Cultivation Starting from Choosing Augments-Chapter 56 - 55: Vertical Earth Golden Light

Curious, Xiao Chen followed Steward Chen and met Elder Chen once again.

Although the Elder had appeared calm and unconcerned, he had actually sought out the Chen Family’s Artifact Refiner to verify the situation the moment Xiao Chen had left.

The bad news was that some members of the Chen Family were indeed selling Flying Swords on the side for profit.

The other piece of bad news was that those family members weren’t stupid; they weren’t selling the Standard Flying Swords.

Therefore, the Flying Swords that had surfaced in the Black Market likely meant that an Outer Disciple had truly been murdered.

Elder Chen’s meaning was clear. "The other disciples must be notified of this matter. But under the current circumstances, it would be more convenient for me to present the Token and speak to the other Elders."

Xiao Chen understood immediately. This meant the matter still needed to be reported, but he couldn’t be the one to do it.

That was easy enough. He currently had three Tokens in his Storage Bag.

He casually took one out and handed it to Elder Chen. "I don’t know which Junior Brother met with such a misfortune, but I hope we can avenge him soon."

Elder Chen was very satisfied with this. This disciple was a sensible person.

He took out a small booklet. "I heard that you didn’t choose the Three-star Coordination Skill during the trial?"

"You probably didn’t understand its importance at the time."

"After learning the Three-star Coordination Skill, it’s a great help for both commanding multiple Magical Artifacts and coordinating your Magic."

Steward Chen also reminded him, "Don’t think that it seems useless to learn now. It’s a necessary fundamental skill."

"In the future, when you eventually reach Foundation Establishment and have to manipulate multiple Magical Artifacts against an enemy or dismantle Five Elements Magic, you’ll understand the importance of fundamentals."

Xiao Chen cupped his hands in thanks. "Thank you for your concern, Master."

Although it felt a little like hush money, getting a new Magic technique for free was always a good thing.

After leaving Elder Chen’s place again, he didn’t return to Bishui Peak but instead went to a riverbank outside the mountain.

He prepared to practice the technique, Vertical Earth Golden Light.

Flipping to the first page, he saw three lines of large characters, a thirty-nine-word mantra.

"Five Elements’ golden qi fills the void, gather and merge to become one."

"Traverse a thousand li in an instant, a form like a shadow, like drifting fluff."

"Golden light flashes, reflecting in heaven and earth, roaming free from west to east."

After reading it through once, Xiao Chen’s spirits soared. ’This technique is truly extraordinary!’ He immediately began to follow the subsequent Heart Method to sense the golden qi of the Five Elements.

This time, his progress to the entry-level was much slower than before.

A full four hours passed before he finally managed to condense a single thread of the Five Elements’ golden qi.

’But why does it look so similar to the Golden Light Technique?’

Both techniques involved scattering golden light to cover the whole body. In fact, the basic Golden Light Technique looked quite a bit brighter than the Five Elements’ golden qi.

’Is this thing really useful? I haven’t messed it up, have I?’

Xiao Chen couldn’t help but feel a little doubtful. He formed a hand seal and channeled the golden light with all his might, wanting to test the speed of the Vertical Earth Golden Light.

The moment he took a step, there was a loud THUD. He had crashed directly into a large tree ten zhang away.

The good news was that the Vertical Earth Golden Light was terrifyingly fast. It almost felt like flying.

The bad news was that it was too fast to control, so much so that he crashed into trees three times that afternoon.

"Three times! Three times!"

Rubbing the red mark on his head, Xiao Chen felt a mix of pain and joy.

Vertical Earth Golden Light was already a top-tier Escape Technique for the Qi Refining realm. What’s more, it happened to be a Yellow-level Technique, which meant it also benefited from the Augment’s bonus.

It was no exaggeration to say that even with the Entry Level Vertical Earth Golden Light, as long as he could learn to control his speed and improve his reaction time, he could surpass all other Qi Refining Cultivators.

As long as he didn’t make low-level mistakes in actual combat, like crashing into a tree, he would be unbeatable against any Qi Refining Cultivator.

Xiao Chen even made a bold speculation.

’Once I reach the Minor Achievement Realm, I’m afraid even an ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator wouldn’t be able to stop me from leaving.’

