Chapter 421
by fanqienovelChapter 421: No Riches Without Windfall
Xuanyi Dao Ren was a Purple Palace cultivator and the notorious bandit leader who had caused chaos for many years.
When Wang Chen obtained his Xumi Ring, he sensed that he could strike it rich.
To his astonishment, he received an even bigger surprise!
First, there were spirit stones, sparkling white spirit stones so numerous that they almost blinded Wang Chen’s eyes.
Using his divine sense, he counted a total of thirteen thousand five hundred and seven Intermediate Spirits.
Incredible!
Wang Chen couldn’t help but give Xuanyi the wealthy bandit a thumbs up.
What does thirteen thousand five hundred and seven Intermediate Spirits mean?
According to the current market rate, it could be exchanged for one hundred sixty thousand spirit fragments!
He could build a mountain of spirit stones with that!
But that wasn’t all.
Beside the more than ten thousand Intermediate Spirits, there were also thirty-nine jade-white, lustrous spirit stones brimming with aura.
Their condensation of spiritual energy far exceeded that of the Intermediate Spirits.
High-grade spirit stones!
Xuanyi Dao Ren actually had Upper Spirits hidden away, which truly caught Wang Chen by surprise.
Spirit stones were the common currency of the world of cultivation, categorized into spirit fragments, Intermediate Spirits, Upper Spirits, and Extreme Spirits.
However, Extreme Spirits fell into the category of heavenly materials and treasures, entirely beyond the scope of normal circulation.
The highest-level spirit stones available in the market were Upper Spirits.
In fact, for lower-tier and intermediate cultivators, Upper Spirits were quite rare.
One Intermediate Spirit could be exchanged for one hundred twenty spirit fragments, but how many Intermediate Spirits could one Upper Spirit be exchanged for?
This was a knowledge blind spot for Wang Chen since he had never encountered Upper Spirits before and had no reason to care about the exchange ratios; he only knew that true masters and true immortals often used Upper Spirits for transactions.
Wang Chen also understood that, besides being a high-value currency, Upper Spirits served as the energy source for powering high-level flying ships, formations, and magical artifacts!
No one can get rich without a windfall; such a number of spirit stones made Wang Chen feel as if his pockets were swelling.
His courage also grew threefold!
From then on, drinking spiritual wine would be no problem at all.
But the surprises didn’t stop at the spirit stones.
Xuanyi Dao Ren’s Xumi Ring also concealed a vast array of talismans and elixirs.
Among them, there were fifty-seven bottles of Purple Essence Pill, totaling five hundred seventy pills!
There were also second-grade spirit pills at the same level as the Purple Essence Pill, including Golden Core Pills, Harmony Pills, Fasting Pills, Youth Restoring Pills, and Soul Nourishing Pills…
These covered benefits such as nurturing one’s essence, healing, strengthening the body, rejuvenating looks, and revitalizing the soul.
Most of the talismans were also second-grade spiritual symbols.
These elixirs and talismans would be enough to support Wang Chen’s training and combat needs for a long time.
He also found a portable higher-level composite spirit formation, which integrated multiple functions such as gathering spiritual energy, defense, and concealment!
Finally, there were three spirit tools!
They were the Purple Lightning Flying Boat, the Soul Snatching Rope, and the Five Dragon Flame Shield.
The Purple Lightning Flying Boat was a higher-level spirit tool with a sleek and simple design, its surface shimmering with a lightly purple electric light. It was clearly an extraordinary flying device.
The Soul Snatching Rope was a mid-tier spirit tool.
The Five Dragon Flame Shield was also a higher-level spirit tool.
This spirit tool had a unique design, resembling the Zhang Heng seismometer from Wang Chen’s past life. A golden bell encased five dragons, and its surface was engraved with countless intricate true seal characters, giving it a substantial weight in his palm.
Wang Chen was particularly intrigued by this spirit tool and decided to refine it.
As he had anticipated, the Five Dragon Flame Shield had been refined by Xuanyi Dao Ren, but since its original owner had perished, the restrictions within had become rootless and weak, much like those in the Xumi Ring. They only required time to be worn away.
Wang Chen spent less than an hour completely erasing the restrictions left by Xuanyi Dao Ren.
When he infused his own spiritual energy into the spirit tool, a mental technique instantly appeared in his Sea of Consciousness.
This was the exclusive refining and control method for the Five Dragon Flame Shield!
Many higher-level spirit tools were sealed with such methods to make them easier for their owners to use.
Following this method, Wang Chen roughly refined the shield and quickly grasped its basic usage.
“Rise!”
He commanded, tossing the Five Dragon Flame Shield into the air.
The shield instantly expanded dozens of times, transforming into a translucent golden bell that enveloped Wang Chen entirely. Five fiery dragons coiled around its surface, spewing scorching flames.
The Five Dragon Flame Shield was not only a formidable defensive spirit tool but also capable of autonomous counterattacks. As long as it wasn’t forcibly destroyed or the user’s spiritual energy depleted, it would continue to operate.
Wang Chen maintained the shield for a while, feeling satisfied before storing it away.
He decided to keep this higher-level spirit tool for his personal use.
In the past, Wang Chen had slain many cultivators, including the Purple Palace master, and had sold most of the spirit tools and equipment he obtained.
These items were either of low quality or unsuitable for him, making them of little value to keep.
But the Five Dragon Flame Shield was different. First, its grade was high enough to be used even at the peak Purple Palace level.
Second, it was highly compatible with Wang Chen, allowing it to unleash its full destructive power in his hands.
With this spirit tool for protection, Wang Chen’s defenses were now exceptionally robust.
As for the Purple Lightning Flying Boat and the Soul Snatching Rope, he also planned to keep them.
After all, he now had no shortage of spirit stones.
After tallying the spirit stones, spirit tools, and Dan symbols in the Xumi Ring, Wang Chen began organizing miscellaneous items.
The spiritual rice, spiritual wine, and personal items were all of the quality befitting a Purple Palace master, and there were plenty of them, each holding significant value.
Wang Chen accepted these with a smile—his daily meals and clothing weren’t even this luxurious!
Finally, at the very bottom of the Xumi Ring, Wang Chen discovered a jade box.
At first, he thought it contained Jade Slips, as he had seen similar objects before, but upon opening it, he found it filled with letters.
Wang Chen casually took out one of the letters and unfolded it.
His expression immediately turned grave!
After spending the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Wang Chen finished reading all the letters in the jade box.
What he held in his hand felt less like sheets of paper and more like bombs ready to explode at any moment!
After some thought, Wang Chen removed the Xumi Ring from his ring finger and hung it alongside the Life Creation Cauldron, concealing them both against his chest.
He then left the quiet room.
Not long after, Zuo Xiaomo, who had received the talisman, hurried over.
“Brother Wang, have you advanced?”
Facing Zuo Xiaomo’s eager inquiry, Wang Chen smiled wryly: “My mind is unsettled; I failed to break through.”
Zuo Xiaomo scratched his head: “Then…”
“It’s fine,” Wang Chen waved his hand and said, “Let’s focus on completing the task first. How many people have you recruited?”
This time, it was Zuo Xiaomo’s turn to smile wryly: “Not many.”
Although they were operating under the banner of the West Sea Sect, the number of loose cultivators who had applied during this time was considerable.
The main issue, however, was their quality, which was quite poor.
Zuo Xiaomo adhered to the principle of “quality over quantity,” and after careful selection, he had only managed to recruit a few usable cultivators.
To make matters worse, one of them had left just yesterday.
“It’s truly disheartening!”