Living steadily in the world of gods and mystery

The coldest days of the harshest winter had already passed.

Spring was gradually approaching.

From the sky above, the accumulated snow on the ground was slowly melting, and the trees were budding and about to bloom.

Chen Li, facing the cold wind, intended to compose a poem but realized his knowledge was limited, so he gave up reluctantly.

Soon, Red Pillar City appeared distinctly in sight.

Lights dashed across the sky, and giant ships hovered in the air.

He descended from the sky early on.

The road was a mess of mud, black sludge mixed with soiled snow and animal dung, trampled to a soft mush by the constant stream of pedestrians, and after fermenting over an entire winter, it emanated a nauseating smell.

Chen Li held his breath and treaded without touching the ground all the way to the city gate.

Just as he was about to enter the city, he overheard someone mention the term "Artefact Sect," and his footsteps involuntarily halted.

The Artefact Sect was all too familiar to Chen Li.

It was one of the three factions that had besieged the Returning True Sect.

As a result, they lost both their kin and their soldiers; they failed to gain any advantage, and their Golden Core Ancestor had been pulled by the Returning True Sect’s patriarch into mutual destruction, falling together.

Luckily, this sect had deep roots.

They had a profound relationship with the Fire Cloud Sect, as it was founded by one of the Fire Cloud Sect’s elders, and was almost equivalent to a branch. Not long after, they invited another Golden Core from the Fire Cloud Sect, escaping the danger of being wiped out by the surrounding powers.

Following the sound, Chen Li glanced over.

A group of people was gathered around a notice at the city gate, discussing fervently.

He walked over and noticed that it was a recruitment announcement from the Artefact Sect.

"... Recently, the menace of demon beasts has surged, and to clear these wandering creatures from our territory, we are recruiting a large number of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

By serving Artefact Sect for one year,

early Foundation Establishment cultivators will receive three top-grade Spirit Stones, middle-stage cultivators will receive eight, and those at the late stage will get thirty, with payment upfront.

As for the bodies of the demon beasts, they are yours to take.

Once the demon beasts have been cleared, the Artefact Sect will provide additional rewards..."

"Demon beasts..." Chen Li felt a slight sinking in his heart.

First, the Returning True Sect was wiped out by Bai Niao, then the Artefact Sect was plagued by demon beasts, and thinking about the recent rise in the prices of medicinal herbs,

Chen Li had an ominous premonition:

"There must be some calamity unfolding in the wilderness!"

Both the Returning True Sect and the Artefact Sect were located at the frontier, at the very western edge of the barren west, beyond which lay the endless wilderness forests.

He couldn’t help but feel somewhat relieved that he had left that cursed place early on, or he didn’t know what dangers he might have encountered.

...

Having returned to his mansion.

Chen Li greeted Zhou Hong and Zhang Shuniang, and without delay, he rushed to his quiet room, brought out the scroll of the "Longevity Skill," and began to browse through it.

The scroll was not made of paper.

But of some creature’s hide, perhaps due to its age, it was full of fine cracks, looking quite antique and imbued with the vicissitudes of time.

In tiny characters the size of flies and mosquitoes, it recorded a complete Cultivation Technique from Qi Cultivation to Golden Core.

"This must be the original Longevity Skill, but it’s a pity it only goes up to the Golden Core..."

At that thought, Chen Li couldn’t help but chuckle to himself, "I’m really being too greedy."

Even with the current rate of cultivation, if everything went smoothly and without mishap, perhaps he could be fortunate enough to reach the Golden Core stage, but that would be decades from now.

As for the Nascent Soul,

it was something he could barely dream of attaining.

In the vast region like the barren west, with more than a hundred Golden Core Sects and millions of cultivators, there was only one Nascent Soul in the Fire Cloud Sect. It showed how difficult it was to become a Nascent Soul— as tough as ascending to the heavens. Luck, talent, and perseverance were indispensable, and it was not something ordinary people could achieve.

