Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

The next morning, Li Yuan went to the stone house in the management office to check the records.

Patrol schedule, feedback from the demon array, and transaction records were laid out on the table, and he checked them over and over again several times.

After the mole increased his trading frequency recently, he also came into contact with more people.

Most of them were shopkeepers and itinerant cultivators in the market. These people had already been marked by Li Yuan and were mostly just normal trading partners, with no direct relationship with the Dark Abyss Society.

But there was one person who was different.

This person appeared infrequently, only making contact with the mole twice in five days. Both encounters took place in a general store on the west side of the market, with the transactions recorded as miscellaneous and involving very small sums.

If Li Yuan hadn't stacked the three records together to look at them, he wouldn't have noticed this person at all.

But when the three records are stacked together, the pattern becomes clear.

The man appeared at the general store twice, both times within half an hour of the mole's night patrol shift changing. And on the night before his appearance, there was a very faint fluctuation at the western auxiliary node of the demon-detecting array.

The fluctuations have long since ceased, but the old data remains in the records.

This person first appeared right after the fluctuations on the auxiliary node stopped and the mole switched to using daily transaction communication.

They took over some of the tasks that were originally passed on through the Demon Detection Array.

Li Yuan pulled out this person's entry and exit records separately.

The identity registration column reads: Outer disciple of Yuanyang Sect, late stage of Qi Refining, responsible for purchasing materials for the ruins array.

He is not a rogue cultivator.

When Li Yuan saw this line, his hand, which was flipping through the records, paused for a moment.

It's not uncommon for independent cultivators to become traitors; driven by self-interest, they are free to come and go, and if they are caught, it won't implicate too many people.

But sect disciples are different. When sect disciples connect with the Dark Abyss, the underlying issues are far more significant than a message relayed by a patrolling cultivator.

Li Yuan closed the record book and did not continue the investigation.

There are other monks handling affairs in the administration office, so it's not appropriate to make any obvious moves here.

That afternoon, after leaving the management office, Li Yuan did not return to the stone house, but instead wandered around the market.

He visited several shops and bought some daily necessities, while simultaneously using the spiritual vein monitoring line and daily perception line to cover the general area of ​​the market.

Half an hour later, Li Yuan saw the Yuan Yang Sect disciple at the entrance of a small alley on the east side of the market.

He was of medium build, with an ordinary face, wearing the standard gray robes of an outer disciple of the Yuan Yang Sect, with a sect identification tag hanging from his waist. He walked at a moderate pace, appearing no different from other outer disciples.

Meanwhile, Li Yuan noticed something else.

Two contradictory phenomena have emerged in the market.

Someone is collecting materials needed to rebuild the Core Formation Platform array.

The trading volume of items such as stabilizing spirit sand, flow-guiding stones, spirit-guiding powder, and solidifying copper sheets has increased significantly in the past few days. There are multiple buyers, scattered across several shops, buying small quantities each time, but frequently.

Meanwhile, others are selling similar materials at low prices.

The vendors weren't selling their wares in the shops, but rather in the trading area for independent cultivators on the outskirts of the market. Several outside cultivators had set up temporary stalls, displaying items such as stabilizing spirit sand and array-fixing copper sheets, priced 20% lower than the shop prices.

They are buying on one hand and selling on the other.

This is abnormal in itself.

Normal market fluctuations mean either prices go up or down; it's not the case that the same item will be bought at a high price in a shop and sold at a low price at a roadside stall.

Unless the people on both sides are not from the same group.

Or rather, it's the same group of people doing two different things.

Li Yuan observed for two more days.

That Yuan Yang Sect disciple would always make a trip to the rogue cultivator trading area to buy materials before heading to the outer perimeter of the ruins.

Li Yuan connected this line with the previous information, and the outline gradually became clear.

Someone was using the Dark Abyss Guild's channels to smuggle array materials into the market, which were then resold at low prices by insiders. The purpose of this resale wasn't to earn spirit stones, but to deliver specific materials to specific people. That Yuan Yang Sect disciple was the one receiving these materials.

The re-laying of the Core Formation Platform array is a major event for the Yuan Yang Sect, and the array masters and personnel involved were all arranged internally by the sect. If an outer disciple could access these materials and send them towards the ruins, it means that he must have someone of a higher rank providing assistance behind the scenes.

