42: Chapter 42 A Chance Encounter on a Snowy Journey

The 'tianhua miscellany' contains records of secrets regarding Spirit Stones.

Spirit Stones are divided into four Ranks: Low Grade, Medium Grade, High Grade, and Top-Grade. With different Ranks, the purity of the Spiritual Qi they contain differs vastly.

One hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones are required to exchange for one Medium Grade Spirit Stone, one hundred Medium Grade Spirit Stones can be exchanged for one High-Grade Spirit Stone, and only one hundred High-Grade Spirit Stones can be exchanged for one Top-Grade Spirit Stone.

Spirit Stones have a wide range of uses; Cultivators use them for meditation and cultivation, setting up formations, powering flying Magical Artifacts, and rapidly recovering Spiritual Qi when it is exhausted after a battle.

The latter part of the book describes the miraculous uses of various Heaven And Earth Treasures, some of which fell from the sky, while others were born of heaven and earth.

After reading the entire book, Yun Song's horizons were greatly broadened. This 'tianhua miscellany' had officially opened the door to the vast world of cultivation for him.

In just a single day, he had gained a general understanding of matters in the cultivation world.

With nothing better to do, he took out the few Spell manuals he had exchanged for earlier. 'Fireball Technique', 'Protective Spiritual Qi Shield', 'chronicles of miraculous healing', and 'Spirit Rain Art'—each volume was described in great detail, not only stating the Mind-Cultivation Technique chants but also explaining the method of circulating Spiritual Qi in detail.

However, as he was born without a Spiritual Root and possessed no Spiritual Qi within his body, these profound Spells were ultimately just flowers in a mirror and the moon in the water to him, completely useless.

Just as he was filled with disappointment, the 'chronicles of miraculous healing' firmly captured his attention.

The book analyzed the world's difficult and miscellaneous diseases in minute detail; it not only described the manifestations of various illnesses but also delved into the origins of the root causes of the diseases. What shocked him the most was that it also contained a massive collection of excellent prescriptions for combining medicinal herbs.

Many seemingly ordinary medicinal herbs and plants, when combined in precise proportions, could turn decay into magic, with vastly different medicinal effects.

Time flew by quietly, and in the blink of an eye, half a year had passed.

Over these past six months, Yun Song studied and contemplated it daily, having long since memorized the 'chronicles of miraculous healing' by heart, able to recite it backward.

When he felt hungry on ordinary days, he would eat a bigu pill to sustain himself.

It was now deep winter, the cold wind was biting, and the snowstorm was becoming increasingly fierce.

He packed up his books and luggage, shouldered his mining hoe, and decided to set off for home.

Stepping out of the cave where he had been staying, he looked out to see that everything in heaven and earth was completely covered by pure white snow. There was no sign of birds in the wilderness, and the long, winding road was completely devoid of human tracks.

He was dressed in plain gray cloth clothes, with a mining hoe on his shoulder and a simple bundle on his back.

The bone-chilling wind rushed toward his face, freezing his cheeks red, and he kept rubbing his frozen hands.

Facing the snow-filled sky, he trudged along with difficulty, when suddenly, he heard two figures leap down from the ancient tree beside him.

"Stop! It was all because of you that you startled the prey we were waiting for!"

A crisp, lively female voice was filled with anger. A young girl dressed in yellow stood with her hands on her hips, her pretty face flushed red, her gaze fixed directly on Yun Song.

Beside the girl stood a young man around twenty years old, holding a long sword. His face was handsome, his expression calm and composed, and his thoughts were difficult to fathom.

Yun Song's heart jolted, and he hurriedly looked around. Everything was vast white snow, where could he see even a trace of prey? He couldn't help but secretly wonder, could it be that he had encountered people deliberately looking for trouble?

Before he could open his mouth to defend himself, the girl in yellow was already impatient and urged in a deep voice: "Why are you saying nothing? You have absolutely no manners!"

Yun Song was full of confusion and cupped his hands to ask: "May I ask what you two mean by this?"

The young man on the side frowned slightly and softly dissuaded: "Ye Rong, don't be like this. This little brother didn't do it on purpose. Let's just leave."

"Brother! We have been guarding this for half a month; how can we just give up now? Father is still waiting for this item to make medicine to save his life!"

The girl named Ye Rong's eyes instantly turned red, her ten fingers tightly clasped together, her voice laced with sobs, filled with unwillingness.

Only then did Yun Song understand that the people before him were a pair of siblings, waiting here bitterly for a spiritual object just to save their father at home.

He looked around, and as far as his eyes could see, it was all vast white snow, with the trees completely buried by thick snow.

Filled with confusion, he opened his mouth to ask softly: "What exactly are you two looking for here?"

The man sighed softly and spoke truthfully: "We are waiting for an Ice Toad."

Yun Song muttered in a low voice: "Ice Toad?"

"That's right, it is exactly this creature." The man nodded and continued, "We have long since set bait outside its Immortal Cave, and my sister and I have taken turns standing guard for a full fifteen days."

"Just now, the Ice Toad was about to come out of the cave to forage for food, but it happened to be startled by your footsteps and immediately retreated back inside."

After speaking, he raised his hand and pointed under the tree. There, hidden, was a hole the size of a fist, its edges covered in frost and ice crystals, and the inside of the hole was deep and pitch black, impossible to see into.

Yun Song leaned down and squatted, examining the Ice Toad's Immortal Cave closely, and suggested: "Why don't we dig open the entrance, or burn some smoke to smoke it out?"

The man shook his head helplessly and sighed: "The terrain structure of this cave is extremely intricate and complex. There is only one entrance on the surface, but inside, it branches out in all directions, interconnected. Now, there is simply no way to know which branch the Ice Toad is hiding in."