Chapter 9

"Old man Jin is still quite considerate. It seems you don’t need to worry about your early cultivation," Mao Xiaofang said with a smile after reading the letter.

Jiang Le said bitterly, "If I say I don’t want to cultivate, will Old Man Jin crawl out of the ground to settle accounts with me?"

Mao Xiaofang replied with a teasing tone, "That’s hard to say."

"Master, you don’t need to scare me. I know Old Man Jin won’t come back, but rest assured, since he has made such arrangements for me, I wouldn’t dare to let him down. It would be too ungrateful," Jiang Le said seriously.

Mao Xiaofang smiled but said nothing, secretly grateful to the old man for leaving behind a good disciple and even preparing cultivation materials, making him feel a bit embarrassed.

The seriousness lasted only a moment before Jiang Le suddenly beamed with joy, "I never thought Old Man Jin’s shop was small, but he had quite a bit of savings. This card has three million yuan. Wow, I’ve never seen so much money in my life. I suddenly feel so happy."

Unable to stand Jiang Le’s greedy look, Mao Xiaofang asked coldly, "Is your three million more than ten thousand taels of silver?"

Jiang Le was stunned, looking at Mao Xiaofang in confusion.

What does my three million have to do with ten thousand taels of silver?

Mao Xiaofang smiled mysteriously, "Cultivation requires money, wealth, companions, and a place. Why is wealth listed first? Cultivation is very expensive. When I condensed my foundation, I spent ten thousand taels of silver to build a good base. This doesn’t even include the cultivation materials I obtained myself, which would add up to even more."

Jiang Le was shocked.

Just building a foundation cost ten thousand taels of silver?

Although Jiang Le wasn’t very clear about the value of silver, a rough calculation showed that ten thousand taels of silver were worth about ten to twenty million yuan, not including the cultivation materials he obtained himself. This means Master spent tens of millions to build his foundation.

Holy cow, is cultivation so expensive? Just a foundation, if it’s a full cultivation, how much would it cost?

Jiang Le was stunned.

"How about it? Do you still feel rich?" Mao Xiaofang asked, trying to deflate him.

Jiang Le’s face fell. He looked at the bank card and then at Mao Xiaofang, complaining, "Master, can you let me be happy for a while longer?"

"Hmph, I don’t want you to be too attached to material things. For a cultivator, cultivation power is the only thing you can truly rely on. The rest is just an illusion, and you shouldn’t be too attached to it," Mao Xiaofang said earnestly.

Jiang Le argued, "I understand what Master means, but everyone needs a hobby, right? Some people like flowers, some like reading, and I like counting money. Is that so wrong?"

Mao Xiaofang was speechless, this kid has a lot of twisted logic.

Not wanting to argue, Mao Xiaofang pointed to the root in the red cloth, "In my opinion, the most valuable thing here is this old ginseng."

Jiang Le’s eyes lit up, and he quickly picked up the old ginseng, examining it closely. With his limited knowledge, he couldn’t see what was so special about it. He looked up curiously, "Master, is this hard thing really worth a lot?"

Mao Xiaofang said irritably, "This is a ginseng that is nearly a hundred years old, very rare. Even if you have money, you might not be able to buy it. When combined with a few other precious herbs to make medicine, it is one of the best spiritual medicines for building a foundation in cultivation."

Jiang Le was overjoyed. So, it’s even better than money.

"List the herbs needed, Master, and I’ll go buy them tomorrow."

With three million yuan, Jiang Le suddenly felt very generous. With this much money, what herbs can’t I buy? You say one, I’ll buy two.

Mao Xiaofang looked at Jiang Le with a playful smile, "Since you’re so enthusiastic, I’ll give you a list of herbs later."

"Sure, no problem," Jiang Le agreed generously.

"These other items are also precious. This is the Jin family’s inheritance talisman, a symbol of the family head. It is carved from a piece of spiritual jade and has been nurtured by a high-level cultivator for hundreds of years. It can calm the mind and protect against external evils. You can wear it, and it will greatly benefit your cultivation. This book is the Jin family’s Daoist interpretation, which, although incomplete, contains unique techniques for finding auspicious sites and dispelling evil. You can learn it in the future, and it won’t be in vain that Old Man Jin left you these resources."

Mao Xiaofang explained the items left by Old Man Jin.

Jiang Le followed Mao Xiaofang’s instructions carefully. He hung the talisman around his neck, wrapped the Jin family’s Daoist interpretation in the red cloth, and placed it in a hidden compartment.

Once he truly embarked on the path of cultivation, he would study and learn the Jin family’s inheritance, ensuring it didn’t become extinct. He wouldn’t let Old Man Jin’s kindness go to waste.

After tidying up, Jiang Le sat in front of the altar in the hall, beginning to mourn for Old Man Jin.

Not wasting time, Mao Xiaofang continued to explain the process of condensing the foundation.

It was quite amazing. After just one night of cultivation, Jiang Le’s difficulty in learning seemed to have improved significantly.

Recalling the foundation-condensing technique Mao Xiaofang taught him yesterday, he could still remember a few parts. In the past, he would have forgotten everything.

