Chapter 335 - 323: An Iron Truncheon
Chapter 335: Chapter 323: An Iron Truncheon
On the shelf was a personal weapon.
Cultivators adept at combat usually carried a personal weapon in addition to their magical treasures. These weapons, like sabers, swords, or daggers, were used for close-quarters defense, clearing paths in the wilderness, or slaying Demon Beasts.
The weapon’s style was described as strange because it resembled the iron ruler Zhao Lin used when he was a constable.
It had a short mace in the center with hand guards on both sides. But unlike an iron ruler, the head of the mace was slightly wider and sharpened into a blade, and the hand guards had hooks.
Pressing a mechanism on the handle caused the Hand Guard Hooks to fold inward, designed to catch an enemy’s weapon.
’This thing is great. It can be a weapon and also be used to dig up Spirit Grass.’
Zhao Lin liked it at first sight. He walked straight over, picked up the iron ruler, and gave it a couple of swings. It felt perfect in his hand.
Ever since the last Dharma Assembly, Zhao Lin had been pondering how to deal with magical treasures.
He wasn’t a Body Cultivator, so he couldn’t just tank a magical treasure with his body. This was especially true against a Sword Cultivator like Fang Qinglu, whose flying sword was fast, sharp, and simply impossible to guard against.
Although he had managed a narrow victory, the memory of that lightning-fast flying sword still gave him a headache.
’With this iron ruler, I can directly block magical treasures. If I use it well, I might even be able to trap them.’
’This will give me a much better chance of survival in the Yinfeng Realm.’
Seeing Zhao Lin’s apparent interest in the weapon, a clerk immediately came over.
"Sir, has this cross-guard fork caught your eye?"
Zhao Lin had already bought a set of armor, so the clerk knew this Low Tier cultivator could afford to buy things. He was much more enthusiastic than before.
Before Zhao Lin could answer, the clerk launched into a long-winded introduction. "You have a great eye, sir! This cross-guard fork was meticulously forged by our workshop’s Artifact Refiner. Just like the armor you just bought, it’s made entirely of refined gold."
"It may not be a magical treasure, but the materials are top-notch!"
Zhao Lin remained noncommittal. "How much?" he asked.
The clerk read his expression, sensed an opportunity, and said cautiously, "The original price is two thousand two hundred Spirit Coins. I can sell it to you now for two thousand."
"That expensive? Never mind, then."
Zhao Lin tossed the iron ruler back to the clerk and turned to leave.
’The iron ruler is covered in a thick layer of dust. It’s clearly not selling, so I have to drive a hard bargain.’
And that was indeed the case. An Artifact Refiner had crafted this unusual weapon on a whim, but unfortunately, no one had ever shown interest. The price had been lowered again and again, and it ended up gathering dust in a corner.
"Wait, sir! We can negotiate the price."
The clerk called out hurriedly, taking a few quick steps to catch up to Zhao Lin. This cross-guard fork had been sitting in the shop for two years. He couldn’t let the first person to ask about it get away.
Zhao Lin sneered. "A common weapon that costs more than a magical treasure? What’s there to negotiate?"
The clerk said, "Then how much are you offering, sir?"
"One thousand."
Zhao Lin stated bluntly.
The clerk’s smile was uglier than a grimace. "Sir, I really can’t do one thousand. That wouldn’t even cover the cost of the materials. This is solid refined gold! If you just melted it down, the gold alone would be worth more than one thousand."
"How about one thousand six hundred? You can take it right now, sir."
’Hearing this, Zhao Lin felt even more confident. A mere clerk can drop the price by that much on his own. The Shopkeeper must have given him instructions, which means there’s still room to go lower.’
’If this were my past life, he’d be pulling the classic ’let me talk to my manager’ routine.’
"One thousand two hundred. Not a coin more."
"Sigh, I still can’t sell it at that price. Add a little more. How about one thousand three hundred?"
The clerk pleaded.
"Fine, but you have to throw in a sheath."
