Chapter 14: A Way Out

So-called "Cultivation Jade Slips" are vessels into which a cultivator pours their insights gained from practicing a specific technique or spell. Others can then obtain these insights through the jade slip, enhancing their understanding of the art and increasing their cultivation speed.

It could be described as a shortcut to success.

Chen Lin felt a surge of excitement and blurted out, "How many spirit stones for a single Object Manipulation technique jade slip?"

As the saying goes, any problem that can be solved with money is not a problem. He still had some spirit stones left, and in order to leave this eerie place as quickly as possible, he couldn't afford to be wasteful.

"Two thousand spirit stones!"

The price quoted by the woman left Chen Lin speechless.

This wasn't just expensive; it was robbery.

If a mere Object Manipulation technique cost this much, what about other spells? If they were higher-level, just how absurd would the prices become?

Noticing the change in Chen Lin's expression, the woman smiled faintly and said, "Does Fellow Daoist find it expensive? But you must understand, to create a legacy jade slip, one must possess at least the Foundation Establishment stage cultivation. Do you still think it's expensive after that?"

It required a Foundation Establishment cultivator to act?

Chen Lin was truly astonished this time.

To produce a mere Object Manipulation technique, one actually had to involve a Foundation Establishment expert. It seemed these cultivation jade slips were indeed no ordinary items.

Given that a Foundation Establishment cultivator had to be involved, two thousand spirit stones actually wasn't expensive; with their status, they wouldn't even look at anything less.

Furthermore, blank jade slips themselves were precious items.

Wait!

A thought struck Chen Lin.

Since she put it that way, could it be that there was a Foundation Establishment cultivator backing the Shuiyue Pavilion?

He had always assumed this was just an ordinary shop, but now it seemed it was hiding something deep.

Regardless of whether her words were true or false, he couldn't afford it. Chen Lin left the Shuiyue Pavilion with a face full of helplessness, then began inquiring about the prices of Enlightenment Pills and cultivation jade slips within the market.

Just as the woman had said, there were no cultivation jade slips for low-level spells like Object Manipulation.

The spells were too lowly to be paired with such high-end configurations.

As for the Enlightenment Pill, the price was an exaggerated six thousand spirit stones, and they were impossible to find even if one had the money!

It was a relatively high-level pill; using it to practice Object Manipulation would be a colossal waste of resources.

In fact, it wasn't just the Enlightenment Pill. Aside from common items like Qi-Supplementing Pills and Hemostatic Pills, any pill related to cultivation was not sold publicly; they were controlled by various major powers.

After learning this, Chen Lin couldn't help but curse the profiteers inwardly, feeling he had wasted ten low-grade spirit stones for nothing.

The woman at Shuiyue Pavilion seemed to have given him two choices, but in reality, there was only one.

Was he really going to spend two thousand spirit stones to buy their jade slips?

Chen Lin pondered silently as he walked.

Of course, it was just pondering; he knew it was unrealistic.

He didn't know how long it would take to save up two thousand spirit stones, and even if he saved enough and obtained the Object Manipulation technique, what about other spells? He couldn't rely on this forever, could he?

"If all else fails, I'll just have to rely on slow and steady practice to master Object Manipulation and Wind-Riding, and figure out the rest later!"

Chen Lin muttered helplessly.

It wasn't that he hadn't considered refining Enlightenment Pills himself; after all, with his special abilities, he certainly could.

But setting aside the price of raw materials, it would be impossible to obtain the pill recipes.

Forget the recipe for the Enlightenment Pill—not a single pill recipe was being sold in any shop in the entire market!

Feeling depressed, Chen Lin lost interest in continuing his stroll and prepared to head home.

Just then, a middle-aged man wearing a sheepskin coat approached him stealthily.

The man had triangular eyes, a pointed chin, and a pair of drooping mustaches; he looked exactly like a villain from a novel.

Chen Lin grew wary, his palm surreptitiously gripping the Xiaoyao Sword inside his bundle, while his other hand gripped a stack of Fireball Talismans.

"Fellow Daoist, do you want a recipe?"

As the man approached, he suddenly opened his wide sheepskin coat, revealing several sewn pockets on the inside. Each pocket contained a yellowed scroll, giving off an air of great antiquity.

This scene truly caught Chen Lin off guard.

It felt strangely familiar.

It triggered a memory from his past life.

On a dimly lit street, a sleazy middle-aged man had stopped him and asked mysteriously, "Want a disc?"

