Rising from Small Cloud Rain Technique

Chapter 81: Chapter 79: Cyan Cloud Immortal City

The flying ship slowly ascended, adjusted its direction, and sped away.

The Foundation Establishment Stage martial uncle and the disciples guarding the flying ship would rest inside the cabin, while Ji An, who was merely hitching a ride, had to remain on the deck.

Luckily, when the flying ship traversed, it had a spiritual energy shield, sparing him the suffering of being buffeted by the Gang Wind.

After watching the scenery for a while, Ji An lost interest and sat down in a meditative position, closing his eyes to rest and thinking about the path ahead.

According to the discussion with Martial Uncle Qin Yan, during the Qi Refinement stage, one needs to develop more branches of the Immortal Vein.

He needs to exchange contribution points for a Meridian Opening Secret Method to open as many branches as possible during the Qi Refinement stage.

This is a task that requires patience, and now that he is at the Ninth-Layer Qi Refining, he needs to prepare in advance and plan carefully.

Foundation Establishment requires spiritual energy to turn into liquid. The last layer of the Qingyuan Scripture’s heart method includes a secret technique that can condense a magic power vortex during cultivation, increasing the efficiency of magical power condensate.

Such secret techniques are unheard of among loose cultivators.

The Three Foundation Establishment Gates: magical power, physical body, and divine sense.

Ji An’s physical body was undamaged, and his divine sense far surpassed that of ordinary cultivators at the same level. He continued to diligently practice the Sharp Gold Technique and was confident that he could reach the point of consolidating a Dao Seed with his magic techniques before attempting Foundation Establishment.

The only challenge he actually faced was the potential insufficiency of magical power.

He sighed silently, showing a bitter smile: magical power wasn’t just potentially insufficient; it was certainly going to be insufficient.

During Foundation Establishment, one’s spiritual energy must constantly be absorbed and refined into magical power, continuously gathering in the Dantian to increase the magical power concentration in the Qi Sea Acupoint to reach the critical point of magical power condensate.

The Stone Turtle plucking feathers from geese would inevitably result in half of the refined magical power being swallowed up, which was beyond his control and would significantly impact the Foundation Establishment.

Besides preparing the Foundation Establishment Pill, he also needed to prepare some heavenly materials and earthly treasures that could quickly restore magical power, and a sufficient amount of them.

In case the medicinal power of the Foundation Establishment Pill was insufficient, he also needed a contingency plan.

Thinking it over, Ji An realized he needed to prepare a lot of crystal stones.

…

A towering giant mountain city loomed into view, and the speed of the flying ship gradually decreased as it began to descend.

Numerous talisman birds, spirit beasts, and flying ships flew up and down, looking like a busy airport on the huge platforms outside the Immortal City.

When the flying ship landed, the Foundation Establishment Cultivator leading the sect formed a spell with his fingers, causing the large flying ship to quickly shrink, turning into a small ship over two inches long, which he then tucked into his sleeve.

The loose cultivators were queuing at the entrance and exit of the Dharma Prohibition in succession; some with a jade token were allowed in directly, while others, entering the Immortal City for the first time, were handling procedures.

Disciples from the three major sects and the influential families that had invested stakes didn’t need to go through these cumbersome procedures, and people like Ji An followed behind the Foundation Establishment martial uncle and were promptly let through by the stewards on duty.

After passing through the Dharma Prohibition, the group dispersed in small clusters.

Ji An beckoned with his hand, immediately attracting several guides.

A group of early-stage Qi Refining youths gathered around, their faces beaming with smiles at seeing his Golden Spirit Sect’s standard Daoist Robe.

“Senior, Senior, what kind of guide do you need? I am very familiar with the shops in the West District of the Immortal City.”

“Senior, if you need to select spirit beasts or demon beast cubs…”

I, a Ninth-Layer Qi Refining rookie, have actually become a senior! Ji An grinned, gesturing for calm as he said:

“I need to browse shops selling talismans and pill materials, who is familiar with those?”

Hearing his words, several youths immediately raised their arms, while those unfamiliar rapidly dispersed.

“How do you charge?”

“Senior, it’s 20 spirit crystals a day, that’s the standard rate.”

Their eyes sparkled with hope, saying, ’Please choose me.’

