Chance Encounter

After a period of laying low.

Fang Xi felt that Situ Qingqing wasn't paying much attention to him anymore, so he finally found an opportunity to disguise himself as a rogue cultivator and enter the Green Bamboo Mountain Market.

This time, he wore a dark green robe, a bamboo hat, and had a burly physique, exuding a powerful aura.

'Last time I was only in the early Qi Refining stage, even the shop assistant looked down on me.'

*'This time is much better, being in the mid-Qi Refining stage, I'm not considered too bad...'

As he passed the Hundred Skills Tower, Fang Xi didn't even bat an eye.

Some grudges, if not met with the right opportunity, would only be buried deep in his heart.

After paying the stall fee of one Spirit Crystal to the Situ Family's outpost in the market, Fang Xi arrived at his stall and patted his Storage Bag.

A coil of snakeskin, a large pile of bone-white snake bones, and snake meat preserved in ice appeared.

The smell of blood mixed with rot made the stall owners on either side frown.

But looking at the fierce and intimidating Fang Xi, who clearly wasn't someone to be trifled with, they dared not say anything, only grumbling in their hearts.

"It's actually Demon Beast meat!"

"Cultivators who can hunt Demon Beasts are truly formidable!"

"I wish I could hunt Demon Beasts too, but Demon Beasts are extremely rare in Yue Country. If any are found, they're immediately snapped up by local cultivators..."

"Let me take a look!"

The onlookers exchanged hushed whispers. A scholar-like cultivator stepped forward. "Greetings, fellow Daoist. May I ask what grade this Demon Beast meat is? How is it sold?"

"Low-grade Rank 1 Demon Snake meat, ten jin for one low-grade Spirit Stone! The snake bones are bundled for five Spirit Stones! The snakeskin is negotiable..."

Fang Xi sat cross-legged, his eyelids slightly raised as he replied.

"What a shame, this meat looks like it's been stored for some time. Even with ice, it's not very fresh..."

The scholar stood up regretfully and commented.

"Scram, you pauper!"

Fang Xi's eyelids snapped open, revealing a sharp glint.

This scholar wasn't a Body Refining Cultivator. His attire wasn't worth even a single low-grade Spirit Stone, and more importantly, his cultivation was only in the early Qi Refining stage!

He wasn't Fang Xi's target customer at all!

"Ah, ah... Brother, why the anger? This humble one will leave now... will leave now..." The scholar's legs went weak in fear, and he melted back into the crowd.

The onlookers let out laughter, but didn't find anything wrong with the situation.

Cultivators with higher cultivation could openly bully those with lower cultivation. This was the law of the jungle in the cultivation world.

The former Fang Xi was at the very bottom. Now that he had advanced to the mid-Qi Refining stage, he had managed to climb up a little.

Unfortunately... there was still a long way to go before reaching the top.

"Oh? More Demon Beast meat?"

Not long after, a gruff voice sounded.

The crowd parted, and a burly man, over two meters tall and built like an iron tower, walked up to the stall. He dismissed the snakeskin and bones with a snort, his eyes fixed only on the snake meat.

After inquiring about the price, he shook his head. "One Spirit Stone for ten jin, that's too expensive!"

Fang Xi sized him up, confirming he was also a Body Refining Cultivator, and immediately put on a friendly smile. "Fellow Daoist, if you purchase fifty jin or more, I can offer a discount..."

After some haggling, the burly man finally threw down four Spirit Stones and bought fifty jin of snake meat.

Unfortunately, after this burly man, there wasn't much more business.

Only a Talisman Master's apprentice came and bought all the snake blood for one Spirit Stone, intending to use it to mix with ink for talismans.

Fang Xi wasn't in a hurry. Cultivators always had good patience, and the spiritual energy within the market was far superior to the shantytown area. It was a good opportunity to meditate.

He meditated for the entire day.