It was safe to say his ability to save his own life had just increased several times over.

Those five hundred Spirit Stones were so worth it.

’A Cultivation Technique this important must be my top priority. I need to master it as soon as possible and practice it every day.’

Xiao Chen’s thoughts instantly became clear. ’I can even set aside the Fire Transformation Treasure Talisman for now. After all, a life-saving technique is the most critical thing.’

’Besides, the Treasure Talisman can already hold one hundred streams of Profound Fire, which is more than enough to handle the upcoming Flame Pool Secret Realm.’

’Since the Fire Transformation Treasure Talisman is no longer a rush, I’ll have time for Alchemy. I can use that time to decipher the Pill Formula too.’

’This way, I can start earning Spirit Stones sooner to buy new Magic techniques.’

’Perfect!’

He practiced controlling his speed for a while longer, getting used to it.

Seeing that it was getting late, Xiao Chen decided to head back for the day to sort out the Pill Formula and come back out tomorrow to practice his Escape Techniques.

But at the foot of Bishui Peak, Shen Siyue called out to him from a distance, "Junior Brother Xiao, wait a moment."

She quickened her pace and walked over, but her eyes immediately fell on Xiao Chen’s clothes. "Ah, Junior Brother Xiao, what happened to you? The front of your robes is torn in several places."

"Don’t tell me you ran into Tribulation Cultivators on your way back?"

Too embarrassed to admit his lack of skill with the technique, Xiao Chen hastily made up an excuse. "No, no, I just... uh... accidentally took a fall."

Shen Siyue was a little puzzled. "But how would falling rip your clothes?"

Xiao Chen waved his hand dismissively. "Ah, some random rock tripped me, and I ended up crashing into a tree on the side of the path."

He then changed the subject. "But enough about that. Senior Sister, where are you coming from?"

When asked about proper business, Shen Siyue’s expression immediately turned serious. "Junior Brother Xiao, I remember you have a habit of going to the Marketplace. It hasn’t been safe lately. You must be careful."

"The Grand Elder just sent out a notice. A large number of Tribulation Cultivators from Quanzhou have appeared in our area."

"It’s already been confirmed that some Outer Disciples have been killed. The specific details are still under investigation."

Xiao Chen feigned surprise. "Oh, something like that happened? I understand. Thank you for the warning, Senior Sister."

Shen Siyue added thoughtfully, "I know you’ve been learning Alchemy recently, so you might need to go to the Marketplace to buy Spirit Grass."

"You’re usually quite solitary and don’t seem to have many familiar brothers on our peak, but you can’t go out alone anymore."

"Either wait a couple of days for the Sect’s seniors to clear out the nearby Tribulation Cultivators, or you can come find me. It will be much safer if we go together."

"Tribulation Cultivators aren’t like the Loose Cultivators out there. They’re all extremely vicious. If you go out alone and get targeted, it’s a nine-in-ten chance of death."

Xiao Chen nodded. "Yes, I’ll remember that."

’It really is a nine-in-ten chance of death,’ he thought. ’But if *I* were to run into Tribulation Cultivators, it would probably be a nine-in-ten chance of death for *them*.’

’After I get proficient with Vertical Earth Golden Light in a couple of days, that remaining ’one chance of life’ might not even exist for them anymore.’

But Shen Siyue seemed to see through his perfunctory response and put on a stern face.

She emphasized in a heartfelt tone, "Don’t you dare be too embarrassed to ask me. After all, you’ve only just joined the Inner Sect, and your Cultivation time is still short."

"I’m your senior-most sister. It’s my duty to protect you."

To strengthen her point, Shen Siyue released a slight aura of her Cultivation.

She was actually at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and her aura was far more stable than Scarface’s. She was truly worthy of being the senior-most sister of Bishui Peak.

Faced with her good intentions, Xiao Chen puffed out his chest and earnestly promised, "Don’t worry, Senior Sister. If I need to go to the Marketplace anytime soon, I’ll definitely come find you first."

He waved goodbye to Shen Siyue.

Xiao Chen returned to his small cabin, finally having the time to look through the alchemy notes he had bought at the Black Market.

’I wonder if there are any complete Pill Formulas in here.’