Chapter 155: Chapter 119: A Bountiful Harvest
Combined with the previous one Spirit Stone and eighty-five grains of Spiritual Sand, Little Black and Fur Ball had earned a total of fifteen Spirit Stones and fifty-five grains of Spiritual Sand over the past year.
Ugh.
The cost of sixty-two Spirit Stones fell entirely on him.
After returning home, he didn’t let Little Black and Fur Ball out. Instead, he placed the pulp bucket in the utility room and went straight back to his room to restore his Magical Power, waiting for Ruan Tieniu to visit.
Logically, Ruan Tieniu should have arrived by now. In the past, they usually completed their transactions before nine days ago; however, today was already nine days ago. Still, Chen Jianghe was not in a hurry for just a day or two.
Three days passed.
Chen Jianghe’s Magical Power had recovered to Perfection, yet Ruan Tieniu still hadn’t shown up. He could only head to the Hundred Treasures Tower first to purchase his Cultivation Resources. As for the materials for drawing Spirit Talismans, there was no rush to buy them. He had bought plenty previously, so he still had sixty-five portions of Spirit Blood Pig Hide and two whole boxes of Spiritual Ink.
However, his Wolf Hair Talisman Pen was slightly damaged. It could probably still be used over three hundred times, which was enough for the next two years. He would just buy a new one once it was completely scrapped.
Arriving at the Hundred Treasures Tower, he first spent forty Spirit Stones on two True Spirit Pills. Then, he went up to the third floor to purchase a more comprehensive magazine. The *Yun Family Magazine* was starting to feel a bit lacking in content for him now; it didn’t even have a record of the Purple Mist Red Fruit. Obviously, the information was no longer sufficient.
Chen Jianghe browsed through the Magazine District and ultimately chose the *Qinghe Magazine*, authored by the Great Core Formation cultivator, Master Qinghe. Furthermore, it had been polished over hundreds of years by the family backing the Qinghe Marketplace, making it quite rich in content.
After paying two Spirit Stones, he left the Hundred Treasures Tower. He didn’t linger outside and went straight back to his small courtyard. Upon reaching his gate, he took two steps forward to glance at Ruan Tieniu’s door. A sign reading "Out" hung upon it.
He probably hasn’t returned from the Youxian Mountain Range yet.
"Perhaps... could it be that Ruan Tieniu won’t be coming back?" he wondered.
The thought suddenly popped into Chen Jianghe’s mind. The Youxian Mountain Range did not lack Tier Two Demon Beasts, and there were even Tier Three Demon Beasts deep within. Foundation Establishment Cultivators ran the risk of perishing if they ventured too deep, let alone Qi Refining Cultivators. Even though Ruan Tieniu and his team only operated on the outskirts of the Youxian Mountain Range, what if a Tier Two Demon Beast wandered out there? That would be an unforeseen disaster. Once targeted, those Qi Refining Stage Demon Hunters wouldn’t be able to escape at all.
Shaking his head, he pushed aside these dark thoughts. He returned to his yard without hanging up an "In Seclusion" sign. He swallowed a True Spirit Pill and began his Cultivation. Afterwards, he continued drawing Spirit Talismans.
He still chose to draw Middle-Grade Protection Talismans. He had originally planned to draw a Middle-Grade Five Elements Escape Talisman, but his transaction with Ruan Tieniu hadn’t been completed yet. Because he couldn’t hang the "In Seclusion" sign on his gate, there was a chance someone might use the door knocker and disturb his talisman drawing.
A Middle-Grade Protection Talisman wasn’t an issue. His Talisman Success Rate was decent enough that he wouldn’t be affected by such minor disturbances. However, drawing a Middle-Grade Five Elements Escape Talisman was a different story. He had never drawn one before, so he didn’t even have a so-called Talisman Success Rate for it.
Two months passed unknowingly.
As he lifted his pen, a flash of Spirit Light passed over the Spirit Blood Pig Hide, and a Middle-Grade Protection Talisman was completed. In these two months, Chen Jianghe had consumed nineteen portions of Spirit Blood Pig Hide and produced eight Middle-Grade Protection Talismans. His Talisman Success Rate had stabilized at forty percent.
"Where are the Demon Beasts? Why haven’t they been delivered yet? This is holding things up so much! My and Fur Ball’s Cultivation is a small matter, but the main issue is not earning any Spirit Stones. This will dampen Fur Ball’s enthusiasm."
"SQUEAK SQUEAK." (I don’t mind.)
THUMP THUMP.
"SQUEAK SQUEAK." (Yeah, yeah, we are all quite anxious.)
Little Black’s voice transmission rang out on Chen Jianghe’s Spirit Platform. The Spirit Beast Circle flashed with light, conveying Fur Ball’s thoughts as well. He was also very puzzled. Why hadn’t Ruan Tieniu arrived yet? Two months had passed; it logically shouldn’t take this long!
