Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

After equipping the Condensing Essence Technique, all the information about the incantation had been instilled into his mind.

Li Yuan did not rush to try condensing spiritual energy. Instead, he first went through each step of the technique in his mind three times. Only after confirming that he was familiar with all the key points did he slowly close his eyes and start practicing the Condensing Yuan Technique.

The spiritual energy in the dantian began to gather towards the center, guided by the incantation.

The force of spiritual resistance immediately appeared.

With each tightening, a counterforce pushing outward surges from within the spiritual energy, like a spring rebounding after being compressed.

Li Yuan controlled his speed, neither too fast nor too slow.

The first condensation only went very shallowly, and the spiritual energy density increased slightly. The spiritual energy in the center of the dantian was slightly denser than that in the outer part.

The second tightening was more intense and lasted longer than the first.

The counterforce of spiritual energy increases accordingly.

Li Yuan maintained this for about twenty breaths before slowly releasing his grip.

The moment the spiritual energy dispersed, a slight soreness arose from the dantian, spreading along the meridians throughout the body before quickly subsiding.

The third time, the fourth time, and the fifth time.

Each condensation is deeper and lasts longer than the last.

During the process, Li Yuan discovered something: his spiritual power was less resistant to condensation than he had expected.

The purer the spiritual energy and the fewer the impurities, the lower the resistance during condensation.

The permanent attribute of spiritual energy filtering removes impurities from spiritual energy completely, and this purity becomes a huge advantage in the cultivation of the Yuan Condensation Technique.

With fewer impurities, the repulsive force between spiritual energies is smaller, making it easier to fit together during compression.

Just like wringing out a towel, a clean towel is much easier to wring out than a towel covered in mud and sand.

Li Yuan's lips curled up slightly.

The Spiritual Energy Filtering Technique and the Spiritual Energy Condensation Technique are responsible for purifying spiritual energy and compressing spiritual energy, respectively.

Purified spiritual energy is easier to compress, and compressed spiritual energy is more refined because it has a higher density and fewer impurities.

The two complement each other.

Before he knew it, he had practiced for more than half an hour. Li Yuan finished his practice and exhaled a long breath.

The panel appears.

【Energy Condensation Technique: Beginner (0/200)】

I've mastered the basics. It's faster than both the Iron Ox Kung Fu and the Nourishing Vitality Kung Fu.

Li Yuan put away the panel, poured himself a bowl of cold water, took a sip, sat back on the bed, sat cross-legged, and began to circulate the Spirit Guiding Technique.

……

In the afternoon, Li Yuan tidied up his belongings, hung the waist tag on his waist, and went out.

Although they returned to the market to rest for a few days, they were still able to patrol, just for a shorter period of time.

When Li Yuan reached the fork in the road where the old woman was selling pills, he paused slightly.

The stall is still there, but the people sitting behind it have changed.

It wasn't that skinny old woman, but an old man with gray hair.

Around sixty years old, he didn't look old at all. He had high cheekbones, a pointed chin, slender fingers with slightly yellowish tips, and bright but not large eyes. He had a strong aura, much stronger than He Shouyao, only slightly inferior to Wang De.

The items on the stall are a little different from before.

Several more porcelain bottles appeared, and the varieties had become quite mixed. The Turbidity-Clearing Pill and the Essence-Gathering Powder were still there, but next to them were three or four other types of pills with labels that Li Yuan had never seen before, each with a different color and shape.

On the right side of the stall, there was a row of Sha Yuan Dan (煞元丹), packaged in bottles, one pill in each bottle.

Li Yuan counted them; there were twelve.

There were more than twice as many as when the old woman was alive.

Li Yuan squatted down in front of the stall and glanced at the several new pills next to him.

They picked them up and asked a few questions, but none of them found the entry.

Li Yuan picked up the bottle containing the Demon Essence Pill and weighed it in his hand.

"Is the Killing Essence Pill still two pieces per pill?"

The old man nodded, his gaze lingering for a moment on the waist tag on Li Yuan's waist before shifting away.

"How do you know the price of the Killing Essence Pill?"

"I bought it from your wife before."

The old man's expression changed. He looked Li Yuan up and down, narrowed his eyes, and suddenly realized something.

"You're the inspector who bought the 'Evil Essence Pill'?"

The old man slapped his thigh and sat up straight.

"My wife told me that an inspector bought one Sha Yuan Dan and then bought four more, saying that the effect was pretty good, and even asked if we had any in stock."

The old man's tone carried a hint of surprise, mixed with curiosity.

"I prepared three Fiend Essence Pills for you, why haven't you come to collect them?"

