Chapter 326: 150: The Concept of Dao Soldiers, Jiang Country's Number One Loose Cultivator_2
“Alright, a forty percent discount it is.”
Lu Changsheng nodded slightly upon hearing this, agreeing to the discounted price.
He couldn’t possibly run to the Qingyun Commerce Guild now to ask if they were still purchasing talismans.
Immediately, he took out ten second-rank talismans, deducted two thousand five hundred spirit stones, and paid an additional one thousand three hundred spirit stones.
“I wonder when I’ll be able to draw a second-rank alchemy skill.”
“Otherwise, not only are second-rank elixir medicines hard to purchase, but their prices are also high. The little money I painstakingly earn all goes into this.”
Tucking away the Three Suns Elixir, Lu Changsheng left the store and couldn’t help but think to himself.
Currently, his talismans were yielding a twenty-fold profit.
Among the four mainstream skills of cultivation, the profit margins for elixir medicines are only higher than those for talisman making.
It isn’t just about making money that simple; he also thought that with alchemy skills of his own, he wouldn’t have to worry about elixir medicines.
“Not just alchemy, but formation skills are also needed.”
“If I want to establish my own family, it’s essential to have someone in the clan who understands formations.”
“Otherwise, if a family has to rely on others for formations, they would be oblivious to any loopholes or defects.”
Lu Changsheng considered in his mind.
He felt that the road to establishing a family on his own seemed quite long and difficult.
“Next, I’ll find a bookstore to ask about Dao soldiers, and that should be enough.”
Lu Changsheng didn’t dwell on this.
He prepared to find a bookstore to learn about Dao soldiers.
After looking around, Lu Changsheng saw a ‘Ten Thousand Laws Bookstore’.
He recognized it as a shop selling cultivation technique classics.
He went in and inquired about books on Dao soldiers.
“Dao soldiers?”
“May I inquire which aspect of Dao soldiers you’re interested in learning about?”
The shop owner asked with some surprise upon hearing Lu Changsheng’s intention.
“Regarding Dao soldiers, I’ve only heard a little and am quite interested, so I want to understand more in detail.”
“Any classics on this subject will do.”
Lu Changsheng said so.
“Information about Dao soldiers is not widely known in the cultivation world, and there are very few classics on the subject.”
“I happen to know a bit about Dao soldiers. If you’re willing to pay a hundred spirit stones for tea, I’m willing to enlighten you and give a brief introduction,” the shop owner said with a smile.
People like him who run bookstores not only sell cultivation technique classics.
They also possess a wealth of knowledge about many aspects of the cultivation world.
“If you can resolve my queries, naturally, I am willing to offer the hundred spirit stones for tea,”
Lu Changsheng took out fifty spirit stones and spoke.
At the Nine Dragons Market, he knew that the monopoly on high-end knowledge in this world was severe.
The absence of related classics on Dao soldiers also indicated that the subject is advanced and known by few.
Therefore, a hundred spirit stones for tea wasn’t considered steep.
In some shops selling information, a single piece of news could cost thousands to tens of thousands of spirit stones.
“You are straightforward.”
Seeing this, the shop owner smiled.
He invited Lu Changsheng to sit down, poured a cup of spiritual tea, and began to talk about information related to Dao soldiers.
“Actually, ‘Dao soldier’ is just a general term.”
“Like puppets, demon beasts, yin corpses, ghost soldiers, artifact spirits, and even cultivators can all be referred to as some type of Dao soldier.”
“However, being called a Dao soldier often means having a certain quantity of the same kind, much like the soldiers and generals of the secular world.”
The shop owner took a sip of his tea and said, “Broadly speaking, Dao soldiers can be classified into three types: domesticated soldiers, refined soldiers, and magic soldiers.”
Lu Changsheng also took a sip of his spiritual tea, nodded slightly, and signaled for the other party to continue.
“The first type, domesticated soldiers, is as the name suggests: humans or demon beasts are raised as Dao soldiers.”
“However, this kind of domestication is not ordinary breeding. It involves using some cultivation technique, secret technique, or soldier training method to raise cultivators or demon beasts as Dao soldiers.”
“These Dao soldiers possess not only cultivation level and mana but are also capable of fighting and managing armies, as well as arranging formations.”
“Many formations don’t require human manipulation, but the most formidable formations still need many people to control them.”
“That’s where the role of Dao soldiers becomes evident.”
“I’ve heard that some profound techniques for raising domesticated soldiers enable the resulting Dao soldiers not only to form great formations but also to enhance their cultivation level and strength via the formations.”
The shop owner took another sip of tea, slowly introducing the topic.
“People can also be raised as Dao soldiers?”
Lu Changsheng was somewhat surprised to hear this.
“Hehe, all beings have a spirit. It’s not strange for us to be raised as Dao soldiers.”
The shop owner chuckled, finishing his cup of tea.
He continued, “Both the secular world and the cultivation world have practices of training loyal warriors; you can consider these as a type of raised Dao soldiers as well.”
“However, raising Dao soldiers usually involves hundreds or thousands of them, and it often takes decades or even centuries to raise a force.”
“That’s why few powers choose to raise humans as Dao soldiers.”
The shop owner refilled his tea.
“Why is that?”
Lu Changsheng asked.
“Because raising a force of Dao soldiers not only consumes time and energy but also resources, only large powers have the ability to raise Dao soldiers.”
“Raising humans as Dao soldiers, on one hand, is against the natural order. Moreover, the resources required for raising humans as Dao soldiers are too vast, and by the time the Dao soldiers are completed, human lifespans are too short.”
“Compared to humans, demon beasts not only live longer but also consume far fewer resources, making them ideal for becoming domesticated soldiers.”
“That’s why if a power is to raise Dao soldiers, they would undoubtedly choose to raise demon beasts as Dao soldiers instead of humans.”
The shop owner spoke, refilling Lu Changsheng’s tea as well.
“I see.”
Lu Changsheng had a realization upon hearing this.