Martial Arts: I Have a Wilderness World

Chapter 557: Chapter 294: Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array (2)

Cheng Zongyang suddenly asked, "I’ve read in ancient texts, aren’t there things called Five Elements Spirit Pearls? Where would one find items like that?"

"HAHAHA!" The Array Master burst out laughing at his words. "My friend, Five Elements Spirit Pearls are legendary Treasures, things only recorded in ancient texts. No one has ever seen one. If you had such a Treasure to place in a Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array, you could absorb Spiritual Qi for Cultivation even in a place completely devoid of it."

Having steered the conversation here, Cheng Zongyang finally asked the question he truly wanted to ask.

"I read about a certain issue regarding Five Elements Spirit Pearls in the texts over there. If the five pearls were all of different Tiers, would it be impossible to use a standard Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array?

It’s like if the underground Five Elements Spiritual Power had varying concentrations—wouldn’t that cause the Array to run erratically? Just as Steward Baili mentioned, I’m thinking of setting one up on my family’s grounds, but I don’t know much about it. I would be grateful for your guidance, Master."

Cheng Zongyang finished by cupping his fists in a gesture of respect toward the Array Master.

The Array Master’s expression turned serious. "I’ve never heard this question asked before," he said. "But the Five Elements have cycles of generation and restriction, as well as cycles of exploitation and insult. If the Spiritual Power of one material is stronger than the others, it indicates an excess. Conversely, if it’s weaker, it’s a deficiency.

Normally, Gold restricts Wood. But if the Gold Spirit Power is too strong, its restriction of Wood Spirit Power will be excessive. This will cause the Wood Spiritual Qi to be doubly suppressed and become insufficient to draw upon.

Conversely, if the Wood Spirit Power is too strong, the Gold Spirit Power won’t be able to restrict it and will instead be insulted by it.

In the case of the generation cycle, if Gold Spirit Power is the strongest, it will enhance the strength of Water Spirit Power. However, this violates the principle that too much is as bad as not enough, and it will overdraw the very foundation of the Water Spirit Power.

Therefore, if you have a place like this, you will need a different kind of Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array, one designed according to the varying strengths of the underground Spiritual Power.

For example, if the Gold Spirit Power is too strong, you would need to add a Restriction within the Array to constrain it. For the weaker elements, you would need to add enhancements, thereby creating a balance among the Five Elements.

Only with the Five Elements in balance can the generation cycle be endless.

Of course, if you wanted to use a Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array to trap enemies, you could change the generation Restrictions to ones of exploitation and insult. This would cause the Five Elements Spiritual Power to riot, making it impossible for those inside the Array to use Spiritual Qi, while also being battered by the external Spiritual Power."

Cheng Zongyang listened intently, his eyes opened to a new world of possibilities. He quickly cupped his hands again. "Thank you for your guidance, Master. To be honest, the place I found happens to have the strongest Wood Spirit Power, while the other four types of Spiritual Power are all of a similar concentration. Assuming they are at Second Grade, the Wood Spirit Power far exceeds that. What Tier of Array would be needed for such a situation?"

"Tier Two!" the Array Master answered directly, not seeming to care where the place Cheng Zongyang mentioned was.

In the Ice and Fire Cultivation Immortality Realm, there were many such places. Finders keepers, or the strong take it by force—there was nothing more to be said. He then explained:

"If four of the elements are balanced, you just need to constrain the Wood Spirit Power, limiting it to a Tier Two level.

Wood generates Fire, but since the Wood Spirit Power is strongest and the Fire Element is insufficient, it means the Fire Element will be the first to be depleted. Therefore, the best method is to add materials that supplement the other four elements into the Array Hub to maintain the Array’s long-term stable operation. The most convenient way is to add Spirit Stones of the other four elements, preferably High Grade ones.

However, considering such materials are hard to find and expensive, the most practical approach is to simply restrict the Wood Spirit Power. When all Five Elements are at the same level, you basically don’t have to worry about any problems."

After hearing the explanation, Cheng Zongyang understood the Array Master’s meaning. He continued to ask, "If it’s constrained like that, how long can the Array operate?"

The Array Master replied, "The Array can run for a long time, but the consumption rate of the converted Spiritual Qi is related to the number of people using it. The more people cultivating, the faster the consumption. Therefore, a place like this is best used as a core clan territory, supplying a small number of talented individuals for their Cultivation. Otherwise, if you let just anyone cultivate there, even a Spirit Vein of Fifth Grade or higher wouldn’t be enough to sustain the drain."

"A Spirit Vein of Fifth Grade or higher?" Cheng Zongyang latched onto another key point.

