A One-Man Shopping Spree

The heavy stone door slowly opened, and several Muckworm Children waited respectfully outside for Yang An to emerge.

At first, Yang An had still been able to keep track of the time, but once he began cultivating, it gradually slipped his mind.

"How long was I in there? What time is it now?"

Yang An looked at the Muckworm Child before him and asked. Mother Diviner True Person had said he could order these fellows about as he pleased, so naturally he did not stand on ceremony.

Yang An had no idea where the Muckworm Child's vocal organs were. He saw no change in it, yet a voice reached his ears.

"You have remained in the quiet chamber for five hours. It is now noon."

"Noon?"

Noon referred to the period between eleven in the morning and one in the afternoon—the height of midday.

Yang An remembered that when he and Pan Shi's fellow disciple had arrived here, it had still been nighttime outside. Who would have thought it was already noon on the following day?

He had actually stayed in the stone chamber for so long. Sure enough, once one came into contact with cultivation, one's sense of time grew faint.

He wondered whether Pan Shi and the others had been searching everywhere for him after he suddenly vanished.

After giving the Muckworm Child an order, Yang An was soon led toward the upper levels of the island.

After another winding trip through twists and turns beneath the earth, then through an exit guarded as tightly as an iron barrel by numerous children, he found that daylight still blazed outside.

This place seemed to remain forever in daylight, eternal and unchanging.

At this time, the cultivators who had come to participate in the Communal Feast Convention still filled the island with voices and surging crowds, enjoying themselves without the slightest sign of fatigue.

Yang An's appearance drew the attention of some cultivators. Seeing him emerge from such a heavily guarded restricted area, they were clearly curious about his identity.

He looked at the several Muckworm Children guarding him, sticking close to him every step of the way.

After thinking it over, Yang An immediately ordered them to keep their distance. He left only one Muckworm Child at his side for convenience. He did not want to be constantly subjected to everyone's pointing fingers and hushed remarks.

The Muckworm Children obediently drew farther away, though they still maintained a protective stance. Only then did Yang An feel at ease enough to merge into the crowd.

Nothing was likely to happen within Mother Diviner True Person's territory. Pan Shi and the others might not worry if they could not find him, so Yang An decided to stroll around on his own first.

After all, Mother Diviner True Person had said that he could take whatever caught his eye. Though Yang An's pockets were empty, his confidence was overflowing.

Before long, Yang An arrived at a stall surrounded by quite a few cultivators. It seemed that something good had caught their attention.

Without waiting for Yang An to give an order, the Muckworm Child immediately cleared a path for him, allowing him to reach the innermost circle with ease.

"I'll take this artifact. I offer ten Spirit Phoenix Pills!"

"Ten Spirit Phoenix Pills? Heh, I offer three high-grade spirit materials!"

"Fellow Daoist, why not sell this item to me? I'll trade a mid-grade artifact of the same rank for it. I absolutely won't let you suffer a loss!"

Yang An squeezed into the crowd and discovered that quite a few cultivators were frantically making bids. It seemed they were fighting over an artifact.

Yang An became interested. Artifacts were not among the things he needed, but there was no harm in taking a look.

The cultivator behind the stall was holding something that looked like a stone. Its surface was uneven and bumpy, and it looked utterly ordinary—not at all like an artifact.

"Fellow Daoist, may I have a look?"

Yang An asked. The cultivator hesitated before nodding. After all, having one more bidder would only benefit him, so he handed the item over to Yang An.

Stone Egg Armor

From the Jade Lang Artifact Forging Workshop

Forged from the eggs of earthworms. Because earthworm eggs were extraordinarily hard, the resulting artifact perfectly inherited this trait. Pour Mana into it, and it could bind to the flesh and form armor.

Usage Cost: Because this armor was forged from living eggs, there was a fifty percent chance that the earthworm within would awaken upon its first binding to the body. The user's flesh would then be devoured and occupied.

Status: Can be purified!

The instant he took the item, a prompt appeared before Yang An's eyes. His attention was immediately drawn to the name "Jade Lang Artifact Forging Workshop."

He recalled the Forbidden Child Talisman Pan Yu had traded for earlier. That artifact had also come from the Jade Lang Artifact Forging Workshop.

This Jade Lang Artifact Forging Workshop was probably a very famous place for forging artifacts.

