Chapter 47 Descending the Mountain 2 Scales?
Only when you're full can you have the energy to shop till you drop. Xu Xing picked out the most impressive-looking Xianyuelai Inn and excitedly dragged Chen Du inside.
I've heard that Shuiyun Xiandu Lake delicacies are very famous. Xu Xing flipped through the menu and asked, "Senior brother, what do you like to eat?"
Chen Du shook his head. "Order whatever you like. I don't have any dietary restrictions."
He knew that Xu Xing always had a good appetite. During the two-month journey, she always tried the local delicacies whenever she arrived at a new place. So, even though he had eaten roasted meat in the mountains and didn't feel hungry, Chen Du still let her drag him in.
Do you have any specialty dishes you'd recommend?
The waiter who came to serve them was a martial artist. He smiled broadly and said solicitously, "The whitefish from the local lake is the most famous. It is served with tender water lily leaves and is very refreshing. Why don't you two immortals try some?"
After ordering several dishes, Xu Xing finally stopped, satisfied. For some reason, she felt hungry more easily these past few days. The amount of roasted meat that was usually enough for her only made her half full today. Could it be because she was already a Foundation Establishment cultivator? Does the higher the cultivation level, the easier it is to get hungry?
When the waiter from Xianyuelai saw that Xu Xing had ordered enough food for four or five adults, he not only didn't ask any questions, but also readily gave him a pot of spirit wine, saying, "Please try this pomegranate wine, Immortal Master."
Red pomegranate is a specialty of Shuiyunxiandu. Xu Xing doesn't usually drink much, but seeing the light red wine with its fragrant aroma, he couldn't help but take a sip. It was delicious!
It has a sweet and light flavor without being heavy, and it doesn't have the harshness of alcohol itself, making it very refreshing.
Her eyes lit up, and she raised her glass with a smile, saying, "Senior brother, cheers!"
From her gesture, Shen Du could guess that she meant "cheers." He picked up his glass and gently clinked it against hers. "It's not appropriate to drink too much when you're new here."
Xu Xing smiled, thinking that this fruit wine was so light that even drinking a whole pot wouldn't make him drunk. His senior brother was always so cautious.
After all the dishes were served, Xu Xing ate almost two-thirds of the food by herself. The water cloud white fish was indeed delicious. Xu Xing wiped her mouth with satisfaction, but then she saw that Chen Du, who had already stopped eating, was looking at her with a thoughtful gaze.
Xu Xing blinked. "Does Senior Brother think I ate too much?"
"No, I was just thinking that you seem to have grown taller."
Xu Xing subconsciously touched his head and smiled, "Really? You seem to be a little taller than when you went into seclusion two years ago."
Shen Du lowered his eyes. Compared to two years ago, but two months ago, Xu Xing had clearly grown taller.
Seeing that they had almost finished eating, the waiter came over to exchange pleasantries, "You two immortals are here to attend the auction, right? Do you have a place to stay?"
These two cultivators were very generous, ordering expensive dishes. If we could let them stay here, we could earn some more spirit stones.
An auction?
Xu Xing promptly slipped a mid-grade spirit stone over, asking, "Where is this auction being held? What are the requirements for getting in?"
The waiter, who had only intended to attract customers, suddenly brightened up. He took the spirit stones, his smile becoming even more sincere, and explained, "Two days from now, at the hour of Wei (1-3 PM), the Luohu Trading Company will hold an auction. I've heard that there will be 'Glassy Tokens' at this auction. If you two wish to enter the Demon Realm, you absolutely cannot miss it. As for the entry requirements, ordinary cultivators only need to pay one hundred mid-grade spirit stones to enter. If you have a Golden Core cultivation level or higher, the spirit stones will be waived."
Luohu Trading Company is a branch of Shuiyun Xiandu. The time for holding auctions is never fixed. This time, the auction time was set because of the acquisition of the Glazed Token. At this time, most of the cultivators in the city came for the Glazed Token. The business of Xianyuelai Inn has been quite good during this period. The waiter did not expect that these two unfamiliar cultivators did not know about the auction.
"Senior brother, shall we go take a look?"
Since Shen Du is at the Golden Core stage and there's no need to buy a ticket, he should definitely join in the fun!
"good."
Because she was going to attend an auction, Xu Xing was very restrained when she went shopping these past two days, only buying some rare third-tier spiritual herbs. After entering the Foundation Establishment stage, refining third-tier spiritual pills was no longer a problem for her.
On the eve of the auction, Xu Xing took out her alchemy furnace in her inn room, preparing to try refining a third-order poison-removing pill. At that time, after Master Gu Hongguang received the pill formula, he gave her two hundred third-order poison-removing pills as agreed. However, only one hundred and seventy-two disciples of the Immortal Dao Academy who had been poisoned by the demon blood were still alive. The remaining twenty-eight pills were sent to her shop by Gu Hongguang.
Before leaving the Jade Cloud Sect, Xu Xing left most of his pill inventory at the shop. He even left eighteen third-tier poison-removing pills for Wang Lianhua, Wen Yao, and others, while only taking ten with him. He was about to enter the demon realm, so it was better to have more of these.
