Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes

After arriving in the Stone Wilderness of Mozhou via the Teleportation Array, Li Yuan didn’t rush to head deeper underground.

He stood in the underground stone chamber, closed his eyes, and focused. The permanent trait of his Phantom Face Disguise activated, and within a few breaths, his face, body, and aura underwent a complete transformation.

His features coarsened, his cheekbones became more prominent, his skin darkened a few shades, and a ring of short, hard stubble appeared on his jaw. His build shifted from slender and lanky to a slightly stooped, medium frame. His aura, suppressed to the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment level by Shadowless Concealment and enhanced by thirty percent from his Phantom Face Disguise, gave him the distinct air of a Loose Cultivator who had spent years wandering and sleeping under the stars.

A wandering Loose Cultivator trying to make a living in the wilds of Mozhou.

Li Yuan inspected his disguise, and after confirming it was flawless, he cast the Earth Escape Technique and submerged into the ground.

He followed the route he’d recorded while tailing the four descendants, resurfacing about two hundred zhang from the entrance to their settlement.

Ahead lay the inconspicuous fissure in the ground. The crack was no more than three feet wide and looked like an ordinary geological fracture from the outside, but its depths connected to the descendants’ network of underground caves.

Li Yuan didn’t conceal his aura. He stood openly just outside the fissure, empty-handed, adopting a completely non-aggressive posture.

After a wait of about half a cup of tea, the faint sound of footsteps echoed from deep within the fissure.

Two Spiritual Waves emerged from the darkness. They were both at the Early-stage Foundation Establishment level, concealed behind rocks to the left and right of the fissure.

"Halt," a low voice ordered from the left. "Who goes there?"

"Just a passing Loose Cultivator." Li Yuan’s voice was raspy and low, with the dry rasp of someone long deprived of water. "Been walking the wilderness for nearly two months. My Spirit Stones have run out, and I’m looking for a place to rest my feet."

Silence fell for several breaths.

The Spiritual Wave on the left shifted forward slightly. A young, dark-complexioned Cultivator emerged halfway from behind the rock, a short blade in his hand, warily sizing up Li Yuan.

"There’s no place to rest here. Move along."

Li Yuan didn’t move. He slowly retrieved an object from his storage bag and held it in his palm.

It was a Spirit-Conducting Copper Plate he had taken from the flow-diversion chamber in the Profound Nether Sub-Palace. The plate’s surface was covered in the unique Array Patterns of the Profound Nether Sect. Though it was rusted and blackened, the design of the patterns was still clearly visible.

The young guard’s eyes fixed on the copper plate, his pupils constricting sharply.

He said nothing more, instead quickly pulling back behind the rock. Li Yuan heard the faint hum of a voice transmission, clearly a report being made to someone inside.

About an incense stick’s worth of time later, a figure emerged from deep within the fissure.

It was an old man. He was gaunt, with a slightly hunched back, and wore a faded, gray robe that had been washed white. A cloud pattern, repeatedly mended, was faintly visible on the cuffs and collar. It was the same style worn by the four descendants Li Yuan had previously seen.

But his aura was completely different.

Late-stage Foundation Establishment, and a remarkably solid one at that. Though long-term exposure to a Spiritual Qi-deficient environment meant his total Spiritual Power was less abundant than a normal Cultivator’s, the stability of his meridians and the refinement of his power were both exceptionally high.

The old man walked out of the fissure, his cloudy eyes fixed on the copper plate in Li Yuan’s palm.

"This... where did you get it?"

Instead of answering, Li Yuan put the copper plate away and took out a second item: a fragment of Sealing Spirit Glue from the era of the Profound Nether Sect, which he’d found in a storage box in the stone chamber, along with a small cross-section of a Spiritual Power diversion channel.

All three items, laid out together, came from the underground ruins of the Profound Nether Sect.

The old man’s breathing grew ragged. He stared at the cross-section of the diversion channel for a long moment before reaching out a withered finger to touch it gently.

"You’ve been inside the flow-diversion system."

It wasn’t a question. It was a statement.

"I have," Li Yuan nodded. "And not just the flow-diversion system."

The old man looked up, reassessing him.

"Follow me."

Li Yuan followed the old man into the fissure. The two guards watched them disappear into the darkness, their weapons never wavering.

The fissure descended for about fifty zhang before suddenly opening up into a massive natural cavern. The ceiling soared more than ten zhang high, and a few phosphorescent stones embedded in the walls cast a faint, hazy yellow light over the entire space.

There were people in the cavern.

Not four or five, but dozens.

Men and women, young and old, were scattered throughout the cavern’s corners. Some squatted on the ground, grinding some kind of powder with a stone mortar. Others sorted through piles of separated ore fragments. A few children chased each other playfully at the cavern’s edge. All of them wore the same old gray robes, their faces pale and gaunt, but their spirits seemed decent enough.

This was just the outer area. Li Yuan’s senses told him there were even more people in the caverns deeper within.

The old man led him through the outer area and into a small hut built from loose stones. Inside was a stone table with two stone stools, and on the table sat an oil lamp on the verge of sputtering out.

"Sit."

The two sat facing each other.

The old man introduced himself. "My surname is Shen. The people here call me Elder Shen."

"A Loose Cultivator, surname Liu," Li Yuan replied with a name he made up on the spot.

Elder Shen didn’t press the issue of the name’s authenticity and cut straight to the chase.

