Had to Lie

Had to Lie

Hearing this, Shi Yue furrowed his brow and broke out in a cold sweat. He really hadn't thought about this problem.

He had used several thousand jin of urine diluted with water to treat the Blackening Disease. Even diluted, it would still have taken several hundred jin of urine, and there was no way he could have stored that much in just a few days.

"Surely no one will ask, right?" Shi Yue said, sounding uncertain.

"Surely? Heh. What if someone does? How will you answer? Especially those two Ancestor Masters of yours. Judging by their questions today, they must have investigated where you've been these past few days. What will you say when they ask?" Xiaoyaozi's voice brimmed with amusement.

At this, Shi Yue's heart tightened, and a sheen of cold sweat spontaneously appeared on his forehead.

That was right! What would he say if an Ancestor Master asked about this?

Should he say that he had happened upon the recipe for Urine-Inducing Powder and taken it to make himself urinate? But even with the powder, there was no way he could have stored several hundred jin of urine in just a few days.

Several excuses flashed rapidly through Shi Yue's mind, but none of them could withstand scrutiny.

Shi Yue's eyes shifted as he spoke. "Senior Xiaoyaozi, since you've thought of this problem, you must have a solution, right? Tell me. How many Spirit Stones?"

"Heh heh. Twenty Spirit Stones, and I guarantee that even if those two Ancestor Masters of yours hear it, they won't suspect you." Xiaoyaozi sounded rather pleased with himself.

"Twenty Spirit Stones just to come up with an excuse? Don't you think that's too much? Ten at most." Shi Yue raised his brows and haggled.

"Ten it is. Pay me first." Xiaoyaozi agreed readily.

After hesitating briefly, Shi Yue infused the Heaven Controlling Bead with his magical power and entered the Palm Heaven Space.

He took out ten Spirit Stones and, from a safe distance, tossed them into the stone house inside the Palm Heaven Space.

"Now hurry up and tell me. What's the excuse?" Shi Yue urged.

"Heh heh. It's simple enough. Just say that you were nervous earlier and didn't explain everything. In addition to the urine of virgins, the urine of spirit beasts can also cure the Blackening Disease. But to make this story hold up, you'll have to buy a fairly large spirit beast."

"Spirit beast urine works too? Are you sure? If the Ancestor Masters use spirit beast urine to water Spirit Herbs afflicted with the Blackening Disease and it doesn't work, I'll be in trouble." Shi Yue said with a frown.

"Don't worry. It works just as well. I didn't mention it before because you weren't raising any large spirit beasts."

Shi Yue's expression eased at this. Then, remembering something, he continued, "I don't have that many Spirit Stones on me right now. I'm afraid I can't afford a fairly large spirit beast. If I exchange Contribution Points for one inside the sect, someone might investigate."

"Do I have to spell everything out for you? Don't you have more than a thousand Contribution Points? Surely you can exchange them for a few Hundred-Year Spirit Herbs. Sell the herbs at the market, and you'll have your Spirit Stones!" Xiaoyaozi's voice was full of disdain.

Shi Yue paid no mind to Xiaoyaozi's tone. After thinking it over, he asked, "One last question. Can a fairly large spirit beast produce several hundred jin of urine in just a few days?"

"Shi, are you really that stupid, or are you pretending? Don't you have Urine-Inducing Powder? It works on spirit beasts too. Want me to teach you how to make up a story about where you got the powder?" Xiaoyaozi asked, sounding annoyed.

"Yes." Shi Yue thought it over and answered seriously.

He wasn't good at lying, but this was a lie he had to tell. The secret of the Heaven Controlling Bead was at stake, so Shi Yue had to be as cautious as possible. With his limited experience, a lie he invented himself might not fool two Ancestor Masters who had lived for several centuries. He'd be better off having Xiaoyaozi come up with one. Better safe than sorry. Besides, Shi Yue had paid him, so he might as well ask.

"I swear, you're going to drive me mad. You can say you got it as a free gift when buying something at a street stall, or that you got it from someone else. You could also say you found it in some old book in the Scripture Repository, or that your parents left it to you. Are those four excuses enough?"

"Enough, enough." Shi Yue nodded.

"Then hurry up and get moving. Oh, and here's a friendly tip: when you exchange for Spirit Herbs, pick the common ones. They're easier to sell and less likely to arouse suspicion," Xiaoyaozi advised.

"Thanks." Shi Yue thanked him, tucked the Heaven Controlling Bead into his robes, and hurried out of the courtyard. He flew toward the Deacon Hall on his flying artifact.

Once he reached the Deacon Hall, Shi Yue headed straight for the third floor.

At that moment, several dozen Taixu Sect disciples were exchanging for various items.

"Senior Brother, how many Contribution Points does one fifty-year Fire Yang Ginseng cost?" Shi Yue swept his gaze around, quickly walked up to an unoccupied counter, and asked the steward disciple behind it in a low voice.

"Seventy Contribution Points. How many would you like, Junior Brother?" The steward disciple asked with a beaming smile.

"Hmm, I'll take ten." Shi Yue thought for a moment before answering.

"All right. Please wait a moment, Junior Brother." The steward disciple's face lit up, and he turned toward the shelves behind him.

"Not bad. You're a quick learner." Xiaoyaozi's voice rang in Shi Yue's mind.

Shi Yue smiled faintly at this but didn't answer Xiaoyaozi.

On the way here, Shi Yue had already considered it. Since his goal was to convert his Contribution Points into Spirit Stones, buying ten fifty-year Spirit Herbs would be safer.

Hundred-Year Spirit Herbs could be used to refine pills for Foundation Establishment Cultivators. With his cultivation at Qi Refining Level Four, exchanging for even two Hundred-Year Spirit Herbs would draw attention. And when he sold them, he might attract the covetous eyes of thieves. It was safer to exchange for lower-year herbs.

He was learning alchemy, so no one would find it suspicious if he said he was using fifty-year Spirit Herbs to practice.

As Shi Yue was weighing things over, the steward disciple set ten Red Wood Boxes in front of him.

Shi Yue opened the boxes one by one and saw a red ginseng, about a chi long, nestled in each. A faint medicinal fragrance wafted from them.

Shi Yue nodded in satisfaction, readily transferred seven hundred Contribution Points to the steward disciple, and left with the ten Fire Yang Ginseng roots.

After leaving the Deacon Hall, Shi Yue flew toward Great Void Valley on his flying artifact.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Shi Yue landed in a small grove outside Great Void Valley.

He changed into plain clothes and put away everything on him that might identify him as a Taixu Sect disciple. Only after making himself look like an ordinary cultivator did he head toward the market.

Shi Yue wandered down the street, his eyes quickly sweeping over the shops on either side.

A quarter of an hour later, Shi Yue stopped. He glanced to his left and right, and after making sure no one was paying attention to him, stepped into a small shop. A plaque hung above the entrance, bearing the words "Li Family Sundries" in large characters.

The shop was small, and its shelves were cluttered with all sorts of things: medicinal herbs, ores, pills, magical artifacts, and other cultivation goods.

There wasn't a single customer inside at the moment, and the place looked rather deserted.