Chen Ye didn’t pay much attention to the neighboring couple of scoundrels.
After returning home and carefully wiping the small sword, ensuring no visible traces were left, he set off to the market again.
This time, Chen Ye didn’t go to the Spirit Treasure Pavilion but found a vacant spot in the free trading area, laid out a clean piece of cloth, and placed the small sword on it.
Magical artifacts, especially good quality flying swords, are always in demand.
The small sword, with its restrained spiritual light and ancient design, quickly caught some eyes.
"This sword looks good. How many spirit stones are you asking for, fellow Daoist?" A lean man asked while weighing it in his hand.
"Twenty-seven spirit stones," Chen Ye quoted a price.
A first-tier middle-grade magical artifact typically goes for about thirty spirit stones; priced at twenty-seven for this well-preserved piece isn’t high.
"Too expensive!" The lean man shook his head and left.
Chen Ye wasn’t concerned; good things are never hard to sell.
He waited patiently, casually scanning the crowd.
Suddenly, a familiar figure came into his view.
A female cultivator in a sky blue Taoist robe, well-tailored to accentuate her graceful and shapely figure.
She stood tall and carried a long sword on her back.
White socks and cloud boots, untainted by dust, exuding an ethereal air.
It was Li Qiuyun, a stationed disciple of the Lingyin Sect!
She had just finished her patrol and was frowning slightly as she inspected the items on the stalls, her expression carrying a hint of the arrogance typical of sect disciples.
Li Qiuyun’s appearance instantly drew the gaze of many loose cultivators.
Even Chen Ye couldn’t help but take a couple more glances.
It’s truly...
Her figure is exceptionally eye-catching!
Even that first-tier middle-grade Taoist robe seemed barely able to contain the taut curves ready to burst forth.
"I’ll take this small sword."
A cold female voice rang out; surprisingly, Li Qiuyun had approached his stall.
At that moment, she was slightly frowning, inspecting the small sword on display.
"Twenty-seven spirit stones," Chen Ye repeated, inwardly envious.
This Li Qiuyun, from head to toe, was all equipped with magical artifacts, true to an outer sect disciple of the Lingyin Sect.
Li Qiuyun gave him a light glance, but instead of directly taking out the spirit stones, she extended her delicate fingers and pointed at the small sword from a distance:
"The material of this sword is decent, but the crafting technique is crude, which might affect control."
Chen Ye was secretly surprised; this person indeed had a keen eye.
Previously, the masked tribulation cultivator had insufficient control over the small sword, allowing Chen Ye’s Geng Metal Qi to easily disrupt its attack.
"Twenty-five spirit stones..." Li Qiuyun shook her head, seemingly dissatisfied, but still offered a price.
Chen Ye pondered for a moment, calculating in his mind.
Since he had quoted twenty-seven spirit stones, he had intentionally left space for negotiation.
Moreover, trading with a sect disciple was relatively safe, eliminating worries about future troubles.
He finally nodded: "Alright, twenty-five it is."
Seeing him agree, Li Qiuyun quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Actually,
As an outer sect disciple without background, she also lacked spirit stones.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have taken on such a thankless outer sect task as patrolling Yunxi District.
She maintained her sect disciple’s pride and arrogance, casually tossed twenty-five spirit stones onto the stall, picked up the small sword and turned to leave, not even bothering with courtesy.
Watching her departing figure, Chen Ye felt sentimental.
Sect disciples indeed have their noses in the air.
But she has the capital for it, such as Li Qiuyun, who has already reached Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer.
While Lin Qiongyu, around Li Qiuyun’s age, still struggled at the Qi Cultivation Fourth Layer.
Moreover, she has the status of an outer sect disciple.
Even the heads of the Jade Lizard Association and Stone Mirror Association have to be polite to Li Qiuyun.
"Hmph... In the upcoming outer sect competition, why can’t I, Chen, make it!"
Chen Ye pocketed the spirit stones, feeling bold and ambitious.
Once his Cloud Rain Technique and Fostering Technique both reach Perfection, he’ll definitely pass the Lingyin Sect’s spirit plant master assessment.
By then, his status will naturally be different!
Currently, he had a total of one hundred and twenty-nine spirit stones.
It’s time for a big purchase!
...
"Fellow Daoist, how much for this storage bag?"
"What price for a first-tier lower-grade storage bag? Thirty spirit stones, take it or leave it."
Chen Ye, flush with cash, haggled for a while and finally got it for twenty-eight spirit stones.
A first-tier lower-grade storage bag had limited space, only a meter square.
But for everyday use, it was sufficient.
Moreover, storage bags differ from other magical artifacts.
Any increase in size means an exponential price hike.
Throwing the spirit stones and miscellaneous items into the storage bag and feeling the empty hands,
Chen Ye nodded with satisfaction; this was the demeanor an immortal cultivator should have!
Next, he bought ten bottles of Grain Avoidance Pills, totaling one hundred and ten pills.
Though Grain Avoidance Pills can’t increase cultivation, they prevent hunger for a day, convenient for long periods of cultivation or travel.
Ten bottles of Grain Avoidance Pills cost him ten spirit stones, enough to handle various unexpected situations.
Considering the coming winter, he also bought thirty premium fire stones, costing fifteen spirit stones.
After a round of shopping, over half his spirit stones were gone, leaving him with only seventy-six.
Weighing the storage bag, Chen Ye decided to stop and focus on enhancing his cultivation and strength.
The remaining spirit stones, he planned to buy cultivation pills from Pill Master Hu during the market in Shunshui Street to save several spirit stones.
On his way back, he ran into Xue Chengjun, who was hastily approaching.
"Senior Chen, I’ve been looking everywhere for you! Kong Hongxuan found Senior Chen’s home! Sigh... I, Chengjun, am powerless, really didn’t dare to stop him, shameful, shameful!"
Xue Chengjun had changed his previous jealous demeanor; he sighed, looking utterly remorseful.
"Thank you, Taoist Friend Xue, for informing me."
Chen Ye remained calm outwardly, but his heart was in turmoil. He nodded slightly and turned to walk home.
"Senior Chen, you’re heading back now? Not going to hide somewhere else?" Xue Chengjun persisted, trailing closely behind Chen Ye.
Everyone’s addressing him as Senior, speaking very cordially.
But Chen Ye had no time for that, hurrying on his way.
The road home seemed particularly long.
The sky was gloomy, and the cold wind howled, blowing up the snow on the ground, hitting the straw hat with a crackle.
The streets were sparsely populated, and those few people hurrying past.
Chen Ye’s heart grew heavier.
Kong Hongxuan, indeed, came calling!
Even though he’d broken through to Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer, his Geng Metal Qi had reached limit break, he still stood no chance against the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer Kong Hongxuan with his treasure armor.
Even against someone like Gao Ming, whom Chen Ye had beaten before...
Killing would be difficult, but humiliating wasn’t impossible for Kong Hongxuan.
Finally, Shunshui Street came into sight.
Sure enough, a burly figure appeared in front of his house.
The Profound Frost Scale Armor spewed cold breath under the sky,
Behind him were several members of the Jade Lizard Association, all exuding fierce auras.
Xue Chengjun saw this and stopped, watching to see Senior Chen being taught a lesson.
He even thought about how he should give a "sympathetic" consolation later.
He even thought about how he should voice his "sympathy" later.
However, unexpectedly.
Kong Hongxuan’s stern expression surprisingly forced out a faint... smile when he saw Chen Ye?
"Taoist Friend Chen!"
In a voice that carried an unusual politeness,
"I have offended you in the past... I hope Taoist Friend Chen can forgive me."