"My cultivation at the seventh level of Body Tempering was already sufficient," Shen Mo thought. "The task rewards aren't bad either. Ten Vermilion Fruits are worth fifteen Spirit Stones."
Vermilion Fruit was a precious medicinal herb that enhanced one's blood and qi, though its effects couldn't compare to those of certain rare medicinal pills.
Still, among low-grade medicinal herbs, it was already considered quite valuable.
Ten Vermilion Fruits, together with the Vitality Strengthening Powder he refined every day...
Shen Mo felt that these medicinal herbs would be enough to support his cultivation until he reached the ninth level of Body Tempering. He wouldn't need to worry about running short of medicinal herbs before then.
Moreover, the most important thing was that this task wasn't particularly dangerous.
All he had to do was go to someone's home and kill a demonic beast.
With members of the Zhao Clan there to assist him, even if something unexpected happened and they couldn't handle it, he was unlikely to be in mortal danger. At worst, he could just run.
"I'll take this task."
Shen Mo quickly accepted it.
"Vmm!"
He held his palm up to the Spirit Platform's light curtain, and the Spirit Platform gave a trembling chime.
The next instant, a task manual appeared out of thin air.
He carefully put the manual away, then went to the window of Deacon Ma, who handled business for outer disciples, and registered before leaving.
"I've accepted the trial task, but I still need to make some preparations before setting out!"
Thinking as he went, he crossed the mountain gate plaza and returned to his residence without stopping.
"I'll sell all the medicinal pills I refined this month, then buy some magical weapons and talismans to defend myself."
Since this was his first time leaving, he had to make sure he was properly prepared!
He quickly put all his medicinal pills into his Qiankun Pouch and headed for the market.
River-Facing Sect, Dao-Gaining Alley.
This time, he didn't go down the mountain to the Cloud-Gathering Town Market.
After all, trading within the sect was free, with no commission, and it was closer.
He wasn't in a hurry to sell his medicinal pills; selling them all within two days would be fine.
Shen Mo's task had a three-day time limit. As long as he reached his destination within three days of accepting it, he wouldn't be late.
Yongan Town was only a little over a hundred miles from the sect. If he used a Light Body Talisman and hurried at full speed, he could get there in about an hour. He had plenty of time.
[For sale: Vitality Strengthening Powder, Qi Recovery Pills, Lesser Foundation Establishment Pills!]
He set up his stall sign and laid out his wares.
Before long, customers came to buy.
The market was bustling today, and Shen Mo's medicinal pills sold very quickly.
To his surprise, by the afternoon, almost everything had sold.
The Vitality Strengthening Powder and Qi Recovery Pills were all gone, while three Lesser Foundation Establishment Pills remained.
His earnings—not a coin more or less—came to sixty low-grade Spirit Stones.
"That's enough. I'll pack up and go see what I need."
Shen Mo wasn't set on staying until he'd sold the last three Lesser Foundation Establishment Pills.
With the more than sixty Spirit Stones he'd earned tucked away, he wandered around the market.
"Senior Brother, how much are you asking for this inner armor?"
After making a circuit, he finally stopped at the stall of an Inner Sect disciple.
"One hundred low-grade Spirit Stones."
The Inner Sect disciple answered without even looking up.
"One hundred Spirit Stones?" Hearing the price, Shen Mo immediately turned to leave.
"This inner armor is a genuine Mystic Grade treasure armor. It's transcended the mundane and is a true magical artifact. Wearing it doesn't just greatly increase your defense; it also has the special Dust-Free effect.
"It keeps the wearer free of dust and grime. One hundred low-grade Spirit Stones isn't some outrageous asking price."
Seeing Shen Mo turn to leave, the Inner Sect disciple raised his head and hurriedly explained.
"An Inner Armor of the Mystic Grade is naturally worth that much, but my pockets are empty. I can't afford so many Spirit Stones."
Shen Mo honestly explained his financial situation.
"You don't have the money." The man looked him up and down, then asked casually, "Do you need the inner armor urgently?"
"I just accepted a trial task. I need to go out, fend off enemies, and kill a demonic beast. It's my first time on a trial, so I wanted to buy a few things to keep me alive."
"But Mystic Grade magical artifacts cost far too much. I'll look for something lower-grade instead."
With his current finances, he couldn't afford these magical artifacts.
Forget an outer disciple like him—even some Qi Gathering Realm disciples who'd only recently joined the Inner Sect and hadn't built up much wealth might not be able to afford them.
"How many Spirit Stones do you have?"
"I have my eye on a Mystic Grade Mid-Tier body-tempering art, but I'm still thirty Spirit Stones short. I've been running this stall for half a month and still haven't saved enough.
"If you're interested, I have an inner armor I can sell you cheaply."
As he spoke, he took a blue-purple inner armor, chipped and battered in places, from a sheepskin roll beneath the stall.
"This inner armor is also a low-grade Mystic artifact. It's called the Heart-Protecting Armor, made by Elder Xu of the Weapon Forging Hall. Its defensive power is decent."
"I wore it for years and never took it off. But last month, I encountered a beast tide on River-Facing Mountain, and the inner armor was damaged."
A damaged low-grade Mystic inner armor?
Curious, Shen Mo took it and rubbed it for a long while before asking, "It's pretty badly damaged. How much has its defensive power dropped?"
"I asked Elder Xu, and I tested it myself. It's dropped by roughly forty percent. But even so, it still offers far better protection than ordinary, unranked items. If you want it, I'll sell it to you for thirty low-grade Spirit Stones."
Thirty low-grade Spirit Stones.
"I'll take it."
After hesitating for a moment, Shen Mo decided to buy it.
Once he'd handed over the Spirit Stones, Shen Mo put the inner armor away.
Next, he went to the Heavenly Talisman Hall in Dao-Gaining Alley, where talismans were sold.
This shop belonged to the sect's Talisman Making Hall.
The talismans sold there were all made by disciples of the Talisman Making Hall and sent over to be sold.
"What kind of talismans do you want?"
"Anything that can keep me alive."
There were many talismans here, of all different types.
But Shen Mo had little interest in attack talismans. He was focused on adding more life-saving trump cards.
You can't deal damage if you're dead!
"Something to keep you alive?"
The disciple on duty at the Heavenly Talisman Hall took a talisman bearing the image of a mountain from behind the counter. "Bedrock Talisman. This is a first-grade talisman with extremely powerful defensive capabilities.
"Just activate it, and it will conjure a phantom of solid rock to protect you. It lasts about as long as one stick of incense.
"Its defenses can block just about any attack below the Qi Gathering Realm. Even a full-force strike from an early-stage Qi Gathering Realm cultivator can be mostly stopped.
"Take a look. Will it do for keeping you alive?"
"How many Spirit Stones?"
Shen Mo's eyes lit up when he saw the talisman.
"Five low-grade Spirit Stones each."
The blue-robed disciple held up five fingers and waggled them.
"I'll take it." Shen Mo took out five Spirit Stones and bought it.
"Would you like any other talismans?" Seeing how readily Shen Mo had agreed, the blue-robed disciple started promoting more.
After a bit of explanation, another talisman caught Shen Mo's interest.
Earth Escape Talisman.
It was also a first-grade talisman.
Unlike the Bedrock Talisman, which was defensive, the Earth Escape Talisman was for fleeing and repositioning.
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