Great Luo Dharma Seal

"Could it really be a Spirit Ghost?"

In a flash, Bai Jinfei darted over and stared at the Spirit Ghost inside the Ghost Raising Tower.

His eyes burned with extraordinary intensity.

Lu Li slowly munched on a crisp spirit fruit nearby without saying a word.

"Tsk, what a pity. This Low-grade Spirit Ghost is golden in color. Give it another two or three hundred years to absorb pure yin ghost qi, and it'll probably advance to a mid-grade Spirit Ghost."

Bai Jinfei circled the Ghost Raising Tower, lamenting as he went.

He looked just like a lecher peeping through a window at a beauty bathing.

Smack.

Lu Li slapped the Ghost Raising Tower down onto the table and asked unhurriedly, "Senior Brother, are you satisfied with this Low-grade Spirit Ghost?"

"Very satisfied!"

Bai Jinfei nodded, his smile brimming with warmth, then waved his hand.

At once, the beauties in the hall withdrew.

The music of zithers and flutes also came to a stop.

"Junior Brother, where did you get this Spirit Ghost?" Bai Jinfei cast one lingering glance at the Ghost Raising Tower, then returned to his seat of honor.

"Of course I caught it in Ten Thousand Ghost Cave."

Lu Li answered readily.

"Junior Brother, you really are lucky. I spent at least ten years in Ten Thousand Ghost Cave, all told, and never came across a single Spirit Ghost."

Bai Jinfei's face was full of envy.

"I was just lucky, too. But speaking of which, this is only a Low-grade Spirit Ghost. It's worth at most one spirit artifact. Why are you so excited, Senior Brother? Could this Low-grade Spirit Ghost have some other use?"

Lu Li turned the Ghost Raising Tower in his hand and asked sidelong.

At Lu Li's words, a strange glint flashed in Bai Jinfei's eyes. His smile immediately turned friendly and warm. "Haha, you're overthinking it, Junior Brother. A Low-grade Spirit Ghost doesn't have any other use. But don't worry. Since you trust me so much, I'll make sure you get a good price!"

"Good! You're straightforward, Senior Brother. I want this much!"

Lu Li raised his right hand, clenched it into a fist,

then held up two fingers.

"Twenty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones? That's not impossible."

Bai Jinfei furrowed his brows, then suddenly laughed. "But we're fellow disciples. A mere twenty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones..."

"Senior Brother, you guessed wrong."

At that moment, Lu Li cut him off coldly. "I said two hundred thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones."

"What? Two hundred thousand?!"

Bai Jinfei sprang up from his jade chair.

His eyes were as wide as eggs.

"That's right."

Lu Li nodded leisurely.

"Junior Brother, what do you mean by this? You should know that a Low-grade Spirit Ghost is only worth ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones..." Bai Jinfei's expression darkened.

He suddenly realized he couldn't quite see through this new junior disciple.

"Senior Brother, we may be fellow disciples, but you can't take advantage of me for free. Forget it. If you don't want to buy it, I can only go ask Senior Sister Green Lotus. Thanks for your hospitality, Senior Brother. I'll take my leave."

Lu Li shook his head, put away the Ghost Raising Tower, cupped his hands, and directly announced his departure.

"Green Lotus? Junior Brother, wait!"

Bai Jinfei's expression changed. He forced out a smile. "Let's talk this over! We're fellow disciples, one family. There's no need for this, is there?"

"Oh? One family? Since we're all one family, shouldn't you help out your impoverished junior disciple all the more? Then surely you can't offer a copper less than these two hundred thousand, right?"

Lu Li raised an eyebrow and asked with a cold laugh.

"This..."

Bai Jinfei's smile stiffened again, and he was at a loss for words.

Then he suddenly burst into laughter, his smile bright as sunshine, admiration in his eyes. He cupped his hands and said, "Junior Brother Lu, what a clever move, turning the situation to your advantage! I lost this round, and I admit it wholeheartedly!"

His open and generous manner immediately inspired goodwill.

Lu Li was a little surprised, too.

"Junior Brother, since you've seen through me, I'll speak frankly. An ordinary Low-grade Spirit Ghost really is only worth ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones. But recently, an elder has been searching far and wide for Low-grade Spirit Ghosts to feed to his Mid-grade Spirit Ghost and help it advance to high-grade."

Bai Jinfei sat back down, picked up his jade cup, and spoke leisurely.

"Oh? How many Low-grade Spirit Stones can a Low-grade Spirit Ghost fetch now?"

Lu Li immediately grew interested.

"Five!"

Bai Jinfei held up one hand, his eyes shining. "Fifty thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones!"

