Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

"Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes" - Stunning writing style and a thrilling plot!

The day after the market formation was completed, Li Yuan received his transfer order.

"You've been transferred to the front-line herb garden." Captain Wang handed over the document. "After the formation is completed, the market's defense will no longer solely rely on the guards' combat capabilities. The higher-ups feel it's a waste to keep someone like you, who can both fight and make talismans, in the market; the front lines need you even more."

Li Yuan took the document and glanced at it.

The Frontline Medicinal Herb Garden is located about forty miles southwest of the market town, on the edge of the border area between the two regions.

Captain Wang then took out a cloth bag and a roll of animal hide from his sleeve and placed them on the table.

"This is your subsidy for the town's guard team during this period, including spirit stones and contribution points. In addition, most of the contribution shortfall in the Talisman Hall that we overspent before has been covered by the subsidy, with only a small amount left."

Li Yuan opened the cloth bag and checked the contents. There were quite a few spirit stones, and the settlement slip for contribution points was also inside.

Captain Wang then pointed to the rolled-up animal skin.

"This is an extra method provided by the Talisman Hall for making talisman paper from herbs. There are many spiritual herbs in the front-line herb garden; the lower-grade ones can be collected to make talisman paper, saving us from constantly having to import materials from the rear."

Li Yuan put the animal hide into his storage bag.

"When are you leaving?"

"I'm leaving today."

Without delay, Li Yuan packed up his belongings in the stone house, filled his storage bag, and left the camp.

Walk southwest along the dirt road outside the west gate of the market.

There weren't many cultivators on the road. Occasionally, you'd encounter a group or two returning from the front-line outposts, walking quickly with tense expressions on their faces. The further southwest you went, the denser the bushes became, and the terrain began to undulate.

After walking for most of the day, a patch of green appeared in the mountain valley ahead.

Unlike the gray, rocky mountains of the mines and the He family's place, this mountain valley is covered with extremely lush vegetation. The low hills on both sides of the valley entrance are covered with thick meadows, and several old trees, as thick as a person's embrace, stand by the roadside with dense branches and leaves.

The concentration of spiritual energy in the air suddenly increased.

It was a bit higher than the market town, and even denser than the depths of a mine.

Li Yuan took a deep breath, and spiritual energy seeped into his meridians along with his breath, its density being significantly thicker than any other place he had cultivated before.

After walking along the road into the valley for a while, the entire medicinal herb garden came into view.

A gentle slope, carved out of the mountain valley, is divided into dozens of large and small herb gardens by stone railings. The gardens are planted with various medicinal herbs and plants, some taller than a person, others barely touching the ground. Their colors are also varied: dark green, light blue, dark purple, and pale gold, arranged in alternating patches.

The outer edge of the gentle slope was covered by a light blue light curtain, which was a barrier of the protective array. It was similar to the one I had seen in the He family's medicine garden before, but several times larger in area.

There are a few stone houses and wooden sheds at the bottom of the slope, built against the mountain wall. They are simpler than the guard's camp, but much better than the low houses in the mine.

When Li Yuan reached the bottom of the slope, a person came out of the nearest stone house.

He was in his early forties, of medium build, with a dark complexion, large hands, and dirt embedded in his fingernails. He wore a slightly worn gray-brown short robe, and a steward's badge from the Wang family hung at his waist.

Sixth level of Qi Refining.

"So you're the talisman maker sent by the Talisman Hall?"

"Li Yuan".

"My surname is Wang, just call me Manager Wang." He rubbed his hands on his trouser leg a couple of times and gestured with his chin towards the surrounding valley. "Come on, I'll show you around."

The two walked up the slope along the stone railing.

"There's a spiritual vein beneath this herb garden," Manager Wang said as he walked, his pace steady. "It's not large, but the quality is excellent. The spiritual energy from the vein seeps upwards, raising the overall concentration of spiritual energy in the valley. The herbs grown here are ten to twenty percent better than those grown outside."

He glanced at the dozens of medicinal herb gardens on the gentle slope.

"There used to be about ten spirit farmers who managed this place and made a living by growing medicinal herbs. But then the two families started fighting, and the spirit farmers couldn't keep up. Monsters would come every few days, and the Li family would occasionally come to harass us. Spirit farmers who couldn't fight would just be throwing their lives away if they stayed here."

He patted the ritual implement at his waist.

"So those who remain are all part-time spiritual farmers. They grow herbs and tend the fields during the day, and if anything happens, they can grab a weapon and fight. Including you, there are seven of us in total."

