[Today was a day of earnestly studying the Fate Calculation Art, but unfortunately without much harvest]

[Extraction obtained: Fate Calculation Art Insight +1]

Perhaps heaven rewards the persistent, or as the old saying goes, sincerity can make metal and stone crack open, or perhaps the cheat is simply this terrifying—Fang Jinyu's Fate Calculation Art finally managed to barely step through the door.

Then, he saw that strand of fate energy belonging to himself.

Thin as a hair, faintly tinged with azure. If one didn't look closely, one might think their eyes were playing tricks.

‘Just this little?’

Although Fang Jinyu couldn't see others' fate energy, he could imagine that he was probably about the same as Passerby A right now.

‘Passerby A... doesn't sound too bad either. Though it's similar to cannon fodder, at least I won't die so quietly and unnoticed.’ Though somewhat disdainful, Fang Jinyu still accepted this fact.

After all, no matter what, he was now much better off than what was described in that book!

These were all results he'd achieved through relentless effort and hard struggle!

Then, Fang Jinyu couldn't wait to test the power of this Fate Calculation Art. Since he'd barely just stepped through the door, Fang Jinyu didn't get any fanciful ideas of heading to some desolate place. Instead, he came to the Yuan City market he'd visited earlier.

Because mortals and cultivators lived together in this city, the market had not only cultivators but also mortals. Most of these mortals had stumbled upon items that seemed like cultivation-related objects but weren't sure, so they simply set up stalls in this market—one spirit stone per item. And spirit stones could be exchanged here for gold.

From the value of spirit stones, this was undoubtedly exploitation and oppression of those mortals, but for the mortals, it was a chance to get rich overnight!

Furthermore, the mortals of Yuan City were mostly quite clear on what cultivators were.

Because having a cultivator appear in the family—while one couldn't say every household in Yuan City had one—the mortals living here could all confidently beat their chests and say they knew so-and-so cultivator, or had once held some cultivator when they were little.

Thus, many mortals understood that Qi Refining cultivators merely mastered some supernatural powers, being only a bit stronger than martial artists. In terms of lifespan, they were no different from mortals. Some mortals skilled in health preservation might even live longer than a Qi Refining cultivator.

Therefore, the mortals of Yuan City held respect for Qi Refining cultivators, but weren't afraid of them either.

For instance, Fang Jinyu had just passed by a household where a fifth-layer Qi Refining cultivator stood rooted at the doorway, being mercilessly scolded by his old mother, head drooping, not daring to talk back. A bunch of people stood around watching, none of them afraid that the fifth-layer Qi Refining cultivator would settle accounts later.

‘As expected, idiot youths like Lu Shaojun are really quite rare.’ Fang Jinyu sighed faintly, then lifted his foot and walked into the inner layer of the market.

The outer layer of the market had mortals, but the inner layer was entirely cultivators—after all, there had to be places to receive Foundation Establishment cultivators.

As for Golden Core great cultivators...

If a cultivator of that realm really came here, they must have water in their brain.

Because the place where Golden Core great cultivators communicated and exchanged items was in the heavens! Once the Golden Core was formed, one could rely on it to open the Heaven's Gate and enter the Small True Realm above the Nine Wastelands.

However, it wasn't possible at all times. Every five years, the Small True Realm would slowly lift its barrier, allowing Golden Core great cultivators to enter.

Five years, for a Golden Core great cultivator with a lifespan of five hundred, was merely the span of a single closed-door cultivation session.

Fang Jinyu was now wandering aimlessly.

Suddenly, he felt some inexplicable sensation. This sensation came abruptly, but strangely, when Fang Jinyu tried to sense it carefully, there was nothing at all.

Still, Fang Jinyu understood that this was probably the sensation from the Fate Calculation Art!

No heart palpitations, so it must be auspicious!

And possibly an opportunity!

Immediately, he circled around the area again.

At first there was nothing, but then very abruptly, that inexplicable sensation appeared once more. This time Fang Jinyu seized the chance, quickly following the sensation.

A moment later, Fang Jinyu stood bewildered before a little girl.

This little girl was equally bewildered.

The two looked at each other, both completely confused.

Was this all the Fate Calculation Art's sensation amounted to?

“Are you my mother?” At that moment, this little girl asked somewhat uncertainly.

Fang Jinyu was silent.

So he crouched down and asked considerately, “Are you blind?”

“Then are you my father?” The little girl adapted readily.

Fang Jinyu fell silent again.

He'd heard of the little tadpole looking for its mother, but a little loli looking for her father... he'd watched a few of those before transmigrating.

“No.” Fang Jinyu shook his head.

“Then who are you?” The little girl glanced at Fang Jinyu with a puzzled little face.

“I am Fang Jinyu, a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Tianling Sect.” Fang Jinyu clasped his fists and introduced himself. Aside from the Fate Calculation Art's sensation, he felt this little girl was somewhat strange.

She didn't seem old, but her eyes were unlike a child's, which should be like stars.

Instead, they were calm like deep pools, yet seemed as though they could see through one's heart.

“I... who am I again?” The little girl wanted to imitate Fang Jinyu and introduce herself, but as soon as she opened her mouth, she froze first.

Then she looked at Fang Jinyu.

“...”

What was she looking at him for? If not for the Fate Calculation Art's sudden sensation, he wouldn't have come over.

“I don't know, Miss, don't look at me.” Fang Jinyu shook his head.

“Oh!”

The little girl nodded, then followed behind Fang Jinyu.

“You want to come with me?” Fang Jinyu couldn't help but ask.

“Are you blind?”

Somehow those words sounded familiar, and Fang Jinyu very much wanted to lash out, but mindful that the Fate Calculation Art wouldn't act without purpose, Fang Jinyu endured it.

“Fine, anyway, the Tianling Sect will be recruiting disciples in a few months. It won't hurt for you to stay for a while.”

Fang Jinyu said this in an offhand manner, then walked out on his own.

This market did have things he wanted to buy, but... his purse was embarrassingly light!

Originally, Fang Jinyu had thought that having over seven thousand spirit stones made him somewhat wealthy. But after asking about the prices of pills for Foundation Establishment cultivators, he realized he was still a pauper.

The most common pill for boosting mana in the early Foundation Establishment stage was called the Spirit-Summoning Pill. A single pill was actually eight hundred spirit stones! Some of the rarer pills were even over a thousand spirit stones each, pricier than a poorer low-grade spirit tool!

The spirit stones on Fang Jinyu couldn't even buy a single bottle of Spirit-Summoning Pills.

However, the effects of Spirit-Summoning Pills were also extremely good. Usually, after finishing three or four bottles, as long as there were no bottlenecks, one would basically reach the third layer of Foundation Establishment.

Of course, the prerequisite was at least triple-attribute spiritual roots.

The better the spiritual root talent, the better the refinement and absorption of the pills.

Thus, Fang Jinyu prepared to return and continue training his alchemy skill, striving to be able to refine pills for Foundation Establishment cultivators himself as soon as possible!