Chapter 37: Robber Cultivators (Seeking Collections)
Chapter 37: Robber Cultivators (Seeking Collections)
"Alas. . . without Spirit Stones, to return from a mountain of treasures. . . truly lamentable."
After the exchange meeting concluded, Fang Xi, Jiu Xuan Shang Ren, and Di Qi left the market town together.
Jiu Xuan Shang Ren stroked his beard, his face a mask of long sighs and laments.
It had to be said, Lu Zhi's clearance sale featured many good items, and at least ten to twenty percent cheaper than the market town's usual prices!
Even Di Qi couldn't help but buy a few talismans usually crafted by Talisman Master Zong.
Only he and Fang Xi were truly strapped for cash, able only to stare longingly.
"Alas. . . what am I compared to him? Daoist Friend Chen Ping is truly formidable, to have directly acquired Talisman Master Zong's inheritance! " Di Qi sighed likewise, a hint of reluctance on his face: "Talisman Master Zong's talisman crafting skill was exceptionally refined; I even suspect he might have gained a second-order inheritance. . . Who knows how much he revealed in his notes?"
"That's certainly not the case. A second-order inheritance, how could it be worth a mere two hundred Spirit Stones? Does Daoist Friend Lu seem foolish to you? " Fang Xi laughed wryly.
"Indeed. . . but Daoist Friend Chen still has a chance. " Jiu Xuan Shang Ren said with a serious expression: "If he can become Daoist Companions with Daoist Friend Lu, wouldn't that kill two birds with one stone? Not only would he win the beauty, but he'd also gain a talisman master's true secret treasury!"
"Haha! Let's hope so."
The three men shared a knowing laugh, a laugh all men understood.
...
The next day.
Fang Xi went down the mountain to buy provisions, then returned to the Da Liang world, where he heavily fed the Taisui before cutting its flesh.
After several days, he had accumulated nearly four hundred catties of Taisui meat.
Hundred Arts Tower.
Thud!
Four hundred catties of monster meat landed heavily on the ground, making Shopkeeper Qi Six beam so wide his mouth wouldn't close.
His honest dealings had indeed paid off.
See? Didn't this rogue cultivator bring all his monster meat here?
"Fellow Daoist, it is truly the honor of our Hundred Arts Tower that you chose us. Yingsong, why aren't you serving tea?"
Shopkeeper Qi smiled very kindly.
After all, the previous dozens of catties of monster meat had been purchased at a high price by a Body Cultivation cultivator, leading to a truly decent profit.
"Please, have some!"
Yingsong hastily poured a cup of spirit tea, but Fang Xi merely raised the cup without drinking.
After all, one truly needed to be extra careful when navigating the cultivation world, especially with things ingested.
"This monster meat's quality is the same as before, it should be from the same monster. . . Eh?"
Qi Six inspected it, then suddenly looked bewildered: "This monster, could it be boneless? Its bones are excellent materials! Marrow can be used as auxiliary materials for alchemy, and bone itself can be used for artifact refining. . ."
"Shopkeeper has keen eyes. This monster is indeed soft and boneless, quite extraordinary. A pity, there was only this one. . ."
Fang Xi feigned a sigh, secretly vowing never again to sell Taisui meat in this market town.
Anyway. . . once he left Black Stone City, he could perfectly well hunt other monsters to sell.
Monsters in the Da Liang world were generally numerous and weak in strength, making them excellent targets for 'leveling up'!
"These four hundred catties of monster meat total forty Spirit Stones. What do you think, Fellow Daoist?"
Qi Six quickly calculated the weight and even rounded up slightly for Fang Xi.
"Shopkeeper is generous."
Fang Xi cracked a smile: "However, I'd like to acquire a talisman. I wonder if Hundred Arts Tower has any?"
Compared to the Heavenly Talisman Hall or the Pill Cauldron Pavilion, Hundred Arts Tower was more like a general store, which was why he asked.
"Oh, what kind of talisman are you looking for? " Qi Six was somewhat surprised.
"A 'Prohibition Breaking Talisman'. A first-order one will do. " Fang Xi emphasized his words.
"A first-order Prohibition Breaking Talisman? " Qi Six pondered for a moment, then smiled: "Fellow Daoist, you're in luck. This kind of talisman is extremely rare. Our establishment originally didn't have any, but just yesterday, a customer sold us one. Its condition is perfect, and its spiritual energy hasn't dissipated much. Please, take a look!"
He lightly patted his waist, and from a brocade pouch, he pulled out a wooden box that Fang Xi found slightly familiar.
Upon opening it, a Prohibition Breaking Talisman identical to the one from that day appeared before Fang Xi.
'Could it actually be from Talisman Master Zong's collection, resold to the Hundred Arts Tower by that buyer? '
A flicker of contemplation passed through Fang Xi's eyes.
But whether the talisman was or wasn't, it had little to do with him.
After a careful inspection, Fang Xi spoke to inquire about the price: "Indeed, it is a superior-grade first-order Prohibition Breaking Talisman. What is its selling price?"
"Hehe. . . This Prohibition Breaking Talisman would sell for at least thirty-five Spirit Stones at the Heavenly Talisman Hall. This old man won't charge a runner's fee; just pay the original price, Fellow Daoist."
Qi Six took a sip of tea and spoke with utmost sincerity.
'But I distinctly remember that Lu Zhi sold this talisman for thirty-one Spirit Stones back then. . . Forget it, there's no way to say that now. '
Fang Xi maintained his aloof persona as a monster-hunting cultivator, nodding: "Shopkeeper is fair!"
In his heart, however, he felt like spitting blood.
This back and forth had practically burned away two years of his savings.
