Cultivation: I Can Solidify Equipment Attributes

「Just past Midnight.」

Li Yuan left the marketplace. He vanished without a trace, his form dissolving into the dense fog at the edge of the Ghost Mist Forest.

His target was the second transit station mentioned by the sallow-faced Demon Cultivator: the river valley behind the eastern hills.

The map of the northern supply route showed the station’s approximate coordinates. Li Yuan moved quickly along the ridgeline. With the speed of a Golden Core Stage cultivator, augmented by the Earth Escape Technique, he reached the cliffs above the river valley in less than an hour.

He cast the passive sensory net of his Dark Evil Insight downward.

At the bottom of the river valley, in a hollow concealed by rubble and shrubs, five sources of Demonic Qi were active.

Two were at Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, and three were at Early-stage Foundation Establishment.

This transit station was even smaller than the first. It had no dedicated cave or structure, consisting only of a natural rock shelter at the valley floor, crudely roofed with a few wooden planks. Next to the shelter sat over a dozen sealed wooden crates, surrounded by an extremely rudimentary Magic Qi Warning Array.

Of the five Demon Cultivators, the two at Mid-stage Foundation Establishment stood guard on the east and west sides of the shelter, each holding a Magical Artifact. The three Early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators were huddled inside; two were dozing, while the third was reading a list by the faint glow of an Array Stone.

’The sallow-faced cultivator said this station was slated for dismantlement. This group is probably just standing watch for the last few days. They’ll likely withdraw after the next supply shipment passes through.’

Li Yuan observed from the western cliffs for a moment, locking onto the precise locations of the five men and the warning array’s area of effect.

’The Magic Qi Warning Array is only Tier One Top Grade, which is useless against a Golden Core Cultivator. I don’t even need to bypass it. As long as I kill them the moment I trigger it, the alarm won’t have time to sound.’

But Li Yuan didn’t strike at once.

Instead, his Divine Sense slowly unfurled across the valley floor, mentally dividing the entire station into several distinct zones.

’The eastern guard: Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, positioned furthest out. His alertness is average; he subconsciously glances at the northern slope every ten breaths.’

’The western guard: also Mid-stage Foundation Establishment. He has a communication bone whistle at his waist, and his left hand hovers over the hilt of his Magical Artifact. His reflexes are a fraction faster than the eastern guard’s.’

’Inside the shelter: three men. Two Early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators are dozing. The third is reading the list. There are fragments of a communication jade slip next to him. If anyone senses trouble, he’ll be the first to raise the alarm.’

’The crude Tier One Magic Qi Warning Array covers the shelter’s perimeter. There’s a subtle flaw in the Array Pattern’s connection at the southeast corner—a natural blind spot.’

The next instant, he cast the Illusion Technique.

An invisible wave of Divine Sense passed through the wooden planks, enveloping the Demon Cultivator reading the list. The man froze for a fraction of a second. His eyes lost focus, and his finger, poised over the jade slip, went still.

At the same time, he unleashed a Void-rending Slash.

The first gray rift shot toward the western guard’s throat.

Not because he was closer, but because the bone whistle at his waist posed the greatest threat.

The gray line flashed past. Before the bone whistle could even make a sound, the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment Demon Cultivator’s head rolled into the grass. His body, still poised to draw its weapon, collapsed a moment later with a heavy THUD.

The second Void-rending Slash skimmed across the ground, slicing diagonally upward from behind the eastern guard’s knees. The man had just registered a cold spike of Spiritual Qi behind him when his legs lost all feeling. Before he could cry out, the residual force of the attack tore through his waist, ripping his body in half.

The muffled thuds of the two guards collapsing finally reached the shelter.

Inside, the two dozing Early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators jolted awake. One instinctively reached for his Magical Artifact while the other opened his mouth to shout.

But Li Yuan had already stepped into the shelter.

He pressed down with his left palm, the force penetrating to the bone. The head of the Demon Cultivator reaching for his Magical Artifact slammed into the dirt floor as if struck by a sledgehammer, and he fell silent instantly.

With a flick of his right index finger, he sent a beam of incredibly condensed Spiritual Power through the last man’s forehead, exiting out the back of his skull. The man managed only a choked, broken sound before the light in his eyes vanished forever.

As for the Demon Cultivator who had been reading the list, he remained trapped in the Illusion Technique until the very end. He didn’t see an intruder, but one of his fellow guards entering the shelter to relieve him from his shift.

So, when the final Void-rending Slash slid across his neck, he didn’t put up any resistance at all.

From the moment his Divine Sense descended to the instant the last body hit the floor, a mere two breaths had passed.

All five were dead.

[Illusion Technique: Novice (100/200)]

Li Yuan retracted his Spiritual Power and began to clear the scene.

He opened the dozen or so wooden crates beside the shelter one by one. Most contained daily consumables for Low Tier Demon Cultivators: Demon Qi Recovery Pills, Detoxification Powder, simple Qi Concealing Talismans, and a batch of crude Demon Qi Array Stones. The quantity was large, but the quality varied.

He searched the storage pouches on the five corpses. In total, there were fewer than a hundred Middle Grade Spirit Stones, along with some miscellaneous Magical Artifacts and Talismans.

The truly valuable items, however, were in a hidden compartment in a corner of the shelter.

The compartment was hidden in the dirt floor beneath the planks, concealed by a Demon Qi Seal. Li Yuan probed it with his Divine Sense, and with a gentle sweep, the seal disintegrated.

Inside were three items.

A supply manifest, which detailed the types and quantities of all goods transported through the station over the past two months.

A log of operational patterns, which noted guard shift schedules, patrol routes, and the frequency of communication with the stations up and down the supply line.

And a backup code-phrase jade slip. Its contents partially overlapped with the codes Li Yuan had previously acquired from the ambush in Mozhou, but it also included two new sets of codes he had never seen before.

Li Yuan made copies of all three items for his records.