sinovels Chapter 35 The Circulation of Spirit Stones
Chapter 35 The Circulation of Spirit Stones
The market opens on the fifth day of the month, and the market is bustling with people.
Zhang Lin sat upright behind the counter, now reverting to his original identity as the shopkeeper hired by his senior brother, Lin.
Although the art of concealing one's aura is highly skilled, it is not suitable to always show that face to others. There are many capable and righteous people in the world, and there will always be someone who can see through the disguise.
On the shelves in the shop, magical artifacts and elixirs were displayed in an orderly fashion, their spiritual light faintly emanating from them.
This is the third market day since "Lin's Grocery Store" opened.
Zhang Lin scheduled his shop to operate on the 5th, 15th, and 25th of each month.
On the rest of the days, he kept the shop closed and returned to his Lingquan Cave in Black Wind Mountain to cultivate, managing to do both without neglecting either.
After a month, he discovered something wonderful.
They discovered that using spirit stones to aid cultivation was almost as efficient as using spirit springs.
Although the spring is wonderful, it is located deep in the mountains, and traveling back and forth is time-consuming and exhausting.
The spirit stone only needs to be held in the hand, and the cultivation technique can be activated. The spiritual energy will slowly flow out of the spirit stone and flow into the dantian along the meridians.
One low-grade spirit stone is enough for him to meditate for two hours.
Compared to a blessed place like the Spirit Spring Cave, it is slightly inferior, but not by much.
"In terms of cultivation efficiency, spiritual springs are slightly better than spiritual stones, but in terms of convenience, spiritual stones are better."
Zhang Lin secretly made his plans.
He had plenty of spirit stones at hand, and even if he cultivated with spirit stones every day, he could last for a long time.
The Spirit Spring Cave can be used as a backup when breaking through bottlenecks, eliminating the need for daily travel.
After weighing the options, he decided to spend most of his cultivation time in the backyard of the shop, only going to the Spirit Spring Cave once or twice a month to consolidate his foundation.
This arrangement saves people the trouble of traveling and does not delay their cultivation progress.
On this day, a special guest came to the shop.
The newcomer was a middle-aged cultivator, dressed in a gray Taoist robe, with a thin face, three long wisps of beard, and a cultivation level of late-stage Qi Refining.
His aura was calm and composed, clearly indicating that he had been immersed in this realm for many years.
After entering the store, he glanced around the shelves and finally his eyes fell on the black bronze knife behind the counter, a glint of light flashing in his eyes.
"Shopkeeper, may I take a look at this knife?"
Zhang Lin nodded, took out the black bronze knife from behind the counter, and placed it horizontally on the counter.
The middle-aged cultivator held the bronze sword in both hands and examined it closely.
The blade is about three feet long, more than four inches wide, and three-tenths of an inch thick. It is made entirely of refined iron mixed with black copper, and two sharp runes on the blade shimmer with a faint spiritual light.
He tapped the blade lightly with his knuckles, producing a clear, resonant sound that lingered for a long time.
"A fine blade," the middle-aged cultivator exclaimed, then asked, "Shopkeeper, can this blade truly penetrate armor below the high-grade level?"
"Its special feature is armor penetration; the blade energy can penetrate mid-grade armor." Zhang Lin said calmly, "If activated at full power, even high-grade armor can be easily breached."
The middle-aged cultivator's eyes gleamed even brighter.
He had been cultivating in Qingyun Town for over twenty years, and had been stuck at the late stage of Qi Refining for ten years, always lacking a suitable magical artifact.
High-grade magical artifacts are extremely rare in a small place like Qingyun Town, and when someone does take them out to sell, they fetch astronomical prices.
"Thirteen hundred spirit stones, could you make it cheaper?"
Seeing that this person didn't seem to be just inquiring about prices, Zhang Lin pondered for a moment and said, "One thousand two hundred and fifty pieces, no more than that."
The middle-aged cultivator gritted his teeth, took out a storage bag from his robes, poured out a pile of spirit stones, and stacked them on the counter.
He counted and counted again and again, and finally pushed 1,250 spirit stones in front of Zhang Lin.
"make a deal."
Zhang Lin accepted the spirit stones and handed over the black copper knife with both hands.
The middle-aged cultivator took the knife, held it in his hand, and poured his true energy into the blade. Two runes on the blade suddenly lit up, and the blade's energy surged, revealing its sharpness.
"What a fine blade! The magical artifacts of a great sect are indeed extraordinary!" The middle-aged cultivator laughed heartily, clasped his hands in a salute, and said, "Shopkeeper, until we meet again."
