「Several days later.」
Fang Cheng was sitting in his courtyard, meditating and cultivating.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. The sound of knocking came from the courtyard gate, followed by a sweet, bell-like voice calling out, "Is Young Master Fang in?"
Fang Cheng slowly stopped his cultivation, rose, and walked to the gate, opening it.
He saw a charming young woman in a sea-green dress standing gracefully, her bright, jet-black eyes studying him with curiosity.
When the young woman saw him looking at her, her pretty face blushed slightly, and a hint of shyness flickered in her dewy eyes.
"And you are?" Fang Cheng asked curiously.
The young woman quickly replied, "I'm from the Feng Family of Flame Demon Island. I've come on my lady's orders to deliver something to Young Master Fang."
This young woman also had a cultivation base, and it was no lower than Fang Cheng's.
Seeing this, Fang Cheng smiled. "Please come in. May I ask your name, Miss?"
The young woman entered the courtyard with graceful elegance, her beautiful eyes glancing around curiously. Hearing his question, she replied, "My name is Wan'Er."
She had originally planned to drop off the items and report back, but for some reason, she was in no hurry to leave after seeing Fang Cheng.
Fang Cheng invited her to sit at the stone table and steeped a pot of Spirit Tea to serve her.
Watching Fang Cheng pour the tea, Wan'Er suddenly let out a small laugh. "Before I came, my lady mentioned that Young Master Fang was exceptionally handsome. I didn't believe her at first, but now that I've seen you, I know she wasn't exaggerating."
'The Love Gu is working...?'
Fang Cheng said modestly, "Miss Wan'Er, you're too kind. Please, have some tea."
Wan'Er's beautiful eyes never left Fang Cheng's face. After a moment, she sighed softly and said, "To have earned my lady's favor, your future is sure to be a meteoric rise."
With that, she took out a storage pouch and handed it to Fang Cheng.
On her delicate, snow-white wrist, a vibrant, emerald-green bracelet was particularly eye-catching, causing Fang Cheng to stare for a moment.
It wasn't that he was captivated by Wan'Er's smooth, snowy skin; rather, when he saw the bracelet, the Golden Talisman in his sea of consciousness suddenly trembled and reacted.
The bracelet was covered in complex, esoteric patterns that faintly exuded a mysterious aura.
He took the storage pouch, and a sweep of his Divine Sense revealed five jade slips inside, along with various wine-brewing ingredients like Spirit Rice and Spirit Fruits.
Seeing him staring at her wrist, Wan'Er blushed and slowly pulled her hand back. She glanced at him and said softly, "Young Master, inside are five Spirit Wine recipes. My lady also had someone prepare ten portions of the corresponding brewing ingredients for each. If you succeed in brewing them, you can find Shopkeeper Cao at the Jade Banquet Tower in the market square."
Fang Cheng nodded. "Please convey my thanks to your lady."
Then, he looked at Wan'Er, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Miss Wan'Er, may I have a look at the bracelet on your wrist?"
Wan'Er shot him a teasing glance, a faint smile playing on her lips. She extended her wrist and chuckled, "What's this? Does the Young Master fancy this bracelet?"
Fang Cheng took the green bracelet in both hands to examine it closely, completely ignoring her slender, delicate hands.
Just as he gently rubbed the bracelet, the Golden Talisman in his sea of consciousness trembled slightly. The characters on it blurred for an instant and then changed!
[Talisman Master] Fang Cheng
[Divine Power Technique]
One Qi Technique·Minor Achievement (0/200)
Cyan Profound Swordsmanship·Minor Achievement (0/500)
Nameless Gu Technique·Minor Achievement (0/300)
Creation Points: 108
The Creation Points increased by 102!
Fang Cheng was ecstatic, but his expression remained unchanged. He asked casually, as if it were an afterthought, "Miss Wan'Er, what material is this bracelet made of?"
Wan'Er thought he was just using it as an excuse to get closer to her, to touch her hand or something, though the pretext seemed a bit clumsy...
"It's made of Dao Pattern Spirit Jade," Wan'Er replied.
Fang Cheng rubbed it for a little while longer and, finding that his Creation Points weren't increasing any further, let go.
He smiled. "Miss Wan'Er, your hands are very beautiful."
