As the hour of the rat passed, the scorching air suddenly turned chilly, and an icy rain began to fall from the sky.
Zhu Wu held up an umbrella, feeling the change in the air.
"Hot... cold... Yang... Yin..." Zhu Wu slowly circulated his true qi. "It seems I can make a breakthrough? Could this also be considered a place where Yin and Yang converge?"
Four hours later, the snow lotus fruits were ripe.
Zhu Wu had heard from Xie Li that they were useless, so he casually plucked a dozen of them and put them away.
Dawn broke.
Zhu Wu was still shivering all over. Although the umbrella blocked the icy rain, the freezing air was impossible to keep out.
Zhu Wu cleared a patch of ground, laid down a piece of cloth, and began to sit cross-legged to circulate his qi.
As soon as the morning sun emerged, heat followed right behind it.
Half an incense stick of time passed, and the chill vanished entirely. His whole body radiated heat as if burning.
It felt similar to past sensations before a breakthrough, but his cultivation realm showed no signs of loosening whatsoever.
*Is the duration not long enough?* Zhu Wu thought to himself as he walked toward Mobei City, as Xie Li had mentioned.
Even though it would take a few days longer than his scheduled return to the sect, since the city was right before his eyes, it would be unreasonable not to go take a look.
Mobei City was three times the size of Luoyue City.
The south of Mobei City led to the monster beast forest, the west to the Mobei ruins, and the east to the Great Capital. Therefore, despite being located in a barren desert, there was an immense number of cultivators coming and going.
The monster beast forest was generally populated by monster beasts of the fifth rank and above, and numerous cultivators rushed there aiming for monster cores.
Dozens of secret realms of various sizes were scattered throughout the Mobei ruins, occasionally yielding ancient divine treasures and legacy cultivation techniques, making it a dreamland for many rogue cultivators.
The Great Capital was roughly ten times the size of Mobei, with several major sects situated within it, and the main branch of the Bright Moon Sect was also located there.
Zhu Wu walked up to the city gate, produced his sect token to register, and entered the city.
There were not many people in the early morning.
A rogue cultivator hurried over to Zhu Wu, smiling as he asked, "Little brother, where are you from? Do you need a guide?"
"No need." Zhu Wu knew there was no such thing as a free lunch.
"Just one low-grade spirit stone will do, I guarantee you'll be satisfied!" The rogue cultivator enthusiastically tagged along beside Zhu Wu.
*So expensive...* Zhu Wu muttered inwardly. "Thanks, I'll just look around on my own."
"Little brother, there are some places you won't be able to find without us leading the way, and you won't even be able to get in. You might miss out on tremendous opportunities."
"Places like the second floor of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, the second floor of the Heavenly Fragrance Tower, and the black market..." the rogue cultivator continued to introduce.
"Thanks, I don't have spirit stones for those places either." Zhu Wu continued to decline.
"Little brother, seeing as you're new here, how about this: I can provide you with some information for free. If you find it valuable, you can give me spirit stones then, how about that?" the rogue cultivator pressed on.
"Tomorrow, the second floor of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion is holding an auction, featuring mysterious-tier cultivation techniques and dharma artifacts."
"The Heavenly Fragrance Tower is running a promotion recently, waiving the bill for the first ten new customers every day."
"The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion has calculated that a secret realm will manifest soon, though information about the secret realm will have to be purchased at the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion."
"Also, that spirit fruit shop taking a left ahead has the lowest prices, a cultivation technique shop in the east district has the lowest prices, and there's a dharma artifact shop on the right with the lowest prices..." Sensing that Zhu Wu wasn't particularly wealthy, the rogue cultivator changed tack and shared some ordinary information instead.
"How about it? If you're not interested in those, I can take you to the black market! Dharma artifacts and cultivation techniques are even cheaper there, and you'll never find it without someone to guide you."
"How many spirit stones does a earth-tier cultivation technique usually cost?" Zhu Wu wondered if he could acquire a suitable technique cheaply, he wouldn't necessarily have to take on sect missions.
"There's a big price difference between lower earth-tier and upper earth-tier. Lower-tier costs a few medium-grade spirit stones, while upper-tier costs dozens of medium-grade spirit stones."
