He Song nodded slightly to Ping'er and stated his request.
After reaching the first level of Qi Refinement by guiding spiritual energy into the body, a cultivator is still in their weakest stage.
The spiritual energy within the body is minimal, and there are no protective spells. At this stage, even facing a mundane martial artist could easily lead to unexpected failure.
Thus, upon reaching the first level of Qi Refinement, most cultivators quickly select a few basic spells for self-protection and other uses.
He Song had previously been unaware of this.
However, after Wei Fan's guidance, he now understood the importance of basic spells for his survival.
This understanding had brought him to the Spirit Techniques Pavilion to learn a few essential spells.
Additionally, he planned to browse the books on cultivation world knowledge available in the pavilion to deepen his understanding and fill in his knowledge gaps.
"Basic spells? Please follow me, Fellow Daoist He," Ping'er replied with a twinkle in her eye, promptly leading He Song to another area.
At an unoccupied desk, He Song was served a cup of hot tea.
After waiting for a short while, Ping'er returned, carrying a tray.
The tray held a dozen or so jade slips, neatly arranged and exuding a sense of refinement.
Placing the tray on the table, Ping'er picked up one of the jade slips and began her introduction.
"This is the Spirit Eye Technique. It allows you to view the cultivation level of others at any time, helping you avoid provoking powerful individuals."
"This is the Fireball Technique, which conjures fireballs to strike your enemies with considerable power."
"This is the Transmission Technique, the top choice for Qi Refinement cultivators to communicate with friends over long distances. It uses paper cranes or spirit birds to deliver messages swiftly and is rarely intercepted. Even if intercepted, the message self-destructs, ensuring high security."
"This is the Light Body Technique, which enhances movement speed, essential for long journeys or escaping danger."
"This is the Aura Concealment Technique, which hides your aura, making you indistinguishable from a rock and nearly undetectable."
"And this is—"
As Ping'er introduced the spells one by one, He Song's eyes gleamed with interest.
He wanted them all.
These spells were indeed essential for every cultivator.
However, before coming to the Spirit Techniques Pavilion, Wei Fan had specifically reminded him to prioritize three must-have spells. Other basic spells could wait until he had more spirit stones in the future.
The three must-have spells were:
Spirit Eye Technique
Transmission Technique
Aura Concealment Technique
The Spirit Eye Technique allows cultivators to discern others' cultivation levels at a glance, helping them avoid offending someone far stronger.
Unlike using spiritual sense, which might offend others, the Spirit Eye Technique is less intrusive. It's akin to a "spiritual energy observation" method that merely reveals cultivation levels without triggering hostility.
On the other hand, spiritual sense scanning is akin to physically touching someone—a violation that most people despise.
In the cultivation world, using the Spirit Eye Technique is commonplace and accepted, but spiritual sense scanning is considered taboo.
The Transmission Technique enables cultivators to communicate remotely with friends by exchanging a sliver of spiritual aura. Using this aura, one can dispatch a paper crane or spirit bird to deliver messages.
However, the technique has limitations. If the recipient is within a defensive formation or has activated the Aura Concealment Technique to hide their aura, the transmission fails, and the messenger waits at the last known location of the aura.
The exchanged aura works like a "friend request," allowing contact but without the risk of tracking. If someone changes their aura using specific techniques, the Transmission Technique also becomes ineffective.
If a transmission is intercepted, the message self-destructs, and the sender is immediately alerted.
The Aura Concealment Technique is used to suppress one's aura, making it undetectable and helping avoid disasters.
However, it only hides the aura—it doesn't make someone physically invisible. If someone sees you with their eyes, the concealment is useless.
For this reason, when using the Aura Concealment Technique to avoid detection, it's best to hide physically as well.
Moreover, when observing someone using the Aura Concealment Technique with the Spirit Eye Technique, their cultivation level cannot be discerned.
When others are not using the Aura Concealment Technique, a single glance with the Spirit Eye Technique can reveal their cultivation level.
