Chapter Nine: Selecting Spells

He Song nodded slightly at Ping’er and stated his request.

After drawing in spiritual energy and reaching the first stage of Qi Refinement, a cultivator was still at their weakest. Their bodies held too little spiritual power, and they had no techniques to protect themselves. At this stage, even facing a mundane martial artist could spell disaster. Therefore, upon reaching the first stage of Qi Refinement, most cultivators would quickly select a few basic spells for self-defense and other uses.

He Song had been unaware of this before. However, after Wei Fan’s guidance, he came to understand the importance of basic spells. That was why he had come to the Hall of Spirit Arts, intending to learn a few foundational techniques. He also wanted to browse the books that recorded common knowledge of the cultivation world, so that his understanding of it would no longer be so lacking.

“Basic spells? Fellow Daoist He, please follow me.” Ping’er’s eyes flickered at his words, and she quickly led He Song to the other side.

They stopped in front of an unoccupied desk. A cup of hot tea was poured for He Song. After a short wait, Ping’er returned, carrying a tray. On the tray, a dozen or so jade slips were neatly arranged, looking most impressive.

Setting down the tray, Ping’er picked up one of the jade slips and began to introduce them.

“This is the Spiritual Sight Technique, which allows you to instantly see another’s cultivation level and avoid provoking the strong.”

“This is the Fireball Technique, which gathers fire to attack enemies with considerable power.”

“This is the Transmission Technique, the first choice for Qi Refinement cultivators to communicate with friends over distances. The paper crane messenger travels very quickly and is nearly impossible to intercept. Even if intercepted, the message within will self-destruct, making it extremely secure.”

“This is the Light Body Technique, which increases your speed—a must-have for long journeys or escapes.”

“This is the Breath Concealment Technique, which allows you to hide your aura and become as unnoticeable as a stone—almost impossible to detect.”

“This is…”

As Ping’er introduced each technique, He Song’s eyes grew deep with longing.

He wanted them all.

These were indeed essential arts for any cultivator. Yet, before coming to the Hall of Spirit Arts, Wei Fan had specifically reminded He Song that three spells were absolute necessities; the rest could wait until he had more spirit stones.

The three essential spells were:

One, Spiritual Sight Technique.

Two, Transmission Technique.

Three, Breath Concealment Technique.

The Spiritual Sight Technique allowed one to instantly discern another’s cultivation level, helping to avoid entanglements with formidable foes. Since it only revealed cultivation and no other information, it was less intrusive than scanning someone with spiritual sense, which could easily offend.

The Spiritual Sight Technique was akin to reading someone’s aura—it merely indicated their cultivation and caused no displeasure. But a spiritual sense scan was like a stranger running their hands over you—who would welcome that?

Thus, in the world of cultivation, using the Spiritual Sight Technique was commonplace and unremarkable, but scanning others with spiritual sense was a serious taboo.

The Transmission Technique allowed friends to exchange a trace of aura; then, by releasing a paper crane or bird, one could contact the other—an indispensable spell for long-distance communication among Qi Refinement cultivators.

Of course, if the target was inside a defensive formation or had used the Breath Concealment Technique to hide their aura, the Transmission Technique would be unable to locate them and would stop at the last known position. Swapping a trace of aura with a friend was akin to adding them as a contact—this trace could be used to reach them. There was no need to worry about being tracked through it. However, if someone used a special spell to alter their aura, the Transmission Technique would fail. If a message was intercepted, it would self-destruct instantly, and the sender would be alerted.

The Breath Concealment Technique masked one’s own aura, making it impossible for others to sense them—a perfect choice for avoiding calamity. However, it only blocked spiritual detection; the user was still visible to the naked eye. The Breath Concealment Technique was not an invisibility spell; if one wished to remain unseen, it was best to hide physically. When using Spiritual Sight on someone employing Breath Concealment, their cultivation could not be detected. But if the other party was not using it, a glance would reveal their level.

