After leaving school, because Lin Ruyu was taking Yun Rumo to treat some chronic internal ailments today, Lin Moyu decided to try his luck at the black market.
Of course, the black market was not some shady place for fencing stolen goods, but rather a commercial street exclusively for cultivators. It kept the name "black market" purely out of tradition. Fencing stolen goods had been a traditional practice among cultivators since ancient times, and even though technology had advanced greatly, the old name persisted.
When Lin Moyu arrived at the entrance of the black market and passed through a high-tech-looking gate, he said in slight surprise, "Is this spiritual technology?"
Despite the technological explosion of the modern era, spiritual technology aimed at cultivators was not particularly eye-catching. After all, in this world of Shenzhou where True Immortals actually existed, longevity was not some vague, ethereal concept, but an established fact.
Aside from providing better services to cultivators, spiritual technology offered no major breakthroughs and could not be used for alchemy, weapon crafting, or talisman making. These seemingly ordinary crafts were actually the products of the Rules and Laws of heaven and earth. Just as a Heavenly Immortal had once put it: "The Rules and Laws of heaven and earth do not like technology!"
Upon detecting spiritual fluctuations within Lin Moyu, the gate automatically opened, then closed tightly right after he passed through. Ordinary people simply could not enter unless guided by a cultivator.
The black market was packed with people and bustling with activity, but Lin Moyu, who preferred quiet, felt somewhat out of place in such an environment. Still, keeping his goal in mind, he walked toward his destination.
Xuanbao Pavilion.
"This really looks rather impressive!" Lin Moyu muttered with a sense of awe, looking at the standard-issue magic tools worn by the two tier-2 guardian puppets.
One had to know that even Lin Moyu's mother possessed only a single tier-1 mid-grade magic tool—the Primordial Pen—while he himself owned nothing more than an unranked talisman brush. Of course, aside from the talisman brush in Lin Moyu's hand, Lin Ruyu's Primordial Pen was by no means cheap; it was a functional auxiliary magic tool whose price far exceeded that of standard magic tools of the same tier.
As soon as he stepped inside, a maid immediately hurried over and asked, "Sir, what can I help you find? Are you looking to purchase magic tools, pills, or—"
"Take me to the Scripture Pavilion, please!" Lin Moyu skillfully sidestepped the maid who was trying to link arms with him.
Without showing the slightest trace of embarrassment, the maid replied respectfully, "Certainly, sir!"
Following behind the maid and looking at the thin gauze of her dress, Lin Moyu thought without a shred of desire, "This Xuanbao Pavilion certainly knows how to save on costs. The guards are guardian puppets, and the maids are top-tier mortal beauties."
Guided by the maid, Lin Moyu soon arrived at the large underground data center built by Xuanbao Pavilion. To say that spiritual technology was useless would be entirely incorrect; but to say it was completely useful would also be wrong.
An ultra-large spiritual supercomputing center could deduce a completely unprecedented, flawless Heaven-tier cultivation technique in a single day, and the same applied to divine arts and mystical techniques. Although the supercomputer had yet to successfully calculate a single Immortal-grade cultivation technique, there was a belief that as technology drove the advancement of spiritual technology, the day would eventually come when an Immortal-grade cultivation technique could be successfully computed.
"Isn't this the exact same thing as crypto mining?" Lin Moyu inexplicably thought of the Bitcoin of his past life.
"Sir, ahead is the Scripture Pavilion of our Xuanbao Pavilion. Once inside, sir, you can input any keywords. The spiritual storage center of Xuanbao Pavilion houses nearly one hundred thousand Huang-tier and Xuan-tier cultivation techniques."
"Are there no Heaven-tier and Earth-tier techniques?" Lin Moyu asked casually.
"Of course there are, but the prerequisite is that sir, you must reach a certain cultivation realm before they become accessible. Naturally, if this is your first time choosing a technique and you possess spirit roots, you may select one Xuan-tier cultivation technique from Xuanbao Pavilion free of charge." The maid informed Lin Moyu of the rules of the Scripture Pavilion before taking her leave.
Unfortunately, the cultivator registry already stated that no spirit roots had been detected in Lin Moyu, and as for the asset of acquiring spirit roots postnatally, he had no way to explain the existence of his Blood Spirit Root. Furthermore, the Blood Spirit Root was not one of the common spirit roots like Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth, Wind, Rain, Lightning, or Thunder, but rather an extremely rare type among special spirit roots.
Entering the Scripture Pavilion, Lin Moyu found a holographic screen and typed in his keyword: "Blood-path cultivation technique."
**Blood Spirit Affinity Art**
Type: Blood-path cultivation technique
Rank: Xuan-tier lower grade
Synopsis: Once cultivated, allows free control over the circulation of one's own blood Qi, substantially enhancing physical strength, with a maximum cultivation potential up to Foundation Establishment Perfection.
Drawbacks: Cultivation causes depletion of blood Qi, requiring daily replenishment. Prolonged blood Qi deficiency will impair the foundations of cultivation.
**Blood Condensing Drop Technique**
Type: Blood-path cultivation technique
Rank: Xuan-tier mid-grade
Synopsis: Once cultivated, greatly enhances mastery over blood. Upon mastery, allows one to freely control blood circulation, vastly boosting physical and blood recovery capabilities.
Drawbacks: Initial cultivation requires a tier-1 spiritual herb, the Blood Basin Plant, to assist cultivation. The combat boost is respectable, but the boost to cultivation progress is minimal.
Frowning, Lin Moyu muttered, "What kind of junk is all this? Such terrible cultivation techniques!"
Just as Lin Moyu was frowning and preparing to continue searching for a suitable technique, a provocative voice came from afar: "Who do I thought it was? If it isn't Moyu, you toad trying to eat swan meat!"
With a cold look in his eyes, Lin Moyu turned around and felt a jolt in his heart upon seeing who had arrived.
A man dressed in a long Daoist robe walked up to the terminal in front of Lin Moyu, glanced at the cultivation techniques displayed on the screen, and said, "Oh? Rejected by the school belle, so you want to cultivate a blood-path technique to boost your strength and make a stunning comeback?"
With a bitter smile, Lin Moyu replied, "I wouldn't dare."
The man patted Lin Moyu on the shoulder, leaned close to his ear, and whispered, "I was the one who sent people to kill you that night, and the school belle you confessed to has already been taken by me."
With a calm expression in his eyes, Lin Moyu nodded and said, "I know all about it. Congratulations to you both!"
"Hmph, boring." The man patted Lin Moyu's shoulder again and walked straight away.
Watching the man's retreating figure, Lin Moyu's eyes betrayed no emotion whatsoever as he slowly turned back to continue browsing for the cultivation technique he needed.
"A gentleman takes revenge ten years later—just you all wait!" Lin Moyu knew that at this moment, he must not show any desire for revenge; a Foundation Establishment alchemist was simply not someone he could fight against.
In the distance, after leaving and recalling Lin Moyu's reaction, Li Zihang thought to himself, "What an absolute coward, didn't even dare to make a move."
It was Lin Moyu's first time visiting such a place; although he had guessed how things worked, he didn't know the exact details—anyone who dared to start a fight in the Scripture Pavilion would be executed on the spot by a Golden Core cultivator. Fortunately, Lin Moyu was extremely prudent and never did anything without absolute certainty, thus successfully avoiding this catastrophe.