Chapter 98
"You know, Steward He, could you trouble yourself to get me two hundred Dragon Whisker Grass seeds?" Lu Xuan asked.
After Steward He passed on the message, Lu Xuan continued, "Sure, wait here."
Thanks to Hundred Herbs Hall's recommendation, Lu Xuan almost got into trouble. Perhaps feeling a bit guilty, the old man didn't inquire about the whereabouts of the previous batch of Dragon Whisker Grass. He went straight into Hundred Herbs Hall.
Adhering to the earlier discounted price, each Dragon Whisker Grass seed was priced at thirty Broken Spirits. Lu Xuan paid sixty Spirit Stones and received two hundred dried seeds that resembled tea leaves from the old man.
Intending to plant these seeds after joining the sect, Lu Xuan planned to harvest some for cultivation and reserve the rest for cyclical planting.
Back in the courtyard, Lu Xuan glanced at the four second-grade diseased spirit plants he'd acquired. Concentrating his mind, he noticed the progress bar had filled more than halfway.
Due to the severe damage from the disease, further meticulous cultivation wouldn't affect the quality much. Lu Xuan decided to harvest them all.
Instead of selling them to Hundred Herbs Hall, he took them to the Grand Bounties Pavilion.contemporary romance
The pavilion displayed a myriad of treasures, catching the eye at every turn.
As Lu Xuan entered, a graceful female cultivator greeted him warmly, "Friend, feel free to ask if you need anything."
"I want to sell four second-grade spirit plants. Could you find someone in charge?" Lu Xuan requested.
The graceful girl nodded softly.
Shortly, an elderly man with white hair approached Lu Xuan and clasped his fists in greeting.
Lu Xuan took out the four second-grade diseased spirit plants, placing them on a flat surface.
The old man squinted, carefully examining each plant.
"Friend, the quality of these four spirit plants is average. Three are of inferior quality, and one is of regular quality. How about this: eighty Spirit Stones for each of the inferior quality ones, and a hundred for the regular one. Is that acceptable?" the old man proposed.
"That works," Lu Xuan agreed.
After receiving three hundred and forty Spirit Stones, he asked the graceful girl, "I've heard that the Grand Bounties Pavilion has various branches within the cultivation world for resource exchange and transportation of cultivators to specific areas. Is that true?"
"Indeed, the Grand Bounties Pavilion possesses several third-grade large-scale flying artifacts called the All-Encompassing Ships, capable of transporting abundant resources for cultivation. Cultivators can pay a certain number of Spirit Stones to hitch a ride," the graceful girl proudly explained.
"How many Spirit Stones would it take to reach the nearest location of the Sky Sword Sect?" Lu Xuan inquired.
"Are you planning to join the Sky Sword Sect? I've heard that apart from some exceptionally talented cultivators, the minimum requirement to join the Sky Sword Sect is cultivation at the high tier of Qi cultivation," the girl asked curiously upon sensing Lu Xuan's intermediate cultivation level.
"That's not your concern. I just need to earn Spirit Stones," Lu Xuan replied calmly, withholding his advanced Qi cultivation level and presenting a Blue Cloud Token.
"Apologies for my presumption," the girl said, correcting herself. "The All-Encompassing Ship offers four levels of cabins: A, B, C, and D. The D-class cabin is the lowest, with only a single independent room at the ship's base. The A-class cabin is as spacious as a small courtyard and can accommodate up to ten people. It's soundproofed, with attendants and fresh spirit fruits and tea daily."
"How much for a D-class cabin to the nearest point to the Sky Sword Sect?" Lu Xuan asked directly, realizing that an A-class cabin wouldn't suit a lone cultivator like him. The independent space of a D-class cabin would suffice.
"Starting from Lin Yangfang Market to the nearest point to the Sky Sword Sect, a place called Sword Gate Town, it would cost two hundred Spirit Stones for a D-class cabin," the girl answered.
