34: Lightning-struck charcoal

Cuizhu Lane, Courtyard Jia 16.

The door to the secret chamber was tightly shut, with only a few fluorite stones emitting a cold, dim light, casting Zhou Wannian's shadow long.

He sat cross-legged at the table, toying with the section of black lightning-struck wood he had acquired from the stone gambling house, his expression far from relaxed. The Legacy was in hand, but turning it into tangible combat power and Spirit Stones was separated by a huge chasm—cost.

"A High Grade First-Order Thunder Talisman requires 'lightning-struck wood powder' from lightning-struck wood over thirty years old, ground into ink, supplemented with the blood of a First-Order Late-Stage Demonic Beast 'Thunder Light Mouse' for reconcile. The talisman paper must be a special 'High Grade yellow paper' capable of bearing the power of thunder."

Zhou Wannian calculated another sum in his heart, and the more he calculated, the colder his heart grew.

"A standard thunder ink costs fifteen Spirit Stones. A ream of High Grade yellow paper costs ten Spirit Stones."

"With this set of Materials, even if the talisman doesn't fail, the cost of one Thunder Talisman is close to three Spirit Stones. If you factor in the abysmal success rate during the beginner phase... my eight hundred Spirit Stones will probably be gone after just a few attempts."

This was the sorrow of a Loose Cultivator.

Knowing the technique was useless; one still needed resources. Zhao Feng could squander because he had Hundred Herbs Hall backing him, with his Family providing financial support. Zhou Wannian, however, was alone; every Spirit Stone was painstakingly saved.

"I must find a substitute."

"The core of Gu Dao is to accomplish the most with the cheapest resources. If practicing a skill means going bankrupt, what's the point of cultivating immortality?"

Zhou Wannian put down the lightning-struck wood and looked out at the dark night sky.

The midnight had arrived.

He skillfully set up the incense altar and summoned the Heavenly Secret Dao Disk.

"I ask of the heavenly secret."

"Around Qinghe Market, where can I find a cheap substitute for 'Thunder-attribute Spiritual Ink'? It needs to be abundant, hidden, and its true value not easily detected."

Buzz—

The bronze tortoise shell spun rapidly in his Sea of Consciousness, emitting crackling sounds like electric currents. Clearly, divining anything related to the thunder attribute consumed a great deal, and Zhou Wannian felt his Divine Sense rapidly draining, his brain throbbing faintly.

Finally, a gray light with a scorched smell emerged, transforming into several lines of ancient seal script:

[Today's Hexagram: Minor Auspicious (Treasure from Waste)]

[Opportunity Direction: Western District of the market, Mortal residential area, 'Liu's Charcoal Factory'.]

[Hexagram Statement: Half a month ago, a thunder storm suddenly struck the outskirts of Black Wind Ridge, igniting a century-old ironwood forest. The owner of Liu's Charcoal Factory, coveting a bargain, transported these charred remnants back and made them into cheap charcoal, using it as fuel for Mortals during winter.]

[Core Guidance: Among this batch of charcoal, dozens of 'thunder-struck charred wood' pieces, thoroughly penetrated by lightning and with internalized spiritual energy, are mixed in. To Mortal eyes, they appear as charcoal, but in reality, they contain pure thunder Spiritual Qi. Grind them into powder, and they can replace thunder ink; although slightly more volatile, their advantage lies in their abundance and sufficiency.]

"Charcoal?"

Zhou Wannian looked at the hexagram, first stunned, then his lips curled into an uncontrollable smile.

Selling charred wood containing thunder Spiritual Qi as heating charcoal? This was simply a waste of heavenly resources! But it perfectly suited him, an expert at picking up scraps.

"Thunder attribute is too volatile? No problem, my 'Spiral Drawing Method' specializes in handling all sorts of defiance."

...The next morning.

Western District of the market, Mortal gathering place.

This place was even dirtier and more chaotic than the Shantytown, mostly inhabited by Mortals who couldn't cultivate, or miscellaneous workers from various shops. The air was filled with the smell of coal smoke and the sour stench of household garbage.