Having said that, he strode out of the shop and disappeared into the crowds of the market.
Zhang Lin watched him leave, his expression unchanged.
The cost of strengthening the Xuan Tong Blade was only three hundred spirit stones, but it was resold for a profit of nearly a thousand.
This deal is definitely worthwhile.
Just past noon, more customers came into the shop.
This time it wasn't a rogue cultivator, but an acquaintance.
Qi Yuntian, Zhao Yuanqing, and two fellow disciples from Shangqing Temple entered the shop.
Zhao Yuanqing was the first to rush in, his face full of excitement. He looked around the store, marveling at everything.
"Wow, this shop is much bigger than I imagined! Senior brother, you've struck it rich!"
Zhang Lin chuckled and stood up to invite the others to sit down.
Qi Yuntian walked into the store, his gaze sweeping over the shelves, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
He walked to the counter, looked at the first-grade high-level breakthrough pill and the second-order fireball technique jade slip, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "Junior Brother Zhang, your Senior Brother Lin is quite generous."
Zhang Lin smiled and said, "Senior Brother Lin is a disciple of the Danxia Sect, so he has plenty of money."
"Some of these things he brought from the sect, and some he picked up while collecting herbs outside. I just help him mind the shop and get paid for my hard work."
Qi Yuntian nodded without asking any further questions.
Zhao Yuanqing, however, persisted, tugging at Zhang Lin's sleeve and saying, "Senior brother, is Senior Brother Lin still taking on people? I'd like to help him mind the shop!"
Zhang Lin chuckled and said, "Senior Brother Lin only hires one shopkeeper; he can't afford to support more. If you want to earn some spirit stones, I can introduce you to a job."
Zhao Yuanqing's eyes lit up: "What kind of work?"
"Help me buy the spiritual herbs from my fellow disciples," Zhang Lin said. "Spiritual orchids, three-leaf green herbs, Qi-gathering herbs... I'll buy any of these low-grade spiritual herbs as long as they're of decent quality. I'll give you a cut; the more you buy, the more you get."
Zhao Yuanqing nodded repeatedly, patting his chest and saying, "Don't worry, senior brother, I will definitely go back and buy up some spiritual herbs for you."
Qi Yuntian watched the two chatting and laughing, a slight smile playing on his lips, but he didn't interrupt.
He walked around the store, finally stopping in front of the shelf, picking up a low-grade magic weapon longsword, and weighing it in his hand.
"How many spirit stones does this sword cost?"
"Forty pieces."
Qi Yuntian pondered for a moment, then took out a cloth bag from his bosom, counted out forty spirit stones, and placed them on the counter.
"Senior brother wants to buy a sword?" Zhang Lin was slightly taken aback.
"It's not for me." Qi Yuntian shook his head. "A junior brother in the temple has broken through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, but he doesn't have a suitable magic weapon yet, so I'm buying one for him."
Looking at the forty spirit stones, Zhang Lin felt a surge of warmth in his heart.
Qi Yuntian was not particularly skilled in cultivation or talent, but he was sincere and kind-hearted.
In this cold and indifferent world of cultivation, such people are extremely rare.
"Please wait a moment, senior brother."
Zhang Lin turned around and took out a low-grade magic weapon longsword from behind the counter, handing it to Qi Yuntian with both hands.
"This sword is in the best condition. Senior brother, take it and give it to that junior brother."
Qi Yuntian took the sword, looked at it, nodded, and put it into his storage bag.
He then took out a cloth bag from his bosom and handed it to Zhang Lin.
"These are some medicinal herbs that my fellow disciples in the temple have collected. You can keep them, and you can decide on the price."
Zhang Lin opened the cloth bag, which contained more than a dozen medicinal herbs, including Spirit Orchid and Three-Leaf Green. Their quality varied, some were of decent age, while others were just tender seedlings that had just been picked.
He estimated the market price, took out fifty spirit stones, and handed them to Qi Yuntian.
"Senior brother, here are fifty coins, please keep them safe."
Qi Yuntian accepted the spirit stones without counting them and put them directly into his storage bag.
"Junior Brother Zhang, be careful in Qingyun Town, you're all alone here." He patted Zhang Lin on the shoulder, his tone serious. "If you encounter any difficulties, remember to come back to the temple."
Zhang Lin bowed respectfully and said, "Thank you for your concern, Senior Brother."
Qi Yuntian left with Zhao Yuanqing and the others, and the shop returned to quiet.