Chapter 172: The Second Spirit Tool

*Snap! * The wooden board broke clean into two pieces.

The blade's edge had not yet arrived, but the blade Qi had already struck.

Li Fubo could not help but be moved: "A fine blade. Although the blade body is broken, the 'heart-eye' is still there, and it's still awake!"

Mao Tao chimed in: "Does a blade's heart have a distinction between being awake and asleep?"

"Of course it does. After a magic tool breaks, even if the heart-eye can be preserved, it usually falls into a deep slumber. Young Master He's blade is interesting—hmm, very interesting!"

He Lingchuan only cared about one thing: "Can it be repaired? The blade-eye must be preserved."

"This blade has already reached the level of a Spirit Tool, and its nature is stubborn; though broken, it still persists. It would truly be a pity to melt it down and recast it."

He Lingchuan was slightly stunned. The broken blade was already a Spirit Tool? Before leaving Heishuicheng, that wasn't what the people at the smithy had said.

It had only been a month or so, and the broken blade had actually upgraded?

Strange.

Li Fubo gently stroked the spine of the blade, unable to put it down. "If we want to preserve the blade-eye and fully restore it, we cannot use conventional methods. Hmm, we could try the 'Blade-Planting' technique."

Mao Tao couldn't help but interject: "Can blades be planted too?"

He had heard of planting vegetables and trees, but never planting blades.

"Generally speaking, when a blade or sword breaks, it is broken; it can only be tossed into a furnace to be recast. But if it has cultivated spirituality, one must find another path. After all, metal and stone gaining spirituality is truly something that can be sought but not found." Li Fubo stroked his beard and said, "A gecko can regrow its tail; if a blade's edge is broken, it is not impossible for it to be reborn, but the conditions are quite harsh."

As long as it could be repaired, that was fine. Songyang Prefecture would probably open its mouth like a lion. He Lingchuan secretly let out a breath: "Master Li, name your price."

The broken blade Zhong Shengguang had gifted him had many peculiarities even when it was just a defective item; he wanted to know, if this blade were fully restored, what would it be like? "This price isn't for me to decide! At most, I'll charge a labor fee." Li Fubo waved his hands repeatedly. "The 'Blade-Planting' method is extremely obscure; it cannot be done without Yu Gold."

Sure enough, in the end, one couldn't avoid Yu Gold. He Lingchuan laughed: "Your shop is a premier treasure house in the capital; surely you aren't lacking this bit of material?"

Steward Zhao couldn't help but say: "Young Master He, the amount of Yu Gold in existence is even less than star-fallen meteor iron; our shop only has two pieces in storage. The entire Shi Huan City hasn't had any new Yu Gold in nearly three years."

Li Fubo interjected: "Even at the place of origin, Yu Mountain, Yu Gold is not something you can just pick up. It doesn't even have a mineral vein; it is transformed after the essence of gold gains spirituality. This thing runs all over the mountain and hides the moment it sees people; wanting to catch it basically depends on fate."

"Then, what is the price of this 'fate'?" He Lingchuan naturally understood the principle of hoarding goods for a high price, and in truth, he felt a bit uneasy. His bit of money could walk sideways in Heishuicheng, but in Shi Huan, where celebrities and the super-rich gathered, he feared...

"Last year, the Hengshui Firm next door sold a piece of Yu Gold. Its volume was only half of our collection, and the price was fifteen pieces of Upper-Third-Grade Profound Crystals, totaling six jin."

Upon hearing the words "Upper-Third-Grade Profound Crystals," both He Lingchuan and his companion were shocked. After the Imperial Flow Nectar descended to the ground, a small portion would drill into the earth and turn into Profound Crystals. Their utility and properties changed drastically, but they were the best source for cultivators to replenish their true Qi. Their grades were divided into Upper, Middle, and Lower tiers based on color and luster, and each tier had three grades.

As for these Upper-Third-Grade ones, ordinary cultivators couldn't reach them even if they stood on their tiptoes.

