He had to go to Changping in three months at the latest.

This was because the Disciples participating in the mission also needed to go in batches.

If he delayed any longer, he would have to wait nine months.

And to obtain the merit points required for a breakthrough Spirit Pill, he needed to stay for at least one year.

This made the timing quite tight.

Three months of pure Cultivation would not significantly improve his Cultivation, so it was better to use this opportunity to purchase some necessary items.

"The Spiritual Qi in Changping is barren; the usual Cultivation speed there might only be two or three-tenths of that in the Sect’s Immortal Cave..."

"But if I have to stay for a year, I can’t just waste a year of Cultivation time."

"..."

Song Yan pondered, feeling a slight headache.

"I need to purchase some Spirit Gathering Arrays and Medicinal Pills for Cultivation."

"But I can’t spend too many Spirit Stones, because once I’m in Changping, holding onto Spirit Stones for daily Cultivation will likely become the norm..."

Previously, to bid for the Ming Jue Pill, Song Yan had already spent a lot of Spirit Stones.

With the preparations for the Avoidance Talisman and Earth Escape Talisman, he now only had three Medium-Grade Spirit Stones and two hundred forty-two Low-Grade Spirit Stones left.

Spirit Stones flowed like water... completely different from being in the Sect... within the Sect, he could leave his Immortal Cave every three to five months.

He could go to the Market to replenish Cultivation resources, or take on Sect missions to earn Spirit Stones and contribution points.

He was not some high-level Great Cultivator who would go into seclusion for three to five years at a time; a month of seclusion was already considered a relatively long period for him.

And going to Changping, it was uncertain if there would be any Cultivator Markets nearby.

However, with Song Yan’s current financial resources, it was impossible to purchase a full year’s worth of spiritual resources and items in one go.

Therefore, he now had to rack his brains to consider what to prioritize.

After a brief tidy, Song Yan left his Immortal Cave and walked towards the center of Lingyuanze Market.

He didn’t need to worry about Magical Artifacts; with Unmoored Boat and Lianli, his two Flying Swords, he already had enough.

Regarding Talismans, he also didn’t plan to spend too many Spirit Stones.

On one hand, the Earth Escape Talisman he had previously acquired hadn’t been used; on the other hand, activating Talismans actually required a certain amount of spiritual power.

Many Cultivators in the Cultivation World believed that when activating a Talisman, no spiritual power was needed beyond the spiritual power used to activate the Talisman itself.

This was not actually the case.

Song Yan had read some insights from that Golden Core Senior about fighting in the "heretical Cultivator’s notes."

One of them was particularly eye-opening for him.

The idea that manipulating Talismans consumed no spiritual power was a complete misconception.

In reality, no matter what kind of Talisman, once activated by a Cultivator, there would always be a trace of spiritual power consumed to establish a connection between the Talisman and the Cultivator.

It was like an undetectable thread of spiritual power.

If the Talisman activated by the Cultivator was a Spell with a relatively long duration,

Then through this "spiritual power thread," spiritual power would be continuously consumed to maintain the Cultivator’s control over that Talisman.

For most Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators, this tiny consumption of spiritual power was not directly perceptible.

Moreover, the duration of Low-Grade Talismans was mostly short.

They usually took effect immediately upon activation, such as the Fire Crow Talisman, Storm Reverse Dust Talisman, and so on.

However, for Talismans with continuous effects, like the Avoidance Talisman and Ren Water Spirit Transformation Talisman, the consumption of spiritual power could only be detected upon careful observation.

This information, if unknown, would not be noticed; if known, it would be considered insignificant, so no one paid much attention to it.

However, this Golden Core Senior was completely different; he believed that in every life-and-death struggle, every trace of spiritual power needed to be used effectively.

Many times, different levels of spiritual power consumption led to completely different battlefield situations and outcomes.

Furthermore, the power of Talismans lay in their ability to achieve a "surprising" victory, rather than overwhelming the opponent with a vast number of Spells.

Therefore, when it came to Talismans, quality was more important than quantity.

He already had an Escape Talisman, so perhaps purchasing one or two more Talismans with special effects would be enough.

The remaining Spirit Stones would be saved for Cultivation resources like Medicinal Pills and Spirit Gathering Arrays.

"This is truly strange."

His current wealth was clearly many times greater than when he first entered the Sect, yet he still needed to be extremely frugal.

He had to stretch every Spirit Stone.

Walking on the Market streets, the Cultivators coming and going were mostly Outer Sect Disciples in gray robes; Inner Sect Disciples were actually not very common.

He used to think there were many Inner Sect Disciples here, but perhaps at that time, only Inner Sect Disciples could attract attention from others.

Along the way, he was often greeted by very unfamiliar Outer Sect Disciples, who respectfully addressed him as Senior Brother.

At first, Song Yan had to rack his brain to remember who these people were, but later he realized he truly didn’t know them.

"Still haven’t adapted to this new identity..."

In the central area of the Market was the Gathering Treasure Pavilion.

It was a two-story old shop, occupying a large area, and had a good reputation among Disciples.

Moreover, it dealt in a wide range of spiritual resources, from those commonly used by Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators to those usable by Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivators, covering Medicinal Pills, Arrays, Talismans, and Artifacts.

Stepping inside, there were quite a few Cultivators.

Some were in groups of two or three, while others were selecting items alone, with shop assistants occasionally speaking a few words beside them, perhaps introducing items for promotion.

One idle shop assistant saw someone enter and proactively came forward to greet him.

Upon seeing that the newcomer was a very young Inner Sect Disciple, his attitude became even more respectful, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

"Senior, what would you like to purchase?"

It was the first time in his life someone had called him Senior.

If he didn’t know the other party was being polite, Song Yan would really be getting carried away.

"I’d like to buy a few sets of Small Spirit Gathering Arrays, and some Medicinal Pills for Cultivation."

Actually, if these items were purchased separately from the Pill Shop and Array Pavilion nearby, he might be able to find some cheaper ones.

This was one of his small experiences in saving Spirit Stones.

However, this time, the Formation Plate for the Spirit Gathering Array was a major expense, so this method was not very suitable.

Because this trip to Ghost Mountain, the durability of these items became the most important factor.

Those "cheap" goods usually had some flaws; if they broke after a few days, he wouldn’t be able to find anyone to repair them there.

The passage to the second floor was extremely luxurious, presumably prepared for Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivators.

Currently, the most cost-effective Cultivation Medicinal Pill was the Huang Ya Pill.

Compared to its long-lasting and potent spiritual power effect, ten Spirit Stones per bottle was quite a bargain.

As the most consumed mainstream Medicinal Pill for Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators during Qi Refining, the price of Huang Ya Pill had always been relatively stable.

He purchased a full ten bottles of Huang Ya Pill and selected the Formation Plate needed for the Small Spirit Gathering Array.

Over two hundred Spirit Stones were spent.

Only then did he start looking at Talismans.

Having spent several hundred Spirit Stones in one go, he was considered a big customer today.

The shop assistant beamed, introducing the Talismans in great detail, even informing him of the approximate crafting dates.

However, Song Yan, who had already made up his mind, had no interest in these Spell Talismans.

Just as he was about to turn and leave, he noticed a special gray Talisman placed alone in a corner of the counter.

This Talisman had no ancient inscriptions, but instead depicted three spherical beads.

"What kind of Talisman is this?"