Chapter 49 - 33: Bright Spirit Charm

Chapter 49: Chapter 33: Bright Spirit Charm

Five days passed in the blink of an eye.

In the Xuanzhen Temple, behind the main hall, Meng Yu and her two fellow disciples surrounded an Array the size of a pavilion. They continuously cast spells, outlining the Array Patterns. Li Yinsheng stood not far away, his gaze fixed on the trio setting up the Array. Thanks to Meng Yu dragging her fellow disciples into working overtime, the Bright Spirit Refining Array, which should have taken seven days to build, was completed in just five. Now, the three Array Masters were completing the final step: installing the core of the Spirit Refining Array right here. This core was the most important component of the Bright Spirit Refining Array, capable of refining ordinary Spirit Charm into Bright Spirit Charm. Once this step was done, the Bright Spirit Refining Array would be fully complete.

The Spirit Gathering Array, set up at the Spiritual Eye in the distance, would continuously send Spirit Charm to the Spirit Refining Array here. The refined Bright Spirit Charm could then be distributed according to the Array master’s will. Li Yinsheng couldn’t help but reflect inwardly that while Meng might be a bit cold, her loyalty and professionalism were truly impeccable.

Though his eyes were on the trio, his Divine Sense remained focused on Mu Xiaoyu, who was practicing in front of the hall. Even though she could start cultivating Magical Power upon reaching the second level of the Qingxuan Scripture, the cultivation of Primordial Energy could not be neglected. When she broke through to the second level earlier, she had only refined a small portion of the Primordial Energy within the Crane Egg. She still needed to continue her cultivation to refine the rest.

A moment later, as Meng Yu and the others finished their work, the brightly flashing Array Patterns faded into Concealment. Only the millstone-sized Array core remained suspended, rotating slowly. Meng Yu walked over to Li Yinsheng, took out an Array Plate, and handed it to him. "Li, this is the Array’s control hub. Refine it and give it a try."

Li Yinsheng took the Array Plate. His Magical Power flowed, completing the Refinement in an instant. Through the Array Plate in his palm, he could sense that the distant Spirit Gathering Array was already sending over Spirit Charm. The Bright Spirit Refining Array was also spitting out the special Spirit Charm at a very slow but steady pace.

Although she had long known that Li Yinsheng’s Cultivation was extraordinary, Meng Yu couldn’t help but be surprised seeing him complete the Array Plate’s Refinement so effortlessly. After composing herself, she said, "Li, you should be able to feel it. The Bright Spirit Refining Array is already producing Bright Spirit Charm.

"Aside from aiding Cultivators who practice upright and peaceful Cultivation Techniques, Bright Spirit Charm can also clear the mind. It provides some slight assistance in practicing Magic, though not as much as it does for Cultivation Techniques."

Li Yinsheng nodded and tried applying the Bright Spirit Charm to Mu Xiaoyu as she practiced in front of the hall. He didn’t know how she felt, but to his perception, her movements immediately became somewhat smoother and more harmonious. Feeling it more closely, he could indeed detect that the speed at which she was refining the Primordial Energy in her body had increased slightly. Li Yinsheng nodded in satisfaction.

He then applied a wisp of Bright Spirit Charm to himself, but immediately shook his head slightly. As a True Cultivator who had opened his Sea of Consciousness—which was also illuminated by the Qingxuan Divine Light—his mind was naturally clear. The mind-clearing effect of the Bright Spirit Charm offered him no real benefit. When circulating the Qingxuan Scripture, however, he did feel his cultivation speed increase a fraction. It seemed this Bright Spirit Charm still had some effect even on a True Cultivator. Unfortunately, his Cultivation mainly came from his practice in the Grotto Heaven, so he had no use for this either.

"Li, why are you shaking your head? Is there something you’re dissatisfied with?" Meng Yu immediately asked. "We can modify it." As Array Masters, tweaking Arrays according to their clients’ requests was a standard part of their job.

"No, I think it’s great," Li Yinsheng said, lowering the Array Plate. "There’s no need to change it. Meng, I am very satisfied with this Array." He then took out talismanic coins from his Qiankun Bag and handed them to Meng Yu. "Meng, this is the agreed-upon fee for the Array—ninety thousand talismanic coins in total."

