Chapter 79

"You really are a weasel eyeing swan eggs, aren't you? The materials placed in the first-floor public area are just some general information, like the *Herb Collection* and the *Compendium of Commonly Encountered Beasts* I gave you before. If you want to read confidential materials or secret manuals of techniques, you'll have to go to the second floor and exchange with the management elders." Zhao Tong raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Exchange? I suppose it requires a lot of contribution points, right?" Yuan Ming asked.

"It depends on the specific situation. The required contribution points vary based on the value of the materials. Generally, a secret manual for the Qi Condensation stage requires around ten contribution points, while a secret technique for the Foundation Establishment stage usually requires over three hundred contribution points. Moreover, each borrowing period cannot exceed three hours." Zhao Tong continued.

"Three hours..." Yuan Ming mused.

"Usually, it's very difficult for someone to memorize a secret manual within three hours, so you need to spend additional contribution points to get a copy. A copy of a Qi Condensation stage manual typically costs one hundred contribution points, while a copy of a Foundation Establishment stage manual costs one thousand contribution points. This is a significant issue for others, but not for you." Zhao Tong looked at Yuan Ming deeply and said.

He remembered Yuan Ming's photographic memory with great admiration and envy.

If he had such an ability, would he need to spend extra money to buy copies of those convoluted emotional biographies and strange tales?

"Is there only secret manuals of techniques on the second floor? Are there any cultivation methods?" Yuan Ming nodded thoughtfully and asked again.

"Cultivation methods are the foundation of a sect. As far as I know, there are not many in the sect, and the number of choices is extremely limited, with prices that are shockingly high. Generally, everyone chooses to cultivate the sect's orthodox method, the *Biluo Technique*, rather than spend a lot of money to exchange for others. Well... by the beginning of next month, the copy of the *Biluo Technique* should be issued along with your contribution points, and you can get it then." Zhao Tong said.

After hearing this, Yuan Ming finally understood the rules of the Gui Cang Pavilion and fell into deep thought.

"Alright, I said I would help you. If you don't have any contribution points, I can lend you five points." Zhao Tong looked at Yuan Ming, his eyes twinkling, and said with a grin.

"What are the conditions?" Yuan Ming asked without surprise.

"Very reasonable... with interest, you'll pay me back seven points by the beginning of next month. How about that?" Zhao Tong rubbed his hands and laughed.

"Fair enough, not too greedy. I agree." Yuan Ming nodded.

Zhao Tong then took Yuan Ming's waist tag and tapped it against his own. After a flash of light, he returned the tag to Yuan Ming.

"Check it out." Zhao Tong said.

"How do I check it?" Yuan Ming asked, somewhat embarrassed.

He had always been semi-neglected in the Fire Refining Hall, and those who only knew how to refine embryos had no time to manage other things, so no one had ever told him how to use the waist tag.

Although he had seen Le Gong operate it once before, he hadn't had the chance to ask in detail before being sent down the mountain.

"You really are... never mind, I'll be a good person to the end. Hold the waist tag, focus your mind, and concentrate slightly on the tag." Zhao Tong was speechless but still patiently explained.

Yuan Ming followed his instructions. As soon as he focused his mind on the tag, he felt some text information inside, recording his name, the Fire Refining Hall's emblem, and the newly added five contribution points.

"How about it, did you feel it?" Zhao Tong's voice sounded.

Yuan Ming nodded.

"In the future, when you need to trade contribution points, you can do it through the waist tag, controlling it with your mind."

"Hehe, as the saying goes, books are not read unless borrowed. Using borrowed contribution points to borrow books can also motivate you! To be honest, I'm doing this for your own good." Zhao Tong laughed.

"Thank you, Senior Zhao. I will return the points as agreed by the beginning of next month." Yuan Ming sincerely thanked him.

It was rare for someone to trust and lend contribution points based on a bit of friendship from the Toad Valley in a sect like the Biluo Cave.

After that, the two chatted for a while, mentioned their living places, and then waved goodbye.

When Yuan Ming arrived at the Gui Cang Pavilion, he found it was already past the hour of Dog, and the pavilion had closed. He had to give up and plan to come back the next day.

By the time he returned to the Fire Refining Hall, it was already midnight.

The sky was covered with dark clouds, blocking the moonlight.

Yuan Ming sat down by his bed and did not continue to cultivate the *Mingyue Technique* but started to cultivate the *Jiuyuan Technique*.

Compared to the slow progress of the *Mingyue Technique*, the *Jiuyuan Technique* was steadily advancing, which was a source of comfort for him.

