Chapter 9: The Woman in Black

"Actually, the ten points of human spirit light are brought about by the Deer Antler Powder..."

For the newly added human spirit light, Gao Xian had many speculations.

The ten points of human spirit light, when calculated, could only correspond to the ten Deer Antler Powder sold.

So, does taking Deer Antler Powder for pleasure also generate human spirit light?

Gao Xian was not certain about this, but it wouldn't be difficult to verify.

This time, he gave Old Wang twenty more Deer Antler Powder. If Deer Antler Powder can indeed return human spirit light, the results would be visible soon.

He opened the alchemy furnace and continued his work.

He couldn't refine White Dew Pills, but Replenishing Qi Pills and Consolidating Essence Pills were fine.

Refining pills, cultivating, petting the cat, eating, practicing with Sister Lan, and sleeping.

Over three days, Gao Xian refined another batch of Replenishing Qi Pills, obtaining over 340 pills.

Refining pills is a very patience-testing job; one cannot leave the furnace and must stay by it.

Although it doesn't affect eating, cultivating, or petting the cat, and one can even take a brief nap, it is ultimately a very tedious and boring task.

Over these few days, Gao Xian's skin was also scorched yellow and dry from the charcoal fire, and his entire body was filled with a strong medicinal smell.

The first few times he refined pills, Gao Xian found it very fresh and full of enthusiasm.

Once the novelty wore off, the high-intensity work of refining pills became a bit hard to endure.

Fortunately, refining more than forty pills was equivalent to earning four low-grade spirit stones.

Replenishing Qi Pills are used to quickly restore spirit energy and mana, and are also suitable for assisting in cultivation, making them essential for cultivators.

However, pills are expensive, and using Replenishing Qi Pills to assist in cultivation is very luxurious, costing at least three low-grade spirit stones per month.

Although Gao Xian can refine pills, he cannot afford the consumption.

There was an old poem: "Year after year, I toil with golden thread, making clothes for others to wear."

However, Gao Xian was not disheartened.

In essence, he was just a part of the pill-refining production line. The medicinal materials and the alchemy furnace were not his, and he had to give his master 70-80% of his refining income.

This is how society operates.

If there were no such benefits, why would his master take on a disciple!

Complaining about these things is meaningless; if he cannot change it, he should join and wait until he becomes powerful to gain more.

During the refining process, there are inevitably many consumptions. The medicinal materials given by Mr. Zhu were always 20% more than needed.

Fortunately, his refining skills had greatly improved, and the 20% of medicinal materials could now be converted into pills.

The extra forty Replenishing Qi Pills he refined this time were his exclusive gains. He could either take them himself or sell them.

Gao Xian lightly brushed his left hand over the seal on his Daoist robe, and Sister Lan, who was deep in his brow, helped him condense the talisman, activating the Cleansing Spell.

A faint water light flashed from head to toe, and the charcoal and dust on Gao Xian's body were swept away, leaving his green Daoist robe as clean as new.

Even his long hair, tied into a Daoist bun, became black and shiny.

After crossing over to this world, life became very inconvenient.

The simplest thing was personal hygiene; even washing the face without hot water was a hassle. Without modern hair care products, maintaining the long hair tied into a Daoist bun was even more troublesome.

With the Cleansing Spell, he could clean both himself and his clothes.

The effect was equivalent to being wiped with warm water and then dried, making it very practical.

After tidying up his personal hygiene, Gao Xian completed his daily required practice and lay on the bed, half asleep, his consciousness entering the deep part of the Brow Moon Mirror.

Sister Lan in the bedroom greeted Gao Xian, gently helping him undress and take off his shoes.

After completing the entire routine, Gao Xian was content and fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning, Gao Xian got up early, taking advantage of his good mental state to take out the Brow Moon Mirror.

When practicing the Great Puppet Spirit Technique with Sister Lan, he was accustomed to immersing his consciousness in the Brow Moon Mirror.

However, when checking the data, he preferred to hold the Brow Moon Mirror in his hand, feeling it was more real.

Over these few days, the data had increased, with the most significant growth in alchemy skills.

The Delusion Powder had been upgraded to the master level, and refining several batches of pills had greatly improved his alchemy skills.

Including Fire Control, Water Control, and the Cleansing Spell, all had made progress.

Flipping to the back of the Brow Moon Mirror, the human spirit light had been increasing sporadically over the past two days, totaling twenty points.

It was clear that these points of human spirit light were brought about by the Deer Antler Powder.

Calculating the remaining 170 Deer Antler Powder, that would be 170 points of human spirit light!

Unfortunately, Old Wang's efficiency in selling the medicine was too poor.

