Chapter 7: Stalactites

  *no translation available*

  The spiritual energy entered his body, and Su Dong's face changed greatly.

  This feeling was unprecedented, as if a warm current flowed along the meridians and slowly transported it throughout the body, causing Su Dong's body to start heating up slightly.

  "Huh? Is this what they mean by the power of the stars?" Su Dong couldn't help but furrow his brow and let out a soft cry.

  Qimen attaches great importance to spiritual power, but the spiritual power gathered in this way by Suning is very strange, a brand new type that Su Dong has never felt before.

  Su Ning heard the sound and hastily stopped his cultivation, coming to Su Dong's side with concern and asking: "Brother, what's wrong?"

  Su Dong rubbed his chin, curiously asking: "What's with the pose you were just in? I imitated your sitting posture and it felt like a surge of heat was entering my body, it feels really strange."

  "I'm trying to gather some spiritual energy. Once the spiritual energy is gathered, practicing martial arts will be more effective, similar to a warm-up exercise."

  "As for this gesture, it's called the Star Knot, a commonly used seal in martial arts. The effect isn't particularly strong, but brother, you've never practiced martial arts before, how could you possibly gather spiritual energy with just one use of the Star Knot? I'm afraid your body is weak and you're feeling things wrongly?"

  Su Dong shook his head and said: "I'm not clear either, in short, I learned from your appearance to do it, and I felt a warmth all over my body."

  "Or I'll teach you the technique of Star Knot, and then you try again?"

  Su Dong did not object, so Su Ning started from the oral formula and explained the key to the star knot one by one. Su Dong was not stupid and mastered the key to the star knot before noon.

  After lunch, Suning suggested teaching Su Dong all the things he had learned in the martial arts hall, and letting him practice with himself to strengthen his muscles and bones.

  Su Dong thought for a moment and refused his brother's kindness. He still had more important things to do, that is, to cultivate the Qimen Dunjia! Strive to open the Longjia Eight Gates as soon as possible, and rush towards the Shenzhang Jiugong.

  Ever since Su Dong saw the Nine Palaces Inverse Killing Formation arranged with stars as its instruments, he was shocked and amazed! He vowed that in this life, he must figure out who set up the formation and where the giant dragon came from.

  Besides, Qimen's inheritance is vast and profound. Practicing Su Dong's Dragon Armor Eight Gates can strengthen tendons and bones, with an effect that is in no way inferior to practicing martial arts.

  "Brother, you don't have to practice martial arts, I'm here! I'm strong and tall! If anyone bullies us brothers, I'll take care of it!" Su Dong said with a clenched fist.

  Su Dong was very pleased, "Alright, it's settled then. When I go into seclusion to cultivate later on, you can take my place and guard the pass."

  ……

  Before she knew it, ten days had passed. Su Qiyan urged Su Dong to go to the study with her to read and write, but Su Dong didn't like school in either of his past lives or this one, so he made an excuse that his body hadn't recovered yet and refused.

  Su Ning practiced martial arts, and Su Dongxiu repaired his Dragon Armor Eight Gates. However, Su Dong found that the Star Knots taught by Su Ning had a special effect when used, filling his body with warmth. So he set aside some time every day to use the Star Knots to gather spiritual energy.

  That morning, the two brothers got up from bed and had breakfast together. They then headed to the city center. Yesterday, their father Su Qi Nian had just received his wages. Su Qi Nian was a man who didn't care much about money. He remembered that Su Dong said he needed some money, so he directly gave Su Dong eighteen taels of silver, and only kept two taels for himself to tie around his waist.

  Su Dong wants silver not for eating, drinking and having fun, but for something extremely important - a magic weapon!

  The Feng Shui of Su's small courtyard cannot be fixed without the use of magical tools, and only by using these tools can we prevent incidents like what happened to He's family from happening again.

  Hansheng City is located in a valley, surrounded by green mountains on all sides. It is the only large city within a radius of 200 miles. The mountain people who want to buy cloth or sell grain must come to Hansheng City, so the streets are quite prosperous and crowded with people.

  The most prosperous street is called Xuanwu Avenue, and antique shops are also concentrated here.

  Unfortunately, whether it's the earth or another world, swindlers have their own characteristics of being unscrupulous in business. Su Dong had high requirements for artifacts, and many things couldn't enter his eyes. Those that could catch his eye were too expensive, and he couldn't afford them.

  After leaving Xuanwu Avenue, the street suddenly became much quieter. Suning pointed to a magnificent courtyard in the distance and exclaimed excitedly: "Brother, that's the Tianxing Martial Arts Academy! In a few days, I'll be taking the entrance exam. If I can get in, not only won't I have to pay tuition, but I'll also receive five taels of silver every month!"

  Su Ning's head was simple, thinking that five taels of silver were already very impressive. Su Dong admired his brother's simplicity and curiously asked: "Is this martial arts hall very powerful? Not only does it not collect silver, but also gives out silver?"