As it was nearing closing time, Fang Xi calculated, "The market today was decent, I've earned nine Spirit Stones..."

Rogue cultivators without residency tokens were not allowed to stay overnight in the market, which was to prevent them from leeching off the market's spiritual energy.

Just as Fang Xi was about to pack up, he saw two cultivators approaching, chatting and laughing. His eyelids twitched slightly: 'It's them?'

The approaching figures were none other than Chen Ping and Lu Zhi.

At this moment, Chen Ping was wearing a lake-blue robe of heavenly silk embroidered with gold trim, looking spirited. Lu Zhi had changed out of her mourning clothes and was wearing a bright red dress, making her look even more charming.

The two browsed as they walked, and soon arrived at Fang Xi's stall.

"Not bad, not bad. I knew there'd be Demon Beast hides for sale here!"

Chen Ping poked the snakeskin with his finger, then looked disappointed. "It's a pity... it's only a low-grade Rank 1 Demon Beast. Fellow Daoist, how much for this coil of snakeskin?"

Clearly, he hadn't recognized Fang Xi.

After all, Fang Xi had circulated his energy to adjust his physique, making him look tall and burly, a stark contrast to his slightly thin appearance before.

"Ten Spirit Stones, take it or leave it!"

Seeing the sucker arrive, Fang Xi glanced thoughtfully at Lu Zhi and immediately raised the price.

Men, especially in front of beautiful women, always like to puff up their chests and spend money they don't have.

"Deal!"

Chen Ping, as expected, agreed without even thinking.

Lu Zhi, on the other hand, frowned, "This snake skin is worth at most five Spirit Stones... isn't ten a bit too much?"

"Eh... this snake skin is in perfect condition. If prepared carefully, it can be made into at least a hundred Talismans. And special Talismans made from Demon Beast skin are much better than ordinary paper. It's said they can even improve the success rate of making Talismans. It's really not expensive..." Fang Xi was good friends with Chen Ping and knew a thing or two about Talismans, so he spouted nonsense.

"Exactly, and... Sister Zhi, this kind of Demon Beast skin Talisman is even more special to me... Besides, you know, I'm already a First-tier High-grade Talisman Master. This small premium is nothing; I'll earn it back after drawing a few more."

Chen Ping gazed at Lu Zhi affectionately.

These two... their relationship is already this good? Will I be attending their wedding next time?

No... has Chen Ping's Talisman path really improved this quickly? Last time I heard from Jiu Xuan that he was trying to refine First-tier High-grade Talismans, and now he's succeeded? This isn't scientific... No, this isn't cultivation!

While Fang Xi was grumbling in his mind, Lu Zhi was actually persuaded and nodded, "Fine, it's as you say!"

Chen Ping immediately threw out ten Spirit Stones and took the Demon snake skin.

Fang Xi watched the sucker leave, feeling a bit regretful.

If I had known, I would have sold the chameleon skin too... Unfortunately, it's a bit too conspicuous to take out now.

He had dealt with the chameleon Demon Beast to Di Qi. If he sold the skin again, it might expose his identity.

Besides, the leather of this Demon Beast had special properties, and Fang Xi preferred to keep it for himself.

Just as he was watching Chen Ping leave, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a green shadow out of the corner of his eye.

Fang Xi's pupils trembled slightly, and then he continued to pack up his stall as if nothing had happened and left...

It wasn't until he left the marketplace that he let out a long sigh, "It was Situ Qingqing... Is she following Chen Ping?"

Could it be... she's actually investigating Chen Ping, not me?

Was I just overthinking things before?

No... why is the Situ Family paying so much attention to Chen Ping? Do they want to recruit him, or directly abduct him and make him a tool? No... Chen Ping doesn't deserve this kind of treatment yet, unless he can break through to Second-tier Talisman Master, but how is that possible?

Fang Xi chuckled, burned his clothes, changed back into his spirit farmer attire, and returned to his shed to continue cultivating.

