Chapter 59

This black fragment was not unfamiliar to Qin Fengming, as he already had one in his possession. (www..com)

Since he had gained some understanding of artifact refinement, he had already carefully studied the black fragment he had obtained from Young Master Zhang. In the end, he concluded that the original body of this fragment was at least a magical treasure.

However, there was one thing that greatly puzzled him. When a magical treasure shattered, it was mostly due to the spiritual energy within being dispersed, and the attack landing on the main body, causing it to shatter. After shattering, the spiritual energy on the fragments would gradually dissipate, and over time, they would become ordinary objects.

But the black fragment was different; the spiritual energy on it showed no signs of loss. What puzzled him even more was that the fragment could absorb spiritual energy from the surroundings, a discovery he made by chance.

Once, he placed a spirit stone next to the fragment. A few days later, when he was organizing his items, he found that the spirit stone had lost all its spiritual energy and had turned into an ordinary stone.

After careful examination and analysis, he realized that the only possible explanation was that the black fragment had absorbed the spiritual energy. This discovery surprised him.

However, when he infused the fragment with spiritual energy, there was no change, which left Qin Fengming very puzzled. No matter what, this black fragment was definitely extraordinary.

When he suddenly saw an item identical to his fragment, he did not hesitate to take it into his possession.

Although he could not yet uncover the secrets of the fragment, he knew in his heart that it was definitely extraordinary.

After walking around the exchange area, he did not find any items of interest. Qin Fengming knew that only on the third day would the stall owners bring out their most cherished items. It was also only then that wealthy cultivators would arrive.

Seeing that it was nearly noon, he walked into a tavern in the market. This tavern was called Xianke Lai and had three floors.

He went straight to the second floor and found that there were not many customers. As soon as he sat down, a young man in his late teens, at the third level of the Gathering Qi stage, came over and greeted him respectfully: "I wonder what this fellow daoist would like. Our tavern offers a variety of dishes and homemade spirit wine for you to taste."

Seeing that the young man was smart and articulate, Qin Fengming felt a sense of goodwill and smiled slightly: "Since there is spirit wine, I must try it. Bring me four dishes, a mix of meat and vegetables."

The young man responded and went to give the order. In a short while, he brought up a pot of wine, a cup, and poured the wine into the cup. Qin Fengming immediately felt a light and ethereal aura, which was very different from ordinary wine. Soon, four dishes were placed on the table.

Qin Fengming ate and drank leisurely.

After finishing his meal, Qin Fengming called over the young man: "I wonder if your tavern has guest rooms for lodging."

"You've asked the right person. Our Xianke Lai tavern is one of the best in the market. We have dozens of rooms for cultivators to stay in. If you stay for three days, including meals and lodging, it will cost you five low-grade spirit stones. Is that acceptable?"

Hearing that it would cost five spirit stones for three days, Qin Fengming was taken aback. Five spirit stones were equivalent to a month's income for a regular low-stage disciple in the sect.

The young man seemed to notice Qin Fengming's hesitation and continued: "Fellow daoist, don't think our tavern charges too much. Each room is separate, and each has a powerful restriction set by a great cultivator. Once you stay in, you won't be disturbed by others. It is very suitable for our cultivators to practice."

"Alright, I'll stay for three days. Here are the five spirit stones. Keep them well." Qin Fengming, moved by the young man's words, agreed without hesitation.

Five spirit stones were a lot for other regular disciples, but for Qin Fengming, it was not a big deal.

The young man happily led him to a dense forest behind the tavern.

In the forest behind the tavern, there were dozens of independent pavilions, each at a certain distance from the others, showing that the guest rooms in the cultivation world were different from those in the secular world.

The young man led him into one of the pavilions and handed him an array talisman: "Fellow daoist, you just need to infuse this array talisman with spiritual energy, and a barrier will appear around the pavilion, preventing others from intruding or probing. If you want to leave, just store the array talisman in your storage ring." After bowing, the young man turned and left.

Qin Fengming slowly infused the array talisman with spiritual energy, and instantly, a transparent barrier appeared around the pavilion, enclosing it in the center.

Nodding in satisfaction, Qin Fengming eagerly took out the fragment and compared it with the one he had obtained from Young Master Zhang. He found that the patterns on them were identical, confirming that they were from the same magical treasure.

Upon further comparison, Qin Fengming discovered that these two fragments were not adjacent. After some thought, he roughly estimated that there were at least five or six fragments in total.

After playing with them for a while, Qin Fengming carefully stored the two fragments in his storage ring.

Next, Qin Fengming took out the "Elementary Treatise on Talismans" and flipped through it, finding it to be more profound than the "Introduction to Talismans" he had obtained earlier.

He had long been interested in the art of talisman making. At this moment, he pondered that he needed to find an opportunity to study and experiment with it in detail.

Today, Qin Fengming did not plan to go out. After several days of refining artifacts and a day of travel, he had not fully recovered. Sitting on the bed, he held a spirit stone in each hand and began to meditate and cultivate.

After a night, having consumed several spirit stones, Qin Fengming had recovered to his best state. Being far from the sect, he could encounter danger at any time, so it was necessary to be in the best condition.

In the market, it was safe because the market rules prohibited cultivators from fighting. Violators would be pursued and killed by both Luoxia Valley and Wohu Mountain. Moreover, there were law enforcement teams patrolling the market, so no one dared to violate the rules.

However, outside the market, there were no such restrictions. Robberies and killings were common. Although Qin Fengming was young, he had extensive experience.

On the morning of the second day, after having breakfast and slightly organizing his belongings, Qin Fengming left the Xianke Lai tavern.

Today, he had to sell the remaining three of the four high-grade magical artifacts. This was necessary for the auction on the third day.

Qin Fengming now had two top-grade magical artifacts, and he no longer relied much on high-grade magical artifacts. After much thought, he decided to keep only one high-grade magical artifact and exchange the others for spirit stones.

When he arrived on the street, many cultivators had already gathered from all directions, even more than the previous day. After some consideration, he decided it was best to sell the three magical artifacts separately.