Chapter 217: Body Refinement Surge: Fourth-Grade Puppet Materials

217. Chapter 217 Body Refinement Surge: Fourth-Grade Puppet Materials

Panlong Immortal City is vast and prosperous, its treasure varieties are countless; virtually any item that exists in the Da Yu Cultivation World can be found here in similar form.

The grades range from first to top‑tier third, and everything of those ranks is present.

However, the most numerous and common are, of course, treasures related to the Sword Dao.

Magic swords, sword formations, Sword Dao inheritances, Sword Intent comprehension…

No wonder it's the city of sword cultivators; a dazzling array.

Xiao Zhangqing has, over the past two months, actively or passively encountered many Sword Dao treasures; even a typical sword cultivator at the Core Formation realm can find useful items in Panlong Immortal City.

But for Xiao Zhangqing, they are of little use.

The quality of the magic sword is inferior to his own Jade Bright Clear Sword; this magic sword was obtained after Liyang slashed a mid‑Core Formation elder of the Seven Star Sword Sect and was passed on to Xiao Zhangqing.

Its background is even more shocking—it once accompanied a Nascent Soul True Lord for centuries and was nurtured by that Nascent Soul True Lord!

Therefore, the magic swords sold in Panlong Immortal City are all inferior to the Jade Bright Clear Sword.

As for Sword Dao divine abilities, they fall far short of the Star‑Plucking, Dipper‑Swapping Sword Technique.

The Star‑Plucking, Dipper‑Swapping Sword Technique is the Seven Star Sword Sect's most core and powerful Sword Dao inheritance, and can be called the strongest sword technique divine ability in the entire Da Yu Cultivation World.

Thus, Xiao Zhangqing gains little in the Sword Dao arena.

He actually purchased two treasures.

One is the "Dragon Blood Armor", a defensive Magic Treasure; its forging indeed incorporated the blood of a third‑grade flood dragon, and the system‑extracted skill can raise his Body Refinement Technique "Dragon Transform Body Refinement Method" from its original Second‑Grade Middle Grade to Third‑Grade Lower Grade! Moreover, the Giant Hammer Magic Treasure can add +2 to the minor Body Refinement level (up to Fourth‑Grade Lower Grade), so Xiao Zhangqing's Body Refinement Technique directly reaches the Third‑Grade Upper Grade level!

In other words, Xiao Zhangqing's Body Refinement can now hard‑hit a mid‑Core Formation true person!

His strength and survivability have both surged dramatically! Xiao Zhangqing himself never imagined anyone could threaten him at the Core Formation realm.

Even if he wishes to avoid pride, he must admit that now he is: no Nascent Soul yet, who can contend? Besides, Xiao Zhangqing also obtained a batch of Fourth‑Grade materials for forging puppets!

Although this batch is not a complete set, it already covers most of it; the most core and precious items are present, such as Ten‑thousand‑year Mysterious Iron, Soul‑Point Stone, and so on.

In the future, if Xiao Zhangqing raises his Puppet Technique to the Fourth‑Grade tier, gathering materials to forge a Fourth‑Grade puppet will be much easier.

These Fourth‑Grade premium materials are costly; not only did Xiao Zhangqing spend all the treasures he had previously scavenged from the Giant Wood Sect members, but he also dug deep into his own purse, consuming most of his savings in one go.

Fourth‑Grade materials are inherently precious, and being a complete, rare set, their price is indeed higher.

But imagine the value if Xiao Zhangqing later upgrades his Puppet Technique and actually creates a Fourth‑Grade puppet; even beyond ordinary Core Formation sects, sects like Xingyue Palace and the Seven Star Sword Sect—Nascent Soul sects—would likely exhaust all their resources to purchase a Fourth‑Grade puppet! A Fourth‑Grade puppet rivals a Nascent Soul True Lord.

From a sect's perspective, a Fourth‑Grade puppet is arguably more important than cultivating a Nascent Soul True Lord!

No matter the cost, it is worth it.

It is precisely because Fourth‑Grade Puppet Grandmasters are extremely hard to find; neither the Da Yu Cultivation World nor the nearby Cultivation Nations have seen one in many years.

Otherwise, Xiao Zhangqing wouldn't even be able to buy this small set of premium Fourth‑Grade puppet materials with Spirit Stone.

After browsing every shop in Panlong Immortal City, Xiao Zhangqing prepared to go to the Pill Dao Alliance to request a Condensing True Pill.

In the past two months, Xiao Zhangqing has already gathered most of the information about Baimi Zhenren.

This person is over three hundred fifty years old; thus, even though he is at the mid‑Core Formation stage, the chance of breaking into the Nascent Soul realm is extremely slim, almost negligible, which is why he came to the currently unstable Da Yu Cultivation World to serve as its leader.

If he were still in his prime, the Pill Dao Alliance would surely entrust him with great responsibilities, and he would likely seek a more fortuitous assignment rather than come to the overall 'backward' Da Yu Cultivation World.

