A leisurely life in the world of cultivation

Chapter 156 Wealth, Companionship, Method, and Land – All That's Missing is Wealth

Li Weizhou himself didn't know how high his spatial talent was.

All he knew was that after entering the spirit realm from the spirit-guiding platform, almost every minute and every second, every part of his body was in close contact and friction with the spirit realm space, becoming more and more intimate.

This feeling is comparable only to the wood elemental energy; the other five elements and wind/thunder elements cannot give him this sensation.

Therefore, he can clearly see which spatial nodes gather which colors of inspiration in the infinitely dense spatial nodes.

Originally, the central Hunyuan Mountain was connected to the Qi of the other five veins, so the metal-type spiritual energy should be strongest in the direction of Xuanjin Peak and the earth-type spiritual energy should be strongest in the direction of Houtu Peak. However, this is not the case.

What Li Weizhou saw was that the side of the mountain opposite Xuanjin Peak had the strongest water system spiritual energy.

Then, on the opposite side of the earthen peak, the metal element spiritual energy is most abundant.

This perfectly aligns with the principle of the five elements generating each other: earth generates metal, metal generates water, and so on.

After Li Weizhou explained the matter, Zhou Yueniang and the others were naturally amazed, but Tao Ling'er was a little depressed and said, "Those guys who rented the five veins locked up the spiritual veins too tightly, that's why it's like this." She hadn't even noticed it.

Li Weizhou asked, "Senior Sister, a family with the resources of Wufeng wouldn't easily rent to strangers, would they? What if someone damages the spiritual veins?"

Tao Ling'er said, "No, it's rented to Xuantian Pavilion. Xuantian Pavilion is one of the most reputable merchant alliances in the Spirit Realm. They rented it to sublet it to some small independent cultivators, or some small and medium-sized sects and cultivation families that need pure spiritual energy. They wouldn't dare to break the contract. It's not like they only do business with one company. If they lose their reputation, their losses will only be greater."

Li Weizhou's eyes lit up, and he asked, "Senior Sister, there are merchant alliances in the Spirit Realm? What does this Xuantian Pavilion do?"

Tao Ling'er said, "Of course there are merchant alliances. Xuantian Pavilion does everything. The Qingshui City, which I pointed out to you about three hundred miles east of the foot of the mountain, is a market town operated by Xuantian Pavilion. There are many shops there, selling everything. Cultivation techniques, spiritual weapons and magic treasures, pills, magic arrays, puppets... Xuantian Pavilion not only sells them, but also collects all kinds of spiritual materials and rare items from all over the world."

Li Weizhou asked curiously, "Senior Sister, why doesn't the sect open a shop there?"

Tao Ling'er said irritably, "Renting a shop is very expensive. Even a stall on the ground costs five low-grade spirit stones a day, let alone a shop. Besides, what can we do?"

Li Weizhou smiled and said, "Senior sister, you may not know, but I have another identity in the lower realm..."

Qi Erniang chuckled and said, "The owner of Baibaolou and the landlord of Zuixianlou."

Zhou Yueniang smiled and said, "We'll talk about that later. We need to cultivate to the fourth level of the Spirit Realm, otherwise it will be difficult to go down the mountain."

The whole family laughed and started working, clearing out a cave dwelling.

Tao Ling'er was a good senior sister. She took the lead and used her Dust Inkstone Sword to dig holes with a "clattering" sound. She was so tired that she was panting heavily, but she didn't rest.

Li Weizhou, naturally embarrassed to remain idle, threw the stones his senior sister had dug out directly to the other side of Earth.

Although the wisps of spiritual energy within the stone quickly dissipated, there must have been some minerals in the stone that were not found on Earth, which would surely pique the interest of Tokyo University.

Li Weizhou now owes them a lot of money, and his investments in all aspects are too huge.

But it's alright, there are so many treasures in the spirit world, I should be able to pay it off quickly...

After opening up five cave dwellings in one go, Tao Ling'er collapsed to the ground, disregarding her image, staring blankly at the sky.

She felt guilty that her sect was poor and couldn't provide any support for her junior brothers and sisters, which is why she worked so hard.

A simple and honest mind.

"Thank you, senior sister."

Zhou Yueniang said very seriously, and didn't forget to massage Tao Ling'er's stiff arm.

