Chapter 35: Selling Meat (Seeking Collection)
Chapter 35: Selling Meat (Seeking Collection)
Green Bamboo Mountain Market.
Fang Xi specifically activated his ‘Primordial Unity True Art’ to transform into a masked burly man, carrying tens of pounds of Taisui meat, and entered the market.
This Taisui meat, of course, was cut from the one he had in the Da Liang world.
As for the Taisui itself?
It had been settled in the Da Liang world.
Anyway, this demon was just like a plant demon—it had little to no aggressiveness and was too lazy to move, making it very easy to raise!
As for bringing the Taisui to the cultivation world?
Fang Xi had once entertained this thought, but it was quickly dismissed.
Once its existence was revealed, it would be too dangerous.
Fang Xi walked past numerous market buildings, stopping before a shop.
On the golden plaque, the three characters "Hundred Arts Tower" were written with bold, sweeping strokes, like dragons soaring and phoenixes dancing.
In the Green Bamboo Mountain Market, the Pill Cauldron Pavilion specialized in selling pills, the Heavenly Talisman Hall sold talismans, the Thousand Mechanisms Hall primarily dealt with cultivation techniques and even puppets, the Drunken Immortal Pavilion was a place where female cultivators conducted business, and the Ming Qing Pavilion was a refined establishment for drinking tea and listening to music.
And the Hundred Arts Tower, on the other hand, sold everything imaginable, a true general store, and at the same time, it consistently purchased various spirit items.
Fang Xi's target was this very establishment!
"Setting up a stall myself is too slow and too eye-catching. . ."
"Selling to a street vendor might fetch a higher price, but I could easily get scammed, or even be targeted. . ."
"Compared to that, a large business has slightly better credibility. At the very least, they wouldn't try to harm me over a few or even a dozen Spirit Stones. . ."
Of course, if his accumulated Spirit Stones reached hundreds or thousands in the future, then no merchant's credibility would be reliable, and they might even be the first to make a move!
After all, it was a question of what was worth it and what wasn't.
A few Spirit Stones weren't worth sacrificing the Hundred Arts Tower's reputation, but a few thousand or ten thousand Spirit Stones? Even if it meant the power behind them personally smashing their own plaque, they probably wouldn't hesitate much.
It was precisely because he understood this point that Fang Xi insisted on waiting until he had reached the second stage of Body Cultivation before engaging in this business.
Those who would dare to make a move on him for a few or a dozen Spirit Stones would at most be Qi Refinement mid-stage cultivators. . . At least he would still have the power to defend himself!
Upon entering the Hundred Arts Tower, a shop assistant immediately greeted him: "Fellow Daoist. . ."
"I'm here to sell demon beast meat!"
Fang Xi heavily slammed the Taisui meat onto the counter, his voice hoarse, his demeanor crude, and carrying a distinct murderous aura.
This was no mere disguise. Although he was still a "little white rabbit" in the cultivation world, in Da Liang, he already had quite a few human lives on his hands, so his temperament was naturally different.
"Alright, please wait a moment!"
The assistant hurried to the back to fetch the shopkeeper.
Cultivators capable of hunting demon beasts were all ruthless individuals! Even if their cultivation seemed low on the surface, they could be disguised experts!
Not long after, a male cultivator, dressed in sky-blue brocade embroidered with golden coins, emerged. He appeared to be around forty years old, his plump face full of benevolent smiles: "Fellow Daoist wishes to sell demon beast meat? I am Qi Liu, one of the shopkeepers of the Hundred Arts Tower. May I examine it first?"
"Please!"
Feeling the unfathomable spiritual energy fluctuations of the other party, who was a late-stage Qi Refinement cultivator, Fang Xi's heart subtly tensed as he gestured.
Qi Liu's expression also became solemn. He opened the package and saw the pale white Taisui meat.
He first formed a hand seal and cast a spell to test for poison.
Then, with a hint of uncertainty, he took out a bronze mirror and shined it on the Taisui meat.
Buzz!
A faint white light emerged from the bronze mirror.
Qi Liu nodded and said: "Fellow Daoist, please look. . . this is our shop's special artifact for appraising demon beast meat. The color represents the grade: white is first-order Qi Refinement level, blue is Foundation Establishment demon beast. . . The number of rings represents strength: one ring means comparable to early-stage Qi Refinement, two rings mid-stage, three rings late-stage. . . The demon beast you hunted barely qualifies as low-grade first-order. . . And according to my spell's calculation, this meat is skewed towards wood-attribute, and greatly nourishes blood-qi. Is this correct?"
"Indeed, Shopkeeper, your insight is keen," Fang Xi acknowledged with a nod.
The Taisui was a fungus, which could barely be classified as skewed towards wood-attribute.
As for its strength? It was even more laughable; classifying it as low-grade first-order was definitely no exaggeration.
"Hehe. . . " Qi Liu chuckled with a hint of pride, then some confusion: "Please forgive my poor judgment, but I cannot discern what species this demon beast is."
With that, he looked at Fang Xi, his eyes filled with inquiry.
"Well, I don't recognize it either. It's probably some hybrid or mutated species. . ."
Fang Xi's heart skipped a beat, but he answered calmly.
"Hmm, the cultivation world is so vast; even I cannot recognize all demon beast species, a pity indeed. . ."
There were many strange demon beasts in the cultivation world, so Shopkeeper Qi Liu didn't press the matter too much. After thinking for a moment, he quoted a price: "This demon beast meat. . . how does the esteemed guest wish to sell it?"
The crucial part had arrived. Fang Xi simply laughed: "According to market rates, low-grade first-order demon beast meat is one Spirit Crystal per jin!"