Li Yuan paused for a moment, scratched his chin, and glanced slightly to the side.

"I've been a bit short on spirit stones lately, so I haven't come."

The effects of the Sha Yuan Dan are indeed quite good, but the cost of two pills each adds up to a considerable amount.

More importantly, permanent attribute enhancement should be the priority for spirit stones; buying more pills without attribute enhancement is just icing on the cake.

The old man gave an "oh" and didn't press Li Yuan about why he was so short of spirit stones, nodding to indicate his understanding.

"It's alright."

Li Yuan thought for a moment, then added, "However, I can help you introduce some customers. There are quite a few cultivators in the market who need cheap pills."

"Introduce customers?" The old man tilted his head, seemingly unconcerned. "This stuff isn't popular to begin with; the side effects are too severe, most people can't handle it."

As the old man spoke, he pointed among several porcelain vases on the stall.

"The Transformation Pill and Condensing Essence Powder are good for high-volume sales, but the Fiend Essence Pill is a formula I devised myself, imitating the Fiend Spirit Pill. I removed the breakthrough function but kept the effect of accelerating cultivation, but the problem of fiend energy has never been completely resolved."

The old man sighed and shook his head as he finished speaking.

"My wife complains that I spend all my time researching things that don't make money, and she's right, but I just can't resist the urge to do it."

Li Yuan listened but didn't respond.

The old man paused for a moment, then suddenly tilted his head, his bright eyes fixed on Li Yuan.

"I'm curious, how did you manage to withstand the side effects of the Fiend Essence Pill? One pill is fine, but you've taken five in total. The accumulated fiend energy is no small matter."

"His internal organs are relatively strong," Li Yuan said briefly.

The old man looked Li Yuan up and down a few times, his tone becoming more serious, and he rubbed his chin with his fingers.

"Would you be willing to be the test subject for alchemy?"

"A test subject for alchemy?"

"It's to help me test the drugs," the old man explained.

"Every time I improve a pill formula, I need someone to test it to see the effects and side effects. I used to test it myself, but my old bones can't take the strain anymore. Finding a young, healthy cultivator to help me test it will save me a lot of trouble."

Li Yuan didn't hesitate: "No."

The old man wasn't surprised and waved his hand.

"Fine, I was just asking."

After a moment of silence, the old man looked at Li Yuan again, as if he was pondering something.

Then the old man reached out and touched the stall, picked up two bottles of Sha Yuan Pills, and pushed them toward Li Yuan.

"These two Demonic Essence Pills are for you."

Li Yuan paused for a moment as he looked at the two bottles handed to him and took the pills.

"What are the conditions?"

"Help me collect some herbs outside." The old man leaned against the wall, his tone becoming more serious.

"You're the deputy captain of the patrol team, and you're often out on the go. I heard you have tasks involving perimeter patrols."

"Herbal herbs are hard to find these days. If you come across any herbs while you're patrolling, please collect them for me. I'll buy them from you at the listed price, not a penny less."

The old man held up one finger and added a sentence.

"In addition, every time you help me receive herbs, besides spirit stones, I will also give you a Sha Yuan Pill or other pills as a reward."

Li Yuan's mind raced.

The conditions are not demanding.

By purchasing at the listed price and receiving extra pills, it's as if you only put in the time and effort to harvest, and in return you receive spirit stones and pills.

For the old man, this saved him the cost of going out and spending time collecting herbs.

Mutually beneficial.

"Any kind of herb will do, or are there specific recommendations?"

The old man took a folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it over.

Li Yuan took it, unfolded it, and glanced at it. It was covered with the names and simple sketches of more than a dozen kinds of herbs, with their growing environment and identification characteristics marked next to them.

Li Yuan recognized some of them; the Jade Grass and Red Root Vine were common on the outskirts of the Yuanheng Mountains. He hadn't seen some before, but the drawings on the paper were very detailed, so finding them by following the diagrams wouldn't be difficult.

"These are all commonly used medicinal materials for refining first-grade pills, not worth much money, but they are indeed hard to buy on the market now."

The old man pointed to the top few types of slips of paper.

"These are the most scarce, so pick them first if you come across them. Pick the others as you see them."

Li Yuan folded the note and put it into his sleeve, then reached out and picked up the two Sha Yuan Pills from the cloth.

"OK."

The wrinkles on the old man's face smoothed out, revealing a set of slightly crooked teeth.

"By the way, my surname is Sun, you can just call me Lao Sun."

"Li Yuan".

Li Yuan put the Sha Yuan Dan into his sleeve, stood up, nodded, and turned to continue his patrol along the North Alley.