Big Data Cultivation
Chapter 1260: The Difficulties of a Loose Cultivator

Chapter 1260: Chapter 1260: The Difficulties of a Loose Cultivator

Guo Xiaosong was whining about being broke, but Kong Ziyi casually replied, "I didn’t say that divining someone would cost that much."

She paused for a moment, then continued, "Still don’t get it? You can find more people, you know. Mountain Master Feng knows your situation isn’t easy, that’s why he charges some things... If you can buy them cheap, wouldn’t that save you money?"

Guo Xiaosong was immediately tempted by this, what the other person said actually made sense.

Although the thunder cultivators at Thunder Plain don’t have a great heritage, their personnel come from various backgrounds, precisely because of this, there are all sorts of strange social connections, not to mention people selling array plates, some even know those selling Gu cultivation techniques.

So this Spirit Dust Gathering Array Plate could possibly be acquired at a relatively low price.

As for the Super Large Storage Bag, it’s not out of consideration either, the key is to see how "super large" it is in the other party’s eyes.

But ultimately, he wanted to finalize an approximate cost, "So how many people should I find for the divination? In other words... what’s a reasonable unit price?"

This time, before Kong Ziyi could speak, Feng Jun chimed in first, "I won’t specify a unit price, it depends on the individual being divined. If they’re healthy, around ten to twenty Spirit Stones will do, if they have issues, the fee will depend on the severity."

As soon as he said this, even Kong Ziyi glanced at him in surprise, "Mountain Master Feng is indeed an honest person."

Feng Jun spread his hands with a wry smile and said, "There aren’t many wealthy people among the thunder cultivators, if I wasn’t worried about too many people seeking me out, I wouldn’t even want to charge the ten to twenty Spirit Stones... It’s just to set a threshold."

"So foolish," the voice of a Yin Spirit echoed in Feng Jun’s mind, "You’re being honest, but once others hear it, they’ll know you can divine on a large scale, and... it’s not expensive."

Truly worthy of being a Big Boss, they’re also quite adept at understanding human nature.

Feng Jun retorted in his mind, "I call this ’with great power comes great responsibility’, whatever, you wouldn’t understand anyway."

Guo Xiaosong also seemed to catch onto the idea, he gave Feng Jun an odd look, "So... how about divining fifty people a day? Any more and others might not appreciate it."

"Then fifty it is," Feng Jun nodded, going along with the suggestion, "The key is I have other matters to attend to, I won’t stay too long at Thunder Plain, I’ll try to make the most of my time and expedite the divinations."

Guo Xiaosong then agreed on a threshold fee of ten Spirit Stones before taking his leave.

Kong Ziyi, however, started lecturing again, "Mountain Master Feng, I know you have a kind heart, but divining is always very difficult, even if you have some special technique, don’t be in a rush to show it off. There’s a lot at stake here..."

After a pause, she made up her mind and spoke, "I won’t speculate on others lightly, but speaking for the Taiqing, we excel in divination. If you stand out too much... it would put pressure on Taiqing."

Hearing this, Feng Jun nodded in realization, "So that’s how it is, I guess I’m stepping on someone else’s turf."

"Not necessarily stepping on someone’s turf," Kong Ziyi smiled and shook her head, "Even the dispute over fame can lead to deaths."

Actually, she thought Feng Jun’s idea was excellent, setting a minimal threshold first, then deciding on the Spirit Stone charge based on how critical the situation is—this is a true display of confidence.

However, these words shouldn’t come from Feng Jun, as it would cause misunderstandings. Not every cultivator has such high morals. In fact, Kong Ziyi felt that cultivators like herself who "reason things out" are rare.

She believed that once Feng Jun’s words spread, someone would surely feel discontent, thinking Feng Jun was challenging other diviners—even within the Taiqing Sect, a few would emerge.

So she felt this should come from her, firstly because she has a well-known background, not like Feng Jun’s vague past as a down-and-out loose cultivator, and secondly... Feng Jun has done favors for her senior brothers and sisters, giving her a reason and motivation to praise him.

In short, Feng Jun’s words earlier weren’t too humble, but if she said them, there would be no issue at all.

Kong Ziyi explained her thoughts and finally expressed, "I’m not underestimating your status, it’s just that I don’t want you to get into trouble, it goes against my original intent."

"Understood," Feng Jun smiled and nodded, "I can understand your concerns, this suggestion is very good."

The next day, Guo Xiaosong brought twenty thunder cultivators with some health issues—not fifty, because for Qi Refinement Realm thunder cultivators, ten Spirit Stones is quite a bit, and Feng Jun’s ability hadn’t yet earned widespread approval.

After "divining," Feng Jun discovered that most of these twenty thunder cultivators were improperly cultivating, leading to imbalance in their bodies, ending up in a sub-healthy state—of course, if prolonged, it would harm their foundation.

So for these people, he just gave a slight nudge and moved on, without asking for extra Spirit Stones.

He didn’t ask, and the thunder cultivators wouldn’t push to give, of course, they also wouldn’t leave immediately but rather watched with interest as Feng Jun analyzed others.

Next, there were six Thunder cultivators whose foundations had been damaged. For five of them, Feng Jun provided a treatment plan. For the sixth, he expressed his inability to help—not that it was absolutely untreatable, but under the current conditions, with what he knew, he couldn’t treat it.

