Volume 2 Chapter 40

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Volume 2 Chapter 40: Exchange

"Young friend, are you interested in selling that Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast?"

A faint voice suddenly sounded near Xu Qingfan’s ear, and he realized someone was using a "Sound Conducting Technique" to speak to him. Turning his head, he saw a thin, elderly man in a gray robe smiling at him. From his demeanor, Xu Qingfan guessed it was indeed this person speaking to him. Observing closely, Xu Qingfan noticed that the seemingly inconspicuous old man possessed cultivation at the late stage of the Lingji Stage, just a step away from the Condensed Core Stage.

Although Xu Qingfan had no intention of selling Little Green, he could not ignore an elder speaking to him. So, he approached the elderly man with Ting’er and asked, "Was it you, senior, who just spoke to me?"

"Indeed," the old man nodded with a smile. "I am a Watchman, an elder of Medicine King Valley. Young friend, under which senior do you study?"

Initially, the old man only noticed Little Green being held by Ting’er beside Xu Qingfan. As Xu Qingfan approached, the elder realized that such a young person possessed the early stage of Lingji Stage cultivation, indicating Xu Qingfan was likely from an expert’s tutelage. Thus, he did not put on a superior air but asked politely. When introducing himself, he stressed "Medicine King Valley," confident Xu Qingfan would be familiar with the sect.

Xu Qingfan was slightly surprised to hear the elder was from Medicine King Valley and immediately understood his intention to buy the Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast. In the cultivation world, Medicine King Valley was unique; unlike others focused on self-improvement, their cultivation method wasn’t particularly exquisite. However, their skills in nurturing Spiritual Herbs and alchemy were unparalleled, producing elixirs that even the six great Holy Lands couldn’t craft.

It’s well-known that once a cultivator reaches the Condensed Core Stage, they can no longer rely on external aid to enhance their cultivation. Thus, there are not many masters in Medicine King Valley, which primarily uses elixirs to increase strength. Even the head of Medicine King Valley only has a Fake Golden Core Stage. Nevertheless, people in the Immortal Realm do not dare to underestimate this sect, as many of their elixirs have life-restoring properties. No one can be sure they won’t need these elixirs to overcome difficulties in the future. Therefore, although Medicine King Valley’s strength is weak, it has survived thousands of years without major disasters. Even the disciples of the six Holy Lands are very polite when they meet the disciples of Medicine King Valley.

The Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast, a demon beast, has a preference for Spiritual Herbs and an unparalleled ability to find them compared to cultivators. Although Medicine King Valley excels in cultivating Spiritual Herbs, it still falls short compared to their consumption for elixir refinement. Thus, they often search for Spiritual Herbs. Owning a Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast would significantly ease this task. Moreover, the beast has strong resistance to the toxins found in the herbs, making it ideal for testing elixirs.

Understanding the identity and purpose of the elder before him, Xu Qingfan smiled slightly, bowed his hands, and said, "I am Xu Qingfan from Jiuhua Gate, a disciple who greets the elder."

Upon hearing that Xu Qingfan was a disciple of Jiuhua Gate, one of the six great Holy Lands, the smile on Watchman’s face froze slightly. He had planned to trade some rare alchemical pills from Medicine King Valley with Xu Qingfan for his Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast, thinking that the reputation of Medicine King Valley’s pills would make the deal likely to succeed.

But upon hearing that Xu Qingfan was actually a disciple of Jiuhua Gate, Watchman knew that the prospects for this transaction were bleak. This is because Medicine King Valley sends various pills to the six great Holy Lands every sixty years, ostensibly to strengthen mutual ties, but frankly to exchange pills for the protection of the six great Holy Lands. After all, the pills are tempting, yet the strength of Medicine King Valley is not considered strong at all in the entire Immortal Realm. Thus, the various pills in Watchman’s possession were not particularly enticing to a disciple of Jiuhua Gate.

Although Watchman felt the likelihood of the trade was diminishing, he still asked with a sliver of hope, "So, you are from a Holy Land, my apologies. This old man wishes to trade some Medicine King Valley pills with the young friend for this little Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast. What does the young friend think?"

Saying this, Watchman stared closely into Xu Qingfan’s eyes. Even though his expression seemed calm, Xu Qingfan noticed the tension in Watchman’s tightly clasped hands, knowing how greatly a Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast would aid Medicine King Valley.

Hearing Watchman mention the pills from Medicine King Valley, Xu Qingfan felt a slight stir in his heart. The pills have long been famous in the Immortal Realm, and Xu Qingfan had heard much about them. In fact, every generation of Medicine King Valley disciples has had instances of using these pills to help break through the Lingji Stage and enter the Condensed Core Stage. Although those individuals never advanced further after reaching the Fake Golden Core Stage, the strength of Medicine King Valley’s pills is clearly evident. With the pills, Xu Qingfan’s originally slim hope of entering the Condensed Core Stage undoubtedly increased by a third.

