Wang Hong wandered the streets all day and returned to the rented compound, gathering everyone together. He took out a round disc, a Magical Weapon, from his storage bag. He announced, "This item is called the Spiritual Testing Disk, capable of testing Spiritual Roots and their attributes. I guess you've all been thinking about testing your own Spiritual Roots for a while now. Well, everyone, line up, one by one."
The people below cheered in unison. In the past three months, they had witnessed various wonders in the cultivation world, sparking a longing for Immortal Cultivation.
Testing one's Spiritual Roots required ten Spirit Stones, a considerable amount for ordinary mortals. If they had enough Spirit Stones, they would have tested themselves already.
Today, General Wang actually bought a Spiritual Testing Disk just for them. They couldn't help but feel fortunate and lined up excitedly.
Everyone hoped to possess excellent Spiritual Roots, cultivating a path to greatness, capable of incredible feats.
However, ideals are full, and reality is stark. When Wen Lan, the first to test, used the Spiritual Testing Disk, it showed no reactionno Spiritual Roots. Wen Lan deflated like a balloon and stepped aside.
The second person, Xu Lun, and the third, Luo Zhongjie, also showed no response on the Spiritual Testing Disk. Just as people started suspecting the disk was faulty, the fourth person, Zhang Chunfeng, placed his hand on it, and the disk emitted red, yellow, and white lights.
Wang Hong's eyelids twitched. There was another person with three Spiritual Roots. Back at Qing Yang Academy, aside from Wang Yitian's three Spiritual Roots, only one other person had them. Though not outstanding, it was considered intermediate aptitude.
The testing continued for over twenty people, all without Spiritual Roots until the twenty-seventh person, who had a rare four Spiritual Roots aptitude. After that, there were none.
Out of forty-five people, two had Spiritual Roots. It was considered quite lucky.
Wang Hong looked at the disappointed faces below and said, "Feeling disappointed? Before coming to Azure Void City, weren't you all living quite comfortably? Eating, sleeping, and enjoying life as mortals. What's wrong with being a mortal? There are millions of mortals in the world, leading splendid and brilliant civilizations. Just a few days ago, a Qi Cultivator of the fourth level was pierced like a hedgehog by your Long Spear. Immortal Cultivators are not invincible."
"In fact, warriors and Immortal Cultivators follow two different cultivation paths. Immortal Cultivators absorb Spirit Qi through Spiritual Roots to nourish their Nascent Soul, focusing on the soul. Warriors, on the other hand, cultivate their bodies, opening meridians and acupoints, mainly absorbing the essence of the world from food, focusing on physical cultivation."
"The strength of an Innate Stage warrior is not much different from an early Qi Cultivator, except for Magical Weapons and Talismans. In close combat, warriors might even have an advantage. If we can develop means to use or resist Magical Weapon symbols, we can definitely compete one-on-one."
"Does reaching the Innate Stage mean the peak for warriors? I don't think so. It's just that our predecessors didn't go further."
"Just because they haven't walked the path doesn't mean we should stop. If there's no path, we create one. If there are no techniques, we invent our own."
"I will gather various manuals from the cultivation and warrior realms, establish a library, and create a contribution point system. Anyone who contributes will earn points, and in the future, everyone can borrow based on their contributions."
"Anyone who can propose a reliable suggestion for the next step in warrior cultivation will be rewarded with a hundred contribution points and a hundred Spirit Stones. If you can create the next cultivation technique, you'll get ten thousand contribution points and ten thousand Spirit Stones."
The previously disheartened group now clenched their fists, eyes bloodshot, filled with enthusiasm. They were seasoned soldiers, accustomed to adversity. Their earlier disappointment was just due to their lofty expectations.
Moreover, the General had pointed out a way forward, accompanied by enticing reward schemes. They couldn't help but wish they could create the next technique for warrior cultivation.
Wang Hong dismissed the excited crowd, leaving behind the two individuals with Spiritual RootsZhang Chunfeng, a tall and dark-skinned man, and another, a slender figure known as "Skinny Monkey" but named Yang Youwen. They both had unique connections with Wang Hong, one saved from near-death and the other rescued from starvation on the roadside during a march.
