The solid ice that froze Yuan Dasheng came from a method employed by one of the commander’s elite troops from Wangchuan Mansion Lord. This was not only ice-attributed but also contained the principles of Xuanyin.

Ning Zhuo could infiltrate the ice attribute through his mastery of the Water Element, but he didn’t understand the principles of Xuanyin well. Therefore, he couldn’t devise a spell against the solid ice using his Five Elements mastery.

As for the yellow dust covering Meng Yehu’s entire body, although it was Earth-attributed, it originated from a divine avatar of Wangchuan Mansion Lord. Thus, it was no longer merely a simple Earth Element, retaining the divine power of Wangchuan Mansion Lord’s avatar. The Five Elements Fan of Creation and Destruction couldn’t shake divine powers; it was, after all, merely a magical tool, not a magical treasure.

It wasn’t that Ning Zhuo lacked materials for crafting magical treasures; the problem was that his natal spell hadn’t matured yet. Even with a magical treasure-grade shell, he couldn’t unleash its power. Instead, the inherent strong physicality of the magical treasure would interfere with and erode the talismans inscribed by his natal spell. Only when Ning Zhuo’s three Dantian reached the Golden Core level could he possess a natal magical treasure, rather than his current natal magical tool.

Since the Five Elements approach wouldn’t work, Ning Zhuo inspected his possessions to see if he could find a breakthrough. The ‘I Am Buddha, Heart Devil Seal’ had always resided in his divine sea, bringing him tremendous unexpected joys in the battles against the Heaven and Earth Twin Ghosts and Wangchuan Mansion Lord. However, its grade was too high and it was too mysterious; Ning Zhuo had yet to truly master it.

“Only as my cultivation improves, the power of each passive counterattack from the ‘I Am Buddha, Heart Devil Seal’ has also greatly increased. After all, it needs my power to function.”

Magical tools, magical treasures, spiritual treasures, Dao treasures.

“Based on its current performance, the ‘I Am Buddha, Heart Devil Seal’ clearly lacks sufficient spirituality to be considered a spiritual treasure. It belongs to the strongest tier of magical treasures.”

There are many differences between magical treasures. Generally speaking, Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators would use magical treasures. The differences between magical treasures are like the gaps between Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators, sometimes a world apart. In terms of quality, the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ possesses stronger spirituality and is already considered a quasi-spiritual treasure.

Ning Zhuo primarily used it to cultivate his physical body. This was largely thanks to Sun Lingtong’s development of its unorthodox usage, which made the efficiency of the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ body tempering method extremely high.

“I need to find an opportunity to repair the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ first.”

The ‘Tai Xi Ling’ was still in a damaged state, with many cracks on its surface. Previously, Ning Zhuo, on one hand, lacked the ability to repair it himself, and on the other, he harbored the thought that he would “burn it sooner or later, so just make do with it, no need for the extra effort of repairing it.” But now, the Buddhist Physician, Meng Yao’yin, explicitly instructed in the jade slip that Ning Zhuo should keep the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ and not burn it.

Ning Zhuo’s plans for the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ completely changed. Over this period, Ning Zhuo had used the ‘Tai Xi Ling’ the most. There was no other way; his physical foundation needed to be strengthened to cope with the immense pressure of the million souls. If this pressure were left unchecked, his physical body would continuously be damaged by his soul.

Besides the ‘Tai Xi Ling’, there were several other magical treasures used for cultivation. For example, the ‘Generals and Soldiers’ Helm’, the ‘Hungry Ghost Backlash Cauldron’, and the ‘Yin-Yang One Qi Pot’. Strictly speaking, the ‘Generals and Soldiers’ Helm’ was a military treasure. Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong’s每次 (each time) use of it, when combined with the ‘Gao Sheng Yi Shu’, yielded excellent results. This cultivation method also had its drawbacks: one had to fully comprehend the previous enlightenment before proceeding to the next use. Otherwise, even if an enlightenment occurred, it would not differ much from the previous content.

“Sun Laoda can move on to the next step; he has already fully understood his ‘Qing Shen Ji Feng Array’. But I still have some way to go.”