"An upper earth-tier one compatible with wood spiritual roots was once sold for as low as two medium-grade spirit stones, while one compatible with fire spiritual roots cost over a hundred."
"As for magic treasures, a lower earth-tier one generally costs over thirty medium-grade spirit stones, and an upper-tier one over a hundred."
"So expensive!" Zhu Wu touched the short sword Elder Chen had given him on his person.
"This is already considered cheap. Of course, if you were inside a major sect, what the sect provides is naturally even cheaper." The rogue cultivator noticed Zhu Wu's subtle gesture.
"What is your spiritual root?" the rogue cultivator asked.
"Wind spiritual root."
"How about this: for one low-grade spirit stone, I'll take you to the black market. I guarantee you'll find the cheapest wind spiritual root cultivation technique. If you don't find it, I won't take your spirit stone, alright?" the rogue cultivator persisted patiently.
"Alright then."
Zhu Wu followed the rogue cultivator through a maze of twists and turns, making Zhu Wu feel rather apprehensive. *Could this be an ambush to rob and murder me?*
The rogue cultivator put on a mask and handed another one to Zhu Wu, saying, "Some things inside cannot see the light of day."
In an alley, the rogue cultivator knocked on an unassuming wooden door.
Inside, the room was quite ordinary. The rogue cultivator channeled true qi into a painting on the wall.
The black market existed within a separate pocket space.
Dozens of stalls were scattered haphazardly on the ground, with most of the stall owners wearing masks.
It appeared to be a self-governed marketplace for rogue cultivators.
Nearly every stall offered cultivation techniques, magic treasures, or medicinal pills; the only difference lay in their varying grades.
The rogue cultivator searched alongside Zhu Wu for a cultivation technique compatible with wind spiritual roots.
*The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual*.
A street stall displayed several knives, swords, magic treasures, and the like, alongside this single cultivation technique.
"Huh?" Zhu Wu curiously stepped closer and blurted out, "Isn't this the foundational cultivation technique everyone learns?"
Realizing a novice had come along, the stall owner explained, "Although it is foundational, this copy has annotations made by a certain Void Refinement Stage immortal."
With that, he picked up the manual and opened the first page for Zhu Wu to see.
"When chaos reigned, heaven and earth held only primordial breath; when primordial breath divided, the two breaths of Yin and Yang formed; in the primordial era, they became the three breaths of wind, water, and earth; today they divide into the four breaths of earth, water, fire, and wind..."
"Water moisture turns to vapor, water cold turns to earth; vapor moisture turns to water, vapor heat turns to fire; fire heat turns to vapor, fire dryness turns to earth; earth dryness turns to fire, earth cold turns to water..."
The handwriting was slightly blurred, as if it had been soaked in water.
"There's no metal breath here? Are the annotations incomplete?" Zhu Wu asked doubtfully.
"These are annotations from ancient times, before they had divided into the five elemental breaths of today," the stall owner explained.
"Doesn't that make it even more scarce? These annotations are as good as useless," Zhu Wu remarked.
"Not necessarily. From the perspective of elemental division, this just means it's unsuitable for those with wind spiritual roots to practice; for people with other spiritual roots, it's an absolute treasure."
"What a pity, I happen to have a wind spiritual root." Zhu Wu said.
"Ah? What bad timing. However, seeing as we have an affinity, I'll sell it to you for just four medium-grade spirit stones."
"No." Zhu Wu turned to leave.
"This is the only thing left behind by that immortal before ascension. Two stones? One?" The stall owner seemed anxious to make a sale.
"No." Zhu Wu took two steps away.
"Ten low-grade spirit stones? Five? One?"
"Hmm..." Zhu Wu stopped, hesitated for a moment, and asked, "One?"
"Seeing as we share an affinity, take it as an act of accumulated merit for a single stone. This is a good deed indeed," the stall owner said.
*Merit? Is the stall owner a Buddhist cultivator?* Zhu Wu thought to himself, and pocketed the manual.
*Finally sold it, my three days of copying weren't wasted...* the stall owner muttered behind his back.
He made two rounds, but unluckily, there were no cultivation techniques compatible with wind spiritual roots today.
