Iron Tail Scorpion

"This child meant well but made a mess of things. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to ask Fellow Daoist Shen for help."

Qin Qing sighed.

Qin Tianhe had wanted to help shoulder the burden, which was a good thing, but he was too young and had been deceived.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, I only need to borrow ten Spirit Stones. I'll use the insect egg as collateral, and I'll definitely repay the Spirit Stones within half a year."

Qin Qing took out a yellow wooden box and handed it to Shen Long.

Ten Spirit Stones had not been a small sum for Shen Long in the past, and they were not exactly nothing now either. Still, he did not want to expose his wealth.

"And what if you can't repay them?"

Shen Long asked with a frown.

"If I can't repay them, the insect egg will be yours. Tianhe bought it for thirty Spirit Stones."

Qin Qing said.

"Fellow Daoist Qin, ten Spirit Stones can't even hatch an insect egg. Do you take me for such a fool?"

Shen Long revealed an unhappy expression.

Qin Qing considered it, then said, "How about this? I'll definitely repay the Spirit Stones, and I'll give you this insect egg as well. If it hatches, you'll surely make a fortune."

He had tried selling the insect egg everywhere. Some people had been willing to buy it, but the highest offer had only been two Spirit Stones. Since the egg had not hatched, who knew what kind of Spirit Insect it contained?

If it was an ordinary Spirit Insect, it would be difficult to sell.

Shen Long frowned, looking deep in thought. Ten Spirit Stones were no great sum to him now, but he did not want to seem too easygoing about it.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, I truly have no other choice. Help me today, and when you can't make ends meet someday, I'll be able to help you too."

Qin Qing pleaded.

"Fine. Repay me soon."

Shen Long took out ten Spirit Stones and handed them to Qin Qing.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Shen. Thank you."

Qin Qing handed the wooden box to Shen Long.

Shen Long opened the wooden box. Inside was a yellow insect egg. He put the box away, opened the gate, and walked out.

"Don't even think about going into the mountains alone to hunt Monster Beasts. If you die, no one will look after your grandson."

Shen Long's voice drifted in from outside.

"Thank you, Fellow Daoist Shen."

Qin Qing said gratefully. He looked at the Cyan Vine in the sandpit with an approving expression.

"Tianhe is still diligent in his cultivation. I hope he can walk farther on the immortal path!"

Qin Qing muttered to himself.

As long as Qin Tianhe could go farther on the immortal path, he did not care how much hardship he had to endure.

After leaving the Martial Practice Garden, Shen Long headed down the mountain.

He arrived at the Bluestone Square where the Rogue Cultivators set up their stalls and began wandering around.

Before long, a familiar woman's voice reached his ears. "Fellow Daoist Shen, would you like to buy some Spirit Wine?"

Shen Long looked toward the source of the voice and saw Huang Xiuyun. Several wine flasks were displayed on her stall.

The stall to Huang Xiuyun's left displayed several first-rank Talismans. Its owner was a red-skirted maiden with a slender figure and a palm-sized black birthmark on her left cheek.

Shen Long came here to browse every so often, so he knew the red-skirted maiden.

The red-skirted maiden was named Ye Yushang, and her younger sister was Ye Yuqing. Ye Yuqing was a first-rank Talisman Maker.

Ye Yuqing was responsible for making first-rank Talismans, while Ye Yushang sold them. Their prices were somewhat lower than those at talisman shops, making them highly popular among Rogue Cultivators. However, they only sold a few first-rank Talismans after long intervals rather than in large quantities, so the Chen Clan, Li Family, and Han Clan did not interfere.

Shen Long shook his head. "Not for now."

Thinking of something, he casually asked, "Fairy Huang, have the insect eggs you bought hatched yet?"

Huang Xiuyun had bought two Snow Crystal Spider eggs. Shen Long suspected they were Snow Wing Ice Centipede eggs, but he had no proof.

"Don't mention it. It's been more than half a year, and they still haven't hatched. Grandmother says I was cheated."

Huang Xiuyun sighed.

A hundred Spirit Stones were not a huge sum for them. Selling a little more Spirit Wine would earn it back.

"Not necessarily. If Snow Crystal Spiders hatch from them, you'll definitely make a fortune."

Ye Yushang said.

She had a fairly good relationship with Huang Xiuyun, and when business was slow, she would chat with Huang Xiuyun.

Shen Long nodded, chatted with them for a few moments, then walked away.

He made a circuit of the square without finding anything worthwhile. He left the Bluestone Square and headed toward Thousand Bamboo Peak.