Even if the pills could not help Xu Qingfan break into the Fake Golden Core Stage due to his limited aptitude, they could at least accelerate his training, helping him quickly reach the late stage of the Lingji Stage. Xu Qingfan still vividly remembered the effectiveness of the "Wood Spirit Pill" Lu Huayan gifted him, but unfortunately, he had consumed it all. While the Jiuhua Gate also had some Medicine King Valley pills, Xu Qingfan’s status and talent did not qualify him to use them, though Jiuhua Gate granted some to Jin Qinghan each year.

Moreover, what intrigued Xu Qingfan further was that Medicine King Valley’s pills included not just those that increased power, but also those for healing, detoxification, and calming the mind, among many other effects.

With these thoughts, Xu Qingfan did not immediately refuse Watchman’s offer. Instead, he asked indifferently, "Then may I ask, what kind of pills does the elder wish to offer in exchange?"

Hearing that Xu Qingfan didn’t directly refuse his trade request, Watchman was overjoyed. He suppressed his excitement and quickly said, "I noticed that you, young friend, cultivate using a wood attribute method, while this young lady beside you has a fiery nature and may practice a fire attribute method in the future. I propose exchanging three bottles of ‘Wooden Glory Pill’, three bottles of ‘Fire Lotus Pill’, and one bottle each of ‘Cooling Pill’, ‘Rejuvenating Pill’, ‘Universal Cure Pill’, ‘Purple Jade Ointment’, and ‘Spirit Harmony Pill’ for your Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast. What do you think?"

Upon hearing Watchman’s words, Xu Qingfan nodded slightly. He had heard of these pills before and knew they were rare treasures in the cultivation world. Trading them for a young Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast was fair, as it would take many Spiritual Herbs to raise it.

The "Wooden Glory Pill" is a spirit pill that aids wood-type cultivators in refining the wood Spirit Qi of the world, and its effects surpass those of the "Wood Spirit Pill" given to Xu Qingfan by Lu Huayan. With the help of the "Wooden Glory Pill," Xu Qingfan would likely progress to the late stage of the Lingji Stage more swiftly. The "Fire Lotus Pill" has similar effects, beneficial for fire system cultivators.

The "Cooling Pill" is a spirit pill that stabilizes a cultivator’s mind and can dispel various mind-bewitching spells, and it prevents Qi deviation during meditation. The "Rejuvenating Pill" is known for saving lives, capable of healing severe internal injuries as long as there’s a breath left. The "Purple Jade Ointment" focuses more on healing external wounds, regenerating flesh and bones. The "Universal Cure Pill" detoxifies a hundred poisons, while the "Spirit Harmony Pill" stabilizes a cultivator’s Spirit Qi and strengthens their realm.

"This price seems fair," Xu Qingfan nodded slightly, but just as a gleam of delight appeared on Watchman’s face, Xu Qingfan continued, "However, I’m at the market for a suitable weapon this time; I don’t need spirit pills temporarily. Besides, the Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast belongs to my niece, Ting’er, and I don’t have the right to trade it."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Watchman’s enthusiasm quickly cooled, but intimidated by Xu Qingfan’s Holy Land background, he dared not show anger, only managing a wry smile and saying, "Was my young friend just toying with me earlier by asking the price?"

Seeing Watchman’s restrained frustration, Xu Qingfan smiled slightly and said to Ting’er, "Ting’er, Ninth Uncle has some matters to attend to, why don’t you take Little Green and wander around?"

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Ting’er obediently nodded and then walked away with Little Green.

Once Ting’er and Little Green had walked far enough away, Xu Qingfan smiled and said, "Though I can’t sell the young Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast, I have an adult Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast’s inner core. Would you be interested?"

Saying this, Xu Qingfan presented the inner core he had previously taken from the Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast in front of the Watchman. Earlier, Xu Qingfan hadn’t shown this inner core because he feared that Little Green would go berserk again upon discovering her mother’s core. So, only after Little Green was led away by Ting’er did Xu Qingfan take out the core.

Seeing the fist-sized inner core, faintly glowing with a blue mist, the Watchman recognized it as the core of an adult Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast and couldn’t help but feel joy instead of anger. After refining this core into a magical artifact using a special technique, it could be used to find Spiritual Herbs and test medicine. Although the effect is much less than that of the Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast, it would still greatly benefit Medicine King Valley.

Eventually, the Watchman and Xu Qingfan reached a deal. The Watchman traded the elixirs he previously mentioned, along with a bottle of "Golden Spirit Pill," in exchange for Xu Qingfan’s Blue-eyed Cloud-foot Beast core. The "Golden Spirit Pill" was specially added at Xu Qingfan’s request, as he intended to give it to Jin Qinghan.

After the transaction was completed, Xu Qingfan bid farewell to the Watchman and was about to call Ting’er to leave when he suddenly heard the Watchman ask, "Did this young friend just say you came to the market hoping to acquire some magical artifacts?"