However, Zhu Wu spent three medium-grade spirit stones to purchase *Essential Herbal Compendium*, a middle earth-tier manual compatible with wood spiritual roots.
Although his previous *Thousand-Wound Technique* had decent healing effects, it was ultimately too mediocre—much like drinking boiled water for a headache, drinking boiled water for a stomachache, drinking boiled water for foot pain, drinking boiled water for a bad mood, or drinking extra boiled water after meditating for too long. It lacked targeted efficacy.
*Essential Herbal Compendium* was different. It clearly distinguished how every kind of spirit herb treated both external and internal injuries; wounds that previously took an hour to treat could now be healed instantly by using spirit herbs.
Zhu Wu gave the rogue cultivator one low-grade spirit stone.
Although there was no cultivation technique compatible with wind spiritual roots, seeing as the man had run around for half a day, Zhu Wu didn't want to owe a favor. Besides, he might still need this person to act as his guide later.
It was almost noon by the time they left the black market.
The rogue cultivator led Zhu Wu to the Heavenly Fragrance Tower, spoke a few words to the manager, and then turned to Zhu Wu.
"You came at just the right time. Today you happen to be the ninth person, so your meal is free. But this only covers regular dishes and doesn't include alcohol."
"Happy cooperation! I'll be off first, enjoy your meal!" The rogue cultivator couldn't afford to eat at the Heavenly Fragrance Tower.
A waiter brought Zhu Wu to a small table, seated him, and left. Soon, the waiter returned with a meat dish, a vegetable dish, and a soup, smiling as he said, "Please enjoy your meal, immortal. If it suits your taste, please help spread the word."
"Thank you." Zhu Wu nodded in gratitude to the waiter, then looked down at the table.
The free meals were a fixed set. Although the portions were slightly smaller, they were cooked in large batches, so there was no difference in taste.
Zhu Wu slowly savored the food while observing the interior of the restaurant.
More than half of the twenty-some tables were already occupied.
There was no boisterous chatter; everyone spoke in very low voices.
After observing for a while, he realized it wasn't because of any strict rules at the Heavenly Fragrance Tower, but rather that eating and drinking were when secrets were most easily leaked.
Most people who came here to eat and drink were preparing to do something in the vicinity. Some had information that wasn't entirely confidential yet wanted to discuss it with companions without letting outsiders know, making low-toned communication the best choice.
For example, when a secret realm in a certain area opened, many people knew about it, but entering on time yielded greater rewards, while arriving late reduced those gains. Thus, the exact opening hour became a closely guarded secret that couldn't be casually disclosed. Similarly, for monster beasts that frequently roamed certain ranges, knowing when you would encounter them and when you wouldn't became another little secret.
On the second floor were private rooms, where young masters accompanied by three or five attendants could be seen entering from time to time.
Hardly anyone paid attention to Zhu Wu; people had very little interest in newcomers.
The first floor of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion displayed various magic treasures, cultivation techniques, and medicinal pills—once again, common items of various grades.
The second-floor auction would start tomorrow, so today it was closed for preparation.
Zhu Wu looked around for a bit, didn't find anything that caught his eye, and left.
At the Carefree Tower, several gorgeously dressed women half-leaned against the second-floor railing, watching the crowds coming and going.
Zhu Wu knew what kind of place this was; it was not somewhere he could afford to visit in his current state.
The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion was strictly by invitation only.
The City Lord's Mansion was strictly by invitation only, but there was a bulletin board at the entrance displaying various tasks.
Those wishing to accept a task could note the task number and register with the steward at the entrance.
Zhu Wu glanced through them briefly. They were mostly tasks offering a few low-grade spirit stones with a certain degree of danger, which explained why many rogue cultivators preferred to sit idle without food or drink rather than undertake them.
There were also plenty of stalls on the main street. Aside from magic treasures, cultivation techniques, and medicinal pills, daily necessities were abundant—rice, flour, cabbages, clothing, and everything else one could imagine.
The residential areas were scattered around the outskirts of the city.
Many residences were available for rent.
With people constantly coming and going as temporary visitors, renting a dwelling had become the primary choice for many compared to staying at an inn.
