Chapter 209

Chapter 209: Barter

The immense consumption of fortune left Li Hui in the dark.

Li Hui was so furious he nearly spat blood. While he found it unbelievable that the Fortune Ascending Talismans had become middle-grade treasure talismans and could store fortune, one thing was certain: it would be impossible to gather substantial fortune in the short term.

“Wait, I need to calm down; things aren’t that bad.”

“At least it isn’t complete darkness; I can vaguely see some light and shadow. That green mass feels familiar; I haven’t seen it face to face, but…”

“Got it! Demonic energy.”

“It must be the demonic energy from that spirit weapon demon.”

“What about the roots? They look so much like ginseng roots. Could it be the Ten-Thousand-Year Ginseng King mentioned by the Cold Armor Emperor? What does this mean? Then a myriad of lights appeared in the darkness, and one beam shot straight toward me. The clue must lie in that beam.” Li Hui pondered as Jin Mingyang jumped out of the fissure to collect the Reverse Five Element Spirit Light Worms. Qian Duohai followed behind, stomping his feet in pain, eager to act but fearing the consequences.

“Boom…” After a final tremor, the muffled sounds quieted down. The Hongmo Sect’s second assault on the island had ended, and no one knew what was happening outside.

Jin Mingyang was feeling triumphant; this calamity had worked in his favor.

Recalling the sect’s talisman-making scriptures, which stated that the spirit skins of the Five Element Spirit Light Worms could be used to create various rare talismans, how much more useful would the spirit skins of the Reverse Five Element Spirit Light Worms be? After all, his roots lay in the realm of talismans, and he had developed a habit of collecting various mediums.

Li Hui wanted to capture the Reverse Five Element Spirit Light Worms as well but faced a lack of proper treasures for storage. The Mysterious Water Pearl couldn’t escape the five elements; even its excellent quality couldn’t withstand the fat worms’ destruction of the five-element structure. The Bamboo Box made from Xumi Bamboo was also useless for the same reason.

The talisman he used to collect the fat worms was remarkable, surely transcending the constraints of the five elements; otherwise, it would have damaged it after a while. He envied this but knew he could only obtain it if he defeated Jin Mingyang.

The Primitive Shell Talismans and Yin-Yang Nine Heads were in a resting state. His spirit talismans had been consumed; while he still had a strong foundation, several types like the Cleansing Blood Talisman, Explosive Talisman, and Lava Talisman were depleted. His means of responding to crises had significantly weakened, and his combat power had dropped.

By the time Jin Mingyang had successfully captured all the Reverse Five Element Spirit Light Worms, the cave had grown completely dim.

“Zzzz” With a few soft sounds, Li Hui released eight Sheng Dou Talismans, casting bright lights that instantly dispelled all darkness. Qian Duohai hesitated for a moment, glancing around suspiciously.

Just then, as the light drove away the shadows, five principal-plus-interest talismans activated and fell onto Qian Duohai. Li Hui seized the perfect moment to act; since there was no harmful effect, even if the opponent sensed something, they couldn’t pinpoint the source. Soon, they dismissed the feeling and didn’t take it to heart.

“Gentlemen, the time ahead on the island will be more difficult. Those powerful cultivators will surely seek a way out. We all have our opportunities, so why not clear out our belongings and exchange treasures to better handle the intense situation?”

Upon hearing Li Hui’s proposal, Qian Duohai’s eyes lit up, and Jin Mingyang nodded thoughtfully. In the current crisis, even a small amount of help was beneficial; what others found useless could become life-saving in their hands.

“I’ll go first.”

