Experiment

The thought struck Chen Zhuo, and he immediately followed the boy, intending to strike a deal with him.

The boy needed to buy something; he needed to sell something.

Their needs complemented each other. No problem there.

Though the paths through the shantytown twisted and turned, Chen Zhuo was now a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator with divine sense. He could follow the boy without losing his way or his quarry.

The boy went farther and farther afield, gradually reaching the very edge of the Shantytown. Quite a few mortal martial artists had begun to appear nearby.

Chen Zhuo quietly took a Golden Armor Talisman and a Sword Qi Talisman in hand, just in case.

One look told him this was the Shantytown within the Shantytown.

A few more minutes passed, and the view ahead suddenly opened up.

This was the outermost edge of the Shantytown. Almost everyone living here was a mortal martial artist, and no weakling by mortal standards.

Back in the mortal world of Xu Kingdom, each would have been a renowned figure of the martial world.

Beauties and gold beyond counting, power and status that reached the heavens.

Here, though, all they could do was process the herbs they had just dug up in the mountains and wait to trade them for Spirit Sand.

When they saw an unfamiliar cultivator like Chen Zhuo appear, many stopped working and turned toward him. They bowed one after another, not daring to look him in the eye.

Still dressed in his green robe and carrying himself like the scion of a great Aristocratic Clan, Chen Zhuo walked toward the boy.

The boy seemed to have noticed Chen Zhuo long ago. He came to his door, watched him warily, then cupped his hands and said in a low voice, "Senior, you've followed me all this way. May I ask what you need? If there's anything I can do for you, I'll go through fire and water without hesitation!"

Clearly, he was deeply wary of Chen Zhuo.

"I saw you at Jishi Hall just now. You wanted to buy a pill?"

Without showing anything, Chen Zhuo glanced around. The martial artists nearby were all watching him, as though they would rise up together if he tried to harm the boy.

It seemed the boy had won many hearts around here.

Chen Zhuo gave a slight nod to himself, but paid it little mind.

Mortal martial artists?

Come on!

Never mind his Sword Qi Talisman—could they even beat him?

Even a martial artist who had cultivated to the absolute peak was only about equal to a First Layer of Qi Refining cultivator.

Chen Zhuo was a staunch believer in the Immortal Estate way: when in Rome, do as the Romans do!

If mortals were looked down upon in the Ancient Immortal Realm, then Chen Zhuo would look down on them too, just as an Immortal Estate undergraduate looked down on an Immortal Estate junior-college student, and an Innate Spiritual Root looked down on an Acquired Spiritual Root!

The boy froze at his words, then nodded. "Yes. Senior, are you looking to..."

"I privately refined a pill called the Qi Condensation Pill. It's suitable for cultivators in the Qi Refinement stage, but I don't yet know how effective it is. Since you're a few Spirit Stones short, I can sell it to you for eight."

Chen Zhuo made himself at home, striding into the house as he continued, "But after taking it, you must tell me everything you feel, without leaving out a single detail."

With that, Chen Zhuo looked around.

The furnishings were sparse.

Apart from two wooden beds, there was almost nothing.

Only a few earthenware jars and some herbs laid out to dry sat in a corner.

On one of the beds, a small, thin figure heard the noise and poked her head out from under a worn quilt. She looked timidly at Chen Zhuo, but when she saw the boy behind him, her eyes lit up. "Brother..." she said softly.

Oh, he has a little sister.

Chen Zhuo immediately felt reassured. He sat down on a chair and looked at the boy.

At his words, the boy also "Ming" Chen Zhuo's intentions.

So this senior wanted him to test a pill and gather data!

That was hardly rare in the cultivation world.

When developing new pill formulas, many alchemists sought out low-level cultivators or mortal martial artists to test their pills, observing the effects and side effects.

For a cultivator at the bottom, an opportunity like this really was a gift from heaven!

As for the Qi Condensation Pill...

The boy had heard of it. At Jishi Hall, one pill cost twenty-five Spirit Stones!

Its effects were far better than Qi Gathering Powder!

Right now, he was at the threshold between the first and second layers of Qi Refining. If he could break through to the Qi Refining Second Layer, he would qualify to join a demon-hunting team and hunt the monsters in the surrounding wilderness!

He could easily earn back eight Spirit Stones!

Only then could he afford the market token that cost ten Spirit Stones a month and give his sister a chance when Sword Gate recruited disciples in five months!

After thinking it over for a moment, the boy carefully took out a pouch and poured all the Spirit Stones inside onto the table.

"Senior, there are seven Spirit Stones and fourteen grains of Spirit Sand here."

The boy quickly added, "Please check them, Senior."

Chen Zhuo glanced at the Spirit Stones.

They looked much like the ones from the Sinister Old Man, though their edges were perhaps a little worn.

Besides the Spirit Stones, there were also smaller ones resembling pebbles.

They had probably been chipped off Spirit Stones and shaped into grains of equal size.

"So this is Spirit Sand?"

Chen Zhuo collected the Spirit Stones, then set down the Qi Condensation Pill. "Take it here. Now."

"I need to see your reaction after you take it with my own eyes."

The boy bowed to Chen Zhuo, then swallowed the pill in one gulp. He sat cross-legged and began circulating the faint Spiritual Qi within him, trying to refine the spirit pill he had longed for.

"Remember, no matter what happens, tell me the truth," Chen Zhuo reminded him.

The boy nodded, closed his eyes, and focused completely on refining the pill.

As the cultivation technique circulated, Chen Zhuo began drawing in the Spiritual Qi of heaven and earth around him.

The Spiritual Qi in this Immortal Estate world was abundant indeed.

Chen Zhuo recorded his observations from the side. One moment the boy smiled; the next, he looked dejected. Chen Zhuo found it utterly baffling and had no idea what was going on.

It's not as if this is some grin-and-drop-dead powder, is it?

"Brother..." the little girl called softly, her voice thick with tears and her eyes full of worry.

At last, after a spell of strange reactions, Li Changqing settled down and slowly began Cultivation normally.

Seeing this, Chen Zhuo immediately began recording his observations in earnest:

"Approximately two minutes after ingestion: obvious pain; spiritual energy turns violent; slight damage to meridians..."