Xi Mei massaged her other arm, and Tao Ling'er laughed and said, "Don't be so polite! I'm the senior sister..." Then she looked at Xi Mei and said, "Xi Mei, don't open your own residence yet. Your Xuanqiao hasn't opened, so you can't use magic arrays. Why don't you stay with me in the Five Elements Hall for now?"

Upon hearing this, Xi Mei looked at Li Weizhou, who nodded and smiled, "I'll listen to my senior sister."

Xi Mei chuckled and agreed.

Tao Ling'er sat up abruptly and said, "That's settled then! I'll go cook dinner; we'll eat dry food tonight! Tomorrow we have to go to the Xuantian Pavilion to take on missions and earn spirit stones! Junior brother, you also need to cultivate diligently and learn formations as soon as possible so we can earn spirit stones together! But don't worry, if we eat sparingly, we'll definitely have enough. You guys get ready, dinner will be served in half an hour."

Tao Ling'er seemed eager to get her hands on something, so she left quickly, taking Xi Mei with her to help her move.

Li Weizhou and his family felt somewhat uneasy.

I'm practically a parasite...

Returning to the fire-elemental cave opposite Qingmu Peak, this is Li Weizhou's cave dwelling.

After confirming that the illusory image of the small mirror was not aware of the surveillance, the family was finally able to speak freely.

Li Weizhou asked softly, "You've all reaped quite a bit of blessings from Heaven, haven't you?"

Situ Qingyue nodded and said, "Fifteen years of suppressed hard work have finally erupted, and the Xuan Gate has reached its peak. Not only that, after obtaining the cultivation technique last night, I cultivated all night and feel that I will soon advance and break through to the second level. In addition, a large amount of lightning spiritual energy has accumulated in the Hidden God Palace. The lightning power in the Spirit Realm is different from the lightning power obtained in the mortal world, and the difference is significant. But I believe that the fundamentals are still the same. Absorbing lightning and then absorbing the lightning spirit of the Spirit Realm, integrating them together, will also result in immense power."

Furthermore, the entire Hidden God Palace has been baptized, and its ability to store lightning power will greatly increase. In short, it has undergone a complete transformation.

Li Weizhou asked, "Is it possible to kill enemies of a higher level?"

Situ Qingyue shook her head and said, "I don't know, I haven't seen any battles in the Spirit Realm yet. Besides, have you felt that the Spirit Realm is completely different from the mortal realm, with a much heavier sense of the pressure of the Heavenly Dao?"

Li Weizhou nodded. The feeling in the spirit world... how to put it... if compared to driving a car, in the mortal world it was like driving on ice, the steering wheel was as light as a feather, without any resistance. But in the spirit world, it was like driving on a muddy gravel road, there was a real sense of resistance when turning the steering wheel.

However, driving on ice feels light and weightless, with little power and no friction.

However, it can generate great power on gravel roads.

Zhou Yueniang raised her hand in front of her, holding a copper coin between her fingers. The coin gleamed with gold, giving people a very strong sense of crisis.

She reminded Li Weizhou and Situ Qingyue, "Once we get here, supernatural powers will not only be able to be mobilized from within the Hidden God Palace, but will also be able to draw upon external spiritual energy."

Situ Qingyue nodded and said, "Yes. However, that takes time to accumulate and will lose its element of surprise. It depends on the specific situation."

Feng Biwu looked at Li Weizhou and said, "Li Lang, do you still have the supernatural power to bring the dead back to life?"

This was extremely important, and everyone looked over.

Li Weizhou stroked his chin and said, "It should be... Or, why don't you try stabbing me with your sword? Who... who would be willing to do that?"

"I come!"

"I come!"

"I come!"

"I come!"

Li Weizhou's face was ashen, his lips trembling, and with a trembling finger, he berated the four of them one by one, saying, "You...you're so vicious!"

The four women laughed like four blooming flowers.

Zhou Yueniang pointed her fingers into a sword shape and said to Situ Qingyue, "Sister, hold him down."

Situ Qingyue placed one hand on Li Weizhou's shoulder, while Zhou Yueniang pulled up his other hand. Li Weizhou closed his eyes and awaited death.

