4: Innate treasure, golden gourd

Gu Qing rushed to the cultivator district in the south of the city.

The items sold here were all necessities for cultivators; ordinary mortals generally wouldn't set foot here.

Following the information given by the system, Gu Qing approached an old man.

The stall was filled with various strange and peculiar items: weapon fragments, bottles and jars, ores, books, etc.

Gu Qing picked up a Golden Gourd the size of a fist, pretended to examine it, and asked,

"What kind of gourd is this? It looks a bit like it's made of gold!"

The old man's long, white eyebrows furrowed, and an expression of impatience appeared on his face.

"Young man, if you don't understand, don't talk nonsense. This is a treasure I found in an ancient ruin."

"Oh!"

Gu Qing smiled noncommittally and said, "A treasure from an ancient ruin, even a stone from there wouldn't be cheap. How many spirit stones do you plan to sell this ancient treasure for?"

The old man heard the sarcasm in Gu Qing's words, but he wasn't embarrassed at all and calmly said,

"I won't lie to you; I did indeed pick this up in a cultivator's cave. Don't let its lack of spiritual essence fool you; it's definitely not made of gold. If you don't believe me, try hacking at it a few times with a spiritual artifact. If you can damage it, I'll give it to you for free."

Spiritual artifacts and magical treasures all possess spiritual essence, and this Golden Gourd had none, like a dead object. However, gold couldn't withstand the attack of a spiritual artifact.

He had tested it with a spiritual artifact, and it hadn't suffered the slightest damage. At first, he thought he had found a treasure, a divine object that concealed its own brilliance.

But after a series of tests, he gained nothing.

The old man believed it was forged from a special metal that couldn't carry spiritual power. Aside from being hard, it was useless.

He had handled many such items. If the design was exquisite, it might be worth some spirit stones, but if it didn't look good, selling it for even one spirit stone was a good deal.

"Then how much do you plan to sell it for? If it's more than one low-grade spirit stone, don't even bother speaking."

Gu Qing said, sounding uninterested.

"Alright! It's yours!"

The old man had originally planned to ask for thirty spirit stones, expecting to sell it for at least ten after some haggling.

But Gu Qing clearly wasn't easily fooled, and he couldn't be bothered with idle talk. Selling it for one spirit stone was better than being stuck with it.

"Alright!"

Gu Qing was ecstatic. He took out a spirit stone from his storage bag, tossed it to the old man, and hurriedly left.

[Congratulations to the Host for snatching Lin Chen's rising opportunity and plundering 50,000 points of destiny.]

"That much?"

Gu Qing exclaimed in surprise.

Lin Chen only had 100,000 destiny points in total. Losing half of it at once, wouldn't Lin Chen, the protagonist, be half-crippled?

It seemed this Golden Gourd was crucial to Lin Chen, definitely a valuable treasure, perhaps even one that would accompany Lin Chen throughout his growth.

The more Gu Qing thought about it, the more excited he became. He quickly asked,

"What level of magical treasure is this Golden Gourd?"

[It is an Innate Treasure, capable of melting all things and refining them into the purest energy.]

"Innate Treasure?"

Gu Qing's heart pounded with excitement upon hearing this.

Innate Treasures were supreme treasures born before heaven and earth, containing the innate immortal spiritual light.

Innate Treasures included Innate Spirit Treasure and Innate Treasure.

Innate Spirit Treasure were magical treasures containing innate laws, with endless wondrous uses.

Innate Treasures were treasures possessing extraordinary abilities.

Both had their own unique uses.

This Golden Gourd possessed the ability to melt all things, meaning he would never lack cultivation resources in the future.

"The protagonist's destiny is truly incredible; he can even encounter Innate Treasures." Gu Qing looked envious, but at the same time, he felt immensely fortunate.

Thankfully, he had the Super Anti-Armor System; otherwise, he could only watch Lin Chen cheat his way to success.

[The Host need not envy. With the System, you have become a Variable, and your future achievements will definitely surpass those of these fated protagonists.]

A Variable was a Variable, also the 'one that escaped', representing infinite possibilities.

[Moreover, the Host currently possesses 52,000 destiny points, an immense destiny, making you half a protagonist already.]

"So, am I like the protagonist now, where my wishes come true, and whatever I think of appears?"

One must know that protagonists were utterly unreasonable beings.

No matter what rare treasure, encountered once in ten thousand years, they lacked, as long as they went out for a stroll, they could immediately hear news of it and obtain it without much trouble.

Those ancient secret realms that had never appeared would open as soon as the protagonist passed by.