Wan'Er pursed her lips into a smile. "Do you go to Miaoxiang Tower often? You're quite the smooth-talker."
Fang Cheng looked at Wan'Er with a serious expression. "I'm just speaking from the heart. Miss Wan'Er, do you know where I can buy this Dao Pattern Spirit Jade?"
Her pretty face flushing under his intense gaze, Wan'Er said, "Dao Pattern Spirit Jade is useless for cultivation, so it's not often seen in the market square. It's just that the Dao Patterns on the jade seem to contain a trace of Dao rhythm, so cultivators mostly use it for decoration. My bracelet was made from Dao Pattern Spirit Jade found in one of the Feng Family's Spirit Stone Veins. If you want some, I can ask someone to look for more for you."
Fang Cheng was overjoyed. He smiled and said, "That would be wonderful, thank you so much! I don't know why, but I felt an inexplicable fondness for this jade the moment I saw it."
Wan'Er rolled her eyes at him and thought, 'Excuses!'
She inwardly chided Fang Cheng for being a bit of a flirt, but she wasn't angry with him. On the contrary, she was quite happy.
The two chatted for a few more moments before Wan'Er said, "It's getting late. I should go back and report to my lady. I'll come find you again when I've located some Dao Pattern Spirit Jade."
"Thank you, Miss Wan'Er." Fang Cheng walked her to the gate.
As she was about to leave, Wan'Er hesitated, looking as if she wanted to say something more. Finally, she couldn't help but add, "Young Master, don't go to Miaoxiang Tower anymore. The women there... they're not good for you."
"I..." Fang Cheng said awkwardly, "Alright, I understand."
Wan'Er gave him a sweet smile and turned to leave.
Fang Cheng returned to his courtyard and excitedly pumped his fist.
'I've finally found the right way to use my Golden Finger! Dao Pattern Spirit Jade!'
He paced around the courtyard, wishing he could let out a great roar to vent the joy in his heart.
To Cultivators, this Dao Pattern Spirit Jade had no practical value beyond decoration. This was because it possessed Innate Spirit Patterns, but no one could decipher them. Aside from a very small number of cultivators who enjoyed collecting such items, it was rarely seen.
But at least he had found a direction!
Right now, his One Qi Technique was 200 Creation Points away from Major Achievement, his Cyan Profound Sword Technique was 500 away, and his Nameless Gu Technique was 300 away.
After a moment of thought, Fang Cheng allocated all 108 Creation Points to the One Qi Technique.
Increasing his cultivation speed was the top priority right now.
It wouldn't be too late to upgrade his Sword Technique and Gu Technique after finding more Dao Pattern Spirit Jade.
As for the wine recipes and brewing ingredients from Feng Ling, he would have to wait until he had nurtured his Wine Gu to Tier One Lower Grade before slowly tackling that.
This could serve as a long-term source of income.
...
「Six months later.」
In the Quiet Chamber of his room.
Fang Cheng sat cross-legged on a couch, Spiritual Qi swirling around him, his clothes fluttering despite the lack of wind.
The Magical Power fluctuations from his body surged like the tide, ebbing and flowing.
After a long while, he opened his eyes, a flash of delight within them.
'I'm not far from breaking through to the Fourth Layer of Sensing!'
His Magical Power had increased by a large margin compared to six months ago, and he was now just one step away from breaking through to the Mid-Sensing Stage!
If he were to fight Fang Hen now, Fang Cheng was confident he could defeat him within ten moves.
For the past six months, he had focused mainly on ascetic cultivation. Most of his days were spent meditating and refining Qi, followed by practicing the Cyan Profound Sword Technique, and then, refining his Gu.
When he grew restless from all the quiet meditation, he would also go to Miaoxiang Tower in the market square to refine his Gu...
Looking back on his life since transmigration, it was truly simple, unadorned, and tedious.
He immersed his Divine Sense into the Golden Talisman in his sea of consciousness and saw that the characters on it had changed once again compared to six months ago—
[Talisman Master] Fang Cheng
[Divine Power Technique]
One Qi Technique·Minor Achievement (162/200)
Cyan Profound Swordsmanship·Minor Achievement (39/500)
Nameless Gu Technique·Minor Achievement (56/300)
Creation Points: 8
...