Surprised, he told Mao Xiaofang, who nodded and smiled, "It seems your soul’s injury isn’t too severe. Once you can control the essence and energy within your body, and the three elements of essence, energy, and spirit complement each other, you should be able to recover."

Jiang Le was genuinely overjoyed.

After so many years, he was finally going to become a normal person. Once he was fully recovered, he would share this news with his mother, making her happy for her son.

After that, Jiang Le became even more dedicated to cultivation.

It was just a bit of hunger, but the benefits were numerous.

After Mao Xiaofang explained the foundation-condensing technique again, Jiang Le entered the cultivation state as easily as the previous day.

This time, Mao Xiaofang didn’t scold Jiang Le. Instead, he felt a bit relieved.

Cultivation is about finding one’s own path. As a master, one should only guide, not over-explain. Over-explaining would make it the master’s path, which might not be suitable for others and could lead them astray.

Jiang Le easily entered a meditative state, the technique flowing naturally, following the most suitable method for his body. This was in harmony with the Dao, the most suitable path for him.

As the saying goes, the master leads you to the door, but cultivation is up to the individual.

Another night passed without incident.

The next morning, a ray of sunlight shone through the window, casting a soft glow on the ground.

In the hall, Jiang Le sat cross-legged on a mat, breathing evenly, his face calm and natural, exuding a captivating aura.

Suddenly, Jiang Le’s eyebrows twitched, and he slowly opened his eyes.

He exhaled a deep breath, and his stomach growled, giving him a sudden urge to eat everything in sight.

His face changed, and without a word, he rushed out of the courtyard. At a breakfast shop outside the antique street, he ordered five steamed buns, five bowls of noodles, and five cups of soy milk, which he took back to the small courtyard. He then began to eat voraciously.

After eating nine-tenths of the buns and noodles, Jiang Le finally felt full.

Sitting comfortably on a stone bench under a willow tree, drinking soy milk, he looked at the pile of empty food containers on the stone table and couldn’t help but smile bitterly, "My appetite has increased again. Master was right; just eating won’t help with cultivation. I need to start preparing the herbs soon."

After cleaning up the breakfast, Jiang Le returned to the hall and found a piece of paper on the altar table.

Picking it up, his eyes lit up.

The paper was filled with small, powerful calligraphy, each stroke penetrating the paper, giving a sense of depth and strength.

Jiang Le, a calligraphy enthusiast, was immediately drawn in, admiring it for a long time. He felt it had the strength of Yan-style calligraphy but with a unique and innovative touch, making it a masterpiece of calligraphy.

The paper listed the names of various herbs.

Deer antler, goji berries, angelica, bezoar...

Seventeen herbs in total, with a special note that they must be wild. Clearly, this was left by Mao Xiaofang.

Jiang Le was delighted, "I didn’t expect Master’s calligraphy to be so good. In the future, I can also learn calligraphy from him. This master is a great deal, one worth several."

Carefully putting away the list, Jiang Le decided to keep it and practice it when he had free time.

Around nine in the morning, Jiang Le left the antique street with his backpack, heading to the herbal market in Qingyang City to buy the herbs on the list.

After browsing and inquiring about prices, Jiang Le realized that the herbs on the list were not cheap.

Deer antler, angelica, bezoar, and others generally cost hundreds to thousands of yuan, and if they were of high quality, they could cost thousands to tens of thousands.

Even for average quality, the total cost would be at least 200,000 yuan.

This made Jiang Le feel a bit uneasy.

Cultivation is not something just anyone can afford; it’s very expensive.

However, looking at the list, Jiang Le gritted his teeth and decided that if he was going to buy, he would buy the best.

After all, it was for cultivation, and he couldn’t afford to be careless, especially if he wanted to avoid being overpowered by demons in the future.

As he walked, Jiang Le suddenly saw a large, well-decorated pharmacy that looked reliable.

Looking at the sign, he saw:

Hundred Herbs Pharmacy.

The name was simple, but the calligraphy was excellent, with a bold and powerful style. The signature below indicated it had a hundred-year history, a century-old brand. The calligraphy was trustworthy.

Jiang Le smiled and entered the pharmacy.

The Hundred Herbs Pharmacy was spacious, with traditional wooden cabinets and shelves, giving it an ancient and elegant feel. Jiang Le found it quite interesting.

"Sir, what herbs would you like to buy?"

A thin, neatly dressed young man approached, smiling professionally without showing any prejudice towards Jiang Le’s simple attire, clearly well-trained.

Jiang Le was about to speak when the young man’s eyes lit up, and he said, "Sir, please wait a moment." He then walked past Jiang Le.

Jiang Le was speechless, mouth agape.

What’s going on?

He turned to see a man walking into the pharmacy.

The man looked to be in his mid-twenties, with a fair complexion, no beard, and a handsome face. He had short hair and was dressed in a well-fitted casual suit, smiling warmly, making people feel comfortable.

However, Jiang Le couldn’t help but frown.

There was something about the man that he didn’t like.