Cultivation techniques are not the same as the minor spells Lu Xuan traded earlier. Looking at the entire gathering, not a single one of the most basic Qi cultivation methods was known. Cultivation techniques are absolute secrets in the cultivation world. No one would trade cultivation techniques unless absolutely necessary.
Even if they did, replacing all the herbs in front of us with spirit herbs wouldn't make a difference.
"With what you have, you're far from being able to exchange it for a cultivation technique!"
“I know. You can tell me what you want in exchange. I can find a lot of herbs. Whatever you need, I'll find it for you. Can we exchange them after I find them?”
Although some kind of illusion was used to conceal the true voice, the difference in cultivation level was too great, and it had little effect on Lu Xuan. Lu Xuan could tell from the tone that this little fox didn't seem very clever. Or perhaps it was too innocent, with a touch of naivety in its voice. It felt like it had only recently taken human form.
"Haha..." Lu Xuan was in a good mood, so he sat down on the ground and chatted with the little fox.
"Why do you want to cultivate techniques? I remember that most of you demons cultivate by instinct and absorbing spiritual energy?"
"That's too slow, and you can't become an immortal at all! I want a real cultivation technique to become an immortal!" the little fox said in a cute yet determined tone.
"Cultivate to become an immortal? That's quite an ambition! Why would you have such a thought? I've seen many demons, but you're the only one who dares to openly say that you want to cultivate to become an immortal."
"I must cultivate to become an immortal. Only by becoming an immortal can I be fearless of anyone and protect my sisters." The little fox was naive and unknowingly revealed her true nature. If it were any other cultivator, her words would likely have brought annihilation to her family.
However, Lu Xuan was not a traditional cultivator. The little fox before him possessed a pure aura, devoid of any malevolent energy, and presumably had never harmed humans. Naturally, Lu Xuan would not casually subdue demons.
"To protect your family? That's a very good ambition. In cultivation, without a steadfast goal, it's impossible to reach the end. You're quite good."
“I know, my dad always says I’m the most talented one in our family. That’s why I decided I want to protect my family,” the little fox said in a very proud tone.
"Really? Let me see." Lu Xuan said, gently reaching out and touching the little fox's forehead. The little fox was startled and was about to dodge when it felt itself unable to move.
"Oh no, I've run into a bad guy," she thought to herself. She thought she'd met a kind person, but it turned out to be a villain. The little fox almost burst into tears, feeling wronged.
Lu Xuan looked at the little fox's pouting lips with amusement. A stream of spiritual energy entered the fox's body.
A moment later, the little fox regained its freedom.
"What did you do to me?" she said angrily.
"Haha, guess what?" Lu Xuan teased her intentionally.
"Hmph, you bad guy, I'm not leaving you anymore." With that, the little fox quickly packed her things and ran off without looking back. Lu Xuan watched her retreating figure and chuckled softly. Then he turned and disappeared into the market.
The organizers of this market have the highest cultivation level, which is only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment. Lu Xuan is a 'master' who is just one step away from Core Formation, so the various restrictions around him are nothing but a formality.
.............
Upon returning home, Lu Xuan immediately entered a state of seclusion. His trip to the Ghost Market was naturally purposeful. And Lu Xuan achieved his goal: the five servant ghosts.
Lu Xuan also possessed the Ghost Path techniques. However, he had never explored them in depth. After all, they didn't quite suit him, so he hadn't devoted much effort to them. But this time, he put in quite a bit of effort.
Fortunately, the servant ghosts were already available; Lu Xuan only needed to modify and adjust them according to his own will...
The process of creating ghost servants was not a pleasant experience, so I will not go into details for now. Seven days later, Lu Xuan emerged from seclusion. By this time, his four ghost servants had completely transformed into a different form.
There were four, but because he wasn't very skilled at the process, one of them encountered a small problem during refining. Lu Xuan had no choice but to burn it. In the end, only four were successfully formed.
Lu Xuan expended a large amount of spiritual herbs and used Moon Essence Infusion to forcibly enhance the cultivation levels of his four servant ghosts. He even restored some of their consciousness. At this point, these four creatures could all be considered late-stage Qi Refining level ghosts. Their intelligence, however, was rather low.