In short, whatever the protagonist needed, it would appear, as if the entire world revolved around him.

[Perhaps when the Host's destiny exceeds 100,000 points.]

Destiny was a very metaphysical thing; either you had it or you didn't, and the System couldn't say for sure.

"Hmm, that's true!"

Gu Qing nodded in agreement. Destiny was inherently ethereal, profound, and mysterious.

If it could be precisely calculated, would it still be called destiny?

"By the way, how do I use the Golden Gourd?"

[It's simple. The Host only needs to infuse it with vital energy or true qi, and let your will guide it.]

"That simple?"

Gu Qing was stunned, somewhat disbelieving.

If the Golden Gourd was that simple to use, then the stall owner should have known already.

There was no reason for him not to thoroughly check the items he was selling.

With this thought, Gu Qing went to the mountain forest outside the city and threw the remaining ninety-nine spirit stones on the ground.

Following the System's method, he infused true qi, letting his will guide it.

The surface of the Golden Gourd remained still, like a dead object, but a suction force emanated from its mouth, drawing all the spirit stones inside.

Emm.

It really was that simple.

But if the System hadn't reminded him, Gu Qing's thoughts would definitely have been the same as the stall owner's.

After infusing true qi and seeing no reaction, he would subconsciously assume it was a dead object.

Either he would try another method or simply give up.

This was a normal person's thought process.

No normal person, knowing it was a dead object, would still use it as a magical treasure.

One could only say that Innate Treasures were indeed extraordinary; they could be used without even needing to be refined.

After a while, Gu Qing opened the Golden Gourd. The spirit stones had already been melted into a purer spiritual liquid, completely free of impurities, ready for direct absorption.

Gu Qing swallowed it in one gulp. A surge of immense energy spread throughout his body, and Gu Qing immediately circulated the Yin Yang Great Dao Song to refine it.

The spiritual liquid was absorbed by his Dao Bone, and Gu Qing quickly broke through to the peak of the first level of the Qi Condensation Realm.

"My cultivation speed is too fast."

Gu Qing's eyes sparkled with excitement.

One must know that cultivation was difficult, harder than ascending to heaven.

The human meridians were very fragile; after opening them, they needed time to warm and nourish.

Secondly, spirit stones contained impurities and needed to be refined and purified before they could be absorbed and used, which all took time.

But with his Dao Bone assisting the Yin Yang Great Dao Song, his realm advancement was incredibly fast, as if all cultivation difficulties simply didn't exist.

Now, with the addition of the Golden Gourd, breaking through realms in the future would be like riding a rocket, soaring to the heavens with incredible power.

Thinking this, Gu Qing headed straight for the Monster Beast Mountain Range to hunt monster beasts, then throw them into the Golden Gourd for purification.

Moreover, killing monster beasts came with System rewards, which was double the pleasure.

What he lacked most now were cultivation resources and various martial arts techniques.

He wondered if the System could generate them.

As for Lin Chen... never mind, improving his strength was more important.

Gu Qing wouldn't just stare at Lin Chen because he was the protagonist and neglect his own cultivation; that would be putting the cart before the horse... "Pfft!"

A powerful backlash surged, making Lin Chen spit out a mouthful of fresh blood. It felt as if some precious item had been stripped from his body, leaving him flustered and uneasy.

"What's wrong with you?"

The broken sword in Lin Chen's mind trembled, and a woman's concerned voice came through.

"I don't know."

Lin Chen clutched his chest, his face pale, and said.

He had felt a suffocating pressure in the Fenglu Hall (stipend hall), as if an irresistible force was stripping something from him.

However, this feeling came and went quickly, so he didn't pay much attention to it, thinking it was a problem with his cultivation.

Now that he was home, the feeling returned, even stronger than before, directly injuring him with the backlash.

"Strange, he's not cursed. Could it be..."

She thought of the communion between heaven and man, and the warning from the Heavenly Dao.

In this Xuanhuan world, cultivating to a certain realm allowed for communion between heaven and man.

One could sense others' malice, and even when opportunities were snatched away.

Of course, this communion could be relatively shielded.

The warning from the Heavenly Dao, however, was a subtle stroke of luck, or rather, a warning given by the ethereal Heavenly Dao.

The Heavenly Dao's warning could not be shielded.

However, the Heavenly Dao's warning was only for those with great destiny.

After someone's opportunity was snatched, they would suffer a backlash of destiny.

But she couldn't understand. If Lin Chen was suffering a destiny backlash, then how could someone with great destiny have their opportunity snatched away?

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