Foundation Establishment Elder, or even higher.

Thinking this through, Li Yuan stopped pursuing the matter.

I am not a formal disciple of the Yuanyang Sect.

If this matter were reported directly, the best outcome would be nothing more than a sect contribution reward. However, if it involved Foundation Establishment elders or even higher-ups, one's own situation would become quite precarious.

The returns are too low and the risks are too high.

But not reporting it at all is also not an option.

If the sect discovers this later, and Li Yuan, as the market manager, should have noticed the abnormal transactions but said nothing, there will be problems as well.

After thinking about it, Li Yuan contacted Chen Yi that evening.

"Recently, there have been people in the market buying up array materials. The quantity isn't large, but the types overlap with those used for rebuilding the Core Formation Platform." Li Yuan explained the general details of several transactions. "I've marked them here; see if you want to report them."

Chen Yi glanced at the summary of records that Li Yuan handed him, his brows furrowing slightly.

Have they found out who received these items?

"They're scattered across several shops, so it's hard to tell if it's one person or several," Li Yuan said. "The market has been crowded and has a lot of turnover lately, so it's difficult to pinpoint them just from the transaction records."

He only reported the matter of collecting materials, without mentioning selling them at low prices, the Yuan Yang Sect disciple, or the mole.

Chen Yi nodded and said he would relay the report to the outpost.

After leaving the management office, Li Yuan did not return to the stone house, but instead went to several building materials shops in the market.

Li Yuan began to purchase the key materials needed to rebuild the Core Formation Platform array, which were still in stock in the market.

I received three portions of the Stable Spirit Sand, bought ten pieces of the Drainage Stone, and a batch each of Spirit Guide Powder and Solidifying Copper Sheets.

These items are not currently in short supply, and their prices are within the normal range. However, once the Yuan Yang Sect officially begins the work of rebuilding the Core Formation Platform array, demand will surge, and prices will inevitably rise accordingly.

After finishing his purchases, Li Yuan went to check the bulletin board at the market.

A new notice has been posted on the bulletin board.

The paper wasn't of high quality, but it bore an official sect seal—not from the Yuanyang Sect, but from the Qishui Sect.

The notice was very straightforward.

Qishui Sect is publicly recruiting all Foundation Establishment cultivators in Liangzhou to provide support at the front lines in Yunzhou. Recruitment is open to all cultivators, regardless of sect affiliation; anyone above Foundation Establishment is eligible to apply.

The compensation was listed in a long list.

Spirit stones, pills, magical artifacts, and high-grade medicinal materials are all present in considerable quantities.

The last line reads: Those who go to provide support and make meritorious contributions will receive a Core Formation manual.

Classic texts on alchemy.

A crowd had gathered in front of the notice, and several Foundation Establishment cultivators were whispering among themselves.

"They've even brought out the Core Formation manuals; it seems they're really in a hurry."

"Would they go and come back alive? How many Foundation Establishment cultivators have died on the front lines?"

"It's fine if we don't go. We can just wait here until the Demonic Sect attacks before running away?"

After reading the notice, Li Yuan didn't linger and turned back to the stone house.

The allure of the Core Formation manual was considerable, but going to the front lines in Yunzhou was not part of his plans.

My current focus is very clear.

Before sitting down cross-legged, Li Yuan first focused his mind on the large spiritual vein.

The entire spiritual vein unfolded in my perception, with the main vein, branches, and mineral veins all flowing as usual.

But one change caught Li Yuan's attention.

On a branch of the main spiritual vein, slightly north of the middle section, the aura of first-tier demonic beasts has increased compared to before.

Not one or two, but seven or eight.

Monsters had occasionally passed by this branch before, but never in such dense numbers. Seven or eight first-tier monsters were huddled together near the same section of the branch, some lingering, others seemingly absorbing the spiritual energy seeping from it.

After being driven out of the mountains, the low-level demonic beasts scattered in all directions. Some ran towards the Ghost Mist Forest, while others followed the spiritual energy towards the spiritual veins. The concentration of spiritual energy in large spiritual veins has a natural attraction for demonic beasts, so their numbers are bound to increase sooner or later.