At the same time, Lu Xuan did not use any contract-like spells to control the other party. He merely used the suppression of his cultivation to forcibly bind the four ghosts. However, he was still a little uneasy about this, so he ultimately left a little backup plan within the four creatures.
Afterwards, Lu Xuan didn't keep them; instead, he casually waved his hand and released them...
"Go! Go to the capital! Choose your targets, and then act with impunity!!!"
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Chapter 373 I Want to Be the Imperial Advisor
The capital city had always been harmonious. Although Lu Xuan could occasionally sense the presence of demons and ghosts as he walked the streets, all the creatures remained peaceful and caused virtually no trouble. Lu Xuan knew that this was a vision of peace and prosperity created by the Grand Preceptor for the Emperor, a picture of a prosperous and peaceful world where the people lived in contentment. But now, Lu Xuan was about to shatter this illusion.
Ironically, the monster attempting to destroy the country is doing everything in its power to maintain peace, while Lu Xuan, who is preparing to save the world, is actively creating chaos. Well, it's not entirely about saving the world. The thought of the centipede demon's thousand years of cultivation, even capable of mimicking the Buddha's powerful body, makes Lu Xuan covet its form.
Such a powerful demon must have every part of its body made of rare and precious materials. If the Imperial Advisor were dismembered, Lu Xuan could probably forge a powerful set of magical artifacts for every one of his subordinates. Just for that reason alone, the Imperial Advisor would surely die.
The capital city is haunted, and not just one household. The key point is that these haunted families are no ordinary ones. First, there was Jin Yuwen, the commander of the Imperial Guards. His house was haunted, and overnight, a steward and three servants died.
Next came the Minister of Revenue, Lord Cui, whose concubine and two maids had died in his household. Panic gripped the capital. For such a high-ranking official to have his home haunted and people die was no small matter. Immediately, everyone in the capital felt insecure. However, this was only the beginning.
Two days later, the home of Vice Minister Wang of the Ministry of Rites was also haunted. This time, the situation was even more serious, as only four servants survived out of the more than thirty members of Vice Minister Wang's family.
Three major cases in succession left the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Justice at a loss for what to do. The scenes clearly indicated the presence of demonic possession. This was truly beyond their capabilities. The imperial court had a special Demon-Slaying Hall dedicated to apprehending ghosts and monsters. However, after the cultivators from the Demon-Slaying Hall took one look at the scene, they vanished without a trace that very night.
The remaining cultivators also tried to escape, but after being blocked, they made it clear that they were no match for that ghost.
Now the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and even the Prefect of the Capital were completely dumbfounded. And at this crucial moment, Li Donglai, who had nothing better to do all day, brought up this matter in the imperial court.
It's important to understand that the Dali Temple wasn't reporting demonic disturbances, but rather the crimes committed by villains. After all, in a place like the capital, the existence of demons was absolutely forbidden. Even if they existed, they had to be absent—that was the political correctness of the time. However, this simpleton Li Donglai suddenly ignited the issue, enraging the emperor and resulting in the Dali Temple Minister being severely reprimanded.
What he didn't see was that the Chief Justice of the Court of Judicial Review, who was bowing his head and being criticized, appeared respectful, but his face showed an expression of indifference, even a hint of disdain.
.........
As night fell, at Lu Xuan's house, Commander Zuo, Li Donglai, and Feng Qianyuan met with Lu Xuan again. However, this time, they brought a colleague with them, who was said to be the deputy chief constable of the Six Doors, named Lin Yuanshan.
"Yuanshan, tell the real person what you found out."
Lin Yuanshan wasn't as arrogant as Feng Qianyuan, who immediately challenged Lu Xuan to a duel. Instead, he respectfully recounted the Six Doors' activities over the past few days.
"Although the Six Doors have cast a wide net and are working hard to investigate the case, I always feel that the Chief Constable is somewhat distracted. He gives me a strange feeling, as if... he knows that we can't solve the case at all."