For those he couldn’t treat, he certainly wouldn’t charge Spirit Stones. For the five he could treat, he charged between fifty and two hundred Spirit Stones.

The last one, at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer, Feng Jun named his price—a thousand Spirit Stones.

This person immediately became irritated, "Mountain Master Feng, like the other Thunder cultivators here in the original sect, I’ve always respected you, but such a price really disappoints me. I know that others say I brought a batch of Spirit Stones from home, but I truly don’t have them."

"You’re overthinking this," Feng Jun spoke calmly, "I don’t care at all how many Spirit Stones you have. I’m simply telling you that if you want my diagnosis and advice, it is a thousand Spirit Stones. You can refuse to pay; I won’t be angry."

This person was, after all, only at the Qi Refinement Realm and dared not bear his teeth too much at someone of higher status. He had no choice but to glance at Guo Xiaosong.

There was still a strong emphasis on mutual aid among Thunder cultivators. Guo Xiaosong hesitated for a moment, then spoke with a smile, "Mountain Master Feng, I trust you unconditionally. This youngster is not sensible, so don’t be angry... If it’s convenient, could you give him a hint?"

Feng Jun glanced at him with an expressionless look and nodded, "Alright, out of respect for Guo’s influence, I’ll explain. First, you’re poisoned; second, your cultivation technique has issues."

"How is that possible?" The person’s expression changed instantly.

Considering that the other person was an itinerant cultivator, he didn’t dare say much and only glanced at Guo Xiaosong, "I don’t feel poisoned."

"Then let it be," Guo Xiaosong waved his hand and sighed, "I asked Feng for a divination, which was a huge favor. If you’re unwilling to spend the money, it’s because the opportunity hasn’t arrived."

"Hey, wait," upon hearing this, the person became anxious and quickly stood up to bow deeply to Feng Jun, "Mountain Master Feng, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but being a loose cultivator is tough... Could you please state your judgment and advice first? If it’s proven correct, I’ll brave a journey home and offer you two thousand Spirit Stones. How about that?"

"I only want a thousand, and I won’t ask you for it," Feng Jun waved his hand and spoke calmly, "I’ll ask Fellow Daoist Guo for it. As long as Fellow Daoist Guo feels there’s no issue, I naturally have no issue."

Guo Xiaosong had a lot of respect for him and nodded upon hearing this, "Mountain Master Feng, feel free to speak. I can advance a thousand Spirit Stones."

"First, about the poisoning," Feng Jun raised a finger, "Half a year ago, you were bitten by a snake. Isn’t that right?"

The person was startled at first, then nodded, "Yes, but I asked someone, and they said it was a Cold Ebony Snake, which is considered an extremely Yin creature. Although it’s venomous, after soaking its gall in wine and undergoing Lightning Tempering, things should be fine."

Someone who knew about the Cold Ebony Snake nodded upon hearing this, "Indeed, it even helps solidify the foundation."

Feng Jun sighed, "Was there a white patch on the head of your Cold Ebony Snake? That’s a ninety-nine-year-old Cold Ebony Snake, understand?"

The person was dumbfounded for a long time before shaking his head, "I don’t understand..."

Guo Xiaosong was silent for half a day before drawing a sharp breath, "A variant Cold Ebony, during its molting phase?"

"Old Guo, it’s good you understand," Feng Jun sighed, then waved his hand, "You explain it to them."

It turned out this variant Cold Ebony was a mutated Cold Ebony Snake. In terms of the Earth Realm, it was a genetic mutation, not an extremely Yin creature. Instead, it developed a hint of Fire Attribute. This snake sheds its skin once every nine years, and during the molting phase, the fire toxicity increases, peaking at ninety-nine years.

Lightning Tempering of the body is excellent for dealing with extremely Yin creatures, but if done improperly against fire toxicity, it often deepens the fire toxicity. Coupled with the extreme Yin camouflage, this person’s fire toxicity had penetrated into the bones.

As mentioned earlier, bone-deep toxicity isn’t considered a terminal illness in this realm. If it reaches the sea of consciousness or similar areas, it would be more despairing. The issue is that this person had no idea that the fire toxicity had penetrated into his bones. If delayed further, he would be ruined, and discovering it too late could even result in death.

Even Guo Xiaosong, who had seen much, didn’t expect such a situation. Thankfully, he was an experienced itinerant cultivator; after a bit of divination, he came to this conclusion. It was indeed something rarely seen, "Mountain Master Feng, is my deduction accurate?"

"Correct, that’s exactly the case," Feng Jun nodded and then casually said, "You’re associated with the Crimson Pheonix Sect. They know a lot about fire, and this situation should be manageable... I won’t meddle further."

Guo Xiaosong nodded. He just had to inquire with the Crimson Pheonix Sect about the relevant treatment methods, and there should still be no problem, "Then you mentioned his cultivation technique has issues, what do you mean by that?"

When Feng Jun was diagnosing, he had everyone bring out their cultivation techniques and place them in front of themselves. This was also to check the compatibility of the techniques. Many people’s techniques didn’t have high compatibility, but he couldn’t be bothered to comment—the individuals were already cultivating them.

However, this person’s cultivation technique had major problems, "Yang Thunder Scripture, correct? It’s not the same as the Heavenly Thunder Scripture sold by the Tiantong Commercial Alliance!"

(Updated to, summon monthly votes.)