First-tier monsters do not pose a threat for the time being, but if their numbers continue to increase, or if they attract second-tier monsters, then they will need to be dealt with.

Li Yuan noted this change and focused his attention on the mineral vein.

The branch veins, guided by the meridian technique, remained stable, and the flow of spiritual energy into the evil ore did not change. The evil-cultivating array within the natural cavity operated normally, and a new batch of purple evil stones was slowly condensing.

Li Yuan adjusted the flow intensity of the meridian guiding method accordingly.

The deviation of the branch in the target segment has reached a relatively stable level. If the flow is increased further, the deviation will increase further, and the amount of spiritual energy infiltrated will also increase accordingly.

Li Yuan tried increasing the intensity by half a degree.

The branch vein deviated slightly from its original course, and the seepage flow did indeed increase.

However, the increase is not significant because the thickness of the branches themselves limits the maximum flow. To significantly increase the output of Purple Fiend Stones, simply increasing the flow is not enough; other methods must be considered.

Li Yuan withdrew his control over the spiritual veins and turned his attention back to his own body.

The evil energy is constantly gathering automatically.

From cultivating in the mines to operating in the market, the gathering of malevolent energy within Li Yuan's body has never ceased. Now, the amount of malevolent energy stored within him has reached a considerable level.

At the same time, spiritual energy is not lacking.

With the addition of multiple attributes such as flawless spiritual power and refined spiritual power, the dantian capacity of the late Foundation Establishment stage makes the quality and quantity of spiritual power in the body far exceed those of other cultivators of the same level.

He possesses both malevolent energy and spiritual power in large quantities within his body.

The formation conditions of Purple Fiend Stone are essentially the stable coexistence and slow fusion of fiendish energy and spiritual power under specific conditions.

Li Yuan sat on the futon, and an idea suddenly popped into his mind.

Is it possible for me to create the conditions for the formation of Purple Fiend Stone outside my body?

The effect of the resonance of evil spirits is that evil energy and spiritual power can be slightly transformed into each other. The effect of the transformation of evil spirits goes a step further, allowing evil energy and spiritual power to be transformed into each other and even to initially merge.

Without much thought, Li Yuan got up and went to the mine tunnel.

In a corner of the natural cavity, he found an ordinary mid-grade evil stone, placed it on the ground, and then squatted down.

With his left hand, he drew out a wisp of malevolent energy; with his right hand, he drew out a wisp of spiritual power.

After the two strands of power converged in his palm, Li Yuan slowly pressed them onto the surface of the evil stone.

The resonance and transformation of the evil spirits worked simultaneously. The evil energy and spiritual power did not immediately repel and separate after leaving the body, but maintained a semi-fused state. Li Yuan used micro-control spiritual techniques to precisely press them into the evil stone.

The surface of the evil stone trembled slightly.

After the internal structure of malevolent energy was compressed by the combined forces of external malevolent spirits, it began to show changes similar to those that occurred when the Purple Malevolent Stone was formed.

Li Yuan continued outputting for about 15 minutes.

After stopping, he picked up the evil stone and examined it.

The surface color changed from pure black to dark purple, which is slightly lighter in color compared to the naturally formed purple evil stone, but the evil energy and spiritual power inside have indeed formed a stable coexistence.

When probed with divine sense, the ratio of malevolent energy to spiritual energy was approximately three to two. It was not as uniform as the one-to-one ratio of natural purple malevolent stone, but it could still be considered a qualified purple malevolent stone.

It is possible.

Li Yuan put the artificial purple aura stone aside and stood up.

It can be done, but it's not very efficient.

The continuous output for half a quarter of an hour consumed a considerable amount of malevolent energy and spiritual power, yet produced only one low-quality purple malevolent stone. Compared to the efficiency of the vein naturally producing a batch every three or four days after the vein was guided by the meridian technique, the cost-effectiveness of artificial production was very low.

Using one's own malevolent energy and spiritual power to cultivate and improve oneself yields far greater benefits than creating Purple Malevolent Stones.

This route should be kept as a backup plan.

Daily production still relies on mineral veins and the vein guiding method.

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