A Mortal's Start in the Spirit Beast Mountain

Chapter 137 Nian Xuanbing

Luo Ming did not immediately bargain, but instead gestured with his hand, saying, "Fellow Daoist Cao, would you allow me to take a closer look?"

"Of course." Cao Yunfeng handed over the piece of reddish-brown wood without hesitation.

Luo Ming took it; it felt slightly heavy in his hand, the wood was warm and smooth, and the surface had natural flame patterns.

He carefully scanned the area with his divine sense, while unintentionally injecting a wisp of extremely faint alchemical fire containing the aura of the spirit fire of the Fat Sun Bird into his fingertips.

Sure enough, the dormant flame spiritual power inside that piece of firewood seemed to be drawn by something of the same origin, and fluctuated slightly. Although it was extremely subtle, it did not escape Luo Ming's careful perception.

"This wood is indeed extraordinary." Luo Ming handed the firewood back, his tone calm. "However, its fire spirit power is extremely well contained, making it difficult to extract and utilize directly. Using it for weapon forging might damage its spiritual essence if not handled properly, and it would also be of little use for cultivating secret techniques. Three thousand spirit stones, if possible, I, Wang, will buy it."

Cao Yunfeng hesitated, clearly weighing his options. This Fire Paulownia Wood was indeed somewhat of a liability to him; his main cultivation technique wasn't fire-based, and its greatest value to him was in exchanging it for spirit stones or practical resources. Although Luo Ming's price was lower than expected, it wasn't outrageous, especially since the other party had pointed out the item's awkwardness.

"Fellow Daoist Wang is a discerning person." Cao Yunfeng smiled wryly. "To be honest, although I obtained this item through some fortuitous means, it is rather useless to me. Four thousand spirit stones, if you are willing, we can make a deal. In addition... I can give you some information about the origin of this wood, which may be helpful for you to explore its characteristics." He added at the end, with a hint of probing.

Luo Ming's heart stirred, but his face remained expressionless. After a moment of contemplation, he nodded and said, "Alright, four thousand spirit stones it is. As for that news, fellow Daoist, you may wish to tell me about it."

The deal was struck, and Cao Yunfeng smiled as he accepted a storage bag containing four thousand spirit stones from Luo Ming. After verifying the contents, he handed the firewood to Luo Ming and simultaneously transmitted his voice:

"This wood was not something I deliberately sought out. It was discovered three years ago in a remote area of ​​the Chaotic Star Sea, in a crevices of a deserted island rarely visited by humans. The island was quite strange, with a mixture of yin energy and earth fire energy. This piece of firewood grew near an earth fire vent. At the time, I only felt that the wood was full of fire spirit, so I took it. As for the interior of the earth fire, the fire spirit energy was too violent, so I did not have time to investigate it in detail. If you are interested in that place, I can draw a simple sea map from memory."

Although the Inner Star Sea has been developed by human cultivators for ten thousand years, there are still many remote places. This is mostly because the spiritual energy on the surface of the islands there is too thin, which is not conducive to cultivation, so naturally no one would live and thrive there.

Cao Yunfeng's description of the mixture of Yin energy and earth fire energy piqued his interest, especially since the firewood might be related to the essence of Yang fire, such as the fat Yang bird.

"Thank you for your trouble, Fellow Daoist Cao. A sea chart will suffice," Luo Ming replied telepathically. Whether it's useful or not, it's never a bad thing to know more.

Cao Yunfeng readily agreed, immediately taking out a blank jade slip, inscribing the location and island features from his memory onto it, and handing it to Luo Ming.

"Now that you two have finished your transaction, it's my turn to take the stage."

Liu Su parted her lips slightly, and took out the exquisite items befitting a female cultivator: a jade ring, entirely emerald green and carved into the shape of a blue phoenix; a palm-sized white jade bottle, inside which swayed a milky white liquid, emitting a refreshing herbal fragrance; and several jade slips recording unorthodox sound wave and illusion techniques.

