Translator: AnubisTL
With the bear hide sold and fifty spirit stones in hand, Li Qing closed his stall with a smile and began leisurely strolling through the trade fair.
He soon found a stall selling Beast Taming Pellets and Beast Nurturing Pills. The vendor was a beast tamer who knew how to refine pills for Demon beasts.
Beast Taming Pellets, like most pills named "pellets" or "powders," were low-grade pills with little value and were easy to refine.
Only pills named "pills" could truly be considered graded pills, crafted exclusively by Pill Refiners and each worth a significant fortune.
"Give me sixty Beast Taming Pellets and ten Beast Nurturing Pills!" Li Qing said calmly.
Beast Taming Pellets were similar to the Qi Replenishing Pills cultivators consumed to stave off hunger. A single pellet could sustain a Demon beast for two to three days without food.
However, since they were meant for Demon beasts, the refining techniques were crude, and the ingredients were far less refined than those used in Qi Replenishing Pills, resulting in a low value.
Beast Nurturing Pills, on the other hand, were quite expensive. Anything bearing the name "pill" commanded a price many times higher.
These pills contained potent medicinal power. If a Demon beast consumed them regularly over time, it would undergo a complete transformation.
An absolute tiger-wolf-grade elixir, but its effects were too potent for the human body to withstand.
The prices of both pills were relatively fixed, with little fluctuation.
Beast Taming Pellets cost one spirit stone for three, while Beast Nurturing Pills cost five spirit stones each. This disparity clearly illustrated the low value of low-grade pills.
The stall owner selling Demon Beast Pills didn't even raise his head, simply pushing out a pile of bottles and jars, placing the exact quantity Li Qing needed before him.
"That'll be seventy spirit stones total," the stall owner said before closing his eyes again, returning to his meditative state.
Li Qing, seeing this, paid without hesitation.
With the transaction complete, just as Li Qing was about to leave, the stall owner suddenly called out to him.
"Wait, young friend. Do you keep a demon beast?"
Li Qing immediately grew wary. Demon beasts were rare in the cultivation world these days, and he couldn't rule out the stall owner having ulterior motives.
"Hehe, young friend, you misunderstand. I'm not trying to take your demon beast from you," the hooded stall owner continued in a low, raspy voice. "Generally, cultivators who raise demon beasts will bind them with a Blood Contract or soul contract to ensure their obedience and prevent betrayal."
"Young friend, I have a Blood Contract Method here. I'm selling it for only fifteen spirit stones. Are you interested?"
Blood Contract Method?
Li Qing thought for a moment. Given his relationship with Fan Tong, he didn't think he needed such a thing.
The two had depended on each other for many years. Even after Li Qing had once let Fan Tong roam free for a while, the Demon beast remained obedient.
Just as Li Qing was about to refuse, the hooded stall owner smiled and added, "By planting the Blood Pact Seal, your favored beast will understand more of your commands and words. A subtle mental connection will also form, allowing for greater coordination and synergy when fighting side by side in the future."
That made sense, Li Qing realized. Beast taming was a vast and profound discipline in the cultivation world. Many powerful beast tamers owed their strength to their Demon beasts. Some even mastered mystical secret arts, with a few able to share their Demon beasts' vision.
"Could you make it a little cheaper? I don't have many spirit stones left right now," Li Qing said, feigning a look of poverty, as if he could barely scrape together any more spirit stones, yet was clearly intrigued by the Blood Contract Method.
The hooded stall owner chuckled dryly and shook his head. "I can't lower the price. This is already as low as I can go. If I weren't in dire need of spirit stones, I wouldn't be selling this Cultivation Method to you in the first place."
Hearing this, Li Qing actually felt relieved.
If the stall owner had agreed to lower the price further, it might have meant the Blood Contract Method had some hidden flaws. The Blood Pact Seal could potentially cause Fan Tong to undergo some undesirable changes after being imprinted.
Since the stall owner's primary concern was spirit stones, Li Qing was less worried.
After some thought, Li Qing decided to purchase the secret method.
As a beast tamer, the stall owner immediately tossed Li Qing a booklet titled "Blood Pact Seal."
With the secret method in hand, Li Qing quickly blended back into the crowd at the trade fair, changing directions several times before finally letting out a sigh of relief.
"I need to study this Blood Contract Method thoroughly when I get back. It's best to ask Senior Zhou for help to see if there are any problems. I can't just casually imprint it on Fan Tong."
Li Qing muttered to himself, deciding to hold off on using the method for now. He didn't want to risk being tricked by a flawed Cultivation Method and harming Fan Tong in the process.
Afterward, Li Qing wandered around the trade fair for a while longer. Finally, he spent twenty spirit stones to buy three three-tailed spirit fish and fourteen pounds of spirit rice before heading home.
Back in the courtyard, Li Qing immediately activated the restrictions and let out a long sigh.
Over the past two days, he had spent a considerable amount of spirit stones. Yesterday, he bought two jars of Spirit Wine, several talismans, a spirit beast pouch, and a storage bag, totaling over 330 spirit stones.
Today, he sold the bear demon skin for 50 spirit stones, but then spent another 105 spirit stones on a large pile of pills and other items for Fan Tong.
