"Brother Wang, it has been a few months. Have you read any more books?" Li Yu stepped forward and asked with a smile.
"Ah, Brother New, it has been quite a long time since you came by. This book, *One Hundred Applications of Array Formations*, is truly fascinating. You must take a look at it." Wang Wei brandished the book in his hand as he spoke.
"To be frank with you, Brother Wang, as you know, I am a newcomer among rogue cultivators and completely penniless. Lately, I have been busy trying to find a way to earn some Spirit Stones so I can afford to read more."
"There are houses of gold within books; read enough and you will naturally find a path to make money. I wonder if Brother Yu has already found such a method?"
"That is precisely what I have come to ask you about. The book *Popular Spiritual Ore Identification* mentions a substance called 'silver mud'. Aside from existing in small quantities within silver veins, it can also be extracted from ordinary silver. Is that true?"
Being a bookworm, Wang Wei loved nothing more than discussing the knowledge found in books. Li Yu had struck right at his favorite subject, instantly opening the floodgates.
"Come, come, Brother Yu, sit down." Wang Wei motioned for Li Yu to take a seat beside him.
Li Yu walked behind the long table, and before he could even settle into his seat, Wang Wei eagerly began to speak.
"As a mid-grade artifact-refining material, silver mud is intensely sought after by artifact refiners for its exceptional ductility and malleability. Though not particularly rare, it is nevertheless quite valuable. In the past, some people tried using large quantities of ordinary silver to extract silver mud, but the time spent simply did not match the harvest. Consequently, nowadays, almost no one bothers to refine it unless under exceptional circumstances."
Li Yu, who had specifically researched silver mud, naturally knew all this. However, he currently had plenty of time on his hands. Relying on meditation to cultivate with his fivefold Spiritual Root was simply too slow at converting spiritual Qi, leaving him with practically no hope on the Daoist path. Yet, relying on large quantities of spiritual pills was out of the question since his pockets were entirely empty.
Without waiting for Li Yu to respond, Wang Wei pressed on.
"Extracting silver mud is far too time-consuming and labor-intensive. By conventional methods, it takes ten thousand catties of ordinary silver just to extract a single qian of silver mud, and the process takes a full month. The effort far outweighs the gain."
"I wonder what this conventional method might be?"
Taking advantage of Wang Wei's pause, Li Yu immediately stated the true purpose of his visit. He had not found the specific method for extracting silver mud on the second floor of the bookshop. Li Yu guessed that the book was either not stocked on the second floor or required purchasing on the third floor, and he happened to find the answer right here with Wang Wei.
"The *Silver Mud Extraction Method* is currently the most common way to refine silver mud, but very few people ever buy it, so the book has sat neglected on the third floor for years. The Jade Slip for it has gathered dust for ages; how about I make a rubbing of it and give it to you, Brother Yu?"
"How could I possibly accept such a thing!" Li Yu said, his words belying his true thoughts.
"Why ever not? Brother Yu, wait just a moment, I am going to the third floor to have the manager make a rubbing." Without waiting for Li Yu's reply, Wang Wei stood up and walked toward the third floor.
Within the time it took to brew a cup of tea, Wang Wei returned to his seat behind the long table and handed a brand-new book to Li Yu.
"Then I am truly grateful, Brother Wang." Li Yu took the book, which bore the title *Silver Mud Extraction Method* on the cover, and cupped his hands in thanks.
"A mere trifle, not worth mentioning. Speaking of this extraction method, in my view, there is ample room for improvement." Wang Wei smiled with an air of profound wisdom, thoroughly enjoying the process of sharing his knowledge.
"Is that so? Does Brother Wang have a way to increase the efficiency of the extraction?" Hearing this, Li Yu straightened up in his seat, looking at Wang Wei with eager anticipation.
"Perhaps it seems difficult to others, but I happen to have a way to deal with it. Ordinary people use century-old ironwood to refine silver mud. While ironwood is cheap and burns steadily, it ultimately lacks sufficient firepower. It might be hot enough to refine low-grade spiritual pills, but silver is an ore—it is far sturdier than medicinal herbs. Using ironwood inevitably results in the silver not burning thoroughly enough during the extraction process, which leads to a lower yield of silver mud. Therefore, finding a much more ferocious heat source would solve the problem." Wang Wei tossed out his insight.
"What if we use the 'spiritual fire' of a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator?" Li Yu knew that once a cultivator reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, they could subdue the spiritual fires of heaven and earth and make them their own.
"Which Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator would have nothing better to do than refine silver mud? Isn't that making a sledgehammer to crack a nut?" Wang Wei said speechlessly.
"True, true." Li Yu laughed sheepishly.
"Brother Yu, take a look at what this is." With that, Wang Wei produced a golden metal sheet as thin as a cicada's wing.
"Is this a Golden Book and Iron Scroll?"
Li Yu had read *Records of Ancient Oddities* and knew that in ancient times, to prevent recorded texts from being damaged, people used carving techniques to engrave words onto golden metal sheets. The method for making such golden metal sheets had long been lost, and the mainstream method nowadays was to record things using Jade Slips.
