Cultivation is just so scientific!

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Next was the selection of a martial skill. Li Shiming had the "Dragon Drawing Technique" and wanted to choose a swordsmanship that would allow him to possess true combat power beyond just talismans.

He couldn't always rely on clever tricks, even when using the top-grade Qingyuan Wood Sword, which merely leveraged the sword's own capabilities.

If he combined the Qingyuan Wood Sword with a set of swordsmanship, the effects would naturally be much more powerful.

"Senior Brother Liu, I need your help again. I'd like to pick a swordsmanship, the more expensive, the better!" Li Shiming took out five Spirit Stones and handed them to Senior Brother Liu, saying.

"Junior Li is too polite!" Having seen Li Shiming's Identity Jade Disc, Senior Brother Liu became much friendlier after casually pocketing the Spirit Stones.
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Li Shiming's mouth twitched slightly; Senior Brother Liu's words were indeed warm, but his hands were very quick.

He had no idea about swordsmanship, but he was sure there was no mistake in choosing the most expensive one.

If he missed this chance for a free technique, he would have to buy one himself next time, and he still did not know the value of these techniques.

"The most expensive swordsmanship for the Qi Refinement Realm is the 'Sword Control Technique'. This technique is expensive because it is the strongest for Sword Cultivators in the Qi Refinement Realm, bar none—priced at three thousand five hundred good deeds by the sect!" Senior Brother Liu provided the answer.

"Senior Brother Liu, how can one obtain these good deeds, and what are they worth?" Li Shiming, hearing about good deeds for the first time, eagerly inquired.

"Good deeds are earned by undertaking sect missions, and they are not allowed to be bought or sold. You only need to know that normally a hundred good deeds a month's mission is sought after by all disciples, and you can judge how expensive the 'Sword Control Technique' is!" Senior Brother Liu answered all questions.

"Then I'll trouble Senior Brother Liu again, I'll choose the 'Sword Control Technique'!" Li Shiming declared immediately.

The sect probably hadn't anticipated a newcomer would pick an expensive cultivation technique when considering rewards; they thought they were merely gifting him an ordinary technique.

Nobody would know that Li Shiming had opened the door to Senior Brother Liu's assistance with just a few Spirit Stones.

A small investment brought Li Shiming a return thousands of times over.

Soon, the Jade Scroll for the "Sword Control Technique" was ready, and Senior Brother Liu handed it over to him.

"Remember, the technique within the Jade Scroll will automatically erase itself after one month, and you cannot leave the sect during this month. Although you can't leave the sect, I still have to tell you the rules," Senior Brother Liu added in his final instructions.

Li Shiming understood the sect's methods of controlling the outflow of techniques; without exclusivity, the sect would lose its advantage.

With two Jade Scrolls in hand and under Senior Brother Liu's smiling farewell, Li Shiming was about to leave when Jin Fengzhi and another female novice disciple entered the Hidden Technique Pavilion.

Li Shiming saw Senior Brother Liu, who smiled at him, adopt a lazy, casual demeanor as he turned his head.

"Hand over your Identity Jade Disc, what technique do you want?"

The same question, the same tone, the same attitude.

Li Shiming quickened his pace and left the Hidden Technique Pavilion; Senior Brother Liu was too shrewd.

He did not take a paper crane this time, as the distance was relatively short. Moreover, the sensation of walking was different from riding a paper crane, and he wanted to experience it.

Back at Qingqiu Pavilion, Senior Brother Zhu Ji had not been able to free himself.

Li Shiming did not go over to disturb him, and he followed the staircase to the second floor.

The wooden doors on the second floor were lined up one after another, and he found the one with his assigned room number.

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Li Shiming swept the Identity Jade Disc over the door lock, and the wooden door opened.

The room was very small, only big enough to fit a bed, with an additional washing room.

The problem was that there was no bed in the room, just a lonely meditation cushion lying on the ground, which actually made the room seem not so small.

He walked into the washing room, where there was a stone water basin with water continuously flowing from above and draining from below.

The water in the basin was for newcomers to wash with; there was no hot water, and both face washing and bathing were done with the water from the basin.

With the flow of the water, it was certainly enough for one person to use at will.

This was because Qingqiu Pavilion was considered to be housing ordinary people; otherwise, a normal cultivator wouldn't need to wash, as the robes provided by the sect had spells on them that, when activated with Spiritual Power, could cleanse the entire body.

What satisfied Li Shiming the most was that the Identity Jade Disc could activate an isolation array for his room, separating the inside from the outside world.

After he activated the isolation array, all sounds from the outside world completely vanished, the extreme quietude made him feel somewhat unaccustomed at first.

His senses were exceedingly sharp; even the slightest sound was audible to him.

Once the isolation array was in place, all he could hear were his own heartbeat, the sound of blood flowing in his veins, and the sound of his breath moving in and out of his body when he breathed.

Eagerly, he took out the Jade Scroll of "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill," placing the scroll on his forehead as a wealth of information flowed into his brain.

At the same time, an IBMz15 document named "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill" appeared, recording all the content from the Jade Scroll.

He read through the "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill" document on the IBMz15, and after reviewing it ten times in succession, which took only ten seconds, he had memorized all the content of the "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill."

A cultivator's memory is frighteningly powerful; such an extensive amount of information could be remembered completely by even the cultivator with the poorest memory within a month's time.

Li Shiming simply utilized the IBMz15 to speed up the process of studying the "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill."

Indeed, it was difficult to begin with the "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill"; this Body Refining Technique required igniting the anger within one's Inner Qi. When the anger reached its peak, the body would achieve a state of enhancement beyond its normal limits.

And in this state, one must maintain a clear and lucid mind, following the Cultivation Technique step by step to progressively strengthen each part of the body, from the skin to the bones.

This technique was extremely prone to cultivation deviation—the instability of the mind could cause the Spiritual Energy to lose control during the strengthening process, and in severe cases, it could cause severe injury or even death.

Physical damage was the best outcome; damage to the mind was an insurmountable problem.

The "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill" required one to maintain both rage and clarity concurrently, which necessitated the blessings of Buddhist practices.

Although the "Vajra Body Protection Divine Skill" didn't require Spiritual Medicine at the beginning, after entry, the need for various Spiritual Medicines was substantial.

Li Shiming looked at the long list of names of Spiritual Medicines, and his head began to feel heavy.

In fact, what he did not know was that any kind of Body Refining Technique was extremely resource-intensive.

The rarity of cultivators practicing Body Refinement Techniques was largely due to the lack of resources.

Even the toxic substances required by the "Copper Body Technique," any kind of potent venom with Spiritual Energy, was extremely expensive, and most of the time, it was very difficult to purchase spirit poison even if one had Spirit Stones in hand.

Li Shiming, in his naivety, had chosen one of the most difficult paths for himself.