He Lingchuan knew the price of Profound Crystals very well; he had one Middle-tier Lower-grade one in his bosom, just one. The fact that this stuff was calculated by the jin was outrageous!

Steward Zhao continued: "You also know that Profound Crystals of this grade are generally not priced in gold or silver. If it must be converted, the current market price per jin is roughly twenty thousand taels."

One hundred and twenty thousand taels! The price to buy a piece of Yu Gold actually started at one hundred and twenty thousand taels! Mao Tao managed to keep his expression unchanged with great difficulty, but his nostrils flared, and his breathing became heavy.

How big a pile would one hundred and twenty thousand taels of silver be if stacked together? He had been robbing on the Red Cliff Road for many years, and the total real income of their entire nest of sand bandits over fifteen years, after deducting various expenses, was at most one-fourth of this amount.

He Lingchuan stroked his chin, looking exceptionally calm: "That is truly..." So damn expensive! Even if he was a "wealthy young master," his monthly pocket money was only two or three hundred taels of silver; where was he going to scrape together one hundred and twenty thousand taels? "It's not cheap."

Money that could allow one to act as a tyrant in the countryside for a lifetime was, at the feet of the Son of Heaven, only enough to buy a piece of metal to repair a blade.

It seemed that if he wanted to walk the path of cultivation smoothly, he would have to think of other ways to make money.

Steward Zhao nodded in agreement: "Indeed, maintaining this Spirit Tool is truly not cheap. However, although this blade is good, it is broken after all, which is quite inconvenient when facing an enemy. Young Master He might as well look for another handy weapon; our shop has many choices here."

He Lingchuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Should he scold him for looking down on people, or thank him for being thoughtful? He rolled his eyes: "Are you so certain that this young master cannot afford Yu Gold?"

Steward Zhao had seen plenty of these "second-generation ancestors" who put on airs. He accompanied it with a smile and waved his hands again: "This thing is indeed too expensive. In business, one speaks of business; I also hope to save some costs for you, Young Master." If you have money, just take it out; why waste words? He Lingchuan tapped his fingers on the table twice in a thoughtful manner, then asked the craftsman Li Fubo: "To repair my broken blade, how much Yu Gold is needed?"

Li Fubo calculated in his head for a good while before saying: "A piece slightly smaller than the one sold by the Hengshui Firm would be enough."

That would still be over ninety or one hundred thousand, right? Even if he sold Young Master He a few more times, it wouldn't be enough.

But he wasn't panicked. He turned his head and asked Steward Zhao: "You also buy Spirit Tools here, right?"

Steward Zhao was startled: "You have another Spirit Tool?"

Anything below a Divine Tool was a Spirit Tool.

In this world, Divine Tools were impossible to exist, so Spirit Tools ranked at the top. Even if the quality was slightly inferior, major auction houses would fight over them. Including Shi Huan City, the auction houses in the capital of Great Yuan had only seen one new Spirit Tool in the past year. But this little nouveau riche said he not only had one, but two? Were they complete and undamaged? Could they be used? Naturally, the well-trained Steward Zhao wouldn't say this thought out loud; he just smiled until his face looked like a full moon: "May I take it out for a look?"

He Lingchuan took the Purple Gold Pestle from his storage ring and placed it on the table with a *thud*: "Master Li, take a look."

This precious pestle was purple-gold in color, its surface engraved with talismans, and a strange beast was carved on the top—with a wide nose, big mouth, bulging eyes, and whiskers, and four rings under its feet, while the end of the pestle was sharpened like an awl.

Master Li let out an "Eh," held it up with both hands to examine it closely, his nose almost touching the pestle, and couldn't help but let out another "Ah": "Young Master He, where did you obtain this treasure?"

He Lingchuan leaned back: "You tell me first if it counts as a Spirit Tool and how much it's worth." The Purple Gold Pestle had been gathering dust in his storage ring for months; it could finally be put to some use.