He stopped his wandering thoughts.

Then, he began to silently recite the Golden Core portion of the cultivation technique.

Until he knew it by heart.

This cultivation technique was crucial for his future path, so it was safest to memorize it completely.

If he ended up unlucky like Xiao Yuan, having it stolen or lost, he would regret it deeply.

Chen Li placed the scroll back into his storage bag and quietly pondered:

"Now I have the technique and plenty of Spirit Stones, what’s missing is the spells for later on. Although it might take about two years to reach the fifth level of Foundation Establishment, I still need to start collecting them as soon as possible!"

The Returning True Sect was just a small sect located on the fringes, and even though he had access to the entire scripture repository of the sect, he still couldn’t find a single Second Order fifth-tier spell or talisman. There was indeed a Second Order seventh-tier Falling Thunder Skill, but that was a far cry from what he needed right now.

The reason his strength was far greater than that of an ordinary practitioner at the Foundation Establishment stage was because he was like killing chickens.

Firstly, it was due to his physical techniques, and secondly, it was due to his spells.

As for the art of controlling artifacts, it was utterly commonplace, probably not even as good as an ordinary Qi Cultivation practitioner.

If he lost his spells in the future, it would be like losing a leg.

The key issue was that spells were not easy to buy.

For one, they were too niche; few practitioners at the Qi Cultivation Stage even bothered with spells, let alone those at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Without demand, there would be no market.

Secondly, spells above the Foundation Establishment Stage were generally in the hands of the major sects and rarely seen on the market, only occasionally appearing at auction houses.

Everything depended on luck.

"Sigh, being a Loose Cultivator is really too challenging!"

Chen Li let out a heavy sigh.

He couldn’t resist opening the attribute panel and looking at the long list of spells.

Spiritual Power Finger Snap, Scolding Skill, Traction Skill, Palm Thunder...

These techniques, which once stood by his side as divine skills and into which he put countless efforts to master, were now completely useless as his strength had grown, relegated to collecting dust in the trash heap.

"If only I could continue to optimize them!"

Chen Li shook his head somewhat regretfully, closed the attribute panel, and prepared to rise and leave the quiet room.

Suddenly, a thought struck him:

"Wait, optimize..." Chen Li pondered with a thoughtful expression:

"Optimization isn’t an option, but what if I could make improvements on these spells?"

He had learned quite a number of spells.

All in all, there were thirty-one.

And most of them were trained to max level.

In terms of understanding and mastery of spells, Chen Li was confident that even among the Golden Core cultivators, few could match him.

The max-level spells in his mind were like scattered pearls, just lacking a thread to connect them and form a relatively complete system of spell knowledge.

Nowadays, for common Qi Cultivation Stage spells, he could usually get the gist after a few attempts and master them after a few practices, and even a high-level Second Order fourth-tier spell like the True Fire Skill would only take him a few days to learn and successfully cast.

"For me, creating a new spell from scratch may not be possible, but making adjustments and modifications based on existing ones could very well be within reach. Most importantly, I can use an illusion to experiment, ensuring no danger even if the spell goes awry."

With these thoughts, Chen Li’s heart started to pound with excitement.

The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.

He reopened the attribute panel.

He went through each spell one by one.

"Spiritual Power Finger Snap has too low of a tier, with no value to improve, and besides, the secret technique Cosmic Rigid Energy can achieve a similar effect, and it’s even more useful with a faster activation speed."

"Likewise, Scolding Skill is also rendered obsolete by Soul Capture Skill."

"Palm Thunder, a First Order fourth-tier offensive spell, is not a priority since I have no shortage of offensive spells."

"That leaves only Traction Skill... Oh right, plus the Flash Skill."

Although the Flash Skill is merely a First Order third-tier spell, even when leveled up to max it only becomes a First Order seventh-tier, it has always been quite useful. Even when facing those at the Foundation Establishment Stage, it can have a good effect. But who would refuse a more powerful, more user-friendly super Flash Skill?