Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

After the light from the teleportation array faded, the familiar spiritual energy from the depths of Mozhou rushed towards us.

Li Yuan strode quickly along the passage toward the core area of ​​the spiritual vein. The spiritual energy, so dense it was almost liquid, flowed through the underground cave, and with each breath, he could feel the spiritual power pulsating slightly within his meridians.

Instead of staying at the core nodes, he turned to the outskirts of the settlement.

The first two spiritual veins were refined in the outer sea of ​​Shuizhou. He had already chosen his target for the third one—a branch of a spiritual vein about half a mile outside the settlement area of ​​Mozhou.

Li Yuan sat cross-legged on a flat rock surface directly above the branch vein to establish a connection.

The process of establishing the connection was extremely easy. This spiritual vein had already been permanently established by himself, and he could control the subtle flow of spiritual energy.

The Xuanming Sha Gong was activated, and demonic energy surged from the dantian, enveloping the ends of the branch meridians.

Half a day later, a deep rumble echoed through the rock strata.

The final adhesions broke, and the branch veins, like vines uprooted, were drawn into Li Yuan's body by spiritual energy.

The third spiritual vein was much larger than the other two. The moment it entered the body, the two previously refined outer sea miniature spiritual veins responded simultaneously. The three spiritual veins attracted and intersected with each other, eventually stabilizing in three different locations, forming a miniature triangular spiritual vein cycle.

The effect of having three spiritual veins coexisting goes far beyond a simple superposition of spiritual energy supply. A weak but stable resonance is generated between the three spiritual veins, and the spiritual energy is further purified in the resonance, with a concentration and utilization efficiency that are much higher than when there is only one spiritual vein.

A panel pops up.

[The conditions for making the Spirit Vein Refinement (Blue) permanent have been met (3/3)]

[Spirit Vein Refining (Blue) has become a permanent entry]

The illusory image of the portable abode shattered in the equipment slot, turning into blue light spots that merged into the body. The slot became free.

The change is profound.

Li Yuan closed his eyes, sensing the new abilities within his body. In the past, he had to rely on his personal cave dwelling to suppress, regulate, and control the several refining spiritual veins within his body; but now, this spiritual vein cycle had been completely solidified into a part of his body.

The three spiritual veins are no longer just foreign objects temporarily attached to the equipment, but truly reside around the dantian and between the secondary veins of the whole body, forming an independent and stable small cycle.

The three refined spiritual veins were now quietly coiled in the meridian network surrounding his dantian, like three small streams flowing into the main river, continuously supplying him with spiritual energy.

Even in the Spirit-Severed Zone, these three spiritual veins can continuously supply spiritual energy, more than enough to sustain daily cultivation and basic needs.

With the purple attribute of "spiritual vein nurturing" and the green permanent attribute of "earth vein resonance," his efficiency in utilizing spiritual veins has been pushed to an extremely terrifying level.

After assessing the burden on his body, Li Yuan felt he could refine four or five more small spiritual veins.

Over the next few days, he did not rush to leave Melbourne.

So he simply spread out talisman paper next to the core of the spiritual vein and began making talismans.

He no longer limited himself to the few talismans he was already proficient in, but instead began to recreate all the talisman types he had mastered in the second-order talisman-making system. For each talisman he made, he scanned the energy trajectory inside the finished product with the permanent entries of the array base backtracking, comparing it with the Xuan You Sect array structure and the folding logic of the third-order fragment diagram stored in his mind, looking for every node that could be optimized.

This method of making talismans is extremely energy-consuming and requires a great deal of spiritual power, but its effects are also very remarkable.

Each talisman was pushing him to a deeper level of understanding of the array pattern layout.

On the evening of the third day, when Li Yuan finished making more than 120 talismans, the talisman brush in his hand hovered at the end of the last spiritual rune.