Steward Zhao also stared straight at this precious pestle, his eyes widening and rounding, his mouth stammering: "Th-this wouldn't be... I'm not seeing things, am I!"

They were all disciples of the Tool Sect, and being close to the capital, how could they not know such a famous treasure?

He couldn't care about losing his composure and said eagerly to Li Fubo: "Master Li, please verify it, verify it!" He then said to He Lingchuan, "Young Master, please forgive us; we must authenticate it."

"No problem, verify it as you please." True gold fears no fire.

Next, Li Fubo took out an unknown medicinal liquid and dripped it onto the pestle. The talismans on it immediately detached from the pestle body and flew out, slowly rotating around the precious pestle. Li Fubo watched without even blinking, and after a long while, he said: "It is the Xiao Mountain Demon-Subduing Curse, no mistake."

Afterward, he walked quickly to the inner hall, brought out a piece of metal the size of a finger, and brought it close to the beast head at the pestle's tip.

The beast head, which had originally been closed-eyed and motionless, suddenly opened its eyes and swallowed that piece of metal in one gulp.

"Why go to such trouble? And waste a piece of fine gold." He Lingchuan extended his broken blade and tapped the beast head three times—*dang, dang, dang*. "Hey, wake up, sing a couple of notes for the master."

The strange beast had originally disliked him, and now it was even angrier, roaring at him three times. It was as loud as an ox, shaking the dust on the beams until it fell in a flurry.

Steward Zhao and Li Fubo, however, were grinning from ear to ear: "It really is the Taofeng Beast! It really is National Master Sun's Purple Gold Pestle!"

"This is Taofeng?" One couldn't blame He Lingchuan for not recognizing it clearly; the dragon has nine sons, and except for the one carrying the stele, the others all looked quite similar.

"It is said that when this Purple Gold Pestle was forged, a wisp of Taofeng's divine soul was added." Li Fubo exclaimed in admiration, "Even if we wanted to forge such a treasure today, we wouldn't be able to find such a precious beast soul."

Steward Zhao couldn't help but ask again: "Dare I ask Young Master He, where did this treasure originate?"

The more precious the treasure, the more one had to investigate its origin. Songyang Prefecture was a famous name in the Tool Sect and could not openly accept stolen goods.

"This is our Young Master's spoils of war!" Mao Tao chimed in at the right moment, looking triumphant. "That old thief Sun Fuping was defeated by our Lord He and Young Master He!"

The three people opposite were all moved. Steward Zhao blurted out: "So Lord He is the one from Qiansong County, the one from Qiansong County..."

The news of the former National Master Sun Fuping falling in the Panlong Desert had spread throughout the capital months ago, and Shi Huan City, as one of the auxiliary capitals, certainly wouldn't have missed this news.

"Former Qiansong County Governor; now Lord He is already the Xiazhou Superintendent."

Steward Zhao's attitude toward He Lingchuan changed immediately. Not only was his smile fawning, but his waist bent even lower: "I cannot make the decision on such a treasure; I need to report it to my superiors. Young Master He, could you wait a moment?"

He Lingchuan waved his hand: "Make it quick." It looked like there was a chance.

Steward Zhao immediately took Li Fubo and walked toward the back, leaving the young attendant to step forward and replace the hot tea for the two distinguished guests.

The two of them walked straight through the back hall, exited through a small door at the back of Songyang Prefecture, passed through two small alleys, and walked into a large residence.

The residence's area was half that of Songyang Prefecture, but unlike the bustling noise there, this large residence had only ten servants, and everyone walked with light steps.

The wintersweet was in full bloom, and the accumulated snow on the small path had been swept clean. Gold plates hung from branches that had lost all their leaves, filled with millet and pine nuts for the winter sparrows and squirrels to feed on. Steward Zhao passed by a glass greenhouse and saw from afar the exotic flowers and rare herbs inside competing in beauty, as if unaffected by the seasons.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 173 =====