What Ning Zhuo had comprehended earlier was the ‘Zhuang Shi Fu Huan Shu’. This military strategy was exceptionally effective, far surpassing the ‘Qing Shen Ji Feng Array’, and it would take some time to fully comprehend it.

“Although this military strategy is powerful, it has limitations. For example, in the battle of Wangchuan Difu, the casualties of the Qingjiao Army were very small, so I couldn’t gain any benefits.”

“What truly complements it still needs to be an army of automatons!”

To achieve this, the difficulty was considerable. Ning Zhuo had successfully established an army once, but the Qingjiao Army was formed only with the collective effort of various forces and their assistance at the right time. For this, Ning Zhuo had already depleted his family’s fortune. Currently, Ning Zhuo couldn’t simply put an army of automatons into the Qingjiao Army just because he was its deputy commander. The type of the Qingjiao Army already restricted this possibility, unless Ning Zhuo joined an army whose type recognized automaton creations. Or, like in Liangzhuo Country, he could directly join the national army, achieving it in one go.

The ‘Hungry Ghost Backlash Cauldron’ was a soul-path magical treasure that could consume ghosts to produce large quantities of soul essence. Combined with the other three treasures, it could significantly enhance one’s soul foundation. In Baizhi Xiancheng, Ning Zhuo used them to raise his soul cultivation to the level of a million souls. Currently, he couldn’t use it — Ning Zhuo had paused his soul cultivation and was actively strengthening his physical foundation.

As for the ‘Yin-Yang One Qi Pot’, this was a demonic treasure. Only cultivators with demonic blood could truly unleash its power, and it was incompatible with Ning Zhuo. During the Qi Luck Game, Liu Er had no choice but to give this treasure to Ning Zhuo. Ning Zhuo originally planned to explore the wondrous uses of the ‘Yin-Yang One Qi Pot’ and try to research a method for self-dual cultivation. Unexpectedly, upon arriving at Baizhi Xiancheng, he discovered that the current Baizhi City Lord desired this demonic treasure infinitely more than he did! In the future, Ning Zhuo would also rely on this demonic treasure to convert the Baizhi City Lord’s Yin Qi into Yang Qi. Using this Yang Qi for transactions, the Baizhi City Lord would have no room to refuse, ensuring unhindered success! This was also Ning Zhuo’s powerful trump card to control the Baizhi City Lord, continuously influence him, and even the Yinchao Heishi Swamp in the future!

The next magical treasures were the ‘Taisu Sanxing Ruler’, the ‘Jinguang Collar’, the ‘Qingbai Jade Ring’, and so on.

The ‘Taisu Sanxing Ruler’ was the遗宝 (relic) of Xuansu Shusheng. It was first confiscated by Luo Si, then given to Ning Zhuo. In the Heiyun battlefield, Ning Zhuo comprehended destiny’s arrangement and used it to break through the yellow dust barrier. The ‘Taisu Sanxing Ruler’ played a crucial role. After the great battle of Difu, Ning Zhuo also attempted to refine it, but was disappointed to find no progress whatsoever.

“I still haven’t found the knack.”

“Xuansu Shusheng was a mighty Refined Void-level cultivator. When he built Baizhi Xiancheng and left behind numerous relics, secretly arranging the paper puppet army, he must have had a purpose.”

Ning Zhuo felt that if he didn’t unravel this purpose, he wouldn’t be able to find the knack for refining the ‘Taisu Sanxing Ruler’. However, currently, relying on his identity as the Deputy City Lord of Baizhi Xiancheng, he could still freely use this treasured ruler. Therefore, whether it was refined or not was not important.

As for the ‘Jinguang Collar’ and the ‘Qingbai Jade Ring’, both were defensive magical treasures. Ning Zhuo had exchanged them with his battle merits in the Liangzhuo Country battlefield back then. In the subsequent battle against Wangchuan Mansion Lord, Ning Zhuo did not use them. The reason was simple — even if he activated both magical treasures simultaneously, the added defense would not be enough to withstand a single blow from the enemy. In that great battle, Ning Zhuo mostly relied on the ‘Cangtie Han Jia·Jinyan’ to dance on the edge of life and death. However, in the battle against Lin Jinglong, Ning Zhuo did take out and use the ‘Qingbai Jade Ring’. It was quite effective. If Lin Jinglong hadn’t taken his magical treasures, Ning Zhuo, relying on the ‘Qingbai Jade Ring’, would have been utterly invincible. No matter how the spring thunder boomed, his body would not have swayed in the slightest.

