Wriggling Ice Serpents and the Heaven-Defying Pill
Of course. I'm no opportunity magnet—Baek Cheong's the one overflowing with poison luck, she grumbled inwardly as she prowled the market. Her eyes had sharpened from window-shopping at Baekgeumgak, and now she was dead set on snagging a real stroke of fortune while she was at it. But cold reality dashed her romantic hopes.
This is trash, that's junk. Where the hell are the opportunities hiding?
She scoured hundreds of stalls, piercingly scanning the displayed goods with her spiritual sight. Most were scrap metal without proper spiritual energy or run-of-the-mill ingredients for low-grade 1st rank items. The saying "finding an opportunity in the desert is like searching for a needle" sank deep into her bones.
Meanwhile, Enforcer Ga, who had been silently trailing her, was having a very different experience.
"Why the hell is this lying here?"
Enforcer Ga stopped, idly kicking at the dirt floor, and picked something up. Covered in dust, it still emanated a faint spiritual energy—a mid-grade spirit stone. In the bustling heart of the market, amid throngs of cultivators, stumbling upon someone else's dropped mid-grade spirit stone was about as likely as getting struck by lightning on a stroll.
"Enforcer Ga, did you just... pick that up?"
"Yes, young miss. Talk about good luck. Whoever lost it, it'll come in handy."
Enforcer Ga pocketed it with a good-natured smile. Baek Cheong could almost see a glowing title hovering over his head: [Opportunity Magnet].
Does that even make sense?
Watching him, Baek Cheong felt a profound crash of reality. Pure, mad luck where opportunities rolled in just from walking the path. In front of a true-blue opportunity magnet like this, she—a mediocre, unlucky cultivator—realized it was best to stick to honest training. That was her lot in life, bitter as it tasted.
"Let's just head back to the estate."
In the end, Baek Cheong shelved her dreams of fortune and trudged home.
The moment she reached her residence, she flopped exhausted onto her bed and, out of habit, logged into Moomyeongbang. She scrolled through the Dou users' comments, soothing her hollow heart, until sleep overtook her.
The next morning, true to her resolve, Baek Cheong gave up the futile opportunity hunt and focused on cultivation. Her goal: mastering the 1st rank premium spell Ice Dragon Shard, which she'd won at Man-sang-gak auction house.
Typically, 1st rank premium spells demanded complex meridian control and massive spiritual energy consumption, making them accessible only from late Qi Refining stage onward. But Baek Cheong knew her own capabilities better than anyone.
At Qi Refining 4-star, her spiritual roots had grown via five elements harmony, her dantian had expanded massively, and her vast divine sense had stunned even Moomyeongbang's Dous. She had solid grounds for confidence in handling a 1st rank premium spell.
"Let's see here."
She headed to the garden and pulled a jade slip from her Jeomuldae. Infusing it with divine sense summoned the incantation and meridian routes into her mind.
"Definitely a cut above basic spells. The meridian tangles are a work of art."
Closing her eyes, she drew water-attributed energy from her dantian. Following the incantation, she spun the energy through intricate meridian paths and pushed it to her fingertips. Compressing and shaping it was tricky, but her pill-forged energy control shone through.
In just one shichen—about two hours—chill bloomed from her fingers, forming a shape.
Crackle—
The Ice Dragon Shard launched from her hand, freezing ambient moisture into sparkling crystals that trailed in its wake. But it wasn't the massive, majestic ice dragon its name evoked. At beginner level, cohesion was weak, leaving a pathetic, arm-thick ice worm of a projectile.
"What? Not a dragon—an earthworm?"
Baek Cheong grumbled, unable to hide her disappointment. But the spell's true power lay not in form, but control. She sensed a thread of divine sense linking her to the launched ice worm.
"Can I move this thing at will?"
Guiding it with divine sense, the airborne ice worm nimbly veered toward a massive boulder in the garden corner.
Boom!
The rock froze solid and shattered spectacularly. Even in its shabby beginner form, it packed 1st rank premium destructive power.
"If I get good at this..."
Realizing its potential, excitement surged. Multiple casts could unleash serious force.
"Let's try it."
She massively ramped up dantian energy and split her divine sense. But Ice Dragon Shard was leagues beyond basics. Maintaining even one drained focus, and the meridian strain was immense despite using water energy.
"Ow, five's my limit."
She extended both hands, launching five ice worms into the air. Her meridians swelled with aching strain at the limit, but control held.
"Go!"
Flicking her fingers, the five worms swam through the air. She maneuvered them independently: one soared skyward, two flanked wide, the rest charged straight.
"Guided missiles, basically?"
Baek Cheong gleefully whipped the ice worms around, turning the garden into a wasteland. Then, a hollow chuckle echoed from the entrance.
"Heh heh..."
Baek Muyoung had dismissed his escorts and stood alone, staring dumbfounded at the bizarre scene. As head of Baek Trading Company, he'd seen countless cultivators, but a 4-star Qi Refining child wielding a 1st rank premium spell—split into five, no less—with total freedom? It was beyond shocking. Even "once-in-a-millennium genius" fell short. Uncle Parcheon Sword Sovereign's insight from yesterday felt chillingly accurate.
"Eek! Uncle!"
Baek Cheong belatedly sensed him, startling and hastily dispersing the shards. She smoothed her clothes, donning the demure lady-of-the-house expression. But it was pointless before an uncle who'd seen it all.
"Heh heh, you rascal. You've shown nothing but wild antics since arriving at the capital, and now you pretend to be prim? If my brother saw your true tomboy self, he'd faint dead away."
Baek Muyoung laughed heartily as he entered the garden.
"No! I was just quietly cultivating alone..."
Blushing, Baek Cheong protested, but he waved it off.
"Joking, joking. Impressive skill, though. Mastering a 1st rank premium spell overnight? Your father's pride will be visible from ten li away."
Flustered by the praise, she perked up at his next words.
"Anyway, some rare items just came in. We're holding a modest auction at Baekgeumgak tomorrow. Not as varied as Man-sang-gak, but some fine pieces. Interested?"
The word "auction" twitched her ears, but boredom from the last one cooled her fast.
"I'm not worthy of coveting rare treasures yet..."
As she replied halfheartedly, a brilliant idea struck: sell her single-pattern Chwi-ryeong-dan. Time to gauge its value, as even the pill refiner and Moomyeongbang Dous had marveled.
"Can I consign an item?"
"Huh? You'd enter something?"
Baek Muyoung looked puzzled.
"For a big auction like Man-sang-gak, sure—but ours at Baekgeumgak has limited spots and quality standards. We can't take middling low-grade 1st or 2nd rank junk..."
A Qi Refining kid could only have common herbs or talismans at best. He tried gently refusing.
But Baek Cheong beamed triumphantly, carefully withdrawing a jade vial from her Jeomuldae.
"What about something like this?"
She uncorked it, holding it under his nose. A pure, crystalline medicinal scent wafted out, purifying the air. At the vial's bottom sat a dainty pill, its surface etched with vivid silver cloud patterns that seemed alive.
"Th-this is...!"
Baek Muyoung's eyes bulged in shock. He instantly recognized the aura and gasped.
"A single-pattern on a low 1st rank Chwi-ryeong-dan? Can such a heaven-defying pill even exist?!"
With trembling hands, he took the vial, staring at the miracle like it might vanish. Baek Cheong watched his reaction, smirking like a victor.