Cultivation Begins with Daily Intelligence Reports

166: Li DaduoOne thousand six hundred and twenty pieces. After confirming the amount, the Attendant smiled and gently pushed the miniature ’Azure Spirit Gathering Formation’ Formation Plate forward.

It slowly floated in front of Lin Jingyu.

Lin Jingyu cautiously extended both hands, receiving it as if holding a rare treasure.

It felt slightly heavy in his hands. The intricate runes and flowing spiritual light on the Formation Plate and Formation Flag, now up close, appeared even more extraordinary.

He immediately took out a jade box he had prepared earlier, which was engraved with stabilizing runes inside.

He carefully placed this valuable miniature Formation into it, then solemnly put it into the most secure spot in his Storage Pouch.

After doing all this, Lin Jingyu finally breathed a sigh of relief, but the heavy pressure in his heart hadn’t lessened much.

He composed himself and took out the Jade Slip containing the Spirit Awakening Formation diagram that Yun Momo had given him from his Storage Pouch. He handed it to the Attendant with both hands, trying to keep his voice steady:

”Fellow Daoist, if I wish to commission a Formation Master from your esteemed Pavilion to refine a Spirit Awakening Formation according to this diagram, how many Spirit Stones would it cost?”

He felt uneasy, knowing this would be the real major expense.

The young Attendant took the Jade Slip with both hands, his demeanor still respectful and professional.

He placed the Jade Slip against his forehead, closed his eyes in concentration, and probed it with his Divine Sense to examine it carefully.

A moment later, he opened his eyes, returned the Jade Slip with both hands, and with a practiced smile, spoke clearly:

”Esteemed guest, this Formation is called the ’Minor Heaven Spirit Awakening Formation.’ Its grade is first-tier Medium Grade, and it belongs to a small, special auxiliary Formation. The refining difficulty is medium to high.”

He analyzed it clearly and logically:

”The key to this Formation lies in the drawing of the Formation patterns and the precise embedding of the spiritual conduits, which requires considerable Mental Energy and profound attainment in the Dao of Formations.

According to the Formation diagram’s requirements, ’Star Condensing Sand,’ ’Essence Gathering Spirit Ink,’ and ’Azure Void Stone’ must be used as the core carriers and Formation bases, supplemented by ’Spirit Guiding Gold Thread’ to outline the Formation patterns...”

The Attendant rattled off a string of Material names Lin Jingyu had never heard of, making Lin Jingyu’s heart pound. These names sounded expensive.

”Our Tianfa Pavilion’s Formation Masters charge a ’commission fee’ based on difficulty and their own grade.”

The Attendant changed the subject, getting to the core point.

”Today, the Great Master Chunyu Xian is presiding over our Pavilion, responsible for accepting custom Formation commissions. Great Master Chunyu Xian is a first-tier High Grade Formation Master, with profound attainments, and enjoys a high reputation in the Southeast Market Town.”

He paused, looked into Lin Jingyu’s eyes, and then stated a number that made Lin Jingyu’s heart tremble again:

”If you wish to commission Great Master Chunyu Xian to refine this Formation, the commission fee will be one thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones. In addition, the cost of the main Materials required for refining will be calculated separately.”

Just the commission fee alone was one thousand Spirit Stones!

The Material costs would likely be even higher.

Lin Jingyu felt a bit dizzy. He secretly gritted his teeth; adding the money for Materials and potential subsequent expenses... the ’huge sum’ he had acquired from the Liu Family and Black Wind Stockade was about to be more than halved in an instant!

The immense pressure made him instinctively want to find ways to save money.

He frowned and tentatively asked, ”Fellow Daoist, since refining this Formation is only Medium Grade, I wonder if your esteemed Pavilion has... a first-tier Medium Grade Formation Master who can undertake this task?

If a Medium Grade Formation Master were to undertake it, would the commission fee...?”

He chose his words carefully, his meaning clear: he wanted to find a cheaper option.

The Attendant still wore his professional smile, about to answer.

Suddenly, a sharp, scathing, and utterly undisguised contemptuous and mocking female voice, like a poisoned silver needle, abruptly pierced through from not far behind Lin Jingyu:

”Hah! Tsk tsk tsk... Can’t even afford a thousand Spirit Stones for a commission fee, yet you’re pretending to come to Tianfa Pavilion to customize a Formation?

It’s truly laughable! Don’t you even look at where this is? Is this a place where paupers like you can just waltz in?”

The voice was sharp and cutting, like fingernails scraping across glazed pottery, instantly shattering the grand and low hum of the Formation within Tianfa Pavilion, and also piercing Lin Jingyu’s heartstrings, which were taut from the enormous expense.

Accompanying this undisguised mockery, an extremely strong, almost suffocating scent of cosmetics mixed with the cloying sweetness of some spiritual flower.

It swept over like a tide, instantly diluting the pure Formation energy aura that originally filled the Pavilion.

Lin Jingyu frowned and turned around.

He saw a female Cultivator dressed in a vibrant red palace gown, adorned with extreme flamboyance, swaying her slender waist as she walked towards the counter.

Her Dharma Robe shimmered with brilliant light, studded with tiny gems, sparkling under the illumination of the Formation’s starlight, making her look like a human spotlight.

Her hair was styled in a high bun, adorned with several trembling golden hairpins and spiritual jade hairpins, jingling with her every step.

Her face was exquisitely made up, like a mask, and her exaggeratedly upturned eyes were now slanted at Lin Jingyu, filled with undisguised disdain and mockery.

Behind her, a young female Cultivator in a goose-yellow dress followed closely. Her appearance was delicate, but she now kept her head bowed, her eyes darting nervously, especially when meeting the gazes of Qin Yue and Yun Momo, wishing she could bury her head in her chest, appearing extremely flustered.

The red-clad female Cultivator’s gaze merely flickered dismissively over Lin Jingyu, as if he were dust on the roadside, then, like a precise poisoned arrow, it locked firmly onto Qin Yue.

She exaggeratedly covered her mouth with fingers painted with bright red nail polish, letting out a series of affected fake laughs:

”Oh my! Who do we have here? Isn’t this our renowned First Manager Qin of Miaoling Pavilion?”

She drew out her words, her voice sickeningly sweet, yet her eyes were like poisoned daggers: ”What? Not presiding over your magnificent Miaoling Pavilion, waiting for customers to flock in, but instead running off to this Tianfa Pavilion to... hmm? Are you here to relax, or to... ’observe and learn’?”

She deliberately paused, then suddenly slapped her smooth forehead, her exaggerated golden hairpins shaking wildly, her face plastered with false surprise and schadenfreude:

”Oh dear! Look at my memory! I almost forgot!”

Your Miaoling Pavilion now... tsk tsk tsk, it’s so deserted that even rats probably don’t want to visit, right? And ’customers flocking in’?!

First Manager Qin, are you... unable to sit on that cold bench any longer, and came out for some fresh air? Hahaha...”

The harsh laughter echoed through the spacious and solemn hall of Tianfa Pavilion, sounding particularly jarring and out of place. The scattered Cultivators who were selecting Formations also cast curious or spectating glances.

Qin Yue’s face instantly darkened again, as if covered with a layer of frost.

She looked at the heavily made-up woman before her, who resembled a preening peacock, and a cold flicker of disgust flashed in her eyes.

”Li Duoduo.” Qin Yue’s voice was not loud, yet it was like ice beads striking a jade plate, crisp and carrying a biting chill.

”Where I am and what I do is none of your business.” She deliberately articulated the three characters ’Li Duoduo’ clearly, as if reminding the other party of something.