Her husband's words rang true for Ms. Lan.
"Yeah... He also seems strong, doesn't he?" Ms. Lan said before subtly releasing a faint probe of her spirit sense.
She let it approach Lin Mu without making direct contact, avoiding any offense.
Of course, Lin Mu noticed but chose not to react.
'Hmm... Dao Treading Realm and Dao Shell Realm... they're stronger than most here,' he assessed silently.
So far, the people he had encountered in the streets were mostly at the Core Condensation or Nascent Soul Realm. The fact that these two were beyond that meant they were quite capable.
It also made sense—an eatery in a place like this would undoubtedly attract trouble, and only those with strength could protect what they built.
Lin Mu leaned back, allowing himself to soak in the warmth of the modest establishment, realizing that even in the harshest of places, there were pockets of resilience and comfort.
Lin Mu stopped paying attention to the owners once they satisfied their curiosity. Though it didn't seem like they had managed to determine Lin Mu's cultivation base.
"I can't sense it at all… He's definitely a strong immortal," Ms. Lan spoke to her husband."Then we best not bother them," Mr. Lan said, experience flashing in his eyes.
Lin Mu had come in as a customer, and they would be treating him as such.
While they waited for their food to arrive, Meng Bai began talking with Lin Mu.
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Meng Bai asked.
"Who taught you to cultivate?" Lin Mu asked first.
It was the main question on his mind since he had seen Meng Bai in action. After all, it was not usually possible for one to start without some level of guidance.
'Though since this is an immortal world, it might have been possible on its own,' Lin Mu thought to himself.
"I was taught a bit by an old man that used to live here in the Back Commons. He taught many other kids cultivation as well," Meng Bai replied.
'So he did have some guidance,' Lin Mu thought. "What cultivation technique did he teach you?" he asked next.
"Just the common Great Qi Sea Art," Meng Bai answered without hesitation.
Normally, people would be hesitant in telling others about their cultivation techniques or might even keep it an outright secret. But with what Meng Bai practiced, there was no need for that, as it was a technique that could be found everywhere and wasn't even sold because of how easy it was to obtain it.
It was a low-grade Spirit Cultivation Technique, and even Lin Mu knew about it.
'The Great Qi Sea Art… A non-elemental, neutral cultivation technique. It is simple to learn and cultivate, but it is also limited to the Dao Treading Realm,' Lin Mu recalled.
"I think everyone cultivates the same here other than a rare few," Meng Bai added.
"They all do?" Lin Mu raised a brow.
"Yeah, many don't practice other, better techniques even if they find them since this is well established, and there are many that know about it. If someone gets stuck, there will be plenty of people to get pointers from," Meng Bai answered.
Now that Lin Mu heard this, he couldn't help but take a look around at the people present. Everyone was a Spirit Cultivator here, and their qi fluctuations were rather weak other than the two owners. Lin Mu focused on everyone's qi flow and soon realized that they had the same qi circuit as Meng Bai did.
Even the owner, Mr. Lan, practiced the same and had managed to reach the Dao Treading Realm with it.
'The wife is different, though,' Lin Mu noted. He could tell her cultivation technique was a lot different. 'Not just that, her technique seems to be elemental in nature.' He focused a bit more, trying to figure out what it was.
After a few seconds, he sensed the Wood Elemental Qi from her, making him realize that it was a Wood Elemental Cultivation Technique.
'She might have a higher-tier cultivation technique,' Lin Mu guessed.
He focused on Meng Bai again and asked the next question.
"What about the escape technique you used?" Lin Mu inquired. "That was a high-ranked skill," he added.
"That… I obtained from somewhere else," Meng Bai said hesitantly.
"From someone's 'pockets'?" Lin Mu guessed easily.
"Yeah… I got it a year ago when I got a pouch. There was a booklet in it with the skill," Meng Bai answered honestly.
"What is it called?" Lin Mu wondered.
"It's called the Retreating Crane Steps," Meng Bai answered.
Even if he wished to keep secrets, he felt like it was no use in front of Lin Mu. Besides, Lin Mu had already 'spared' him, which could be considered a mercy, given that theft like that could cost him greatly.
"Hmm… I see." The name didn't seem familiar to Lin Mu, but then again, it was a Spirit Realm Qi skill, thus it didn't matter much in the end. "And that talisman you used… did you make it?" He finally came to the part that had piqued his interest the most.
"How did you know?" Meng Bai was surprised.
"The runes were rather crooked and looked like the work of an amateur," Lin Mu simply said.
"Ah, and I thought it was rather good," Meng Bai said with some disappointment.
"But for its rank, I suppose it is a good attempt," Lin Mu praised. "Did you learn that from someone too?" he wondered.
"No. I just copied what I saw," Meng Bai shook his head.
"You made that just from copying?" Now Lin Mu was truly surprised.
One must know that the Qi Obscuring Smoke Formation was not meant for talismans. For one to adapt it to formations took a lot of skill, and it was certainly not something a newbie would be able to do. Especially not from just copying.
Lin Mu looked at Meng Bai with a newfound interest. The boy might not have had proper training, but he possessed remarkable talent and an innate ability to understand Formations and talisman-making. That was not something to be taken lightly.
Perhaps, under the right guidance, Meng Bai could become far more than just another street rat trying to survive.
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