  Su Ning nodded heavily: "Very impressive! The Tianxing Martial Arts Academy is one of the top in the entire Holy Star Empire! Their main hall is in the Imperial Capital, and this is just a branch. I heard from the instructor that they didn't even plan to make money by opening a martial arts academy in Hansheng City, but rather to recruit talents from Hansheng City."

  "As long as you enter the Tianxing Martial Arts Hall, you will have the opportunity to enter the Imperial City in the future and become a true warrior!"

  Su Dong nodded slightly and said, "Oh, I see. After all, Hansheng City is the only large city within a radius of 200 miles, with a population of over two million. As long as we can select a few geniuses from these two million people, this price is indeed negligible."

  ……

  The two brothers went from morning till afternoon and arrived at a place called Shi Liao Street.

  Both sides are businesses selling stone materials. In addition to stones used for construction, there are also good-looking marbles, granites, and uniquely-shaped rocks that can be used as decorative items at home.

  Stones are things that come out of the ground. If the storage location is rich in various energies, they can also be used as substitutes for ritual instruments.

  The stone street is not long, and soon it came to an end. Turning around the corner, there were a few scattered stalls, all selling strange stones. During the slack season, they ran to the mountain to find some good-looking stones, exchanged for some pocket money, and also became a way of living for the villagers.

  A short and stout man who seemed to be a foreign mountain dweller was ostracized, driven into a corner, alone.

  Su Dong walked up to this person and stopped naturally in his tracks.

  This sturdy fellow sells a rare commodity, stalactites!

  These several pieces of agate are crystal clear and translucent, with a rounded shape, like bamboo shoots. The surface is flawless, looking exceptionally bright.

  Especially that dazzling white, like sheep fat jade, belongs to the middle and upper grade of stalactite.

  Born underground, accompanied by groundwater for tens of thousands of years, this piece of stalactite has long been nourished and penetrated by water.

  Feng Shui Array emphasizes four words: Wind generates water!

  Air needs to flow, and water quality can't be lacking in the process. Humans can survive for a week without eating, but they can't last three days without drinking water, which proves that water is the most nourishing substance for the human body.

  Those wealthy families often build fountains at home, and if not, they will also place aquariums, precisely because in Feng Shui, water is not only the source of nourishment for life, but also a good omen for accumulating wealth.

  "Top-grade clockwork is not a real treasure, it can only be considered as a substitute for a real treasure, barely usable." Su Dong thought to himself.

  Xu Dong seemed to have a liking for these stones, so the man carefully accompanied by a smile said: "I crawled along the dark cave for a long time before finding these good-looking ones. If you like them, young master, just buy them, five taels of silver will do."

  Su Dong nodded, with no money on hand, it's probably very difficult to find a suitable magic tool, using these few pieces of clock milk stone temporarily to hold on for now, and wait until later when there is a suitable magic tool to replace it, this is also a solution.

  "Where did the stone come from?" Su Dong asked.

  He pointed to the highest five-peak mountain road in the north of Hansheng City: "I cultivate land on Wufeng Mountain, and when I'm hungry, I go up the mountain to hunt for some wild game. People say that good-looking stones can be sold for money, so I went up the mountain to find them."

  "These few pieces of stone were hidden so deeply, I crawled along the mountain cave for nearly ten miles, and the torches were almost extinguished before I saw these white stones. Six pieces of stone surrounded a circle, with an even whiter recess below. I was afraid to ruin this good stone, so I went in and out of the cave no less than a dozen times before finally knocking down the intact stone."

  "Is life just six blocks, forming a circle? This is strange, it seems like I've heard something similar before." Su Dong thought to himself after hearing these words.

  Su Ning gave the man five taels of silver, enough for a city dweller to eat for three months, but in the hands of such a frugal farmer, it could be used for half a year, which made the man extremely happy.

  They walked in silence and before they knew it, they had arrived at the Su's residence.

  "Brother, what should we do with these stones?" Su Ning asked carefully as he put down his bundle.

  Su Dong thought for a moment, then selected four of the six pure white stalactites and said to Su Ning: "Dig a 0.5-meter-deep hole in each of the four corners of the yard, fill them with well water, and I'll take care of the rest."

  "Right, these two are temporarily unused, just find a copper basin to fill with water and put it in a shaded place to nourish them. Don't let them see the sunlight, ventilation is okay."

  Digging a hole is something that Su Ning can do, but arranging it is a technical task. The position and timing have to be just right, or the feng shui of the small courtyard that Su Dong has worked hard to establish will be greatly affected, so Su Dong must take care of it personally.

  Su Dong was about to change into a set of work clothes when he heard a loud crash from outside, followed by Su Ning's cry of surprise.

  P.S: There is still one more chapter at midnight tonight.