“How is it?” Li Che asked.
“I’m afraid this Stardust Stone won’t be enough,” Meng Qi replied, flipping her hand to reveal her own piece of Stardust Stone. It was only slightly larger than a fist, glowing with a faint starlight. Compared to the Stardust Stones at the bottom of the nearby stream, hers seemed rather dim. The stones in the streambed, under the clear, constantly flowing water, glimmered like fragments of gold, resembling a river of endless stars.
“So we need more Stardust Stones?” Li Che’s tone became calm, “Then we have to get them from there.” He turned to look at the Nether River, trying his best to recall any legends and records about it.
“Meng Qiqi,” Li Che’s gaze shifted from the water to Meng Qi’s face, “Now we have a question: which should we use first, the Stardust Stone or the Netherworld Thorn?”
“Let’s first discuss how to treat a damaged inner core,” Meng Qi replied. She cautiously looked around before sitting cross-legged. The area was filled with spiritual flowers and herbs; if she was not careful, she might crush a precious plant that had gone extinct in Three Thousand Worlds.
“Alright,” Li Che checked the surroundings as well, then found a place to sit cross-legged. He took out a bamboo slip, tossed it into the air, and sent a stream of aura into it.
Meng Qi did the same, allowing them both to write on the bamboo slips and see each other’s writings.
“My master mentioned that repairing a cultivator’s spiritual sea and inner core requires Stardust Stone. Repairing the spiritual sea is slightly easier. Stardust Stone, Spirit Devouring Grass, Everday Fruit, Five Spirit Flower, and Supreme Profound Wood, refined using cold spring dew into Starlight, can be placed into the spiritual sea. Even without a medical cultivator’s help, the Starlight can slowly repair the spiritual sea,” Li Che explained.
“These items are rare, but they can still be found in the Three Realms. Except for Supreme Profound Wood, which is unique to the Starfallen Sea, the other three ingredients can be found in the Three Thousand Worlds. The Southern Realm has Everday Fruit and Five Spirit Flower.”
“But if the inner core is damaged, the cultivator’s foundation is usually harmed. Starlight cannot repair a damaged inner core; only the Netherworld Thorn can regenerate it,” Li Che continued. “The Netherworld Thorn has been extinct from the Three Thousand Worlds for thousands of years. Even my master has only read about it in the sect’s ancient records.” He smiled bitterly, “Master also never mentioned how to use it.”
After a pause, he continued: “But I read in the sect’s records that the Netherworld Thorn not only regenerates the inner core but also heals all injuries. No matter how severe the injury, adding a piece of Netherworld Thorn leaf to the medicine can bring a cultivator back to life.”
He thought for a moment and said, “That’s all I know.”
While speaking, Li Che recorded everything he knew on the bamboo slip and then looked at Meng Qi. Talking about medical treatment seemed to dispel his fear, bringing back the calm and composed Li Che whose only focus was to save injured people on the city wall.
“The Netherworld Thorn,” Meng Qi said, “is said to be found only in the Devil Realm now.”
“Huh?!” Li Che’s eyes lit up, “The Devil Realm still has it? Legends said that when the Nether River dried up, it moved underground and ended up in the Devil Realm. Is it true?” underground, is it really still in the Devil Realm?”
“Mm.” Meng Qi nodded. She had heard about the Netherworld Thorns’ whereabouts in the Devil Realm, but she had never seen them herself.
Li Che rubbed his hands together in excitement. “Master said that many spiritual plants unique to the Three Thousand Worlds were destroyed in the ancient wars, but some still remain in the Demon Realm and the Devil Realm. I wonder when we might get the chance to visit those realms.”
“Ah!” He noticed Meng Qi had fallen silent and felt a bit embarrassed. “You go on, I got too excited.”
Meng Qi slowly shook her head and continued, “I’ve only read about it in books, but whether the Devil Realm actually has the Nether River and Netherworld Thorn, I haven’t personally confirmed it.”
“Of course,” Li Che nodded again.
“Netherworld Thorn, Nirvana Fruit, and Misty Flower—refine them with the Five Elements Flame and Stardust Stone, will ultimately produce Starsand,” Meng Qi continued.
“Wait!” Li Che’s eyes brightened, “Starsand?! Is it really Starsand?!”
“Starsand.” Meng Qi nodded, “Starlight can repair the spiritual sea, and Starsand can repair the inner core.”
Li Che suddenly stood up and started pacing around. “Starsand, Starsand…” he muttered, “Eleven years ago when I was young, I followed my master to a conference held by the Medical Cultivators Alliance for the first time.”
