Old Man

"Brother, you're finally back. Why did it take so long?" The moment Chen Fan reached his doorstep, he saw Chen Jingjing walking out, neatly dressed, as if she had been about to go look for him.

"The inheritance might take a while to obtain," Chen Fan said calmly.

"Did something happen?" Chen Jingjing seemed to have guessed something and asked.

"I've already killed Elder Li. The inheritance is with the Demon Sect; I'll retrieve it soon." Chen Fan spoke lightly, as if recounting some trivial matter.

"Ah? You..." Chen Jingjing's eyes went wide. Last night, Chen Fan had only told her to go home and rest, saying he would handle the inheritance alone—she never expected it would involve killing someone.

"He was colluding with the Demon Sect. You might be in some danger, so I'll teach you some talisman arts over the next few days. If you want to learn the sword, I can teach you that too," Chen Fan said calmly.

Chen Jingjing shook her head, pursed her lips, and said, "I want to learn Dao cultivation. Father was a Dao cultivator too; he always hoped we would become Dao cultivators."

"Alright, then I'll start by teaching you talisman arts." Chen Fan nodded. He knew that Dao cultivation only required spiritual roots and talent, but sword cultivation was far more demanding—to walk far on the Sword Immortal Path, one needed a heart utterly devoted to the sword.

Then Chen Fan paused slightly, as if remembering something, and said, "Call Rumeng over too. Pack some spare clothes while you're at it. I need to prepare as well."

"Pack clothes? Are we going on a trip?" Chen Jingjing asked in surprise. This was rather sudden.

"The spiritual energy in Demon King Valley is denser than out here, and we won't be disturbed by the Demon Sect," Chen Fan said flatly. In truth, he didn't care much about the Demon Sect, but if the Immortal Sect sent a few Foundation Establishment cultivators to assassinate him, he couldn't guarantee the safety of both Chen Jingjing and Zhang Rumeng.

"But Demon King Valley..." Chen Jingjing stopped mid-sentence. Now, compared to Demon King Valley, this elder brother of hers made her feel far more secure—as if with him around, no danger was worth worrying about.

"Alright, I'll go find Rumeng!" Having worked that out, Chen Jingjing broke into a happy smile and dashed off toward Zhang Rumeng's house.

Chen Fan pressed his lips together, turned, and walked into the house, heading for his own room.

He wasted no time. Closing his eyes, he stirred his Divine Sense and instantly entered the Heavenly Court.

The spiritual body in the Heavenly Court trembled slightly at the eyelids, then opened its eyes. Before him was the familiar Medicine Field. The Green-feathered Bird was oddly absent, and he couldn't be bothered to wake it. Silently reciting an incantation, his form flickered, and in an instant, he appeared outside the Heavenly Court Hall.

Chen Fan strode toward the Heavenly Court Hall, standing at the entrance and scanning the crowd as if searching for something. The next moment, a dry, withered hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.

"You looking for me?" a familiar voice came.

Chen Fan's heart jolted. He turned and stepped back, fixing his gaze on the old man with yellowed teeth and a grinning face. His eyes narrowed.

This old man was no simpleton!

He had approached silently, without Chen Fan sensing a thing.

"Are you concealing your cultivation?" Chen Fan asked with a frown. From the old man's aura, he really didn't seem like a mere Qi Refining Layer 5.

"Conceal my ass. Enough chatter—did you bring the Three Flowers Gathering at Crown Talisman?" The old man grinned, showing his teeth.

"Five copies." Chen Fan pulled a stack of yellow talismans from his chest—ones he had drawn after clearing the Second Layer Heavenly Court.

A glint flashed in the old man's eyes as he took the talismans and stuffed them into his bag without even looking.

"Do you know where I can exchange spirit stones around here?" Chen Fan asked.

"Spirit stones? What do you need those for? With your meridian toughness and physique, you can just refine demon cores directly." The old man flashed his yellow teeth again with a laugh.

Chen Fan's heart jolted once more. He gave the old man a deep, appraising look. He knew this old man must have an extraordinary level of insight in the Earth Cultivation World—how else could he judge the strength of Chen Fan's meridians with just a glance? But Chen Fan didn't press further. He simply shook his head and said softly, "I have my own use for them."

The old man eyed Chen Fan suspiciously for a few moments, then pulled a spirit stone from his shabby bag and grinned at him. "I deal in spirit stones too. In the Heavenly Court, one Low-Grade Spirit Stone equals one Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon core. That's the market price."

Chen Fan was taken aback. That was cheaper than he had imagined. Though the spiritual energy in a Low-Grade Spirit Stone was only about the same as a Qi Refining Seventh Layer demon core, the energy in spirit stones was gentle and mild, unlike the violent nature of demon cores.

But if this were the Earth Cultivation World, even a Qi Refining Ninth Layer demon core probably couldn't fetch a single Low-Grade Spirit Stone. Spirit stones, along with high-grade spiritual herbs, were often priceless and unavailable on the open market.

Though the Earth Cultivation World had been passed down for centuries since the Age of Dharma Decline, a few hundred years meant nothing on the long path of cultivation. Truly aged spiritual herbs and spirit stones hadn't had time to mature, so even a Low-Grade Spirit Stone was exceedingly rare there.