"Correct. I found this Golden Book and Iron Scroll wedged between the pages of an ancient book. It records a spell called the 'Lightning-Drawing Technique'. I have practiced it myself, but it can only draw a mere sliver of lightning from the heights, making it utterly useless." Wang Wei shook his head in disappointment.
"Really? What a pity." Li Yu sighed as he took the Golden Book and Iron Scroll. Normally, anything recorded on such a scroll would be extremely valuable.
"I have already learned the spell on this scroll, and keeping it is of no use to me, so I will give it to you, Brother Yu."
"Then I am truly grateful." Joy spread across Li Yu's face.
As Wang Wei watched Li Yu holding the Golden Book and Iron Scroll as if he could not bear to put it down, a wave of poignant sympathy rose in his heart. Li Yu was merely a newcomer to the cultivation world, a rogue cultivator without any possessions or specialized crafts to fall back on. He was actually planning to use ordinary silver to extract silver mud just to earn a few Spirit Stones, and could barely afford to buy books.
"I wonder what connection this 'Lightning-Drawing Technique' has with extracting silver mud?" Li Yu did not notice Wang Wei's emotional sigh and asked once more.
"You only need to have a worldly blacksmith custom-make a large iron wok, and then have the blacksmith forge a giant iron needle to stand upright in the wok. Find an uninhabited mountain peak, place the wok at the peak, burn wood beneath it for fire, use the 'Lightning-Drawing Technique' to draw down lightning, and finally use the techniques from the *Silver Mud Extraction Method* to refine the silver mud. Instantly, heavenly lightning stirs the earthly fire... I imagine the extraction efficiency should see quite an improvement." Wang Wei had never tested it himself, so whether it would actually work depended entirely on Li Yu trying it out.
"Brother Wang's ingenious imagination truly fills me with admiration!" Li Yu praised.
"You flatter me, Brother Yu!"
Wang Wei's theory of "houses of gold within books" had been validated, bringing him immense satisfaction.
"I wonder if Brother Wang has done any research into refining the 'Beauty-Preserving Pill'?"
Li Yu had originally planned to spend a vast amount of time extracting silver mud, but he had never expected Wang Wei's learning to be so unexpectedly profound! Not only had Wang Wei given him the *Silver Mud Extraction Method* and the *Lightning-Drawing Technique* for free, but he had also proposed the theory of "heavenly lightning stirring earthly fire." Naturally, Li Yu's ambitions grew, and he could not resist asking about something else.
They engaged in a heartfelt, face-to-face conversation with Wang Wei that lasted for several hours, only ending when someone else came to make rubbings of some books. Before parting, Wang Wei gave Li Yu a Voice Transmission Talisman to facilitate future contact.
This type of Voice Transmission Talisman was originally called the "Mandarin Duck Talisman." They came in sets of two and belonged to a type of spirit talisman. Those in the Qi Refining Stage could only use low-grade Mandarin Duck Talismans, which had a limited transmission range. Higher-tier versions included mid-grade and high-grade Voice Transmission Talismans, whose transmission range could span the distance of an entire country. By using Spiritual Sense to transmit a message into one of them, the other would receive it. If the target was out of range, the Spiritual Sense message would be stored until retrieved, making communication extremely convenient.
Clutching the Voice Transmission Talisman, Li Yu had no choice but to leave the bookshop feeling somewhat unsatisfied.
Only after stepping outside did Li Yu realize that dusk was approaching. After hastily eating a steamed bun, he hurried toward the "Night Market" within the market.
Though called a night market, it was actually an open-air stall area within the Cultivator Market. This section was located near another exit—the opposite end of the main thoroughfare—which faced directly toward the Hengduan Mountains.
Li Yu had read *Chronicles of Chu Country's Geography* in the bookshop and knew that the massive mountain range connected to Chu Country was called the Hengduan Mountains.
The lighting in the night market was exceptionally bright. Aside from the individual stalls, there were no other structures whatsoever. This was due to an array formation known as the "Firmament Array," which was constructed using "Light Stones," "Heavenly Silkworm Silk," and other formation-laying materials. The array possessed no offensive power; its only two benefits were maintaining bright illumination day and night and keeping wind and rain completely blocked outside.
As someone visiting the night market for the very first time, Li Yu was naturally full of curiosity. He wandered from stall to stall, asking questions and peering at things. Almost everything on display was completely foreign to him, filling his gaze with fiery excitement.
Yet the sole remaining Spirit Stone in his Storage Bag repeatedly reminded him of the true purpose of his visit.
Li Yu had two goals for this trip: first, to find out the price of the main ingredients for refining the Beauty-Preserving Pill, and second, because the night market featured a resting area where he could practice meditation without spending any money.
Since he lacked the Spirit Stones to stay at an inn, Li Yu had no choice but to make do here.
Because cultivators had already opened their Spiritual Sense, they could easily manage to meditate and sleep at the same time, though the efficiency of meditation while sleeping was far lower than when fully awake. The difference between wholehearted concentration and absent-mindedness was, after all, vast indeed.