After all the calculations, Li Qing's savings from half a year had dwindled to just 285 spirit stones.
"Sigh, I'm broke again. But at least I've bought most of what I need."
"The only regret is not being able to get any pills to advance my mana in the Qi Refining Realm. Those things are so rare; they're always snatched up the moment they appear."
"I'll try my luck one last time tomorrow. If I still can't get any, I won't force it."
Li Qing sighed deeply, then with a single wave of his hand, a ball of fire materialized.
Boom!
He had become quite proficient at using the Fireball Technique to light bonfires.
With that, he set up his iron pot and began preparing a thick spirit rice and spirit fish porridge for himself.
Fan Tong, who had been watching from the side, quickly caught the scent of the spirit fish and scrambled over with a wagging tail.
Li Qing rolled his eyes and pulled a reddish-brown Beast Nurturing Pill from his storage pouch.
"Eat this instead. It's not much cheaper than the spirit fish."
As soon as he spoke, Li Qing flicked the five-spirit-stone pill into the air.
Sensing the pill's extraordinary nature, Fan Tong leaped up, its massive frame casting a shadow that blotted out the sun and plunged the courtyard into dimness.
"Awooo!" Fan Tong swallowed the pill in one gulp, then settled down contentedly, savoring the transformation it brought.
Though these pills, specially formulated for demon beasts, possessed potent medicinal power, they sold for only five spirit stones—far cheaper than the pills cultivators consumed.
This was because the pill's properties were too overbearing for human constitutions to withstand. Moreover, they contained a high concentration of pill toxins, which only demon beasts could digest and absorb.
In truth, if Li Qing were to curiously swallow a Beast Nurturing Pill, the pill toxins would immediately flood his system, and the pill's violent medicinal power would rupture his meridians, leading to his death.
While Fan Tong was undergoing his transformation, the spirit rice porridge Li Qing had been cooking had become steaming hot.
He took out a spirit fish and, without even cleaning it, tossed it directly into the pot of porridge.
As a spiritual object that had lived for years in the heart of a Spiritual Vein, it had absorbed an incredibly dense concentration of heaven and earth spiritual energy.
Every piece of flesh on the spirit fish was nourished by this pure energy, resulting in an exceptionally delicious flavor and significant benefits for cultivators.
In no time, the spirit fish porridge was ready. Li Qing eagerly ladled a bowl for himself.
After gently blowing on it to let the fish and porridge cool slightly, he took his first bite.
The tender, succulent fish flesh, mixed with the thick, sweet spirit rice porridge, instantly plunged his taste buds into an explosion of exquisite flavors.
This is delicious!
It's a culinary masterpiece!
Having tasted the spirit fish porridge, Li Qing felt that his six months of relentless mining had finally paid off!
Completely lost in the culinary bliss, Li Qing's mind went blank as he devoted himself entirely to devouring the entire pot of spirit fish porridge.
In the end, Li Qing didn't even spare the fish bones. He chewed the brittle bones into a fine powder and swallowed them down with the porridge.
Not wasting a single morsel, Li Qing lay down on the spot, his head resting on Fan Tong's body. He closed his eyes, savoring the abundant spiritual energy coursing through his veins, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
This is what it means to cultivate immortality!
Life was so comfortable that he wouldn't trade it for the throne of a mortal emperor.
As night deepened, the sky was adorned with countless twinkling stars.
Tonight, Li Qing didn't want to cultivate. He simply wanted to quietly enjoy the night sky, listening to Fan Tong's snoring beside him, until he gradually drifted into slumber.
Thus, a night passed. At dawn the next day, a single icy dewdrop fell.
Drip!
Li Qing remained asleep, still lost in his dreams.
But the next moment, a powerful surge of energy erupted from District C.
Sensing the disturbance, Li Qing jolted awake. He rolled over and sat up, his gaze fixed on the courtyard gate, the source of the energy surge.
"That... came from Old Zhou's courtyard?"
After confirming this, Li Qing couldn't help but clench his fists.
Zhou Tong had already consumed the Spirit Condensation Pill and was now beginning his breakthrough!
Boom!
As Zhou Tong's aura intensified, more and more people began to pay attention to his breakthrough.
The Late Qi Refining Realm was a difficult milestone for many rogue cultivators of average talent. If Zhou Tong succeeded, he would likely be the first rogue cultivator to break through to the Late Qi Refining Realm in decades. Whether anyone had achieved this earlier was known only to the Liu Clan.
"Old Zhou's breakthrough looks promising!"
"Hiss! The Late Qi Refining Realm? Could he really pull it off?"
"Damn it! Why did I hesitate back then? It was just a bunch of Flying Eagle Bandits! If I hadn't, I'd be the one breaking through here today!"
"His aura is becoming more condensed and solid. Old Zhou is really going to succeed!"
Amidst gasps of astonishment, a beam of pure light shot through the sky from Old Zhou's courtyard, piercing the heavens like a rainbow. His aura surged dramatically, then finally stabilized completely.
Boom!
Late Qi Refining Realm! He had done it!
(End of the Chapter)
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