Old Daoist Li

More than a month later, Long Xuan returned to this market once again. Only this time, he was no longer a buyer, but had gloriously become a little stall owner.

Long Xuan covered his face and wore a large hat. He casually found a spot, spread out a white cloth, and placed nine insect jars containing Cockroach Gu on it.

Beside himself, he set down a homemade folding chair, then sat on it.

Afterward, he began pondering the price of Cockroach Gu. It was worth mentioning that this world could be said to have currency, yet also be said to have none.

That was because Spirit Stones could only be used to exchange for cheap supplies. Expensive items could not be traded for Spirit Stones and could only be obtained through barter.

Strictly speaking, Spirit Stones did not count as this world's universal currency.

After all, Spirit Stones were inevitably irregular in shape, some large and some small, with differing concentrations of spiritual power.

Could someone drain half the spiritual power and then spend it? Since Spirit Stones varied like this, they were even less likely to serve as currency.

Spirit Stones were merely equivalents in this world. Trading with Spirit Stones was equivalent to bartering, not buying things with money. Therefore, Spirit Stones could not be exchanged for priceless treasures.

Because Spirit Stones were not standardized, the prices of all kinds of materials were negotiated between parties rather than fixed uniformly across a region.

Prices could only fall within a rough range, and stall owners had an extremely high degree of freedom.

But Long Xuan considered that a new thing needed to open up the market first, so its price should not be set too high.

After much thought, Long Xuan temporarily priced these freely priced Cockroach Gu at three hundred Spirit Stones each. He planned to raise the price after their reputation had spread.

Of course, the quality of the Spirit Stones had to be acceptable. They could not be the sort whose spiritual power had nearly been drained, nor could they be barely the size of a little fingernail.

For his first time setting up a stall, there were admittedly too few goods on display, making it look somewhat shabby. But the days ahead were long, and the items at his stall would sooner or later grow plentiful.

Afterward, he placed a sign listing Cockroach Gu's effects and price on the stall, waiting for his first customer to arrive, quietly waiting for willing fish to bite the hook.

As a first-time stall owner, he still found it quite novel.

His arrival immediately drew the attention of the other stall owners. The stall owner seated close to his right was an energetic old man. Seeing the goods displayed on Long Xuan's stall, he spoke up.

"Low-Grade Gu Insects? With Gu Insects, quality matters more than quantity. The weakest Low-Grade Gu Insects are not popular."

"What's more, you did not refine one of the Five Poisons, but an exceptionally obscure cockroach. There will be even fewer people willing to trade for it."

"There are quite a few Rogue Cultivators in this market selling Mid-Grade Gu Insects. There are even three Rogue Cultivators selling High-Grade Gu Insects, and every one of them has a unique Gu Insect."

"People selling unique Low-Grade Gu Insects are everywhere too. Your goods have no competitive edge whatsoever."

"No matter. Fine wine fears no deep alley. So long as there is one trader, I can open up a market." Long Xuan said with great confidence.

He had tremendous faith in the Gu Insect he had researched.

Old Daoist Li did not think much of it. He truly did not believe that such a young child could have developed any particularly formidable Gu Insect.

Though the sign described the Gu's effects, he only considered it an exaggeration.

How could a Low-Grade Gu Insect possess such powerful resistance to blows? Such tyrannical abilities could not possibly appear in a Low-Grade Gu Insect.

Yet just as he was about to reply, Long Xuan's first customer walked up to his stall, and Old Daoist Li wisely shut his mouth.

Li Erniu picked up one of the Gu jars, opened it to inspect the Gu Insect inside, then looked at the densely written sign on the stall, revealing a surprised expression.

He had never seen this kind of Gu Insect before. It was undoubtedly a newly researched variety.

Whenever a new Gu appeared, it was bound to arouse curiosity. A newly created Gu Insect might be powerful, might be weak, or might possess some strange and bizarre ability.

But a new Gu had not undergone actual combat testing, nor had battle methods been developed for it. No one knew which Gu Insects it paired best with either.

Thus, few people were willing to be the first to eat crab.

But it was not without benefits. No one would understand a newly emerged Gu species, much less know how to counter it.

Danger often came from the unknown. Possessing a Gu Insect an enemy had never seen could often win through surprise.

He was preparing to duel a sworn rival. Your enemy always knew you best, and his sworn rival knew all his trump cards. Having a Gu Insect his opponent could never possibly understand might be a good choice.

Li Erniu showed interest and looked at Long Xuan. "Your Cockroach Gu can give someone an undying body. Is that true?"

"What? I never said that." Long Xuan hurriedly waved his hands in denial.

"I wrote it very clearly. It merely means ordinary attacks from those of the same grade will not kill you. After all, it is a Low-Grade Gu Insect. There are far too many ways for someone of the same grade to kill you."

"For example, if someone pierced your heart through with a sword, you would not die so long as you had Cockroach Gu. But if your heart were ground into fragments, how could you possibly not die?"

"Cockroach Gu has not defied the heavens to the point of instantly restoring your heart."

"But as long as you continuously increase Cockroach Gu's growth, the limit of the damage it can withstand will grow higher and higher."

"Cockroach Gu's greatest advantage is that it eats anything, including paper, leather, cotton, wood shavings... It eats it all. You need not worry about its food at all."

Hearing this, Li Erniu's eyes lit up. This truly was an extremely practical advantage.

Gu Insects were exceedingly precious, and the things they ate came in all manner of strange varieties. Some Gu Insects even fed exclusively on costly things like gold, Spirit Stones, and spirit herbs, often eating a wealthy Gu cultivator into ruin.

Not being a picky eater was absolutely a bonus.

"That is not bad either. After all, it is only a Low-Grade Gu Insect. If you truly claimed it granted absolute power that could not be killed, I would not have believed you."

"I'll trade for this Cockroach Gu. Three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones. Put them away."

Li Erniu tossed three decent-quality Mid-Grade Spirit Stones onto the stall, then left without another word, carrying the Gu jar in his hand.

One Mid-Grade Spirit Stone was worth one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Long Xuan's storage bag did not have much space, so he preferred accepting Mid-Grade Spirit Stones as well.

His opening sale had succeeded. Long Xuan happily put away the three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and casually called out, "Don't miss it as you pass by! Come take a look at top-quality Cockroach Gu! Buy it and you won't lose out, buy it and you won't be cheated..."

Seeing that no one came over after half the day, Long Xuan turned his head toward the old stall owner who had just spoken with him, intending to try selling one to a fellow vendor.

"Sir, you must have seen what my Cockroach Gu can do. At your age, your legs and feet surely are not so nimble. Trading for my Cockroach Gu would be just the thing to add another layer of insurance."

"Meeting is fate. Since you are my neighbor, I'll sell it to you cheaply—just 299 Spirit Stones."

Old Daoist Li immediately blew his beard and glared. "You little brat, you actually dare try to swindle me."

"I don't believe your Cockroach Gu truly has such an ability. Though it would not grant its host a truly undying body, its ability is still somewhat frightening."

"Do you know how terrifying this ability's practical effect would be in battle? In a fight, one could completely trade injury for injury with an opponent. Saying one's combat power would double out of thin air would not be an exaggeration."

"How could this be an ability a Low-Grade Gu Insect possesses? If your Cockroach Gu truly has such an ability, then before a Mid-Grade Gu Insect, I would rather choose your Cockroach Gu."