Harvesting Treasure Armor

Hearing the shouts from behind.

The puppet body did not stop. Instead, it quickened its pace.

It seemed extremely frightened.

At the sight.

Cruel smiles appeared on the faces of the Rogue Cultivators, like wolves that had fixed their eyes on prey.

"Heh heh heh, why are you running, fellow cultivator? It's not as if I'm a bad man."

The middle-aged cultivator in the lead let out a strange laugh.

One in front and the others behind, the distance between them never widened.

Before long.

They had moved far away from the Black Market.

About a quarter of an hour later, the puppet body ahead suddenly slowed down, as though it had exhausted its Mana.

This scene.

Had long been anticipated by the Rogue Cultivators.

After all, this was not their first time doing such a thing.

"Rest assured, fellow cultivator. We won't harm you."

The middle-aged cultivator's eyes gleamed with greed as he rapidly closed in.

The others did the same, as though victory was already in their grasp.

However.

At that moment, calamity sprang from the elbow and armpit!

"Whoosh, whoosh!"

Endless Yellow Sand suddenly rose from the earth, forming a terrifying storm that instantly swallowed the Rogue Cultivators.

They were caught completely off guard.

The next moment.

Miserable, agonized screams rang out from within the Yellow Sand.

"Ahhh—"

Every grain of Yellow Sand was like a sharp blade, whistling around them and shaving away their Flesh and Blood inch by inch.

In an instant, the screams vanished.

Those Rogue Cultivators at the Third Layer of Qi Condensation were flayed into stark white bones in the blink of an eye by the Yellow Sand!

Only the middle-aged cultivator remained alive.

His face was deathly pale, and he too had been unable to react in time.

However.

The Soft Armor on his body flickered with faint light. At the instant he was attacked, it automatically released a Spiritual Energy Shield rippling with light, blocking the Yellow Sand outside.

Only then was his life temporarily preserved.

"Hm?"

Li Chang'an hid in the shadows, staring at that Soft Armor as his eyes faintly lit up.

"What fine Treasure Armor!"

To withstand Da Huang's attack, it had to be armor of at least High-grade First Tier.

Moreover, it could automatically release a shield the instant it was attacked. This made Li Chang'an's heart stir greatly.

He was currently lacking a good Defensive magical artifact.

At this moment.

The middle-aged Rogue Cultivator's face was pale as he threw out several First-tier High-grade Talismans and shouted:

"Please spare me, fellow cultivator! Spare my life!"

He was both shocked and terrified, regret crashing over him in wave after wave.

The Yellow Sand Spell was so astonishingly powerful.

The caster was either a late Qi Refining stage cultivator with an Earth Spirit Root, or a First-tier Late-stage Earth-element Spirit Beast.

Neither was someone he could afford to provoke.

Had he known this earlier.

He should never have been greedy today.

Now that things had come to this, regret came too late.

After only a few breaths, the Spiritual Energy Shield was worn away completely, while the Talismans shattered one after another amid the howling Yellow Sand.

"I'll risk it all!"

The middle-aged cultivator gritted his teeth, intending to use every means at his disposal to rush out of the Yellow Sand. Only then might he have a sliver of hope of surviving.

But suddenly.

A nearly imperceptible great net descended from the sky.

By the time he noticed it, his entire body had already been trapped within it.

"Shadowless Net!"

The middle-aged cultivator cried out, despair welling up in his heart.

This kind of Artifact was extremely expensive and unsuitable for head-on combat. Few proper cultivators would buy one.

Clearly.

He had encountered Rogue Cultivators as well.

And veterans among Rogue Cultivators at that!

"This junior failed to recognize Mount Tai. Please spare my life, Senior!"

Trapped inside the net and unable to move, he had become a lamb awaiting slaughter!

No method would work anymore.

He could only beg for mercy!

Yet there was no response amid the rolling Yellow Sand. Only a large hand reached out.

The next instant, darkness fell before his eyes, and his entire body was thrown into a Spirit Beast Bag.

"Whew..."

The wind and sand dispersed.