Yet after reading the information on this artifact, Yang An felt somewhat puzzled.

The usage cost of this artifact was as high as fifty percent. There was a possibility that an earthworm would devour and occupy one's body—so why were so many people still fighting over it?

Could this artifact be especially powerful?

The moment he voiced his confusion, he was immediately met with scorn from the other cultivators.

"Where did this little cultivator come from? Since you know about the Stone Egg Armor, do you not know that even if the earthworm inside the egg awakens, as long as your cultivation is strong enough, you can suppress it?"

"You understand nothing. I advise you to honestly get lost instead of delaying our transaction."

Several bursts of laughter immediately rose from the crowd, making Yang An, who had asked the question, seem exceptionally ignorant.

Only after hearing their explanation did Yang An understand.

So it was not that this artifact was particularly powerful. Rather, it was an exceptionally rare artifact whose usage cost could be forcibly suppressed through cultivation!

No wonder so many people were scrambling for it.

Even if it was merely ordinary junk, as long as its usage cost was low enough, it would still be favored by many cultivators.

He had not been interested in artifacts to begin with and had merely come to join the excitement. But on second thought, having an artifact for self-defense would not be bad.

Laughing?

He swept his gaze over the people around him who were still mocking him. Their eyes held undisguised contempt, as though they believed that with the influence of the Illusionary Insect Corpse, no one else could see them.

You like laughing, do you?

It's mine!

Yang An grinned and immediately stored the artifact in the stomach pouch of the Flesh-Buried Talisman.

Seeing the Stone Egg Armor vanish from Yang An's hand in an instant, Yang An turned and left.

Now, not only was the cultivator selling it anxious, but the people around him were even more anxious. They flew into a furious rage.

"Where did this wild cultivator come from? You dare rob someone in broad daylight? You're courting death!"

"Hand over the artifact at once, or we'll seize you and drag you before Mother Diviner True Person. You will definitely be severely punished!"

"Fellow Daoist! Fellow Daoist, stop! How can you steal things? Do you intend to destroy the rules of the Communal Feast Convention?!"

Hearing the stream of furious rebukes and curses behind him, Yang An smiled faintly and could not be bothered with them. Without looking back, he quickly slipped out of the crowd and strode away.

Mother Diviner True Person had said he could take whatever he fancied. If they had any objections, they could take it up with Mother Diviner True Person themselves!

A Muckworm Child had been following at his side all along. With Mother Diviner True Person's orders, those Muckworm Children would certainly step in to handle the matter for him. He could simply leave the aftermath to them.

In any case, he did not have to pay. Mother Diviner True Person would cover the bill.

Sure enough, just as the cultivators were preparing to act, stop Yang An, and teach him a proper lesson—

In the next moment, several children appeared at once and blocked every one of them.

After the Muckworm Children explained the situation, the few cultivators stared at Yang An's departing back with shocked expressions.

This man was actually Mother Diviner True Person's honored guest? Good heavens!

"Please proceed to Yishui Pavilion later. Tianjiang Dragon Manor will bear the cost of everything our guest has taken!"

"...Alright."

Meanwhile, Yang An quickly blended into the crowd. Before long, he arrived at another stall.

"Hm? What's this? The Great Light Seal Fist Technique? It's actually a fist manual!

Good stuff! I'll take it!"

Yang An's eyes lit up. He put it away without a word, turned, and left.

"You thieving brat, you've got some nerve! Robbing someone in broad daylight!"

The cultivator behind the stall immediately flew into a rage and lunged out, but at that very moment, several children swiftly appeared and stopped him...

A few breaths later, Yang An arrived at another stall.

The cultivator behind the stall was introducing his goods to the others.

"There are ten Dao Sheng Elixirs here in total. Swallowing one pill can equal ten days of cultivation at the middle stage of the False Eater Realm..."

Yang An's eyes lit up again.

Two breaths later, he tossed the entire bottle of pills into the Flesh-Buried Talisman and turned to leave.

The cultivator behind the stall stared blankly at the several children who had suddenly appeared.

After a while, Yang An's figure appeared at yet another new stall...

The Communal Feast Convention grew even livelier.

At this very moment, in a relatively secluded corner not far away.

A cultivator suddenly raised his head, immediately drawing the attention of the two people beside him.

"Senior Brother Guangdu! That person's aura has appeared!"