Chapter 204 - 139: Arrangements Complete, Death of the Tribulation Cultivator

Chapter 204: Chapter 139: Arrangements Complete, Death of the Tribulation Cultivator

Otherwise, not only would he be unable to auction the Youthful Pill at the auction, but he would also expose the fact that he had one. If he didn’t trade it away in time, he would become a target for many female Cultivators. When that time came, the danger brought by Tribulation Cultivators wouldn’t even amount to half of what the female Cultivators could inflict. For a Youthful Pill, female Cultivators would go absolutely mad.

"Do you know why Tier Two Alchemists have basically all taken a Lifespan Extension Pill?" Alchemist Zhuang added.

Chen Jianghe shook his head. He genuinely didn’t know. How could he possibly know if Tier Two Alchemists had taken Lifespan Extension Pills? The only Tier Two Alchemist he knew was Alchemist Zhuang.

Alchemist Zhuang explained, "The Lifespan Extension Pill is a Tier Two Spirit Pill. Although its Pill Formula isn’t as universally known as the Youthful Pill’s, it isn’t a secret either.

"Moreover, the materials required for refining a Lifespan Extension Pill and a Youthful Pill are quite similar. Basically, the only difference is a single stalk of Youthful Grass."

Hearing Alchemist Zhuang’s words, Chen Jianghe immediately understood the underlying meaning. He asked, pleasantly surprised, "Can you refine Lifespan Extension Pills?"

Among the materials needed to refine the Youthful Pill, four were relatively rare. One of them was Youthful Grass, which was directly monopolized by the Celestial South Sect. However, the other Auxiliary Materials and rare ingredients could all be purchased.

"Didn’t you already know that I’ve refined Lifespan Extension Pills before?" Alchemist Zhuang chuckled.

"Haha," Chen Jianghe laughed awkwardly.

"You can come and collect the Lifespan Extension Pill in two months. But this time, you’ll have to pay in Spirit Stones. Eight... sigh, let’s just make it five hundred Spirit Stones!"

"Haha, deal." Chen Jianghe thanked him.

He knew exactly why Alchemist Zhuang was charging five hundred Spirit Stones. The cost of refining a Youthful Pill was four hundred Spirit Stones. Without the expensive Youthful Grass, the cost of a Lifespan Extension Pill wouldn’t even reach two hundred Spirit Stones. If Chen Jianghe were buying it for himself, Alchemist Zhuang would definitely sell it at cost. However, this was a purchase on behalf of the Yun Family.

If it were anyone else asking, Alchemist Zhuang wouldn’t sell a Lifespan Extension Pill even for a thousand Spirit Stones. Even with Chen Jianghe acting as the middleman, Alchemist Zhuang had initially intended to sell it at the auction price. But to save face for Chen Jianghe, he ultimately settled on the market price.

Alchemist Zhuang walked Chen Jianghe to the door and watched him leave Fushou Lane before returning to the guest hall.

He thought, "It seems the Youthful Pill at the auction was indeed put up with Gao Peiyao’s help. But why would he want to sell another Youthful Pill? Could he have already taken one long ago? If that’s the case, his relationship with Gao Peiyao is truly beyond imagination."

After pondering deeply for a moment, Alchemist Zhuang shook his head. All he needed to do was maintain a good relationship with Chen Jianghe. He reasoned, "He values loyalty and relationships. As long as he succeeds in Foundation Establishment, he can ensure that Yan’er and Ruxu remain safe and sound."

Upon returning home, Chen Jianghe immediately wrote a letter to Yu Daniu. With Alchemist Zhuang’s promise, he could finally give Yu Daniu a definitive answer. He asked Yu Daniu and Yun Huizhen to come to the Qinghe Marketplace together on New Year’s Eve. As for the reason, he simply stated that he had a way to alleviate Yun Huizhen’s current condition.

He made no mention of the Lifespan Extension Pill, fearing the letter might be intercepted. Although there had never been a case of a Flying Post being intercepted and killed in transit, it was better to be careful to prevent any news from leaking out.

His reason for having Yun Huizhen come along was also very clear. He wanted her to consume the Lifespan Extension Pill within the Qinghe Marketplace, which would be much safer.

After arranging this matter, Chen Jianghe took the Demon Beast parts that Little Black and Fur Ball had processed and sold them at the Demon Beast Workshop. Making four trips in total, he sold them for one hundred and twenty-three Spirit Stones and forty grains of Spiritual Sand.

Now, he once again held one thousand nine hundred and twenty-three Spirit Stones and ninety grains of Spiritual Sand in his hands. He was about to break the two-thousand Spirit Stone mark once more.

However, he would need to spend five hundred Spirit Stones at the end of the year to purchase the Lifespan Extension Pill. But that was fine. Over one thousand four hundred Spirit Stones would be more than enough to buy the Tier One High-Grade Spirit-Enriching Spirit Liquid.

In mid-November, Yu Daniu sent a reply, stating that he would arrive at the Qinghe Marketplace before New Year’s Eve. The content was just that concise and clear. He didn’t say a single extra word, nor did he ask any unnecessary questions. This was absolute trust.

Entering the twelfth lunar month, Chen Jianghe took down the "In Seclusion" sign from his courtyard door. Yu Daniu had said he would come before New Year’s Eve but hadn’t specified a time, so it was best to take the sign down early. This would prevent Yu Daniu from arriving early, seeing that he was in seclusion, and going to stay at an inn by himself.

Once the "In Seclusion" sign was removed, Chen Jianghe went back to his days of constant harassment. Almost every day, Cultivators would come knocking on his door—sometimes as few as three, sometimes over a dozen. Their reason for visiting was always exactly the same: they were all after the Low-Quality Foundation Establishment Pill in his possession.

