14: Incomplete breathing method

He brought Er and San along, while Si led the other Death Warriors to stand guard and provide backup around the perimeter of Jubao Tower.

Wu and Lu were also requested to temporarily set aside their studies to accompany him and identify potential forging Materials and medicinal herbs.

The trade fair was held in the third-floor hall, with about thirty participants, including merchants, Martial Artists, and a few individuals whose auras were unfathomable.

The host was a plump official with a friendly smile, who introduced himself as Jin; with just a few words, he livened up the atmosphere.

He announced that the primary method would be bartering, supplemented by silver, with free bidding where the highest bidder wins, or through private negotiation between both parties.

The first few items were antiques, calligraphy, paintings, and jewelry; though valuable, they were not what Lin Mo needed. He waited patiently.

“Next is a stalk of three yang grass. It grows in places of extreme Yang and takes thirty years to become medicinal. It has miraculous effects for cultivating Yang-attribute Cultivation Techniques or making up for deficiencies in Origin Qi.”

“It is perfectly preserved with its medicinal properties intact. The starting price is five hundred taels, or an exchange for rare items of equal value.”

Member Jin held out a jade box. Upon opening it, a stalk of medicinal herb, entirely crimson with three leaves shaped like flames, lay on the velvet, emitting a faint, warm aura.

Lin Mo's eyes flickered slightly.

Lu had mentioned before that certain special medicinal Materials could assist in cultivation, accelerating the condensation of Qi sensation or nourishing the Meridians.

This three yang grass sounded like exactly that kind of item. He glanced at Lu, who gave a nearly imperceptible nod, confirming the item was genuine.

“Five hundred and fifty taels!”

“Six hundred taels!”

“This old man offers seven hundred, plus a piece of Warm Jade!”

Bidding sounds rang out, but they weren't too intense. While the three yang grass was good, its application was narrow, and its age wasn't top-tier.

“Eight hundred taels,” Lin Mo spoke for the first time, his voice calm.

His current cash on hand wasn't particularly abundant, but with monthly profits being sent from Qingyuan Town, he could manage this level of expenditure.

More importantly, if this item could accelerate the Early Stage cultivation for himself and the Death Warriors, its value far exceeded silver.

As the price rose to eight hundred taels, the number of competitors dwindled significantly.

In the end, Lin Mo secured the stalk of three yang grass for eight hundred and fifty taels.

The next few items included damaged ancient swords, strange Ores, and even a fragmented map said to show the location of a Secret Realm, which sparked some competition, but Lin Mo did not bid again.

He was waiting and observing.

Finally, when an item was presented, Lin Mo’s spirits rose.

It wasn't a physical object, but a thin roll of dark yellow beast-skin parchment with tattered edges, carefully placed on a tray covered in brocade.

“This item was obtained from an Ancient Tomb. Its material is special, resistant to both water and fire.”

“The text and diagrams recorded on it are extremely ancient and obscure. After appraisal by several masters, it is suspected to be related to some ancient Daoyin technique or Breathing Method, but it is too incomplete for continuous cultivation.”

“Starting price is three hundred taels, or an exchange for Medicinal Pills that can enhance power or rare metals.”

Member Jin introduced it with a hint of uncertainty in his tone.

Those who knew their trade understood that such an item might hold value, but it could also be a piece of scrap paper; the risk was not small.

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Breathing Methods and Daoyin techniques, even incomplete ones, were enough to pique a Martial Artist's interest. However, the phrases 'unable to be cultivated continuously' and 'ancient and obscure text' made people hesitate.

Lin Mo's heart, however, quickened slightly.

What the Death Squad System fed back to him wasn't just growth in Internal Energy, but also insights.

If it was an incomplete method, the Death Warriors might not be able to Cultivate it directly, but through the insights provided by the System, he might be able to complete, understand, and even optimize it!

To him, this was potentially more valuable than a complete but ordinary basic method!

“Three hundred and fifty taels.” A person in black wearing a bamboo hat, their face obscured, was the first to bid.

“Four hundred taels.” Another voice rang out.

Lin Mo didn't raise the price immediately; he only spoke when the price stalled at five hundred taels: “Six hundred taels.”

The black-clad person in the bamboo hat went silent for a moment, seemingly weighing their options, and ultimately did not bid again.

The roll of tattered beast-skin parchment was delivered to Lin Mo's private room.

The trade fair continued, and a few more interesting items appeared, but nothing else caught Lin Mo's interest.

An hour later, the trade fair concluded, and the participants began to leave.

Lin Mo was in no hurry to leave; he stayed in the private room, carefully examining his two acquisitions.

The three yang grass was warm to the touch with a restrained medicinal fragrance; it was indeed extraordinary.

As for the roll of beast-skin parchment, it felt tough and slightly cool. The writing on it was twisted like insects or snakes, and the diagrams showed strange human postures and pathways that were completely incomprehensible.

“Shi Liu, make a copy. Lu, research the usage and dosage of this grass, and be careful,” Lin Mo instructed.

Shi Liu's [Basic Painting and Map Surveying] was perfect for copying this parchment. Lu, on the other hand, would need time to test its medicinal properties.

“Yes.”

After returning to their lodging, Lin Mo immediately devoted himself to studying the beast-skin parchment.

He had all the literate Death Warriors take turns viewing, memorizing, and trying to understand it, while he also focused his mind to sense it.

The insights from the Death Warriors came back faintly and continuously, mostly consisting of confusion and difficulty in understanding.

However, Lin Mo discovered that when he concentrated his own mind, attempting to align those twisted characters and diagrams with the movement of his own Qi sensation...

...and cross-referenced them with the theories in 'a brief discussion on qi and blood transference', the 'insights' fed back would become a bit clearer, as if extremely faint sparks of inspiration were flickering in his mind.

“As expected... the insights fed back can help in understanding and even completing fragmented knowledge.” Lin Mo felt reassured.

This was an extremely important discovery!

It meant that he could accelerate his own understanding and mastery by having the Death Warriors come into contact with and learn all kinds of knowledge, utilizing their learning process and the resulting insights!

This had a broader range of application and even greater potential than simply gaining Internal Energy from their cultivation!

He changed his strategy, no longer requiring the Death Warriors to understand immediately, but instead having them repeatedly observe every detail of the parchment.

At the same time, he had them look through any ancient textual records, human meridian charts, or even myths and legends they could collect, trying to find connections.

A large amount of fragmented and chaotic information was fed back through the Death Warriors' learning. Initially, it made Lin Mo feel a bit of information overload, but he quickly adapted and began to comb through it for possible clues.

“These twisted characters seem related to some kind of sacrificial or nature-worship symbols. A few of the human postures in the diagrams have subtle similarities to certain movements in the 'Twelve Pieces of Brocade', but they are more extreme.”

“These pathways aren't entirely known Meridians; they seem to involve some finer branches or Acupoints that aren't commonly recognized...”

As the scattered insights were pieced together, Lin Mo felt as if he were solving an extremely complex puzzle.

Progress was slow, but every bit of advancement deepened his control over his own Qi sensation and his understanding of Qi and blood circulation.

He even tried to imitate a relatively complete and strange posture from the parchment while adjusting his breathing. He immediately felt the circulation speed of the Qi sensation in his Dantian quicken slightly and become more refined.

“It works! Though I don't see the whole picture, even these partial moves have miraculous effects!” Lin Mo was pleasantly surprised.

What was recorded on this beast-skin parchment was by no means an ordinary Daoyin technique! Its level likely far exceeded basic Materials like 'a brief discussion on qi and blood transference'!