Three miles north of Laine's hut, at the heart of Cloudveil City, stood the Repositioning Pagoda, a tower of white jade that dominated the skyline. Each of its nine tiers had gracefully curved eaves adorned with wind chimes crafted from spirit jade, their soft tinkling carrying through the streets.
At the entrance of the pagoda stood two martial-robed guards, their robes adorned with the insignia of the city guard, twin sabers crisscrossing. Their expressions flickered repeatedly as the various cultivators entered the pagoda. The Repositioning Pagoda had nine floors, each consisting of nine repositioning arrays.
An array on the first floor would cost a cultivator a single spirit stone. On the second floor, the price was three spirit stones. The price doubled on every subsequent floor, and with the increased price came a similar increase with the distance traveled. For example, the most distant location available on the first floor was the Silver Valley, which was located 500 miles east of Cloudveil City.
Both guards nodded respectfully toward an old man in scholarly robes as he entered, but their expressions soured when the next man approached. Nearing his late thirties, the man in a long black robe walked past them, his face calm, seemingly oblivious to their disdainful glares.
When the man disappeared from their view, the leftmost guard said, "A mere 3rd Stage Neophyte Realm cultivator at that age. No better than a pile of trash. Do you think he'll make it back?"
The rightmost guard snickered. "No way. Someone like him can only hope for a swift death. I swear, we see more and more of these desperate cultivators every day. They need to learn and accept their place as ants."
♦ ♦ ♦
Laine, of course, was the brown-haired man who entered the Repositioning Pagoda. He was used to looks of contempt and could brush them off with ease.
He had waited until the morning of the following day before he set out in order to have plenty of time to make it back before nightfall. There was no way he would head out in the dark when deadlier nocturnal demonic beasts would be up and about.
Inside the first floor, a polished Black Ironwood counter stood at the center, its surface reflecting the soft white light from floating lanterns. Silver carvings of clouds and cranes glinted in the light. Behind the counter sat a female attendant, her facial expression indifferent.
"Next," she called.
Laine stepped forward and presented one spirit stone. "Silver Valley array please."
She frowned but took the spirit stone and handed him a jade slip.
"Thanks," Laine said, oblivious to the pity in her eyes.
Laine approached the array located at the left corner of the first floor with the jade slip held between his pointer finger and thumb. Unlike the other eight arrays, the array of Silver Valley was absent of anyone. There were lines of various lengths formed for the others, but this one was avoided like a plague.
Without the jade slip in hand, anyone who tried to forcefully step onto the array would be forcefully repelled, and alarms would trigger, notifying the city guard. There had been no incidents for over several decades. The last recorded incident ended with the perpetrator skinned alive at the entrance to serve as a sacrificial example.
Without hesitation, he stepped onto the complex array carved into the polished marble floor, while simultaneously the jade slip glowed, and with it, he disappeared.
♦ ♦ ♦
Silver Valley derives its name from the vast, gleaming deposits of silver ore that cloak the towering mountains on either side. These peaks rise sharply, their slopes shimmering with a metallic sheen that catches the light, creating a blinding glow across the valley's landscape.
"Are you certain the valley is overrun with razorback boars?" Calla asked, flashing out of the Tarnished Key, her expression still unconvinced.
"Of course, if there is one thing I'm confident about, it's my knowledge of demonic beasts. Not many people bother coming here because of them. They're a pain to kill and not even worth a spirit stone." Laine continued. "Stop being so secretive and tell me why we came here."
Calla brushed a strand of green hair out of her eye. "Pill refining, alchemy—surely you know of it. I've been passed down from master to disciple for tens of millennia. Each one of my masters was in fact grandmaster pill refiners."
She came to a stop as the grass beneath her bare feet transitioned into a mosaic of rocks and glistening silver flecks. "Thirty thousand years ago, the razorback boar was thought to be extinct. They were priceless to pill refiners. I have a simple pill recipe whose key ingredient is the heart of the razorback boar."
Laine gave her an expectant look. "I've read a little about alchemy the last time I visited the Cloudveil Archives. Sadly, only disciples of a sect or those born into prestigious clans have the luxury of being taught such alchemy by a master. Does that mean y—"
"You catch on quick. Gather as many hearts as you can because it's almost guaranteed you won't succeed on the first day. You will also need to purchase a pill furnace when we get back. How many spirit stones do you have left?"
Laine reached into an inner pocket of his robe and pulled out a small brown pouch. "Twenty even. Should be enough."
"Then get to work," Calla said, disappearing into the key.
Her voice echoed in his mind. "I need rest."
Now that Laine was the master of the Tarnished Key, he could speak mentally with Calla when she entered the key, and vice versa. She had also explained earlier to him that, in her current state; she needed to rest most of the day. Spirit wine could strengthen her spirit form and allow her to remain awake for longer, while simultaneously boosting the range of her arcane sense. That fact alone was enough to get Laine to act. With how weak he was, any way of increasing his survivability was crucial.
He tucked the pouch back into his robe and checked his surroundings.
At that moment, a strong breeze rolled by him, carrying with it the scent of earth and metal. Ahead of him laid a crystal-clear stream, which he assumed wounded through the entire valley. The deep-greens of hardy vegetation surrounded around him. Further beyond was a vast Black Ironwood forest that veiled most of the valley's interior.
Silver Valley was where Cloudveil City harvested the Black Ironwood sold and used for countless high-end structures and furnishings.
Laine, having decided on how to proceed, reached into his robe and pulled out a palm-sized gray talisman. "Six Stone Spike Talismans won't be enough."
Stone Spike Talismans were cheap, only costing a spirit stone for two. They could summon a barrage of sharp stone spikes from the ground, impaling the target. Not surprising was the fact that a razorback boar's weak spot was its stomach.
The sound of metal clashing left of him snapped him out of his thoughts.
With a quick glance around his left side, he noticed a hill.
Laine crouched and moved toward the hill, dense with foliage. When he reached the top, he parted the branches of a deep-green shrub and gazed upon the source of the sound, and cursed under his breath.
"Dammit! Why is she here?"