After returning to the pawn shop, Li Mo could have rested in the inner chamber, but due to the injuries on his hands, he endured two nights at his original lodging.
As his injuries gradually healed, he started to feel the existence of the magic fingers.
The intense pain was inevitable, but at least there was no risk of infection; it was entirely thanks to his immortal physique that he managed to endure.
Li Mo thought to himself: if Han Cai were put into his previous life, his medical practitioner certificate would have definitely been revoked. Performing surgery was essentially just a form of torture.
Nevertheless, the unique spell inheritance methods of the Medical Hall deeply broadened his horizons.
After a long two days, the sharp pain in Li Mo's hands finally dissipated completely, and the magic fingers seemed as though they had been naturally born, without any feeling of unfamiliarity.
He could also confirm through the Creation Book that the magic fingers were already integrated as part of his body.
Li Mo's consciousness turned to the Creation Book, imagining his right arm on the blank page, and the pages promptly revealed a spectral outline of the right arm, clearly showing six fingers.
He carefully unwrapped the bandages and examined his palm.
Whatever method Han Cai had used, there were hardly any signs of stitching, though the skin on the magic fingers was slightly pale in color, which he assumed would return to normal after some time.
Li Mo performed a simple test.
He discovered that the grip strength in both hands had significantly improved, and his dominant hand was no longer limited to the right hand; his dexterity had increased dramatically.
Li Mo was eager to see how the Universal Skillful Hand would transform after mastering its cultivation technique.
While pondering the contents of the Universal Skillful Hand, he once again noticed the cultivation steps for the Weak Crown Period, and his enthusiasm was immediately tempered by a jolt of reality.
[Muscle Replacement], [Multi-hand], [Injection], [Hollow].
Aside from "Muscle Replacement," which seemed feasible, the other cultivation steps were undeniably extreme.
"Muscle Replacement" involves extending the nerves of the magic fingers to the other fingers, transforming the six fingers into a fully evolved pair of magic palms.
"Multi-hand," as the name suggests, involves transplanting arms beneath the ribs.
Han Cai's ability to handle numerous surgeries simultaneously was a result of "Multi-hand," and his arms also revealed "Hollow" modifications.
After undergoing "Hollow" procedures, the bones would become structured like umbrella handles from his previous life.
Han Cai's overlapping bones allowed them to extend and retract instantly.
The final step, "Injection," was the only modification under Universal Skillful Hand designed for combat, requiring one to extract their own bones and encase them in molten metal to fortify their structure.
Overall, Universal Skillful Hand was indeed a spell leaning heavily toward support.
Li Mo lacked further details and had no idea what peculiarities it might produce in the Established Stage after breaching the Weak Crown Period, achieving a power comparable to the Golden Core Stage.
He tidied up his stationary set and placed it in his storage bag.
Li Mo sighed softly.
As he gradually came closer to the cultivation world, the similarities between ancient times and the modern era seemed to grow.
He didn't linger at the Calligraphy and Painting Hall, walking lightly through the corridor as apprentice painters continued their repetitive daily tasks.
A middle-aged man had replaced Liu Qin's position and was presiding over the Calligraphy and Painting Hall.
Li Mo nodded in acknowledgment to the man and subsequently stepped out of the hall's doors.
He suddenly understood why the pawn shop selected children—it was mainly because the threshold for cultivation in modern times had become far too low.
Even spirit roots could be obtained postnatally, and spiritual energy was abundant everywhere.
If everyone attempted cultivation, the resources of the cultivation world would undoubtedly be depleted.
Lost in thought, Li Mo had already ventured deeper into the pawn shop, encountering noticeably more cultivators, all of whom seemed hurried and preoccupied.
Clearly, chaos had erupted in the pawn shop; otherwise, there wouldn't be such an intense scene.
Li Mo quickened his pace and spotted, not far away, a Daoist temple situated on a high slope. Its plaque bore three characters: "Inner Chamber."