"Seven people guarding such a large area?"

"That's enough." Manager Wang pointed towards the top of the slope. "The formation is in place, and there are scouts on the outside. If a large force comes, we won't fight them head-on; we'll just hold them off until reinforcements arrive."

He turned and glanced at Li Yuan.

"Your job is simple: make talismans. Make battle talismans and distribute them to the others. Any battle talismans will do; make whatever you can find. You can manage the rest of your time as you see fit."

When the two reached the top of the slope, a person was squatting in front of a stone house against the mountain wall.

He was in his thirties, with a yellowish complexion, and his fingers were covered in medicinal powder. He was stirring something next to a small medicine stove.

Alchemist.

Manager Wang nodded to the man, offered no further introduction, and continued walking forward.

"There's one more thing." He stopped and turned to face Li Yuan. "If you stay here for a while, you can choose one medicinal herb from the garden to take with you. You can choose it whenever you want to leave."

When they reached the depths of the herb garden, Steward Wang slowed his pace.

He stopped in front of a medicinal garden planted with dark purple spiritual herbs, bent down and reached out, his fingers gently touching the stem of a spiritual herb.

"When inspecting medicinal herbs, be gentle and feel from the bottom of the stem upwards."

His fingers slowly slid up the stem. "A healthy spiritual herb's stem is firm and elastic to the touch. If it's soft or rough, there's a problem—either it lacks spiritual energy or it's diseased."

He squeezed the leaf again.

"The same goes for leaves; thick ones are good, while thin, dry ones are no good."

Manager Wang straightened up, gestured with his chin toward the several medicinal herb gardens ahead, and continued walking with Li Yuan.

"These patches of garden grow common spiritual herbs, mostly low-grade first-tier herbs," he casually pointed. "If you need to make talismans, just pick from these low-grade ones; that'll be enough."

He continued walking until he reached a separately fenced-off area.

The stone railing was a bit higher than the others, and several simple spirit patterns were carved on the inside, faintly glowing. The spirit herbs planted inside were clearly different from those outside; they were larger, darker in color, and had fine veins that could be vaguely seen on their leaves.

"These are rare medicinal herbs." Manager Wang's tone turned slightly somber. "They cannot be harvested."

He walked to the fence, reached out and touched a dark golden herb that was half his height, running his fingers along its stem.

"These two medicinal herbs look quite similar, but the difference might lie in the direction of the leaf veins and the shape of the roots."

He pulled over a similar-colored herb from the side and placed it next to the one in his hand.

"These two types have almost identical leaves, and their colors are similar. But look at the roots."

He turned over the roots of the two spiritual herbs and showed them to Li Yuan.

One plant has long, thin, and scattered roots, while the other plant has short, thick, and clustered roots.

"The one with thin roots is the Jade Spirit Grass, a mid-grade first-level herb, which can be bought on the market. The one with thick roots is the Emerald Marrow Grass, a high-grade first-level herb, which is rare and expensive. The two are several levels apart in efficacy."

Manager Wang put the medicinal herb back in its original place.

"There are a dozen or so rare medicinal herbs in this fenced area, most of them are top-grade first-level herbs, and two of them are said to be close to second-level quality. Don't touch them, or you won't be able to afford to pay for them if you damage them."

After he finished speaking, he glanced at Li Yuan again.

"Of course, you can touch them during the inspection. The growth of the medicinal herbs needs to be checked every few days; I'll teach you how to do it later."

Manager Wang bent down and examined the leaves of the Emerald Marrow Grass. After confirming that there was no problem, he straightened up and walked deeper into the fence.

Li Yuan followed behind.

Manager Wang stopped in front of a medicinal herb near the inner corner of the fence and bent down to examine it.

Li Yuan's gaze swept over the few medicinal herbs beside him.

My finger touched the nearest plant.

The stem is slightly cool to the touch and has a firm texture. It is a first-grade superior spiritual herb, with its spiritual energy fluctuations being restrained.

The panel popped up.

[Equipable item detected]

[Item Attribute Level: Green]

[Note: Items not belonging to the user cannot be equipped, and detailed information cannot be viewed.]

green.

Li Yuan's fingers lingered on the stem for a moment longer.

Manager Wang was still bent over checking the plant next to him and didn't notice this one.

Li Yuan withdrew his hand, his expression unchanged, and continued walking forward with Steward Wang.

Explore the endless possibilities of Xianxia novels, all in the category navigation.