[Unique, high-energy resource detected. New System Function available: Array Blueprint Creation.]
[Function Description: Allows the host to use unique resources as core components to create and deploy spiritual arrays. Blueprints can be purchased from the Supreme Store.]
A new tab labeled "Arrays" appeared on his store interface. He opened it. The list was short but potent.
[Blueprint: Minor Qi Gathering Array (Mortal Grade)]
[Description: Uses a spiritual energy source as a core to create a localized area of high-density Qi. Increases cultivation speed within the array by 50%.]
[Core Requirement: 1x Low-Grade Spirit Stone (consumed in 24 hours).]
[Cost: 200 SP]
[Blueprint: Minor Purification Array (Mortal Grade)]
[Description: Creates a field that purifies and stabilizes Qi, removing chaotic or hostile elements. Ideal for cultivation in wild or unstable environments.]
[Core Requirement: 1x Low-Grade Spirit Stone (consumed in 48 hours).]
[Cost: 250 SP]
His eyes scanned down the list until he found the one that was clearly designed for his newfound treasure.
[Blueprint: Perpetual Spirit Well Array (Earth Grade)]
[Description: A sophisticated array that uses a self-sustaining energy source as its core. Creates a permanent, localized 'spirit well' that passively gathers, purifies, and enriches Qi. Increases cultivation speed within the array by 300%. Enhances the user's affinity with the Earth element. Stabilizes the user's foundation.]
[Core Requirement: 1x Heart of an Earth Vein (not consumed).]
[Cost: 800 SP]
Aryan's mind raced, processing the implications. A 300% increase in cultivation speed. Permanent. And it would enhance his elemental affinity, a concept he was only just beginning to grasp. The price was steep 800 of his remaining 965 SP but the return on investment was astronomical. It was the difference between drinking from a cup of water and buying the entire well.
The System presented another option.
[Alternative: Direct Assimilation. The host can choose to directly absorb the Heart of the Vein. This will provide a massive, one-time boost to cultivation, likely pushing the host directly to the peak of the 9th Layer of the Qi Condensation Realm. Warning: This process is violent and carries a significant risk of destabilizing the host's foundation.
Recommended only for those with an extremely stable physique.]
The choice was clear. The gambler's path to instant power, at the risk of Qi deviation and shattered meridians. Or the strategist's path a slower, stable, long-term investment. Countless cultivators, blinded by ambition, had chosen the former path and ended their journeys in mediocrity, their foundations riddled with hidden flaws. To the new Aryan, a flawed system was unacceptable. There was no choice at all.
"System, purchase the Perpetual Spirit Well Array blueprint."
[800 SP will be deducted. Confirm purchase?]
"Confirm."
His SP balance dropped to a mere 165. A complex, beautiful diagram of light, a three-dimensional web of runes and energy pathways, flowed from the panel and into his mind. It was a blueprint of divine architecture.
He looked at the glowing Heart of the Vein in his hands. He had neither the time nor the supplementary materials to construct the full array in this temporary inn room. But the blueprint gave him another option: a simplified, temporary deployment.
He spent the next hour in complete focus. Placing the Heart of the Vein in the center of the room, he raised a finger. A thread of pure, silver Qi extended from the tip, a painter's brush made of light. He began to trace the simplified runes on the wooden floor, the energy whispering softly as it etched into the wood, leaving glowing, intricate lines in its wake and filling the air with the faint scent of ozone.
When he was finished, he channeled one last pulse of Qi into the Heart of the Vein, activating the array.
The effect was subtle, yet profound. The soft glow from the mineral dimmed slightly, and an invisible, imperceptible field expanded to fill the entire room. The already rich Qi in the air began to circulate, drawn into a slow, silent vortex around the Heart of the Vein. The energy was purified, enriched, and then released back into the room, creating an atmosphere so dense with pristine Qi it was almost tangible.
Aryan sat in the center of his new, temporary sanctuary. He took a deep breath. The energy that flowed into him was no longer air; it was a liquid essence, smooth as silk and rich as nectar, immersing him in a pool of pure, elemental power.
The morning of the examination was now only three days away. He closed his eyes, a sense of deep peace settling over him. Let the other candidates sharpen their swords and boast of their strength. He would be sitting in the heart of his own private spiritual paradise, forging a foundation they could not even begin to comprehend.