"Brother Bingzhi asked me to remind you that cultivating the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique will be quite painful. This soul technique has been shelved for a long time, and few are willing to practice it."

Shouhou looked at Jia Ren, his eyes full of fear, carefully handing two Jade Slips to him.

Jia Ren's gaze seemed to penetrate Shouhou as he asked indifferently, "Weren't you interrogated?"

"I dared not reveal anything about what happened at Grand Wilderness Mountain to anyone, not even Brother Bingzhi."

"Fang Zhenchuan acted on a sudden whim, so there was no guarantee we would actually bring out Foundation Establishment Pills. I haven't disclosed this to any outsiders."

"After Fang Zhenchuan's death, the Foundation Establishment Ancestor of the Five Elements Sect was furious. He sent out many Five Elements Sect Disciples to search, but nothing has been found to this day."

"You've done a good job. This is your reward."

Jia Ren tossed three bottles of Spirit Enhancement Pills his way.

The quality of these three bottles of Spirit Enhancement Pills was not high; they were early attempts from his initial Alchemy practice and had excessive medicinal toxicity. He wouldn't consume them himself.

Selling them would be time-consuming and troublesome, and there was also the risk of being identified as an Alchemist and drawing unwanted attention.

After the stick, there must be a carrot. Using them as a reward was still a decent choice.

"I dare not..."

"Take them!"

After giving away the Elixirs, Jia Ren held the two Jade Slips, his heart surging with excitement.

Spirit Nourishing Pills and the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique?

The Spirit Nourishing Pills were self-explanatory; not only were they effective for Spirit Insects, but they also had beneficial effects when fed to Spirit Beasts.

To quickly enhance the strength of Spirit Insects and achieve King Insect Fusion rapidly, Spirit Nourishing Pills were indispensable.

Moreover, Spirit Nourishing Pills could also be used to research the Spirit Attracting Bait for inducing bloodline reversion in Spirit Insects. If successfully created, this new bait would be even more helpful than Spirit Fish.

Improving Elixirs isn't something that can be accomplished quickly. Jia Ren turned his attention to the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique.

The Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique is a legacy of the Utensil Sect, somehow obtained by the Five Elements Sect.

This soul technique was not an inherent legacy of the Utensil Sect. Instead, it had been acquired from the Divine Machines Sect, a sect adept at refining Mechanism Puppets that had perished over a thousand years ago.

The Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique could transform one into a puppet master, capable of splitting their Divine Soul to resemble a spider's web, thereby precisely manipulating each puppet.

Using this technique to control insects would undoubtedly elevate my control over Spirit Insects significantly.

Applied to an Insect External Incarnation, it should also yield remarkable control effects.

Regrettably, the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique is severely incomplete, with only two levels available.

To obtain the subsequent Cultivation Technique sections, I'll likely need to deal with the Utensil Sect.

I'll test the effects first. If they're good, then I can plan for the subsequent parts of the technique.

Jia Ren read through the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique meticulously, ensuring he missed no information recorded within, until he was certain he could recite it backward and forward. Only then did he raise his hand and destroy the Jade Slip it was recorded on.

From time to time, pained sounds emanated from the seclusion chamber; cultivating the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique was no easy feat.

The first step was to reshape one's entire Divine Soul into a special, web-like structure, forming a unique and distinct soul power configuration.

It was a painful process, one that ordinary people could hardly endure.

Not long into his cultivation, Jia Ren's forehead throbbed with bulging veins, and his head was covered in beads of sweat as large as beans.

Only after ingesting several pain-alleviating Elixirs did he manage to endure it.

An hour later, Jia Ren opened his eyes, his face etched with fatigue.

Only then did he truly understand why so few within the Five Elements Sect cultivated the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique.

The cultivation was excruciatingly painful, and progress was incredibly slow.

Jia Ren, possessing a Proficiency Panel, could directly observe his improvements and progress.

Ordinary Cultivators, lacking talent, would only feel the pain, their progress almost negligible.

The Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique was an incomplete version with too many flaws, so few could persist in its cultivation.

After cultivating the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique, Jia Ren was not in good spirits. He had no plans to continue cultivating it for the time being, so he closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

He didn't know how many hours he had slept; it was one of the rare occasions he had actually slept since entering the cultivation world.