For the sake of human spirit light, Gao Xian was willing to give away Deer Antler Powder for free. The medicinal materials for Deer Antler Powder were not expensive either.

However, someone like Old Wang would not appreciate it. Giving him Deer Antler Powder for free would only make him greedier.

Calculating the time, Old Wang should be coming over these two days.

Gao Xian originally didn't think much of Old Wang, but the last time Old Wang's fierce and wolf-like appearance made him very cautious.

Feima Market had order, and generally, no one would openly commit murder in Feima Market.

Privately, however, it was a different story.

From the original owner's memory, people often died unnatural deaths in Feima Market, and no one would investigate the killers.

Old Wang, who often went into the mountains to hunt, risked his life for money. He was very dangerous.

The most dangerous thing was that Old Wang was very greedy and short-sighted. Perhaps a few dozen low-grade spirit stones could trigger his murderous intent.

This was like someone throwing nails on a highway to earn money from tire repairs. They wouldn't consider how dangerous it was, or they simply didn't care about the risks.

Gao Xian was not paranoid. Even in the modern society of his previous life, there were various security issues.

Let alone in the chaotic Feima Market, where almost everyone could use magic.

It was as if everyone was fully armed with pistols, rifles, grenades, and rocket launchers, all available.

In such an environment, Gao Xian naturally lacked a sense of security. More frighteningly, he didn't even have a decent pistol...

At first, he racked his brain to make up for the loss of pills.

Later, he found out that the original owner had a relationship with Zhu Qiniang, which made him feel relieved. At least Zhu Qiniang wouldn't really do anything to him!

With Deer Antler Powder, the loss of pills could be made up. This issue no longer needed much worry.

The most important problem now was personal safety.

The Five Elements Technique increased by one point per day, and it would take several hundred days to level up.

Moreover, an increase in cultivation did not necessarily mean an increase in combat power.

Gao Xian listed the spells he knew. Only Fire Control had some damage, but the power was pitifully low.

Feather Flight, which made the body as light as a feather, allowed him to jump very high and easily climb over walls, lasting about ten minutes.

This spell was useful but not very practical.

Electric Dragon Hand, if he could grab the opponent, had a high chance of making them lose resistance.

He had never fought before and had no combat experience. Reaching out to grab an opponent as a cultivator was too risky.

The Great Puppet Spirit Technique was even less useful for direct combat.

The only combat skill the original owner mastered was the Clear Wind Sword Technique.

Gao Xian looked at the pine-patterned steel sword in front of him. It was a pure steel blade, three feet long, with beautiful pine wood patterns, weighing about seven pounds.

It was sufficient for cutting people. Even ordinary iron armor could be pierced with a strong thrust.

Gao Xian had tried it. With the flow of mana in his body, his strength, endurance, and agility far exceeded those of ordinary people.

However, among cultivators, he was just a weak second-level Qi Practitioner.

He practiced the sword technique with the pine-patterned steel sword, skillfully sheathing it afterward.

The original owner had practiced the sword technique for some time, making these simple movements easy to perform.

Gao Xian tried to use the Electric Dragon Hand to draw the sword. The blade flashed as it was drawn, but it did not achieve the expected effect.

The Electric Dragon Hand was fast but limited to the fingers, palm, and wrist.

The sword technique required coordinated movements of the whole body, including the waist, back, shoulders, upper arms, lower arms, and hands, all working together.

The Electric Dragon Hand, no matter how fast, was difficult to apply in this full-body movement.

This made Gao Xian a bit disappointed.

If the Electric Dragon Hand could be used in the sword technique, it would greatly enhance his combat power.

Unfortunately…

Gao Xian was sitting on the bed, pondering how to become stronger, when he suddenly heard a very slight sound.

After practicing the Great Puppet Spirit Technique, his perception had become very acute.

Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't notice these natural, slight sounds.

Only abnormal changes would immediately trigger his alertness, and he would use his six senses to sense the subtle changes in the environment.

Gao Xian couldn't see the outside, but through the subtle changes in sound, he could visualize the situation in his mind.

Someone had just climbed over the wall into the yard, moving lightly.

Was it Old Wang again?

He had a hunch that it wasn't Old Wang this time, as the "smell" was different.

The "smell" here wasn't an actual odor but a combination of various information, forming a sense.

Gao Xian, somewhat nervous, held two talismans and approached the window, carefully peering out through a crack in the paper.

A woman in black was walking lightly towards the door.

She looked to be around thirty, with gentle features and a graceful, alluring figure. Her waist swayed as she walked, exuding charm.

Gao Xian was taken aback. Who was this? Why did she look familiar?

(End of Chapter)