Of course, she couldn't really kill him. Zhou Yueniang made a swipe on the back of his hand... but it didn't break the skin.

Li Weizhou said smugly, "Do you think the 'Indestructible Vajra Divine Skill' is just for show?"

Zhou Yueniang snorted, took out her weapon, and golden light flashed on the copper coin. With another swipe, bright red blood flowed out.

However, as Li Weizhou's heart stirred, the sea of ​​blood surged, the flowing blood instantly receded, and the wound healed.

Zhou Yueniang exclaimed happily, "It really works!"

Li Weizhou hesitated, his wounds had healed, and he hadn't yet used the power of the Blood Sea...

I quickly remembered that for the past two years, Dongda and Shan State have been breeding Mexican axolotls at any cost. These creatures, also known as axolotls, can regenerate almost any part of their body, even their hearts, if they are lost.

Of course, it will still consume energy.

The stronger Li Weizhou is, the more energy he needs to regenerate his severed limbs.

And coincidentally, the Blood Sea can supply this energy.

This method is much more economical than directly consuming blood to condense new limbs.

Under the watchful eyes of the four women, he nodded firmly and said, "That's right, I can be resurrected, and I've also made up for the number of times I used up last time."

Zhou Yueniang and the others were overjoyed. Situ Qingyue then asked, "What about the Void Step? This is also an extremely important life-saving technique."

With a thought, Li Weizhou squeezed into the void little by little under the watchful eyes of the four women. This was more than ten times more difficult than the mortal realm, and he was squeezed out again in a very short distance.

Unlike the other three, Situ Qingyue said happily, "Amazing! Heaven truly favors you. You've already merged into the void at the early stage of Spirit Realm. I estimate that this is absolutely unimaginable in the Spirit Realm. When your cultivation level is higher, you may be able to use it at will even more than you can in the mortal world."

The others thought about it and realized that it was indeed true.

Feng Biwu suddenly remembered something and asked, "Li Lang, I saw you casually choose a fire-type cultivation technique in the Scripture Pavilion. Why were you so careless?"

Li Weizhou smiled but didn't say anything. Then he opened his hands, and everyone saw that each finger had a different color of spiritual energy: white, blue, green, red, and yellow, which represented the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

Immediately, the five spiritual threads intertwined and merged into a unified whole.

Everyone fell silent. This was...

"The Five Elements Primordial Scripture?!"

Qi Erniang cried out in disbelief.

The Five Elements Sect's highest-level technique, which Tao Ling'er had specifically instructed Li Weizhou not to practice, was also the technique that had baffled successive Five Elements Sect leaders and countless geniuses over the centuries.

Even so, if the Five Elements Sect hadn't undergone several major upheavals, even falling to the point where they couldn't even afford to eat, Li Weizhou wouldn't have been able to easily see this cultivation technique.

Situ Qingyue said, "Isn't it said that only those with a balanced distribution of the five elements' spiritual roots can practice this?"

Li Weizhou said smugly, "This only proves that I am someone with a balanced five-elemental spiritual root!"

He was not, of course. In fact, the yin and yang fish on the Taiji diagram, after being replenished by the yin and yang energies through the blessing of Heaven, finally began to play a role.

That is, balancing the five elements!

Zhou Yueniang looked at Li Weizhou and asked, "Why didn't you tell Senior Sister?"

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "Practicing a single cultivation method consumes countless resources. Even if my senior sister and master's wife sold their blood, they couldn't raise that many resources to cultivate five methods simultaneously. Let's not talk about this for now and deal with it when we have more resources. Otherwise, they'll feel even worse, so there's no need for that. The so-called four essential elements of cultivation are wealth, companion, method, and place. Now we have a companion, a cultivation method, and a cultivation place, all we lack is wealth. No problem, I'm good at dealing with that."

Situ Qingyue said, "You should first cultivate to the fourth level of the Spirit Realm, right? Don't put too much pressure on yourself. With the spiritual energy stored in our Hidden God Palace, it will be enough for the short term."

Li Weizhou smiled and said, "No rush, no rush."

That being said, when Li Weizhou saw Tao Ling'er filling the bowls of her six junior brothers and sisters to the brim with tears in her eyes, while she herself only had half a bowl of rice, he went to the Scripture Pavilion after finishing his own meal.

