Cultivation: I can solidify equipment attributes

Chapter 507 Earth Wall Talisman

The auction was held in the newly built council hall at the end of the main east street.

The hall can accommodate over a hundred people. The stone walls are inlaid with spirit-gathering array patterns, and the concentration of spiritual energy is much higher than outside. In front of it is a wooden platform about half a person's height, covered with a dark blue velvet cloth, with a spirit fire lamp on each side, illuminating the platform brightly.

When Li Yuan arrived, the hall was already full of people.

A quick glance revealed nearly a hundred cultivators seated on stone chairs, mostly Foundation Establishment cultivators, with a dozen or so Qi Refining late-stage rogue cultivators squeezed into the back. Several Golden Core cultivators were in private rooms, their auras concealed.

Li Yuan took his seat in a small pavilion to the side of the main hall. The pavilion door was half-open, offering a panoramic view of the entire auction hall, but it was not easily noticed by people outside.

Xu Zhang sat next to him, holding a list of auction items in his hand.

On the wooden platform, the auctioneer from the Mingyuan Chamber of Commerce was already in place. He was a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator in his forties, with a capable face, a loud voice, and an air of experience in every gesture.

"Fellow Daoists, the first auction of Qinghe Market is officially starting."

The auctioneer placed the first item on the table: a second-tier superior-grade Azure Water Sword, its blade shimmering with a pale blue watery light, its spiritual energy fluctuations stable.

"Starting bid: fifteen mid-grade spirit stones. Each bid must be at least one spirit stone higher."

The bidding immediately began.

The price of the Azure Water Sword rose from fifteen to twenty-eight before being won by a rogue cultivator in the late Foundation Establishment stage.

The auctioneer controlled the pace very well. After each item was brought to the stage, he would first point out its key selling points in two or three sentences, allowing enough time for bidding, and then urge the bids on when the bidding slowed down, without being slow or impatient.

The first ten items were all second-tier magic artifacts and spiritual materials, priced from a dozen to forty-odd mid-grade spirit stones. The main bidders were Foundation Establishment cultivators, and the atmosphere was lively yet orderly.

Starting with the eleventh item, the quality of the auctioned items clearly improved.

Several high-grade second-tier magic artifacts provided by Li Yuan made their appearance one after another. These included a miniature version of the Sea Essence Short Sword, a double-sided Spirit-Breaking Talisman Shield, and several Spirit-Gathering Beads. Their quality was stable, and their spiritual energy transmission efficiency was significantly higher than that of similar products on the market.

The bidding intensified. A second-tier high-grade short sword fetched sixty mid-grade spirit stones, far exceeding the starting price.

Two Shangyuan Pills were reserved for the end of the first day.

The moment the pills were placed on the table, the atmosphere in the hall changed immediately.

The Shangyuan Pill is a Foundation Establishment pill. Although the Foundation Establishment cultivators present cannot use it, that does not prevent them from giving it to their family disciples.

It is even more attractive to Qi Refining cultivators, but they are powerless to compete.

The first Shangyuan Pill was sold for 210 mid-grade spirit stones, and the second for 240.

The auctioneer announced the end of the first day of auction.

The cultivators in the hall dispersed in twos and threes, many with satisfied expressions, holding the magical artifacts and spiritual materials they had just acquired.

Xu Zhang flipped through the transaction records on the list and said in a low voice, "The total transaction amount on the first day has exceeded the revenue of Wulin Market for half a year."

Of course, transaction volume is transaction volume, and profit is profit.

Li Yuan didn't respond, his gaze falling on the two numbers on the list that Xu Zhang had circled in vermilion.

Bronze Order and Ink Spirit Brush.

As arranged beforehand, these two consignment items with entries were auctioned off by a trusted steward from the market. The bidding process didn't attract much attention; the bronze token was won for thirty mid-grade spirit stones, and the ink spirit brush for twenty-five.

The items were quickly delivered to the small pavilion.

Li Yuan accepted the two items.

[Equipable item detected: Tier 2 Bronze Token (Complete)]

[Equipment Attribute Preview: Unyielding Will (Green)]

[Effect: Duration of defensive spells increased by 20%; defensive effect increased by 30%]

[Preview of conditions for permanentization: Survive for more than one incense stick's time while being surrounded by three or more cultivators of the same level, or three or more second-tier demonic beasts]

[Equipable item detected: Tier 2 Ink Spirit Brush (Complete)]

[Equipment Attribute Preview: Ink Spirit Mastery (Green)]

[Effect: Increases the precision of spirit ink control during talisman making by 20%; slightly increases the success rate of talisman production]

[Preview of Permanent Status Conditions: Successfully crafting a Tier 2 talisman daily for 30 days]

He then stored it in his personal space. Since the conditions for permanentization haven't been met yet, he can only leave it for now.

the next day.

The number of people in the auction hall was nearly 30% less than on the first day.

Most of those who left were Qi Refining cultivators and weaker Foundation Establishment cultivators. Yesterday's second-tier auction items had already exhausted their budgets, and today's auction items were of a higher grade and would only be more expensive, so staying would just mean watching from the sidelines.

The morning session continued with the closing of the second-tier auction items. Several second-tier magical artifacts and spiritual materials of decent quality were sold, with prices lower than yesterday but still relatively stable.

In the afternoon, the auctioneer cleared his throat.

"Next, we will move on to the third stage of the auction."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

The Foundation Establishment cultivators in the back row sat up straight in unison. Although they knew they probably couldn't afford to bid, the appearance of the third-tier magic weapon was worth seeing in itself.

The first item in the third tier of auction was brought to the stage.