Outside a charcoal factory, filled with the smell of coal dust.

A hunchbacked old man, shivering in a thick cotton-padded jacket, pushed a broken wheelbarrow over.

It was Zhou Wannian, disguised.

"Shopkeeper, I'm here to buy charcoal."

"Oh, old man, preparing for winter so early?"

Shopkeeper Liu, his face covered in black ash, came out, still gnawing on a large flatbread. "What kind of charcoal do you want? We have High Grade smokeless silver thread charcoal, and also cheap black wood charcoal."

"I want the cheap kind."

Zhou Wannian sniffed, his voice hoarse, "My home is cold, and I'm not particular, as long as it burns fiercely. I heard you have a new batch of black charcoal, brought back from Black Wind Ridge? Very powerful?"

"Heh! Old man, you really know your stuff!"

Shopkeeper Liu slapped his thigh. "That batch of charcoal, though a bit smoky, burns truly fiercely! It ignites instantly, crackles loudly, and occasionally sparks, very potent! Only two spirit fragment per basket!"

"Alright, give me... ten cartloads."

"How many?!" Shopkeeper Liu was stunned, almost dropping his flatbread.

"Ten cartloads." Zhou Wannian pointed behind him. "My courtyard is large, and I have several grandsons to raise. Winter is almost here, so stocking up makes me feel secure."

"Alright! Please wait!"

Half an hour later.

Zhou Wannian, pushing a cart full of pitch-black charcoal, appeared to be walking with difficulty but was actually moving swiftly as he left the charcoal factory. He didn't buy everything at once but split his purchases over three days, using three different identities (an old man, a farm woman, a porter), almost emptying half of the 'thunder-struck charcoal' batch.

Total cost: less than five Spirit Stones... Cuizhu Lane, secret chamber.

Zhou Wannian looked at the black wood charcoal piled in the corner of the room and casually picked up a piece.

The charcoal was pitch black on the surface, but felt numb to the touch. When squeezed hard, faint electrical arcs could even be seen at his fingertips.

"It really is good stuff."

"Next, is refinement."

He didn't use complex Artifact Refining methods but simply and crudely crushed the charcoal into powder, then brought out his unique secret technique—the Cleaning Talisman.

"Absorb!"

As the spiral Spiritual Qi circulated, Impurities and dust from the charcoal powder were sucked away, leaving only a layer of fine powder with a purplish-gold luster.

This was the simplified 'Thunder Spiritual Powder'.

Although not comparable to authentic lightning-struck wood powder, its advantage lay in its large quantity, and it carried a violent fiery Qi, which suited Zhou Wannian's taste perfectly.

Next was ink preparation.

He didn't have the financial means to buy Yao Beast blood, so he used the sap of a low-grade spiritual plant called 'conductive glue' as a substitute. Mixing it with the Thunder Spiritual Powder, he prepared a bowl of black spiritual ink as viscous as asphalt.

"Materials are ready, let's begin!"

Zhou Wannian spread out a mid-grade talisman paper. Although the Rushing Thunder Talisman required High Grade talisman paper, he couldn't afford that much, so he could only make do with mid-grade. While it was prone to tearing, it was theoretically feasible as long as he controlled the Spiritual Qi density.

He picked up the brush and dipped it in ink.

The moment the brush tip touched the talisman paper, a strong repulsive force came, as if he wasn't holding a brush, but a constantly twitching electric eel.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—"

Smoke rose from the brush tip.

"Rotate!"

Zhou Wannian lowly shouted, his Qi Refining Level Four Divine Sense fully engaged, firmly suppressing the restless thunder Spiritual Qi.

He did not follow the straightforward, powerful drawing method of the Rushing Thunder Talisman. Instead, his wrist trembled wildly, the brush moving like a Dragon, drawing one tightly connected spiral circle after another.

If it didn't rotate, this violent thunder power would instantly burn through this fragile mid-grade talisman paper.

Only by rotating, using centrifugal force to fling the thunder power outwards and distribute it evenly, could he barely maintain balance.

"Buzz—snap!"