"The items you have all come from the underground facilities at the old Sect site. The Spirit-Conducting Copper Plate, the Sealing Spirit Glue, the cross-section of the diversion channel... These can only be acquired by penetrating the core area of the flow-diversion system. How did a Loose Cultivator like you get inside?"

"The Restrictions have fallen into disrepair, and cracks have appeared in some places," Li Yuan answered, mixing truth with lies. "I stumbled upon an entrance while wandering the wilderness and followed the passage inside."

Elder Shen stared into his eyes for several breaths but didn’t press the matter.

"You’re not the first outsider to get in." Elder Shen’s tone flattened.

"Several groups have come over the years, but they weren’t interested in us and made no contact. They went straight for the inner areas, stayed for a few days, and left. They seemed to know exactly what they were looking for and had some knowledge of the ruins’ layout."

"What kind of people were they?"

"I don’t know. Their auras were concealed, so I couldn’t tell their origins." Elder Shen shook his head. "But one thing is certain: they didn’t find the most important thing."

Li Yuan didn’t respond, waiting for him to continue.

Elder Shen fell silent for a moment, as if weighing his options. Finally, he sighed and began to speak.

"Since you’ve penetrated the core of the flow-diversion system, you must have sensed the seal in the depths beyond. Hidden there is the life’s work of the final Sect Master. Before the Sect’s fall, the Sect Master sealed the most important things away in a place we call the Sunken Abyss Grotto."

"Where is the entrance to the grotto?"

"I don’t know the exact location, but the Sect Master left behind three keys." Elder Shen held up three fingers. "All three are required. The grotto cannot be opened if even one is missing."

"The first is a Jade Bead. Before the Sect fell, the Sect Master poured a vast amount of Spiritual Power into it and sealed it using a special technique. This Jade Bead should be hidden in one of the Sect’s Sub-Palaces."

’The Jade Bead in the folded space of the Profound Nether Sub-Palace, the one sealed by that giant mist Array... that’s almost certainly the first key Elder Shen mentioned.’

"The second is a pattern. As for the specific design or what it’s inscribed on, I do not know."

Several items he’d acquired from the ruins flashed through Li Yuan’s mind. ’The partial map from the disciple’s journal, certain Array Patterns in the flow-diversion chamber... any of them could be the carrier. I’ll need to go back and compare them carefully to be sure.’

"The third is at the entrance to the Sect Master’s private chamber." Elder Shen’s voice dropped. "The problem is, no one knows where the private chamber is. The internal rebellion erupted too suddenly. At the last moment, the Sect Master completely erased its location, so that not even his most favored disciples knew where to find it."

’Three keys. I might have already stumbled upon the first two, but the lead for the third is a complete blank.’

After he finished speaking, Elder Shen gave Li Yuan another once-over.

"Mr. Liu, I won’t ask for your real identity or your true purpose in coming to Mozhou. But there is a matter I’d like to discuss with you."

"Speak."

"We have been barely surviving underground for centuries, relying on scavenging the dregs of Spirit Marrow from the old mining areas to sustain our cultivation. Our numbers are dwindling, and our resources grow ever more scarce."

There was no self-pity in Elder Shen’s voice, only the calm of stating a fact. "We need supplies from the outside world. Spirit Stones, medicinal pills, Array materials... we lack everything."

"What do you need?"

"Supplies and support for our Arrays. Our Defensive Array is in disrepair, and several sections are on the verge of collapse." Elder Shen was direct, not wasting any words. "In exchange, we can serve as your guides. We’ve lived in these tunnels for centuries. We know every passage, every fork in the road, every hidden current. An outsider would be completely lost down here, but we can lead the way."

He paused, then added,

"We also have a few elders skilled in nurturing Spirit Plants. Our conditions are crude, but their techniques are sound. If you can provide seeds and Spiritual Soil, they can grow things for you."

’Spirit Plant cultivation. An unexpected windfall.’

"Deal." Li Yuan didn’t haggle. "I’ll deliver the first batch of supplies within three days. As for the Array, I’ll take a look at it myself."

A flicker of surprise crossed Elder Shen’s eyes; he clearly hadn’t expected such a swift agreement. He nodded and extended his withered palm.

They slapped palms, sealing the pact.

Li Yuan stood up, sensing a cold, sinister aura.

That cold presence... it was Demonic Qi.

The Dark Abyss Association’s treasure-hunting team was here.

After exchanging a few more words, Li Yuan left the stone hut, crossed the cavern, and returned to the fissure entrance.

He cast the Earth Escape Technique, his body melting into the rock.

His perception, its range doubled by his Spirit Vein Affinity, spread rapidly through the subterranean rock layers. He didn’t need to get close to his targets; he only had to catch the Spiritual Waves generated by their movements from afar.

A few breaths later, his sensory net locked onto a group of moving signals.

Five auras were advancing slowly through the outer passages of the flow-diversion system. The lead aura was the most solid, at the Late-stage Foundation Establishment level. The other four were spread out in a standard diamond-shaped guard formation around it.

The Dark Abyss Association’s treasure-hunting team. One Late-stage Foundation Establishment leader and four at the Mid-stage.

They were following the main passage of the flow-diversion system deeper into the ruins, heading straight for the stone cavern that once housed the core of the Demon Qi Pill Platform.

Li Yuan noted their position and speed, withdrew his senses, and headed back toward the Teleportation Array.

He wasn’t in a rush to act.

’Let them come up empty-handed first.’