Chapter 86

“But the price of entry-level spells!”

Wang Yu instinctively patted his storage bag.

Though he hadn’t made any major expenditures lately, to maintain his cultivation progress, he had consumed daily rations of spirit rice and beast meat without pause, exhausting his free allocation entirely, and had since been buying higher-value spirit rice and beast meat from the sect’s smaller internal bazaar.

This had gradually depleted more than half of his two hundred spirit stones.

Now that he had entered Qi Refinement mid-stage, those Spirit Gathering Elixirs offered little auxiliary benefit; though the Fire Cloud Pills were entry-grade pills, they were typically used to break through cultivation bottlenecks or refine internal Qi, so he would need to find a suitable alternative cultivation pill going forward.

Additionally, after half a year of Star Mind Force training, though he had achieved the first layer of Star Mind Force, his Star Stones were nearly depleted as well, and he would need to replenish them.

Thus, the spirit stones he had left were no longer sufficient.

Fortunately, half a month ago, Yin Linglong’s clan had sent him another hundred spirit stones.

Even so, he planned to sell off some of his belongings and find a steady way to earn spirit stones.

As Wang Yu pondered this, he glanced at the sky, then immediately launched his mechanical bird, heading straight for the Four Symbols Sect’s Scripture Hall.

According to Four Symbols Sect rules, whether inner or outer disciple, one must reach Qi Refinement mid-stage before being permitted entry to the Scripture Hall, to prevent newly arrived young disciples from recklessly selecting unsuitable spells or cultivation techniques.

This was also why he had never gone to the Scripture Hall until now.

Unlike the General Affairs Hall or the Spirit Beast Pavilion, the Scripture Hall was not built atop a mountain peak, but rather nestled within a lake surrounded by mountains.

Though this was Wang Yu’s first time here, he had already inquired thoroughly from Zhou Chu, so he wouldn’t get lost.

On a flat plain encircled by eight peaks stood a simple stone hall, rising from a gem-like emerald lake.

Wang Yu urged his mechanical bird to drift slowly toward the front of the four halls, circling in midair before descending gently downward.

But at that moment, a distant whooshing sound came— a green aura shot toward him, moving so fast it nearly grazed his mechanical bird as it flashed past.

The mechanical bird instantly lost control, spinning wildly in midair before tumbling straight down.

“Thud.”

Wang Yu, quick as lightning, leapt off the mechanical bird before it hit the ground, landing firmly on the stone platform before the hall, then reached up with one hand and effortlessly caught the falling device.

“Puff.”

The green aura halted beside him, revealing a massive black eagle the size of a house, its body wrapped in wisps of green light, appearing majestic and formidable.

On the eagle’s back stood a man and a woman—the man tall and imposing, the woman petite and beautiful.

“Senior Brother Meng, the Black Wind Eagle seems to have collided with someone.” The woman, clad in a pink long dress, had just seen Wang Yu catch the mechanical bird with one hand; she turned her luminous eyes toward the man beside her.

The man, dressed in a black robe with a silver short halberd strapped to his back, uttered “Oh,” then glanced Wang Yu up and down before leaping off the black eagle.

“Younger Brother, are you unharmed? I just tested a new Wind Dashing technique on my spirit beast and didn’t expect to bump into you.” The man walked over and bowed slightly.

“So you’re from Xuanwu Mountain, Senior Brother. I’m fine—I’ll be going now.” Wang Yu flipped his hand, and the mechanical bird instantly shrank into miniature size amid a flicker of spiritual light. He glanced at the man’s black robe, returned the bow, then strode toward the stone hall and vanished through the doorway.

“Huh? This outer disciple doesn’t recognize Senior Brother Meng?” The petite woman now also leapt down, surprised.

“This isn’t an outer disciple—he’s an inner disciple like you and me. Didn’t you notice? Only inner disciples use this model of mechanical bird.” Senior Brother Meng shook his head, watching Wang Yu’s retreating back, his eyes narrowing slightly.

“What? He’s an inner disciple too? How could I not know him… Could he be the new ‘Younger Brother Wang’ from Zhuque Mountain? I heard this Younger Brother Wang has been in seclusion since entering the sect half a year ago, even skipping public teachings from several senior uncles—he’s terribly disrespectful.” The woman paused, then immediately realized.

“Likely him. But I can understand his actions.”

“I heard he entered the sect at Qi Refinement early-stage. Attending lectures by Foundation Establishment elders would be a waste of time—he’s better off focusing on cultivation and raising his own level first. With his top-grade Fire Spirit Root, even just reaching Qi Refinement mid-stage would make him no weakling.” Senior Brother Meng spoke slowly.

“Then this fellow might be worth cultivating a connection with. Years from now, during the Four Sects’ Law Assembly, the more allies you have, the better your chances of making it to the end.” The woman’s eyes sparkled with interest.

“Hmm… better not. Don’t you remember the rumor? This Younger Brother Wang was reportedly personally approved by Elder Li Huo to enter the inner sect. Whether true or not, we’d be wiser to keep our distance.” Senior Brother Meng hesitated briefly before replying.

“But I heard he’s merely a test subject for Elder Li Huo’s new technique—failed the trial, so they gave him inner disciple status as compensation, with no real connection to Elder Li Huo at all.” The woman mused.

“I’ve heard that rumor too. But can you guarantee it’s true? Besides, there’s still a long time until the Law Assembly—we can consider approaching him later, depending on circumstances.” Senior Brother Meng still shook his head.

“True. With four spirit roots, his cultivation speed is worlds apart from your dual spirit roots. By the time you reach Qi Refinement peak, he’ll probably still be stuck at Qi Refinement fourth stage.” The woman covered her mouth and giggled.

…

Wang Yu’s eyes flickered faintly as he exited the overdrive synchronization mode; only now did the voices of Senior Brother Meng and the woman truly fade from his ears.

At this point, he stood before three intersecting corridors inside the stone hall.

On the stone walls beside each corridor, a single massive golden character was engraved.

“Common,” “Spell,” “Art.”

The area was utterly empty—not a single guard in sight.

After a moment’s thought, Wang Yu stepped into the corridor marked “Common.”

The corridor was not long; after walking a hundred meters, a long hallway appeared before him.

On both sides of the hallway were countless stone chambers—over a hundred in total.

Wang Yu’s expression turned surprised; he stepped forward—only to find, the moment his foot touched the hallway floor, one side of the stone wall splitting open, slowly crawling out a massive gray-white tortoise.

The tortoise’s eyes were milky white, its limbs covered in thick scales, its mouth clutching a golden basin, and a stone tablet rising from its back.

On the tablet, black characters read: “Commoner’s texts: one spirit stone per hour.”