Immortality and Cultivation: Starting with Improving Spiritual Root Aptitude

The moment the jade box was opened, a scorching yet not violent burst of fire swept over him, and Wu Fan's fire-attribute cultivation technique involuntarily began to operate.

He looked closely and saw a piece of fire crystal, much larger than his thumb, lying in the jade box. It was crimson red and had a faint shimmering light on its surface, clearly of excellent quality.

To his even greater surprise, the Five Elements Beads within his body began to tremble slightly, emitting a faint suction force, clearly indicating an intense thirst for the primal power of the Fire Melting Crystal.

Wu Fan suppressed the unease in his heart, lightly touched the Firemelting Crystal with his fingertips, feeling the rich primal power within, and asked calmly, "What is the price of this Firemelting Crystal?"

Wang Buwei laughed and said, "Honored guest, you have a good eye. Fire-melting crystals of this quality are extremely rare, and the consignment price for cultivators is 888 low-grade spirit stones. However, if you are truly interested, I can make the decision to round it down to 880 spirit stones."

Eight hundred spirit stones!!!

Wu Fan did some mental calculations. Of the money he received from Li Buhui yesterday for the pills, after deducting the four hundred spirit stones he gave to Jiang Ling, he still had a few hundred low-grade spirit stones left. He could still buy another batch of pill-refining herbs.

But this means he'll be short of money again.

However, the advancement of the Five Elements Beads is extremely important, and he naturally wouldn't miss out on such a top-grade material as Fire Melting Crystal.

He pondered for a moment, then looked up and said, "Eight hundred and eighty spirit stones is a bit too high. I'm not exactly flush with cash these days. Manager Wang, could you possibly lower the price a bit? Eight hundred spirit stones? If that's feasible, I'll pay and take the goods today."

Wang Buwei's smile faded slightly. After a moment's thought, he sighed, "What you say is true, esteemed guest. Very well, considering your sincere intention to buy, eight hundred spirit stones it is. However, this is already my bottom line, and I really cannot lower the price any further."

He knew that although molten crystals were precious, the consignment period was uncertain. If he could close the deal quickly, he could also get the commission sooner, so it wasn't a loss.

"it is good."

Without further hesitation, Wu Fan took out eight hundred low-grade spirit stones from his storage bag, counted them, and handed them to Wang Buwei.

After carefully checking and confirming that everything was correct, Wang Buwei handed the jade box to Wu Fan, saying, "Please accept this, esteemed guest. If you have any other needs in the future, please feel free to visit Qianzhen Pavilion again. I will certainly do my best to assist you."

Wu Fan took the jade box and carefully put it into his storage bag. After saying goodbye to Wang Buwei, he first used his Qi-gathering technique, and then circled around several streets before returning to Fengxie Tower.

He was eager to return to his room so that the Five Elements Beads could absorb the primal power of the Fire Melting Crystal and see how much his spiritual essence could improve.

......

Meanwhile, in a secluded, dark alley deep within the market, shadows concealed the two figures.

At this moment, a young man dressed as a servant of Qianzhen Pavilion was reporting in a low voice to a lean man in front of him, his tone extremely respectful and cautious: "Third Master, the Fire Melting Crystal that our gang consigned for sale at Qianzhen Pavilion has just been bought by a cultivator in the mid-stage of Qi Refining."

The lean man, addressed as the Third Master by the servants, wore a short-sleeved, close-fitting outfit. He toyed with a gleaming iron claw in his hand, his triangular eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of greed flashing within them: "Oh? Only at the mid-stage of Qi Refining?"

He chuckled, his tone extremely confident, "That fire-melting crystal is of excellent quality, worth at least seven hundred low-grade spirit stones on the market. This young kid can produce so many spirit stones at such a young age; he must be a disciple of some Foundation Establishment family, and probably has quite a few more spirit stones on him. This job is worth it!"

Upon hearing this, the attendant hesitated for a moment, then leaned closer and added, "Third Master, that cultivator not only had his face covered, but he also acted with extreme caution, as if he were someone who had been training outside for many years."

"So what? He's just a kid with mid-stage Qi Refining cultivation."

A ruthless glint flashed in the third leader's eyes as he continued, "Our Tiger Wolf Gang has been operating around Falling Star Valley Market for so long, how many times have we been attacked? Can't we even handle a mere Qi Refining stage brat? You go back first, lest Wang Buwei discover something amiss."

He paused, then frowned, his tone even more somber than before: "By the way, we must be more cautious in the future. The people at Qianzhen Pavilion have probably already discovered our scheme to sell stolen goods through their shops. After this success, we don't need to report any more small, ordinary orders."

"Yes, Third Master!"

The servant bowed in agreement, then suddenly lowered his body and, using the crowd at the alley entrance as cover, quietly slipped away, disappearing into the bustling market in the blink of an eye.

If Wu Fan were here, he would immediately recognize that this servant was the one who had led him to the side room in Qianzhen Pavilion.

Who would have thought that this ordinary servant of Qianzhen Pavilion would be an informant for the Tiger and Wolf Gang?

In the dark alley, the third leader watched the servant's hurried departure, licked his slightly chapped lips, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes, and then whistled softly towards the shadows at the alley entrance.

Two dark figures leaped out from the shadows at the base of the wall, both possessing the cultivation level of the seventh stage of Qi Refining.

"Third Master, what are your orders?"

The two lowered their heads and asked in deep voices.

The third leader tossed a palm-sized metal compass over: "Take this. I've tampered with the Fire Crystal, leaving a tracking mark. Find the kid who bought the Fire Crystal, find out where he is, and as soon as he leaves Falling Star Valley Market, kill him and take his storage bag."

"clear!"

The two caught the compass, their figures blurred, and they vanished from the spot in an instant, leaving no trace.

The third leader stood alone, gazing in the direction where the two had disappeared, a ruthless smile playing on his lips.

Recently, the Tiger Wolf Gang has been running into obstacles everywhere on the streets of Falling Star Valley Market. Many shops have begun to unite to check and guard against them. The gang has not been able to make any profits for a long time, and the buyer of the Fire Crystal has become their target for venting their anger and making money.

Meanwhile, Wu Fan had already quietly returned to his room at Fengxie Tower.

The first thing he did upon entering the guest room was to immediately set up a simple protective barrier before taking out the jade box containing the Fire Crystal from his storage bag at his waist.

The moment I lifted the lid, a burst of intense heat wafted out.

Not only is the Fire Crystal lustrous, but it also constantly exudes a rich fire elemental power from within.

Without further hesitation, Wu Fan immediately sat cross-legged on the bed, placed the Fire Crystal in front of him, and slowly closed his eyes.

A moment later, a white light suddenly flashed in his mind, and a talisman faintly appeared on his forehead.

The next second, the Fire Crystal suddenly rose into the air, and an invisible suction force burst forth from Wu Fan's forehead, firmly enveloping the Fire Crystal.

The crimson light emanating from the Fire Crystal was visibly dimming, and the fire elemental power within was being continuously drawn away, flowing into Wu Fan's body through the suction force.

In just a few breaths, the Fire Crystal lost all its luster, turned grayish-white and dry, and finally turned into a handful of fine powder, all of which fell onto the bed.

Wu Fan did not open his eyes immediately, but instead focused all his attention on the Yellow Court and began to watch the changes in the Five Elements Beads.