Compared to the Qi Refining stage, the spiritual energy that the dantian can hold is twice as large during the Foundation Establishment stage. With the assistance of the Spirit Gathering Array, Xu Xing successfully refined a third-grade Poison Removal Pill on his first try. However, the quality was only medium-grade. With a few more practice sessions, he could reach the high-grade level.
Refining high-level pills grants more experience than refining low-level pills. As soon as the Tier 3 Detoxification Pill was finished, Xu Xing discovered that her [Medical Skill], which had been stuck at level 41 for a long time, had finally reached level 42. Ever since she unlocked the recipe at level 30 in her Medical Skill, it had become increasingly difficult to level up. Even with her frequent pill refining over the past two years, she had only gained 10 levels.
Thinking of the auction, Xu Xing, who had already refined five or six Detoxification Pills to gain experience, also refined a few Illusion Pills. One Illusion Pill could only last for seven days. After arriving in the Southern Wilderness, she and Shen Du both took Illusion Pills to hide their faces. The auction was a mixed bag, and one should always be wary of others.
By the time the elixir was finished, it was almost dawn.
The Wind Spirit Deer, who was protecting her, watched her refine pills silently. Although it knew that its master was exceptionally talented in alchemy, it was still shocked by the speed at which Xu Xing could refine third-tier pills. After all, she had only just entered the Foundation Establishment stage!
Most third-tier alchemists are at least at the Golden Core stage...
Xu Xing, who had been sitting all night, stretched. Cultivating immortality was truly wonderful; even after staying up all night, he didn't feel tired, only hungry. Xu Xing touched his stomach, feeling that his recent appetite was unusually large.
During the movement, a white, fingernail-sized object fell to the ground.
Xu Xing picked it up and looked at it. Wasn't this the same thing she had found on the bed the day she first discovered the Seven-Leaf Ganoderma? Looking closer, it seemed...
Scales?
"Master, do you still remember that seven-leaf Ganoderma lucidum?"
Hearing Yin Xue's words, she nodded. The sapling was still in her backpack. She only learned later that the Jade Flower Wood was a spiritual tree that grew in the demon realm. Perhaps it was because the wooden bed in her cave carried demonic energy that it was able to grow...
wrong!
"The seven-leaf lingzhi is a companion herb of the snake clan..."
Suddenly, the information about the Seven-Leaf Lingzhi came to mind. Xu Xing looked at the scales in his hand again and finally realized what Yin Xue meant. Could the scales that fell off her body be snake scales?
"Yinxue! Did that thing just fall off me?"
"Master, don't worry, there's no demonic aura on you. Perhaps there's some misunderstanding."
This is the strangest thing. Back then, there was nothing wrong with either Xiang Yuquan and others' investigation or the bone-testing stone when entering the Jade Cloud Sect. Even a high-level cultivator like Gu Hongguang believed that Xu Xing was human. So, although Xu Xing initially doubted her identity because of her unusual appetite and golden eyes, after staying in the Jade Cloud Sect for a few years, she was already convinced of her human identity.
But now the appearance of the Seven-Leaf Lingzhi and these scales made her waver about her identity. Xu Xing was a little flustered and felt a bit awkward.
Could she really not be human...?
Why did Fairy Fushuang suddenly appear that day and send her to the Demon Realm? Did she discover something amiss with her identity and want to help her?
Although they hadn't exchanged many words, Xu Xing inexplicably trusted Fu Shuang. She had saved him several times and shouldn't have any ill intentions. If he really might be a demon, then his trip to the demon realm might provide the answer.
Xu Xing's expression shifted. She rolled up her sleeves and carefully examined both arms, but found nothing amiss. After thinking for a moment, she took off her clothes, revealing her back, and asked Yin Xue to take a look.
"Master, there's nothing there."
That's strange, where did these scales come from?
"Junior sister, are you awake?"
Just as he was racking his brains trying to figure it out, he suddenly heard Chen Du's voice outside. Xu Xing responded, quickly put on his clothes, and hid the scales.
"What happened?" Noticing that Xu Xing's expression was a bit strange, and remembering that he could sense the spiritual energy fluctuations in her room all night, Chen Du asked.
"Nothing, I just spent the whole night refining pills and I'm a little hungry."
Xu Xing smiled, casually closed the door, and walked out with him.
They stayed at the Xianyuelai Inn. The auction was about to be held today, and the already prosperous Luohu City had gained many more cultivators. Almost all the inns in the city were full.
"This glass token is so precious."
Thinking about the one on his body, Xu Xing felt more and more that Fu Shuang might not have sent him to the Demon Realm entirely because of the still unknown Guixu Secret Realm.
The Luohu Trading House occupies a large area. In addition to the auction venue, there are many shops selling pills and magical artifacts. Since it was still early, Xu Xing looked at them one by one and even spotted a piece of Xuanwu Essence Crystal!
This is one of the materials used to forge the Xuan Yue Sword. Although it is not considered extremely precious, it is not abundant. At least in the Yu Xiao Sect, Xu Xing had never seen it before.
