Chapter 9: Lin Dong finds and buys the Ancient Wooden Black!

The three fourteen years of age youths stood by one another as they glanced towards their elder cousin's sister who spoke about Lin Hong in silence. Finally, one of the youths took hold of his sister's palm while replying to his elder cousin in all their stead "Sister Lin Xia, I too felt that Lin Hong was acting strangely. I agree with your opinion with regard to him only behaving as such because of his affection towards Qing Tan. Don't worry, we will be on guard around him, Sister Lin Xia." As Lin Dong stated this, Lin Changqiang nodded his head up and down to affirm Lin Dong's opinion as his own while Qing Tan smiled assuredly at her.

Lin Xia smiled slightly and sighed with relief "That is good."

…

On the way home, Qing Tan side-eyed glanced at her brother while asking "Brother Dong, is it true that Uncle Lin Mang will find trouble with father over this matter about Lin Shan?"

Lin Dong furrowed his eyebrows slightly while saying "Don't worry little sister. Father is a Yuan Dan Realm powerhouse. Uncle Lin Mang and any other member who has ill intentions towards our family won't be able to accomplish much." Lin Dong then slightly relaxed his face and leisurely stated, "You go back home first. I have some business to take care of now."

Qing Tan nodded slowly while saying "Don't be late, otherwise mother will be upset." She then walked briskly back home.

Lin Dong went straight to the trading market in the northern part of Qingyang Town for the Ancient Wooden Block so that he can get his hands on the Congealing Symbol Art or Ancient Swirl Symbol.

Five minutes is all it took him to get to the trading market, and in these five minutes, he saw many cloaked figures pass by him. Those who passed by him had a figure cloaked in black clothing and a white mask with four lines in the place of the eyes, mouth, and nose. Unlike them, he was wearing a simple brown Han Zhifu cotton fabric and long black ankle-length pants without any cloth or mask to hide his identity. He feels that with his cultivation of the Heavenly Yuan realm, he has nothing to fear.

Walking around with his eyes skimming over the stalls, he continues to think to himself 'No…no…no… not here…' At least to others, it looks like he is merely skimming over the various items. But he is using his spiritual power to find the Ancient Wooden Black.

Eventually, he 'chanced' upon a stall that had the ancient wooden black item covered with moss containing spiritual power. He became happy that he can finally obtain the Congealing Symbol Art or Ancient Swirl Symbol and become a first-level Seal Symbol Master.

His arms were by his side as he walked with a straight posture to the stall where he saw what he was looking for while yawning and rolling his eyes in front of the stall owner. He bent down in a squat position while sighing slightly and leaning his head on his left palm and looking at the items spread across the cloth. His left eyebrow is slightly raised; the right side of his lips is upturned slightly as he raises the fourth-grade elixir Green Wood Rhizome with his right palm. 'Hmm…this elixir can increase training speed…though this won't have much effect on me, it would great for Qing Tan as she is still in the Earthly Yuan realm.'

Not even a second passes by "This is a fourth-grade elixir, and it costs one hundred Yang Yuan stones." This was muttered by the stall owner as he inspected Lin Dong as a young master from the Lin family.

Yang Yuan stones do not have defined edges and are colored light red. They are translucent like a crystal and when holding them one can feel a faint warmth as if they are holding onto a ball of sunlight. These stones are rather special crystal stones as it is said that they can only be formed in the deepest parts of a volcano. This stone not only absorb the Yuan Power between Heaven and Earth, but after bathing in lava for a long time, the stone also managed to assimilate a part of the Yang energy from the lava. This Yang energy was akin to the lifeblood for Heavenly Yuan Stage practitioners and many Heaven Yun Practitioners would carry around a few Yang Yuan stones. However, these items were not cheap, therefore, they were rarely seen in Qingyang Town as it was rare for Yang Yuan Stone to appear by itself. Should a Yang Yuan Stone appear, there would tend to be a load (small or large) nearby. This load could be extremely tiny but would still be considered a massive fortune.

This information was known to many including the stall owner, so it was not a surprise when he overheard Lin Dong's mutter "One hundred Yang Yuan Stones…hmmm... it is a bit expensive…what about this one?" The owner glanced at the unassuming mossy Ancient Wooden Black item in Lin Dong's palm along with the fourth-grade elixir. He responded, "It is a mysterious item, so it is fifty Yang Yuan stones."

