Chapter 207: This Is So Hard

Chapter 207: Chapter 207: This Is So Hard

"There really are no other options. What do you think Sects use to attract Cultivators? It’s precisely these things. They control access to all sorts of resources for ordinary Loose Cultivators, forcing the most talented among them to join a Sect. This reduces external threats while continuously funneling talent into their ranks. Why wouldn’t they do it?"

Jiang Xu looked the shopkeeper up and down, making the man’s skin crawl.

"You say there are no other ways, but what if I showed you this?"

With that, Jiang Xu set a small pile of Spirit Stones on the counter.

"This..." The shopkeeper stared at the Spirit Stones, his face pale with shock.

"I’ll double it. Is that enough?" He pushed another pile of Spirit Stones forward.

"Enough! That’s more than enough," the shopkeeper hurriedly exclaimed, though he didn’t take the Spirit Stones. "Senior, what is the meaning of this...?"

"I know you don’t have anything valuable here. But you’re a shopkeeper. You’ve been here for who knows how many years. I refuse to believe you don’t know *any* way to obtain such things," Jiang Xu said slowly, his eyes fixed on the man.

The shopkeeper hesitated. Seeing the growing impatience and the hint of a threat in Jiang Xu’s eyes, he quickly swept the Spirit Stones off the counter and said:

"Where there are rules, there are ways around them. Of course there are ways. More than one, in fact."

"I may not have them here, but you could check the Black Market to see if any stalls are selling what you need. Some people stumble upon things by chance, have a fortuitous encounter, or simply resort to murder and robbery. If they acquire something they can’t sell in the open, they’ll take it to the Black Market."

"There are also certain private trade gatherings where special Cultivation Techniques and Magic Secret Techniques might appear."

"Furthermore, you could go directly to a Broker. It’s highly likely they can get what you need. Even if they can’t acquire the item itself, they’ll at least have news about it."

Finally, the shopkeeper added:

"Honestly, the simplest method is to join a Cultivation Clan or a Sect. Whether you become a Tributor or a full-fledged member, obtaining a Rubbing Copy of a technique won’t be that difficult."

...

Jiang Xu walked out of the shop.

Jiang Xu had also asked about the only two Foundation Establishment Techniques the shop carried.

One was a Fertilization Technique for farming. It could make Spirit Plants take root and sprout faster, shortening their growth cycle. It was a Wood Element Tier Two Technique called the *Wood Spirit Acceleration Technique*.

The second was the extremely common *Innate True Flame Spell*, a technique that practically every Foundation Establishment Cultivator owned.

This Fire Element Tier Two Technique was used to control the Taoist Gang Flame that a Cultivator generates upon reaching Foundation Establishment. It allowed one to command the flame as easily as one’s own limbs, making it incredibly proficient for Alchemy and Artifact Refining. This flame was much stronger than Earth Fire and was even a decent choice for combat.

The *Wood Spirit Acceleration Technique* was priced at seven hundred Spirit Stones, while the *Innate True Flame Spell* was even more expensive at nine hundred.

He had no choice. Despite the exorbitant prices, Jiang Xu could only grit his teeth and pay.

After this purchase, and adding in the cost of the Spiritual Materials he had just bought, he was out a significant amount of Spirit Stones. Even if he liquidated all the miscellaneous Spirit Medicines and Magical Artifacts he had on him, he would only have about six or seven thousand Spirit Stones left.

’What am I going to do? I need to save at least two thousand Spirit Stones for emergencies to get through the Demon Passage. That means I only have three or four thousand left to spend on Techniques and Cultivation Methods.’

’Even these terrible techniques in this shop cost nearly a thousand Spirit Stones each. A decent one must cost several thousand a piece!’

’I thought I was rich with nearly ten thousand Spirit Stones, but it turns out I’m still flat broke!’

After lamenting his financial state, Jiang Xu began to consider his next steps for acquiring techniques.

Just as the shopkeeper had said, there were only four ways to obtain Techniques and Cultivation Methods.

The Black Market, private trade gatherings, Brokers, or joining a Sect.

Having accepted the Spirit Stones, the shopkeeper was quite thorough. He not only told Jiang Xu the location of the Black Market but also agreed to act as his guarantor, which was necessary for Jiang Xu to get in and out.

As for the private trade gatherings, the shopkeeper was merely an ordinary Qi Cultivation Cultivator with few resources. The only gatherings he knew of were for those in the Qi Cultivation Realm, which were useless to Jiang Xu.

The shopkeeper also gave Jiang Xu the contact information for a Broker he knew and considered reliable. Jiang Xu planned to seek out this Broker if he came up empty-handed at the Black Market.

As for joining a Sect, Jiang Xu wouldn’t even consider it.

He had just left the Profound Origin Sect, so he certainly wasn’t going to join a Sect that was worse. Meanwhile, a Sect stronger than the Profound Origin Sect wouldn’t casually recruit an unknown Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Besides, with the chaotic war raging between the righteous and demonic paths, all the Major Sects were getting involved.

If Jiang Xu joined a Sect now, as an outsider, he would surely be among the first to be sent to the most brutal battlefields. That would completely defeat the purpose of his leaving his old Sect.

’I can’t believe it’s this hard just to get a few techniques. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have left the Sect so soon. I should have reached Foundation Establishment first, learned a bunch of techniques from the Scripture Pavilion, and then made a run for it.’

But on second thought, he decided that leaving when he did was for the best.

For one, he had been targeted by Qian Jianjun. There was no guarantee he would have come to a good end, let alone been able to use the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Even if he had managed to become a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, the Sect’s control over him would have been more than ten times stricter than it was at the Qi Cultivation Realm. Fleeing then might have been impossible, and he would have been forced to remain obediently within the Sect.

Besides, to learn High Tier Techniques from the Scripture Pavilion, one either had to become an Elder—which involved having Soul Threads extracted to create a Lifebound Lamp, tying one’s fate to the Sect forever...

...or one had to swear a Heart Demon Oath and dedicate ten or twenty years of service to the Sect, with one’s future prospects depending on the circumstances afterward.

Jiang Xu looked up at the sky. It was as if a giant black velvet curtain was slowly descending, silently shrouding the hustle and bustle of the day.

A bright, clear moon gradually climbed into the sky, its hazy light spilling across the land and draping the surroundings in a faint, silvery veil.

According to the shopkeeper, the Black Market had just opened, but Jiang Xu didn’t plan on heading there immediately.

Jiang Xu had already accomplished a great deal today. He planned to first learn the two Tier Two Techniques, the *Wood Spirit Acceleration Technique* and the *Innate True Flame Spell*, and see for himself the difference between Tier One and Tier Two Techniques.

He also wanted to see if the new Spiritual Materials he bought could be used to improve the proficiency of his Skills.

However, as Jiang Xu was passing by the Black Market, he ran into someone he never expected to see.