Cultivation: From Menial Laborer to Immortal Venerable

The middle-aged auctioneer waited for a long time, but no one bid.

Cultivators at Mid-Stage Qi Condensation, lacking Divine Sense, couldn't activate this magical artifact, so naturally, they wouldn't buy it.

Although cultivators at the Late-Stage possessed Divine Sense, why wouldn't they buy a High-Grade magical artifact if they had the money?

Therefore, this magical artifact found itself in a very awkward position.

This auction was merely a last-ditch effort.

Just as the middle-aged man thought it would go unsold, Zhou Xun made his move:

"Forty spirit stones!"

Only by driving it with Divine Sense could its full power be unleashed. This was tailor-made for him.

Besides Zhou Xun, no one else bid.

Soon, he acquired this magical artifact at the lowest possible price.

After purchasing this Mid-Grade magical artifact, Zhou Xun spent another 30 spirit stones to bid on a first-tier High-Grade Flight Talisman.

He then left the auction venue.

After changing his attire and applying a first-tier Mid-Grade Light Body Talisman, he sped away in the opposite direction of Red Leaf Square.

He traveled for a full hundred miles before finding a deserted mountain peak and burrowing into it.

He then selected a large tree that required several people to embrace and, in a hidden spot, used his artifact to excavate a hole tall enough for a person, hiding inside.

He remained hidden for three days.

During these three days, Zhou Xun took out his newly acquired Radiant Light Twin Blades and successfully imprinted his Divine Sense onto them, fully refining them.

On the third day, Zhou Xun emerged from the tree hollow.

"It's been three days since the Black Market closed. Even if there were still rogue cultivators, they should be done by now!" Zhou Xun mused to himself.

After coming out, Zhou Xun was eager to test the power of the Radiant Light Twin Blades.

He swept his right hand across his waist, and two single-edged short blades, each about an inch long, appeared in his palm.

He slowly injected his magical power, and a black light flashed from the broken blades. They floated before Zhou Xun, emitting a faint, eerie glow.

Gazing at a large tree dozens of meters away, Zhou Xun moved his Divine Sense, controlling the flying blades to move forward.

The two flying blades shot forward like streaks of black lightning, instantly covering dozens of meters before circling the tree that required several people to embrace.

Without warning, the tree was cut into several pieces, like interlocking building blocks, and crashed down with a thud, scattering across the ground.

"This power is truly astonishing!" Zhou Xun marveled inwardly.

If he had possessed this treasure when he hunted the Goldspirit Rat with Dan Xiong Hai, he could have killed them all by himself; there would have been no need for such great effort.

Putting away his artifact, Zhou Xun was content.

He set his sights on the direction of Red Leaf Square and sped off.

The next chapter will be uploaded later.

The pair who bought the Spirit Condensing Herb were brothers. The shorter, fatter one was the younger brother, at Qi Condensation Fifth Level, while the taller, thinner one was the elder brother, at Qi Condensation Sixth Level.

These two were not cultivators from the vicinity of Red Leaf Square.

Red Leaf Square was near Hundred Savages Mountain, located at the southern end of Xu Nation.

These two, however, hailed from Juntian City in the northeast of Xu Nation, tens of thousands of miles away. They had fled to Red Leaf Square after being wanted for killing a disciple of a certain family.

Their purchase of the Spirit Condensing Herb was intended for the elder brother's breakthrough to Late-Stage Qi Condensation.

"Big Brother, buying the Spirit Condensing Herb used up most of our spirit stones. Why don't we go back to our old ways and make some more?" suggested the shorter, fatter of the two.

"Alright!"

Although they had obtained the Spirit Condensing Herb, crucial for their breakthrough to the Late-Stage, they still needed quite a few supporting materials!

Thus, several battles ensued on their journey back to Red Leaf Square.

"Fellow Daoist, why must you be so ruthless? I am willing to hand over all my possessions, just spare my life!"

The speaker was a middle-aged man dressed as a warrior, his face etched with pleading, but the scars on his face revealed his past ferocity.

