Chapter 90: Making Preparations

It was a pity that they only had four seeds, otherwise, they could have solved the food issue much faster. He blamed himself for not working enough in the fields and not knowing to save seeds. Sigh.

Arriving at Liao Pantou's house, Lin Xiao politely knocked on the door. From inside came Liao Pantou's somewhat hoarse voice:

"Come in."

Before Lin Xiao could push the door open, it automatically swung open from the inside.

Inside, he saw Liao Pantou sitting upright in a dark, jade-like wooden armchair. In front of him was a round table of the same material, holding a jade candle lamp and several pieces of fine, delicate white jade tea ware.

At that moment, Liao Pantou was meticulously brewing tea.

Lin Xiao was puzzled. Could a soul body drink tea?

His eyes wandered around the room, noticing that the once earthen walls had been painted a soft white and were adorned with various decorative calligraphy and paintings. Behind the room was a screen, with threads of some kind woven into it, giving off a subtle glow in the candlelight.

The room was lavishly decorated, far beyond what Lin Xiao had expected.

He was momentarily speechless. Where did all these things come from?

No wonder Liao Pantou was a Nascent Soul cultivator; even a small mountain hut had to be extravagantly furnished.

If Liao Pantou knew what Lin Xiao was thinking, he might scoff and say: "This is nothing! I have much better things, but they're stored in other parts of my soul. If I had them here, I'd blind those country boys with how luxurious they are."

Seeing Lin Xiao standing there in a daze, Liao Pantou poured tea into a white jade cup, placed it across from him, and asked:

"Why have you come to see me so late?"

Lin Xiao snapped out of his thoughts and, after thanking Liao Pantou, sat in the seat prepared for him. He then explained the reason for his visit:

"Senior, do you know how to draw the array diagrams for a Spirit Gathering Array and a Concealment Array?"

Liao Pantou took a satisfied sip of his tea and nodded:

"I do."

Without asking why Lin Xiao needed them, Liao Pantou waved his hand and tossed two sheets of paper to him.

"These are some drawings I did for fun years ago. You can study them yourself."

Lin Xiao accepted the papers, confirmed which was the Spirit Gathering Array and which was the Concealment Array, and then, seeing Liao Pantou's relaxed demeanor, decided not to disturb him any further. He said, "Thank you, Senior. I'll take my leave now. Enjoy your tea."

Liao Pantou just nodded and waved him off, too engrossed in savoring his tea to say anything more.

After leaving Liao Pantou, Lin Xiao hurried to the Ten-Mile Peach Blossom Tree, where he plucked two blossoms and a few leaves.

Then, he returned to the sect's main hall and sat down on the straw mat he often used.

Lin Xiao looked at the two diagrams. First, he took some paper mulberry bark and pine soot ink and used the item synthesizer to make several copies of the diagrams. Then, he opened the synthesizer.

He decided to try making the Spirit Gathering Array first.

He placed one peach blossom, the Spirit Gathering Array diagram, and a spirit stone into the synthesizer.

[Item synthesis in progress, please wait...]

Lin Xiao waited expectantly.

Soon, the system's notification sounded:

[Synthesis successful. Item has been sent to your storage. Please check.]

Lin Xiao immediately opened his storage to check. At the bottom, he found a delicate peach blossom, now named [Peach Blossom Spirit Gathering Array].

He quickly used the appraisal function.

[Peach Blossom Spirit Gathering Array: A miniature Spirit Gathering Array. To use, simply place it and infuse a single breath of spiritual energy to activate it. Its effect is similar to a basic Spirit Gathering Array, but it only works within a one-meter radius. When active, it emits a peach blossom fragrance that will not linger on the user. Note: Effects cannot be stacked.]

It turned out to be a miniaturized version of the Spirit Gathering Array!

Lin Xiao was pleased. This would allow the array to be discreet and ideal for cultivation while traveling.

He immediately synthesized a second Peach Blossom Spirit Gathering Array.

Next was the Concealment Array.

Lin Xiao was slightly concerned since arrays typically required activation. He placed a peach leaf, the Concealment Array diagram, and a spirit stone into the synthesizer. Then, after some thought, he added another spirit stone, silently chanting in his mind: "Please become a permanently activated concealment artifact, artifact, artifact!"

The system chimed:

[Synthesis successful. Item has been sent to your storage. Please check.]

Lin Xiao stopped his prayers, held his breath, and opened his storage.

There, at the bottom, was a vibrant green peach leaf.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath and used the appraisal function.

[Absolute Concealment Peach Leaf Pendant: Conceals the cultivation level of the wearer. Ineffective if stored in a spatial container.]

The system really does love him.

Lin Xiao retrieved the Absolute Concealment Peach Leaf Pendant and the Peach Blossom Spirit Gathering Array from his storage and examined them in his hands.

The system's creations were truly top-notch.

Although the peach blossom and leaf appeared unchanged, their texture was now completely different. They were also much heavier than before.

Additionally, both the base of the blossom and the stem of the leaf had small holes, thoughtfully provided for stringing them onto a necklace.

Lin Xiao was very satisfied with the items he had synthesized.

With these, plus the sect's robes, they were well-prepared for both cultivation and defense.

Now, there was only one thing left...

Weapons!

Speaking of which, Lin Xiao suddenly remembered that he had previously created the [Sword Technique in the Clouds].

If he had a sword technique, how could he not have a suitable sword?

He hadn't had the chance to test the power of this technique yet. Although he had automatically learned it and could sense its strength, he didn't know its true power.

So Lin Xiao thought for a moment, then returned to the Ten-Mile Peach Blossom Tree and plucked three branches.

Looking at the massive tree swaying in the moonlight, he thought, "This tree should be fine with me taking a few branches, right?"

Back in the sect's main hall, Lin Xiao eagerly opened the item synthesizer.

Lacking any better materials at hand, he decided to make do with peach branches and spirit stones to see what he could create.

After all, high-grade materials from the cultivation world were out of reach for him right now, and he didn't even have iron.

Iron was extremely expensive in town, and it was hard to buy metal goods, let alone raw iron blocks. They wouldn't sell him any unless he was willing to take apart his family's farm tools.