Contrary to his expectations that a jade slip would contain all the array formations, the jade slip he found on the array formation bookshelf only contained ten level-one array formations, all of which were very basic.

Similar to the Cleansing Array, it is a simple earth-based array that can keep the cave clean.

A water purification array is a formation that gathers clean water from the air.

This water contains only a trace of water essence and is used to quench thirst.

The kind of spirit-gathering water array used to irrigate spirit fields is not a first-level array.

There are also formations similar to the slow-burning formation used for cooking, which are all practical formations, but they are perfect for Li Weizhou's use. Even if he were given a more sophisticated formation, he wouldn't understand it now.

However, Li Weizhou did not neglect his cultivation, since he could hardly even leave the house before reaching the fourth level of the Spirit Realm.

Of course, he couldn't neglect his daily life either. After working hard in various caves, he returned to his cave to meditate and cultivate.

The illusory images of the small mirror and the Jianmu tree each draw upon the spiritual energy of the space and the spiritual energy of the wood element.

The spirit-sealing array set up on the opposite Greenwood Peak could not stop the Jianmu phantom from "stealing" its base. Moreover, it did not steal from the ground, but from underground. It is unknown whether it was inspired by the huge Jianmu tree root that had previously penetrated the mortal world.

The illusory image of Jianmu was quite particular; the harvested inspiration was divided equally, half for each person.

Li Weizhou's half, through the Taiji diagram, transforms into the five elements of spiritual energy, which are then evenly distributed.

In summary, the cultivation speed is roughly the same as that of other ordinary top-grade spiritual roots, so-so...

Leaving behind three illusory figures and fragments of divine souls within them to oversee cultivation, Li Weizhou's main consciousness, carrying the Taiji Diagram, traveled to another world...

……

Earth, Shan country.

On the Shan Plateau, a two-foot-tall Jianmu tree, its entire body as green as jade, swayed happily upon seeing Li Weizhou.

Li Weizhou smiled. This blessing from Heaven came ten or even twenty years earlier than he had originally expected. Jianmu could now support itself and even help him cultivate.

With the help of the Wood Spirit Machine, the Undying Sword Body can now be put on the training schedule.

First, one should cultivate oneself in this world on Earth; caution is still advised in the spirit world.

Suddenly, he turned his head to look to the east, smiled, took out a few steel ingots, and began to cultivate the "Undying Sword Body".

One steel ingot after another turned to ashes, and his physical abilities were also improving by leaps and bounds, with the sound of swords ringing out from his body from time to time.

Half an hour later...

"Mr. Li! It's been a long time!"

Zhao Jiugu walked over briskly, looking energetic, and greeted him warmly.

Li Weizhou smiled and said, "Old Zhao, there's no need to rush. Just leave your phone number if you need anything."

Zhao Jiugu shook his head and said, "It's truly a rare sight, Mr. Li, you've finally emerged from seclusion."

Li Weizhou asked, "What's wrong? Could it be that Amei is causing trouble again?"

Zhao Jiugu laughed and said, "That's not true. Mr. Li has turned all the plane graveyards, tank graveyards, and ship graveyards of the United States, Russia, and Japan into dust. Now it is the most peaceful time in the world since World War II."

The reason for this urgency is related to what Mr. Li previously mentioned. A message from NASA said they are ready to launch another lunar spacecraft and invited you to join them. However, we still suggest Mr. Li wait another three years; we will launch our own spacecraft, which is safer!

Li Weizhou chuckled softly, "If they really have any bad intentions, I'll have an excuse. To be honest, I do need some nuclear bombs, but you won't give them to me. But while you're stingy, I'm not. You're taking a batch of ore; it's not from Earth, and I reckon there's something you need in it."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jiugu's expression changed, and he hurriedly asked, "It's not from Earth... Where is it? How many are there?"

Li Weizhou smiled and said, "You can send a ship to Shidui Port to transport it later. You can assess the specific value yourself after testing and use it to offset the debt."

Zhao Jiugu said helplessly, "Mr. Li, compared to what you have done for us and for our country, there is really not much we can do for you. Why do you always have to be so polite..."

Li Weizhou shook his head, offering no explanation, and only asked, "Old Zhao, when will America launch its rocket?"

"The 18th of next month, today is the 27th."