From the Creation Book's inherited memories, he knew that the Inner Chamber consisted of meditation chambers used by the Outer Device Workshop disciples for secluded cultivation.
Li Mo lowered his head and entered the Inner Chamber.
The cultivators passing by, noticing he was merely a child around ten years old, cast intrigued glances his way, prompting Li Mo to hurriedly increase his speed.
He examined the Inner Chamber's main hall and noticed a portrait hanging at its center.
The portrait depicted an elder exuding a Daoist Immortal aura.
The elder was clad in a purple Daoist robe, holding a horsetail whisk in his left hand, with a rare Golden Feathered Phoenix Tail Sparrow perched on his right shoulder, and seven-colored clouds beneath his feet.
Li Mo froze for several moments.
He immediately recognized the elder's identity—it was none other than the founding ancestor master of the Heart Beast Sect, and the sect's sole Golden Core Stage cultivator at the time.
[Tian Chenzi]
"It truly is the Heart Beast Sect. Even after seven thousand years, Tian Chenzi's portrait still remains."
Li Mo studied the image for a while but quickly moved to avoid stirring unnecessary trouble. He then walked into the spacious ring-shaped corridor to find his living quarters.
The pawn shop seemed to divide its rooms into heaven, earth, and human categories.
Li Mo's own Room Four was situated in a relatively remote location, with a side door just adjacent to it.
He took out his spiritual tablet and brought it close to the door, which automatically opened to reveal an elegantly decorated room with a copper bell hanging by the wall.
The bed was clean and tidy, and all the furniture, including the desk, was in perfect order.
Li Mo's gaze fell on the wall and noticed a sacrificial altar. Behind the incense burner stood a scroll painting.
The painting also depicted Tian Chenzi.
After closing the door, Li Mo exhaled deeply.
He had learned from Steward Hu that once you settled in the Inner Chamber, routine chores no longer required personal attention.
Shaking the bell would immediately summon the odd jobs workers to the Inner Chamber.
Li Mo ate a simple meal of dry rations and then carefully inspected the room, ensuring there were no overlooked details before officially beginning his secluded cultivation.
Under normal circumstances, novice cultivation would take at least half a year.
Li Mo, now free of concerns about being disturbed, knew this was the ideal time for organ imprinting.
He sat cross-legged on the mat.
His consciousness entered his mind, where the familiar Creation Book floated within.
Li Mo had already decided on the organs to imprint, and the images of the organs on the second and third pages immediately emerged, accompanied by a mysterious sensation rising within.
The organ images deepened gradually, and Li Mo's skin abruptly experienced a sharp pain, followed closely by a suffocating sensation in his chest.
He reopened the Creation Book, and the first page still displayed the diagram of the brain.
The second page depicted the middle dantian, the size of a ping-pong ball, resembling a fleshy tumor.
The middle dantian was responsible for refining spiritual energy through cultivation techniques and was one of the most crucial organs of the human body.
The third page displayed a lifelike depiction of an intact human skin.
Hui Qingyi required the use of skin, and to be cautious, Li Mo decided to wait until mastering the spell before nurturing a second piece of skin through repeated organ imprinting.
Li Mo gritted his teeth, releasing a muffled groan, his entire body trembling uncontrollably, even affecting his still-unhealed ribs.
To save time, he had concurrently imprinted both the skin and the middle dantian.
Li Mo was willing to accept any divine skills awakened through his skin.
But the middle dantian was different; if the divine skill obtained couldn't aid his cultivation, he might consider abandoning smog spiritual energy altogether.
Li Mo tossed and turned throughout the night, his unbearable pain keeping him awake.
"Tap tap tap… Wah wah wah…"
Strange beast calls faintly echoed from outside the chamber, seemingly very close.
This time, Li Mo heard them clearly—they bore some resemblance to the cries of deer, though he soon became too distracted by his pain, and the calls faded in a haze.