The spiritual ink dripped from the tip of the brush, but instead of landing on the talisman paper, it condensed into a perfect sphere in mid-air. After hovering for a moment, it gently fell and precisely embedded itself into the last node reserved on the talisman paper.

Naturally.

A panel pops up.

[Second-Tier Talisman Making Technique: Mastery → Perfection]

The second-order talisman-making process is complete.

Li Yuan put down the talisman brush and moved his slightly stiff fingers.

The difference between Perfection and Mastery lies not in the success rate—the success rate at the Mastery stage is already extremely high—but in the upper limit of the quality of each talisman. After Perfection, talismans made with the same materials and the same formula will have a visible leap in power and durability.

After tidying up his talisman-making tools, Li Yuan got up and headed to the settlement area.

Old Shen was sitting in his usual spot at the entrance, still whittling a wooden cane in his hand. Next to him squatted A-Cheng, distributing rations to the children.

"Here we go again." Old Shen raised his eyelids slightly.

"I brought supplies." Li Yuan placed a storage bag on the stone bench, which contained a batch of daily necessities purchased from Yunyang Market.

Old Shen nodded and handed the storage bag to Acheng.

Li Yuan sat down on the stone bench and chatted with Old Shen for a while about the current situation in the community. After a few turns in the conversation, he asked a question he hadn't asked before.

Li Yuan sat down on the stone bench and chatted with Old Shen for a while about the current situation in the community. After a few turns in the conversation, he asked a question he hadn't asked before.

"Among the things passed down from your ancestors, is there any inheritance related to demonic magic?"

Old Shen paused for a moment while whittling the wooden cane.

"There are some." He thought for a moment, "Just the same thing. Mozhou was originally the location of the Xuanmai, so there aren't many demonic cultivators, and we are just remnants of the past."

Old Shen then unfolded the rolled-up animal skin.

"This is a demonic spell. It's second-tier. It's called Shadow Step."

Shadow Step.

Li Yuan took the animal hide and quickly scanned its contents with his divine sense.

The second-tier demonic energy spell allows for short-distance teleportation within shadows using demonic energy. The distance is very short, at most about three zhang (approximately 10 meters), but its advantage lies in its extremely high speed and almost no casting delay.

The value of this spell lies not in its power, but in the fact that it belongs to the category of demonic magic.

The condition for making the Dark Demon Cultivation attribute on the bronze mirror permanent is to master three demonic spells of minor skill level or above.

One more step is needed to complete the requirements for the three demonic energy spells.

"What's the price of this?"

Old Shen waved his hand.

"You always bring supplies when you come, and you've helped us solve a lot of problems. These things are just gathering dust at the bottom of the box, so you can take them. If you really want to pay me, bring more spirit herb seeds next time. We've opened up some new land behind the settlement, and we're short of seeds."

"OK."

Li Yuan carefully put away the animal hide, then found a quiet corner next to the settlement and sat down cross-legged.

First, learn the Shadow Step.

The energy pathways recorded on the animal hide were extremely concise. Unlike orthodox magic, demonic magic typically uses shorter and more direct energy pathways, prioritizing speed and explosive power over precision and endurance.

The core of the Shadow Step consists of only one step—instantly channeling demonic energy into the meridians of both legs, tearing open a very short channel of demonic energy in the shadow-covered area, and using the channel to move the body.

For Li Yuan, mastering the second-tier demonic energy spell took less than half an hour.

Continue moving forward once you've mastered the skills.

[Shadow Step: Proficient → Master]

Li Yuan stood up and stretched his legs, which were slightly numb from sitting cross-legged for a long time.

On the stone walls of the settlement, several spirit stone lamps emitted a warm yellow light. In the distance, the laughter of the remnant children echoed through the empty caverns underground.

Li Yuan put away the animal hide and jade slip and walked towards the teleportation array.

The second phase of the Sanzhou trade route is not yet finished; goods from Jingzhou and Shuizhou are still waiting to be delivered.