Normally, he would replace sleep with meditation and cultivation, ensuring his practice continued unceasingly day and night.

When he awoke, his fatigue was gone, and his lethargic state had been completely swept away.

He felt rejuvenated, better than ever before.

My soul power has slightly increased; the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique is indeed quite good.

Using Neishi to look into his Soul Sea, he saw that his Divine Soul had formed a single segment of a net-like structure—the result of the previous day's efforts.

Jia Ren wasn't in a rush to continue cultivating the Thousand Threads of Myriad Souls Technique. After practicing the soul technique, his mental state was poor, which would affect his regular cultivation and his progress in increasing Spell Proficiency Levels.

He took out the formula for the Spirit Nourishing Pill and inspected it closely.

The Spirit Nourishing Pill had two versions. One was called Spirit Nourishing Pill (Insect), specifically supplied to the Insect Tamer Masters of Thousand Beasts Mountain.

The Spirit Nourishing Pills Jia Ren had obtained from Senior Brother Mosquito Daoist were this insect version, optimal for enhancing the growth of Spirit Insects.

The second version was Spirit Nourishing Pill (Beast), supplied to the beast tamers of Thousand Beasts Mountain and mainly used to promote the growth of Spirit Beasts.

While both were called Spirit Nourishing Pills, their effects were vastly different, with completely unrelated formulas.

Jia Ren put the Spirit Nourishing Pill (Beast) aside for now, as he had no Spirit Beasts to tame and thus no immediate use for it.

He focused mainly on the Spirit Nourishing Pill (Insect).

It's time to go shopping again!

Jia Ren noted the required materials, left his residence, and headed straight for the Market.

The Market had grown even more deserted, with no signs of its former liveliness returning.

The surviving Loose Cultivators were either helping the Heavenly Sword Sect and Yuding Sect build their Sect strongholds or had gone to work as miners.

The number of Cultivators venturing into the Great Wilderness to gather herbs or hunt Magical Beasts had decreased.

A clear sign of this was the complete absence of butchers... not a single one was present.

There were fewer than thirty stalls. Most of them sold finished goods like Magical Artifacts, Elixirs, and Talismans, while the availability of Spiritual Medicine, Demonic Beast Materials, and Ore Stones had severely dwindled.

The current situation was unstable, and war could break out again at any moment.

Unlike the Five Elements Sect, the Heavenly Sword Sect had not brought in Loose Cultivators from other regions via Flying Boats, so the Market's popularity showed no signs of recovering anytime soon.

I can only try the shops.

The shops within the Market were also relatively deserted, with few even open for business.

"Fellow Daoist, I'm terribly sorry, but all our Spiritual Medicine has been sold out."

"The merchant caravan we cooperate with has been delayed in delivering Spiritual Medicine."

Jia Ren visited several Spiritual Medicine shops, his expression growing increasingly grim. There was no stock; no Spiritual Medicine to be found!

The Great Wilderness Market had several sources for Spiritual Medicine. One was families like the Ming Family, who cultivated and sold fast-maturing Spiritual Medicine.

Another was Loose Cultivators who ventured into the Great Wilderness, a land abundant in natural treasures and thus many Spiritual Medicines; shops often had cooperative herb-gathering teams, ensuring a relatively stable supply.

The third source was merchant caravans that purchased Spiritual Medicine from other markets or families and transported it to the Great Wilderness Market.

The ongoing conflict among the various Sects had led to families like the Ming Family either being implicated and annihilated or relocating entirely to escape the volatile region.

The number of Loose Cultivators had dwindled, and many of those remaining had been hired at high prices for mining or construction, further reducing the supply of Spiritual Medicine.

Apart from a few daring merchant caravans that disregarded the danger, most would steer clear of war zones.

Consequently, it had been a long time since any merchant caravans had passed through the Great Wilderness.

While the Sects still had special channels to obtain Spiritual Medicine, Loose Cultivators were not so fortunate.

Jia Ren looked on helplessly, his gaze drifting towards the few remaining established shops, such as Tianbao Shop.

"Fellow Daoist, are you looking to buy Spiritual Medicine?"

