Shen Yi closed his eyes and felt it out for a moment. Once the Dragon-Flame Jade Fungus was put away, the strongest thread of aura-connection in his heart vanished. Confirming there was nothing else he’d missed — this medicine hut had likely been built for the sole purpose of nurturing the Dragon-Flame Jade Fungus.
Only then did he reach out and take the spiritual root back out, holding it in his palm to study closely. Worthy of a treasure nurtured by heaven and earth — even plucked loose, it still looked full of vitality, like that squirming living thing. Its whole body was covered in magma-like sap. But with the Cold Jade Mysterious Silk Hand’s protection, Shen Yi could hold it directly with no trouble.
“A pity.”
An object of such utmost yang had no connection whatsoever to killing-force. It didn’t suit him.
But Shen Yi wasn’t too disappointed either. Earlier, inside the Eight-Direction Dining Hall, he’d seen a whole crowd of cultivators trading treasures. Once he got out, he could ask around for relevant news. Before Mixed Origin cultivators, a spiritual root ought to count as hard currency.
“You mentioned mid-grade spiritual root just now — is there some system to it?” He turned to look at Aqing.
Aqing held his paper and brush, quickly recording the features of the Dragon-Flame Jade Fungus in the young man’s hand. Though he’d read a great deal of treasure-lore at home, seeing one with his own eyes was another feeling entirely. Once he’d finished writing, he lifted his head in delight. “Of course there is. Heaven-and-earth treasures that can serve as spiritual roots are many in number, and by the preciousness of their kind they divide into four grades of quality. The most formidable of all, the peerless-grade spiritual root, can even give birth to a self-awareness.”
“Only…”
Aqing pursed his lips in resignation. “Once consciousness is born, with no one to guide it, most take on a taint of evil killing-force, and so become of no use to cultivators either. Which is why an ordinary peerless-grade spiritual root is far too rare — every time one appears in the world, it stirs up a bloody gale of slaughter.”
“Evil killing-force?”
Shen Yi nodded, and continued without any change of expression. “Are such things common?”
Another man’s dish of dregs was his own fine cuisine.
“Ah… there shouldn’t be many, I’d think.” Aqing mused a moment. “No one would risk life and limb to provoke something of no use. As for a normal peerless-grade spiritual root — that goes without saying; once in hand it’s certainly used up on the spot.”
As he spoke, his eyes flickered.
In truth he knew of a peerless-grade spiritual root somewhere that had been tainted by evil killing-force, one that gave a great many of his clansmen terrible headaches — but under no circumstances could an outsider be brought in there.
“I see.”
Shen Yi took the boy’s expression in, and said with a faint smile, “A rogue cultivator. Shen Yi.”
Aqing froze for an instant before realizing the other was introducing himself. At once he grew rather flustered, and said in a panic, “Xu Qing’er — ah! …no ‘er.'”
He’d never once imagined that a Mixed Origin Grandmaster would take the initiative to show him goodwill. Since leaving home, of the powerhouses and experts he’d met, even an attitude like Xiang Tianxiong’s could be counted as decent.
That said, he stole a glance at the silver pouch at the young man’s waist. The Grandmaster probably had some connection to Qingqiu, yet claimed to be a rogue cultivator — so his own failure to tell the whole truth shouldn’t count as an offense either, surely.
“Come along with me.”
Shen Yi withdrew his gaze and walked toward the exit. Tch — he was acquainted with only those few great powers all told, and hadn’t expected to run into every last one of them right after leaving Great Qian.
“My thanks, Grandmaster!”
Aqing’s excited little face flushed red. To act alongside a powerhouse like this, he’d surely add a great deal to his store of experience.
What a good man.
The two walked briskly out of the medicine hut. With the Dragon-Flame Jade Fungus gone, the whole river of fire had lost its spirit as well. Shen Yi gripped Aqing and, without needing to use any aura, leapt straight across.
Under the treasure-hunting talent’s aid, countless auras welled up into his mind. Yet precisely because there were so many, it seemed thoroughly jumbled, with nothing especially strong among them.
Shen Yi glanced sidelong at the scholar. “Do you know the way?”
“My father’s very interested in the internal structure of cave estates, and has looked into it a little. But my head’s too dull — I only followed along and listened to some of it.”
Aqing looked all around. “On a scale this vast, it’s at least a Spirit-Transformation cultivator’s estate. A mid-grade spiritual root like that isn’t precious to him — it’d be planted outside the true estate proper.”
He closed his eyes, recalling all he’d seen earlier, then pointed east. “Enter from here, and we might find the little loft where he usually rested. A place like that holds no treasures, but it can help us grasp some of his habits, and from there infer where the techniques and treasures are stored.”
Compared to blundering about like a headless fly, Aqing clearly had more of a method. He added a reminder in passing. “When we came in I took a look — that transport formation’s badly out of order. It can’t possibly hold up for the month everyone’s talking about; it’ll close in a dozen-odd days at most.”
“Even if we find the treasure-storing pavilion or the artifact-forging pavilion, there won’t be time to break the formations. You’d best weigh it for yourself.”
If it was only to broaden one’s horizons, following the path was surely better. But if one had come to hunt treasure, blundering about on luck might well be more efficient.
“…”
Shen Yi listened quietly, his heart giving a slight jump.
Information Aqing thought unimportant was, to others, downright lethal! The transport formation closing early — by then, never mind Mixed Origin or Spirit-Transformation, all would be trapped in here. Over hundreds or thousands of years, most cultivators’ lifespans would be ground away to nothing.
“Let’s go — in for a look first.”
Shen Yi summoned Red Cloud outright, no longer minding whether it drew others’ attention. Cautious was cautious, but when it was time to take a risk, one couldn’t be too timid either.
Deep within the cave estate, an elegant loft had lost the shelter of its formation. Even built from treasure-plants, it showed a certain dilapidation under the washing of the years.
A long-robed man wreathed in radiance hung in the air in a towering fury, killing intent plain in his eyes. The one he shielded behind him had a shattered mortal body, most of a path infant exposed — plainly gravely wounded.
“Zheng Zisheng! You go too far!”
The two men were surnamed Yu, born of the same mother. The gravely wounded one was the elder brother, called Yu Yuelong, with upper-tier Mixed Origin cultivation. The younger brother, Yu Yuehu, was a shade weaker — still a mid-tier Mixed Origin Grandmaster.
Facing the two now was precisely one of the Xuanguang Cave disciples who’d earlier followed behind Perfected Master Zhang.
Zheng Zisheng looked to be in no good shape either, but wore a cold sneer, sweeping his gaze around him. “Have the lot of you gone mad? Daring to raise a hand against me.”
Around him stood three more Mixed Origin Grandmasters, spread apart, weapons in hand, glaring at him coldly.
The matter, told plainly, wasn’t complicated. The Yu brothers had had decent luck and come straight upon a loft whose formation had failed. By the time the others discovered it, the two happened to be walking out with their gains in hand. In a situation like that, and all being long-acquainted experts, apart from a touch of envy in their hearts, no one had done anything too out of line — they’d all cupped their fists in congratulation. Yu Yuelong was a man who kept to the rules, too, and proposed they explore on together; should there be further gains, the brothers guaranteed they’d lend a hand and take not the slightest share more.
(End of Chapter 260)