The path of cultivation values perseverance.

Even if his Qi Refining speed was as slow as a snail every day, he couldn't slack off.

Now that I have Spirit Stones, can I go buy some Pill Medicines tomorrow to aid my cultivation?

While sitting in meditation, a thought surfaced in Fang Xi's mind: But this doesn't seem worth it... The Spirit Stones I have are enough to buy several 'Qi and Blood Pills' and other Pill Medicines suitable for Body Refining... If I had Pill Medicines to assist, my martial arts would improve faster. If I can push my martial arts to Body Refining Triple Layer, then I'll feel more at ease whether I'm selling meat or engaging in other trade, and accumulate Spirit Stones faster. Then, buying Spirit Pills to aid my cultivation later seems more efficient and will enhance my combat power!

Enhance combat power!

As Fang Xi felt dark clouds gathering, this reason became even more compelling.

After all, survival is the top priority!

The next day.

Fang Xi woke up early, ignored the greeting from the female cultivator next door, and went to the marketplace.

Hundred Refinements Workshop!

As soon as he entered, he felt a wave of heat wash over him.

As the largest Magic Tool manufacturer in Green Bamboo Mountain Market, the Hundred Refinements Workshop looked surprisingly simple and unadorned.

In the front was the counter selling Magic Tools, and in the back were many furnaces, with over a dozen refining apprentices attempting to repair and forge Magic Tools under the guidance of their respective masters.

"Fellow Daoist, are you here to purchase a Magic Tool?"

A bare-chested blacksmith with a flushed face greeted him and asked politely.

"I want to customize a Magic Tool!"

Fang Xi said, taking out the chameleon skin from before, "Although this Demon Beast isn't of a high rank, it's good at hiding its form. I want to use this skin as material to create a special type of Magic Tool suitable for concealment!"

"I see. Please come inside. I'll find Master Gu!"

The blacksmith led Fang Xi into a private room. After a short while, the door opened, and a white-haired old man walked in, "I am Gu Tian. This Fellow Daoist wants to forge a special type of Magic Tool?"

"Indeed!" Fang Xi nodded.

Gu Tian examined the Demon Beast skin up and down, took out a strange Magic Tool, and inspected it for a long time before nodding and shaking his head, "This Demon Beast skin is of average grade and defense... Fortunately, it's relatively intact and can be inscribed with magic arrays. Do you have any other requirements?"

"The Magic Tool doesn't need to be high grade, Low-grade is fine. I don't have any requirements for defensive power..." Fang Xi said, "The main thing is concealment. It needs to be the best, ideally to the point where mortals can't detect it at all... As for detection by cultivators' spiritual eyes, there's no requirement."

Even though Gu Tian had seen many eccentric customers, he was still quite taken aback by Fang Xi's request, "So... this is a Magic Tool specifically for mortals?"

A Magic Tool that cultivators could see through with a single glance was practically an insult to his craftsmanship!

Fang Xi then revealed his true intention, "So... you don't need to add any precious materials, nor do you need any special formations... Can you make it a bit cheaper?"

Low-grade Magic Tools in Green Bamboo Mountain Market usually cost around ten Spirit Stones, while mid-grade and high-grade Magic Tools range from tens to hundreds of Spirit Stones.

However, customizing special Magic Tools would definitely cost more, even if it was a Low-grade Magic Tool.

Master Gu was speechless for a moment before finally saying, "Alright, that'll be fifteen low-grade Spirit Stones. Pay a deposit of five Spirit Stones first, and then we'll sign the contract..."

Since its establishment, the Hundred Refinements Workshop had maintained a considerable reputation.

Furthermore, after signing the contract, they guaranteed confidentiality.

For Fang Xi, this was naturally exactly what they wanted.

After infusing a trace of Magical Power into the two copies of the contract to form a mark, Fang Xi paid the five Spirit Stones and left the Hundred Refinements Workshop.