Meng Yu extended her Divine Sense to do a quick count before accepting the talismanic coins. She didn’t ask how Li Yinsheng, who had previously asked to buy on credit, was suddenly able to pay in full. It was obvious that the Yellow Crane Temple was footing the bill.

Afterward, Meng Yu pulled Li Yinsheng over to the Bright Spirit Refining Array and thoroughly explained the things he needed to pay attention to during its operation. For instance, while the Array could store Bright Spirit Charm, it couldn’t hold it for too long, otherwise the Bright Spirit Charm would dissipate back into ordinary Spirit Charm. Therefore, he shouldn’t be stingy about using it. Also, the Array would pause for about the time it took to drink half a cup of tea every day at Midnight. This was normal, as it needed to clear out the impurities generated from Refining Spirit...

Li Yinsheng listened very intently. To be honest, though, he felt that Meng was being overly responsible. She explained everything in such minute, exhaustive detail that, at times, it seemed she wanted to teach him the entire operational theory of the Array. Moreover, every time she spoke, she would earnestly stare at Li Yinsheng’s face, seemingly trying to gauge from his expression whether he truly understood.

This lecture dragged on for nearly two hours. Her fellow disciples eventually gave up and set up a small table right there on the ground, chatting and drinking tea, even looking over an Array Map while they waited. Li Yinsheng began to wonder if he had been too hasty in concluding that Meng was cold on the outside but warm on the inside. Perhaps her true personality was just being taciturn with strangers, but awakening a chatterbox trait with anyone she became slightly familiar with?

In front of the Xuanzhen Temple’s main hall.

After watching Meng Yu take her fellow disciples away on a chessboard, Li Yinsheng turned to look at Mu Xiaoyu, who was resting. At this moment, she was sitting on a small stool, eating like there was no tomorrow. Now that she had Magical Power, she could freely use her own Qiankun Bag. Before, she had to bother Li Yinsheng to get her snacks, but now she could grab whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted! Mu Xiaoyu held a candied haw on a stick in her left hand and a honeydew cake in her right, surrounded by a ring of scattered sunflower seed shells.

Li Yinsheng had thought that after tasting a transcendent delicacy like the Crane Egg, she would lose interest in ordinary food. But the result was exactly the opposite. Perhaps because she wouldn’t be able to eat food of the Crane Egg’s caliber again anytime soon, she was trying to compensate for quality with quantity. From the moment she started her break until now, her mouth hadn’t stopped moving.

"Xiaoyu," Li Yinsheng spoke up, "after Washing Marrow and Cleansing Veins the other night, didn’t I also teach you the Artifact Manipulation Skill? It’s been two days now. How is your practice coming along?"

Using a Qiankun Bag didn’t count as Magic. The Artifact Manipulation Skill was Mu Xiaoyu’s very first Magic, just as it was the first Magic learned by the vast majority of Cultivators. This skill had no real upper limit and was meant solely for the convenience of daily chores. Thus, it was incredibly easy to learn and didn’t demand much Magical Power. In the outside world, there were often Loose Cultivators with negligible Cultivation who used the Artifact Manipulation Skill to play tricks on mortals, scamming them out of mundane wealth to fund their own enjoyment.

"Mhm, Yinsheng, I’ve already learned it..." Mu Xiaoyu shoved the rest of the honeydew cake into her mouth and formed a hand seal with one hand. The small ring of sunflower seed shells scattered on the ground rose up shakily, converging into a little pile under her control before dropping back down.

"Mhm, not bad," Li Yinsheng nodded. "It seems you’ve basically mastered it. Once your Magical Power grows a bit stronger, you’ll be able to control everyday objects."

Mu Xiaoyu sprang up from her stool, eyes full of excitement. "Does that mean I can learn other Magic now? Yinsheng, I want to learn that Magic you use to heat the bathwater for me every night!" With that Magic, she would be able to heat up snacks that tasted better warm whenever she wanted!

"Ha, keep dreaming!" Li Yinsheng knocked her on the head with the back of his hand, producing a light THWACK like a wooden fish being struck. "The reason there’s a rule against sneaking food in the vegetarian kitchen is precisely because people used to accidentally set it on fire!"

Mu Xiaoyu squatted down, clutching the top of her head. Li Yinsheng twitched his fingers and gave a slight nod. Xiaoyu’s little head actually felt surprisingly satisfying to knock on.