Rat Demon flesh!
Su Changsheng pondered what he knew about Rat Demons. In the end, he accepted the Eagle Yao's suggestion and left with two large chunks of rat meat, a peculiar look on his face.
And wouldn't you know it, when he and Tu Shu tasted it...
It was delicious!
Thirty-two jin of fresh flesh in total, at the cost of two Concealment Runes. It was hard to say whether that was a good deal.
Still, neither the Eagle Yao nor Su Changsheng breathed a word about the transaction, so nothing came of it for the time being.
With the flesh secured, his next stop was to trade for the things he had picked out earlier.
"What Demon Art Rune crafting methods do you have?"
Su Changsheng crouched in front of another demon's stall and asked as he examined the assorted odds and ends on display.
Trading between demons was fairly straightforward. You simply said what you wanted, with none of the usual haggling tricks.
"Cleansing Talismans, Fur-Changing Talismans, Shedding Talismans, Tracking Talismans, Scent Talismans... crafting methods for these ordinary low-grade runes cost three jin of flesh each."
"Hard Skin Talismans, Flame Talismans, Ice Talismans... crafting methods for these low-grade offensive and defensive runes cost five jin of flesh each."
The stallholder was a Level Three Half-Demon with a human body and fox tails. Aside from her furry fox ears and the three tails behind her, she looked almost exactly like a human.
More importantly, she was a vixen.
The sight set his demon heart stirring, making him itch for a little intimate exchange with her, both deep and shallow.
Compared with her, what was that Male Fox who used to live next door and was always looking to fool around with others worth?
A Half-Demon leaning toward humanization!
Su Changsheng was rather curious.
As Half-Demons continued to grow stronger, they could choose to evolve into fully fledged demons, focusing on strengthening their bloodlines and Yao Bodies. Or they could choose an entirely humanoid evolution, gaining a bodily structure and intelligence similar to those of humans.
The former was called demonization, and the latter humanization. Neither was necessarily superior; ultimately, it depended on each individual's fortune and opportunities.
Within the Wilds Yao Stronghold, however, Half-Demons who pursued humanization were rare. Those who had reached the Level Three Half-Demon level were rarer still.
Thicker and bigger, burlier and stronger-that was the truth of the Demon Race.
The unusual sight of a humanized Half-Demon made Su Changsheng steal several more looks. Well, damn, she really was beautiful.
"Do you have Concealment Talismans or Purification Talismans?"
The steep price of Purification Talismans had lodged itself in Su Changsheng's mind, and he could not shake it. Seeing such a complete selection of runes at the fox Half-Demon's stall, he could not help asking.
"I have Concealment Talismans. Five jin of flesh. No Purification Talismans. What do you want their crafting method for? Those runes aren't easy to make. They require materials from Wraith Beasts. Can you afford those?"
The fox Half-Demon stroked her three tails, glanced at Su Changsheng, and spoke languidly.
"Just curious, that's all."
"With Purification Talismans going up in price lately, I thought I'd try my luck."
Su Changsheng gave an awkward smile and continued, "I want four kinds: Fur-Changing Talismans, Hard Skin Talismans, Ice Talismans, and Flame Talismans."
He had originally wanted only the Ice Talisman, not the Flame Talisman, but on further thought, that would not have been wise.
He had used the Turtle Breath Art to disguise himself as a fire-affinity white snake Half-Demon, only to ask for a rune of the opposing affinity. Was he trying to make a joke of himself?
He might as well take both!
After all, these rune crafting methods were tied to earning survival points. Whatever their type, the more he had, the better.
As for the Fur-Changing Talisman, it was said to work in tandem with the Shedding Talisman. The former sped up the replacement of skin and fur, while the latter accelerated the shedding process.
The Hard Skin Talisman's purpose needed no explanation.
Just like that, before the rat meat had even warmed in his hands, more than half of it was gone. There was none of the guilty pleasure of a shopping spree-only heartache so fierce it nearly left a demon unable to breathe!
A full eighteen jin of flesh! If he rationed it, that would have fed Su Changsheng for two months!
