Su Hao thought for a moment. "How powerful is the Heavenly Thunder Talisman?"
"You already know I once used it against He Tieniu. You saw it with your own eyes, so do I really need to emphasize it?" Zheng Tu said urgently.
"The Heavenly Thunder Talisman is definitely more powerful than the Lightning Strike Talisman and Thunder Fire Talisman.
And you used over a hundred Heavenly Thunder Talismans back then, only managing to kill him in the end with the Crimson Thunder Treasure Talisman..."
Su Hao drew out the final syllable, making his meaning obvious.
"Junior Brother, I'm not good at haggling.
How about two bottles of top-grade pills for one Heavenly Thunder Talisman?"
Zheng Tu waved a hand.
Su Hao sighed. "I once happened to discover a cave dwelling. I obtained all those pills from it, but there are hardly any left now."
"I don't have many Heavenly Thunder Talismans left either." Zheng Tu's eyes flickered. "Three Heavenly Thunder Talismans for the remaining pills in your storage bag."
Su Hao silently took out two bottles of Top-grade Pure Qi Pills. "This is all I have."
"Hm?" Zheng Tu was highly dissatisfied. He had thought Su Hao was an honest man who would take out four or five bottles.
"Sorry, I really only have these two bottles." Su Hao spoke apologetically.
"Fine, two bottles it is. Consider it the forming of a good connection." Zheng Tu took out three Heavenly Thunder Talismans and placed them on the table, having come to terms with it.
The cost of things like Heavenly Thunder Talismans wasn't high. The only issue was that the failure rate was somewhat high.
With enough time, they could be produced. Pills like Top-grade Pure Qi Pills, on the other hand, were not commonly seen.
The same applied to Su Hao. Heavenly Thunder Talismans were difficult to obtain.
But for this kind of low-level top-grade Pure Qi Pill, the cost of one Three-Colored Lotus plus some supplementary materials was only two or three spirit stones.
They could be made with enough time, and there would be as many as one wanted.
The only trouble was that he didn't dare to flaunt them too much, afraid that someone would set their sights on him.
Su Hao picked up a Heavenly Thunder Talisman and examined it.
The greatest advantage of talismans like this was that they consumed little spiritual power and were convenient to use.
For low-level cultivators, the burden was far lower than that of spells or magical artifacts.
"If you need more talismans in the future, feel free to come to me. Since you were able to spot me at a glance, you probably know where I live.
Also, I hope you can help keep this matter hidden. It wouldn't be good to tell others that you and I traded today."
Zheng Tu solemnly cupped his fists.
"Of course. I was worried Senior Brother Zheng might let it slip. I don't have any pills left now. If someone takes an interest in me because of this, how wronged would I be?" Su Hao returned the salute.
"How could that happen? I don't even know your name, and I can't see through your cultivation. Your spiritual aura must be disguised as well.
After today, it'll be difficult for us to meet again. To be cautious, you should leave first. I'll cover the cost of the secret chamber."
Zheng Tu remained where he was, watching Su Hao leave.
After Su Hao left.
Zheng Tu's smile vanished. "The moment we met, this man called me Senior Brother... That means that subconsciously, he believes his seniority or strength is lower than mine.
His greatest strength is probably his breath-concealing and concealment techniques.
As for the pills he supposedly obtained from a cave dwelling by chance, and the claim that he has no pills left? What a transparent attempt to cover things up!
Since it'll be difficult for us to meet again, there's no possibility of continuing our trades. In that case, I might as well see this through to the end!"
Top-grade pills—even low-level Pure Qi Pills—were extremely valuable. They contained no impurities or pill poison, and even cultivators with the worst talent could achieve a near-perfect absorption rate when consuming them.
One bottle was worth seven or eight bottles of Low-grade Pure Qi Pills.
Su Hao left the secret chamber and headed straight for a nearby stall. This time, he didn't waste time haggling. He spent all the remaining seven hundred spirit stones and bought a low-grade protective inner armor called Turtle Scale Armor.
He then left the Hidden Dragon Valley marketplace.
He slipped into the mountain forests and traveled at low altitude using lightness techniques.
