After resolving the issue with the little stone spirit, Qi Ping placed it into his spirit beast pouch.
Although having a cute little stone spirit perched on his shoulder was rather fun, creatures like stone spirits are far more coveted in the cultivation world than Confusing Immortal Foxes or Hundred-Pupil Flower Fairies, making them extremely dangerous to expose.
Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, the existence of the little stone spirit must never be revealed.
This place wasn’t safe for making a contract either. Since the contracting process might take a long time, it would be better to return to his territory and do it there.
After that, Qi Ping continued following the simulated route to the address Old Man Zhou had given him.
Along the way, Qi Ping pondered the items he had discovered in the three people’s storage pouches.
First, the spirit stones found on them were few, totaling just over thirteen thousand – much less than what he’d found on the Foundation Establishment cultivators who had previously ambushed Meng Yan.
Their weapons, elixirs, and spiritual herbs were all within a normal range, neither too much nor too little.
Qi Ping didn’t pay this much mind; he never expected to gain wealth through murder and robbery anyway.
What truly surprised Qi Ping was finding beast taming methods and related books and materials on the young Qi Refining stage man.
This was exactly what he needed!
Moreover, these items seemed to originate from a large sect, as his storage pouch also contained a token engraved with “Xuan Tian Beast Sect.”
So Qi Ping deduced that this beast taming knowledge came from the mysterious Xuan Tian Beast Sect. It appeared to be a relatively good beast taming sect, so their related knowledge and methods should be quite valuable.
Besides these, Qi Ping also acquired two complete Foundation Establishment spells: one called “Spiritual Void Sword Finger” and another called “Earth Sink Technique.”
These two Foundation Establishment spells pleasantly surprised Qi Ping as well.
The only Foundation Establishment technique he currently possessed was the “Golden Flame诀,” so finally having other Foundation Establishment level spells was a boon.
Most importantly, this sparked a new idea in Qi Ping’s mind.
“Could I try to create my own techniques?”
“By collecting and comprehending enough techniques and spells, I could create the ones most suitable for me.”
The reason this idea occurred to Qi Ping was his growing realization of how rare techniques were, especially powerful ones.
Not to mention Qi Ping, even Meng Yan, to obtain the core Golden Core level techniques within his sect, had to make multiple strict Heavenly Dao vows, facing severe restrictions, and certainly couldn’t pass them on to others.
Although large commercial guilds in the core cities of several nearby major regions sold Golden Core level techniques, the prices were exorbitant, the techniques themselves weren’t strong, and some even had significant flaws.
The monopoly on core techniques by major powers in the cultivation world is extremely severe, with only a handful of channels to purchase them.
Qi Ping had also been troubled lately about how to find a safe way to acquire techniques.
Finding a suitable and powerful technique tailored to oneself is truly too difficult!
But just after Qi Ping tested the power of his modified Explosive Fireball and acquired the two Foundation Establishment spells, a thought suddenly struck him:
Why couldn’t he create spells perfectly suited to himself?
Just like he improved the Explosive Fireball spell.
The reason he successfully modified the Explosive Fireball spell was due to a combination of factors: sufficient fire attribute talent + comprehension of the True Meaning of Fire + a powerful soul + the Druid’s [Heart of Nature] talent, plus his familiarity with the original spell.
So why couldn’t he replicate this model for other spells and techniques?
If his comprehension wasn’t enough, he could continue contracting animal companions with comprehension talents. Now with a lifespan of five hundred years, by spending a few decades, Qi Ping could absolutely elevate his comprehension talent to an immensely powerful level!
If his foundational understanding of spells was insufficient, he could acquire more technique and spell knowledge!
While secret, hereditary techniques and spells were hard to find, as long as he had enough spirit stones, he could definitely purchase plenty of ordinary spell knowledge and techniques.
With sufficient inherent talent and comprehension, by leveraging the principles and ideas from numerous spells, combined with his own innate conditions, he could create the most suitable techniques and spells for himself!
“Exactly! This path is completely feasible!”
“Even for Golden Core level techniques, I could create the core condensation part based on other techniques, and gradually refine it later…”
The more Qi Ping thought about it, the more promising it seemed!
In the earliest state of the cultivation world, no techniques existed originally; techniques were created to popularize cultivation.
In a sense, the earliest cultivators were the true seekers of the Dao!
Can those who merely follow techniques step by step, unable to cultivate without them, truly be considered seekers of the Dao?
“Besides, I don’t need to create something from nothing. Common techniques, spells, and knowledge aren’t hard for me to obtain; by learning these techniques and basing it on my talent foundation, the possibility of creating suitable techniques is high.”
“Even if there are some minor flaws, I can continuously gain insights and perfect them during the cultivation process…”
“Like this, as long as I succeed in creation, the techniques of the cultivation world will no longer be a limitation for me! I won’t need to join a sect and make various strict vows, nor will I need to cultivate those flawed techniques.”
After thorough consideration, Qi Ping felt this direction was highly feasible.
If this attempt succeeded, he wouldn’t just be able to cultivate the technique most suitable for himself, but also smoothly bypass the severe technique monopoly in the cultivation world.
“For my next animal companion contracts, I’ll still focus on soul comprehension and the five elements talents. At most, within two hundred years, I can complete the accumulation of talents. If things go quickly, perhaps a few decades might be enough…”
And since progressing from early Foundation Establishment to late Foundation Establishment takes at least several decades, Qi Ping wasn’t in a hurry about this either.
If the path of creating techniques failed, he could still buy a Golden Core technique when he reached the perfection stage of Foundation Establishment, it wouldn’t be too late!
After all, soul comprehension and the five elements talents were essential for Qi Ping regardless; he wouldn’t lose out either way.
But of course, if there were other particularly rare animal spirit beasts, Qi Ping naturally wouldn’t pass them up either.
After clarifying his future path, Qi Ping felt an immense sense of relief.
The breath of freedom!
If successful, he could break free from the insurmountable mountain of technique monopoly.
Moreover, if every step of the way, his techniques were created by himself, even upon reaching the limits of the cultivation world, Qi Ping could attempt, on his own, to take that unprecedented step towards immortality!
“Perhaps this is what a true cultivator is…”
Just as Qi Ping finished contemplating the path of creating techniques, he coincidentally arrived at the address Old Man Zhou had given him.
“Yunzhou County, Sanjiang Village”
This was a relatively primitive farming village.
It was now evening, and wisps of cooking smoke were rising from the various farmhouses.
After some effort, Qi Ping avoided everyone and arrived in front of Old Man Zhou’s house…
