Chapter 0015: Monster
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Qi Tian once again hung the "Do not disturb" sign outside his room and began closed-door cultivation again. At present, he had a total of eighty middle-grade Essence Qi Pills. Judging from his experience of opening up the Ren Meridian, these middle-grade Essence Qi Pills should be enough to open up the Du Meridian.
Three days later, in Qi Tian's room, Qi Tian lay on the ground like a pile of dirt. He was soaking wet and sweaty, his face as pale as paper yet tinged with a touch of newly born rosiness.
In these three days, Qi Tian endured the greatest pain of his life. The opening of the Du Meridian was more painful than he had expected. The agony that penetrated his marrow almost made him grind his teeth to pieces. He nearly gave up several times, but when he thought about the dangerous situation he faced in the National Master Manor, he forced himself to persist.
Fortunately, his perseverance paid off. He used seventy middle-grade Essence Qi Pills in total to open his Du Meridian. Furthermore, the two main meridians, Ren and Du, were fully connected, and the True Essence was flowing like rivers in these meridians, endlessly.
The pallor in his face resulted from the relentless three-day torment, and the red glow was the reward he received after opening the Du Meridian, symbolizing the vigor of his flourishing vitality.
Qi Tian could feel that his strength had increased again with the opening of the Du Meridian. His strength had increased by another 300 pounds, exceeding a total of 1,000 pounds, equivalent to two-tiger strength or one-buffalo strength. As for how much his internal True Essence had increased, he couldn't make an accurate judgment because he had not practiced Daoism.
Considering the meridian he opened at the Qi Cultivation First Level in his previous life, he had now opened three meridians. According to "Black Jade Skills", each time a meridian is opened, it is equivalent to rising one level during the Qi Cultivation Period. Theoretically, he should now be at the 3rd Level of Qi Cultivation. However, his current state doesn't match the descriptions of each level of Qi Cultivation in "Black Jade Skills". He remains in the aura of the Qi Cultivation First Level. This confusion leaves Qi Tian in a dilemma. But he wouldn't consult anyone. His opening of the Ren and Du meridians is purely guided by his past life memories. How could he explain it if asked? What if he is misunderstood as possessing a precious treasure and is captured for interrogation?
Qi Tian would never be so foolish as to think that all people would abide by the regulations of the National Master Manor. There would always be those who are above the regulations, or possess such strength they can defy the regulations. It is better to ponder and make fortune quietly before he gains enough strength.
Qi Tian still had some middle-grade Essence Qi Pills left, but he didn't continue to break through the next meridian like last time. For him, at the Qi Cultivation First Level, three meridians were sufficient. There wasn't much significance in continuing to break through. Strengthening oneself is multi-faceted; it's not about opening as many meridians as possible.
Just like assessing a person's wealth, earning money through a job is not the only criterion for increasing wealth. One could also invest in various ways and diversify the channels of wealth accumulation.
The same goes for a cultivator's improvement of strength. Just like Zhou Kunlin, Qi Tian is confident enough to defeat Zhou Kunlin in terms of strength alone. However, Zhou Kunlin's Shock Pulse Hand skill could nullify all of Qi Tian's advantages.
There are many ways to enhance strength. You can practice martial arts, buy Spirit Military weapons, wear Spirit Military armor, or buy a large number of talismans. You can even cultivate Daoism. All these methods can be obtained from the National Master Manor, but only if you have made a significant contribution to the manor. If your contribution is too low, you would have to spend your money instead.
Qui Tian first went to the Feather Hall in the National Master Manor, which serves as the library. Anyone in the manor can borrow from the various classics here using their identity jade medallion. But borrowing is not free. Borrowing fees vary greatly depending on the grade of the classic, the duration of the loan, the borrower's identity, and other factors.
The most important thing here is the borrower's identity. If your social status is sufficiently high, you don't have to pay a penny. If your status is low, you could offer a lot of silver, but you would still be unable to borrow certain classics.
Qi Tian inquired and found that he was currently only eligible to borrow Yellow-rank classics, and he could only borrow one at a time. Low-grade Yellow-rank classics could be copied freely, with one copy costing 1000 taels of silver. For middle-grade and top-grade Yellow-rank classics, they could only be viewed in the Feather Hall, with the former costing 5000 taels of silver per hour and the latter 8000 taels of silver per half-hour.
You can only view the original classic here. If you want to refer to others' cultivation insights, you have to pay extra. The fee is usually much higher than for borrowing the original classic.
Qi Tian currently had less than 6000 taels of silver left on him, most of which was the compensation from Ling Mu. After some calculations, Qi Tian figured that he could only afford to borrow one mid-level Yellow-rank martial art with this amount of silver. If the book he borrowed didn't fit him, then he would have wasted 5000 taels of silver.
