"This...this is really a high-grade ninth-tier iron armor?"
Inside the shop, He Zongming gripped the iron armor, stroking it carefully, his face filled with disbelief.
He didn't expect that, so soon, Lu Tao would place a brand-new Rank 9 high-grade iron armor in his hands.
He knew that Lu Tao had a high-grade ninth-tier iron armor, but the one in front of him was clearly not that one; it was obviously only recently forged.
At this moment, He Zongming felt that no matter what amazing feats Lu Tao might make in the future, he could accept them.
This boy is simply too extraordinary.
Of course, He Zongming also understood that Lu Tao's extraordinary transformation was not simply due to his sudden surge in comprehension, as he had claimed. Otherwise, how could the storage treasures be explained?
He didn't ask any further questions; it was Lu Tao's secret.
"Are you satisfied, senior?" Lu Tao asked with a smile.
"This is far too valuable. The three cultivation manuals I gave you are worth less than a tenth of this iron armor. I am unworthy of such a gift."
He Zongming was overjoyed, but when he thought about the difference in value between the two, he could only reluctantly push the iron armor in front of Lu Tao, "Lu Tao, I can't accept this iron armor. Please make me another low-grade ninth-rank armor instead."
“Senior, since the armor has already been sent out, there is absolutely no reason to take it back.”
Lu Tao pushed the armor back to He Zongming and said seriously, "Besides, the pill that you gave me before saved my life. I haven't thanked you for saving my life yet."
"Those pills aren't worth much money, so how can they be considered life-saving?"
Just as He Zongming was about to refuse again, Lu Tao said directly, "Senior, compared to life, a mere suit of armor is not worth mentioning. Please accept it."
Lu Tao added, "Besides, I still have many things to ask you, senior. If you refuse, I will have no face to stay any longer."
"Very well, then I'll accept it without hesitation."
He Zongming then accepted the armor, and his impression of Lu Tao reached its peak. He said, "I keep my word. From now on, you can take any of the martial arts manuals in the shop at will. If you don't understand anything, you can come and ask me anytime."
Lu Tao blinked and asked, "I wonder if this includes the Blood Tempering Technique you practiced, senior?"
"You little rascal, so you're after my Blood Tempering Technique."
He Zongming chuckled. No wonder this kid could forge the armor so well; it turned out he wanted his cultivation technique. He Zongming didn't hold back and went straight back into the house to get the technique.
"Brother Lu, have some tea."
He Yuanshuang brewed a bowl of tea for Lu Tao and called out in a crisp voice, "Brother Lu."
"Thank you, little sister."
Lu Tao took the tea and gulped down two large mouthfuls, completely disregarding his image, and didn't forget to ask, "What's your name, little sister?"
"I...I'm called He Yuanshuang." The girl's face flushed slightly, and she seemed a little shy.
"Yuan Shuang, what a lovely name! How old are you?"
Lu Tao praised him and was about to ask more questions when he saw He Zongming walk out with a twitching mouth and a dark face.
This time, however, he did not stop Lu Tao, seemingly intending to let things take their course.
"This is my Blood Tempering Technique, a high-grade Yellow Rank technique."
Upon hearing this, Lu Tao sighed slightly. He had guessed that the cultivation technique He Zongming practiced was probably only of the upper-grade Yellow Rank.
Lu Tao glanced at it and found that this cultivation technique was no better than the Demon Elephant Blood Tempering Technique, and was even slightly inferior.
However, Lu Tao did not return the cultivation technique to He Zongming, but instead put it into the system space.
Although he doesn't intend to cultivate, he might need it in the future.
Lu Tao asked, "Senior, what is the value of a high-grade Yellow Rank Blood Tempering Technique?"
"One thousand taels."
Upon hearing this, Lu Tao was surprised, "So expensive? Ten times the price of other cultivation techniques of the same level?"
He Zongming said, "Of course, cultivation techniques that improve one's cultivation level are naturally more expensive than other techniques of the same level, since the martial arts world is all about cultivation level."
"What about weapons? What's the typical price of entry-level weapons?" Lu Tao asked about weapons again.
He didn't know much about the martial arts world, so now was a good opportunity to ask He Zongming some questions.
"Entry-level weapons are generally quite valuable. A low-grade ninth-level weapon costs 1,000 taels, a mid-grade ninth-level weapon costs 2,000 taels, a high-grade ninth-level weapon costs 4,000 taels, and an eighth-level weapon costs over 10,000 taels. As for iron armor..."
