Chapter 643: Spirit Tool (2000+ words)

This departure...

Li Qingjing did return, but he was the only one who came back, and he was covered in blood and severely wounded!

Under the temptation of treasures, even fellow sect members and clansmen would turn their blades against each other, let alone a group of strangers?

Back then on Sanshan Peak, everyone was grabbing things like mad; some even dared to attack Foundation Establishment cultivators while only at Qi Refining!

Li Qinglan still remembered the expression on her cousin Qingjing's face when he fell, as well as the words he spoke while stuffing a blood-stained Storage Bag into her hands: "... I... I can't go on... Qinglan... you must remember... you must bring these resources back to the family..."

After that, it was pursuit and flight...

If not for the stack of Spirit Talismans she had from Huang San, which unexpectedly played a huge role, a weak woman like her might have died right there in the wilderness.

"Almost there!"

"Are they all dead? Blinded by greed... but, they weren't wrong; missing this opportunity makes it too hard for Loose Cultivators and small families to reach Foundation Establishment."

"Oh my... quite a harvest."

His Divine Sense swept rapidly over those supplies, glancing a few times at the Jade Slips that looked quite high-end.

He carried Li Qinglan back to the Cave Abode and, without a word, immediately began soul-searching to obtain everything Li Qinglan knew.

Li Qinglan clutched her forehead and woke up, her expression suddenly turning bewildered.

However, before the corners of her mouth could even curl up, everything went black before her eyes.

"No... I still can't..."

As for the other person's corpse, it had already been buried by Li Qinglan in the desolate mountains; only she knew the location, and as long as she made Li Qinglan forget that point, everything else would be easy to cover up.

And second, a Spirit Tool only has the power of a High-grade Magical Tool at the start, making it not very useful, and to cultivate it to the power comparable to a Top-tier Magical Tool requires at least fifty, or even a hundred years!

"No matter... I received news that Xiaoyue Mountain might be under siege. And Ancestor Ruyue... may have already... fallen!" Aaron said with a grave expression.

The more Aaron thought about it, the brighter his eyes became; he was all the more interested in investment projects that took longer.

What was recorded on the Jade Slip was not some inheritance, but a method for refining a somewhat peculiar type of Magic Tool!

"Golden Jade Technique? Complete Collection of Spirit Herb Planting? Did you rob some bookstore?"

No, it is not a Magic Tool!

The Spirit Medicine Garden is like this, and the Spirit Tool is also like this!

"Spirit Tools are known as 'Small Dharma Treasures'; I wonder, if I cultivate a Spirit Tool for hundreds or thousands of years... how much of a Dharma Treasure's power would it have then?"

"Why have I never heard of this before?"

She remembered that on that day, the Sanshan Association was in chaos, and her cousin Li Qingjing took a group of people to go looting, and then... only one person returned!

Furthermore, the two of them were pursued again on their way back to the family.

And what Golden Core Cultivators use are the Dharma Treasures they have refined themselves!

In the Storage Bag, there were nearly five thousand Spirit Stones, along with various other supplies.

"Cousin... did you save me?" Li Qinglan said gratefully: "It was all my burden that prevented you from bringing the harvest back to the family as quickly as possible..."

"Ugh... my head hurts so much, what happened to me?"

"Past this small mountain pass, ahead is Xiaoyue Mountain!"

Finally, Aaron's Divine Sense paused on a black Jade Slip; he took it out and began to read it carefully.

It is common knowledge that Qi Refining cultivators use low-grade and mid-grade Magic Tools, while Foundation Establishment cultivators use high-grade and top-tier Magic Tools.

Did she seem to have been struck and injured, and then fainted because of this?

Such a useful Spirit Tool should at least be popular among mid-to-late stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Between a Dharma Treasure and a Magic Tool, there is not only a chasm of power, but also one major difference: a Dharma Treasure can be taken into the dantian by a Golden Core Cultivator and nurtured with Essence Qi!

Whereas even the best Magic Tool can only be kept in a Storage Bag and taken out when needed!

This Jade Slip only recorded the refining method for a peculiar 'Spirit Tool'.

The most important thing was that Li Qingjing had not died and had returned fully loaded!

The forging of this 'Spirit Tool' requires many precious materials from the start, even costing as much as a Top-tier Magical Tool, yet its power is often only around that of a High-grade Magical Tool.

This made Aaron sigh with emotion that robbery is the fastest way to make money without capital.

Aaron sighed, looked at the still-unconscious Li Qinglan, and picked up her Storage Bag to take a look.

For these past few days, Aaron had been circling and investigating near Xiaoyue Mountain, patrolling with his Divine Sense like a patient hunter.

Li Qinglan fell down in total despair; before she collapsed, she vaguely saw a figure stepping on a Magic Tool descend from mid-air and catch her steadily.

The only benefit is that it can also be absorbed into the dantian by a Foundation Establishment cultivator and nurtured with Essence Qi to slowly increase its power!

"According to what is said on the Jade Slip... such a Spirit Tool is connected to the cultivator's Dharma Power and aura; not only is it extremely easy to drive, but other cultivators cannot use it if it is stolen, possessing some properties of a Dharma Treasure in advance, hence it is called a 'Small Dharma Treasure'!"

This was indeed his recent discovery; it was likely that news of the Li Jia Lao Zu's fall had spread, and some people could no longer hold back.

As he read, the expression on his face became increasingly strange, yet carried a hint of joy.

At this moment, Li Qingjing, played by Aaron using the 'Thousand Illusion Mask', walked in from the doorway, his Dharma Power fluctuations and aura identical to before.

And this time, patience had its reward.

"Qinglan, are you alright?"

"I don't care about slow cultivation anyway... and if I encounter a bottleneck period, the time spent slowly grinding and waiting for the bottleneck to disappear can just be used to fully cultivate the Spirit Tool!"

After all, for him, the longer the investment, the greater the expected return!

Besides, his investment capital was very small; he could only invest in small projects at first and couldn't start anything grand.

The key point lies in this nurturing with Essence Qi to slowly increase power!

Foundation Establishment cultivators only have two hundred years of lifespan; daily meditation to increase Dharma Power is already not enough, and if they take that time to feed a Spirit Tool, it will inevitably drag down their cultivation progress, making the loss outweigh the gain—this is the first reason!

Putting the Jade Slip away, Aaron looked at Li Qinglan again, rubbing his fingers.

Where would a Foundation Establishment cultivator have the time to wait slowly?

"This... what should be done?" Li Qinglan was so frightened that her face turned pale.

……

A trace of joy appeared on Li Qinglan's face.

Therefore, this Jade Slip was shelved, and later, when the chaos of the Sanshan Association occurred, it was unknown how many hands it passed through among those rogue cultivators before finally falling into Aaron's hands.

"Tsk tsk... waiting for a rabbit to hit a tree stump really is useful!"

"Why is there only this one?"

"A Golden Core Cultivator wouldn't look twice at it, and a Foundation Establishment cultivator can't wait... isn't that just perfect for me?"

In the end, he abandoned the idea of using the Fireball Technique to kill and silence her, turning instead to use soul-confusing and soul-searching arts combined with his powerful Divine Sense to begin tampering with Li Qinglan's recent memories.

Aaron continued reading and soon understood the reason why so few people knew about the "Spirit Tool".

"I have decided to immediately go into seclusion to break through to Foundation Establishment!"

Aaron replied with a resolute expression: "I want to become the new backbone of the family... as long as I, Li Qingjing, am here, the sky of this Li Family will not collapse!"

(End of this chapter)