By the middle of the twelfth lunar month, Chen Jianghe placed Little Black and Fur Ball into the Spirit Beast Space, stopped drawing Spirit Talismans, and solely focused on Cultivation every day.

However, on this very day, Ruan Tieniu came to visit. When he bumped into Ruan Tieniu two months ago, he had assumed the man would seek him out within a few days. He hadn’t expected it to take a whole two months.

Chen Jianghe opened the courtyard door and looked at Ruan Tieniu standing there. He carried a chilling aura of death and had bloodstains on his clothes. It was obvious he had just returned from the Youxian Mountain Range. Whether he had been hunting Demon Beasts or other Cultivators, however, remained unknown. Chen Jianghe was no longer the naive rookie he had been when he first arrived at the Qinghe Marketplace; he knew that the so-called "Demon Hunter" profession encompassed a highly diverse range of work.

"Brother Ruan."

"Brother Chen, let’s go. To the Qingpin Tea House. I’m treating you to the two-Spirit Stone Spirit Tea!" Ruan Tieniu announced, his voice booming.

He spoke of a two-Spirit Stone Spirit Tea with the grandeur of someone ordering a twenty-Spirit Stone banquet of Spiritual Cuisine at the Qinghe Tavern. However, Chen Jianghe liked this personality of his. Frugality was a virtue, after all!

The two arrived at the Qingpin Tea House and ordered a pot of the two-Spirit Stone Spirit Tea, along with two plates of pastries made from Demon Beast flesh and blood.

"Brother Ruan, you’ve spent too much. Just for the two of us, a pot of Spirit Tea would have been enough. Why let them play us for suckers like this?" Chen Jianghe pointed at the two plates of pastries.

Since he now dealt with Demon Beast parts frequently, he could tell what kind of Demon Beast it was with a single glance. It was the offal of a Late-Stage Tier One Demon Beast, the Flaming Fox. A complete set of offal would sell for two Spirit Stones at most in the Demon Beast Workshop. What they had here was only about a fifth of a complete set, yet the tea house had charged them three Spirit Stones for it. Even though Chen Jianghe wasn’t paying, it still pained him.

However, after taking a bite, he had to admit that it was incredibly delicious after being prepared by a Spirit Chef. As it settled in his stomach, a faint wisp of Spiritual Qi nourished his Physical Body.

"It’s precisely because it’s just you and me that we need to eat a little better!" Ruan Tieniu laughed heartily.

His chopsticks moved in a blur. Within twenty breaths, the plates were completely clean. Chen Jianghe and Ruan Tieniu exchanged a smile, poured the Spirit Tea, and began to savor it slowly.

"Brother Ruan, have you struck it rich?" Chen Jianghe cast a meaningful look at Ruan Tieniu. The underlying message in his words was self-evident.

He certainly wasn’t asking if Ruan Tieniu had made a fortune from hunting Demon Beasts. After all, hunting Demon Beasts only yielded so many Spirit Stones. Even with great luck, one could only make around a hundred Spirit Stones a year at most. It truly wasn’t much.

"I made a small fortune. What’s more, it has something to do with you, Brother Chen, and it’s a great piece of good news." Ruan Tieniu looked at Chen Jianghe with a grinning, enigmatic expression.

"With me?" Chen Jianghe couldn’t help but laugh. "I don’t even leave the Qinghe Marketplace. How could your windfall have anything to do with me?"

This left him utterly bewildered. He really couldn’t fathom how Ruan Tieniu making a fortune could also be joyous news for him.

Suddenly, Chen Jianghe paused as a thought abruptly crossed his mind. He quickly asked via voice transmission, "Brother Ruan, did you retrieve the Purple Mist Red Fruit?"

The Purple Mist Red Fruit was the most difficult main ingredient to obtain for refining a Foundation Establishment Pill. If Ruan Tieniu had retrieved it, they could essentially refine the Foundation Establishment Pill once again. According to Alchemist Zhuang, with the Profound Ice Jade Marrow, he had a high level of certainty in refining two Genuine Foundation Establishment Pills.

Even though Chen Jianghe might still end up with a Low-Quality Foundation Establishment Pill, Xiaoniu would be able to get a Genuine Foundation Establishment Pill, which was definitely something worth celebrating. His own attempt at Foundation Establishment couldn’t be rushed, but Xiaoniu’s progress couldn’t afford to slow down. It would be best for Xiaoniu to attempt Foundation Establishment within five or six years.

"Uh?!" Ruan Tieniu froze, then smiled bitterly. "Brother Chen, you make getting the Purple Mist Red Fruit sound far too easy!"

"If it isn’t the Purple Mist Red Fruit, then what’s the good news?" Chen Jianghe asked, a look of confusion in his eyes.

"Haha, I won’t beat around the bush with you anymore, Brother Chen.

"Boss Wang and I helped you settle the score. We ambushed that bastard Duan Ming and dealt with him," Ruan Tieniu laughed heartily.

"Duan Ming? That Tribulation Cultivator leader?"

"Yes, that’s him."

"You robbed him, Brother Ruan?"

"Not exactly. We just sent him off," Ruan Tieniu chuckled darkly, a flash of murderous intent crossing his eyes. It was easy to imagine what "sent him off" meant.

"You and Boss Wang killed Duan Ming." Chen Jianghe was taken aback, then immediately asked, "Aren’t you worried about the Foundation Establishment Tribulation Cultivator from Qingfong Village?"

"Heh heh." Hearing this, Ruan Tieniu only chuckled, remaining silent.