Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

Early the next morning, Li Yuan went out to buy materials for making talismans.

There were fewer people at the stalls than a few days ago, but there were more people queuing at the entrance to the secret realm.

The ten spirit stones entrance fee couldn't stop rogue cultivators eager to get rich, especially after news spread in recent days that people were bringing out valuable items from the secret realm, making even more people willing to try their luck.

Li Yuan walked to the materials stall he frequented. The stall owner was a thin old man who used to have a stall in Yunyang Market. Later, he moved to the outer edge of the secret realm to cater to independent cultivators entering and leaving the secret realm.

"Two portions of cinnabar ink, one portion of lightning-struck wood powder, and do you have the spirit-guiding sand for the Rejuvenation Talisman?"

"Spirit-attracting sand is sold out; we'll restock the day after tomorrow. We have cinnabar ink and lightning-struck wood powder."

Li Yuan paid with spirit stones and put the materials into his storage bag.

As I turned to walk back, I saw two rogue cultivators who had just come out of the secret realm squatting by the roadside eating dry rations and talking loudly as they ate.

"...There are many more monsters inside than last month, especially in the forest to the north. Before, there were only a few low-grade first-rank monsters, but this time we encountered three mid-grade first-rank monsters in a group, and we almost couldn't escape."

"You're lucky. I heard that yesterday someone at the sixth level of Qi Refining went in and ran into a first-tier high-grade demonic beast in the North District. He didn't even have time to run away."

"How come there are Tier 1 high-grade items in the North District?"

"Who knows? Maybe it came out from deep inside. Something seems off in there lately; the monsters are getting more and more agitated."

Another rogue cultivator lowered his voice: "There are definitely more dead people, but far fewer cultivators have emerged."

Li Yuan walked past them without stopping.

Monsters were rampaging within the secret realm, causing a surge in deaths. This involuntarily reminded Li Yuan of the Li family.

The faces of the stalls are changing faster and faster.

When Li Yuan went out to buy materials, he noticed that several of the old stall owners who were still there last month were gone.

The short, stout rogue cultivator who sold animal bones was gone, as was the old woman who sold miscellaneous medicines; in their place were several unfamiliar faces.

Li Yuan walked around the stall area and stopped at a corner on the east side.

A young rogue cultivator squatted on the ground, with a coarse cloth spread out in front of him, on which a few things were scattered.

A grayish-white animal horn, two bottles of unlabeled pills, a fist-sized piece of ore, and a rolled-up animal hide.

Li Yuan's gaze fell on the animal hide.

The animal hide was rolled into a tube and tied with straw rope. The exposed part was dark gray with a layer of fine scale patterns on the surface, and it felt dry and rough to the touch.

A complete section, without any damage or signs of splicing.

Semi-transparent text emerged.

[Equipable item detected]

[Item Attribute Level: White]

"How much is this animal hide?" Li Yuan squatted down and asked.

The young rogue cultivator raised his head, revealing a scratch on his face that hadn't fully healed, running diagonally from his forehead to his cheekbone, apparently inflicted by a demonic beast.

"It was brought out from the secret realm, skinned from a Hidden Scale Beast, and it took me a lot of effort."

He held up two fingers. "Twenty spirit stones."

"Ten yuan."

"Fifteen, that's the lowest it can be."

Li Yuan paid with spirit stones, and the panel popped up.

[Equipable item detected: Hidden Scale Beast Hide (Complete)]

[Equipment Attribute Preview: Concealed Insight (White) - Enhances the ability to perceive the malice of other cultivators, demonic beasts, and other living beings; allows free reduction of one's own presence, up to 30%]

[Preview of Permanentization Requirements: Consume the eyes of nine different Tier 1 low-grade or higher monsters]

[Equipped?]

The white-labeled effect is a combination of offensive and defensive perception abilities. Malice perception can compensate for the shortcomings of danger perception, which is passively triggered and has a vague range. Malice perception, on the other hand, is more targeted, specifically aimed at hostile beings.

