Once I was a good distance away from the site of the battle, I hid in the woods as well as I could manage. I needed a moment to catch my breath and figure out what to do next.
Wen’s talk about gu had me worried. I had zero understanding of what such insects might be capable of, and if inadvertently ingesting such things could cause severe soul damage, I would have to be far more careful in the future.
I reached into my storage space and pulled out all of the pills that he had given me. Looking at the last one, I noticed that it was slightly different, but without knowing more about what I was looking at, there was no way I would be able to understand it as anything but a Low-Purity pill. Using energy vision, all I could see was a tight bundle of what looked like wind-based toxins bound up in its core. If I saw this without knowing what it was, I would be suspicious, but there was nothing that suggested it was an insect egg.
Learning how a normal alchemist might identify pills that had been tampered with in such a way would be a valuable skill, but this was too urgent of a problem to push off until a later date.
“System, how much to raise my pill analysis ability high enough to analyze these pills?”
Cost 50 million credits.
I debated whether that price was worth it. The appraisal ability I bought in the past only gave a pill’s name and efficacy. It didn’t list its effects. It might be better to try and find a cheaper, more direct way to handle this situation. Still, the cost was well within my means, and I didn’t have any better ideas that were both effective and affordable, so I decided to go ahead and buy it.
Purchase confirmed. Cost 50 million credits. 659,799,004 credits remaining.
I returned my focus to the pills and analyzed them.
Mid-Purity Rank 3 Soul Numbing Pill, 73% Medicinal Efficacy. Value: 8,000 gold.
Staring at the pill, I wasn’t sure what to be more offended by, the fact that they tried to enslave me with these things, or that they wanted to use such low-quality pills to do it. Mid-Purity was one thing, but only 73% efficacy?
I turned my attention to the pill that contained the gu egg.
Low-Purity Rank 3 Soul Numbing Pill (tainted), 19% Medicinal Efficacy. Value: 390,000 gold.
The analysis didn’t tell me anything about the insect inside or what it would do, but at least I could use it to know if there was a problem with any pills in the future. I considered buying a more detailed analysis ability, but the cost was too much. I wasn’t willing to spend hundreds of millions of credits on such a thing at the moment.
I returned the normal Soul Numbing Pills to my storage space. I would never consume them myself, but I might find some way to use them in the future. If nothing else, I could study them to try to understand their recipe.
As for the pill with the egg inside, I crushed it into a fine powder. It might be somewhat valuable, and I doubted that the gu egg would be able to harm me while locked away in my storage space and trapped within a pill, but I wasn’t going to take any chances with something like that.
With my evaluation of the pills complete, I needed to start looking toward the future. Wen was dead, and entering Yellow City without him would only cause me trouble. There was little I could do to change the information connected to my jade identity badge, so if the Association had a way to somehow track those, I would be in trouble no matter what. However, there was something I could do to give myself a little bit of protection.
“System, change my outward appearance to make me look like Chen WuJing from the Blue Wind Pavilion.”
Purchase confirmed. Cost 100,000 credits. 659,699,004 credits remaining.
I felt the bones and skin of my face twist as they shifted. My height dropped a few centimeters, and my waistline expanded. Without a mirror, I wouldn’t be able to see how accurate the System's alteration was, but I could feel that significant changes had taken place.
I pulled a small knife out of my storage bag and hacked at my hair. I usually kept it long in the fashion of most of the locals, but people who followed a martial path tended to keep their hair quite short. I wrapped the blade in a wisp of qi to make the cutting easier, and I did my best to style my hair to look like a regular martial cultivator.
Since my first life in this world, I had nearly always grown a small, tight beard. I didn’t have the skill needed to shave it clean using only a knife, but I trimmed it down as close to my face as I could manage.
Finally, I took a pale blue outfit out of my storage bag and changed into it. It was designed for martial cultivators and had leather straps around the forearms and shins to keep the cloth tight against the skin.
I hadn’t been able to get any information about what the path to Yellow City would involve, but I had been convinced the trip would involve some kind of betrayal by my traveling companions. So, before I left Mortal City, I had made a few purchases of such items to prepare for different eventualities.
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My change of dress might not have fooled anyone, but with the comprehensive changes to my face and skeletal structure, there was no chance anyone would recognize me. The identity attached to the jade badge was a problem, and I asked the System for a solution, but there was nothing within my price range.
Prepared as I could be, I returned to the path toward Yellow City.
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The fifth section was the final part of the Path of Soul.
Unlike the previous areas, the pressure in the fifth section was not constant. The closer I got to the exit of the path, the more it increased.
I was able to walk through this entire section without too much difficulty, but as I did, I wondered if staying in such a place would be an effective way to train my soul. Performing complex tasks such as alchemy under the pressure of the path would definitely be a strain.