"How much is this crystal?"
The shopkeeper initially didn't seem particularly enthusiastic because he saw Xu Xing as a Foundation Establishment cultivator. However, upon seeing Chen Du beside her, he straightened up slightly and said with a smile, "Eight hundred mid-grade spirit stones."
It's only one crystal, yet it's so expensive?
Shen Du frowned slightly, knowing that Xu Xing wanted to buy it in order to repair the Xuan Yue Sword, so he raised his hand and grasped her arm, gently shaking his head, "Let's think about it again."
There are probably still many places in the demon realm where spirit stones are needed, so repairing the Xuan Yue Sword is not urgent.
Xu Xing, who was "quite wealthy," shook his head and said, "I want it."
Shen Du had only recently emerged from seclusion, so he probably didn't know how many spirit stones she had earned from opening the shop in the past two years. They had agreed to "invest" in each other, but he was either in seclusion or preparing to do so, so he didn't have a chance to properly demonstrate his "financial strength." Now that they had finally found suitable materials, how could Xu Xing miss the opportunity?
After two years of seclusion, Shen Du, as a Golden Core cultivator, had accumulated five thousand mid-grade spirit stones as his monthly allowance. Before leaving the Jade Cloud Sect, he had retrieved the spirit stones from the Thousand Machines Academy and placed them with Xu Xing, but Xu Xing had not used them.
"Senior brother, don't worry, I have enough spirit stones."
Xu Xing not only bought Xuanwu Essence Crystals, but also many Tier 3 pills she had never seen before. Thanks to her life skills, she could add the corresponding pill recipe to her skill book as long as she ate one. In the past two months, she has acquired quite a few new pill recipes.
He kept buying and buying, and before the auction even started, Xu Xing had already spent several thousand mid-grade spirit stones at the Luohu Trading House.
"Two immortal masters, I apologize for disturbing you..."
Xu Xing, who was resting in the teahouse and waiting for the auction to begin, heard someone call her. She turned around and saw a handsome male cultivator dressed in the attire of the Luohu Trading Company.
He smiled and bowed, then walked straight to Xu Xing's side. "My name is Bai Ji. I am a receptionist at the Luohu Trading Company. May I ask if you two immortals are attending today's auction?"
“Golden Core cultivators can enter for free, but the amount of spirit stones this fairy spent today is enough to get an invitation to the auction. I have come to present it to her.”
Bai Ji held a beautifully crafted pale gold invitation in both hands, which shone with a spiritual light and carried a faint fragrance.
Xu Xing reached out and took it, then politely thanked her. Although she could afford to pay one hundred spirit stones, she was naturally even happier to save some.
After delivering the invitation, Bai Ji did not leave. She still looked at Xu Xing with a warm, welcoming smile, "May I ask how you are addressed, Fairy? I will stay by your side until the auction ends..."
Xu Xing understood that Bai Ji was there to "serve" her, a potential customer who was very likely to spend money at the auction.
However, with such a powerful Golden Core cultivator right next to him, Bai Ji's eyes were only on her. It seems that in some situations, spirit stones are more useful than cultivation level...
"My surname is Yu, so I'll have to trouble you later." Xu Xing made up a surname on the spot and did not refuse the other party's request to stay. It would be a good opportunity to ask her some things she did not know.
Throughout their conversation, Shen Du gazed calmly at the flow of people outside the window, only glancing at Xu Xing when he left Bai Ji behind.
Bai Ji's smile remained unchanged. He nodded respectfully to the Golden Core cultivator and then focused his gaze on Xu Xing. "Is this your first time visiting Luohu City, Fairy Yu? Let me tell you about the affairs of this city..."
His voice was gentle and his narration was so pleasant that it made the listener feel very comfortable. Xu Xing listened while enjoying the tea and snacks served by the trading house, feeling quite content.
"Even news can be auctioned?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Xing briefly considered going to the auction to inquire about the Guixu Secret Realm, but then he remembered that the secret realm was in the hands of a Mahayana stage demon cultivator who was still alive. If he found out about it and the demon cultivator found out, it might cause him trouble.
Soon, the auction was about to begin. Bai Ji led the two through another passage and took them to their seats on the second floor.
The entire auction venue was dimly lit, as if deliberately treated, with only the central circular platform emitting a soft glow. Xu Xing glanced around; the first-floor hall was mostly filled with Foundation Establishment cultivators like herself, with a few Qi Refining cultivators as well, while the second floor was filled with people whose cultivation levels she couldn't discern.
Xu Xing figured the second floor must be occupied by at least Golden Core cultivators or someone like her who had been paid a lot of money to be invited in. As for the third floor... Xu Xing didn't try to spy on it.
"Distinguished guests, welcome to the Luohu Auction!"
Soon, two exceptionally good-looking cultivators appeared on the round platform. The male cultivator was handsome, while the other beautiful female cultivator had blue eyes!
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Author's Note: Yu Xing: I'm not human anymore.jpg
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Thank you so much to Chenchen and Xixi for the nutrient solution! [Hugs]
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