With a relaxed heart, I approached the clerk and asked.

  "How do I go about learning the Spirit Subjugation Art?"

  The clerk thought for a moment, then guided me to the inner shelves.

  "It’s this jade slip here. Ten spirit stones."

  If a spell art only cost ten spirit stones, it was practically being given away.

  I immediately paid the spirit stones.

  "Here you go. Please show your identity token."

  After verifying my identity through the token, the clerk returned to his seat and resumed reading his book.

  Quick, efficient work without a single wasted motion.

  I liked it very much.

  I brought the duplicated jade slip to my forehead.

  The principles and cultivation method of the Spirit Subjugation Art were engraved into my mind.

  Of course, engraving and actually mastering it were entirely different matters. To use it properly, I would need at least a week of practice.

  But I had points.

  Wasn’t earning spirit stones precisely for moments like this?

  [1 point has been deducted. You have learned Spirit Subjugation Art. Proficiency 1]

  With a sharp crack, the jade slip that had completed its task split apart.

  It was probably to prevent reselling duplicated jade slips.

  I headed toward my next destination, Ryusim Pavilion.

  I spent fifty spirit stones to buy five purified jade tokens.

  I might run into other ghosts later, so it was best to prepare in advance.

  The sky had already grown dark.

  I headed straight home.

  By the well, I spotted a familiar figure.

  It was that thing from yesterday.

  Long, drooping willow branches added to the chilling atmosphere.

  Blood-stained clothing.

  A face soaked in blood.

  Bloodshot eyes peering out from tangled hair.

  A ghost of horrific appearance stood by the well.

  Ordinary humans could not become ghosts.

  Only cultivators who abandoned reincarnation could choose the ghost path.

  Just how deep must its resentment have been to choose such a fate?

  They said that souls who chose the ghost path were forever branded by the Underworld.

  The thing wandered near the well, muttering incomprehensible words.

  [Unjust… must… revenge.]

  Its situation seemed pitiable.

  But that didn’t mean I could simply leave it alone.

  This thing was squatting in someone else’s home without contributing even a single spirit stone.

  In times of soaring prices like these, did such behavior make any sense?

  As a lawful tenant, I couldn’t just sit by.

  If you’re going to freeload, at least earn your keep.

  Holding the jade token, I formed hand seals.

  The Spirit Subjugation Art activated.

  The proficiency was only 1, but it still had an effect.

  The ghost’s bloodshot eyes widened.

  It tilted its neck to the side, as if trying to evade.

  But it was already too late.

  Light pierced straight through its blood-soaked body.

  The body touched by light dispersed like smoke.

  Without mounting any real resistance, it was sucked into the jade token.

  It was simpler than expected.

  Perhaps because it was just an ordinary ghost that hadn’t even advanced once.

  I put the jade token containing the ghost into my pocket and headed to my room.

  After checking that the barriers and formations set up inside the house were intact, I entered the subspace.

  Baizi had already been stationed as a guardian.

  The Jade Ear Rabbits greeted me with strange cries.

  Good. You’re lively again today.

  So lively that a few of you might disappear soon and no one would even notice.

  After glaring at them, I tossed the still-glowing jade token to the edge.

  I’d heard that placing items rich in spiritual energy inside would expand the space.

  Ghosts were also aggregates of spiritual energy, so they should count.

  Right, system?

  [...Theoretically, it is possible.]

  Was it just my imagination? The response sounded reluctant.

  What, why.

  Absorbing a bit of spiritual energy wouldn’t kill its soul.

  It was better than refining it by burning the soul away.

  What else could you call this if not recycling? This was eco-friendly recycling.

  With a satisfied heart, I left the subspace.

  I wondered how much the floor area would increase.

  After dealing with a ghost, I felt like I’d sleep very well tonight.

  ***

  After a blissful sleep, I woke up to find it was already nearing seven.

  I washed my face and changed clothes.

  They were clothes embroidered with the emblem of Qingliu City.

  Wearing these greatly reduced the chances of getting into unnecessary trouble.

  Of course, I still wore the Iron Spirit Armor underneath.

  You only had one life, so it was best to always be cautious.

  This morning as well, I went to Huami Inn.

  Today’s breakfast menu was Spirit Rice Porridge, dumplings, and spicy stir-fried vegetables.

  The Plum Blossom Elder once again poured out a heap of new information.

  Stories about Heavenly Treasures causing turmoil inside and outside the city. Stories about a promising talent emerging from some sect. Stories about an enforcement squad from a neighboring city being wiped out while hunting demonic beasts.

  Just listening was enough to make time fly by.

  These days, he was doing a splendid job as my personal news outlet.

  Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

  “Then I’ll be off now. It’s almost time for work.”

  “Heh heh. Already that time? You ate well today too. See you again tomorrow.”

