I Built A Family Of Immortal Cultivators

Chapter 3: Breaking through to the Middle Grade of the First Stage

"Lin Fellow Daoist, it's a joyous occasion when one's spirits are high and good fortune comes knocking. You've been cooped up at home for several days, but today you finally decided to come out and take a look," said a person who walked out of the neighboring shop as Lin Qing stood at the door of his own shop.

Lin Qing turned his head and saw his neighbor, Li Fellow Daoist, who had reached the fourth level of Qi Refining. Li Fellow Daoist made a living by buying and selling materials. He was kind-hearted, and he had seen Lin Qing when he returned with Chao Yun a few days ago.

"Li Fellow Daoist, don't tease me. Everyone knows that you are the outstanding one here," Lin Qing replied with a smile.

It's not surprising that Lin Qing said that. As far as he knew, Li Fellow Daoist had five wives and concubines, although they didn't live here on a daily basis. They lived in a gathering place for mortals outside, where the houses were large and cheap.

Upon hearing Lin Qing's words, Li Fellow Daoist nodded with satisfaction. "That's true," he said.

"Hey, Lin Fellow Daoist, let me ask you one more thing," Li Fellow Daoist said with an interesting smile. "I wonder if the weather outside has been good these days, or if the climate inside the house has been pleasant."

"Hahaha!"

As soon as Li Fellow Daoist finished asking, he burst into laughter without waiting for Lin Qing's answer. Lin Qing also laughed without answering.

After the laughter, Lin Qing entered Li Fellow Daoist's shop and sold the limbs of the Blaze Wolf he had brought back a few days ago to Li Fellow Daoist. Whether it was because the prices had risen recently or because Li Fellow Daoist was in a good mood, he didn't mention the price and directly gave Lin Qing a high price of two spirit stones.

With two spirit stones added to his account, Lin Qing's pressure was temporarily relieved.

In the evening, Lin Qing and Chao Yun went to bed early. After the storm, Chao Yun fell asleep exhausted, while Lin Qing excitedly looked at his Goldfinger panel.

[Congratulations, host, for experiencing the Qi of Heaven once. Formation experience +5]

[Formation Master: Middle Grade of the First Stage (1004/1000) (Can breakthrough)]

"Breakthrough," Lin Qing silently recited in his heart.

[Formation Master: Upper Grade of the First Stage (4/10000)]

In an instant, his formation cultivation broke through to the Middle Grade of the First Stage. He felt that the confusion that had hindered him in formations for a long time had been resolved, and he gained many insights. He had already mastered the ability to create Middle Grade formations of the First Stage.

After the breakthrough, Lin Qing didn't have time to get excited. He lit a candle on the bedside and took out a book from his storage bag. Looking at the book, his eyes were filled with excitement.

"Introduction to Formations"

This was a book he had bought from a wandering cultivator at the cost of fifteen spirit stones, which had emptied his savings. It contained knowledge about formations, as well as the methods to create a Lower Grade formation of the First Stage, two Middle Grade formations of the First Stage, and even a method to create an Upper Grade formation of the First Stage.

One of the Lower Grade formations was called the "Concealing Formation," which was the formation he had been selling for years. It was the most basic formation.

The "Concealing Formation" was used to conceal one's own tracks and was suitable for Qi Refining cultivators in the early stage. Although it wasn't very powerful, it was quite practical. If a Qi Refining cultivator in the third level used it well, even a Qi Refining cultivator in the third level wouldn't be able to detect their tracks. In addition, it wasn't expensive to buy, costing only two spirit stones per set. The production cost was only one and a half spirit stones, so he only made half a spirit stone profit per set. Therefore, the sales volume was good.

Previously, he sold about ten sets per year, which not only covered his rent but also provided him with spirit stones for cultivation.

However, the effect of this formation was too weak, and no one had been buying it for the past six months. That's why he had to venture out and ambush a Blaze Wolf in the middle stage of the first level to earn spirit stones.

The Middle Grade formations of the First Stage were different. The Mysterious Wood Formation could trap Qi Refining cultivators in the middle stage, while the Falling Stones Formation could cause damage to Qi Refining cultivators in the middle stage. If he had one of these two formations, the Blaze Wolf wouldn't be able to harm him at all.

Moreover, these two formations are not only easy to sell, but also highly profitable. If he knows these two formations, why would he take the risk of ambushing demonic beasts?

At this moment, as Lin Qing looked at the two formations in "Introduction to Formations," even though it was nighttime, he had already begun to ponder their essence. After advancing to the rank of a middle-grade formation master, he now had a rough understanding of these two formations that he previously couldn't comprehend.

"Elder, why aren't you sleeping?"

While Lin Qing was reading, the candle next to Chao Yun was lit, waking him up. He looked at Lin Qing with confusion.

Lin Qing looked at Chao Yun and smiled gently, putting away "Introduction to Formations" and blowing out the candle.

Although formations were good, they couldn't compare to the warmth at this moment.

In bed, Lin Qing held Chao Yun and said, "What did you just call me?"

"Elder." Chao Yun answered truthfully.

Lin Qing looked at Chao Yun and said, "Do you remember what I said to you when you first came? Think about it carefully, what should you call me?"

In the darkness, Chao Yun's eyes flickered with a faint light as she timidly whispered, "Husband?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Qing hugged her tightly.

Early the next morning, Lin Qing went out to purchase materials for formations. He decided to start by making the relatively simple Xuanmu Formation. Unlike the lower-grade formations, the Xuanmu Formation, as a middle-grade formation, had high profits but required more materials and had higher costs. Fortunately, Qingmu Town was close to the Yandang Mountains, so materials were not lacking. Just Li Fellow Daoist's shop alone had a wide variety.

In order to buy these materials, in addition to the four spirit stones he already had, Lin Qing also pawned the unused healing pill, his magic sword, and two sets of concealment formations. He managed to gather twelve spirit stones and purchased three sets of materials.

In terms of cost alone, the Xuanmu Formation was worth more than two sets of concealment formations, which showed how impressive it was.

Although the cost was high, as long as it was successfully made, one set of Xuanmu Formation could sell for at least ten spirit stones. In other words, with just one set, Lin Qing could almost break even.

In fact, when he was a lower-grade formation master, Lin Qing had tried to purchase related materials for production, but after two failed attempts, he never bought them again. Through those two attempts, he knew that it was not impossible for him to succeed, but based on his estimation, as a lower-grade formation master, he would need at least ten sets of materials to succeed once, which was not something a Qi Refining third-layer cultivator like him could afford to squander.

But now things were different. After advancing to a middle-grade formation master, Lin Qing felt that his success rate had reached at least thirty percent.

Back in the room, Lin Qing pondered the method of making the Xuanmu Formation in his mind once again, and then picked up the materials to start trying.

Unlike the concealment formation, the Xuanmu Formation was not only more complex, but also involved the formation eye, which was a piece of middle-grade Xuanmu. Just this palm-sized Xuanmu alone cost two spirit stones. With the formation eye, the difficulty of making it was almost ten times that of the concealment formation.

This was a common problem for formation masters, as well as alchemists, talisman masters, and other cultivators in the cultivation world. It was easy to get started, but the further you went, the harder it became. Without the support of a background and a large supply of materials for practice, it was almost impossible for one person to reach a higher level.

After about three hours, Lin Qing sighed.

He had failed again. Not only was the first set of materials scrapped, but his spiritual energy was depleted, so he couldn't continue making formations today.

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(End of this chapter)