"Two hundred Spirit Stones! That's quite expensive!" Lu Xuan exclaimed. It was equivalent to the price of an ordinary second-grade artifact, and this was just a one-way fare.
"Friend, the distance between the market and Sword Gate Town spans thousands of miles, passing through several dangerous areas. The actual distance is easily over ten thousand miles," the girl explained. "The All-Encompassing Ship is a third-grade flying artifact equipped with third-grade formations and guarded by foundational cultivators. You needn't worry about encountering demonic beasts or malevolent spirits, let alone rogue cultivators or bandits."
Lu Xuan nodded, acknowledging the girl's logic. Travelling alone across such uncertain and perilous terrain might not lead to a smooth arrival at the Sky Sword Sect.
Realizing the long and unpredictable journey, the potential risks of dangerous areas, and the threats posed by rogue cultivators or bandits, Lu Xuan conceded, "Alright then, two hundred Spirit Stones it is."
After some bargaining, Lu Xuan finally agreed. Fortunately, his upcoming expedition promised considerable gains; otherwise, parting with such a substantial sum would have been challenging.
Guided by the girl, he exchanged the Spirit Stones for a specially made token from the Grand Bounties Pavilion, allowing him access to the All-Encompassing Ship.
He learned that the nearest ship departing from the market to Sword Gate Town would set off in about ten days.
Back in his courtyard, time was of the essence; Lu Xuan had to settle all his affairs within this window.
Firstly, he had to sell off a large quantity of demonic beast materials, spirit herbs, setting up stalls in various shops and markets, offering them at relatively fair prices.
His artifacts and storage bags weren't acquired through conventional means. Thus, he visited the black market, selling the second-grade artifacts obtained from Li Jianfeng, along with several storage bags.
In this way, between the four diseased second-grade spirit plants, a vast amount of low-grade demonic beast materials, spirit herbs, storage bags, artifacts, and other items, Lu Xuan amassed over a thousand Spirit Stones, achieving unprecedented wealth amounting to two thousand Spirit Stones.
During this period, he visited the home of the snake-catching youth, Yu Jie, buying all the Azure Water Python blood available. It would keep the Jiao Vine absorbed for quite a while.
He also bid farewell to Zhang Xiuyuan and Steward He's families.
In the courtyard, the Pure Snow Lotus seeds had reached maturity. The day before departing, Lu Xuan harvested them.
He obtained sixteen snow-white lotus seeds, the primary ingredient for second-grade spirit pills. They could also be consumed directly, keeping a cultivator's mind clear for a period.
After picking the Pure Snow Lotus, a white light mass floated atop the Spirit Spring Pool, shimmering faintly.
Gently picking it up, Lu Xuan absorbed the countless light dots into his body. Instantly, a thought crossed his mind, and a small bottle of ointment appeared in his hand.
The ointment, with a faint green hue and a refreshing fragrance, was labeled as "Sweet Dew Ointment," a second-grade elixir capable of staunching bleeding and promoting wound healing.
"An ordinary-quality first-grade
Pure Snow Lotus yields a second-grade healing ointment. That's quite impressive," Lu Xuan marveled before stowing away the ointment in his storage bag.
Before leaving, he gathered the remnants of second-grade Clear Spirit Tea, Copper Bone Bamboo, third-grade Illusory Smoke Fruit, Jiao Vine, first-grade Iron-Clawed Crab, Spirit-Stepping Cloud Lynx, and the Spirit Puppet Grass Puppet in the Lifebound Bag.
He also stored the Mist Concealment Formation in his storage bag, his gaze firm as he looked up at the sky, his vision seemingly piercing through mountains and rivers.
---------------
- You can also check out the other Novels I'm currently translating by clicking HERE.
- Your invaluable feedback and ratings mean the world to me. Please take a moment to rate this at NovelNext.
- If you come across any mistakes within this chapter, kindly notify me in the comments below, so that I can make the necessary corrections.
done.co