Because of the high-grade spirit pearl assisting, the whole spirit root detection process was very efficient, able to complete a test almost every ten or so seconds.

With only a total of over a thousand children on site, it took just half a day for this grand and imposing spirit root test to draw to a close amidst the crowd’s sighs and exclamations.

In the end, among the thousand-plus children who participated in this testing, only over two hundred were detected to have spirit roots, roughly a one-in-six ratio. They transformed in an instant, becoming the darlings in many people’s eyes.

It should be said that this ratio was already not low, after all, their ancestors all possessed cultivator bloodlines. If this were placed in the mortal world, finding one person who met the cultivation conditions among ten thousand would already be an extremely difficult matter.

And among these two hundred people ultimately detected to have spirit roots, only about a hundred met the Crimson Sun Sect’s disciple recruitment standards.

These people were very fortunate. Li Haichang, on the spot, extended an invitation on behalf of the Crimson Sun Sect for them to join the sect. Facing a personal invitation from a big shot of the cultivation world, these hundred people were extremely excited, and naturally, none refused.

As for those not invited, they wore mournful faces. For their futures… only two paths remained: either join other minor sects or cultivate on their own to become rogue cultivators. They had already fallen a step behind invisibly.

In any case, everyone’s sorrows were not shared; naturally, some rejoiced while others grieved.

But all of this had nothing to do with Bai Sui.

After the test results were announced, Li Haichang and Market Master Song of Jade Pool Market took their leave first due to prior commitments, leaving behind the two disciples responsible for taking these “prospective disciples” back to the Crimson Sun Sect together three days later. During these three days, the children could bid farewell to their families, and after three days they would leave their hometown and join the sect.

With Li Haichang and Market Master Song gone, the atmosphere on site thinned considerably.

The mortals dispersed one after another because the testing had ended, while the cultivators, because the “big shots” had left, became instead even more unrestrained.

For a time, the simple market grew even livelier.

Bai Sui also quickly returned to the valley where the cultivators gathered.

“Boss, what kind of books are you selling here?”

She stopped in front of a stall owner. This stall owner looked to be in his forties, his clothes rather bright and shiny, but the goods he sold were quite ordinary: stacks of printed and bound books. Moreover, these books looked slightly old, as if they were secondhand books bought back.

“Hey there, little girl, you’ve come to browse the market too…”

The stall owner chuckled cheerfully; who would have thought a little girl not even ten years old would wander all the way here.

Haven’t even grown all her hair yet and already thinking about cultivation?

Hearing this, Bai Sui didn’t say anything, just gave a nasal “mm” in response.

The stall owner didn’t mind and tossed a booklet over: “Take a look at this, Chronicles of the Xuanming Continent, recording ten thousand years above, deducing ten thousand years below. If there’s anything unclear, you can find the answer in here. Truly the top choice for newly risen cultivators just starting out and stepping into the path of truth… Oh, right, did you, little fellow Daoist, participate in the test just now? Did you have talent detected?”

Bai Sui glanced at the stall owner and nodded: “Tested. Metal-Fire-Wood Triple Spirit Roots.”

No need for extra words. Seeing that she had not been taken away by the Crimson Sun Sect, the stall owner knew her spirit values were probably not too high. What a pity for triple spirit roots; if the spirit values were higher, it should have been upper-medium talent.

“Then you definitely need to buy this Chronicles of the Xuanming Continent to have a look. Although it’s not a cultivation art, it has records about all aspects of the cultivation world. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call it an encyclopedia.”

The stall owner promoted enthusiastically.

Bai Sui felt somewhat tempted, but she didn’t think much of the stall owner’s exaggerated sales pitch, muttering: “It’s a bit thin.”

“…”

The stall owner froze for a moment, then said awkwardly: “This Chronicles of the Xuanming Continent is indeed, indeed a bit thin. But you should know, thick doesn’t necessarily mean good. Thick ones are mostly filler, too many useless things recorded, too messy, instead unsuitable for those newly entering cultivation. This… ah, in short, condensed is the essence.”

“How much?”

Bai Sui asked directly.

This meant she was going to buy, starting to inquire about the price.

The stall owner was stunned again, not expecting that he had actually succeeded in fooling her: “…Ei-eighty patterned coins.”

Bai Sui: “How about twenty? This booklet is so thin, and the paper quality doesn’t seem very good either. I’m sincere about buying, uncle, don’t try to swindle me.”

Stall owner: “…”

Are kids nowadays all so good at haggling?

“Fine, fine, twenty wen it is, take this booklet.”

“Mm.”

Bai Sui was happy inside. She had casually thrown out a counteroffer just to test the waters, and it actually ended in a deal.

This showed how dark the stall owner’s original asking price was!

One hand paid the money, the other handed over the goods. Bai Sui carefully took out her “purse” from her waist, then fished out twenty “big coins” from it, handing them over to the stall owner with a pained expression.

This purse was not the one holding spirit stones, but one Bai Sui had specially hung on her body to serve as camouflage for the “storage pouch”.

Seeing her reluctant-to-part look, the stall owner’s heart nearly broke.

Was he making too much profit while weeping inside? Should he lower the price further?

No, no! He had bought this item for over ten wen; selling it for only twenty wen was already a conscience price. Any lower and it wouldn’t cover his trouble.