Two things stopped me from testing this. First, I wasn’t at all sure if it was a good idea. I had no understanding of how to improve a soul, so randomly trying things out was not on my to-do list. Second, I wasn’t willing to spend time here. I could study soul cultivation back at the Academy. For the moment, I was content to press forward.
However, even though I was personally against the idea, I did spot several people cultivating by the side of the path. They were those who had reached their limits and needed to strengthen themselves if they wanted to proceed any further.
Because of what Wen had said, I was worried they might try to attack me, but as I passed by, no one so much as moved a finger. I considered this as I walked and came to a realization. There was no way such people would try to attack me. It would be completely foolish. I was able to waltz right past them while they were under immense strain just to stay conscious. If they tried to attack, it would be a death sentence.
On other paths, I might need to be more careful, but on the Path of Soul, anyone who had the ability to attack me also had the ability to complete the path, so I had no reason to be overly afraid.
After the sixth and final set of marker stones, I exited the path, and the pressure on my soul disappeared.
Only a short distance away, a rather small city with tall yellow walls was built into the mountainside.
Straightening myself and remembering my new WuJing persona, I calmly walked toward Yellow City.
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My understanding of Yellow City was shallow, but I wasn’t willing to spend any time understanding it better. The one thing that I did know was that the PangBo Merchant Association had a large presence here, and I didn’t want to risk being around them any more than I had to.
As soon as I entered the city, I found a servant disciple on the weaker end of Grandmaster and asked him where to find the sect-run stores. Following his guidance, I quickly made my way to the place where I could purchase karmic energy.
The place I had been directed to was a large temple-like structure in the middle of the city. It was a bit too high-profile for my liking, but I didn’t let that stop me. I walked in and saw an elderly man in orange robes kneeling and burning incense before an altar.
I didn’t want to disturb him, so I waited anxiously for him to finish, tapping my finger against the side of my leg the entire time. As soon as he stood, I approached.
“Excuse me, elder. Is this where I can purchase karmic energy?”
He stood silently and inspected me for a long while before responding.
“Yes.”
That less-than-helpful response made me somewhat annoyed. I was on edge from being so close to the Association’s base of operation, and this guy’s terse response wasn’t helping the situation.
To prevent myself from snapping, I stepped back, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath. I needed to center myself. Yes, I was in a hurry, and yes, if the Association knew I was here after killing Wen, I would only have moments left to live. They might even have a way to permanently kill me. However, for the moment, I was safe.
A few long, deep breaths later, I opened my eyes to look at the elder again. I was grateful that he had waited patiently while I got my emotions under control.
“Apologies, elder, I have been under a bit of strain recently.”
I gave him a deep bow which he returned with a slight dip of his head.
“If possible, I would like to purchase karmic energy sufficient to advance to Martial Lord. Could you help me with this?”
His face softened a bit as I spoke.
“Hand me your identity jade.”
I did so, and he studied it.
“An impressive amount of contribution points for one so young. Especially one who has yet to complete any missions.” He tapped the jade badge a few times. “We don’t like that, you know? It’s better to complete the missions to better understand your role in the sect. But since it seems you earned your points through your own ability instead of selling family treasures, we can let it slide for now.”
That… How much information were they recording about me? I could understand them knowing that I didn’t complete any missions, but recording that I had earned my points through alchemy was slightly concerning. Not because of that information specifically, but because if it was recorded, then other things I didn’t know about would be recorded as well.
The elder handed my badge back to me.
“I will allow you to advance to Lord, but before you advance to King, you must travel to Profound City and complete a total of at least one hundred missions for the sect. After every ten you complete, you will be allowed access to an allotment of enough karmic energy to advance to the next stage of the Lord realm. Is that understood?”
I bowed once more. “Yes, elder.”
He tapped his wrist, and a small wave of energy entered my dantian. The feeling was nowhere near as powerful as when the Ning Clan’s servant had done something similar.
“Thank you, elder. I understand the need for missions. However, my ability with formations is somewhat lacking. Would it be possible for me to gain access to alchemy missions even though I am a member of the Earth Peak?”
He closed his eyes in thought.
“It is unusual, but special dispensation has been granted for such a thing in the past. I will pass along your request. Take the Path of Mind on your way to Profound City. When you arrive there, you will have your answer.”
“Thank you, elder.”
Knowing that it was time, I bowed and left.
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Once outside, I rented a cheap room and used the Water Groom technique to advance to Lord. I considered looking for other cultivation techniques in the city, but I didn’t want to spend the time that buying and studying a new technique would require. I had no wish to stay so near where the PangBo Association would be looking for me any longer than I had to. This technique had served me well in the past, so I saw no need to replace it for the moment. When I reached Profound City, I could look for new techniques to use in my next life.
I didn’t have a Rank 4 formation to boost my advancement, but I did have a Rank 3 formation and several Rank 4 pills. In less than a week, I stepped into the Martial Lord realm once more.