Just as he was hesitating about whether to go to Tianbao Shop, a furtive voice sounded from behind him.

Jia Ren turned his head to see the portly Wang Fugui standing behind him, an air of mystery about him.

Wang Fugui couldn't possibly know that Jia Ren was actually Zhen Yi, with whom he had interacted before. He sidled closer and whispered, "I know of a secret shop with a good selection of quality goods."

"Fellow Daoist, are you interested?"

A secret shop?

Jia Ren had heard of secret shops but had never had the chance to visit one.

The items sold in such secret shops varied widely, and many were things forbidden by the Sects.

Occasionally, high-quality items could be found in these secret shops, but their true value depended entirely on one's own judgment.

"Then I'll trouble you, Fellow Daoist."

Jia Ren followed Wang Fugui into Smoky Willow Lane, eventually arriving before a courtyard with a tightly closed gate.

Wang Fugui walked up to the courtyard gate and knocked.

"Wang Po."

After a moment, an elderly woman opened the door. She glanced at Wang Fugui, and her wary expression eased slightly.

"Bringing a new one, are we?"

"Here's five percent of the Spirit Stones spent by the Cultivator you brought last time."

Wang Po took out a pouch and tossed it to Wang Fugui.

Wang Fugui happily accepted the bag and said with a smile, "Rest assured, it's safe inside the secret shop. For a secret shop to stay in business, its reputation is paramount."

"Fellow Daoist, I feel we hit it off right away. How about I sell you this mask for just thirty Spirit Stones?"

Jia Ren glanced at the mask but didn't reach for it.

He took out a Profound Iron Mask he already possessed and put it on.

This Low-Quality Magical Artifact, of unknown origin, could block spiritual sense detection.

Without having mastered a disguise-related secret technique, this was a decent alternative.

"Fellow Daoist, be careful not to show compassion too readily inside the secret shop," Wang Fugui transmitted via voice projection, then hastily cupped his hands and departed.

"First time here, Fellow Daoist? Follow me!"

Jia Ren followed. As he did, Spirit Insects silently emerged from his Spirit Beast Bag and gradually covered his body in a layer of black Bug Armor.

Compared to a Spirit Shield, the Spiritual Power Fluctuations from the Insect Armor Technique were almost nonexistent, making it far more concealable.

His preparations complete, he followed Wang Po into the house and down a winding subterranean passage. At the end, he saw a spacious platform upon which many items were displayed.

Dozens of Cultivators were gathered around the platform, their eyes blazing with desire.

"A beautiful female Cultivator, still a virgin, at the second level of Qi Refinement! Her Divine Soul is bound by a restriction. Whoever holds this Token can control her life and death. She is an excellent cultivation cauldron, ready for your pleasure, to do with as you please!"

"Even if you don't have a dual cultivation secret technique, the secret shop has plenty for you to choose from!"

A female Cultivator dressed in flimsy gauze shivered. The thin fabric did little to conceal her exquisite figure or her private areas.

The Black Command Token seemed to be her death warrant; her life and death rested entirely on the holder's whim.

Auctioning a female Cultivator? As a cauldron?

The female Cultivator was clearly not there willingly; a Soul Binding Restriction had been forcefully placed upon her, and she had been brought to the secret shop for sale.

"Two hundred Spirit Stones! Are any Fellow Daoists interested?"

"Two hundred thirty Spirit Stones."

The crowd below eagerly bid, and she was ultimately sold for two hundred eighty Spirit Stones.

Jia Ren watched silently, not uttering a word, his eyes gradually turning colder.

In the end, he did nothing, merely observing quietly.

The second item auctioned was a Zihedian Blood Soul Pill, a special demonic Elixir with the miraculous effect of helping to break through cultivation bottlenecks. The drawback was that after consuming it, regardless of whether a breakthrough was achieved, one's Cultivation Level would be permanently stunted, unable to advance even an inch.

Despite this significant drawback, the Elixir still garnered enthusiastic bids from many.

"Fellow Daoist, what might you be looking to purchase?" a heavily made-up female Cultivator cooed as she approached him.

Jia Ren subtly sidestepped her and stated coolly, "Spiritual Medicine. The higher the quality, the better."

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