Chapter 107: The Blade and Brush of the Formation

When Wen Hongcai had heard only half of the story, he had already made up his mind to gift Lin Xiaobao some gold coins. After all, from a merchant's perspective, it was an extremely profitable investment. However, when he saw the Coldstar Stone Lin Xiaobao produced, the words in his throat were swallowed back.

A Coldstar Stone, the size of a fist! Not to mention the auctions held by the Carefree Pavilion—even at the Treasure Exchange hosted by the Xuan Yang Palace, such an item would stir the hearts of many.

If he could acquire this Coldstar Stone and send it back to the main branch, he would certainly earn a significant merit in the records.

“How much... gold coins does Brother Lin wish to exchange for?” Wen Hongcai asked. Normally, at the level of a Coldstar Stone, its value could no longer be measured with mere gold coins; even if it were to be sold, it would require spirit stones. Yet, from what Lin Xiaobao had just said, it seemed he intended to sell it for gold coins.

At this, Wen Hongcai became even more certain about Lin Xiaobao's identity. If he were not Chen Zhong's disciple, how could he possibly possess such a precious artifact material?

“Pavilion Master Wen, just name a price. I’m not too sure about the value of this item,” Lin Xiaobao replied. Indeed, he had no idea of the market value of the Coldstar Stone; it was merely the least valuable item among the resources he had obtained from the ancient seal. But judging by Wen Hongcai’s expression, he seemed exceedingly excited.

After a moment’s thought, Wen Hongcai said, “How about this: I’ll issue you an unlimited gold card.”

“An unlimited gold card?” Lin Xiaobao was puzzled.

“I’ll have the Carefree Pavilion provide you with a gold card, with a single transaction limit of up to one hundred million gold coins. Whenever you use it, the Pavilion will automatically replenish the full amount,” Wen Hongcai explained. He didn’t dare to cheat Lin Xiaobao; if he was to buy the Coldstar Stone with gold coins, this was the only way. Even so, he would still profit greatly from the deal.

“Deal!” For Lin Xiaobao, this gold card would completely solve all his future financial problems. The concept of spirit stones being more valuable than gold coins had yet to take root in his mind, especially since, after finding that spirit ore vein on Blackwind Mountain, he felt his need for gold coins far surpassed his need for spirit stones.

Wen Hongcai carefully stored away the Coldstar Stone passed to him by Lin Xiaobao and immediately instructed his subordinates to prepare the gold card.

While waiting, Wen Hongcai put his merchant’s wit to full use, engaging Lin Xiaobao in lively conversation about all manner of topics.

Suddenly, Lin Xiaobao thought of something and said to Wen Hongcai, “Pavilion Master Wen, do you have a secluded place here? I’d like to do some cultivation.”

There were still nearly twenty days until the Carefree Pavilion’s auction. Lin Xiaobao could hardly wait to discover what was hidden within the Evil Radiance Sword. Considering the internal strife within the Yun family and Wen Hongcai’s attitude towards him, he judged that he would encounter far fewer troubles staying at the Pavilion.

Though Wen Hongcai’s enthusiasm was likely due to his connection with Chen Zhong, it was still much better than staying with the Yun family.

“Please, Young Master Lin, follow me!” Wen Hongcai immediately rose to lead the way. It seemed he already saw his own bright future reflected in Lin Xiaobao—perhaps, with this connection to Chen Zhong, he might stand out at the Pavilion’s annual review next year.

Passing through the rear garden and dense woods, they soon arrived before a hidden chamber. Wen Hongcai said, “Ahead is my personal cultivation chamber, Brother Lin. Please use it as you wish; no one will disturb you.”

“In that case, thank you, Pavilion Master Wen!” Lin Xiaobao did not refuse and entered the chamber.

Truly, the domain of the wealthy! Upon entering, Lin Xiaobao found the entire room covered by a spirit-gathering array formed from forty-nine lower-grade spirit stones. The spiritual energy inside was no less than that of the Snowdrift Pavilion. On the central desk, a censer burned sandalwood incense, which Lin Xiaobao immediately recognized as being made from Clearbright Grass.

The fragrance of Clearbright Grass had the effect of calming the mind and gathering energy, greatly reducing the risk of deviation during cultivation.

Such a setup would be rare even among the elite of the Snowdrift Pavilion. Suddenly, Lin Xiaobao felt that, compared to Bloodwind City, the Snowdrift Pavilion scarcely qualified as a first-rate power.

Putting aside these thoughts, Lin Xiaobao took out the Evil Radiance Sword and examined it carefully, but still found nothing unusual.

“Old Wu, this sword...” Lin Xiaobao suspected something was hidden within, but dared not break it open recklessly; after all, his judgment could not compare to the two strange beings within him.

“A sword forged from Evil Radiance Stone, which blocks spiritual sense and is brittle and easily broken—who would be so bored as to make a sword out of that? Something must be hidden within the blade,” Old Wu replied, evidently dissatisfied with Lin Xiaobao’s lack of insight.

Lin Xiaobao didn’t argue, instead flattering, “Old Wu, you’re brilliant!” As he spoke, he channeled his spiritual power, and the Evil Radiance Sword emitted a sound like shattering glass.

As shards of Evil Radiance Stone fell away, a brush-like object appeared in Lin Xiaobao’s hand.

“This is... this is a formation-engraving brush!” Lin Xiaobao exclaimed with excitement. Such an item might be of little use to others, but to him, it was like wings to a tiger. Upon inspecting it with his spiritual sense, he found it was actually a top-grade dao artifact.

“Look at how easily you’re impressed. If I still had my physical body, I could casually forge an immortal-grade brush. Why would I care about this broken thing?” Old Wu snorted.

“Of course, of course,” Lin Xiaobao replied, “After all, you’re the great King of Arrays. Creating immortal artifacts is mere child’s play for you.”

Now equipped with the formation-engraving brush, Lin Xiaobao immediately erased the previous spirit-gathering and gravity arrays from his body, then took out several lower-grade spirit stones. With a light touch of the brush, the stones dissolved, and he began to inscribe new patterns with bold strokes.

Soon, a brand-new spirit-gathering array and a gravity array with four thousand times the intensity appeared on Lin Xiaobao’s body. He could now absorb twice as much spiritual energy from the air as before.

After advancing to the third stage of the Spirit Path, Lin Xiaobao’s body could withstand much greater spiritual energy, and the gravity array could have been raised by two more levels. Unfortunately, at the time he’d lacked both spirit stones and an artifact like this brush, so the arrays he’d previously inscribed were already at his limit.

Now, with both the brush and ample spirit stones, it was only right to improve his own situation.

All this took only half a day. As Lin Xiaobao was about to leave, Old Wu said, “Where are you going? Take this opportunity to refine the shard of the Chaos Mirror into your body.”

“Should I really do it?” Although Lin Xiaobao had long considered this, he still felt some trepidation at such a gamble; even the two elders were unsure whether he could truly utilize the Chaos Mirror after expending so much spiritual power.

“You must refine it!” The two elders knew the path that awaited Lin Xiaobao. Though the chance to use the Chaos Mirror was slim, they could not bear to let it slip by.

“Alright,” Lin Xiaobao agreed. Using the formation-engraving brush, he drew a massive sealing array around the chamber, isolating all energy from the outside world. Then he took out the shard of the Chaos Mirror, set it in his palm, and began to recite the incantation.