Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

Outside the east gate of the market, about half a mile to the south, there is a wide open wasteland of gravel.

Li Yuan stood in the center of the wasteland and took out the Flame Serpent Tube from his sleeve.

The dark red tube gleamed with a dull luster in the morning light as Li Yuan channeled his spiritual energy into it.

The fire crystal lit up for a moment, and a thin arc of crimson light shot out from the nozzle, striking a rock about half a person's height twenty feet away.

*Snap*, a charred pit the size of a fingernail appeared on the stone surface, and a few pieces of stone fragments were scattered.

Its power is indeed not great, far inferior to even my own fireball spell.

But it's fast; from the moment the spiritual energy is poured in to the moment it's released, there's almost no time to build up power.

Li Yuan infused spiritual power three times in succession, and three crimson arcs of light shot out one after another within a breath, hitting three different locations on the stone surface, leaving closely spaced scorch marks.

It has a fast firing rate, good accuracy, and consumes little spiritual energy—about 30% of the energy of a fireball.

The Flame Serpent Cannon is simpler to control than the Fireball Technique; you can simply pour spiritual energy into it to unleash the attack, and the direction is controlled by your wrist.

It is suitable for interference and containment, but not for use as a primary offensive tactic.

After firing more than a dozen shots, Li Yuan put the Flame Serpent Tube back into his sleeve and took out the Concealing Breath Jade Pendant from his sleeve.

The system panel displayed green entries, indicating that the aura was concealed and the effects of the entries were very clear, but Li Yuan did not know how to use this magical artifact.

I tried pouring spiritual energy into it.

After the spiritual energy was injected into the jade pendant, it was like a stone sinking into the sea, with no feedback whatsoever. The surface of the jade pendant did not emit light, heat, or vibrate, and it was no different from pouring spiritual energy into an ordinary stone.

Li Yuan looked at it over and over again, and tried to infuse it with different spiritual powers and frequencies, but there was still no response.

Unlike magical artifacts that can be activated by infusing spiritual energy, this jade pendant's method of use is probably rather unique.

Li Yuan put the jade pendant into his sleeve and turned to walk towards the market.

Turn west from the middle of the North Alley into a narrow alley. At the end of the alley is a small shop with an old wooden sign above the door that reads "Jianbaoge" (鑒宝阁), the characters of which are somewhat faded.

Jianbaoge is a shop in the market that specializes in appraisal business. It also sells and stores pawned items. The fees are not high, and you can bring anything to look at.

Any unfamiliar minerals picked up from the mountains by a rogue cultivator, strange objects pulled from the belly of a demon beast, or magical artifacts of dubious authenticity found at a street stall can all be brought in for appraisal.

Li Yuan pushed open the door and went in.

The shop wasn't big; the front half was the counter, and the back half was separated by a curtain.

Behind the counter sat a man in his forties, with a thin face, a short beard, and wearing a gray-blue robe. He was writing something in a booklet with a fine brush.

"How many spirit stones is this?" Li Yuan placed the jade pendant on the counter.

The appraiser put down his pen, his gaze falling on the jade pendant. He glanced at it casually at first, then reached out and picked it up.

I turned it over to look at the back, and then rubbed the surface with my fingertips.

"A spirit stone."

Li Yuan took a spirit stone from his sleeve and placed it on the counter.

The appraiser accepted the spirit stones, then held the jade pendant up to his eyes and examined it carefully.

"Where did it come from?"

"The spoils of war found on Jie Xiu."

This jade pendant was acquired legitimately, and there's no fear of others discovering it.

The appraiser asked casually, hummed in response, turned the jade pendant over a few times, gently tapped the edge with his fingernail, and listened to the echo.

He then took out a palm-sized piece of dark green jade from under the counter, placed the jade pendant on top of the jade piece, and closed his eyes to sense it for a few breaths.

"The jade is of ordinary quality, not a spiritual jade." The appraiser opened his eyes and said in a calm tone.

"There are no spiritual patterns remaining on the surface, and no trace of spiritual energy flowing inside."

The appraiser placed the jade pendant back on the counter and tapped it with his finger.

"It is not a magical artifact."

Li Yuan's expression remained unchanged.

"Take another look."

The appraiser showed no impatience; he'd seen plenty of people like this, clutching what they thought was a treasure when it was nothing at all.

The biggest taboo for a shop like Jianbaoge is offending its customers. The appraiser took it back and pretended to look at it.

His fingers suddenly paused, then slowly slid along the edge of the jade pendant, stopping at a very inconspicuous worn groove.

The expert frowned.

He took out another silver needle from under the counter, inserted the tip of the needle into the groove, and gently flicked it.

"etc."

The examiner's tone changed, becoming more serious. He looked at the needle tip, which was covered with a very thin layer of dark powder, almost invisible.

"This is no ordinary jade pendant."

The appraiser placed the jade pendant on a dark green jade piece and used a silver needle to scrape along the grooves on the edge, bit by bit.

The dark powder kept piling up, accumulating on the surface of the jade piece and forming a small clump.