Zhao Jiugu said, "If we don't see Mr. Li soon, then Mr. Li will have to wait another three years. It's really lucky."

Li Weizhou nodded and said, "Thank you for telling me. Please ask Elder Zhao to pass on the message to them. I will go there myself on the morning of the 18th."

After agreeing, Zhao Jiugu added, "Mr. Li, don't forget the time difference."

"Hehe, okay. By the way, Elder Zhao, does your Wuling Seventh Bureau have any experts who are proficient in Qimen formations?"

Li Weizhou suddenly remembered something and asked about it.

Zhao Jiugu asked, "How many do you need?"

In this glorious land of China, what kind of talent do we lack today?
Li Weizhou exclaimed with delight, "Really?"

Zhao Jiugu said, "Peking University's Department of Philosophy has courses related to the I Ching, and there is also a special doctoral program called 'I Ching and Predictive Science.' Renmin University's Department of Classical Studies also offers related courses, and Wuhan Textile University has even established a special program called 'Architectural Feng Shui.' There is a wealth of talent in this field. Even if we exclude some mediocre people, it wouldn't be a problem to gather twenty people."

Li Weizhou said happily, "That's great, just twenty. Please have them set up a training course for me, a week-long course. In addition, I also need people specializing in animation video production and applied mathematics. These people need to be reliable, and the things they come into contact with need to be kept strictly confidential. If possible, I need them today."

Zhao Jiugu's eyes flickered, and he nodded, saying, "Alright, I'll handle it personally! It's 10:25 AM now, and the class will start promptly at 3:00 PM at your old family home in Shancheng!"

……

Naypyitaw.

In the enormous royal garden donated by Dongda University, Li Weizhou and Xiao Rui strolled around, accompanied by birdsong and the fragrance of flowers.

Did you succeed?

Xiao Rui glanced at Li Weizhou and asked with a smile.

Li Weizhou had told her before that he was facing new challenges, and if he succeeded, he would be one step closer to traveling in space.

Li Weizhou smiled and nodded, saying, "It's a success."

Even compared to those four peerless beauties with their graceful bearing and elegant demeanor, Xiao Rui's eyes were still the brightest.

Bright, and warm and spirited.

He looked at her and asked, "What have you been busy with lately?"

Xiao Rui smiled playfully and said, "Are women who are successful in their careers more attractive?"

Li Weizhou smiled helplessly at her, and Xiao Rui giggled, "I'm still participating in the country's construction step by step. In the past two or three years, the number of earthquakes in Shan State has decreased sharply, from an average of 704 per year to 32, and none of them are above magnitude 5. Therefore, the pace of construction has obviously accelerated, and there are more high-rise buildings. On the other hand, the number of earthquakes in India has doubled from 784 per year to more than 1,500 per year."

According to reports from the Aramco Seismological Research Association and the Earthquake Engineering Research Society, this area was originally a seismic zone between the Indian and Eurasian plates. The Indian plate had been continuously moving northward, violently compressing and colliding with the Eurasian plate. However, for some unknown reason, although the collisions are still occurring, they have become less intense. The force of the collisions has rebounded, causing immense suffering to the countries on the Indian plate.

Now, the Indians are suing us at the United Nations, claiming that we used evil witchcraft to bring misfortune to countries on the Indian subcontinent. They're demanding restrictions on our use of witchcraft, just like restrictions on nuclear weapons, ha!

Li Weizhou also burst into laughter and asked, "And in the end?"

Xiao Rui laughed and said, "They actually managed to put together a vote. Not only the Americans, but even the Russians were in favor. In the end, our hometown voted against it, saying it was absurd and laughable. Later, the Americans and the Russians quieted down, but it was still those few reckless guys who kept jumping around. Our people said that you had been in seclusion for a long time, but if their demands were so strong, we could ask you to come out of seclusion and talk to them one by one in person. Then they immediately fell silent."

The two walked to a small lake and sat down on a stone bench.

Xiao Rui looked at Li Weizhou and smiled, "I've been reading a lot of cultivation novels lately."

Li Weizhou looked at her with a smile, and then she said, "There are also novels about cultivating immortality in two realms."

Li Weizhou chuckled and asked, "What are you trying to say?"

