Chapter 42: Nurturing Thought and Forging Spirit Technique

After understanding most of the market prices, Chen Mobai felt a little unsettled.

Only now did he realize that what he thought were just ordinary goods could actually be worth so many spirit stones. No wonder cultivators in this world openly discuss selling stolen goods. Killing and arson lead to wealth; he had merely picked up two packages from ordinary Qi Cultivators and already acquired resources worth nearly fifty spirit stones.

Unfortunately, his trip to Nanxi Market this time was solely to understand market conditions and gather information. Furthermore, because the Eastern Desolation had left him with the impression of a lawless and cruel cultivation world, he had only brought combat-related items this time, such as the needle box obtained from the Flying Needle Sect disciple, the hand crossbow, and the old man's short dagger.

Though a little reluctant, magical artifacts were mere external possessions; nothing was better than converting them into spirit stones to improve his own cultivation realm.

However, Chen Mobai was cautious by nature and did not rashly set up a stall to sell them. He clearly remembered that the needle box was a magical artifact of the Flying Needle Sect, and according to their disciple handbook, it was a power with Foundation Establishment cultivators in charge. Moreover, such a needle box artifact was rare in the entire Eastern Desolation. If he encountered a Flying Needle Sect disciple, he wouldn't be able to explain himself and would certainly be accused of murdering someone for their treasure.

He dared not sell the needle box for now, but the hand crossbow and short dagger were different. He noticed quite a few stalls selling these two items in the market, especially hand crossbows, which were very popular among low-level Qi Cultivators. Perhaps it was because cultivators below Qi Cultivation Layer Three couldn't withstand a single crossbow bolt.

These crossbow bolts, of course, were not ordinary iron-tipped arrows, but special bolts enchanted with Sharpness, Explosion, and Gale spells. However, because crossbow bolts were not as convenient to carry as talismans, they were much cheaper, selling for ten taels of gold per bolt in the market. Bolts were consumables, but the crossbow itself was different; a good one could be used for a long time. The one Chen Mobai obtained from the Flying Needle Sect disciple was of decent quality; it was foldable, making it easy to carry, and it was also enchanted with Fortification and Aiming spells, making it durable and accurate.

After circling the various stalls again, Chen Mobai confirmed the market price: 500 taels of gold. The short dagger was practically worthless, selling for 2 taels of gold. He saw them mostly being used for trimming nails, usually given as a bonus when buying or selling magical artifacts.

Having understood the market for magical artifacts, and seeing that it was getting late, he decided to head back.

For caution's sake, Chen Mobai did not immediately sell the Blackwater Cultivation Art and the hand crossbow. The main reason was that gold was not very useful to him, and bringing too much of it back to the Immortal Sect to sell could easily attract the attention of market regulatory departments. After all, the Immortal Sect's resources were limited, and gold mines were under state control. If too much gold flowed into the market, causing price fluctuations, it would certainly draw unwanted attention. Therefore, the best and safest method was to convert all acquired goods into spirit stones that he could readily use.

Before leaving, he went to browse the stalls selling elixirs, but there were fewer people here. He observed that all the elixir vendors had a sign stating: "Defective products from [X] Pharmacy." Virtually no one claimed to have refined the elixirs themselves. It seemed that attitudes towards elixirs were the same in both worlds. If it wasn't made by a renowned alchemist, people generally wouldn't dare to consume it. As for 'three-no' products (no producer, no production date, no quality guarantee), it went without saying; even to sell them, they had to be displayed under the name of a large pharmacy, otherwise, few cultivators would inquire about the price. It seemed those few bottles of elixirs would be difficult to sell. Chen Mobai thought of the spoils of war he had stashed at the very bottom of his nightstand and couldn't help but shake his head.

After gaining a general understanding of the situation, he lingered no longer and turned to leave Nanxi Market under the twilight. At the entrance, he again encountered the boy in homespun clothes who wanted to earn money as a guide. Seeing Chen Mobai, the boy humbly lowered his head. This gesture surprised Chen Mobai, who had initially intended to greet him, and he then shook his head with a slight smile. "Indeed, his Home Planet's historical 'Smash the Four Olds' movement had its reasons. Such an old feudal society is wrong." However, he was merely an outsider, a small Qi Cultivator at the sixth layer, and he wouldn't point fingers at a social environment that people had grown up in their entire lives. Chen Mobai walked out of the market gate without a word and disappeared into the array's mist.

There was an array outside Nanxi Market, but its full power wasn't activated; it was merely designed to keep mortals from approaching.

On his way back, Chen Mobai had a sudden thought. If he didn't click 'Return to City' from the Water Mansion, would he still be able to succeed? He stopped, found an uninhabited valley, and took out his phone. Sure enough, in the Turtle Treasure software, the 'Return to City' button was still lit and raised, ready to be pressed. This meant that in the Heavenly River Realm, he wasn't restricted to the Water Mansion; as long as he had his phone, he could return home anytime, anywhere. So, another question arose: if the return location changed, would his next transmission bring him here? Or would it still be the Water Mansion? Chen Mobai pondered for a moment but ultimately decided not to try it.

He returned to the Water Mansion. However, as he was returning home, an idea struck him, and he walked into a side hall. This way, he could see where he would appear next time. If he still appeared in the main hall, it would mean the transmission point was fixed. If he appeared in the side hall, it would mean he would transmit back to wherever he was when he used 'Return to City'.

Amidst a flash of silver light, Chen Mobai returned home. He felt he had overlooked something in his logical reasoning about transmission and returning home, but no matter how much he thought, he couldn't figure out what it was. He could only shake his head and temporarily give up.

Checking the time on his phone, it was almost dinner. His mother had gone to work in the afternoon, so he would have to cook dinner himself again. But he was used to it anyway.

While cooking spirit rice, Chen Mobai logged into his main account, 'Azure Emperor,' on the National Library's system via his phone. He used his points to download the 'Mind Nurturing and Spirit Forging Art.' Although he was very interested in the fitness-style method of cultivating spiritual sense and wanted to try it, he couldn't acquire Tier 2 Incense of Contemplation, nor could his 'Azure Emperor' account redeem the 'Spirit-Stirring Heavenly Roam Art,' so he could only follow the orthodox path. However, this was also good; spiritual sense cultivated in this way would be well-rounded and wouldn't require daily incense burning for stability.

While cooking, Chen Mobai read through the 'Mind Nurturing and Spirit Forging Art' once, then compared it with the cultivation experiences uploaded by masters on the auxiliary cultivation software, and he broadly understood it. However, even with the experiences of his predecessors, he still found the practice very difficult.

To nurture the mind, one must first enter 'meditative trance,' and after entering trance, one needs to perform 'contemplation.' This contemplation could be of anything in the world, but according to the experience of predecessors, it was best to visualize a scene that matched one's state of mind. This scene should ideally be powerful yet not too shocking, which seemed contradictory. Fortunately, the auxiliary cultivation software had a detailed explanation: Contemplating something powerful could make a cultivator's mind grow rapidly; however, if it was too shocking, it would cause mental fluctuations and intense emotional swings, which would be harmful rather than beneficial. Therefore, cultivators needed to grasp the right balance when contemplating. Chen Mobai scratched his scalp as he thought about his own experiences, finally remembering the 'Jade Green Parasol Tree' he had seen that morning.