If Hong San were present, he would have recognized this man as his colleague, the head of the Valiant Hand Hall of the Iron Mountain Gang.

He was at Qi Condensation Fifth Level!

"Fine, as long as you hand over your storage bag, I'll let you live!" the taller, thinner middle-aged man at Qi Condensation Sixth Level agreed in a hoarse voice.

The middle-aged man resisted several times, but he was no match for his opponent. Whether it was speed, Daoist techniques, or magical artifacts, he was completely outmatched.

With no hope of resistance, he decided to beg for mercy.

He removed the storage bag from his waist and tossed it far in another direction.

Then, he injected magical power into his feet, pushed off forcefully, and fled in the opposite direction.

He had taken barely two steps when he felt a chill on his chest, and a foot-long blade pierced his heart.

"You..."

Before he could utter the second word, the middle-aged man died instantly.

After collecting the spoils, the two brothers went to another spot to lie in wait.

Soon, the same scene happened again.

For three consecutive days, the two killed four passing cultivators, reaping a considerable harvest.

"Big brother, it's been three days, should we continue?" The two were crouched behind the entrance of a valley, staring intently ahead.

This was a gourd-shaped valley, one of the routes from the Black Market back to Red Leaf Square, ideal for ambushes.

"Since we're already here, let's wait one more day!"

Although the Black Market had ended three days ago, he believed many people would deliberately lag behind.

He was experienced in ambushing and killing, having encountered many such cultivators.

On the other side, after testing the power of the Radiant Light Twin Blades, Zhou Xun felt more confident.

He circulated his Light Body Technique and made his way towards Red Leaf Square.

"Something's not right!"

Arriving before a gourd-shaped valley, Zhou Xun frowned slightly.

The terrain here was peculiar, making it an excellent place to ambush cultivators in the early to mid-stage of Qi Condensation who lacked Divine Sense.

Zhou Xun hadn't taken this route when he came, so he was unaware of the terrain.

After a moment of thought, Zhou Xun unhesitatingly turned back.

He would take a different path back.

It was better to be safe, even if it took a little more time.

"Big brother, why did that kid stop!" When the short, stout cultivator saw Zhou Xun, he was overjoyed and tightened his grip on his magic artifact, ready to strike.

But Zhou Xun actually stopped, hesitating.

"No rush, let's wait a bit longer!" The tall, thin cultivator said in a steady and calm tone.

As soon as he finished speaking, they saw Zhou Xun turning back.

"Damn it, we've been exposed! That kid's going to run!" The short, stout cultivator exclaimed, then flipped out from their hiding spot and charged towards Zhou Xun.

"Quick, chase him! Don't let him get away!" The tall, thin cultivator cursed inwardly, channeling his spiritual power into his legs and pursuing Zhou Xun.

As soon as the two jumped out, Zhou Xun noticed the commotion behind him.

He quickly looked back and saw two cultivators in dark brown robes chasing after him.

"Damn it, robbers!" Zhou Xun was startled.

Without hesitation, he took out the Flight Talisman he had just bought and activated it, slapping it onto himself.

Instantly, Zhou Xun's body shot into the sky, flying away along the path he had come.

"A Flight Talisman! Damn it, he's going to escape! Quickly use the Azure Light Shuttle!" The short, stout cultivator felt a pang of pain seeing this.

A Flight Talisman was worth over thirty spirit stones, and they were hard to come by.

To have Zhou Xun use it like this was a terrible waste.

In his eyes, everything Zhou Xun possessed was already his.

The tall, thin cultivator nodded, tapped the storage bag at his waist, and a small, shuttle-shaped boat appeared in his hand.

He tossed the small boat into the air, then cast a spell on the flying shuttle.

The shuttle grew in the wind, expanding to about ten feet in size.

"Get on quickly!" The tall, thin cultivator called out, then jumped onto the Azure Light Shuttle. The short, stout cultivator followed closely behind.

Soon, a streak of azure spiritual light shot into the sky, chasing after Zhou Xun.