"Haha. . . When our tower acquires goods, it's naturally at a price lower than the market rate. " Qi Liu smiled faintly: "However. . . seeing as it's Fellow Daoist's first time trading at our tower, I'll give you face. Ying Song!"
The young assistant immediately stepped forward, weighed the demon beast meat separately, and reported the amount: "A total of sixty-seven jin, valued at six Spirit Stones and seven Spirit Crystals."
He then promptly produced six colorful Spirit Stones and a few fragmented Spirit Crystals, handing them to Fang Xi.
Fang Xi looked at the scene, even needing to use his Primordial Unity Vigor to keep himself from trembling.
Heaven help him!
When had he ever possessed so many Spirit Stones?
His original body, after a year of farming and various sporadic incomes, only managed two or three Spirit Stones a year!
If not for the lack of Spirit Stones, how could his cultivation have remained stagnant, and why would he have neglected the cultivation world's body cultivation techniques to instead learn Blood-Qi Martial Arts?
It was all because of one word—poverty!
Now, he finally saw so many Spirit Stones!
Fortunately, Fang Xi knew he was currently in a den of wolves. He casually tucked the Spirit Stones into his embrace and laughed heartily: "Shopkeeper is truly straightforward!"
As he was about to leave, Qi Liu's voice reached his ears: "Wait!"
"What is it? Does Shopkeeper Qi have any further instructions?"
Fang Xi's eyes narrowed slightly, his Primordial Unity Vigor already gathered in his palm.
At such close range, even if the opponent was a great master at late-stage Qi Refinement, they would suffer if they encountered a body cultivator!
"Hehe. . . nothing at all. I merely wished to ask, Fellow Daoist, if you have more of this demon beast meat? If so, please don't forget to favor our humble shop with your future business."
Qi Liu smiled amiably as he escorted Fang Xi out of the Hundred Arts Tower, bowing as he watched him depart.
Once Fang Xi's figure disappeared into the crowd, Ying Song leaned in: "Sixth Uncle. . . did I misjudge just now? That cultivator doesn't even have a storage bag, perhaps he just stumbled upon that demon beast corpse by pure luck. . . And, the price of one Spirit Stone per ten jin of meat is a bit too high. . ."
"Hehe, you're my nephew, that's why I'm looking out for you. You still have much to learn."
Qi Liu smiled as he returned to the counter, examining the Taisui meat: "Although this demon beast meat is only low-grade first-order, it is surprisingly pure and greatly supplements blood-qi. If sold to body cultivators, it would fetch at least one Spirit Stone for five jin! As for whether that person got lucky or is a truly ruthless individual, what does it matter to me? A single demon beast at most yields a few hundred jin of meat. Are we to ruin the reputation of our Hundred Arts Tower for a mere few dozen Spirit Stones? If we dared to do such a thing, our family wouldn't let us off!"
"Sixth Uncle is right! " Ying Song said with a look of being enlightened.
Qi Liu looked in the direction Fang Xi had left, a thought unsaid.
When the other party had approached earlier, even he had felt a sense of trepidation. This customer, despite his seemingly low cultivation, might have cultivated some profound breath-concealing technique; he was definitely a tough nut to crack!
To provoke such an individual for a low-grade first-order demon beast? He wasn't that foolish!
...
"Was I too cautious?"
After visiting several different places and changing his appearance multiple times, Fang Xi exited the market, his heart still pounding with lingering apprehension.
There was no helping it. He could be so reckless in Da Liang because he knew no one could defeat him there.
But in the South Barrens Cultivation World, he was so timid because he knew there were too many people who *could* defeat him!
Fortunately, after leaving the market, Fang Xi continued walking for a distance, feigning indifference, and no bandit cultivators suddenly jumped out to kill him and seize his treasures.
Seeing this, he immediately discarded his outer coat, changed into a spirit farmer's attire, and returned to the shack area.
Then, Fang Xi prepared to find Chen Ping to repay his debt and, while he was at it, inquire where he could buy barrier-breaking talismans.
"Speaking of which, I befriended Chen Ping back then, hoping to broaden my channels for selling supplies from Da Liang. . ."
"But now, his channels are still quite weak. That mere Jiu Xuan Shang Ren is practically poorer than me!"
"Only that Di Qi offers some hope. . . Next time I hunt other demon beasts, I might consider selling to him."
As for the Taisui meat?
After selling a few hundred jin, Fang Xi planned to stop.
Otherwise, if people knew he had a demon beast that could continuously produce demon beast meat, wouldn't they tear him limb from limb?
"Come to think of it, the Taisui's characteristic truly is remarkable."
"With it in hand, I could continuously generate Spirit Stones. . ."
"Ugh, no, I forgot to consider that body cultivators are a niche group, and the market will eventually become saturated. . . And long before the market saturates and prices plummet, I'd probably be exposed. . ."
Fang Xi arrived at Chen Ping's room and knocked on the door.
The month-long period was almost up, and he was a man of his word; debts still needed to be repaid.
He had borrowed four Spirit Stones to buy Blood-Qi Pills, promising to return five after a month. So, five it would be!
Though the interest was terrifying, 25% in a month, if calculated annually, it would be 300%!
"This Chen Ping fellow truly has a talent for lending money at interest."
As he was thinking, Chen Ping pulled open the door, a barely suppressed joy on his face, which then turned into a wail: "Fellow Daoist Fang. . ."
"What's wrong? " Fang Xi was utterly bewildered.
"I just received news. . . My master, Zong Wu, has been killed!"
Chen Ping replied with a look of profound grief.
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