Chapter 58

After wandering around the market for a long time, Qin Fengming stopped in front of a stall run by a man with a gnarled face. (www..com)

At this moment, there were several cultivators inquiring about prices at the stall. The man did not seem very enthusiastic, only responding to their questions half-heartedly.

Qin Fengming observed that the man had reached the eighth level of the Qi Gathering stage. The items he was selling did not seem to come from any sect, but were a mix of various materials, pills, and other items, leading Qin Fengming to conclude that the man was undoubtedly an independent cultivator.

An independent cultivator is one who has not joined any sect and is not a family cultivator, but instead practices cultivation on their own.

Among the cultivators inquiring about prices, there was a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl holding a herb and asking about its price.

Seeing that the girl was only at the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage, the man looked impatient.

"Fifty-year-old Blue Star Grass, sixty low-grade spirit stones."

Upon hearing this, the girl's face immediately showed disappointment, but she did not put down the herb.

Seeing this, the man said irritably, "If you don't have enough spirit stones, please leave and don't interfere with my business."

Qin Fengming noticed that the girl had slender eyebrows and a slim waist, with a delicate and graceful figure. Although her face was not breathtakingly beautiful, she was very appealing.

Hearing the man's words, the girl's oval face turned red, making her look infinitely delicate and weak. Her expression was very anxious as she spoke softly:

"This Blue Star Grass is very important to me. I wonder if you would accept other items in exchange?"

"Other items? If they are not valuable, I won't accept them."

The girl did not respond but flipped her hand, and immediately seven or eight items appeared in her hand. Among them were several low-grade talismans and some materials for refining artifacts; there was also a book titled "A Rough Guide to初级符咒" (A Rough Guide to初级 Talismans).

"Are any of these items of interest to you?" the girl asked timidly.

Glancing at the items, the man snorted and said indifferently, "These items are of no use to me. If you have nothing else, please leave."

Seeing that the items she had taken out did not impress the man, the girl's face turned red with embarrassment. She wanted to say something more, but seeing the man's impatient look, she was immediately intimidated. As a fourth-level cultivator, she did not dare to offend the man.

Just as the girl was about to put away the materials, she suddenly had an idea and said, "Sir, I have one more item. Do you think it might be of any use?"

As she spoke, she produced a black item in her hand, which emitted spiritual energy.

Seeing this item, Qin Fengming, who was about to leave, immediately stopped and his eyes fixed on the black item.

At this moment, everyone present was also drawn to the black item, all staring at it intently, but none knew what it was.

The man picked it up and examined it carefully in his palm. The item was entirely black, seemingly a fragment of a magical treasure, but not quite like iron. When he infused it with spiritual energy, there was no reaction at all.

Seeing this, everyone shook their heads in silence. The man handed the fragment back to the girl, looking impatient, and said, "A useless fragment of a magical treasure, what use is it to keep it?"

"This fragment was found in an abandoned cave, where there were several cultivator skeletons. They must have died fighting over this fragment, which suggests it has a significant origin. Please take a closer look, sir."

"Ha ha, who knows where this fragment came from? To me, it is utterly useless. If you have nothing else, I will take back the Blue Star Grass." The man was unmoved.

The girl's face showed deep disappointment. Helplessly, she was about to put away the materials and the black fragment when a calm voice suddenly said, "How many spirit stones do you want for this fragment?"

The girl, who was just feeling disappointed, suddenly perked up and turned to see a person wearing a hood and a black veil standing nearby.

Such a person was common in the market, and the girl said excitedly, "I only need thirty-two spirit stones. Give me thirty-two spirit stones, and the fragment will be yours."

"Ha ha, thirty-two spirit stones, that's a bit too much. Even if the original magical treasure was very powerful, this is just a fragment with no power at all. I'm only interested in the method used to refine this magical treasure."

Hearing this, the girl was stunned.

"Since you really need this Blue Star Grass, I'll help you this time. However, you need to give me those refining materials and the book 'A Rough Guide to初级 Talismans.' What do you think?"

The girl, who was feeling disappointed, immediately showed a joyful expression and said without hesitation, "Alright, as you say."

Taking the fragment and the items, the person in the black veil handed thirty-five spirit stones to the girl.

The girl took the spirit stones and was immediately stunned.

"The extra three stones are for asking you a question." The person in the black veil was none other than Qin Fengming.

The girl, without responding, immediately took out twenty-five spirit stones and gave them to the man with the gnarled face. She then put the Blue Star Grass into her storage ring.

Following Qin Fengming to a secluded place, the girl asked cautiously, "What do you want to ask, sir? I will answer truthfully if I know."

"It's not a secret. I just want to know where you found that fragment."

Hearing this, the girl was stunned and hesitated for a moment before saying, "The fragment, as I said earlier, was indeed found in a cave. However, the location of that cave is not ordinary. Have you heard of the Wasteland Forest?"

The Wasteland Forest? Qin Fengming was also stunned. It was a dangerous place in the Great Liang Kingdom where no ordinary person could survive. Even cultivators entering it faced great danger. The girl was only at the fourth level of the Qi Gathering stage, so how could she have entered the Wasteland Forest? He couldn't help but look doubtful.

Seeming to notice Qin Fengming's doubt, the girl quickly said:

"With my cultivation, I certainly couldn't enter the Wasteland Forest. Even high-level cultivators at the Qi Gathering stage rarely survive entering and exiting it. My brother and I, along with a few fellow cultivators, only explored the outskirts of the Wasteland Forest. Even so, one of our fellow cultivators perished, and my brother was severely injured while saving me. He urgently needs the Blue Star Grass to heal."

As she spoke, she looked very sad.

Hearing the girl's explanation, Qin Fengming felt relieved. After a moment's thought, he said, "Can you replicate the location of that cave for me?"

"Of course, I will replicate it on a jade slip." She took out a blank jade slip, used her spiritual energy to draw a map, and handed it to Qin Fengming.

Cultivators can record information using spiritual energy on jade slips. This method requires the cultivator to periodically infuse the jade slip with spiritual energy; otherwise, the energy will dissipate over time.

"Thank you, sir. I have no other questions. You are free to go." Qin Fengming said as he took the jade slip. The girl bowed and turned to walk back to the market.

Cultivators are generally cold and unfeeling, and Qin Fengming helping the girl for no reason certainly had its own reasons.