Apocalypse: I Have A Multiplier System - Chapter 416

Chapter 416: Chapter 416: Pool
Su Jiyai and Xi Ping stepped inside the portal.

The moment they entered the portal, the one behind them closed.

Su Jiyai looked at the villa in front of them and suggested,

“You should rest here. I will go and get the materials I want.”

Xi Ping nodded with a hesitant look and said,

“Alright. Then I will wait for you here.”

Su Jiyai nodded and left. She was planning to collect the cultivation manuals for the people in her world.

Many of them had already reached the foundation stage.

So she needed the cultivation manual from the Qi Gathering Stage to the Nascent Soul Stage.

(Foundation stage –> Qi Gathering Stage –> Core Formation Stage –> Nascent Soul Stage –> Soul Transformation Stage.)

Su Jiyai stepped out of the villa and headed toward the bustling market not too far from their location.

Disguised as an old woman with a weathered face and hunched back, she blended easily into the crowd.

Her steps were slow but deliberate, her eyes sharp as she scanned the various stalls and vendors along the way.

The market was alive with activity.

Shouts from merchants echoed through the air, as they tried to entice buyers with their goods—herbs, weapons, talismans, and most importantly for Su Jiyai, cultivation manuals.

She approached a stall displaying a variety of worn scrolls and books, most of them ancient.

The vendor, an older man with a long beard, gave her a calculating look as she began examining the manuals.

“What can I help you with, elder?” he asked politely.

Su Jiyai smiled faintly, her voice raspy from the disguise.

“I’m looking for cultivation manuals. Something that covers from the Qi Gathering Stage to the Nascent Soul Stage.”

The vendor raised an eyebrow, a gleam of interest in his eyes.

“Those are rare and valuable, especially the ones that go beyond the Core Formation Stage. It’ll cost you.”

Su Jiyai chuckled softly, knowing this was part of the game.

“I’m sure it will. But let’s see if you have anything worth my coins first.”

She picked up one of the scrolls and unrolled it.

The manual was for the Qi Gathering Stage, but it was incomplete. Several pages had been torn out or damaged over time.

Still, Su Jiyai knew that even an incomplete manual could be useful back in her world, where resources were scarce.

“How much for this one?” she asked.

The vendor squinted at the scroll and then at Su Jiyai.

“That one’s damaged, so I’ll give it to you for 50 spirit coins.”

Su Jiyai shook her head, her expression stern.

“Fifty for a damaged manual? I’ll give you twenty.”

The vendor laughed, shaking his head.

“Twenty? You insult me, elder. Thirty-five, and that’s my final offer.”

She pretended to mull it over before nodding slowly. “Fine, thirty-five.”

As the vendor packed up the scroll, Su Jiyai continued looking through the other manuals.

She found a Core Formation manual, though it was missing its final chapters.

She also spotted a Nascent Soul Stage manual, which looked complete but was scribbled with strange notes from a previous owner.

She pointed to both. “And these?”

The vendor stroked his beard thoughtfully. “For both, I’d say 200 spirit coins.”

Su Jiyai’s eyes narrowed behind her disguise.

“200? For incomplete manuals?” She clicked her tongue in disapproval. “I’ll give you 120 for the pair.”

The vendor frowned, clearly not happy with her low offer.

“Elder, these manuals are rare. Even if they’re not perfect, they still hold valuable knowledge. 180 coins, and I’m already losing money.”

Su Jiyai sighed, feigning reluctance. “150 and not a coin more.”

The vendor considered it for a moment before nodding.

“150 it is. But only because you remind me of my grandmother.”

Su Jiyai gave him a tight smile as she handed over the coins.

In truth, she had just enough money left for a few more purchases.

She continued to browse the market, picking up a few other manuals along the way—some for the Soul Transformation Stage, though those were particularly expensive, even in incomplete form.

Each time, she haggled the price down, using her guise as an old woman to play on the vendor’s sympathies.

By the time she was done, her coin pouch was nearly empty, but her bag was filled with valuable cultivation knowledge.

Satisfied with her purchases, she made her way back to the villa.

[Host, why did you buy incomplete manuals? You can’t complete them until and unless you have a cultivation genius.]

