Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

Li Yuan did not return directly to the market, but instead headed northwest.

The Dry Bone Ridge is about a hundred miles from the third transit station, located on the edge of the Ghost Mist Forest. Traveling underground is faster than on the surface, and with the addition of Earth Escape Technique and the slight speed boost from Earth Escape, they arrived in less than an hour.

The name "Bone Ridge" comes from the white rock layers scattered across the ground. The weathered rocks resemble broken bones and gleam with a pale white color under the moonlight. The ridge is not high, stretching for dozens of miles, with sparse vegetation and extremely low spiritual energy concentration, making it one of the most desolate areas on the outskirts of the Ghost Mist Forest.

Li Yuan floated to the surface and landed on a high slope.

Dark Fiend's perception network spread out in full, covering a radius of three miles around him.

There was nothing on the surface. Gravel, withered grass, and a few half-dead shrubs—no trace of human excavation or cultivation activities could be seen.

But it's different underground.

Perception penetrated the rock layers and probed downwards, reaching a depth of about forty feet where it encountered an extremely thick energy barrier.

The barrier's spiritual energy attribute was ancient and stable, exactly like the Xuan You Sect's formations he had encountered in the branch halls and the flow guidance system. The barrier's surface was covered with dense restrictive array patterns, layered at least three times.

Third-tier superior restriction.

Li Yuan carefully scanned the structure of the restriction with his enhanced senses.

One layer deflects the divine sense, another seals off the physical passage, and a third serves as a warning against backlash. With these three combined, let alone Foundation Establishment, even an ordinary Golden Core cultivator would be unable to break through silently.

To break through silently, one needs at least a third-tier perfected or even higher level of array formation mastery.

I'm currently at level three proficiency, but I'm still far from it.

Li Yuan withdrew his senses.

Just as they were about to leave, Dark Fiend Insight detected an extremely faint signal in a crevice in the rock strata about ten feet directly above the entrance to the ruins.

It is not a naturally occurring fluctuation of spiritual energy.

Li Yuan stopped and focused his senses on that spot.

The 30% sensitivity boost from the slightly enhanced array sense played a crucial role at this moment. The signal was so weak that it almost blended into the residual spiritual energy in the rocky background. If it weren't for the combined effects of Golden Core stage divine sense, Dark Fiend Insight, and the slightly enhanced array sense, it would have been impossible to distinguish it from the background noise.

That was a hidden formation.

The array was extremely small, with only three key nodes embedded in the rock crevices, covered by rubble and soil. Its function was passive monitoring—recording any spiritual energy fluctuations approaching the entrance to the ruins and storing the information in the key nodes, waiting for the array's creator to return and retrieve it.

This is not the work of the Demonic Sect. The style of the array patterns is completely different from that of the Dark Abyss Society, and the spiritual energy attributes are more positive and pure, making it more like the work of a righteous sect cultivator.

Someone came here, left a monitoring array, and then left.

This incident itself speaks volumes. The news of the Dry Bone Ridge ruins wasn't only known to the Demonic Sect; at least one other force had taken notice of the place and was continuing to monitor it.

It's impossible to determine at this time whether it's the Tianyue Sect, the Yuanyang Sect, or some other force.

Li Yuan did not touch the monitoring array. Touching it would leave a trace, which would be tantamount to telling the other party that a third person had been there.

He slipped underground from another direction and silently left the Dry Bone Ridge using earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a type of magic that allows one to escape from underground).

It was already the next morning when we returned to the market.

Xu Zhang was waiting at the entrance of the management office early on.

"Master, the Chamber of Commerce headquarters has sent a reply." Xu Zhang handed over a series of wax-sealed letters, a perfectly timed smile on his face.

Li Yuan opened the letter.

The content is brief: The Mingyuan Chamber of Commerce headquarters approves of the operation of Wulin Market and decides to send two more managers, establish one additional elixir shop and one spiritual material purchasing point, with the required manpower and start-up resources fully borne by the Chamber of Commerce. At the same time, Xu Zhang, the manager stationed in Liangzhou, is authorized to independently expand business lines within the market area.

After reading the letter, Li Yuan placed it on the table.

"Is the Chamber of Commerce also active in other parts of Liangzhou?"

Xu Zhang was slightly taken aback, then nodded.

"We're well-informed. Headquarters is indeed considering the layout of several other towns and cities in Liangzhou, not just Wulin. The specific locations are still being surveyed, but the direction has been decided."

The situation in Liangzhou is becoming increasingly tense. Both the Tianyue Sect and the Shamo Sect are increasing their investment, leaving the Yuanyang Sect caught in the middle and overwhelmed. The fact that the Mingyuan Chamber of Commerce is expanding instead of shrinking at this time indicates that what the Chamber of Commerce sees is different from what ordinary independent cultivators see.

Chaos breeds business opportunities. Either you're betting that Liangzhou will eventually stabilize, and the post-war reconstruction period will be a period of explosive profits; or the chamber of commerce has a stronger backer and isn't worried about the risks of localized conflict.

Li Yuan did not press the matter further.

"The additional shops can be opened; I'll decide on the locations."

"Of course," Xu Zhang nodded with a smile.

After Xu Zhang left, Li Yuan took a walk around the market.