Xiao Rui leaned her head against his chest and smiled, "I'm just marveling at the wonder of the Creator. We've been learning materialism since elementary school. Our teachers told us that as long as we study hard, we can change our destiny and transform the world. Nothing is impossible if you put your mind to it. The stories on TV are all legends of man conquering nature. There are indeed many inspiring and moving stories like Saihanba, and our country's nuclear weapons."

However, personally, I've found that the effectiveness of hard work is far less than that of a destiny ordained by fate.

No matter how hard ordinary people try, even if they sweat and bleed, their fate in life can never compare to that of the son of a super-rich man.

No matter how proud the sons of the wealthy are, they can never compare to the sons of top officials.

However, all these people combined still can't compare to you.

However, as everyone agrees, there is someone even luckier than you, someone more favored by God. Can you guess who it is?

"Who?"

Li Weizhou thought of Jesus, Buddha, the Jade Emperor, and other such figures.

But Xiao Rui chuckled and said, "Me? I have a college classmate who doesn't click with me. Actually, we're quite similar. Her family background is even better than mine, but she's a bit... Anyway, from the first moment I entered university, I could tell she didn't like me. She's very hardworking, much more so than me. And she's also very talented. After graduation, her family used connections to get her an internship in a ministry, and then she got a job."

A few days ago, Song Jia told me that she saw a post on WeChat Moments from that classmate, around 3:30 AM. It said, "Only hardworking people know how important talent is. Only talented people know how important background is. And only those who are hardworking, talented, and have a good background know how important good looks are."

Song Jia said, "She was talking about me."

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "Although your looks deserve this praise, you are definitely not just good-looking."

Xiao Rui retorted, "You dare say no? You were eyeing my chest the first time we met!"

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "You can't blame me for this, it's because you're too good-looking."

Xiao Rui smiled and said, "It's really beautiful?"

Li Weizhou smiled and nodded, saying, "Your eyes are the most beautiful pair of eyes I've ever seen in the world."

Xiao Rui turned her head to look at him and smiled, "One of them?"

Li Weizhou shook his head and said, "No, it's the most beautiful one."

Xiao Rui smiled and said, "Such beautiful genes shouldn't be wasted. However, from the perspective of biological evolution, the stronger an individual is, the harder it is for them to reproduce. What do you think?"

Li Weizhou laughed and said, "Let nature take its course. As long as you get pregnant, you will definitely give birth. But if the time is not right, then we won't make a fuss about it or give you injections or supplements."

Xiao Rui smiled somewhat shyly, "My whole family is urging me to have a baby. I suspect that Dongda University is also involved, wanting me to have a prince or princess as soon as possible."

Li Weizhou took out his phone and looked at it, saying, "I made an appointment with Teacher Zhao to start class at three o'clock this afternoon. We still have two and a half hours, that should be enough."

Xiao Rui suddenly remembered something: "What if I can't handle this by myself? How about... you take a two-hour flight first?"

Li Weizhou slapped her plump buttocks and laughed, scolding, "How dare you say that!"

……

5 p.m.

Mountain city, old residence.

Li Weizhou received two full hours of instruction in the I Ching, transforming himself from a complete novice to someone who could barely put on sunglasses and pretend to be blind to set up a fortune-telling stall on the street.

Fortunately, the relationship between the Five Elements and the Eight Trigrams has been clarified. The eight basic attributes of the Eight Trigrams correspond to the five attributes of the Five Elements, together forming the system of understanding the classification and operating rules of all things in the world in the Book of Changes.

This is very important; otherwise, you won't be able to understand the jade slip at all, let alone confirm the position of the nodes on the array diagram within it.

After clarifying these points, Li Weizhou drew out a formation on the spot and gathered many experts and scholars together, asking, "Everyone, please take a look at this formation and explain its five elements principles and operating rules."

He explained the effects of the formation, and then left it to the professors and scholars who had spent most of their lives immersed in the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams to ponder.

For these people, this kind of "exam" that uses the result to deduce the process is not a difficult task at all.

Sure enough, in less than half an hour, the noisy group reached a consensus and came up with a logical analysis of the formation.

After studying it, Li Weizhou felt that the approach was quite clear; all that was left was to use a few spirit stones to test whether it was truly feasible...

……

(End of this chapter)