Su Jiyai hummed a tune as she said,

“I am going to try and see if I can figure them out, and if I still can’t, I post it as a request and exchange it for something else.”

“Xi Ping, I am home. Let’s go.” Su Jiyai called out.

No response.

Su Jiyai raised an eyebrow.

As she entered the villa, she saw Xi Ping staring at one of the walls with a dazed expression.

“Xi Ping?”

Xi Ping blinked as if she had come out of a daze and turned toward Su Jiyai with a sheepish smile,

“Yes?”

“What were you staring at?” Su Jiyai asked.

“Oh…I felt a strange kind of pull from the wall…I suspect there is something behind the wall.” Xi Ping said.

Su Jiyai approached the wall where Xi Ping had been staring, her eyes narrowing.

The strange pull she felt now was undeniable, and curiosity tugged at her senses.

“System, analyze the wall,” she commanded silently.

The system hummed in response, taking a moment before its voice echoed in her mind,

[Host, this wall is hiding a cultivation pool behind it. The pool has powerful properties—any cultivator who soaks in its waters can rapidly increase their cultivation. It’s incredibly rare.]

Su Jiyai’s eyes widened in surprise.

“A cultivation pool…” she whispered, feeling a surge of excitement. She quickly turned to Xi Ping.

“There’s a cultivation pool behind this wall. If we enter, we can absorb its energy to increase our cultivation rapidly.”

Xi Ping’s jaw dropped, and she blinked in disbelief. “A cultivation pool? Here?”

Su Jiyai nodded, her mind racing with possibilities.

“It seems this villa holds more secrets than we thought.”

Without hesitation, she summoned her fire element and directed a stream of flames toward the wall.

The fire roared as it consumed the surface, turning it into ash within moments.

With a final flicker, the wall crumbled, revealing… an empty room.

Su Jiyai and Xi Ping stood frozen, staring at the bare, hollow space in front of them.

There was no pool. No mystical water. Just emptiness.

The system’s voice sounded baffled.

[Host, this is strange. I can still sense the existence of the pool, but I don’t understand why it’s not visible.]

Xi Ping scratched her head, her expression puzzled.

“Uh… Boss Su, are you sure the system wasn’t mistaken?”

Su Jiyai frowned, stepping into the empty room and scanning every corner.

She could feel it—something was off.

Her gut told her the pool was here, but hidden somehow.

She pressed her hand against the cold floor, feeling the lingering energy beneath it.

After a few moments of silence, Su Jiyai finally spoke,

“I don’t think we were wrong. There’s something here. It just isn’t showing itself.” She stood up, deep in thought.

“It might be an illusion array. A powerful one, at that.”

Thanks to the cultivation world, Su Jiyai got a general idea of things other than cultivation levels.

Arrays, charms, talismans, and weapon making, etc.

Xi Ping’s eyes widened again. “An illusion array? So it’s still here, but we can’t see it?”

Su Jiyai nodded.

“Yes, that’s my guess. Illusion arrays can conceal places, hide treasures, or even warp reality for anyone trying to enter. This pool must be hidden behind an array, and we’ll need to figure out how to break through it.”

Xi Ping crossed her arms, looking around the room warily.

“Do you think we can? It sounds tricky.”

Su Jiyai smirked, determination sparking in her eyes.

“Nothing is impossible. We just need the right approach. But it won’t be easy. Breaking illusion arrays can be dangerous.”

Su Jiyai stood still, analyzing the room’s subtle energy fluctuations.

“System,” Su Jiyai called out in her mind. “Any suggestions on how to break through this array?”

[Host, the array seems complex, but its energy source is concentrated in the center of the room. You might be able to disrupt it by channeling energy toward that point. However, I advise caution. Interfering with arrays can cause unexpected reactions.]

Su Jiyai nodded thoughtfully.

She was aware of the risks, but the prospect of accessing the cultivation pool was too valuable to ignore.

Turning to Xi Ping, Su Jiyai said,

“There’s a chance we can break the array by channeling energy into the center of the room. I’ll handle this, but I need you to stay alert. If anything goes wrong, be ready to pull me out.”

Xi Ping nodded, her expression serious. “Got it. Just be careful.”