While Lin Liqiu was captivated by the fence blueprints, Lin Liqin continued to look around. Once more taking note of the odd tags on the nearby items he inquired, “You mentioned that the items here were for sale, but what are the prices?”

“Barter, not sale, we don't accept money here. As I said, Tomo is interested in gathering knowledge. The items here can be exchanged for a technique of the specified realm. We also trade techniques for other techniques or unique items,” the blindfolded girl answered with a light smile.

This answer left Lin Liqin a bit crestfallen. Him and his sister were self taught, lacking in official techniques that could be passed on. In addition, most of the items he could see were listed above their level. He sighed, “Seems we aren't fated with any of these items.”

Sensing the fall in Lin Liqin's mood, the young girl consoled, “On the contrary, I believe you share a deep fate with this store.”

The blindfolded girl rang a small bell and a moment later a youth approached, “Cousin, was there something you needed my help with?”

“I believe our guests may qualify for a page. Can you check for me?”

With a nod the boy made his way toward the twins. Lin Liqin examined him as he approached. The boy also wore a white blindfold that stood in stark contrast to his dark complexion. Lin Liqin noted that the boy couldn't be more than fifteen years old.

When he arrived before Lin Liqin the youth held out his hand, “May I check your realm?” Lin Liqin laid his hand upon the blindfolded youth's. The boy covered it with his other hand as he explained, “I'm going to circulate my chi through your body. There may be some slight discomfort, but it is important not to resist.”

-Sticky,- that was the only word Lin Liqin could think of to describe the sensation creeping up his arm. It eventually reached his dantian causing him to feel full.

“Hmm... Early twenties and his chi cultivation has reached the 26th realm, fairly average. This is interesting, no elemental affinity so he's been using them all. There's signs of ki refinement as well, also at the 26th realm.” Releasing Lin Liqin's hand he continued, “I apologize for initially calling your progress average. If you're willing to share your experience of practicing multiple elements as well as refining your ki it should qualify you for a page from The Encyclopedia.”

Glancing at the book that Lin Liqiu was still obsessing over, Lin Liqin asked, “What can a single page do?”

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The blindfolded girl interjected, “It functions in much the same way as the book, but it is limited to displaying one page worth of information, front and back of course. If the answer to the question can't fit on one page it may display a partial answer or no answer at all.”

Lin Liqiu wore a big smile on her face as she continued to thumb through The Encyclopedia. -If a page can make her smile like that more often then it's worth it. And it's not like sharing my experience costs me anything,- thought Lin Liqin.

But Lin Liqin wasn't the type to agree to a deal without haggling first. Wearing a troubled expression, he lamented, “I'm not sure how useful this page would be for us. Granted, it is rather entertaining for my sister, but she really only cares about smithing and drinking. And you've already shown her enough smithing diagrams to keep her inspired for a while. As for me, I'm walking my own path of cultivation. I often find that others observations and tips are unhelpful. Perhaps there is something you could add to make the deal more appetizing?”

“You are welcome to look for something else more to your liking, but you will need to trade a technique of the appropriate level. If you wish to share your knowledge with The Encyclopedia it will determine how many pages it is worth,” the blindfolded boy stated flatly. It was clear that he was unmoved by Lin Liqin's attempt to negotiate.

Undaunted, Lin Liqin picked up on the key point, his contribution could be worth more than one page. The youth had never mentioned his ability to combine chi techniques with ki reinforcement, maybe that would be enough for an additional page. He decided to press his luck and accepted the deal.

“Very good,” said the blindfolded girl as she waved her hand over the book causing the pages to return to their original inky black. Lin Liqiu huffed in disappointment, but stepped aside to allow Lin Liqin to approach the podium. Handing him a quill the girl continued, “Simply write down your experience cultivating multiple elements as well as refining your ki. The more details and explanations you include the more valuable your contribution will be. Sign your name at the end when you're done.”

Lin Liqin began writing, the inky black surface moving to avoid the quill created words in the negative space. He started detailing his own interpretation of the elements. He'd always been sensitive to vibrations and enjoyed music, so he felt that each element was akin to a different note and the practitioner's body was the instrument. Due to a lack of techniques he didn't have a firm grasp of how to create more complicated effects.

Moving on to ki refinement, he addressed the main conflict between the two practices. Ki refinement focuses on increasing the density of the energy in the body so that it can be compressed into something tangible, while chi cultivation seeks to increase the volume of energy so that it can circulate more quickly. At first, these two practices seem mutually exclusive, but he has found that when balanced properly they become complementary.

To use ki effectively you need to move the energy to where it's needed first before compressing it and moving energy is chi's specialty. While manifesting elemental chi effects, the size of the effected area is based on the speed of the energy circulated. On the other hand, the strength of the effects is dependent on the amount of energy circulated. Using ki refinement to increase the density of the energy can drastically improve the strength of chi techniques.

Lastly, he discussed how to add ki aura to elemental chi effects. He noticed that when circulating energy to generate an element, the effect always took place when the energy passed a certain point. Through trial and error he found that point for the most basic chi maneuvers. Making the energy too dense via ki refinement causes it to move slower. Sending the energy in waves, the first incredibly dense followed by additional waves less dense than the last and thus slightly faster, would cause them to arrive at that point at the same time. If done properly the amount and density of the energy at the point was similar to aura techniques used in ki refinement to shield the body. This creates resilient elemental effects, but Lin Liqin has found that it drastically reduces their effective range.

As Lin Liqin signed his name the inky black surface began to move. The words he'd written were replaced with a simple acknowledgment, “Thank you for your contribution. You may take two pages. -Tomo”