33: Chapter 33 The Marketplace Gains Fame, Moonlight Soothes the Mind

The "Moonlight Spirit-Calming Liquid" Ye Qing had refined, though merely the most rudimentary medicinal liquid, had truly remarkable effects.

He tried consuming a tiny bit himself; the cool, calming sensation that nourished the Divine Soul was several times stronger than simply consuming moonlight flower or sitting in meditation, and it had a miraculous effect on recovering from Divine Sense fatigue and calming distracting thoughts.

It was especially effective for recovering from the Divine Sense depletion after practicing the Divine Refining Technique.

"Let's call it 'moonlight heart-clearing powder'. Although it is still a powder, it is a step up from the crude medicinal liquid."

He carefully dried the mass of medicinal liquid over a low flame, ground it into a fine, pale silver-gray powder, and stored it in a jade bottle.

He obtained about three portions of the powder, each the size of a fingernail.

"The quality is far superior to those inferior calming powders in the market, and the main ingredient is high-quality moonlight flower produced in the space; the effect should be very obvious for Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivators."

"If I sell it to those Loose Cultivators who spend their lives licking blood off the blade and suffer from severe mental exhaustion, it surely won't lack for buyers."

Ye Qing had a plan.

He changed his disguise again, putting on another set of more down-and-out gray-brown short clothes, adjusted his facial disguise to look more weathered, maintained his aura at the peak of the third level of Qi Refining, and hung that worn-out Storage Pouch at his waist as before.

This time, he did not set up a stall in the market but went directly to a Medicinal Pill shop with a small storefront that looked decent enough— "Baicao Pavilion".

The shopkeeper was an old man with a goatee, shrewd eyes, and a cultivation level at Level 5 Qi Refining, whose surname was Qian.

The shop didn't have many Medicinal Pills, and their quality was average, but it was known for fair prices and also accepted homemade medicinal herbs and Medicinal Pills from Loose Cultivators.

"Shopkeeper Qian, do you buy medicinal powder?" Ye Qing asked in a hoarse voice, handing over the jade bottle containing the "moonlight heart-clearing powder".

Shopkeeper Qian took it, opened the stopper, brought it to his nose and sniffed gently, and a flash of surprise immediately crossed his cloudy, aged eyes.

He used his fingernail to pick out a bit of the powder to examine it closely, and even stuck out the tip of his tongue to taste a tiny amount, his expression changing slightly.

"Good stuff! Pure moonlight aura, very strong calming effect, and... it seems to have a slight nourishing effect on the Divine Soul? This definitely could not be refined from ordinary moonlight flower."

"Little friend, did you refine this medicinal powder yourself?" Shopkeeper Qian looked at Ye Qing with burning eyes.

Ye Qing's expression remained unchanged, and he lowered his eyes, saying, "It is a family craft. I managed to refine a little to exchange for some Spirit Stones to get by."

Family craft? Shopkeeper Qian didn't believe it in his heart. How many Loose Cultivators in this Black Water Swamp had a family craft?

But the quality of this medicinal powder was indeed good, far exceeding the goods circulating in the market.

His thoughts raced; this young Loose Cultivator either truly had a unique Legacy, or he had just had a stroke of good luck and obtained a batch of good Materials.

Regardless of which it was, this medicinal powder was worth buying.

"Little friend, this 'moonlight heart-clearing powder' is of excellent quality. I won't cheat you; ordinary calming powder in the market is only worth two or three Low-Grade Spirit Stones per portion."

"For your medicinal powder, I am willing to offer five per portion. These three portions will total fifteen Low-Grade Spirit Stones. How about that?"

Ye Qing calculated quickly in his mind.

Ordinary calming powder had poor effects and a low price.

His "moonlight heart-clearing powder" was at least several times more effective, and for Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivators, it could be the key to saving their lives or turning the tide in critical moments.

Five Spirit Stones per portion was not a high price, but for a first transaction, it was fair.

After all, his cost was almost zero; the moonlight flower was produced in his space, and the refining relied entirely on Divine Sense and spiritual power.

"That works." Ye Qing nodded.

Shopkeeper Qian readily counted out fifteen Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

Ye Qing collected the Spirit Stones and was about to leave.

"Wait a moment, little friend." Shopkeeper Qian called out to him, his face filled with a smile, "I wonder if you will continue to refine this medicinal powder? If you have more, I can purchase them long-term, and the price can be negotiated further."

"In addition, if you have other Medicinal Pills or high-quality Spirit Medicine, this shop will also purchase them at a high price."

Ye Qing understood clearly that Shopkeeper Qian wanted to establish a stable source of goods.

He pondered for a moment and said, "This medicine is not easy to refine, and the Materials are hard to find. I will do my best, and if there are finished products, I will come to your shop again. As for others... I have none for now."

"Understandable, understandable." Shopkeeper Qian was not disappointed and handed over a simple name card, "If you have any needs in the future, little friend, you can use this to find me. Although this shop is small, it operates with integrity and offers fair prices."

Ye Qing took the name card, cupped his hands in thanks, and turned to leave.