  After bowing politely, I headed to the Spiritual Agriculture Pavilion.

  Starting today, I would be working alone.

  The morning work was frantically busy.

  Handling tenant farmers’ complaints, organizing supplies, and processing paperwork related to leased spirit fields.

  I was busy beyond measure, but it didn’t feel particularly difficult.

  Why was that?

  Back then, even disposing of expired items at a convenience store had felt overwhelming.

  Perhaps cultivating alone for ninety-seven years had strengthened my soul.

  After a simple lunch, the afternoon work began.

  I had to manage the spirit herb fields and prepare the allocated herbs. Just as work hours were drawing to a close, a visitor came to the department.

  An inner sect disciple.

  He belonged to the Pill Pavilion, with a cultivation level of Qi Refinement Stage 6.

  After confirming that my cultivation was the same as his, he slightly frowned. If he knew my true level was already Stage 8, he might start foaming at the mouth.

  “What are you staring at? Hurry up and move.”

  Perhaps because he was an inner disciple, his arrogance pierced the heavens.

  Glaring at the back of his head, I followed him to the herb field.

  “The harvest of the Huayong Grass you commissioned is complete. Supreme quality, two hundred and fifty stalks. Please check.”

  Huayong Grass was a spirit herb imbued with yang energy, used as a main ingredient in beauty-related pills.

  After checking the quality of the harvested herbs, he lifted his chin stiffly.

  Despite the clearly satisfied look on his face, his tone remained obnoxious.

  “This batch of Huayong Grass looks unusually fresh. What did you do?”

  He was really trying to freeload information.

  Spirit herb cultivation methods were each person’s private know-how.

  A sigh escaped me.

  Why was he asking so brazenly?

  No matter how much of an inner disciple he was, this was an overreach.

  Even a timid man had his pride.

  "Who knows. Maybe it’s because I harvested them when the sunlight was good?"

  He glared at me with narrowed eyes.

  So what?

  I looked down at the ground and played dumb.

  With people like this, the more you grovel, the more they trample you.

  I hadn’t lied, and I had answered him, so he couldn’t really nitpick.

  It was true that I harvested them when the sunlight was good.

  I just hadn’t mentioned the most important part.

  He snorted and took the Huayong Grass away.

  That retreating figure was extremely irritating.

  After calmly organizing the remaining herbs, I returned to the department.

  Senior Dongwu greeted me with a worried expression.

  “Nothing happened, right? That guy’s really arrogant, isn’t he? He used to be an apprentice alchemist at the city’s Pill Workshop, but somehow he discovered a formula and shot up overnight. Everyone ignores him, so don’t mind it.”

  “I don’t pay attention to people like that. Don’t worry.”

  “Good. Well done.”

  Senior Dongwu patted my shoulder, looking pleased.

  To receive encouragement like this at 119 years old. I really had wasted my age.

  That aside, a formula, huh.

  “By the way, what kind of formula did he discover to become an inner disciple?”

  “He improved the formula for the Ju’an Pill and offered it to the sect. I don’t know the details, but apparently the pill’s quality improved tremendously. Because of that merit, he became an inner disciple and even received a Foundation Establishment Pill.”

  A Foundation Establishment Pill!

  If that was true, it was worth it.

  The Ju’an Pill was a pill that preserved youth.

  It was especially popular among female cultivators.

  “Wow, he must’ve made a fortune.”

  “Well… the sect probably made the real money. Still, he didn’t lose out, considering he even got a Foundation Establishment Pill.”

  That was certainly true.

  Life really was about landing one big hit.

  I’d thought he was nothing special, but to think he was an alchemy expert.

  Feeling slightly hollow, I returned to the herb fields.

  Time to work.

  After finishing my tasks, I returned to the department at a reasonable time.

  Senior Dongwu was waiting with a smile.

  “Your share of spirit fields has been assigned. I’ll show you where. Follow me.”

  Sigh. It was almost quitting time.

  My plan to dawdle a bit and subtly leave work early had fallen through.

  Being a wage thief was harder than expected.

  The spirit fields I checked while following Senior Dongwu were fertile and well-located.

  Three experimental plots in total.

  “It seems you have a real knack for cultivation. Both I and the other seniors have high expectations.”

  …He was talking about that so-called grand Spirit Rice competition, wasn’t he?

  A sigh came out on its own.

  “Yes… I’ll give it some serious thought.”

  Seeing Senior Dongwu smiling brightly, something occurred to me.

  “By the way, do you know where the eccentric’s Water Severing Formation you mentioned before is located?”

  He answered readily.

  “Of course. It’s a famous tourist attraction. Any cultivator who’s even slightly interested in formation arts has been there at least once. If you go around the right district of the city……”

  Thinking that verbal directions weren’t enough, he even drew a map.