The Heavenly Court was different—it was a cultivation realm rich in resources. Even the Immortal Palace's master had once founded and dwelled here, so it couldn't be lacking. Low-Grade Spirit Stones weren't highly valued by most cultivators here. Exchanging one for a Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon core was clearly a bargain. But hearing this price from the old man's mouth made Chen Fan a bit suspicious.

"One Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon core for two spirit stones," Chen Fan said, shaking his head.

The old man squinted his eyes and bared his teeth. "Kid, you trying to swindle an old man?"

"I'm quoting the market price," Chen Fan said flatly.

"Bullshit. You don't even know where the Lingxiao City Market is—what the hell do you know about market prices?" The old man cursed openly, inwardly grumbling that this kid was too sharp. One Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon core was indeed worth two spirit stones, because advancing in cultivation was far easier in the Heavenly Court than in the Earth Cultivation World.

The Heavenly Court also had no shortage of spirit stone mines, large and small. Whenever one was discovered, cultivators would swarm to dig them out. Over time, the value of spirit stones in the Heavenly Court naturally dropped.

"So there's a market," Chen Fan said, finally showing a look of realization.

Seeing Chen Fan turn to leave in search of the Lingxiao City Market, the old man nearly spat blood. The spirit stones he had were also scammed and swindled from others, so he naturally wanted to trade them for demon cores—far more stable in value.

"Wait, kid. Deal. How many do you want to trade?" the old man called out.

"How many do you have?"

"More than you can imagine." The old man said with an air of confidence. In his eyes, Chen Fan was just a Qi Refining Layer 6 little cultivator—could he really go out and slaughter Qi Refining Eighth Layer monster beasts? That would be suicide.

But the next moment, he froze in place, mouth wide open, expression rigid.

"Five..." the old man blurted out, then immediately clamped his hand over his mouth.

In truth, what shocked him wasn't the five Qi Refining Eighth Layer demon cores themselves, but that someone of Chen Fan's standing could produce five such cores—it was utterly hair-raising.

"Ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Hand them over." Chen Fan extended his hand toward the old man.

The old man snapped back to reality. With lightning speed, he swept the five demon cores from Chen Fan's hand into his shabby bag. Then, furtively rubbing his palms together and swallowing hard, he asked, "Kid, where did you pick up these demon cores? Share the wealth, eh?"

"I killed the monster beasts for them. Where are the spirit stones?" Chen Fan frowned, reaching out again.

"Senior, senior, don't joke with this old man. There are no monster beasts within a thousand li of Lingxiao City. Even if you used a Teleportation Array to cross ten thousand li and found some, there's no way you killed this many alone—you're only at Qi Refining Layer 6," the old man said with a bitter smile.

Chen Fan shook his head and said flatly, "I killed them on the side while clearing the Second Layer Heavenly Court. Give me back my ten spirit stones now."

"The Second Layer Heavenly Court... the Battle of Immortal Qi?" The old man's eyes went wide as he asked in disbelief. In the second layer's trials, only the Battle of Immortal Qi involved contact with Monster Beasts, and it was the hardest of all the tasks.

Chen Fan nodded.

"A freak." The old man squinted, bared his teeth, and shook his head repeatedly with a sigh. A Qi Refining Layer 6 cultivator had not only cleared the Second Layer Heavenly Court but also had the spare strength to slaughter this many Qi Refining Eighth Layer Monster Beasts.

He didn't dawdle any longer. He fished ten green-and-white Low-Grade Spirit Stones out of his tattered bag and handed them to Chen Fan, grinning as he said, "That many spirit stones must be a hassle to carry. Want to buy a Storage Ring or a Storage Bracelet?"

The old man's words stirred something in Chen Fan's mind. A thought flashed through it.

"How many spirit stones?" Chen Fan asked, his expression unchanged. Doing business with a shrewd old man like this meant showing no cracks.

"Ten." The old man answered without hesitation.

Chen Fan turned and walked away without a word. Spatial tools like Storage Rings weren't worth ten spirit stones even in the Earth Cultivation World, and in the Heavenly Court, their value was halved. By his estimate, three Low-Grade Spirit Stones could buy a Storage Ring with decent space.

"Hold on, kid." The old man hurried after Chen Fan, flashing his trademark yellow teeth as he grinned. "Kid, this Storage Ring of mine is at the Magic Tool level. Ordinary Spirit Tools can't compare—it's got more than double the space."

"I'm heading to the Marketplace." Chen Fan kept walking, his tone indifferent.

The old man's face changed drastically at that. He said with righteous indignation, "Absolutely not! The Marketplace is full of swindlers who'd eat you alive without spitting out the bones."

When he said that, not only Chen Fan but even the passing cultivators nearby shot him looks of contempt.

In all of Lingxiao City, was there a bigger swindler than you? Was there a more ruthless scumbag than you who'd eat people without spitting out bones?

Basking in the stares of resentment, contempt, and anger from those around him, the old man remained unfazed. He stood before Chen Fan with an air of integrity, like a true gentleman.

"Two Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Take it or leave it." Chen Fan narrowed his eyes.

"Two spirit stones? That's robbery. A man would rather die than be humiliated. I'm not selling. Down with swindlers, harmony for our great Heavenly Court Marketplace." The old man huffed, his beard bristling as he refused Chen Fan with righteous fury.

With that, the old man turned and walked away. Anyone who didn't know him might have thought he had some backbone. But just as he took two steps, a calm voice came from behind him.

"By the way, are you interested in a Qi Refining Ninth Layer Demon Core?"