Zhu Wu only planned to stay for a day, so there was no need to rent a house; he simply found an inexpensive inn.
Lying on the bed, Zhu Wu took out *The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual* and began to read.
Before long, he sat cross-legged and began to circulate his qi.
*The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual* only introduced the most basic methods of circulating qi and some fundamental knowledge of cultivation, which anyone could understand.
However, with the annotations, it was entirely different.
"Water moisture turns to vapor, water cold turns to earth; vapor moisture turns to water, vapor heat turns to fire; fire heat turns to vapor, fire dryness turns to earth; earth dryness turns to fire, earth cold turns to water..."
Zhu Wu circulated his true qi through the transformation of the four phases.
His cultivation realm remained unchanged.
*My dantian... seems different.* Zhu Wu silently perceived it.
"Originally, my dantian was like a chaotic ball of water. Now, it appears to be supported by five petals of red, blue, green, yellow, and white, and the ball of water has also become crystal clear."
He invoked the *Heaven-Shattering Lightning*, and the five petals turned white while the water ball swirled like a tornado.
He invoked the *Thousand-Wound Technique*, and the five petals turned green while the water ball resembled green leaves.
*Could this be the true cultivation method of The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual?* Zhu Wu recalled his master's past teachings.
It was said that *The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual* was a legacy passed down from ancient immortals, with instructions that all cultivators must study it.
Day broke.
Zhu Wu got up, washed up, and prepared to return to the sect.
Out on the street, he saw yesterday's rogue cultivator running over again.
"Let's go, the black market has a cultivation technique compatible with wind spiritual roots today. I won't charge you any spirit stones—consider it compensation for yesterday," the rogue cultivator invited with a smile.
"Uh, alright then." Zhu Wu originally wanted to refuse, but since it was still early, taking another look wouldn't hurt.
There appeared to be around sixty-some stalls, set up right next to each other.
Transactions in the black market took place either late at night or early in the morning, which was when crowds were thickest.
The rogue cultivator searched through the crowd. "Over there."
Zhu Wu followed him to a small stall displaying a dozen or so cultivation techniques.
*Nirvana Myriad Thunders*, lower mysterious-tier.
This was the first time Zhu Wu had ever seen such a high-tier cultivation technique.
One hundred medium-grade spirit stones.
Zhu Wu stared with wide eyes and let out a helpless sigh.
"Little brother, I can tell you're not from a major sect, but this cultivation technique truly cannot go for any less. Or perhaps you have some magic treasures or monster cores you could use to offset the cost?" the stall owner suggested.
"The most valuable thing I have is this earth-tier short blade. Forget it." Zhu Wu glanced at the other cultivation techniques.
*Hellfire*, middle earth-tier.
*Myriad Techniques Returning to Origin*, upper earth-tier.
*Mountain-Moving*, lower earth-tier.
*Overturning Rivers and Seas*, upper earth-tier.
All of them cost dozens of medium-grade spirit stones.
Zhu Wu sighed and shook his head.
"Little brother, if you're truly interested, I can hold it for you for a month," the stall owner said after a moment of thought.
"Even in a month, I wouldn't be able to gather this many spirit stones. It seems I'll have to let someone else have it," Zhu Wu said.
"I do happen to have a way, though I don't know if little brother is willing or not," the stall owner said.
"What way?"
"There is a task from the City Lord's Mansion offering fifty medium-grade spirit stones. If you can complete it, and then manage to scrape together a bit more, it will be enough." The stall owner lowered his voice.
"What task pays a reward so much higher than the ones posted on the bulletin board?" Zhu Wu asked.
"A secret realm restricted to the Golden Core Stage will open in a month, and the City Lord's daughter will also participate. You just need to help her obtain what she wants."
"Many people must be going, then. How would I ever get a chance?" Zhu Wu asked again.
"That item is rather strange; the secret realm has opened three times already, and I've heard over a hundred people have tried, yet it seems to require some special method."
"You could give it a try. Who knows, maybe you'll be the one to get it."
"Even if you don't get it, should you happen to acquire some other opportunity, it might just be enough to buy this cultivation technique," the stall owner continued.
"Well, that is worth considering." Zhu Wu replied.