Besides these, there was also the stomach pouch of the ‘Cigu Crocodile’. Back on the boat, Qing Yan had gifted the stomach pouch to Ning Zhuo. Because its material was of the Golden Core level, the stomach pouch itself was also considered a magical treasure. The stomach pouch was used to increase the soul’s foundation. As long as one’s soul exited the body, entered it, endured the corrosion, and then recovered, it could greatly increase the soul’s resilience. The stomach pouch had a limited number of uses, so this Golden Core-level magical treasure belonged to the lowest tier. Ning Zhuo received it but had no time to use it. When he finally had time, he had Old Cook’s dark cuisine, and soon after, the Four Soul Cultivation Treasures given by the Baizhi City Lord. Compared to these, the stomach pouch’s cultivation effect was significantly inferior. Ning Zhuo never used it once, directly stashing it away.

Other unused items included the ‘Longqi Jade Pendant’ and the ‘Wangchuan Mansion Lord Seal’. Ning Zhuo took out the ‘Longqi Jade Pendant’, observed it for a while, then put it away.

“This was a gift from Li Xiangshang. It cracked when I ascended the altar to seize talent.”

“It must have played a crucial role and provided me with great help.”

“It’s just a pity that by the time I led the Qingjiao Army back to the mortal world, Li Xiangshang had already left Baizhi Xiancheng.”

“However, he cultivates in Cangjiang and is a subordinate of Baishou Longjun. If there’s an opportunity in the future, meeting him might reveal the true purpose of the jade pendant.”

As for the ‘Wangchuan Mansion Lord Seal’, it was completely useless to Ning Zhuo. “Perhaps in the future, I can use it to trade with Wangchuan Mansion Lord?” “Let’s wait and see.” “If Wangchuan Mansion Lord doesn’t weaken to a certain extent, I won’t use this seal to trade with him.” Wangchuan Difu was currently under full assault from Guihuo Difu. Ning Zhuo chose to observe the situation.

“We cannot allow Guihuo Difu to completely conquer Wangchuan Difu. If it annexes such a vast territory, Guihuo Difu’s strength will expand exponentially.”

“The opponent faced by Yinchao Heishi Swamp will no longer be the relatively familiar Wangchuan Mansion Lord, but a much stronger Guihuo Difu.”

This was not what Ning Zhuo wanted to see. He needed Wangchuan Difu and Guihuo Difu to continue their great war, for these two behemoths to fall into a stalemate, constantly losing blood, and thus have no time for other concerns. “Therefore, the opportunity to trade this Wangchuan Mansion Lord Seal will only arise when Wangchuan Difu is about to collapse!”

After an inspection, Ning Zhuo realized that he had more than ten magical treasures in his possession. Of course, this included national artifacts, military treasures, and so on. In short, the existence of such a number of magical treasures far exceeded the possessions of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Not to mention Foundation Establishment cultivators, even most Golden Core cultivators would pale in comparison. In terms of quality, whether it was the ‘I Am Buddha, Heart Devil Seal’, ‘Tai Xi Ling’, ‘Yin-Yang One Qi Pot’, or the ‘Wangchuan Mansion Lord Seal’, they would all make Nascent Soul cultivators envious, jealous, and hateful. When Ning Zhuo calculated these, he deliberately excluded automaton creations, otherwise there would be even more. Just the magical treasure-grade automaton components within Qi Bai numbered four.