Li Hui began pulling out items, as if recounting treasures. “This is Purple Essence Divine Water; it’s immensely helpful for Condense Essence Stage cultivators looking to break through to Bosa Stage. Since both of you are at the Condense Essence Stage, this treasure will be useful, but it needs to be diluted. I don’t need to mention how precious it is. Next is mushroom roots; the Soul Nourishing Water has already been fully consumed. The pureblood spiritual ears, from what I know, can also be used in medicine. I’m not quite familiar with…”

Prison Wood, the Jade Cutting Sword, Leaves of Blood Banana Trees, heavenly marrow worms, Ten-Thousand-Year Abyssal Wood, roots from the Kasyapa Bodhi tree, alongside some Blood Energy Talismans, Unceasing Blood Flow Talismans, Blood Mouth Spitting Talismans, and many unidentified items were scattered all over the ground.

Seeing the two in a daze, Li Hui shouted, “What are you waiting for? The second assault on the island was terrifying enough! If the Hongmo Sect constructs the Infinite Demons’ Blood Oath formation to summon demonic creatures from another realm, it’s hard to imagine the chaos that will ensue, and the turmoil at the moment they arrive could kill us. If you dream of luck, you’re asking for trouble!”

His words sounded a warning bell, and Qian Duohai and Jin Mingyang suddenly lost focus, realizing that he had a point; what good was keeping more possessions? If they lost their lives, nothing would matter!

Jin Mingyang quickly responded, “Alright, I’ll take all the Purple Essence Divine Water. I’ll give you five hundred Reverse Five Element Spirit Light Worms, stored in a single talisman, but it can only hold them once; retrieving them will destroy the talisman.”

“No, I want all the Purple Essence Divine Water and the pureblood spiritual ears,” Qian Duohai hurriedly rummaged through his belongings. His possessions were so plentiful they astonished Li Hui and Jin Mingyang, who thought, this guy must be like a field mouse, hoarding so many things!

The three took their positions, racking their brains to produce items for trade.

There was no other choice; Li Hui’s momentum was too strong, piercing right through their desires. The Purple Essence Divine Water was a rare treasure that directly struck their urgent needs. They were both at a critical point of advancing from the Concentrating Spirit Stage to the Condense Essence Stage; being able to leap to the next rank would boost their strength tremendously, and they yearned for it from the depths of their hearts.

Jin Mingyang shouted from ten paces away, “How do we trade? We both want the Purple Essence Divine Water exclusively.”

“You two are something else; there’s more than one part of Purple Essence Divine Water here, enough for both of you to reach Condense Essence! Why fight over it?”

Qian Duohai shook his head, “Not nearly enough. The true value of Purple Essence Divine Water lies in aiding one’s breakthrough from the Condense Essence Stage to the Bosa Stage; that’s the toughest hurdle. Thinking for the future, we need to accumulate more, unless you can offer more Purple Essence Divine Water, or else I’ll have to claim them for myself!”

Well! Previously, he had referred to Jin Mingyang as Brother Jin and called himself Little Brother, but now he just angrily referred to him as ‘that guy.’ Truly, character could not get any lower!

“Ah!” Li Hui sighed, taking out another jar of Purple Essence Divine Water and said, “How about this? Right now is the biggest challenge; even if we don’t have Purple Essence Divine Water later, we can still seek other opportunities.”

“Hahaha! Senior brother indeed has more in stock.” Qian Duohai was overjoyed but still shook his head, “I’ll take both of these jars; the more Purple Essence Divine Water, the better.”

Jin Mingyang burst out, “Qian, are you trying to force us to team up to wipe you out? Such a big appetite, wanting both jars?”

Li Hui glared angrily, “Do you know where the Purple Essence Divine Water comes from? That’s left by an elder in the Hongmo Sect for his descendants from the last time Wan Nest Island appeared. I went through life and death to obtain it, only bringing out three jars in total. I’ve already split them equally with you two, and yet you’re trying to overreach? Like Jin Mingyang said, must we fight for our lives together to be satisfied?”

“Brother, don’t get angry; just give me that jar of Purple Essence Divine Water, and I’m willing to trade you an exotic treasure for it,” Qian Duohai said, slapping his waist and unleashing brilliant light that left Li Hui and Jin Mingyang speechless.