his fist, then relaxed it.

Skin protection and meridian strengthening provide a double boost.

Twenty-one permanent entries.

Li Yuan gathered the empty bottles on the table together and glanced at the three porcelain jars containing body-refining elixirs in his storage bag.

Iron Bone Liquid, Black Armor Decoction, Red Marrow Syrup.

To make the Iron Wall Body Tempering Technique permanent, three different formulas are needed to complete one full tempering cycle each.

Not urgent.

Li Yuan placed the porcelain jar down and walked out of the low house.

The sky outside the mine was already mostly dark, casting long shadows across the gravelly ground. From the distant mountain valleys came the intermittent roars of monstrous beasts, just like every other night.