Qi Tian shook his head and left the Feather Hall, planning to visit the Hundred Spirit Hall in the National Master Manor. The Hundred Spirit Hall was something like a second-hand market for the students of the National Master Manor. Anything that the disciples did not need, or some valuable treasures they collected whilst adventuring, could be sold here.
However, there was one rule. The inherited martial arts techniques of the National Master Manor were not allowed to appear in this market. If a disciple wanted to transcribe a martial arts technique or skill they have learned and sell it in the Hundred Spirit Hall, it would be absolutely forbidden. Once discovered, the punishment would be extremely severe. Furthermore, if someone took these techniques out of the National Master Manor, causing them to leak outside, the consequences would be even more serious. The leak would result in the execution of the culprit, and anyone who dared to learn these leaked techniques would undoubtedly meet death. There would be no exceptions.
However, the National Master Manor did not restrict everything. Items like medicines, weapons, and battle armors purchased from the manor could be sold at the Feather Hall if they were no longer needed. The manor would not interfere with these private transactions.
The items in the Feather Hall were mixed. If one wanted to buy good items, it was like shopping in the antique street on Earth. If you choose items based on the principle of "you get what you pay for", then you would be like a fat sheep, ready to be freely butchered. To buy good items here, besides good luck, one needed a discerning eye. Sometimes, exceptional skills were also necessary.
Qi Tian strolled around the Hundred Spirit Hall, sometimes stopping to chat with the stall owners. However, he had not been able to find a martial technique or skill that was both satisfactory and reasonably priced.
Without realizing it, Qi Tian had almost toured the entire Feather Hall. He couldn't help but feel anxious. If he couldn't find a suitable martial technique here, he might have to go to Feather Hall and spend a lot of money to copy a martial technique. By then, his pockets would be empty, which would surely hinder his training progress.
Just then, Qi Tian suddenly heard a series of exclamations coming from ahead.
"Jiang Rongfa, you're really brave! You actually brought a demon item with such heavy demon qi into the Hundred Spirit Hall. Don't you value your life and don't drag us into this!"
"What's that? Why do my legs feel soft even before I get close?"
"Why do I see a tiger? It looks so small, why, however, does it give me such a terrifying feeling?"
At that moment, a man dressed in the attire of an outer disciple loudly stated, "Brothers, don't be alarmed. This is a demon item that I obtained while adventuring outside. Although it looks scary, it won't harm anyone. In fact, it's actually very beneficial for tempering courage. Look, my hand is here, and nothing happened."
From a distance, Qi Tian saw the outer disciple reach for something. By the time Qi Tian walked over, he had already withdrawn his hand and showed it to everyone. "See? Nothing happened."
"Jiang Rongfa, don't lie to us!" a disciple shouted.
The disciple who just reached out his hand laughed and said, "Why would I lie to you? I've brought this demon item here to sell after obtaining approval from the officials of the Hundred Spirit Hall. Look, here is the approval document. If they were willing to grant me this document, it proves that it's not dangerous, right?"
Qi Tian carefully observed the so-called monster in front of Jiang Rongfa. It looked like a watermelon-sized crystal ball, glowing faintly green. Within the green light, a fierce tiger-like beast, exposed fangs, similar to a flaming tiger, was crouched. This beast, emitting scorching heat, looked intimidating and seemed to weigh nothing, as it scampered ceaselessly within the crystal ball, moving up, down, left and right without restraint.
Wave after wave of formidable demon power emanated from the crystal ball, causing dread and making people's hearts tremble. Everyone was on edge, fearing that the beast within the crystal ball would break out and attack them.
At this point, Jiang Rongfa was explaining to the crowd, "I have gone to Zhigeng Palace and had the senior brothers there appraise it. This is a very common demonsensing orb. As the name suggests, the demon qi is sealed within this orb as a tool for people to sense the demon qi and improve their ability to identify and resist it. As for the beast within the Demonsensing Orb, it appears to be a Demonic Flame Tiger. The reason why you all feel that its demon qi is so strong is probably because a portion of the soul of a late-stage qi cultivation Demonic Flame Tiger has been captured and melted into it. Therefore, you all find it powerful and hard to approach. But in fact, as long as you overcome your fear, it's quite easy to get close to it. Didn't I just do that? If you don't believe me, you can try for yourselves."
The crowd shook their head in unison. The overwhelming demon power emanating from the Demonsensing Orb was just too much for them. Overcoming their fear wasn't something that could be achieved in a short time.