After leading Zhou Quan to the backyard, the old man arrived at a house and, after a moment of silence, asked, "Young master, you are a fire-type cultivator, aren't you?"
Zhou Quan countered, "Are you a wood element?"
The two then exchanged a glance, silently understanding each other's intentions. Since they were both cultivators, Zhou Quan understood why he had been collecting other people's old items.
He was probably looking for a spiritual artifact or a divine weapon, since this world was so lacking in spiritual energy.
To improve one's cultivation level, one needs the support of spiritual energy. Without spiritual energy, one can only seek out spiritual artifacts, just like how Xiaomai awakened her fire-type spiritual root using Zhong Hui's phoenix jade pendant.
"It's clear that you only recently awakened your fire element. May I ask what kind of opportunity you had to awaken it, young master?" The old man led Zhou Quan slowly past the wooden cabinets in the room and asked him.
Zhou Quan paused, "It originated from a jade pendant."
The old man suddenly realized and exclaimed, "Oh, it's a jade pendant from a fire-type creature, isn't it? Judging from the color of your protective aura, it must be from an extraordinary fire-type spirit beast?"
Zhou Quan nodded, "Yes, Phoenix!"
The old man nodded, understanding. Didn't that young man surnamed Zhong have a phoenix jade pendant? It seems to be a magical artifact.
However, fire is incompatible with him, so he cannot access the jade pendant.
"May I ask for whom you seek out objects related to the waterways, young master?" the old man asked again.
"For my wife," Zhou Quan said without hiding anything.
Fire element suppresses wood element, so he wasn't afraid that the old man had ulterior motives.
"I see. I believe you are aware that spiritual artifacts are very rare in this world, and we are of different spiritual types. If I provide you with a water-type spiritual artifact, I wonder if you could keep an eye out for wood-type spiritual artifacts for me?"
"To be honest, I've been searching for wood-type spiritual artifacts for over a decade. I've found a few other kinds, but not a single wood-type one. If my cultivation doesn't improve any further, I'll die of old age in this world," the old man sighed.
Their Five Elements cultivators are divided into three levels: Heaven, Earth, and Human.
The initial stage is the Human Rank, which refers to people who have not awakened their spiritual roots but are born with them, or cultivators who have encountered hardships and whose spiritual roots have suddenly become dormant. Such people know how to cultivate these things, but they cannot use their strength because their spiritual roots are dormant. They are collectively referred to as Human Rank.
Li Mai and Zhou Quan were both at the Human Rank, but Zhou Quan had already entered the Earth Rank after awakening his spiritual root.
This old man is currently at the Earth Rank, but if he wants to become stronger and extend his lifespan through cultivation, he must enter the Heaven Rank.
The old man is currently anxious to find a spiritual artifact that can help him reach the Heavenly Rank, so that he can extend his lifespan and continue cultivating.
Zhou Quan's heart stirred upon hearing the old man's words, but he didn't say what he was thinking. Instead, he nodded and said, "Okay, my wife and I will keep an eye out for you."
"Alright, you are the first cultivator I have encountered in the past ten years. Since I have finally found a companion, I will take you as my disciple."
As the old man spoke, he slightly raised his hand towards a cabinet in the corner, and the cabinet opened automatically, revealing two wooden boxes that landed in his hands.
As he turned and handed it to Zhou Quan, the cabinet closed by itself.
Zhou Quan knew he was a wood elementalist, so this wooden cabinet must be under his control.
"My name is Yang Bai. These two items, one is water-based and the other is fire-based, are for you as a small gift."
Zhou Quan smiled gratefully, took the jade ornament, and examined it one by one. The water-themed ornament was a jade fish-shaped pendant. The key point was that the jade was golden yellow, making it a jade koi fish ornament.
He raised his hand and placed it on it, and could already faintly feel the flow of spiritual energy inside.
"Thank you, sir." Zhou Quan was happy; perhaps this thing really could help Xiaomai.
In the other box was a Vermilion Bird token.
Zhou Quan was surprised, "This thing..."
"It's not from this dynasty, it's from several dynasties ago. It's a Vermilion Bird Token, I checked, it's also a spiritual artifact," the old man explained.
Zhou Quan understood. "Okay, thank you, sir. We will find something of the wood element that will be helpful to you and deliver it as soon as possible. My name is Zhou Quan."
The old man smiled and said, "Alright, let's go back and see if we can get it!"
Zhou Quan stood up, bowed to the old man again, and went out carrying the two boxes.
He hadn't expected the old man to be so generous.
However, upon thinking of the old man's abilities, he realized that once he reached the old man's level, there was nowhere in the world he couldn't find.
If even I can hear sounds from miles away, then the old man must have many supernatural abilities as well.
When Chu Yan and Zhong Hui saw Zhou Quan actually carrying two boxes to find them, they were both stunned. The old man had just given his master's husband these things.
"Let's go!" Zhou Quan said, glancing at the two of them.
"Oh!" The two responded blankly and followed their master back to the capital.
The old man's courtyard is located in a town on the outskirts of Beijing.
The two men bowed to the old man in farewell.
The old man waved to them and beckoned the gray wolf back.
"Master, how much did this old man sell you these two things for?" The two men on the way glanced at the two boxes Zhou Quan was holding and asked.
Zhou Quan shook his head, "I didn't ask for money."
"So you didn't give any money? Didn't you even offer any payment?" the other person asked in surprise.
Zhou Quan paused, then shook his head. "No, go back and ask your master what she says to give in return."
The two men looked at each other, their expressions unreadable. They felt sorry for their master, who was even more afraid of his wife than their own fathers were of her. He even had to ask his wife what kind of return gift to give to someone else.
Suddenly, the two of them felt that getting married wasn't such a good thing after all. It seemed that after marriage, the man would lose even the smallest decision-making power.
The two walked behind Zhou Quan, whispering and discussing whether a man should get married and whether he should be so tightly controlled by his wife after marriage.
As Zhou Quan walked ahead, he listened, his lips twitching slightly before a faint smile appeared on his face.
When Zhou Quan heard the two men say that seeing their husband in such a miserable state, with no money on him and having to wait for his wife to give him money when he went out, and not daring to negotiate the price when doing business with others, they felt that married men were too pitiful, so they decided not to get married for five years, Zhou Quan almost couldn't help but laugh.
Silly boys, you would never understand how happy a man is after he gets married and has a wife.
Sigh, you guys are still too young.
However, after thinking about what the two boys said, Zhou Quan decided to go back and tell Xiaomai to remind the Chu and Zhong families that getting married at eighteen, nineteen, or twenty is just right. With their naivety, they would be too old in five years, and probably no one would want to marry them at twenty-four or twenty-five.
After all, there aren't many people as lucky as me!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