Ruan Tieniu had mentioned earlier that with Alchemist Zhuang’s Spirit Pills, a trip to the Youxian Mountain Range only took him a little over two months now. But more than two months had already passed, and it was impossible for Ruan Tieniu to have purposefully timed his trip to the Youxian Mountain Range to conflict with their transaction.
"Did he really perish in the Youxian Mountain Range?" he mused.
Every year, dozens of Demon Hunters from the Qinghe Marketplace perished in the Youxian Mountain Range, including many Ninth-Layer Qi Refining Cultivators. Therefore, it wouldn’t be surprising at all if Ruan Tieniu had fallen.
Chen Jianghe wasn’t concerned about Ruan Tieniu’s death. What he cared about was that his Spirit Talismans had lost their sales channel. There was a significant difference in Spirit Stones between selling to the Hundred Treasures Tower and selling directly to a Demon Hunting Team. After tasting the sweetness of selling to a Demon Hunting Team, how could he ever accept selling to the Hundred Treasures Tower again?
Normally, he wished he could split a single grain of Spiritual Sand in half to spend it. He absolutely refused to accept a sudden loss of over ten Spirit Stones.
"Don’t be anxious, let’s wait a little longer," Chen Jianghe comforted his two Spirit Beasts, who were eager to work.
Another three months passed.
Chen Jianghe had accumulated sixty-four Middle-Grade Protection Talismans in his hands, leaving him with only sixteen portions of Spirit Blood Pig Hide. He also had only half a box of Spiritual Ink left.
"Did Ruan Tieniu actually die in the Youxian Mountain Range?" he wondered. Although Chen Jianghe could continue waiting, Little Black and Fur Ball could not. They had already wasted almost half a year and were jumping up and down with anxiety.
Moreover, he absolutely needed to purchase Black Pig Hide and Spiritual Ink. He currently had seventy-eight Spirit Stones and sixty grains of Spiritual Sand on hand. It was enough to buy the Black Pig Hide and Spiritual Ink, as well as Cultivation Resources for Little Black and Fur Ball. But the crux of the matter was that this was too much of a loss!
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
Just as Chen Jianghe was hesitating about whether to head to the Hundred Treasures Tower to buy resources for Little Black and Fur Ball first, the door knocker sounded. Chen Jianghe walked out of his room. He placed Little Black, who found him displeasing, and the well-behaved Fur Ball back into the Spirit Beast Space before finally opening the courtyard gate.
Ruan Tieniu was standing outside, though his face was etched with profound grief.
"I’m so sorry for making Brother Chen wait this long. I will go sell the Spirit Talismans for you right now," Ruan Tieniu said apologetically, forcing a slight smile.
Furthermore, he handed his Storage Pouch to Chen Jianghe. There were still four Demon Beasts inside, but the space within the Storage Pouch had expanded. It had reached three cubic meters in size, making it obvious that Ruan Tieniu had replaced his old Storage Pouch.
This puzzled Chen Jianghe. Where would a Demon Hunter like Ruan Tieniu get the extra Spirit Stones to upgrade a Storage Pouch? A three-cubic-meter Storage Pouch was worth three hundred Spirit Stones, and it could even command a premium depending on the market. This was no small sum.
However, Chen Jianghe didn’t ask further, much less inquire about what had happened to Ruan Tieniu. Their friendship wasn’t deep. Even if he learned that something bad had occurred, he wouldn’t offer a helping hand, so what was the point of asking? It would only be annoying.
Still, Ruan Tieniu replacing his Storage Pouch was a good thing, as Chen Jianghe was selling a large batch of Spirit Talismans this time. Otherwise, the value of the previous Storage Pouch combined with the Demon Beasts wouldn’t have been enough to cover the value of the Spirit Talismans as collateral.
Immediately, he took out the sixty-four Middle-Grade Protection Talismans and handed them to Ruan Tieniu. This caused the other man to reveal a look of shock, but upon remembering how much time had been delayed, he understood.
He wasn’t afraid of Chen Jianghe drawing too many Spirit Talismans. The Qinghe Marketplace had nearly a hundred Demon Hunting Teams, and he was well-acquainted with several of them. Let alone sixty-something Middle-Grade Protection Talismans, even if there were a hundred and sixty, he could still exchange them for Spirit Stones. It would just take slightly longer.
"Brother Chen, after I sell the Spirit Talismans, could we head to the Qingpin Tea House for a chat?" Ruan Tieniu asked. "I have something to discuss with you. Perhaps it will be an opportunity for both of us."
Although he spoke of good things, his eyes were brimming with sorrow. Three brothers from his Demon Hunting Team had died during a Demon Beast riot on the outskirts of the Youxian Mountain Range this time.
Chen Jianghe nodded. He also wanted to know why Ruan Tieniu had sought out Alchemist Zhuang, and why he had even mentioned him.
In the end, Ruan Tieniu hadn’t even told Alchemist Zhuang what he was asking for back then. Now, the man had sought him out, mentioning a matter to discuss and calling it an opportunity.
Chen Jianghe had no reason to refuse.