Body Tempering Paste

With the crisis resolved, Liu Tao and the others let out sighs of relief, though their hearts were filled with shock. Ye Chen had single-handedly slain the ugly man at the Qi Cultivation Realm Tenth Layer and the burly man with copper skin and steel bones. Such combat power was truly terrifying. Not even the Golden Light Sect's top outer sect disciple could accomplish it; even someone who had just advanced to become an Inner Sect Disciple might not manage it. And even if they could, they might not emerge unscathed. Yet Ye Chen had done so while keeping his true strength hidden.

"Brother Ye, I, Liu Tao, have never admired anyone before. But today, I'm convinced." Liu Tao spoke with a solemn expression.

Ye Chen neither confirmed nor denied it, merely smiling faintly.

That group of burly men had brought them an additional income of over three thousand taels. Split equally, each person received more than five hundred taels—a rather unexpected windfall.

"Everyone, farewell." Having obtained enough silver, Ye Chen did not wish to continue cooperating with them. He intended to venture alone into the Silent Mountain Range and temper his combat experience.

Liu Tao said, "Fine. We were preparing to head back anyway. Be careful on your own."

Just as they were about to leave, Yao Qing could not help saying, "Ye Chen, remember to come visit us sometime!"

Ye Chen nodded. "If there's a chance."

Before long, the group had vanished from sight. Ye Chen thought to himself, I've only been out for a short while, yet I've already earned two thousand seven hundred taels of silver. That's enough to buy some expensive materials to temper my body. As for spirit herbs that benefit Qi cultivation, forget it. Those things cost tens of thousands of taels at every turn. I simply can't afford them.

Putting that aside, what truly puzzled Ye Chen was why he had felt so little upon killing someone for the first time. Could that also be because of Soul Force?

Shaking his head, Ye Chen found himself unable to understand it.

The Silent Mountain Range stretched for a thousand li in every direction and teemed with demonic beasts. As Ye Chen knew, the outermost hundred li contained mostly only Level One and Level Two demonic beasts, while the chances of encountering a Level Three beast were very low. That relatively large Saw-Toothed Poison Beast had not actually been a Level Three demonic beast either; it could only be considered a quasi-Level Three beast. But the region between two hundred and five hundred li was dangerous territory, where Level Three to Level Five demonic beasts could appear at any time. With his current strength, encountering one would leave him with only a Death Road.

As for the area beyond five hundred li, that was a true forbidden ground. Several decades ago, a major power had dispatched experts deep into the mountains in search of rare and precious herbs. Unfortunately, they encountered a Level Seven Ghost-faced Demonic Ox. Of the more than one hundred people, only one escaped, but he died within days. The Demonic Energy in his body had been too overwhelming, driving him mad until he died. Since then, no one had dared enter.

Over the course of ten li, Ye Chen slew three demonic beasts. The third was a Level Two Raging Bull. Ye Chen grabbed it by both horns and beat it to death with his bare fists.

After gathering the demonic beast materials, Ye Chen did not venture deeper. Instead, he chose to explore sideways. He had no desire to encounter a demonic beast above Level Three.

Time swiftly passed.

On the third day, Ye Chen, carrying a large leather sack on his shoulder, set off on his return journey toward Qingfeng Town.

Spirit Herb Pavilion was Qingfeng Town's only shop dealing in medicinal ingredients. It was not especially large, nor was its storefront particularly lavish, but in terms of wealth, it was unquestionably second to none.

After all, martial artists were the wealthiest group in this world, and more than half their silver was spent on medicinal ingredients or Pills that aided cultivation. They could throw away gold by the handful without even furrowing their brows. To them, silver could be earned again after it was gone, but a rise in cultivation was something that could only be encountered, never sought.

As Ye Chen stepped into Spirit Herb Pavilion, he frowned.

The shop was crowded with people coming and going. Most were martial artists dressed in fitted outfits, along with young masters from wealthy households. There were also one or two people Ye Chen could not see through at all; they were likely martial artists at the True Condensation Realm.

Walking up to the counter, Ye Chen placed the large leather sack containing demonic beast materials on top.

"Shopkeeper, I'm selling demonic beast materials."

The shopkeeper was an elderly man wearing a black robe trimmed in gold. His bearing was steady and composed. He came over and opened the sack, counting the materials while estimating their prices. "The Saw-Toothed Poison Beast materials are worth five hundred and twenty taels, the Bald-Tailed Wolf materials eighty-five taels, the Raging Bull materials three hundred and eighty taels... The total comes to one thousand six hundred and fifty taels."

Ye Chen said, "Exchange all of it for banknotes."

The so-called banknotes were like the silver notes Ye Chen knew of. They could be exchanged for gold at a bank, or used directly in trade. Their smallest denomination was five taels, while the largest was ten thousand taels. The safekeeping fee was three percent of the total amount. In other words, if one deposited one hundred taels, one could only withdraw ninety-seven taels.

As for the banks that issued banknotes and silver notes, there was no need to worry about them going under. There was a joke that said, even if the Heavenly Wind Kingdom perished, Tongshen Bank would still stand firm. It spoke of the stability of banknotes. After all, as a colossal bank spanning more than a dozen kingdoms, if it could collapse so easily, how could anyone rest assured? Who knew how many powers secretly protected it behind the scenes? National powers were among them.

After instructing an attendant to put away the demonic beast materials, the shopkeeper opened a safe and took out several glittering banknotes, arranging them neatly on the counter.

"Here. It's a total of one hundred and sixty-five taels of gold. Count them."

Ye Chen gave them a casual glance, then nodded and put them away. His gaze soon wandered, settling on the display case of goods nearby.

Shopkeepers were skilled at reading people's expressions. The old man smiled. "Young hero, is there anything you need help with?"

Ye Chen said, "I need some Pills or medicinal ingredients for tempering the body. Could you introduce some to me?"

"There's no need to go through so much trouble. I'll get you a body-tempering list. It has the effects and prices marked on it, so it's easy to understand."

"Fine."

Before long, the shopkeeper went back to his work, while Ye Chen now held a stiff sheet of paper covered in writing.

Tiger-Dragon Bone Refining Pill, refined from the essence blood of a Blood-Patterned Tiger and a Horned Python. Five thousand taels of silver per pill.

Ox Demon Strength Pill, refined from the essence blood of a Raging Bull and Foundation Building Herb. Three thousand five hundred taels of silver per pill.

Flying Swallow Pill... Two thousand taels of silver per pill.

After a long while, Ye Chen shook his head. Body-tempering Pills were simply too expensive, costing two or three thousand taels of silver at every turn. His entire fortune could only buy a single Tiger-Dragon Bone Refining Pill, and its medicinal effect lasted merely three days, incapable of providing long-term tempering.

At that thought, Ye Chen felt somewhat envious of those blessed by heaven. From childhood, they received the finest training, swallowing miraculous Pills and precious medicines like candy. Over several years, the silver they consumed could probably fill an entire house. It would be strange if their progress were not swift.

Of course, external aid was ultimately only external aid. It might allow one to become an ordinary expert, but reaching certain heights would be difficult.

His eyes drifted to the bottom of the list, and Ye Chen's gaze lit up. There it was.

"Body Tempering Paste, refined from eight materials including Three Yang Herb, Ox Ghee, and Ironwood Sap. One hundred taels of silver per bottle."

This was the one. Letting out a breath, Ye Chen raised his head, called over an attendant passing nearby, and said, "Bring me thirty bottles of Body Tempering Paste."

"Certainly, please wait a moment."

Thirty bottles of Body Tempering Paste filled an empty wooden case. After paying, Ye Chen carried it out of Spirit Herb Pavilion.