The market is becoming more crowded.

The place was constantly filled with fleeing cultivators, members of small families who had lost their roots in the war, and low-level cultivators who came after hearing the news.

Because of the chaos in Liangzhou, Foundation Establishment cultivators are leaving, while the number of Qi Refining cultivators and ordinary people is skyrocketing, ultimately driving up basic consumption even further. The figures in the ledger are thicker than last month.

Because of the chaos in Liangzhou, Foundation Establishment cultivators are leaving, while the number of Qi Refining cultivators and ordinary people is skyrocketing, ultimately driving up basic consumption even further. The figures in the ledger are thicker than last month.

Resource reserves have increased significantly. The spirit stone reserves in the warehouse have exceeded the highest level since the establishment of the market.

Li Yuan closed the ledger.

"Does the spiritual material shop have any water-based cultivation techniques?"

Ji Wenchuan thought for a moment.

"I just acquired a batch of miscellaneous martial arts techniques a couple of days ago, and it seems there's a water-based one among them. I'll go take a look."

Half an hour later, Ji Wenchuan returned with a stack of jade slips, picked one out and handed it to Li Yuan.

"Cold Stream Technique. A first-tier, high-grade water-based cultivation method. After cultivation, the spiritual power gains the attribute of cold water. The quality is average, but its advantage lies in its orthodox approach, with no hidden dangers. The seller initially asked for fifteen spirit stones, but it was finally sold for twelve."

Li Yuan took the jade slip, probed it with his divine sense, and quickly browsed the circulation path of the cultivation technique.

The Cold Stream Technique is indeed the correct path. Its meridian pathways are well-organized, and while its spiritual energy conversion efficiency is not high, it is extremely stable, making it suitable as a foundation for water-based cultivation. The first-tier superior level is like taking one's first steps for a Golden Core cultivator, but the only requirement for the Water Spirit Sword to become permanent is to practice a water-based technique, without any restrictions on tier or proficiency.

He also had Ji Wenchuan retrieve a batch of second-tier refining materials from the warehouse: spirit silver ore, cold iron essence, star sand, and spirit pattern shaping liquid—the same types as those purchased last time at the White Mirror Market. The market's inventory of these materials was limited, but enough for two to three refining attempts.

That night, Li Yuan began practicing the Cold Stream Technique in the stone house.

For Golden Core cultivators, the first-tier cultivation technique has no technical barriers. Spiritual energy is drawn from the dantian and circulates through the unique meridian pathways of the Cold Stream Technique, completing a small cycle with minimal control.

First-tier cultivation techniques have virtually no threshold for those with a Golden Core foundation. Coupled with the layering of several cultivation terms, the progress of the Cold Stream Technique was astonishingly fast. Three days later, Li Yuan had directly pushed it to the Great Perfection stage.

[Hanxi Technique: From Beginner to Master]

The Cold Stream Technique has been perfected. The Ice Cone Technique is a water-based spell.

The conditions for making the Water Spirit Sword permanent have been met.

Li Yuan took out the Water Spirit Sword from his storage bag.

The pale blue blade shimmered with a soft, ethereal light at my fingertips. The moment I touched it, a control panel popped up.

[Equipable item detected: Water Spirit Sword (Complete)]

[Equipment Attribute Preview: Water Speed ​​Increase (White)]

[Effect: Increases the power of water-based spells by 10% and increases casting speed by 10%]

[Preview of Permanentization Requirements: Cultivate a water-based cultivation technique and water-based spells (Already met)]

"equipment."

[Equipped: Water Spirit Sword (Complete)]

[Waterway Speed ​​Increase (White) has become a permanent entry]

The phantom of the Water Spirit Sword flashed briefly in the equipment slot before turning into a white dot of light and merging into the body, freeing up the slot.

The power and casting speed of water spells are each increased by 10%. The output of Cone of Cold directly benefits from this, and when combined with stats like Frostbite Amplification, water spells have officially moved from being a support tool to a usable spell.

Li Yuan flexed his fingers, and an ice cone materialized in his palm.

The ice cones condensed about 10% faster than before, and the density and hardness of the cones also showed a noticeable increase. Although the increase wasn't remarkable on its own, the combined effect with other factors was quite significant.

He scattered the ice picks.

They then traveled to Mozhou via a teleportation array.

Near the core node of the spiritual vein, the nourishing nest of the jade bead continues to operate stably. The spiritual energy field supported by the three fragments of the same origin envelops the jade bead, and the spiritual vein energy continuously seeps into the bead from three directions.

Li Yuan used the Earth Vein Spirit Pivot to sense the repair status inside the jade bead.

Better than expected. The high concentration of energy in the core of the spiritual vein accelerated the filling of the cavities. The three shallowest cavities have been basically closed, and the corresponding surface cracks have been reduced by nearly 30%. However, the deeper cavities have not changed significantly. The penetration depth of the residual powder as a medium is limited, and higher quality auxiliary materials will be needed to reach the damage near the core of the bead.

Li Yuan adjusted the spiritual energy field parameters of the nest, changing the direction of energy penetration from a uniform distribution to a concentrated direction directed towards several larger cavities in the middle layer, and then left Mozhou.