“All of these spells are just ten spirit stones each. Which ones would fellow Daoist He like?” After introducing all the spells on the tray, Ping’er looked softly at He Song.

Every spell sold in the Hall of Spirit Arts was stored on a jade slip, so there was no risk of being unable to cultivate it, or missing pages. After purchase, one simply pressed the jade slip to their forehead to fully receive all the spell’s secrets, along with the insights of predecessors who had practiced it before—enough to let a first-time learner avoid many pitfalls.

Such comprehensive service naturally did not come cheap. But rather than seeking out those handwritten versions in the marketplace, which might be less expensive, He Song preferred to buy the genuine product from the Hall of Spirit Arts—not for any other reason, but simply to avoid being cheated. An unusable handwritten copy was one thing, but a technique that went awry during cultivation could lead to far greater trouble.

Still, the ten spirit stones price per spell stung a little. The previous owner of this body had bought a cultivation method that could be used up to the ninth stage of Qi Refinement for just one spirit stone, yet now a single spell cost ten. He only had just over thirty spirit stones on him, so he could learn, at most, three spells.

This meant that after acquiring the three essential spells, he’d be left with only a few stones—barely enough for his food for the year.

Was this a world where even dogs would reject cultivation methods but spells were priced absurdly high?

He Song’s hesitation vanished quickly.

“I’ll take the Spiritual Sight Technique, the Breath Concealment Technique, and the Transmission Technique. Thank you, Daoist.” He nodded to Ping’er, drew thirty spirit stones from his sleeve, and handed them over.

Accepting the stones, Ping’er selected three jade slips from the tray and passed them to He Song.

“Just press the jade slip to your forehead,” came her gentle voice again.

He Song said nothing further, taking a jade slip and pressing it to his forehead.

In the next moment, all the information about the Breath Concealment Technique was firmly imprinted in his memory. In almost an instant, he understood completely how to cultivate it, and every effect it would have once mastered.

He repeated the process with the remaining two jade slips. Having learned all three foundational spells, He Song finally opened his eyes.

He had to admit, learning spells through jade slips was remarkably effective. Having just mastered three basic spells, he felt not the least bit tired—on the contrary, his mind was clearer, and his recall of their workings ran even deeper.

“If you need anything else, just call for me. Books on common knowledge of cultivation are all on those shelves—feel free to browse. I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave.” With those words, Ping’er’s figure receded into the distance.

A first-stage Qi Refiner, wearing the inner staff’s uniform, buying only three basic spells—such a combination told Ping’er much about He Song. From her experience, he would now likely browse the common knowledge books and would not leave quickly. Perhaps he’d even return for the next few days, but would not be buying more spells. There was no need for her to attend him further.

“Thank you, Daoist Ping’er.” He Song cupped his hands to the departing Ping’er, suppressing the urge to hurry home and practice his new techniques. Instead, he walked to a bookshelf, casually picked up a book, and began to read in silence.

Manual of Spiritual Plants, Guide to Spirit Ores, Illustrated Compendium of Beasts, Divisions of Cultivator Realms, Distribution of Powers Around the Thick Earth Sect…

Book after book passed under He Song’s gaze, granting him a general understanding of the world of cultivation he now inhabited.

He Song was currently within the territory of the Thick Earth Sect, a Golden Core-level sect. Under its control were four Immortal Cities, each overseeing three or four Immortal Marketplaces. He Song was presently in the Bamboo Mountain Immortal Marketplace, which belonged to Qingyuan Immortal City, one of the four.

Within the marketplace, disciples at the Foundation Establishment stage from the Thick Earth Sect maintained order, ensuring safety. Surrounding the territory of the Thick Earth Sect were four other Golden Core sects as well.

The four major sects were the Golden Sword Gate, the Pure Yin Sect, the Qionghua Sect, and the Seven Stars Cult. The Golden Sword Gate, Pure Yin Sect, and Qionghua Sect were situated to the east, south, and west—righteous sects all. The Seven Stars Cult, however, lay to the north, a demonic sect.