"Just as you said, Second Grade—that means it’s a Second Grade Spirit Vein. But based on your description, it’s not a complete Spirit Vein, but what we call a Scattered Spirit Vein."

The Array Master seemed to read Cheng Zongyang’s mind and continued, "A Second Grade Scattered Spirit Vein is decent, but because it’s dispersed, it’s more suited for an Independent Cultivator’s Cave Mansion or a small family’s grounds. It’s not something people would pay much attention to.

If you had a Spirit Vein of Fifth Grade or higher, you wouldn’t have to worry about short-term consumption, as it would automatically draw in Five Elements Spiritual Power from the surroundings to replenish itself."

"What level would the County Town’s Northwest and East Three Districts combined be?" Cheng Zongyang suddenly asked.

The Array Master was momentarily speechless. "All County Towns are built upon Spirit Veins of Fourth Grade or higher. They also draw Spiritual Power from their surroundings."

"Alright." Cheng Zongyang nodded. "Then I’ll place an order for a Tier Five Five Elements Spiritual Vein Array, with the condition that it restricts Wood Spiritual Power and leaves the other four elements unchanged. The coverage area should be about the size of the South District. What would the price be?"

At this, both the Array Master and Baili Xi stared at Cheng Zongyang in utter shock.

They could infer a great deal from his words.

Cheng Zongyang chuckled. "Don’t misunderstand, I’m not finished. That one is for someone else. I also need a Second Grade Array of the same type."

’The Second Grade one is just a cover, but whether they believe me or not is out of my hands.’

At this, understanding seemed to dawn on both of them.

Although Baili Xi was curious, he was naturally delighted to have a deal walk in the door. He had his own "performance metrics" to meet, after all. He quickly turned to the Array Master. "Master Xu, how many Spirit Stones would this require?"

The Array Master stared at Cheng Zongyang for a good while before slowly saying, "The Tier Two one isn’t much, only about a thousand Spirit Stones. But the Tier Five one is around fifty thousand Spirit Stones. For both..."

He quickly calculated in his head before continuing, "Let’s call it fifty-three thousand Spirit Stones for you."

"Done. How long will it take?" Cheng Zongyang asked.

"Seven days. Your requirements for the Array aren’t complex, so it won’t take too long," the Array Master said.

"Good. I’ll be back in seven days. This is the deposit." Cheng Zongyang took out one thousand Spirit Stones and placed them on the table.

"Excellent!" Baili Xi chuckled and collected the Spirit Stones.

After the Array Master left to arrange the custom Array orders, Baili Xi asked Cheng Zongyang, "I wonder if there is anything else you require, friend?"

Cheng Zongyang had brought 150,000 Spirit Stones’ worth of business on his first visit, so naturally, Baili Xi was extremely courteous.

Cheng Zongyang shook his head slightly and cupped his fists. "Not for now. I’ll take my leave then. I will be back."

Baili Xi nodded and politely escorted Cheng Zongyang to the door, watching as he boarded a Beast Vehicle and departed.

Watching the departing Beast Vehicle, Baili Xi subconsciously touched the Storage Pouch on his left side, his eyes glinting. He then walked to the front counter, handed the Storage Pouch from his right hip—the one for holding Spirit Stones—to the receptionist, and said:

"This is from the client’s transaction: thirty-six thousand units of Ice and Fire Spirits Materials, one hundred thousand Spirit Crystals, and one thousand for the custom Array. Log it in the accounts."

"Huh? Yes, Steward." The receptionist froze for a second before snapping to attention and agreeing.

Baili Xi’s heart was still pounding. ’Two Foundation Establishment Pills are now mine.’ No one knew that Cheng Zongyang had used the pills to settle the account. ’If Cheng Zongyang doesn’t say anything, and I don’t say anything, who will ever know?’

The Spirit Stones he used were his own. After being a Steward for over thirty years, he was naturally wealthy.

But even with money, you couldn’t normally get your hands on a Foundation Establishment Pill.

With these two Foundation Establishment Pills, the Baili Family, with a bit of luck, might just produce two more Foundation Establishment Cultivators!

At Cheng Zongyang’s direction, the Beast Vehicle wound its way through various alleyways, finally arriving at Zhao Yonglong’s residence.

At that moment, there were four or five people in Zhao Yonglong’s house, selling Spirit Rice to him.

Zhao Yonglong counted the goods one by one, then paid up. With the goods and payment exchanged, both parties were pleased.

Cheng Zongyang stood at the door, watching a steady stream of people leaving Zhao Yonglong’s house, assuming they were all his friends.

When he entered, Zhao Yonglong was just putting away several Storage Pouches. He looked up and his gaze met Cheng Zongyang’s.