After leaving Baicao Pavilion, he did not linger in the market. He used the Spirit Stones to replenish some blank Talisman paper, Low Grade cinnabar, a few newly released miscellaneous books, and bought a large bag of seeds for various common Low Grade Spirit Medicine—some were common Herb Garden varieties, others were specialties of the swamp. Regardless of whether they were useful or not, he would collect them first and plant them in the space to observe.

He planned to make full use of the reserved spiritual field in the space to conduct larger-scale planting experiments, screening for the varieties most suitable for the space environment, with short growth cycles and relatively high value, to form a stable output.

After replenishing his supplies, Ye Qing left Blackwater Market and returned to his temporary stone room again.

He did not immediately start large-scale planting, but instead took out the newly purchased blank Talisman paper and cinnabar.

Drawing Talismans in the Void Realm was good, but it was ultimately instantaneous and could not be stored.

Real Talismans could be drawn in advance and activated at critical moments; whether used for combat, defense, support, or escape, they were much more convenient.

"Let's start with the most familiar 'Spirit Gathering Rune', 'Solidifying Rune', and 'Light Body Rune', and try to draw them into physical Talismans. I don't ask for high quality; as long as I can succeed, that's a stack of life-saving trump cards."

He calmed his heart, spread out the Talisman paper, ground the cinnabar, and picked up the most ordinary wolf-hair Talisman brush.

The tip of the brush was saturated with cinnabar mixed with his own spiritual power, his Divine Sense was highly focused, recalling every detail of sketching the runes in the Void Realm, and the tip of the brush fell steadily.

The first stroke, starting with the Spirit Gathering Rune.

Spiritual power passed through the Talisman brush, injecting evenly into the cinnabar, leaving clear spiritual traces on the Talisman paper.

The brush moved like a dragon or snake, his wrist steady.

Having had countless experiences drawing in the Void Realm, the physical drawing felt even more "solid"; the spiritual power load of each stroke, the force of the turns, and the charm of the finish were all clearly perceptible.

The moment the Talisman brush was lifted, a pale red spiritual light flashed on the Talisman paper and then retracted; a most basic "Spirit Gathering Talisman" was completed.

Although it was only the most rudimentary first-grade Talisman, which could only weakly gather Spiritual Qi and accelerate his own spiritual power recovery, it was indeed a success.

Ye Qing did not stop, continuing to draw "Solidifying Talisman" and "Light Body Talisman".

The success rate was not high, succeeding four or five times out of ten.

He did not waste the ruined Talisman paper, throwing it directly into the "waste area" of the space to be absorbed, which could recover a little meager energy.

When more than half of the blank Talisman paper on hand was used up, he had obtained seven "Spirit Gathering Talismans", five "Solidifying Talismans", and six "Light Body Talismans".

The quality was only Low Grade, but it was enough for a Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivator to use.

"With these Talismans, plus the 'moonlight heart-clearing powder', my means of self-preservation and channels for obtaining resources are more diversified."

"In combat, I can use Talismans to save my own spiritual power. In daily life, I can sell medicinal powder and Talismans to exchange for Spirit Stones and necessary supplies."

Ye Qing was very satisfied.

This was how steady development should look—not relying on a single method, but walking on multiple legs.

He carefully put away the Talismans and began to process the newly purchased Spirit Medicine seeds.

His consciousness sank into the space, and he planned out different planting areas on that thirteen or fourteen-zhang black land.

moonlight flower, iron wire vine, night firefly grass, and purple thread grass were each assigned a fixed area.

He also categorized the dozens of newly obtained common Low Grade Spirit Medicine seeds and, on the edge of each planting area, opened up small "experimental fields", planting three or five seeds of each.

For a time, the space became more lively, with Spiritual Qi fluctuations of various attributes intermingling, yet under the harmonization of the moonlight jade tree, it faintly reached a new, more complex balance.

Ye Qing could feel that as the variety of plants increased, the ecological cycle of the space became more stable, and its self-regulation ability was strengthening.

The concentration of Spiritual Qi was also slowly increasing, and the moonlight jade tree seemed to enjoy this "liveliness", its silver radiance flowing more joyfully.

Exiting the space, the night was already deep.

Ye Qing consumed a portion of "moonlight heart-clearing powder", feeling the cool air current nourishing his Divine Soul, and then began his daily, unwavering practice of the Divine Refining Technique.

Severe pain and fatigue struck, but under the dual nourishment of the heart-clearing powder and the moonlight jade tree, he recovered faster, and the cultivation effect was even better.

His Divine Sense was slowly and firmly strengthening and condensing amidst the pain.

His Sixth Level of Qi Refining cultivation, under the continuous feedback of the space and his own unremitting hard work, was steadily moving toward the Middle Stage.

Inside his body, in the thirty-five-zhang space, plants were lush and full of vitality.

In the outside world, the Black Water Swamp was fraught with crises but also full of opportunities.

Steady development, methodical and orderly.

Every day, the Loose Cultivator Ye Qing was accumulating bit by bit of strength for a longer path of Dao.