After Fang Xi departed, Qi Six stroked his chin, a hint of dissatisfaction on his face: "I misjudged him. . . This kid might truly just be a low-stage cultivator who stumbled upon good luck. With such limited experience, he thought he could fool this old man? Hmph!"
Fang Xi was, after all, just a minor cultivator. Even with his previous life's memories, due to his limited experience, some things were difficult to conceal.
After a few more exchanges with Shopkeeper Qi, his flaws were exposed.
"Just a few dozen Spirit Stones, never mind. . ."
Shopkeeper Qi sighed, then leisurely returned upstairs to meditate and drink tea. . .
However, Yingsong, who had overheard his sigh, shifted his gaze. He went to the back courtyard of the shop, a sound-transmitting talisman clutched in his hand, murmuring to himself: "Uncle Qi, Uncle Qi. . . It's not that I don't listen to you, but a few dozen Spirit Stones might be a drop in the ocean for you, yet for me, that's a huge sum. . ."
His spiritual power surged, and the sound-transmitting talisman transformed into a streak of fire, swiftly flying out and vanishing. . .
...
Fang Xi walked out of the market town, habitually taking a roundabout route.
"Hmm, something's not right?"
At this moment, his Heaven-Gazing Earth-Listening Art, which he was circulating, detected something amiss. He immediately crouched down, pressing his ear to the ground.
With his internal vigor enhancing his senses, he heard the extremely faint vibrations of the earth.
"Behind me. . . someone's tailing me. . . it should be two people!"
He quickly changed direction, accelerating his pace.
But no matter how many directions he changed, the two figures behind him managed to keep up. In fact, their distance was shrinking, clearly having sped up after realizing something was amiss with him.
Soon, two figures, one tall and one short, emerged into Fang Xi's vision.
'One at early-stage Qi Refinement, one at mid-stage Qi Refinement! '
Fang Xi sensed their undisguised spiritual power and malice, and his heart slightly eased, though his face remained wary as he shouted: "Who are you? Why are you following me?"
"Hehe, kid, hand over all your valuables!"
The shorter, early-stage Qi Refinement cultivator, around thirty years old with many freckles on his face, sneered. Holding a few talismans in his hand, he began to flank Fang Xi, aiming to cut off his escape route.
"Robber Cultivators!"
Fang Xi's expression turned incredibly grim. With a flick of his hand, the Green Reaping Sword rose against the wind, transforming into a jade-green sword light that streaked towards the shorter cultivator.
"An artifact! Big Brother, save me!"
The shorter cultivator first slapped a Goldlight Cover Talisman onto himself. A layer of golden light instantly enveloped his entire body, and only then did he cry out in alarm.
"Haha. . . even your artifact is so shabby. You're truly a paper tiger!"
Seeing the Green Reaping Sword with a chip in its blade, the taller cultivator didn't get angry; instead, he laughed. He slapped a dusty pouch at his waist.
A jet-black ghost-head saber artifact emerged, transforming into a dark streak of light that tangled with the Green Reaping Sword's green sword light, even easily suppressing it.
"A low-grade artifact!"
Witnessing this scene, Fang Xi's heart settled even further.
His Green Reaping Sword was merely a defective product among low-grade artifacts, so it was understandable that it was easily suppressed by the ghost-head saber.
"You. . . how did you find me? " he roared, feigning ferocity while actually feeling weak inside, then fled in a panic.
"Haha. . . Big Brother, leave this kid to me. He's just a third-layer Qi Refinement cultivator, easy to kill."
The shorter cultivator was incredibly excited, his gaze fixed on Fang Xi as he muttered incantations, clearly casting some kind of spell!
As the final syllable of the incantation fell, two bright yellow earth spikes formed before him.
"Go!"
The shorter cultivator pointed at Fang Xi, and the earth spikes immediately shot out.
Fang Xi performed a frantic tumble, narrowly dodging, his disheveled appearance only further exciting the shorter cultivator: "You have 'Three Day Fragrance' on you, there's no escape! Die!"
Before he even finished speaking, another earth spike had already pierced Fang Xi's back.
"Ah!"
Fang Xi cried out tragically and fell to the ground.
However, when he fled, he seemed to have been too panicked to pick his path, and the spot where he fell was very close to the taller cultivator.
"You talk too much!"
The taller cultivator said to the shorter one, then walked up to Fang Xi's 'corpse', suddenly feeling something was off.
That sword-shaped artifact, if it didn't have its master's spiritual power supporting it, how could it still be entangled with the ghost-head saber? It wasn't some kind of Numinous Treasure!
"Not good!"
After realizing this, the taller cultivator immediately tried to retreat.
But it was already too late!
Fang Xi, who had been lying 'dead' on the ground, pursued him at a terrifying speed, appearing before him almost in the blink of an eye.
In that critical moment, the taller cultivator hurriedly tore open a water-shield talisman, causing a circle of water light to envelop his entire body.
The next instant, Fang Xi's fist smashed onto the water shield!
Whoosh!
A terrifying dent appeared on the water shield, but it didn't break; its light merely dimmed considerably.
"A Body Cultivation cultivator, and a mid-stage one at that!"
The taller cultivator saw this scene, and fear immediately surfaced on his face: "Fellow Daoist. . . a misunderstanding. . ."
"Primal Chaos Vigor!"
But Fang Xi no longer wished to speak with him. He raised his right hand high, terrifying vigor gathering at his fingertips, then slammed it down fiercely onto the water shield!
Bang!
He used all his might, and the Primal Chaos Vigor, containing several types of force, erupted violently upon the water shield, tearing it apart and revealing the taller cultivator behind it, his face full of despair.
He still wanted to say something, but Fang Xi's finger had already pierced his throat.
Thud!
The taller robber cultivator's corpse was casually discarded by Fang Xi, who then looked towards the shorter cultivator who was still approaching: "Just now. . . did you enjoy hitting me?"
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