After this kid woke up, he saw that there was food and drink in the army, so he stubbornly refused to leave. Wang Hong noticed that he was nimble, clever, and young, so out of compassion, he decided to let him stay.
Reaching into his storage bag, Wang Hong produced two books, the recently confiscated "Profound Earth Technique" and "Metal of the Geng Decision."
"You two can take a look at these two cultivation techniques. If you don't like them, you can choose and purchase others. Come back to me for Spirit Stone reimbursement."
After some thought, he also threw them the "Cultivation Basics Encyclopedia." "Read this book first and then decide which cultivation technique you want to pursue."
The two expressed their gratitude to Wang Hong and left.
Returning to his room, Wang Hong entered the Space after closing the door.
In the Space, the various herbs that were densely grown had become sparse due to continuous harvesting for Spirit Stones over time.
Wang Hong took out the gathered Spiritual Herb seeds and over ten varieties of Medicinal Herb seeds for Condensing Qi Pills, filling the remaining space.
The Spiritual Herb only took a year to mature, had a high demand, and quickly recouped costs when sold. Wang Hong urgently needed a large amount of Spirit Stones to expand the Space; it was still too small.
After planting, Wang Hong was satisfied. He then carefully observed the Ginseng area. A few months ago, he noticed that some Ginseng plants had undergone a mutation, with red veins appearing on the plant, resembling blood vessels. Over the months, the red veins had increased.
Comparing it to the "Catalog of Spirit Medicines," it seemed to resemble Scarlet Blood Ginseng, though with fewer red veins. Wang Hong speculated that the mutation was not complete and needed more time.
Scarlet Blood Ginseng was an extremely rare Spiritual Medicine. Despite spending months in the marketplace, they had never come across it.
It was said that Scarlet Blood Ginseng was very picky about its growth environment, challenging to cultivate in an ordinary medicinal garden and hard to find in the wild. As for its specific effects and uses, Wang Hong, with his current cultivation level, didn't know.
After inspecting everything, he floated over to a pile of wine jars. These were Lingzhi wine and Ginseng wine he had brewed before, now aged for a hundred years.
Opening one slightly, the rich aroma of the wine wafted out, exceptionally mellow and filled with abundant Spirit Qi.
Wang Hong fetched ten small bottles, each holding half a catty of wine, intending to sell them outside. He also filled ten bottles with the wine made from Raspberries.
Wang Hong speculated that this could also be considered Spirit Wine. After trying it himself, one sip could replenish his first-level Qi Cultivation Spiritual Energy.
He planned to sell them for ten Spirit Stones each to see if they would sell; he wasn't sure. After finishing these tasks, he also gathered some Spiritual Medicine to take out of the Space.
The next day, Wang Hong tidied up the small shop, found a piece of Spirit Wood, and engraved "Pioneering Spirit Medicine Pavilion" on it. It represented exploration and creation.
He placed some flowers at the entrance and bought a few Thunder Resonance Talismans. These were low-grade and inexpensive Talismans that produced crackling sounds when activated. They had no killing power and were usually used for celebrations, adding a festive atmosphere.
After a round of crackling sounds from the Thunder Resonance Talismans, the small shop officially opened. The neighbors came to congratulate, bringing gifts of around ten Spirit Stones each and symbolically buying one or two Spirit Herbs. Wang Hong reciprocated with a bottle of Spirit Wine for each person, and everyone was happy.
As expected, the shop was nearly empty on the first day, but Wang Hong didn't mind. He assigned someone to manage it, while two teams were still sent out daily to set up stalls for purchasing and selling.
Wang Hong locked himself in his room to cultivate diligently. In his spare time, he delved into the books in the Space. As a novice in the cultivation world, there was too much he didn't understand and too much to learn.
Meanwhile, he assigned Zhang Chunfeng to implement the contribution point reward system. Each person would receive points based on their years in the Royal Guards and their merits from the journey through the Qingxu Mountain range to Azure Void City. All these would be converted into contribution points, ranging from thirty to a hundred per person. They would also receive two points monthly thereafter.
As for merits from previous battlefields, they had already been rewarded, so there was no need to repeat it. Wang Hong didn't have the habit of withholding rewards.
He also bought more than ten books, acknowledging his limited financial resources; he could only buy these for now, planning to expand when he had more Spirit Stones in the future.
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