Precisely because of his age, Baimi Zhenren is particularly fond of Spirit Stone.

For example, the Pill Dao Alliance has many exclusive high‑grade Pills that are not readily sold to outsiders; only during occasional events are they limited‑released, and most cultivators find even a single one hard to obtain.

When Wei Wufeng was present, such events followed fixed regulations; as long as one met the criteria—such as having a powerful backing or being a 'long‑time customer' of the Pill Dao Alliance—there would be a chance to snap one up.

But after Baimi Zhenren arrived, he cancelled the events; to purchase the Pill Dao Alliance's exclusive high‑grade Pills, one must go through him, and naturally that requires offering him some private benefits…

It is said that even the elders of the Seven Star Sword Sect are no exception; they also must present gifts to Baimi Zhenren.

It's essentially for Spirit Stone; no one gets any face.

However, the good news is that Baimi Zhenren still observes the Pill Dao Alliance's basic regulations.

The pricing of regular Pills, benefits for Pill Masters, and the suppliers cooperating with the Pill Dao Alliance all largely remain unchanged; this new leader has not messed things up.

"Just stick to the rules; I hope Baimi Zhenren won't refuse to acknowledge them…"

Xiao Zhangqing gazed at the grand courtyard complex floating in the air like an immortal palace not far away, then flashed his form and entered.

"Senior." A Late Stage of Lian Qi attendant immediately approached, feeling the Foundation‑building pressure radiating from Xiao Zhangqing, and politely asked, "Senior, are you here to purchase a Pill?"

"I wish to see Baimi Zhenren." Xiao Zhangqing said bluntly.

The attendant was momentarily stunned, a bit surprised; though internally he thought it unreliable, he concealed it and asked, "Senior, do you have an appointment?"

"No." Xiao Zhangqing pulled from his storage bag the Token that Zhu Pill Master had given him, "but I have this."

"Hm?" The attendant was shocked, instantly becoming solemn.

It is a specially made Token of the Pill Dao Alliance; each Token represents a different meaning and is registered differently within the Alliance.

He, a lowly attendant, does not know the exact function of this Token, nor its authenticity.

But he knows the procedure for dealing with someone holding a Token.

He immediately led the way, guiding Xiao Zhangqing into a private elegant seating room, saying, "Senior, please rest a moment, have a cup of Spirit Tea, I'll fetch the Second Shopkeeper."

After a short wait, the private room door opened, and a middle‑aged cultivator of Fake Core True Person rank entered.

The other side first glanced at Xiao Zhangqing, smiling kindly, showing no contempt despite being a Fake Core True Person, nor looking down on Xiao Zhangqing merely for displaying a Foundation‑Complete realm.

"Guest, please hand me the Token for inspection." the Second Shopkeeper said politely.

Xiao Zhangqing nodded, passing the Token, "Please, shopkeeper."

The Second Shopkeeper did not hesitate; after confirming the Token was genuinely produced by the Pill Dao Alliance, he began using a special method to read its information.

As the Second Shopkeeper of a Pill Dao Alliance branch, he handles all matters in the shop; ordinarily, when Baimi Zhenren does not appear, he resolves them.

Thus, he knows the authentication of Tokens, the method of reading their data, and how many Tokens the Pill Dao Alliance has distributed throughout the Da Yu Cultivation World.

The method was rather intricate; after a while, a strange expression appeared on his face as he looked at Xiao Zhangqing, his eyes becoming somewhat indecipherable and thought‑provoking.

"Guest, where did this Token come from? Do you know its purpose?" the Second Shopkeeper asked with a smile.

【61】 "It was personally handed to me by a disciple of Pill Master Hu Chunzhong. As for its purpose, Hu Chunzhong himself said that if someone later reaches Foundation‑Complete, they can use this Token to obtain a genuine Condensing True Pill from the Pill Dao Alliance." Xiao Zhangqing said without beating around the bush.

The Dan Dao Alliance, although its business is huge, spans several Cultivation World realms.

It can be said to be universally praised.

But it is not a righteous organization of good men and women.

Especially now that the head of the Da Yu Cultivation World is Baimi Zhenren.

If one does not disclose one's background and state the specific purpose, one might get scammed.

Genuine Condensing True Pills are extremely valuable.

If one engages in empty politeness and probing back and forth with the other party, it will likely backfire.

It is better to be straightforward.

Sure enough, after Xiao Zhangqing clarified, the Second Shopkeeper's distracted thoughts largely cleared, and he nodded, saying, "This matter dates back a long time and involves a lot, so I need to invite Baimi Zhenren over. Please wait a moment, dear guest."

"No problem," Xiao Zhangqing said patiently.

After the Second Shopkeeper returned the Token to Xiao Zhangqing, he exited the room.

We waited a bit long this time; after a full incense stick's length of time, the private room door was finally opened again. (End of chapter)