His speed was slower than flying techniques or flying magical artifacts, but it had the advantage of making little noise.
Before long, he crossed mountains and ridges and arrived at the mist-shrouded Tiger Fall Cliff.
The mountain forest here was thick with vegetation, while steep cliffs and sheer precipices loomed everywhere.
It was an excellent place for murder and robbery.
Su Hao silently stood beneath a large tree nearby.
An incense stick's worth of time later, a figure hovered in the sky. The person stood atop a flying shuttle radiating a dim light.
"Tiger Fall Cliff?" Zheng Tu glanced at the area. He knew this infamous place and had suffered here in the past. "Could it be that he anticipated I would come looking for him and deliberately chose this place?"
"Impossible... He isn't a Foundation Establishment cultivator. There's no way he could detect the talisman-spirit mark on the talismans."
Zheng Tu's expression shifted slightly, and his certainty immediately wavered.
"Senior Brother Zheng, are you looking for me?" Su Hao revealed himself, stepping out from beneath the tree's shade with a hint of confusion. "I've clearly done my best to conceal my aura. How did you track me down?"
"Heh heh, not at all. I just happened to be passing by. Don't misunderstand, Junior Brother."
Zheng Tu hesitated. Naturally, he wouldn't reveal the method he had used on the talismans.
Yet even a Foundation Establishment cultivator might not necessarily see through the secrets within them.
He actually noticed?
"Rather, what about you, Junior Brother? Are you simply in the mood to stroll around here, or are you planning to murder and rob someone? Don't tell me that's how you obtained those pills?"
Zheng Tu descended. The half-face mask was no longer on his face, replaced by a harmless smile.
Su Hao shrugged. "It's best to be cautious and prepare for the worst. I also wanted to see whether some fool would take the initiative to come looking for trouble."
He took the Spirit Snake Sword from his storage bag.
"Junior Brother, are you planning to attack me?" Zheng Tu asked with a smile.
"Enough, Zheng Tu. Stop pretending to be some innocent white lotus. You must have tampered with the talismans somehow, allowing you to track me. For all I know, you can also make them lose their effect at any time.
Since you followed me here, you're not going to lose your nerve now, are you?"
Su Hao's expression darkened. He had concealed his aura with all his strength, yet Zheng Tu had still found him.
Even if he had guessed that the problem lay with the talismans, he couldn't exactly throw away all the talismans he had exchanged for at great expense, could he?
"Eh... You really have a lot of schemes in your head!" Zheng Tu grew even more astonished. Su Hao had even guessed that he possessed a method to make the talismans lose their effect?
But so what if he had guessed it?
At worst, they would both suffer. No matter how powerful this mysterious young man was, as long as he wasn't a Foundation Establishment cultivator, Zheng Tu was confident he could retreat at any time.
Besides, if he were a Foundation Establishment cultivator, why would he care about talismans meant for the Qi Refining stage?
Therefore, this person definitely wasn't a Foundation Establishment cultivator. His strength was probably inferior even to a Qi Refining Level 9 or Level 10 cultivator.
Any cultivator who reached that realm had their own abilities. At most, they would buy a few talismans, rather than spend most of their wealth on these single-use items!
At this thought, a hint of viciousness appeared in Zheng Tu's previously carefree smile. He noticed Su Hao's rising aura stop at the level of Qi Refining Level 7. "You're only at Qi Refining Level 7? Don't try to fool me. He Tieniu already used that trick before, and it won't work on me!"
"Besides, you definitely aren't at Qi Refining Level 10. If you really had that kind of strength, why would you humbly admit defeat and call me Senior Brother?"
Zheng Tu burst into laughter, increasingly feeling that everything was under his control.
Only then did Su Hao understand. It turned out that he had exposed his weakness by the way he addressed Zheng Tu, causing the other man to think he was easy to bully!
Su Hao sighed, then stepped forward with his sword and rapidly closed in on Zheng Tu. His sword light was swift and violent, wrapped in a faint crimson heat.
"The Crimson Flame Sword Art?" Zheng Tu raised a brow, and his nerves relaxed somewhat. "Junior Brother, you're underestimating me too much. You're actually showing off such a trashy technique?"