The examiner brought the powder to his nose and smelled it.

"The compound powder is made by grinding together at least three kinds of herbs. I can't identify all the specific ingredients, but one of them is 'hidden grass'."

The appraiser put down the silver needle and took out a bronze mirror-like ritual implement. The bronze mirror then shone brightly, illuminating the jade pendant, which the appraiser examined carefully.

A moment later, the expert gave a reply.

"Hidden Grass has the effect of concealing spiritual energy fluctuations. After mixing it with other medicinal herbs and grinding it into a juice, it can be applied into the groove, allowing the medicinal effects to seep into the jade pendant and then infuse it with spiritual power."

The appraiser picked up the jade pendant and compared it to the jade.

"After the medicine is applied, the jade pendant absorbs the liquid, like a dry sponge absorbing water. Then, if you pour in spiritual energy, it will blend with the medicine and slowly seep out from the groove."

"The oozing substance, once consumed, can conceal one's aura and cultivation fluctuations for a period of time."

The appraiser paused and glanced at Li Yuan.

"It has limited effectiveness; it's impossible to completely conceal it. At most, it can weaken and blur the aura that others can perceive. But it still has an effect on perception methods of the same or lower level."

"How long will it last?"

"It depends on the concentration and dosage of the medicine. At a normal concentration, one application can last for about two or three days, and the medicine doesn't keep for very long."

The appraiser placed the jade pendant back on the counter.

"This thing is not as good as a regular concealing jade pendant, but it does not consume spiritual power in the process, and the complex craftsmanship is to ensure that no one will find out that it is a magic artifact."

Li Yuan put the jade pendant back into his sleeve.

"Can the market supply the medicinal powder used to coat those grooves?"

The expert thought for a moment.

"Hidden Grass is occasionally sold in the market, and it's not expensive. I'm not sure about the other herbs, but they should all be common, low-grade herbs. You should ask a pill refiner; they're more accurate at identifying medicinal herbs than I am."

Li Yuan nodded, collected the powder, left the treasure appraisal shop, and turned to Old Sun's stall.

Old Sun was sitting behind his stall fiddling with a small porcelain bottle when he saw Li Yuan walk over and raised his eyelids slightly.

Li Yuan squatted down, took out powder from his sleeve, briefly relayed the information given by the expert, and then handed over the powder.

Old Sun took the jade pendant, scraped it in the groove with his fingernail, smelled the dark powder, and then rubbed it between his fingertips.

"Hidden awn grass, calming flower, and... green moss."

Old Sun was quick; he recited the names of the three medicinal herbs in less than ten breaths.

"None of them are worth much; you can buy them at the market. Just grind them into a juice and mix them together. As for the proportions—"

Old Sun pondered for a moment, then gestured with his fingers.

"Grind three parts of Imperata cylindrica, one part of Anshenhua (a type of herb), and half a part of Qingye Moss into a thick paste with a small amount of water."

"How much?"

"It's free, these are the cheapest low-grade herbs, I have them right here."

Old Sun turned around and took out three kinds of herbs from the medicine box behind him, and quickly began to grind them in a small stone mortar.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a small bowl of dark green, thick liquid was placed in front of Li Yuan, emitting a faint bitter smell.

"Go back and try it yourself." Old Sun emptied the residue from the mortar and clapped his hands.

Li Yuan carefully put away the thick paste and the jade pendant, thanked them, and got up to leave.

Back at his residence, Li Yuan began his experiment, applying a thick paste to the jade pendant.

A few breaths later, the thick liquid began to seep into the jade.

After the thick liquid was completely absorbed, Li Yuan poured spiritual energy into the jade pendant.

This time is different from before.

The moment the spiritual energy was injected, the jade pendant became slightly warm, and you could feel something flowing inside your fingertips.

About twenty breaths later, liquid began to seep out of the groove.

A tiny drop of dark green liquid emerged from the edge of the groove, slowly sliding down the surface of the jade pendant and dripping onto Li Yuan's fingertip. Li Yuan then took out a bowl and began to collect it.

After the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the jade pendant stopped leaking spiritual liquid, but only a thin layer remained at the bottom of the bowl.

Li Yuan drank it down. It was slightly bitter at first, with a herbal astringent taste. After swallowing, a very faint coolness slid from his throat to his chest and abdomen, slowly spreading along his meridians.

Wherever the cool breeze went, Li Yuan felt the spiritual energy fluctuations in that area subside slightly, as if they were covered by a thin mist.

With a thought, Li Yuan sensed the fluctuations in his own spiritual energy.

It was indeed much weaker; the aura of a fifth-level Qi Refining cultivator had been suppressed to about the level of a third-level Qi Refining cultivator, making it difficult to distinguish without careful perception.

After some thought, Li Yuan decided to report the matter to Wang De, hoping to gain some recognition.

The main reason is that the source of the intelligence is reasonable and will not expose one's special status. Cultivators have amazing memories, so it is not surprising that they remember Zhao Wu's jade pendant.