Mortal: I have a gathering technique

Time flies when you're cultivating; half a year has passed in the blink of an eye.

Inside the cave dwelling of Xuankun Mountain, Fang Qing sat cross-legged, his body surging with spiritual energy.

A moment later, he suddenly opened his eyes, and a dazzling golden-red light shone from his pupils, looking like two golden lamps at a glance.

At this moment, Fang Qing felt a warm glow in his eyes, and his vision became clearer than ever before. When he looked up at the defensive array, he could even occasionally catch a glimpse of the array's movement.

"This [Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils] is truly extraordinary. Even at the beginner level, it has such effects; all my years of arduous training and research have been worthwhile."

Fang Qing observed the changes in the great formation with his Fiery Eyes of Truth, and a deep joy gradually appeared on his face.

The power of the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils was beyond imagination. Fang Qing was certain that under this pupil technique, ordinary invisibility techniques would be absolutely ineffective.

"With my Fiery Eyes of Truth protecting me, ambushes and sneak attacks are nothing to me. My journey to the forbidden area is practically guaranteed!"

Fang Qing smiled slightly, and the golden-red light in his eyes quickly faded.

For him, being able to cultivate the Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils before the forbidden area opened was definitely something to celebrate.

"Unfortunately, the [Firebird] spell was a little short; otherwise, we could have had another trump card."

Thinking about practicing spells, Fang Qing couldn't help but feel a headache. Although his talent in spell cultivation was slightly higher than that of the old demon, there was still a huge gap compared to the way of arrays and weapons.

There are indeed geniuses in Huangfeng Valley who can cultivate magic, such as Senior Brother Wu Feng from the Transmission Pavilion, and Senior Sister Nie Ying.

The former is very skilled in both cultivation techniques and basic to advanced spells.

The latter is even more remarkable, having mastered even the intermediate-level "Firebird Technique".

It should be noted that even after becoming a Foundation Establishment cultivator, the Old Demon was unable to learn the Firebird Technique.

Although Fang Qing's magical talent was better than the old demon's, he had only learned the basic advanced level of "Fire Feather Technique," and was still a little short of mastering the Firebird Technique.

If it weren't for the fact that things were difficult to do in Huangfeng Valley, he would have definitely captured Nie Ying and tried to collect some of her "magical talent".

However, to be fair, apart from the Muran mages in the south, there are really not many cultivators in this world who specialize in magic.

When cultivators engage in combat, they usually rely on external objects, such as magical artifacts, magical treasures, ancient treasures, spirit beasts, puppets, corpse demons, and so on.

The reason for this is that the cultivation world is not rich enough in resources, so they have external things to rely on.

Once cultivation resources become as scarce as those of the Mulan people, cultivators will naturally begin to study techniques.

After a moment of random thoughts, Fang Qing calmed himself down and began to consider the Blood Forbidden Trial.

"There are only seven or eight days left until the forbidden area opens. Spending that time on Firebird Spell is definitely pointless. I'd better go to the market and see if the items I ordered have arrived."

The disciples of Huangfeng Valley have one opportunity to go out each year. Two years ago, Fang Qing went to Huangfeng Valley Market.

On that occasion, he ordered two items from "Wanbaolou," the largest shop in the market.

He received one of them right away, but there has been no news about the remaining one, and he doesn't know if he will be able to get it this time.

If there is still no news, then we will have to go to Li Huayuan.

With that in mind, Fang Qing prepared to set off.

Unexpectedly, at that moment, a sound transmission talisman suddenly appeared on the array's light screen.

Fang Qing looked over and discovered that the person who came was actually Han Li.

He opened the light screen and welcomed Han Li in.

"Junior brother, please have a seat."

The two sat down at the stone table in the main hall of the cave.

"Junior brother, is there something important that you've come to see me at this time?" Fang Qing asked curiously.

Han Li took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Senior brother, I've come to borrow spirit stones from you."

Borrowing spirit stones?

Fang Qing was slightly taken aback. Could these words really come out of Han Laomo's mouth?

At first glance, Fang Qing was dumbfounded, but after thinking about it carefully, he immediately understood Han Li's predicament.

With the Blood Forbidden Trial about to begin, Han Li will definitely participate. For his safety, he will certainly be thinking about buying some powerful treasures for self-defense.

But because of my intervention, this guy is not as ignorant as he was in the original story, and dares to sell spiritual herbs directly.

Left with no other choice, he had to borrow spirit stones from his senior brother.

Upon realizing this, Fang Qing couldn't help but smile. "Junior Brother, how much are you planning to borrow?"

Han Li seemed to have planned this all along, and without any hesitation, he asked directly, "At least three thousand. Is that readily available, Senior Brother?"

Fang Qing's eyes flickered slightly. He could come up with three thousand spirit stones, but for Han Li to lend so many at once, could it be that he had already set his sights on a treasure?

Fang Qing was secretly speculating, unaware that Han Li had already visited the market yesterday.

At the time, he had more than a thousand spirit stones that he had saved up over the years, as well as a six-hundred-year-old spirit herb, and he thought it would be more than enough for him.

Surprisingly, they stumbled upon a magical talisman.

Without saying a word, he used most of his wealth to acquire the talisman.

But even though the talisman is good, he can't rely on just one. Besides, he was very tempted by the other items he encountered yesterday.

After much deliberation, he finally decided to borrow spirit stones from Fang Qing.

Although Fang Qing didn't know the details, since it was rare for Han Laomo to speak up, he figured he might as well give him this favor. So he counted out three thousand spirit stones and handed them to Han Li.

"Thank you, Senior Brother. Don't worry, I promise to pay back the spirit stones within a year once we leave the forbidden area."

Han Li was deeply moved by Fang Qing's straightforwardness.

Fang Qing smiled and asked, "Junior Brother, are you going to the market? If so, why don't we go together?"

Han Li was already worried that the items he had his eye on would be bought by someone else, so when he heard that Fang Qing was also going to the market, he immediately agreed.

The two then left their cave dwelling, each releasing a flying boat, and sped towards the market.

…………

Wanbaoge.

As soon as Han Lifu arrived, he went straight to the VIP reception room on the second floor. When he came out, his eyes were filled with undisguised joy.

Another secret room nearby.

Fang Qing leaned back in his armchair, and soon after, Manager Tian from Wanbaoge came out carrying a small wooden box.

Seeing this, Fang Qing was overjoyed, thinking that the item had been found.

Unexpectedly, once Manager Tian spoke, he realized he had been too optimistic.

Manager Tian smiled wryly:

"I'm sorry, fellow Daoist, the kind of treasure you requested cannot be found anywhere in the surrounding area. As a compromise, we can only try this item."

As he spoke, he pushed the wooden box in front of Fang Qing and continued:

"While this item may not meet your requirements, it's more than enough to knock out a Foundation Establishment cultivator. I wonder if you're satisfied?"

Upon hearing this, Fang Qing opened the box and saw a white pill the size of a pigeon egg lying inside.

"This item is called the Bewitching Bead. As soon as it gets wet, it will emit a colorless and odorless mist. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator who accidentally inhales it will fall into a deep sleep."

Manager Tian offered an explanation at the opportune moment.

Fang Qing squinted, pondered for a moment, nodded slightly, and bought it.

Although what he wanted was a drug that could charm Core Formation cultivators, this one was passable and might still be effective.

Next, Fang Qing and Han Li didn't stay in the market for long. After strolling around for a while, they headed straight back home.