Immortality and Cultivation: This old man seeks enlightenment through mere survival.

In the realm of cultivation arts, array masters and alchemists generally hold a slightly higher status than weapon refiners and talisman masters.

The next level down are things like spirit plant masters.

First, setting up an array requires familiarity with the properties and effects of various spiritual materials, as well as the crafting of special array plates and flags.

A qualified array master, if he does not want to reveal his trump card or be controlled by others because of materials, usually takes on the role of a weapon refiner, refining array plates and the like himself.

Therefore, a true master of formations must also be a master of weapon crafting, but a weapon crafter is not necessarily a master of formations.

Lu Zaian was thinking this way:

Right now, I'm just practicing setting up a low-grade first-tier array, so I'm too lazy to craft the array plate myself and will just buy a ready-made one.

It's not too late to study weapon crafting when there's a real need to hide.

After all, Lu Zaian has already come into contact with various cultivation techniques, including formations, talismans, alchemy, and planting, which is simply too much for him to learn.

Upon hearing Lu Zaian's question, the disheveled, fat stall owner quickly looked up. Seeing Lu Zaian's aged face and his fourth-level Qi Refining cultivation, he frowned slightly in disdain, but then chuckled:

"This... junior brother? You want to buy the array plate?"

“That’s right.” Lu Zaian nodded.

"Buying it for your own use? Junior brother, are you a formation master?" the slovenly fat man asked curiously.

The lineage of a formation master is extremely rare, and it is very difficult to even begin. The slovenly fat man simply couldn't believe that this "junior brother" in front of him was a formation master.

"...No, the array in one corner of the medicine field is somewhat damaged, and the elders of the Pill Pavilion need to repair it."

Lu Zaian frowned slightly. Although being a low-grade first-level array master was nothing special, he didn't want to admit it casually, so he immediately made up an excuse.

Buying array plates from others is such a hassle; you get asked all sorts of questions. It's definitely better to learn how to refine them yourself.

"Hehe, that's easy. A set of first-grade low-level basic blank array plates and array flags costs ten spirit stones."

"Two sets cost 18 spirit stones, three sets cost 26. The more you buy, the bigger the discount. How about it, junior brother?"

The slovenly fat man rubbed his hands together and chuckled as he quoted a price.

Lu Zaian pondered, stroking his chin. He had already repeatedly deduced the first-tier low-grade formation, so buying two sets would be a safe bet.

"Two sets, please..."

"Hey! Junior brother, you have good taste!"

The slovenly fat man's eyes gleamed with a sharp light, and he couldn't help but reach out and pat Lu Zaian's shoulder.

Just as he was about to choose an array plate for Lu Zaian, an untimely sneer came from the stall owner next to him.

"Haha, junior brother, you wouldn't happen to be thinking of buying Fatty Han's array plate, would you?"

"You have to be very careful! It would be one thing if that thing broke, but I'm afraid it might blow you up!"

What do you mean?

Lu Zaian was taken aback, somewhat confused, but then he saw the slovenly fat man, like a provoked fat cat, yelling at the stall owner next to him.

"What are you saying?! What kind of talk is that?!"

"Junior brother, don't listen to his nonsense. He's just jealous of my handsome looks and my extraordinary talent in weapon crafting!"

The slovenly fat man noticed Lu Zaian's hesitation and quickly offered a nonsensical explanation.

This explanation only made Lu Zaian's forehead crease with exasperation.

You? With your handsome looks?

Now I'm even starting to doubt your weapon-forging skills...

"Hehe, you fatso, last month you tricked Junior Brother Fang out of his hard-earned Golden Pattern Wood and took a lot of spirit stones from him, only to have him forge an Earth Profound Shield in the end," the stall owner next to him mocked.

"What are you talking about?! Just tell me if I've refined it or not! Besides, the Earth Profound Shield is a defensive magic weapon, it's practically worth more than its peers," the fat man argued.

"Hahaha, it's been successfully forged. It's a pity that Junior Brother Fang originally had a gold spiritual root and obtained the golden-patterned wood, intending to use it to forge a magic sword and cultivate sword techniques. Instead, you forged an earth-type tortoise shell for him."

This rendered the material unusable, requiring the collection of new materials and wasting over a month of the user's cultivation time.

The stall owner next to him didn't hold back in exposing him, leaving Fatty Han no face whatsoever.

"Also, the month before last, I took on the task of refining array plates from the elder of the mission hall, but I took it upon myself to modify the materials of the array plates."

As a result, the elder was blown to bits when he took it back. If it weren't for his high cultivation level, he might have been crippled. You were fined several hundred spirit stones, why don't you learn your lesson?

"That...that wasn't me developing new materials, what do you know? Innovation is the most important quality for a weapon refiner, don't you understand..."

"Oh yeah, you don't have spirit stones or the resources to experiment yourself, so you just use other people's stuff to innovate, right?" the stall owner next to him continued sarcastically.

Even the other disciples standing nearby, upon hearing the argument between the two, all came over.

Those who knew the slovenly fat man, in particular, did not hesitate to ridicule him.

"You fat Han, you're trying to fool people again. Senior Brother Wen was right, you fat man are full of bad ideas."

"That's right, that's right. I remember that Senior Sister Wang recently refined a new Three Talents Cauldron magic weapon, and it received a good response in the valley."

However, you fatso just copied it directly and made some Four Symbols Cauldron, claiming it was half the price and doubled in effect. But the magic weapon's attributes were mixed up incorrectly, making it a mishmash. Many of my fellow disciples bought it and were blown unconscious..."

Good heavens, Lu Zaian was taken aback.

I never expected that the slovenly fat stall owner I randomly picked would have such a rich and dark history.

The slovenly fat man, now exposed of his past, blushed crimson, his fat jiggling as he argued:

"It's borrowing, but borrowing doesn't count as plagiarism! ...Can the work of a weapon refiner be considered plagiarism?"

Then came a string of incomprehensible terms, such as "attributes complement each other" and "spiritual materials possess spirits," which made everyone burst into laughter.

The air around the hall was instantly filled with a cheerful atmosphere.

"Okay, okay... Junior brother, I'll only charge you sixteen spirit stones for these two sets of array plates, is that alright?"

I swear, these two array plates will absolutely not explode!

The slovenly fat man grabbed Lu Zaian and made a six with his other hand, extending his chubby thumb.

Lu Zaian hesitated. Hearing his fellow students reveal their embarrassing pasts, he was already a little scared.

Seeing Lu Zaian's hesitation, the slovenly fat man gritted his teeth, a look of pain flashing across his face.

"Fifteen...no, fourteen, that's the lowest I can go, it really won't explode!"

Lu Zaian picked up the two array plates and examined them repeatedly. They were indeed blank plates with no added features.

"Okay, Fourteen, I'll take it."

Lu Zaian found the fat man quite interesting. Although the previous incidents reflected his poor character, they weren't too egregious.

The fact that the Valley of Spiritual Medicine allowed him to remain there proves that he has merit.

Seeing the fat man's eagerness for spirit stones, Lu Zaian thought it wouldn't hurt to give him face, after all, he was a weapon refiner.

Upon seeing Lu Zaian agree, the slovenly fat man was overjoyed and shook Lu Zaian's left hand vigorously with both hands.

"Good junior brother, my name is Han Yu. I've decided to be your friend. If you ever need anything related to weapon crafting, just let me know. Even if it's a second-tier treasure, I'll find a way to get it for you!"

Lu Zaian forcefully pulled his left hand back, suddenly feeling that the array plate in his hand wasn't so reliable after all.