As he passed a fork in the road, Chen Yishan and a beautiful white-skirted girl approached from the opposite direction.

The white-skirted girl's skin was fairer than snow, her eyes clear as water. A White Spirit Beast Bag hung at her waist, and she possessed Qi Refining Eighth Layer cultivation.

"Fairy Chu, Hundred Spirits Pavilion is the only Spirit Beast shop in the Marketplace. It may have the Spirit Beast you want."

Chen Yishan said warmly.

"Then I'll trouble Fellow Daoist Chen to lead the way."

The girl in the white skirt spoke in a sweet voice.

"Not at all. It's only a small effort."

Chen Yishan said with a broad smile as he led the way for the white-skirted girl.

Shen Long gave it no further thought, quickened his pace, and returned to his residence.

He took out the insect egg Qin Qing had given him and examined it carefully, but he could not identify what kind of Spirit Insect egg it was.

Every profession had its specialty. To an outsider, insect eggs all looked more or less the same.

Shen Long took out a Cyan Jade Slip and pressed it against his forehead.

The Jade Slip recorded the Spirit Insects listed on the Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking. After a short while, he removed the Jade Slip, his brow slightly furrowed.

There were far too many kinds of Spirit Insects in the cultivation world, and too many of them laid yellow eggs. He had no way to identify this insect egg's origin.

Shen Long took out the Spirit Control Tower and infused it with mana. The Spirit Control Tower immediately lit up with a dazzling blue light, and a powerful suction force appeared out of thin air, pulling him into the Spirit Control Tower.

Shen Long stood beside the pool, took out the insect egg, and placed it into the pool.

He came before the image of a demonic insect with dozens of heads, placed both hands on it, and infused it with mana.

The mana in his body rapidly drained away, and the demonic insect's eyes lit up.

Shen Long looked toward the pool and saw it glow with blue light.

Before long, his face turned pale. He withdrew his hands, took out two Spirit Stones, and absorbed their spiritual energy to recover his mana.

He walked to the pool and swept his gaze across it, spotting a yellow scorpion about a foot long. Its grayish-white tail was raised high, ready to strike at any time.

"Iron Tail Scorpion!"

Shen Long's face was full of disappointment.

The Iron Tail Scorpion was an earth-element Spirit Insect. It usually burrowed underground to hide and typically injured enemies with its tail sting. It was an ordinary Spirit Insect, and Shen Long had killed some Iron Tail Scorpions during his years of hunting Monster Beasts.

The Heaven and Earth Exotic Insect Ranking contained several kinds of Spirit Scorpions. Both the Earth Rock Scorpion and the Iron Tail Scorpion were earth-element demon scorpions, but the Earth Rock Scorpion excelled at concealment and its tail sting carried a strange poison, while the Iron Tail Scorpion's sting was nonpoisonous. The difference between them was heaven and earth.

Hundred Spirits Pavilion also sold Iron Tail Scorpions for ten Spirit Stones each.

That made this Iron Tail Scorpion difficult to sell.

Even if Qin Qing did not repay the Spirit Stones, Shen Long would not lose out.

Shen Long left the Spirit Control Tower, sat cross-legged, and began cultivating.

Seven days passed. On this day, Shen Long emerged from the stone house, intending to go to the Martial Practice Garden to practice his spells.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, Daoist Xu asked us to come over."

Qin Qing approached him with a smile.

Shen Long nodded and went with Qin Qing to the Green Bamboo Courtyard.

Besides Xu Lei and the other four, Ye Yushang and Ye Yuqing were also there.

"Fairy Ye, why are you two here as well?"

Shen Long casually asked. It seemed that the Ye sisters had also joined their Monster Hunting Team.

"Fellow Daoist Shen, you know them?"

Xu Lei asked doubtfully.

"I've bought things from Fairy Ye."

Shen Long explained.

Xu Lei suddenly understood. "Let me introduce everyone. These two Fairies Ye are our new teammates."

"Daoist Xu, isn't their cultivation a little too low?"

Qin Qing asked with a frown.

Ye Yushang and Ye Yuqing were both at the fifth level of Qi Refining. That meant there were now five people in the team at the fifth level of Qi Refining.

"Fairy Ye is a Talisman Maker and has Spirit Beasts as well. Her strength is not weak."

Xu Lei explained.

Hearing this, Qin Qing's expression eased.

"Everyone can buy Talismans from me. I'll give you a better price."

Ye Yuqing said with a smile.