  As expected, he was kind.

  My lingering resentment about being dragged to the spirit fields before quitting time vanished completely.

  The Water Severing Formation lay at the far right edge of the city.

  An exquisite formation. I couldn’t help but admire it the moment I saw it.

  It was truly beautiful.

  No, calling it beautiful wasn’t enough.

  Thin, intricate layers of formation spread one after another over the water veins leading into Qingliu City.

  I couldn’t even guess how many layers there were.

  And yet, the arrangement didn’t constrict things excessively.

  Water qi should meet earth qi, which then transforms into the vitality of wood and flows out naturally.

  That was the principle of the Five Elements.

  But this formation completely overturned that principle.

  Metal energy fixed the ground, fire energy was circulated, and the water qi was evaporated.

  Opposition and generation were twisted together.

  Yet there was no discord or backlash of energy at all.

  So that was how it had been able to affect the entire city for over three thousand years.

  Another sigh of admiration escaped me.

  Such delicate manipulation.

  The harmony between the Five Elements, nature, and artifacts was flawless.

  If someone had tried to forcefully dismantle it, the balance would’ve collapsed and something terrible would’ve happened.

  Now I understood why even major sects couldn’t interfere.

  I stepped forward to get a closer look at the formation.

  I wanted to copy it exactly.

  I felt like I could stare at it all day without getting bored.

  After observing it for quite some time, I suddenly came back to my senses.

  I opened the Spirit Beast Platform and released Baizi.

  Turning transparent, Baizi began moving in response to my will.

  To search for a formation stone.

  Of course, it probably wasn’t placed nearby, but I planned to have it search methodically from here.

  Meanwhile, I would study the Water Severing Formation.

  Then.

  I felt Baizi shout excitedly through our mental link.

  What, already found it?

  I followed the trail it left behind.

  I didn’t forget to check my surroundings. There was no one around.

  Just in case, I confirmed with my Divine Sense.

  Still no one.

  Baizi, who had been getting impatient watching me, urged me to hurry, saying there was really no one.

  Ahem. Slightly embarrassing.

  When I reached Baizi’s side, something very familiar caught my eye.

  …A stone.

  It was embedded very naturally beneath the city wall.

  If you didn’t know better, you might mistake it for part of the wall itself.

  It looked exactly like the stone that had flustered me so badly before.

  Once again, I scanned the surroundings.

  With such an artifact before me, no amount of caution was excessive.

  I carefully approached and placed my right hand on the stone.

  The pattern engraved on my hand emitted a faint glow.

  The stone soon transformed into a jade slip and entered my hand.

  I immediately put it into my storage pouch.

  I was happy to have something new to immerse myself in.

  Last time, while dismantling and researching a formation stone, my Formation Art level had increased by twenty.

  How much would it rise this time?

  Formation art was a special skill that became more fascinating the more you learned it.

  It was also the only cultivation art that allowed the weak to defeat the strong.

  Even a single formation had countless variations and possibilities.

  I hadn’t yet had a proper chance to use it.

  But I had no doubt that one day it would reveal its true value.

  The only drawback was how many spirit stones it consumed.

  Sigh…I really wished the Exchange Gathering would start soon.

  Then I could sell the Seven-Leaf Immortal Spirit Grass and secure some spirit stones.

  I glanced at my patterned right hand.

  When would contact finally come?

  ***

  At that same moment.

  Masked cultivators sat in a sealed chamber, deep in discussion.

  “For this Exchange Gathering, we must prohibit the participation of demonic cultivators and demon beasts.”

  A stern voice rang out from behind a black mask.

  “That is unacceptable. Remember the purpose of the Exchange Gathering.”

  A blue-masked figure calmly objected.

  “That was before they attacked us. If we still accept them after that, they’ll think even less of us.”

  A gray-masked figure shook his head as he spoke, venom lacing his voice.

  “But if they infiltrate—”

  The blue mask tried to salvage the mood, but the tide had already turned.

  “Hah. Let them infiltrate. Wouldn’t that be even better? We’ll prepare in advance and wipe them out in one sweep.”

  “…Must it really come to this?”

  The black mask spoke again, his tone even firmer.

  “This wound has already festered beyond saving. We can no longer stand together.”

  The blue mask soon withdrew. He had no desire to defend demonic cultivators or demon beasts. He simply didn’t want to betray the founding purpose of the Exchange Gathering.

  “Understood. Then, as always, we’ll hold it on the full moon of this month.”

  “Agreed.”

  “The full moon… That leaves five days.”

  “I look forward to it. I wonder what kind of items will appear this time.”

  Ten thousand years since the Exchange Gathering was founded.

  For the first time, the participation of demon beasts and demonic cultivators was rejected.

  A wind began to blow through the Qingxiu True Realm.