A third-grade low-level crimson silver talisman, crafted by Li Yuan. Its surface is covered with extremely fine spiritual patterns, making its spiritual energy transmission efficiency extremely high.

"Starting bid: 100 mid-grade spirit stones."

In the end, the female cultivator from the Bitan Sect won the deal for 220 yuan.

Li Yuan sat calmly in the small pavilion, watching the Golden Core cultivators bid against each other.

One of the two demon beast inner cores was auctioned off for a high price of five hundred mid-grade spirit stones.

The auction is entering its final stage.

The auctioneer placed the last few miscellaneous items on the table. These included cultivation manuals, array materials, and talisman-making tools—a diverse array.

One of the jade slips caught Li Yuan's attention.

The surface of the jade slip was engraved with earth-elemental spiritual patterns. It was not new, as if it had been unearthed from some old collection.

The auctioneer picked up the jade slip and introduced: "The method for making a second-tier earthen wall talisman includes the complete talisman structure and talisman-making process."

Starting bid: thirty mid-grade spirit stones.

Earthen wall talisman.

Defensive talismans. The cultivators present weren't very interested in these; the demand for earth-type talismans was already low, and the crafting method for second-tier talismans was even more obscure.

There were very few bids; only one Foundation Establishment cultivator bid ten.

Xu Zhang glanced at Li Yuan.

Li Yuan nodded slightly.

Xu Zhang gave a wink to the auction manager below, who raised his hand and offered: "Fifteen yuan."

Nobody followed.

Fifteen mid-grade spirit stones were sold.

The auction has concluded.

After the auctioneer announced the end of the auction, the cultivators left one after another. Several Golden Core cultivators exchanged a few words of greeting at the entrance before transforming into streaks of light and departing from Qinghe Market.

Li Yuan returned to the secluded meditation room in the lord's mansion and closed the stone door.

He took out the jade slip for making the earth wall talisman from his personal space.

My divine sense probed in, and the contents were complete.

The Earth Wall Talisman's rune structure is based on earth-elemental spiritual power. Once activated, it can condense an earth-attribute defensive barrier in front of the user.

The strength of the barrier is directly proportional to the spiritual power infused by the talisman maker, and it can withstand the direct impact of a mid-grade second-tier spell.

The design concept of the runes differed from the defensive runes Li Yuan had encountered before. Most defensive runes work by condensing spiritual energy into a uniform shield, while the Earth Wall Rune channeled spiritual energy along specific patterns into the earth, amplifying its defensive effect with the help of the earth-elemental spiritual energy within the ley lines. Where there were ley lines beneath one's feet, the defensive strength of the Earth Wall Rune could be doubled.

Take out the talisman paper and spirit ink.

After making two strokes with his finger, the talisman was complete.

A green light appeared within a three-foot radius.

[Equipable item detected: Earth Wall Charm (Complete)]

[Equipment Attribute Preview: Earth Wall Sensor (Green)]

[Effect: Reduces spiritual energy consumption by 20% when casting defensive spells; provides early warning of attacks coming from the ground]

[Preview of Permanentization Conditions: Successfully block attacks of level 2 or higher with earth-based defensive spells a total of 15 times]

Green attribute. The effect is biased towards defense; the reduction in spirit energy consumption and the ground attack warning are both very useful.

Li Yuan stored the earthen wall talisman in his personal space, not in a hurry to equip it. The conditions for permanentization were still far from being met, so he would leave it for later.

Next is the second thing.

Although the structure of the earth wall talisman falls under the category of talisman making, its core principle of spiritual power penetrating the earth and amplifying through the earth's veins can be completely separated from the talisman paper and transformed into an independent spell.

Li Yuan reopened the jade slip and mentally dissected the structure of the earthen wall talisman.

The three root-like main runes in the rune are essentially the paths through which spiritual energy penetrates the earth's surface and resonates with the earth-elemental spiritual energy within the ley lines, condensing into a solid barrier.

If you can simulate this path and structure directly with your own spiritual power without using talismans and spiritual ink, you can achieve the same effect.

The difference lies in the fact that talismans solidify spiritual energy onto the talisman paper, releasing it all at once upon activation. Spells, on the other hand, activate spiritual energy in real time, maintaining their effect continuously. They offer greater flexibility but also consume more spiritual energy.

Li Yuan closed his eyes, channeling his spiritual energy into the extremities of his feet, and then channeling it towards the ground along the pathways he had deciphered in his mind.

The spiritual energy passed through the stone floor of the meditation chamber and seeped into the rock strata below. Upon contact with the extremely thin earth-elemental spiritual energy within the rock strata, the divine sense controlling the spiritual energy detected a faint resonance feedback.

The resonance was very weak. There were no ley lines beneath the meditation chamber, and the concentration of earth-elemental spiritual energy was extremely low, so the amplification effect was negligible.

But the framework of the spell was established.

Li Yuan adjusted the way he output his spiritual power several times, gradually finding the most efficient resonance frequency. His spiritual power was output from the soles of his feet, penetrating the ground, resonating with the earth elemental energy, then converging and surging upwards, condensing into a semi-transparent, earth-yellow barrier in front of him.

The barrier shattered and dissipated after only two breaths. The spiritual power was insufficient, and the amplification of the resonance was also inadequate, but the spell itself had already been successfully executed.

Earthen wall construction.

This defensive spell is derived from the principle of the Earth Wall Talisman. The denser the earth elemental energy beneath one's feet, the stronger the defense.

Li Yuan opened his eyes and fixed the path of the spell in his mind.

Further practice is needed to improve proficiency and defensive strength, but the basics have been mastered.

He finished his practice, stood up, and pushed open the door to the secluded meditation room.

As darkness fell, the lights of the market town twinkled in the night.