Only a few shattered bones remained where they had stood.

Deep underground.

Li Chang'an held the Spirit Beast Bag and moved his thoughts.

The terrified middle-aged cultivator was thrown out before him!

"Senior, se—"

He was about to beg for mercy, but the sight of Li Chang'an made him freeze.

Why was he so young?

Li Chang'an did not care what he thought. With a beckoning gesture, he took the storage bag from the man's body.

Then.

He stared at the Soft Armor on the man's body, his gaze flickering.

The middle-aged cultivator sensed his intentions and hurriedly spoke.

"Senior, this Soft Armor was given to me by my uncle to save my life. Perhaps you even know him. He is the Third Boss of Black Wind Mountain."

"Black Wind Mountain?"

"Yes, yes."

The middle-aged cultivator nodded repeatedly, as though he had seized the last straw that could save his life.

Among Rogue Cultivators.

Black Wind Mountain was quite famous.

Perhaps.

The other party might spare his life for Black Wind Mountain's sake.

But Li Chang'an remained indifferent and casually flicked a thread of Mana at his throat.

Crack!

His entire body jolted, his face filled with despair.

That thread of Mana shattered his throat, making even breathing a luxury beyond hope.

"Though a cultivator's Mana is powerful, the body is far too fragile. One must rely on various Spells, armor, Talismans, and other protections, unless one has cultivated a Body Refining Cultivation Method."

Li Chang'an pondered.

In the Cultivation World, Body Refining Cultivation Methods were rare.

Nor were there many who cultivated them.

This was because Body Refining consumed resources in quantities that could be called a sea.

Most cultivators were like Li Chang'an had once been, with few ways to obtain Cultivation Resources.

The little Spirit Stone they earned each year was not even enough for basic daily cultivation, so how could they speak of Body Refining?

"I need a suitable Body Refining Cultivation Method."

Li Chang'an thought to himself. He no longer lacked Cultivation Resources and ought to convert them into his own strength as quickly as possible.

Afterward.

He removed the Soft Armor from the middle-aged cultivator and began refining it.

After a while.

Delight appeared on Li Chang'an's face as he stared at the set of Soft Armor.

"It really is a First-tier High-grade Magic Tool, and of exceptional quality!"

He estimated.

A set of Soft Armor like this likely cost more than a thousand Spirit Stones!

"I've saved another sum that would have gone toward buying armor!"

Li Chang'an was immensely satisfied.

He then took out the storage bags of the Rogue Cultivators and searched through them carefully.

The items inside were nothing remarkable, merely ordinary pills, Talismans, and the like.

Nothing caught the eye.

But it still counted as a small gain.

Li Chang'an slapped out a Fireball Talisman, burning the middle-aged Rogue Cultivator's corpse until it scattered into ash.

"Da Huang, take us out. Fill up this Underground Space."

Having finished everything, Li Chang'an instructed Da Huang.

After this.

One man and one dog returned to the area near the Black Market.

They still hid in an Underground Space and used the puppet body to enter the Black Market.

"I need to buy some treasures to strengthen myself."

Li Chang'an walked through the Black Market, his gaze sweeping across stall after stall.

Before long.

He bought a First-tier High-grade Magic Tool called the "Green Light Sword" for five hundred Spirit Stones.

To prevent any accidents, he did as before: after completing the transaction, he left, changed into a new disguise, and returned to the Black Market.

"I have magical artifacts for attack and self-defense. Now I need some Spells."

Li Chang'an pondered.

Spells in the Cultivation World also came in different grades, classified just like Spirit Roots.

They were divided into Inferior-grade, Low-grade, Medium-grade, High-grade, Earth Grade, and Heaven Grade Spells.

Common Spells such as the Fireball Technique, Falling Stone Technique, and Golden Ray Technique were all Low-grade Spells, and their power was quite ordinary.

Of course.

The vast majority of Rogue Cultivators could only access Inferior-grade and Low-grade Spells.

Better Spells, such as Medium-grade and High-grade ones, were basically found in the Library Pavilions of the various clans and Sects.