“Back then, my master wasn’t the sect leader yet. It was my grandmaster who took us to the conference. I had the fortune to listen to my master and some seniors talking. They mentioned Starlight, and one of the seniors asked: Since Starlight exists, what about Starsand?”
Li Che looked at Meng Qi, “Soon, they had a heated debate. Some believed that if Starlight existed, then Starsand must be real, too. But others argued that since ancient times, no one had ever seen Starsand, and that it was only a theoretical concept.”
“Meng Qiqi,” he said excitedly, “Does Starsand really exist?”
“I don’t know either,” Meng Qi replied. “I’ve only read about Starsand in books. Whether it actually exists or not, I’m not sure.”
“What book?” Li Che jumped in front of her, asking curiously.
“Hmm,” Meng Qi thought for a moment, “There’s a place called Heaven and Earth Bookhall in Beyond The Heaven. Haven’t you been there?”
“Heaven and Earth Bookhall?” Li Che gasped, “It sounds like a place beyond my reach. Is it on the Heaven Auction Island?”
“No, it’s just in Beyond The Heaven City,” Meng Qi replied. “But it’s located quite in a corner of the city, pretty much secluded. Not many people go there, but it has a vast collection of books. You just have to take your time to pick through them.” She thought for a moment and added, “The owner seems to collect all kinds of books from the Three Realms, including street gossip, strange tales, and odd anecdotes… all kinds, really. The quantity is enormous.”
“That’s amazing!” Li Che exclaimed, “Next time I go to Beyond The Heaven, I must visit it.” Looking at Meng Qi, he asked, “Are the books there for sale?”
“No, you can only read them there,” Meng Qi said. “And the owner doesn’t accept spirit stones; you have to use spirit points to access the books.”
“Spirit points?!” Li Che gasped again, “You need to exchange spirit points to read there?! Meng Qiqi, are you sure you heard that right? Is it really spirit points?”
“Yes,” Meng Qi confirmed with a nod. “You can also write down your own knowledge and give it to the Bookhall owner to earn some spirit points. If others borrow the book you contributed, you can get a share of spirit points as a bonus.” Meng Qi told Li Che everything she knew about the Heaven and Earth Bookhall.
“Exchange… exchange spirit points?! Earn spirit points bonus?!” Li Che was stunned, looking at Meng Qi in disbelief, “Meng Qiqi, are you sure you didn’t hear it wrong?! Is it really spirit point? Not spirit stones?”
Meng Qi: “…”
“Meng Qiqi,” Li Che circled her a few times before stopping and said seriously, “Do you know that in Beyond The Heaven, spirit points are more valuable than spirit stones? No!” He shook his head before Meng Qi could respond and continued, “I shouldn’t say valuable, but how should I put it?” Li Che scratched his head, “If some rare treasures can’t be bought with spirit stones, you might be able to exchange them with spirit points.”
Meng Qi: “?”
Li Che continued, “According to my master, our sect needs to pay spirit points every month to open a shop in Beyond The Heaven City. Spirit points can’t be directly exchanged for spirit stones; they can only be earned by making contributions to Beyond The Heaven.”
“Of course, if we want to open a shop on the floating island, the cost will be even higher,” he added.
“How many?” Meng Qi asked.
“Fifteen spirit points per month for a shop In Beyond The Heaven City. On the floating island, it costs fifty.”
“That’s not too bad,” Meng Qi said. “Borrowing a book from the Heaven and Earth Bookhall only requires ten spirit points.”
“Ten points! Only?!” Li Che stared at Meng Qi for a moment, then smiled bitterly, “Several times, our Canglang Academy almost couldn’t maintain our floating island shop. You know that only the top ten sects in the four realms are allowed to open shops on the floating island.”
“If, for example, you want to explore the mountains around Beyond The Heaven, you also need spirit points,” Li Che added. “So, it’s very expensive to use ten spirit points just to borrow a book, especially without knowing its contents. I think many cultivators wouldn’t be willing to spend that.”
“Hmm.” Meng Qi lowered her head in thought. She seemed to have plenty of spirit points, so she never found them hard to earn.
“Ah, I think I went off-topic,” Li Che said, smiling apologetically at Meng Qi. He was still young and hadn’t been involved in managing the sect’s Beyond The Heaven shop. So, even though he knew spirit points were much more precious than spirit stones, he didn’t have much to say on the matter. If it were Xue Chengxuan, the future head of the Feng Alliance, the conversation would be entirely different.
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