Among automaton creations, Ning Zhuo used the ‘Wanli Youlong’ the most. The ‘Wanli Youlong’ greatly assisted Ning Zhuo, especially performing well in the great battle of Liangzhuo Country. The ‘Wanli Youlong’ had many empty compartments and always possessed great potential for improvement. An ordinary person would probably invest day and night, continuously building the ‘Wanli Youlong’. But this ‘Wanli Youlong’, when it fell into Ning Zhuo’s hands, was only hastily constructed once at Wan Yaomen, specifically for Lingyin Liu. Once Lingyin Liu was transplanted, the ‘Wanli Youlong’ was merely repaired and not built upon. Sun and Ning were busy traveling and simply didn’t have the time or leisure. However, currently, because various items from the Shuyuzhai cave mansion needed to be moved, the ‘Wanli Youlong’ also incidentally began its second round of construction.

Buddhist Physician Meng Yao’yin, Heavy-Armored Blood Ape Dasheng, Shadow Blade Yehu, Hundred-Arm Arhat Armor, and苍铁汉甲·金燕 (Iron-Armored Soldier Armor·Golden Swallow) were Golden Core-level automatons. Among them, Buddhist Physician Meng Yao’yin mastered unorthodox methods and possessed Nascent Soul-level combat power. Besides these, there were幽冥使节·戚白 (Underworld Envoy·Qi Bai), 乳蝶娘 (Milk Butterfly Maiden), the automaton ring, the Floating Ice White Jade Hand, and Weather Orb·Ice Crystal Snow. After these, there were some mass-produced mature automatons, such as Huo Bao Hou, Zuo Huo She, Lei Ji Niao, Jinyan, and so on. Following that were some automaton components, such as the Upside-Down Wishful Rope, Fishing Death Whip, Rivet Shot Crossbow, Hanging Ring, and Half-Dead Half-Alive Pearl.

Among the elixirs, many were consumed by Ning Zhuo during his travels. Currently, the most valuable was the ‘Jiuquan Anxi Xiang’. This was one of the Four Soul Cultivation Treasures of Baizhi Xiancheng. Spiritual food could not be stored for too long, so there was a large quantity of Ice Jade Wine, a small amount of Bitter Cold True Water, and so on. The most valuable was the ‘Han Gu Yue Lu Jiu’. Like ‘Jiuquan Anxi Xiang’, it was also one of the Four Soul Cultivation Treasures.

There were quite a few talismans. Among them, the ‘Sanyuan Jiaobao Talisman’ had given Ning Zhuo much help but was no longer needed. The ‘Youguang Shuihua Talisman’, ‘Xingyun Liushui Talisman’, etc., even contained some spirituality! The ‘Dingxiang Dun Kong Talisman’ and ‘Tushen Talisman’ provided Ning Zhuo with more room for error.

“But during the previous battle against Wangchuan Mansion Lord, none of these talismans could be used.”

“In truly high-level battles, the grade of these talismans is still too low.”

There were only a few materials left. The previous wealth of Tian Gui had all been invested by Ning Zhuo into building the Qingjiao Army. There were some materials disassembled from the Western Pure Land, over a hundred ghost-path Golden Cores, and a large pile of magical treasures and magical tools. Shangshan Ruoshui and Muchonghu had already been used. The shortage of spirit stones was huge! The most valuable was the Stone Monster Corpse, but this could not be used. In the future, when going to Qianfeng Lin, it might still be used to impersonate an old stone monster.

Ning Zhuo saw thirteen ‘Guiying Bamboo’ within. At that time, he also wanted to study Meng Yehu’s design plan and kept these ‘Guiying Bamboo’ for future use. Now, Meng Yehu had fully adopted Golden Core-level materials. These Foundation Establishment-level ‘Guiying Bamboo’ no longer held any utilitarian value.

In terms of books, Ning Zhuo had also gradually collected a small pile. For example, ‘Bingdiao Midian’, ‘Qu She Tandong Zhenfa Ji’, ‘Yingu Jue’, ‘Youming Xinjing’, ‘Hunyin Shu Xiangjie’, ‘Xuemuo Jieti Xiaofa’, ‘Siyue Xiangge’, ‘Tianzang Dadian’, Jiao Family Jade Slips, ‘Wanxiang Jing’ (Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment chapters), Old Cook’s Legacy, and so on.