"These spells are ten spirit stones each. Fellow Daoist He, which ones do you need?"
After introducing all the spells in the tray, Ping'er turned her gaze to He Song and softly inquired.
The spells sold at the Spirit Techniques Pavilion were all embedded in jade slips, ensuring complete content without the risk of missing text or incomplete techniques.
Once purchased, pressing the jade slip to the forehead would instantly transfer all knowledge of the spell, including the insights and experiences of prior practitioners.
This comprehensive service naturally came at a higher price.
For He Song, the reliability of purchasing authentic techniques at the Spirit Techniques Pavilion outweighed the risks of buying cheaper, handwritten versions in the market.
Handwritten versions that couldn't be cultivated were a minor concern—practicing faulty techniques and injuring oneself was a far graver risk.
Still, the cost of ten spirit stones per spell made He Song wince slightly.
After all, the Thick Earth Technique, a cultivation manual capable of guiding someone to the ninth level of Qi Refinement, had only cost one spirit stone.
Now, a single spell cost ten.
With only a little over thirty spirit stones in total, He Song could afford at most three spells.
This meant that after purchasing the three essential spells, he'd be left with just enough spirit stones to scrape by for his basic needs this year.
'So cultivation techniques are dirt cheap, but spells cost a fortune, huh?'
Suppressing his hesitation, He Song made his decision.
"I'll take the Spirit Eye Technique, the Aura Concealment Technique, and the Transmission Technique. Thank you, Fellow Daoist."
He handed over thirty spirit stones to Ping'er, who picked three jade slips from the tray and handed them to him.
"Simply press the jade slip to your forehead," Ping'er instructed with her usual gentle tone.
He Song didn't waste any time. He took one of the jade slips and pressed it against his forehead.
In an instant, all information regarding the Aura Concealment Technique was imprinted into his memory.
He immediately understood how to cultivate the technique and its various applications once mastered.
Using the same method, he quickly absorbed the other two spells. After learning all three foundational techniques, he opened his eyes.
The process of learning spells through jade slips was remarkably effective.
Having just mastered three basic spells, He Song felt no fatigue. On the contrary, his mind felt sharper, and the memories of the spells seemed even more vivid.
"If you need anything else, feel free to call for me. The books on cultivation basics are on that bookshelf, and Fellow Daoist He can browse them at leisure. I have other matters to attend to, so I'll excuse myself," Ping'er said before leaving.
From He Song's attire, cultivation level, and the fact that he only purchased three basic spells, Ping'er had already deduced much about him.
Based on her experience, He Song would likely spend the rest of his time here browsing knowledge-based books and would return over the next few days. However, it was unlikely he'd purchase more spells anytime soon, so her assistance wouldn't be needed.
"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Ping'er," He Song replied, cupping his hands in gratitude.
Suppressing his excitement to rush home and practice his newly acquired spells, he instead turned to the nearby bookshelf. Picking up a book, he began reading quietly.
Titles like The Spirit Plant Compendium, The Spirit Mine Directory, The Beast Atlas, Cultivator Realm Classifications, and Power Structures Around the Vast Earth Sect passed under He Song's gaze.
Through these books, He Song gained a clearer understanding of the cultivation world around him.
He was currently within the sphere of influence of the Vast Earth Sect, a Golden Core Sect.
The Vast Earth Sect governed four immortal cities. Each immortal city, in turn, managed three to four Immortal Markets.
He Song's current location was one such Immortal Market: Bamboo Mountain Immortal Market, under the jurisdiction of Azure Cliff Immortal City.
Immortal Markets had Foundation Establishment disciples from the sect stationed as overseers, ensuring their safety.
Surrounding the Vast Earth Sect's territory were four other Golden Core Sects:
Golden Sword Sect (to the east)
Pure Yin Sect (to the south)
Qionghua Sect (to the west)
Seven Star Sect (to the north)
The first three were orthodox sects, while the Seven Star Sect was a demonic sect.
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