The price wasn’t expensive because if the cultivators they guided made purchases, the shops would give them additional commissions.

“I’ll choose you then.”

Ji An pointed to a somewhat lean but clear-eyed youth, pulling out 10 spirit crystals.

The other boys sighed and dispersed, while the chosen youth beamed and advanced to receive the crystals:

“Senior, do you wish to buy pills or talismans first?”

“Let’s go to the talisman area. I need to buy some talisman brush and talisman ink, and also find some shops to cooperate in selling talismans, particularly Middle-grade Geng Metal Talisman and Water Curtain Talisman.

Also, I need to select some materials necessary for beast taming and purchase a Jade Mushroom Pill.”

The Spirit-Seeking Rat under Ji An’s care was not far from breaking through to late-stage Qi Refining and needed a new configuration of Spirit Feeding Pill.

Recently he noticed a significant decline in the effect of the Ginseng Essence Pill, unsure if it was due to developing resistance or another reason, he wanted to try a different pill type.

“Alright, this way, senior,” the youth eagerly led the way in front.

“My time is very tight; I need to leave by tomorrow, so please plan the route well.”

…

The four-story Treasure Talisman Pavilion stood out among the various two-story buildings, with cultivators constantly coming and going, creating a bustling scene.

“Senior, this is the largest talisman shop in Cyan Cloud Immortal City, likely the only one to meet your requirements.”

The youth spoke with some hesitation; they had already visited over a dozen shops.

This senior had demonstrated many talismans, but while the shopkeepers praised the talismans, they were only willing to purchase a few.

He felt that hardly any crystal stones would be earned today since the counterpart was not transacting on the spot but establishing a supply arrangement, resulting in limited shop commissions.

Feeling a slight bitterness as residing in the Immortal City was not easy; their family often found themselves in deficit, let alone being able to purchase pills for cultivation improvement.

The two stepped inside, greeted warmly by a young female attendant:

“Fellow Daoist, are you here to sell materials or purchase talismans?”

Ji An spoke calmly:

“I have a batch of middle-grade talismans to sell and wish to collaborate with your pavilion.”

“May I know what talismans you are selling? I will report to the manager to explore possible cooperation.”

The attendant responded, not holding high expectations as the shop had its trusted talisman masters.

Ji An handed over two talismans, saying, “Geng Metal Talisman and Water Curtain Talisman; their power is evident upon testing.”

“Please wait a moment, Fellow Daoist,” accepted the spirited talismans, heading upstairs.

After a while, she hurried back down, smiling:

“Fellow Daoist, please follow me.”

They went upstairs to meet the manager, a graceful Kun Dao. She wore a white Daoist robe embroidered with green maple leaves, unconsciously exuding a touch of powerful spiritual pressure.

“Disciple Ji An of the Golden Spirit Sect, greetings, Senior.”

Ji An approached and paid respects; opposite him was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

“So it’s a young friend from the Golden Spirit Sect, please sit.”

“I am Yinn Lingsu, a steward of Luofeng Valley, stationed here at Treasure Talisman Pavilion in recent years; who drew these two talismans?”

She had activated the talismans earlier and found their power comparable to top-grade talismans, evoking her interest when she initially had none in collaboration.

“It was this disciple.”

Yinn Lingsu’s eyes brightened slightly, smiling:

“Besides the two types of talismans, what else can you draw, young friend?

You know, demand for Geng Metal Talisman and Water Curtain Talisman has always been limited.”

Ji An sighed: “Currently, I can only offer these two.”

He didn’t foresee that his chosen talismans wouldn’t sell well in Cyan Cloud Immortal City either, but the time cost to learn a new magic technique was too high. He could only reconsider after consolidating the Metal and Earth elemental Dao Seed.

Yinn Lingsu showed a bit of dwindling interest; while the talismans were excellent, demand wasn’t particularly high.

After some more casual conversation, they finally agreed to supply 500 Water Curtain Talismans and 200 Geng Metal Talismans every two months, with the condition that Treasure Talisman Pavilion would only pay half upfront and settle the remaining upon the next transaction.

Ji An reluctantly agreed; he had to get his products out there first.

This way, Wei Songnian and the various shops in Cyan Cloud Immortal City could absorb most of his talismans.