Cultivating Immortality: I Have a High-Martial World

Chapter 74 Fourth Level of Qi Refining, Where Did the Courage Come From? (First Update, Please Read On)

"Is it really the fourth level of Qi Refining?"

While Lin Chen hesitated, Cen Wushan had already made his move.

A flying sword pierced the bandit leader's chest, cutting right through him.

The next second, the once domineering bandit leader was dead beyond any doubt.

"Fine, he's just a level four Qi Refining cultivator! Where did he get the courage?"

Lin Chen accepted this reality.

After slaughtering all the cultivators who had undergone tribulation, Cen Wushan came to Lin Chen's side and laughed:

"Haha, junior brother, you're overthinking it. Within the territory of Yanlai Kingdom, those who have reached the Qi Refining Perfection stage already make up more than 99% of cultivators, and Foundation Establishment cultivators are even rarer, one in a thousand."

"So there's no need to be so cautious."

Lin Chen nodded slightly, neither confirming nor denying it.

It seems he overestimated the independent cultivators. By joining a sect and cultivating, he has unknowingly surpassed most cultivators.

"However, it's always better to be careful!"

Lin Chen still said something.

Cen Wushan did not respond, but instead said:

"Although this group of robbers is a rabble, they've been plundering for years, so they must have some resources..."

"Why don't you and I, as fellow disciples, plunder the area and divide the resources among ourselves?"

So the two of them used their divine senses to turn the water village upside down.

A moment later.

"Tch, these cultivators are really poor."

Cen Wushan looked at the small pile of resources in front of him and complained.

Besides about a hundred spirit stones, there were only some ores and medicinal herbs, including a considerable amount of cold iron stones.

It seems that these cultivators, during times of hardship, also took on part-time jobs mining in the mountains.

Lin Chen thought for a moment and said:

"These materials are estimated to be worth around two hundred spirit stones. Junior brother, if you want these materials, how about giving me some more spirit stones?"

Cen Wushan waved his hand after hearing this.

"Ha, you little rascal. What do I need these materials for? You can take them all!"

After saying that, he took out another letter.

The letter was found on the body of the leader of the bandits.

After reading it carefully, he showed a look of surprise and then handed it to Lin Chen.

Lin Chen frowned slightly after reading the letter.

The letter stated that two hundred miles north of this place, there was another mountain stronghold of bandits.

There are no fewer than thirty people, the strongest of whom is at the late stage of Qi Refining. They want to invite this water stronghold leader to join them.

Clearly, Cen Wushan's first thought after reading the letter was—

"Junior brother, how about we go and pull off another heist... uh, wipe out another group of rogue cultivators?"

"Let me tell you, this plundering of cultivators is considered 'trapping cultivators,' but plundering 'trapping cultivators' is the righteous path! Besides... plundering 'trapping cultivators' is a quick way to make money!"

Cen Wushan was quite tempted.

Lin Chen, however, resolutely refused and advised:

"Senior brother, we promised Master we'd go back as soon as possible!"

Cen Wushan disagreed, and with a quick glance, he said:

"Hehe, let me treat you to a drink first... Then you can go back inside the sect by yourself tomorrow morning, how about that?"

Lin Chen sighed after hearing this. He knew that Cen Wushan's mind was made up and he was afraid he couldn't persuade him otherwise.

"Since you're going, senior brother, remember to investigate first and don't act rashly..." Lin Chen finally reminded him.

Neither of them returned directly to Changchun Gate that day.

Cen Wushan ordered a table full of spiritual food at the largest restaurant in Guangyuan Town and treated Lin Chen to a big meal.

"Come, junior brother, have a taste... This Purple Smoke Chicken is a specialty of Guangyuan Town, and it's incredibly delicious!"

Lin Chen took a bite and found that the Purple Swallow Chicken was indeed incredibly smooth and tender.

……

Early the next morning.

After Lin Chen got up, he found that Cen Wushan had already set off alone to suppress the bandits.

He also had no intention of returning to Changchun Gate.

"Having finally managed to get out of town, I naturally want to finish up my business before heading back..."

Lin Chen thought to himself.

"The auction in Guangyuan Town doesn't start until tomorrow... Let's finish the task of gathering medicinal herbs today."

The location of the medicinal herbs was not far from the market town, and Lin Chen flew around to several places using his magical artifact.

In just one or two hours, they had gathered the necessary medicinal herbs.

Seeing that it was almost noon, Lin Chen did not rush back to the market.

He first put on a human skin mask in town, and then changed his clothes.

Then he swaggered into a shop in the market.

"Shopkeeper, how much are these cold iron stones?"

Lin Chen revealed his peak Qi Refining cultivation level, and the shopkeeper hurriedly greeted him with a smile, not daring to raise the price.

"Distinguished guest, one spirit stone can buy five catties of cold iron stone..."

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen took out a hundred spirit stones.

"Give me five hundred catties of cold iron stone; I need it to forge weapons!"

The boss's face immediately lit up with a smile upon hearing this.

Five hundred catties of cold iron stone, almost half of his shop's inventory, this is a big deal.

Not long after Lin Chen left the shop, his storage bag contained an additional five hundred cold iron stones, no less.

After that, Lin Chen visited more than ten shops, and even changed his appearance twice during that time.

By evening, he had collected nearly six thousand catties of cold iron stone.

"Hmm, six thousand catties of cold iron stone is roughly half a month's sales volume in this market... Any more and it will easily attract attention."

Lin Chen decided to stop for now.

His large-scale acquisition of Han Tie Shi did indeed carry some risks.

However, thanks to his peak Qi Refining cultivation, he is temporarily safe.

Moreover, the shops he chose were far away, making it difficult to detect large-scale purchases in a short period of time.

By the time they realized what was happening, Lin Chen had probably already returned to Changchun Gate, which was eight hundred miles away.

……

the next morning.

Lin Chen changed his appearance again and headed to the auction house.

After demonstrating his cultivation level, Lin Chen successfully entered the venue.

The venue was not large, with only about a hundred seats.

Lin Chen chose a corner at the back to sit down, so that he could easily escape if anything happened.

The auction began soon.

Lin Chen glanced around at his surroundings.

The hundred or so seats were almost full, and there were also private rooms on the second floor.

"Hmm, about half of the seats are occupied by cultivators at the late Qi Refining stage, with no Foundation Establishment cultivators... It seems the Foundation Establishment cultivators are in the private rooms on the second floor?"

Lin Chen was somewhat surprised; it seemed that half of the powerful figures in this market town had come to participate in the auction.

"Welcome, fellow Daoists, to this auction..."

"We've received a last-minute notification that there's a rare and valuable finale item in this auction that I'm sure you'll all be interested in!"

"Next, the first item in this auction, a mid-grade magic weapon flying sword, starts at 20 spirit stones..."

After watching for a while, Lin Chen lost interest.

There was nothing particularly novel about it; it was just a woman dressed in a flamboyant manner energetically promoting the auction items on stage.

Even with Lin Chen's discerning eye, these auction items were merely ordinary.

Even the black market in Changchun Mountain can't compare...

However, these mid-grade magic artifacts, first-grade high-quality talismans, and high-quality Qi-boosting pills are very popular at auctions.

Most of the buyers were cultivators in the mid-to-late stages of Qi Refining.

The transaction price was mostly between twenty and fifty spirit stones.

After watching for a while, an item finally appeared at the auction that piqued Lin Chen's interest.

"The next item up for auction is a natural spirit-testing stone, three feet high and over two feet wide..."

"After examination, this spirit-testing stone is sufficient for testing spirits 30,000 times... Starting bid: 200 spirit stones."

(End of this chapter)