Lowering one's presence complements concealing one's aura; concealing one's aura suppresses the aura of cultivation, while lowering one's presence suppresses the overall "attention-grabbing power" of one's person.

The conditions for permanentization are extremely simple. Li Yuan already has the materials from nine different low-grade first-tier demonic beasts in his storage bag; if that's not enough, he can easily gather them by buying them from the stalls.

Back at the shop, Li Yuan closed the door.

He took out the bottle of dark gold pills from the depths of his storage bag, poured out the best-quality Blood Clotting Pill, and placed it in his palm.

All five equipment slots are full. To equip a Blood Clotting Pill, I need to unequip one item.

Li Yuan removed the Soul Nourishing Pill.

Then, the Blood Clotting Pill was equipped.

[Equipment Successfully]

[Acquired Attribute: Dual Cultivation of Spirit and Blood (Green)]

[Action Effect: When cultivating spiritual power, it can be combined with the circulation of qi and blood; when cultivating qi and blood, it can be combined with the circulation of spiritual power.]

The moment the entry took effect, Li Yuan sensed a change.

There was a subtle but clear connection between the spiritual energy in the dantian and the qi and blood in the meridians throughout the body. It was as if a channel had been dug between two rivers that originally flowed separately, allowing the water to flow between them.

He activated the Spirit Guiding Technique, and spiritual energy surged from his dantian, beginning its circulation along his meridians.

Li Yuan noticed a detail.

The path of Qi and blood circulation following spiritual power highly overlaps with the micro-meridians opened up by the Micro-Element Guiding Meridian Technique.

Spiritual energy flows through the major meridians, while qi and blood flow through the minor meridians. The two run parallel without conflict, converging at each meridian node and then separating again, forming an interwoven but not confused cyclical pattern.

This cyclical pattern is consistent with the requirement in the conditions for the permanent formation of the Qi and blood in all meridians to form a complete circulation.

The entry for the Blood Coagulation Pill cannot directly complete the construction of the Qi and Blood circulation. The Micro-Element Guiding Meridian Technique has already opened up all the micro-meridians, allowing Qi and Blood to circulate in the opened micro-meridians.

Li Yuan cultivated for half an hour, adjusting the rhythm of his spiritual power and blood circulation before stopping and getting up.

We continued making talismans in the afternoon.

Wang Lu arrived that evening.

This time he wasn't in such a hurry as last time. His pace was normal, and his expression was calmer than last time, but the fatigue between his brows hadn't subsided.

"The Li family has been frequently entering and leaving the secret realm recently."

Wang Lu sat on the stool, holding the water cup that Li Yuan handed him.

"It's not just one or two people, it's in batches. People go in every day, and people come out every day. And among those who go in, there are several experts at the late stage of Qi Refining."

"What are you doing?" Li Yuan asked.

"Unsure." Wang Lu shook his head.

"They might be looking for something, or they might be setting up something. Since Qu Bo's incident, the Li family has been much more active in this area, and there are also many more Li family cultivators on the outskirts of the secret realm than before."

Wang Lu didn't say much on the topic, and stood up to pat his clothes.

"Reinforcements haven't arrived yet. Stay put and don't go out. I'll get back to you with any new information."

After saying that, he left.

Li Yuan closed the door and sat back on the bed.

Li Yuan activated the Spirit Guiding Technique, causing spiritual energy and blood to circulate simultaneously in his meridians.

The effects of the Blood Coagulation Pill make the interaction between the two increasingly smooth, and each cultivation session deepens the synergy of this interaction.

The Iron Wall Body Refining Technique also benefits from this—when the Qi and blood circulate under the guidance of spiritual power, they pass through the parts that the Iron Wall Body Refining Technique is tempering, and the cleansing effect of the Qi and blood is much stronger than when practicing alone.

The two cultivation methods, one cultivating spiritual power and the other cultivating the physical body, are now linked together by the entry on the Blood Coagulation Pill.