“Little girl, how about looking at some others? I still have books related to cultivation here.”

After the transaction was done, seeing that Bai Sui was still standing in front of the stall and hadn’t left, the stall owner brought out an even thinner book.

Bai Sui fixed her eyes on it: three large gold-stamped characters, hah, Qi Drawing Art. Couldn’t be such a coincidence, right.

“Can I take a look?”

“Go ahead.”

The stall owner didn’t mind at all. This Qi Drawing Art was the most basic cultivation art in the cultivation world, published uniformly by the major sects. Apart from the cost of printing, it wasn’t worth much.

But for newcomers who hadn’t yet begun cultivating, it probably held considerable appeal.

‘You really let me look at it.’

To be able to read it for free without paying, Bai Sui was slightly surprised. But this also indirectly proved that this book was nothing rare! She took the Qi Drawing Art and flipped through it casually, discovering that this Qi Drawing Art and the one Aunt-Master Jiang gave her were indeed… exactly the same!

The difference was that Aunt-Master Jiang’s copy had many notes and insights written in the margins, clearly a photocopy version from the South Dipper Sect. And this one before her, mm? It also had notes, but these notes were written in a sloppy hand, not nearly as graceful and beautiful as the ones Aunt-Master Jiang had given her, clearly the work of a “poor student”.

“Mm… how much is this one?”

She asked while looking.

The stall owner said: “To celebrate you detecting spirit roots, I’ll sell this one to you a little cheaper, also counted as twenty wen.”

‘Sure enough, a common street-sold item!’

Bai Sui understood the price at once; this Qi Drawing Art, in the cultivation world, was apparently as widespread as elementary school textbooks in a nine-year compulsory education system.

“Besides the Qi Drawing Art, uncle, do you have any slightly higher-level cultivation arts?”

Bai Sui put down the thin Qi Drawing Art, her face full of expectation as she asked.

The stall owner frowned and spoke with earnest gravity: “Little girl, you must understand the principle that greed bites off more than one can chew. Seeing that you’re just entering cultivation, it’s better to proceed step by step. The Qi Drawing Art is already enough for you to cultivate. As for higher-level cultivation arts, it won’t be too late to look at them when you reach the middle or late stage of Qi Refining.”

‘Many skills don’t weigh one down.’

Bai Sui smiled at the stall owner and explained: “I know meals must be eaten bite by bite. It’s just that today I rarely run into you, stall owner—honest, kind-hearted, with such a nice voice, one look shows you’re not a bad person. I’m afraid it’ll be hard to meet you again in the future, so I want to take care of your business.”

Hearing this, the stall owner was somewhat shocked that such a young girl could produce such skillful flattery, making one feel so comfortable!

“Alright, alright, this Xuanming Art I’ll give to you as well.” Saying so, he handed another book over to Bai Sui.

“This Xuanming Art is a general cultivation art promulgated by the number one sect of the Xuanming Continent, the ‘Xuanming Sect.’ Cultivators after the middle stage of Qi Refining can cultivate it in combination with the Qi Drawing Art for twice the result with half the effort. Furthermore, it covers all stages before Core Formation, an absolutely sincere and earnest work! The price is cheap, also selling for twenty wen!”

Commonly available “textbooks” were naturally exceptionally cheap, while the exclusive improved arts of the major sects were as precious as a thousand pieces of gold.

A few minutes later, Bai Sui walked away happily, her arms holding several books. Later, she also bought a few defensive spirit talismans from a female cultivator.

She heard the female cultivator say that these spirit talismans were all personally drawn by her, and could defend against a full-power strike from a cultivator at the fourth layer of Qi Refining. One cost over three hundred wen, far more expensive than the books she had bought earlier! Bai Sui thought it over, steeled herself, and bought three, spending another nine hundred wen!

Although she dared not fully believe the female cultivator’s words, she figured that if they could supposedly defend against one strike from a fourth-layer Qi Refining cultivator, then the real effect ought to at least defend against a third-layer one.

Bai Sui followed the crowd to buy three talismans only after seeing other cultivators also buying from her.

She supposed she wouldn’t be the only one cheated if it came to that!

After that, Bai Sui browsed this temporary market for a long time, but never saw anything that satisfied her.

This market was too small, so small that the several spirit stones she had specially brought today didn’t even get the chance to be spent.

Ah!

During this time, she once again ran into that brown-robed male cultivator she had conversed with earlier.

This time the brown-robed cultivator revealed his identity: it turned out his surname was Ge, given name Dan, a rogue cultivator at the fourth layer of Qi Refining. Senior Ge asked about her spirit root test results, and Bai Sui told him she had spirit roots, receiving many blessings from him. When parting, he also gifted her five Marrow Cleansing Pills and three Qi Condensing Pills.

He also said Bai Sui looked very much like his daughter, and told her to cultivate well in the future.

Bai Sui was overwhelmed by the unexpected favor, thinking to herself that she had met a truly great benefactor.

Among people, schemes and conspiracies, those who hit others when they’re down were countless. In social interactions, usually more add flowers to embroidery, while few offer charcoal in the snow. Perhaps only this kind of sincere blessing among “weaklings huddling together” could provide some solace.