This wasn’t an unreasonable request. The head of the iron ruler’s mace was bladed; walking around with it hanging at his waist would be trouble if it accidentally cut him or someone else.
"Alright."
The clerk gritted his teeth and accepted.
Zhao Lin paid for the iron ruler, wincing at the expense.
He had originally exchanged for five thousand Spirit Coins, leaving himself a large buffer. But after buying this iron ruler, he was left with just over four hundred Yuan Spirit Coins.
It was barely enough for the return trip. He couldn’t spend anything else.
Feeling his now-empty coin pouch, Zhao Lin finally understood why the cultivators in the county rarely accepted sect missions.
To carry out a mission, it took at least seven or eight days for a round trip, and the expenses were enormous. It consumed a great deal of time and money.
If you couldn’t complete it successfully, the losses would far outweigh the gains.
’There’s no way I’m going to break even on this mission.’
No wonder Lu Yuanxiu was always taking on high-risk missions. Only the purple and white-tier missions offered extremely high returns, allowing one to earn enough resources.
The next morning, Zhao Lin boarded a Spiritual Vessel bound for Qiuyang County.
There were over twenty cultivators on the Spiritual Vessel. At fifty Spirit Coins per person, the vessel station could earn over a thousand Spirit Coins in a single trip.
Zhao Lin didn’t know the Spiritual Vessel’s specific "fuel consumption," but he figured it couldn’t be more than twenty Spirit Stones. ’Seems like a profitable business,’ he thought.
The cultivators on the Spiritual Vessel were all in the Qi Refining Realm, and there were also a few cultivators from other sects.
The cultivators from other sects dressed differently from those of the Chenghua Sect. Furthermore, when observed with the Qi Observation Skill, their auras also appeared slightly different.
This was because different sects used different Cultivation Techniques.
The Spiritual Vessel soared through the Cloud Layer. The cultivators were strangers to one another and barely interacted, the only sound being the whistling of the wind rushing past on both sides.
Some people glanced a few extra times at the strangely shaped weapon Zhao Lin was carrying, but once they noticed his cultivation was only at the Qi Refining Third Layer, they lost interest.
Zhao Lin was perfectly happy with this, sitting quietly in a corner with his eyes closed to rest.
The journey of over a thousand li was completed in just two hours.
Qiuyang County was in the northern part of the Western Ox Continent. With only two to three hundred people, it was one of the Chenghua Sect’s smallest counties. Its specialty was a type of demonic insect called the Yin Scorpion, which could be used as a supplementary ingredient in many pills.
There was no market square within the county, only a small marketplace outside it. It served the same purpose as a market square, but the scale was worlds apart, with only a simple vessel station and seven or eight shops.
"So expensive! It’s highway robbery!"
"Younger Brother Han, stop wasting your breath on them. We’ll just walk."
"But Brother Li, I heard the road isn’t safe."
"Don’t listen to their nonsense. The vessel station is just saying that to trick us into taking their Spiritual Vessel to Yinfeng Valley. If you believe them, you’ll fall right into their trap."
Just as he disembarked from the Spiritual Vessel, Zhao Lin saw two cultivators storm past him, fuming.
’What’s got them so worked up?’
Zhao Lin glanced at the two of them and walked into the marketplace.
There was a notice board at the entrance to the marketplace. He gave it a quick scan from top to bottom, and his attention was soon drawn to a wanted poster.
The notice read: For the past six months, two Late-stage Qi Refining rogue cultivators have been active on the road to Yinfeng Valley.
All passing cultivators should travel by Spiritual Vessel or in groups. A reward of two hundred merit points and five hundred Spirit Stones is offered for the capture or execution of these two individuals.
Signed: Qiuyang County, Patrol Hall.
The wanted poster included portraits of the two rogue cultivators. One had bulging eyes and protruding teeth, making him exceptionally ugly. The other had refined features and was quite handsome.
Placed side-by-side, the two portraits created a stark contrast.
’So there really are rogue cultivators around.’
Zhao Lin recalled the conversation between the two cultivators from earlier and more or less understood the situation.