"Alright then, I can tell little brother is a straightforward person. I'll put this cultivation technique away for now, and you can come back after you finish participating in the secret realm a month from now." The stall owner waved a hand.
"Then thank you in advance." Zhu Wu exchanged farewells with the rogue cultivator one by one.
At the Hengduan Cliff cave.
Zhu Wu took out two snow lotus fruits and a few other spirit fruits, placing them on a stone platform.
"Sister Pingping, I've come to see you..."
Dusk approached.
"Sister Pingping, although I still can't break through today, I've discovered a new cultivation method for *The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual*. I'll practice it for you to see now."
Zhu Wu muttered to himself for a long while before sitting cross-legged to circulate his qi.
His dantian surged like rolling waves one moment, blazed with fierce flames the next, rumbled with wind and lightning after that, and finally became as steadfast as a boulder.
The true qi coursed through his entire body following the changes in his dantian. Zhu Wu's body alternated between freezing and burning, stinging with pain and then going numb.
A ray of sunlight pierced into the cave.
"Yin and Yang in balance..." Zhu Wu thought, altering his true qi. The five petals of red, blue, green, yellow, and white seemed to bloom, and his dantian shifted in myriad ways.
"No... I'm about to lose control!" Cold sweat poured down Zhu Wu.
The five-colored true qi rampaged wildly within his dantian.
"Balance..." Zhu Wu forcefully suppressed his dantian.
"That was close." Half an hour later, the true qi finally calmed down.
"Sister Pingping, I've made a fool of myself in front of you," Zhu Wu said with a smile.
"When my spiritual roots were tested previously, I seemed to exhibit different spiritual roots. Under normal circumstances, everyone potentially possesses all five elemental roots, but only one is prominent, so testing usually only reveals that single one. Could it be that I possess the five elemental roots?" Zhu Wu pondered.
Spiritual root grades ranged from one to nine. The strongest individuals, such as those with a grade-nine fire spiritual root, would at least carry a grade-one of another root, but the test would only display the grade-nine fire spiritual root—referred to as a single spiritual root.
Those with a single spiritual root cultivated at extreme speeds, but they were vulnerable to countered opponents.
However, if multiple roots had identical grades, several might be displayed. For example, simultaneously possessing a grade-four wood spiritual root and a grade-four earth spiritual root would show up as a grade-four wood-earth spiritual root, known as a dual spiritual root.
Dual spiritual roots cultivated slightly slower and typically favored one primary offensive root and one supportive root. For instance, Zhu Wu's previous Heaven-Shattering Lightning and Thousand-Wound Technique matched his wind and wood spiritual roots respectively.
If three had identical grades—such as a grade-five wood spiritual root, a grade-five earth spiritual root, and a grade-five water spiritual root—they were called triple spiritual roots.
Triple spiritual roots cultivated even slower and generally found it difficult to reach Deity Transformation.
Four identical grades were termed quadruple spiritual roots; cultivation was even slower, and reaching Nascent Soul was practically the limit.
Zhu Wu flipped through the annotations on *The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual*.
"Yin and Yang in balance means the integration of the four breaths of earth, water, fire, and wind..."
In ancient times, only four breaths were recognized. Today, they had transformed into five.
"That being said, I need to integrate the five breaths of water, fire, earth, wood, and wind? In other words, this can only be achieved by someone whose five elemental roots are of equal grade; otherwise, the five breaths cannot be balanced!"
"No wonder *The Six Harmonies Yin-Yang Manual* is only a foundational text—because very few people possess balanced five spiritual roots!"
"And people with balanced five spiritual roots are known as having five spiritual roots, which is little different from having garbage spiritual roots, because almost none of them can break through to the Golden Core Stage."
"The highest grade for five-element-balanced spiritual roots is only grade six."
Zhu Wu's mind suddenly cleared.
He finally understood the reason why his cultivation realm had stagnated in his childhood.
He also understood why he had to make breakthroughs in special locations: in ordinary places, the naturally balanced true qi would instead be thrown out of balance.
"Hahahahaha..."
Zhu Wu seemed to see a celestial path beneath his feet leading directly to the upper realm.
Pulling his thoughts back, Zhu Wu bowed farewell to the stone platform and returned to the sect.