LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 109: Useless Things.
Fei City, noon.
Snow blanketed the ground; the sunlight was relatively warm as it shone down, imparting a faint sense of warmth. This place was close to the Boundless Icefield, where summer was almost nonexistent, and autumn and winter dominated all year round. The howling cold winds from the Boundless Icefield poured into Fei City at every moment.
And Fat Long was in the inn, reporting the information he had gathered.
"The Evil Wood is indeed as the Sect Master of the Caotian Sect said, originating from Fei City. While it is said to grow in the lands of Evil, no one knows why only the Evil Lands of Fei City can produce such wood."
"Perhaps it's because of the cold climate in Fei City that this object exists."
"Just like there is said to be an antidote within seven steps of a snake bite."
"It's a common item used by the local sects and families in Fei City for heating, truly not anything valuable."
"As for the Eight Desolate Fruit—"
Fat Long paused, then remarked with a sigh, "This piece of information cost some Spirit Stones; I learned about it from the 'World Pavilion' that specializes in selling intelligence. The Evil Wood can still be used for heating, but the Eight Desolate Fruit is a truly useless item."
"It belongs to the category of Spirit Fruits."
"It grows completely at random, possibly sprouting from an apple tree or a pear tree. Any type of fruit tree could potentially bear the Eight Desolate Fruit; it's a bit against the natural order."
"And any tree that bears the Eight Desolate Fruit will never bear another fruit again, nor will it ever bear fruit in the future."
"The Eight Desolate Fruit is octagonal, resembling a starfruit."
"If there is any singular effect, it would be... its rarity."
"Because this fruit has no side effects when eaten, nor does it have any effect. It also lacks any taste, not sweet, not astringent, not sour, not spicy, and the texture is nothing extraordinary."
"Moreover, once the fruit is plucked from the tree, it will rot within nine hours."
"It must be kept in a Jade Box to prevent decay."
"The price is not high; if one desires it, it can be obtained for a little over three hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones, with the main expenses being the journey and the search. In the end, the fruit farmers will only receive a few taels of silver."
"I have already paid a deposit to the World Pavilion, and I have arranged for someone there to handle it."
"Hmm."
Chen Qiu nodded, puzzled within his heart. The requirements for each stage of the Golden Core were extremely stringent, but he wondered why the two mentioned heavenly treasures were such ordinary items.
The requirements for a third-grade Golden Core already included rare materials for forging such as Dragon Vein Stones, so why did the tenth-grade Golden Core only require something like Evil Wood for heating? The Eight Desolate Fruit was indeed a bit rarer but still a useless item. Experience more tales on empire
Before he could ponder further.
Fat Long spoke again, "There is indeed an auction tonight in Fei City. This auction has been long in preparation, and most of the items on offer are things like Alchemy Furnaces, recipes, Formation manuals, and the like, prepared for Alchemy Cultivators and talisman cultivators."
"After all, there is a noticeable predominance of Alchemy and talisman cultivators in the Southern State."
"However, I have heard that they will be selling two entry jade slips at the auction."
"Let's go take a look tonight," Chen Qiu responded with an understanding nod.
...
That night.
Chen Qiu was already standing at the entrance of the "Fei City" Jia Clan's commercial building, a five-story pavilion that was one of the taller structures in Fei City. At this time, many Cultivators were entering the pavilion's entrance.
The auction was about to begin tonight.
Entry jade slips, even the most worthless ones, were rather rare and would often be promoted in advance and then sold to the highest bidder at the auction, of course, only the lower-grade entries. The high-grade entry jade slips didn't have the chance to make it to auction, as they were mostly prearranged internally.
Chen Qiu, standing at the entrance, did not enter immediately, but engaged in introspection of his small world.
He still had more than four thousand Lower-grade Spirit Stones and twenty-four Mid-grade Spirit Stones.
The Mid-grade Spirit Stones must be saved for breaking through to the Golden Core.
According to the scholar, an ordinary Cultivator should prepare at least forty-nine Mid-grade Spirit Stones when breaking through to the Golden Core, and then lay out a Spirit Gathering Array to ensure a smooth transition.
To be on the safe side, he planned to set up a higher-level Spirit Gathering Array, which would require one hundred and eight Mid-grade Spirit Stones.
After all, his goal was the tenth-grade Golden Core, and forty-nine Mid-grade Spirit Stones might not be enough.
One of his goals in the coming year was to accumulate enough Mid-grade Spirit Stones.
Based on the information from Fat Long, the two entry jade slips on auction weren't particularly outstanding, so the four thousand Lower-grade Spirit Stones he had should suffice for the purchase.
"Let's go."
Chen Qiu, about to step into the auction pavilion with Fat Long and the others, suddenly heard a sneering voice, "Where did these country bumpkins come from, bringing a cripple to an auction?"
"..."
Fat Long stood still, looking around to confirm that there were no other disabled people nearby, before realizing the words were directed at them. With some disbelief, he looked at the young, richly-dressed gentleman beside them.
This person... was he really that audacious?
To speak to them in such a manner? And for their part, they had spent several Spirit Stones on their clothes at the Wentiangfang Market; they shouldn't appear to be country bumpkins, should they?
Chen Qiu glanced at the person and then, without saying another word, strode towards the auction pavilion without the slightest hesitation.
"Hey!"
The young noble who had just spoken, with a playful smile on his face, called out to Chen Qiu and his group loudly, "I'm talking to you, are you deaf?"
Chen Qiu didn't respond, but simply patted Fat Long on the shoulder to signal him to enter the auction first.
...
The young noble, accompanied by a gathering of other nobles, watched Chen Qiu's retreating back without restraint, laughing loudly, while the young noble who had started the conversation grinned even more arrogantly at the others.