Holding four sheets of beast hide, Su Changsheng checked that nothing was wrong and that they were not fakes, then prepared to leave. Unexpectedly, the fox woman called him back. "Wait. I have another rune crafting method you might find useful. Interested?"
"What method?"
Su Changsheng paused in surprise.
"The crafting method for this rune!" The fox woman suddenly drew a finished rune from her ample bosom and placed it on the stall.
"Isn't this just a Shedding Talisman?"
After examining it for a moment, Su Changsheng gave the fox woman a puzzled look.
He was a second-level Snake Yao. Did this vixen really think he did not even have the most basic Shedding Rune?
Who was she looking down on here?
When my clubs get hard, I've got two of them!
The fox woman shook her head, however, her expression turning solemn. "This isn't one of those ordinary Shedding Talismans. Its crafting method developed from the reverse scale of a Pureblood Snake Demon after its death. It was an Ironhead Snake. As a white snake Half-Demon, you should understand what that means."
An Ironhead Snake!
An exceptionally powerful kind of Pureblood Snake Demon, even known among humans as a Little Poison Dragon!
As Su Changsheng sifted through what he knew about Ironhead Snakes, his heart gave a slight jolt. Frowning, he looked at the finished rune again.
Sure enough, many of its internal details, the demon power circulating around it, and other aspects differed from an ordinary Shedding Rune.
It's real!
Forcing down his excitement, Su Changsheng swallowed discreetly. His voice was a little hoarse as he asked, "How much for the crafting method?"
He did not ask how the fox Half-Demon had obtained it. Information involving pureblood demons was already a secret he could not probe any further.
Had he not been in disguise, he would not have wanted to get involved at all.
But a shedding method derived from the skin of a pureblood Ironhead Snake was far too important to a half-baked Snake Yao like him.
Once he obtained it, his strength would surely rise substantially, and his bloodline, Yao Body, and more would undergo dramatic improvements.
There was no harm in asking, then.
"Five hundred jin of Wraith Beast Blood Food!"
"Farewell!"
"Don't go! You don't have to provide all that flesh at once. You don't even need to pay in flesh. You just have to..."
"Free? Then I'll see myself out!"
Without a second thought or a backward glance, Su Changsheng refused and swiftly left.
She was opening her lion's maw wide!
And her intentions were anything but good!
Fox demons really were scheming, exceptionally cunning creatures, with no shortage of sinister tricks.
What demon these days did not know that free things cost the most?
Besides, whether he had the flesh or not was beside the point. Even if he had that much, he would not trade it for this Shedding Rune crafting method.
Flesh was a necessity for him. An Ironhead Snake Shedding Talisman was not.
After saying goodbye to the fox woman and her demon-frightening offer, Su Changsheng did not hurry to leave. He kept watching her out of the corner of his eye and discovered that she was pitching all sorts of special rune crafting methods to many other demons.
Where did she get so many special rune crafting methods? Did she develop them all by studying demons?
And isn't she afraid of stirring up other demons' wicked intentions? Or does she have someone backing her?
After a moment's thought, Su Changsheng put it out of his mind. In any case, he was not the only demon the fox woman had approached. Knowing that was enough.
He then spent some more time wandering around the Yao Market.
There were plenty of other things here to make a demon drool, such as the stall of the legendary Demoness Market and the Spirit Plant Shop's stall selling spirit plants.
These businesses were all controlled by the Great Yao of the Yao Stronghold. Their stalls here only served to attract customers. To actually spend anything, one had to visit the fabled central district of the Yao Stronghold.
At that moment...
After crouching downwind of the Spirit Plant Shop's stall for ages and breathing in who knew how much air, Su Changsheng finally tore his reluctant gaze from its wares.
If he stayed any longer, the shopkeeper would chase him away.
I'm only having a sniff! It's not like I can't afford it. Looking down on Half-Demons, are you?
Su Changsheng grumbled inwardly.
He really could not afford it. There were plenty of fine things on display, but with his purse so painfully thin, he could only feast his eyes.
And sample their flavors through the air while he was at it.
Poverty was a disease that left your pockets jingling empty.
It needed curing!
Before you continue