Immediately removing his left palm, taking out one hundred fifty Yang Yuan stones, and placing them on the stall while standing up and putting away the fourth-grade elixir and the Ancient Wooden Black item in a low-level Qian Kun Bag, Lin Dong turned around and left saying "All right, I will take them."

[So, in the original fanfiction, Lin Dong had paid ten Yang Yuan Dan and fifteen Yang Yuan Stones I think…I tried searching for the difference but was unable to find any with regard to currency. I did find out that the Ancestral stone can refine the Yang Yuan stones and create Yang Yuan pearls removing every impurity and flaw. If this is what he paid with, then I don't think Lin Dong would have paid with those to the stall owner. If I am mistaken, and if anyone knows can you post the currency for this novel here so that I can rectify my mistake and ensure that in the long term it is correct.]

The Qian Kun Bag is made from Qian Kun Wood and a low-level Qian Kun Bag has mystical symbols inscribed on it which are done by a second seal symbol master. This bag can contain an object the size of a desk and still allow its user to easily carry it along. The price of this bag is forty-eight Yang Yuan stones while a mid-level bag is about two thousand Yang Yuan stones. Lin Dong had sneaked into Yan City once to sell diluted ancestral stone spiritual liquid (Ling liquid) to earn Yang Yuan Stone. After the sale, he decided to buy a low-level Qian Kun Bag as well, so he did that day.

[I found out it is called Ling liquid. Here is the information from Fandom: Every five days, a little crevice would be filled with a drop of red liquid. It is extremely rich in Ling Qi. Even greater than that of a normal Grade 3 Elixir. If one was not careful, such a potent Ling Qi may instead do more harm than good. It heals wounds and increases training speed. When reaching Tempered Body 5th Layer, the effects of the diluted Ling liquid from the stone had begun to wear off and was now not as potent as before.]

He wanted to earn many Yang Yuan stones because he was able to refine them with the help of the Ancestral stone to create three no impure or flawed Yang Yuan pearls per Yang Yuan stone which can aid him in his cultivation. So, he would always tell the shopkeeper in Yan City to pay in Yang Yuan stones whenever he visits to sell the Ling liquid. The shopkeeper would feel something is amiss but would dismiss it every time as they were happy to buy the spiritual liquid from the boy.

The stall owner looked at Lin Dong's disappearing back and direction which he disappeared for a long time with his eyebrows furrowed slightly and lips curving down more and more until there was a visible frown on his face. 'I figured the mossy wood item had something to do with seal masters as it had mystical symbols inscribed on it. So, I tried increasing the price from ten to fifty Yang Yuan stones…But now, seeing the kid's actions from beginning to end…Fuu…I was fooled from the beginning…Whatever, I can't do anything about it now that it is done…' Thinking to himself as he reluctantly put the one hundred fifty Yang Yuan stones in his Qian Kun bag.

…

In a remote area on the mountain within the Lin Family territory, a youth is seen skipping happily while laughing on the path toward a remote home. Lin Dong reaches home and immediately goes to his room to examine the Ancient Wooden Black he bought just minutes ago. He takes it out of his Qian Kun bag and examines it with his spiritual power while within his heart many emotions rise. 'I finally got the seal condensing method!! Only by practicing this kind of method will I be able to open my NiWan Palace and condense the native seal symbol thus becoming a first-level seal symbol master…With this, I will be able to truly step into the Symbol Master cultivation system...I will also be able to my spiritual power on a whole new level like attaching symbols to various items or even enhancing the attack power of weapons.'

Cultivation Ranks:

Rank 1: Tempered Body – 9 Stages – (1-9)

Rank 2: Earthly Yuan – 3 Stages – (Early, Middle, Late)

Rank 3: Heavenly Yuan – 3 Stages – (Early, Middle, Late)

Rank 4: Yuan Dan – 3 Stages – (Initial, Advanced, Perfect)

Rank 5:

Rank 6:

Rank 7:

Rank 8:

Rank 9:

Rank 10:

Rank 11: Samsara – 3 Stages – (Ordinary Samsara, Ultimate Samsara, Reincarnation Enlightened Samsara)

Mental Energy Ranks:

Rank 0: Beginning Training – NiWan Palace opened

Rank 1: Seal Symbol Master – 4 Stages – (1st-4th Seal Symbol Master)