"Great! Thanks! I'll be going!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Li shoved the Ghost Raising Tower into his robes, sprang to his feet, cupped his hands, and made to leave.

"Junior Brother, wait! Didn't you say you were selling the Spirit Ghost to me?"

Bai Jinfei panicked and called after him.

"Huh? Senior Brother, did you forget? We're members of the Demon Sect, sinister and crafty, and we don't keep our word. That's just how we do things. You're so honest and trustworthy—could you be a righteous sect's undercover agent?"

Lu Li stopped and asked in return.

"..."

Bai Jinfei's mouth twitched.

He actually couldn't think of anything to say in response.

Seeing that Lu Li really was about to leave, Bai Jinfei sighed helplessly. "Junior Brother, I'll tell you the truth one last time. The price of Low-grade Spirit Ghosts reached one hundred thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones last night! I'll give you one hundred thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones. Just sell this Low-grade Spirit Ghost to me!"

"Really?"

Lu Li's eyes lit up.

"Absolutely true!"

Bai Jinfei swore with utmost seriousness. "I swear on Yin Underworld Patriarch that if I've told even one lie, may heaven strike me dead!"

He'd even sworn on the founder of the Yin Underworld Ghost Sect? It looked like he was telling the truth.

From ten thousand to one hundred thousand—that really was an unexpected windfall.

Lu Li pondered for a while, but in the end, he still shook his head.

"Junior Brother, there's a limit to how outrageous you can be with your demands! I haven't made a single copper off you in this deal!"

Bai Jinfei's expression darkened as he said coldly.

"Senior Brother Lu, you haven't made a profit off me, but you could turn around and sell this Spirit Ghost to that elder. By giving him what he urgently needs, you'll earn his favor."

Lu Li stood at the hall's entrance and smiled meaningfully.

Brilliant sunlight shone down on him, forming a radiant halo that made Bai Jinfei squint.

After a long while, he finally spoke, his face cold. "Junior Brother Lu, I really did misjudge you. I never expected someone so young to be able to see into people's hearts. No wonder Master took you in as a Core Disciple despite your low cultivation. Fine, fine. I won't buy this Spirit Ghost. Go earn those one hundred thousand Spirit Stones and that elder's favor yourself. Someone, see our guest out."

"Senior Brother, you've misunderstood. I never said I wouldn't sell it to you."

Just then, Lu Li suddenly darted back, sat down in a chair, and smiled.

"Hmm?"

Bai Jinfei narrowed his eyes to slits. "Junior Brother, what do you mean?"

"Nothing much. The Spirit Ghost might go up in price later, but I'll still sell it to you for one hundred thousand. You can keep the markup and that elder's favor, too."

Lu Li smiled.

"Why?"

Bai Jinfei was puzzled.

"It's simple. There's a limit to how valuable that elder's favor can be. At most, he might help me with a small favor someday. But people in the Demon Sect are naturally cold and ungrateful. He might not even bother helping. I'd rather sell it to you. That way, you get something out of it, and I do too. Everyone stays on good terms. Isn't that the best of both worlds?"

Lu Li explained with a smile.

After hearing this, Bai Jinfei stared at Lu Li for a good while, a faint gleam in his eyes, before cupping his hands. "Junior Brother Lu, you're truly sharp-witted. I'm genuinely impressed!"

There was a measure of sincerity in his words.

"Don't mention it, Senior Brother."

Lu Li waved his hand with a smile. "By the way, do you have any Buddhist Sect cultivation methods? The body-tempering art I practice is a modified version of the Vajra Art, but I've hit a bottleneck. I'd like to borrow some Buddhist Sect methods to study. Maybe I can draw parallels and break through."

Lu Li asked casually.

"A modified version of the Vajra Art? What a coincidence—I've practiced it too. I've also collected some Buddhist scriptures and cultivation methods. Take a look."

Bai Jinfei flicked his hand, and a large pile of jade slips and old books appeared on the floor.

Lu Li's eye fell on one of them. He reached out and pulled it over.

He opened it and took a look.

Oh.

The pictures inside showed people without clothes.

It was the Great Joy Zen Method, unsuitable for righteous cultivators.

But Lu Li always remembered that he was a member of the Demon Sect, so he gave it a very dismissive look and casually set it aside.

The Great Joy Zen Method was incomplete. He couldn't learn it.

Then Lu Li picked up another old book and flipped through it.

It was a Buddhist scripture.

But the instant he finished reading it,

a ding rang out, and the system notification sounded:

"You flipped through the Great Luo Crossing the Red Dust Sutra and discovered a hidden Buddhist hand seal technique."

"Congratulations, host. You learned the Great Luo Dharma Seal."