However, Yuan Ming vaguely noticed that perhaps due to reaching the fifth level of Qi Condensation, the progress of the *Jiuyuan Technique* had also slowed down slightly.

If this were true, cultivation would become increasingly difficult as he progressed.

...

After a night of cultivation, Yuan Ming felt refreshed and not at all tired. He went to the fire workshop to refine embryos earlier than usual.

Fang Ge, who also had the habit of coming to the fire workshop an hour early, watched Yuan Ming swinging the hammer from a distance, and a rare smile appeared on his serious face as he nodded in approval.

He admired Yuan Ming's perseverance and dedication, as many of the new disciples were somewhat restless and could not settle down, which troubled him.

However, when he saw Yuan Ming stopping after about three hundred hammer strikes due to lack of strength, he sighed and shook his head, leaving.

The spirit of repeated attempts, though commendable, should not always result in no progress.

Yuan Ming, of course, did not notice Fang Ge's well-intentioned concern. His mind was not on this.

At the beginning of the hour of Sheep, after completing his hammering for the day, he left the Fire Refining Hall and rushed to the Gui Cang Pavilion.

Yuan Ming registered at the entrance, paid one contribution point, and then walked into the pavilion.

As soon as he stepped into the first-floor hall, he saw a black-red wooden spiral staircase about ten zhang ahead, leading up to the second-floor hall.

Centered around the staircase, there were several semi-circular tables and benches, where many disciples from various halls were quietly reading.

Yuan Ming's gaze swept over the area, and he noticed a circular passage outside the tables and benches. Beyond the passage, against the walls, were bookshelves that covered the entire wall, densely packed with books.

He walked to the bookshelf on the right and looked up, seeing wooden plaques hanging at intervals, labeled with categories such as "Herbs," "Miscellaneous Records," "Strange Tales," "Exotic Customs," "Geography," "Notebooks and Novels," and so on.

Yuan Ming walked along the passage, checking the categories, and finally found the *Basic Manual of Spirit Beast Cultivation* under the "Beasts" category. He took it off the shelf.

He found a quiet spot, sat down, and started reading.

Yuan Ming read slowly but with intense focus, his eyes fixed on the pages, flipping a page every fifteen breaths, very regularly.

When he finished the last page, he closed the book and began to recall the content with his eyes closed.

This process was very quick, and in just a few breaths, he had reviewed all the content.

It turned out that a qualified beast tamer not only needed to be skilled in capturing and taming spirit beasts but also had to be proficient in breeding and raising them.

According to the book, most spirit beasts are only the first generation captured and tamed, while the second and third generations are often bred.

Since these later generations are raised from a young age, they are more human-like and easier to tame, but they also have a clear disadvantage: they lack wildness and are generally weaker.

After all, the more generations a spirit beast is bred, the more diluted the bloodline of the first generation becomes, and the less wild and less combat-effective they are compared to the first generation. Therefore, after three or at most four generations, the bloodline is usually cut off, and new captures and taming are required.

However, if a pure-blooded young spirit beast can be directly captured, it is the best candidate for taming and breeding, as it can balance human-like traits and strength, and is more likely to awaken innate abilities when it grows up.

Such young beasts are very rare and are a matter of chance, like the Fire Craver owned by the third cave master, which is why it is highly valued.

The *Basic Manual of Spirit Beast Cultivation* in Yuan Ming's hands mainly focused on the physical development and nature cultivation of young spirit beasts.

The key requirement is to maintain balance, ensuring that the spirit beast's wildness and friendliness are within a reasonable range, neither too close to humans and lacking aggression, nor too wild and uncontrollable to the point of attacking its owner.

The book also categorized different types of spirit beasts based on their attributes and outlined the general dietary rules for each type.

This classification is somewhat similar to the spiritual energy attribute classification of human cultivators, but spirit beasts, due to their bloodline, are usually more pure and have only a single attribute.

For example, green wolves are mostly wind attribute, excelling in speed and using wind blades as their primary attack, while black bears are mostly metal attribute, excelling in breaking armor and using claw slashes as their primary attack.

The Fire Craver is clearly a fire attribute, but it likely has some other special traits.

After finishing the *Basic Manual of Spirit Beast Cultivation*, Yuan Ming got up, returned the book, and selected a few related books from the shelf, starting to read them page by page.

After about two hours, he had read through about half of the books on spirit beasts on the shelf.

When he noticed that the content in the later books was about thirty to forty percent repetitive, he decided not to continue reading other books, as the content he could see for free was roughly the same.

However, with his photographic memory, combining the diverse records with his relatively good understanding of beast taming, he had gained a relatively comprehensive understanding of the art of beast taming and the situation of spirit beasts, which was sufficient for him at the moment.