He Zongming took a deep breath and explained to Lu Tao, "Iron armor is more expensive than weapons of the same rank, usually by about five times. So, your ninth-rank superior iron armor is worth a full 20,000 taels of silver."
Hearing this, Lu Tao couldn't help but have his eyes light up. "Entry-level weapons are so valuable? Won't I be rich in the future?"
Looking at Lu Tao's greedy expression, He Zongming asked with a smile, "Now, are you still planning to give this armor to me?"
“Senior, this armor already belonged to you.”
Lu Tao smiled faintly; it was just a piece of iron, he didn't care at all.
He can create it anytime he wants.
Lu Tao didn't continue the topic. He took out two small porcelain bottles from the system space and placed them on the table, saying, "Senior, can you take a look at this for me? I found this from the Axe Gang. Is this blood used to improve one's Blood Refining Realm cultivation?"
He Zongming nodded and said, "That's right. This is made from the blood of ferocious beasts and some medicinal herbs. One bottle costs 100 taels."
No wonder.
Upon hearing this, Lu Tao suddenly realized why the Axe Gang only had so little money left; it had probably all been used by Jiang Xiong.
The Blood Tempering Technique alone costs a thousand taels of silver, not to mention other techniques, martial arts skills, cultivation costs, and the cultivation expenses of the other underlings…
The expenses are indeed quite high.
Lu Tao stopped thinking about it.
He currently has two bottles of blood, and a thousand taels of silver can buy ten more. He wonders how much his cultivation level will be raised with twelve bottles of blood.
Lu Tao suddenly thought of something and asked, "Senior, my cultivation has improved too quickly these past two days. Do you think there might be a problem with my foundation becoming unstable?"
Lu Tao was actually quite confident in his situation, but he still planned to ask for advice, since he was a complete novice in this field and had no experience whatsoever.
It's always better to ask for advice first, just to be on the safe side.
Upon hearing this, He Zongming's lips twitched involuntarily. This was not just too fast, it was simply unreasonable.
Instead of answering, he asked, "Do you know how many realms there are in the martial arts world?"
"I know, there are nine realms: Skin Refining, Blood Refining, Bone Forging, Organ Refining, Innate, Grandmaster, Divine Platform, Martial King, and Martial God."
He Zongming nodded, "That's right, then think carefully about what the connection is between the first four realms?"
"Hmm... it's all about body refinement, mainly tempering the physique."
"By the way, the first four realms are mainly about body refinement. In fact, these four realms can be regarded as one major realm, because each of these four realms only has three minor realms: early, middle and late. Starting from the Innate Realm, each realm has nine minor realms."
He Zongming continued, "So, although you have now gone from the early stage of Skin Refining to the early stage of Blood Refining, which seems like a major advancement, it can actually be seen as an advancement of three minor stages. And the further you go, the harder it is to improve your cultivation."
"Don't worry. If you feel your foundation is unstable, you can find a higher-grade cultivation technique before you reach the Innate Realm and refine it again."
"Moreover, even after reaching the Innate Realm, one can still continue to refine their body."
"Thank you for your guidance, senior." Lu Tao bowed in gratitude.
Through this conversation, Lu Tao gained a lot and learned a bit about the martial arts world.
Afterwards, He Zongming invited Lu Tao to stay for lunch at his home, and he noticed that Lu Tao hadn't actually eaten lunch yet.
Lu Tao didn't want to go home to cook anyway, so he readily agreed.
While waiting for his meal, Lu Tao buried himself in the bookshelf, selecting various cultivation techniques.
After a thorough search, Lu Tao made a lot of progress.
There are hundreds of books on the bookshelf, only a few dozen of which are about martial arts techniques, but there are also some secret techniques, such as the Severing Meridian Hand, Heart-Shattering Palm, and Disguise Technique.
There are also some books that are reference materials, mainly introducing things about the martial arts world.
For example, sects, dynasties, ferocious beasts, demonic beasts, and medicinal herbs broadened Lu Tao's horizons.
Finally, when Lu Tao learned that He Zongming still had the original books, he immediately swept all the books off the bookshelf and put them into his system space.
Lu Tao plans to collect more cultivation techniques, and once he has gathered the advantages of all of them, he will create his own unique cultivation technique.
He especially wanted to know if cultivation techniques could also be upgraded and their rank increased as quickly as items...
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