"This Azure Sky Ring is a newly crafted magic weapon, its main material being 'Azure Sky Spirit Jade.' Fellow Daoist can directly refine it; its defensive capabilities are considerable. The jade bottle contains three drops of 'Millennial Stone Milk Essence,' which are remarkably effective in healing injuries and restoring mana. As for these secret techniques… perhaps some fellow Daoists will be interested. I wish to exchange them for spiritual materials that can nourish the soul or aid in the crafting of music-related magic weapons."

Liu Su's items were quite attractive, especially the millennium-old stone milk essence, which was considered a life-saving treasure. Yuan Gang seemed somewhat tempted by the Azure Sky Ring made from Azure Sky Spirit Jade, but frowned slightly upon hearing the exchange conditions. Spiritual materials that nourish the soul are scarce commodities everywhere.

"As expected of Fairy Liu, a master of weapon crafting, another new magic weapon has been created." Jin Qing's hearty laughter rang out as he stared at the Azure Sky Ring, looking quite pleased with it.

"Brother Jin, do you have spiritual materials that nourish the soul? Please make it clear beforehand that I only exchange for that kind of spiritual item." Upon hearing Jin Qing's words, Liu Su's beautiful eyes lit up.

"Ahem, as for spiritual materials that nourish the soul, apart from the legendary Soul-Nourishing Wood, there are only a few other kinds. Things like the Spirit-Nourishing Stone and the Bitter Heart Bamboo, although they cannot compare with the Soul-Nourishing Wood, are still extremely rare. I, Jin, do not have any of those things."

Jin Qing originally wanted to discuss with the other party whether they could exchange something else, but when he heard that the other party only wanted that kind of spiritual item, he had no choice but to give up.

Although the group was interested in Fairy Liu's belongings, they had to return to their seats because they could not meet the requirements.

When it was Yuan Gang's turn, he took out only two items: a fist-sized block of dark blue ice that constantly emitted a chilling aura, and a small, crimson grass sealed in a crystal box with leaves that looked like they were burning with flames. Both of these were top-grade spiritual materials, and were extremely valuable.

"In exchange for top-grade metal or fire-attribute materials of equal value, or magical artifacts. Or, a pill formula or spiritual item that can assist a Core Formation cultivator in breaking through a minor realm." Yuan Gang's words were concise, and his conditions were quite demanding. He had a powerful background and clearly had extremely high standards; ordinary things were hardly worthy of his attention.

"Millennial Mystic Ice, Yangyan Grass! Brother Yuan has quite a few good things in his possession!"

Jin Qing's eyes lit up when he saw what the other party had taken out.

Luo Ming was quite interested in that piece of thousand-year-old mysterious ice. If he refined his Xuan Yuan Pearl into this item, its power would be greatly enhanced.

The Azure Nether Scripture clearly records various spiritual items that can enhance the power of the Profound Origin Pearl, including Profound Ice-type spiritual materials. Although ten-thousand-year-old Profound Ice would be even better, Luo Ming also knew that such spiritual items were rare in the Chaotic Star Sea.

As for the Yangyan Grass, it appears to be a thousand-year-old medicinal herb. Whether used for alchemy or for the Zhiyang Bird to refine, it would be of great benefit.

"What does Fellow Daoist Yuan think of this?"

Luo Ming patted his storage bag and took out a fist-sized, crimson crystal, which was the one he had obtained when he killed the brocade-clad cultivator in the outer sea.

"Flame Crystal? Which one would you like to exchange for, my friend?"

Upon seeing this, Yuan Gang's eyes lit up, and he stared intently at the crimson crystal in Luo Ming's hand.

These Flame Crystals can only be formed deep within the Fire Vein, under immense pressure and in an environment of fire elemental power. If you're lucky, you might find one or two pieces when the Fire Vein erupts, making them incredibly rare.

"Not one item, but two in exchange," Luo Ming said with a slight smile.

Upon hearing Luo Ming's words, Yuan Gang first frowned, then carefully considered the matter before finally agreeing.

While the value of a spiritual material can be referenced by its market price, its worth is difficult to estimate for a cultivator who urgently needs it.

Luo Ming made several moves in succession, which immediately aroused the interest of others.

Author Mo Yu Jing Feng is waiting for you with "A Mortal's Start: The Spirit Beast Mountain".