The same scene, the same movement.

"I don't want anything!"

Chen Lin replied coldly, intending to walk past him.

But the man's next words made him stop.

"The recipe for the Enlightenment Pill. Only three hundred spirit stones. I guarantee it was transcribed directly from an authentic recipe, word for word!"

The man had actually directly named the Enlightenment Pill recipe!

Chen Lin's expression instantly turned cold as he looked at the man. "Are you following me?"

"Heh."

The sleazy man gave a dry laugh and said, "I wouldn't call it following. I just happened to see your Excellency looking for an Enlightenment Pill recipe in the shop."

He continued, "To be honest with you, pill recipes are the most precious treasures of alchemists. No alchemist would ever sell them. Trying to buy one through official channels is nothing but a pipe dream!"

"Oh? Since recipes are so precious, how do you have so many? Could it be that you are a grandmaster alchemist?"

Chen Lin looked at him mockingly, his voice laced with sarcasm.

The sleazy man didn't care about Chen Lin's mockery; instead, he puffed out his chest.

With an air of pride, he said, "Every snake has its way, and every rat has its way. How I obtained my recipes is none of your business. You only need to know that if you miss me today, you won't be able to buy an Enlightenment Pill recipe anywhere else."

Having said that, the man cautiously glanced around. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he urged him urgently.

"Do you want it or not? If you want it, hurry up. If not, I'm leaving!"

Chen Lin frowned.

He had intended to turn and walk away, but after a moment's thought, he asked casually, "How can I be sure your recipe is real?"

"I can swear an Inner Demon Oath! If there is even a shred of falsehood in the recipe I sell, let my soul be scattered to the winds!"

The sleazy man's expression became solemn as he pointed to the sky and made his oath.

Chen Lin was momentarily stunned.

The man actually dared to swear an Inner Demon Oath!

Oaths in this world were not to be taken lightly; the Heavenly Dao truly existed in the unseen realms. Especially an Inner Demon Oath—even if it wasn't a guaranteed death sentence, it carried immense binding power.

Could it be...

The recipe he was selling was real?

Chen Lin's interest was instantly piqued.

Regardless of where the man's goods came from—whether stolen or looted—as long as they were real, it didn't matter.

Besides, he was currently in disguise; no one would be able to find him after he left.

"Can I take a look?"

Chen Lin hesitated, wanting to inspect the goods first.

Unexpectedly, the man waved his hands repeatedly. "That won't do! There isn't much content in this recipe anyway. If you read it once, wouldn't you just memorize the whole thing? Do you want it or not? Forget it, I won't waste my breath on you!"

The sleazy man seemed somewhat angered and turned to leave.

"Wait!"

Chen Lin hurriedly called out to him.

The man's reasoning was sound; pill recipes were indeed difficult to inspect.

He stopped being wordy and said, "I won't inspect it, but can you make it cheaper? I don't have that many spirit stones on me!"

He desperately needed this Enlightenment Pill recipe now, so even though he knew there was a high probability the man was a fraud, he was willing to gamble.

However, he could not agree to gamble with three hundred spirit stones; a lower price was something he could consider.

"Sigh, a grown man being so indecisive. Fine, how much of a discount do you want?"

The sleazy man turned back, looking impatient.

"Ten spirit stones."

Chen Lin's voice was very low; even he felt the price was somewhat excessive.

As expected, the sleazy man flew into a rage.

"Ten spirit stones? Are you joking? This is a recipe, not a cabbage!"

Chen Lin also felt he had haggled a bit too ruthlessly.

After thinking for a moment, he pulled a small coin pouch from his bundle, shook it, and said, "There are twenty spirit stones in here. This is all the money I have. If you agree, the deal is on. If not, forget it!"

To be honest, Chen Lin felt this transaction would certainly fail.

Twenty low-grade spirit stones could never be equated to an Enlightenment Pill recipe, no matter how you looked at it.

Even if it were stolen, there had to be a premium for the risk!

But to his great surprise, the man looked exasperated, snatched one of the scrolls out, walked quickly toward him, shoved it into his hand, and then snatched the pouch of spirit stones away.

"I'm doing you a favor today. If I hadn't had bad luck today, you wouldn't even be able to dream of this price!"

The man snapped his coat shut and disappeared quickly into the snowy landscape.

"Damn it, I fell for it!"

Seeing this, no matter how slow-witted Chen Lin might be, he knew his spirit stones had gone down the drain.