Chapter 143: The Dwarf

Meng Yifan came this time to seek a cultivation technique; unless absolutely necessary, he did not want to make an enemy of this mysterious Tower Master.

The Ghost Head Blade felt somewhat aggrieved, but since Meng Yifan would not let it get close to the black mist, it could not run over to devour it on its own and could only helplessly fall silent.

"Just now the Tower Master said these drifting black mists are Spirit Qi. It seems the Wanxiang Tower Master really is an Immortal Cultivator. I wonder if he can sell me a method for immortal cultivation?"

Meng Yifan looked at the black mist drifting around him, his heart filled with a longing for immortal cultivation.

Martial Artists temper their physical bodies, condensing True Qi from the body's blood and energy; they emphasize internal training of a single breath and external training of tendons, bones, and skin. When cultivated to a profound realm, a single punch can collapse a small mountain, and their close-combat ability is extremely formidable.

Immortal Cultivators are different from Martial Artists; they can absorb Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, convert it into Spirit Power through cultivation techniques, and then use their own Spirit Power as a guide to cast spells, mobilize Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi, and unleash the terrifying power to Summon Wind and Rain or overturn mountains and seas.

Immortal cultivation is another path of practice; compared to Martial Artists, it is more mysterious and unfathomable, and also more yearning.

It is said that when an Immortal Cultivator reaches the extreme, they can even roam the North Sea in the morning and the Cangwu in the evening, carefree and long-lived, immortal for all eternity.

Not only that, Immortal Cultivators can perform alchemy, Refining, create Runes, set up Arrays, and more; the methods they can employ are strange and varied, making them impossible to guard against.

Immortal Cultivators have many methods, but relatively speaking, Martial Artists have formidable physical bodies and pure blood and energy, and their combat power is also very strong after Condensing Qi into Steel. If a Martial Artist manages to get close, an Immortal Cultivator of the same level is not necessarily the Martial Artist's match.

Meng Yifan was excited as he continued walking forward along the small path. The surrounding black mist all retreated to the sides, as if guarding against him like a thief, seemingly afraid that he would devour the black mist again, which made him unable to help but smile.

Meng Yifan muttered in his heart: "The Wanxiang Tower Master is truly stingy. There is so much black mist around; even if the Ghost Head Blade devours some, it is no big deal. Is it necessary to make the black mist hide from him like this?"

Meng Yifan walked along the small path toward the Valley. Along the way, he had already discovered that the further he walked toward the Valley, the denser the surrounding black mist became.

It was just that the Tower Master did not want to let the Ghost Head Blade devour the black mist and did not know what method he used to make the black mist around Meng Yifan drift away in all directions.

In some places, the black mist gathered together, as dense as rolling dark clouds, seemingly ready to drip black liquid at any moment.

Soon, Meng Yifan arrived at the entrance of the Valley. The environment here was very peculiar; surrounded by mountain walls, a gap three meters wide and five meters high had been opened here, with dense black mist permeating inside, making it impossible to see clearly what was within.

Suddenly, a pair of scarlet eyes emerged from the black mist, looking at Meng Yifan outside the Valley. Being stared at by these eyes, Meng Yifan could not help but feel a chill down his back, his hair standing on end.

"Are those eyes the eyes of the Wanxiang Tower Master? What kind of existence is he exactly? Why are his eyes a weird scarlet color, emitting an evil glow? They say the eyes are the windows to the soul; with such a pair of evil eyes, this Wanxiang Tower Master is probably not a good person, right?"

Meng Yifan was somewhat nervous and did not dare to rashly step into the Valley. He gripped the Ghost Head Blade tightly, cautiously on guard.

The scarlet eyes slowly walked to the entrance of the Valley. Meng Yifan finally saw the appearance of the Wanxiang Tower Master and could not help but gasp.

The Wanxiang Tower Master was only 1.2 meters tall, with a short stature but a very large head, just like a deformed dwarf. What was even more terrifying was that he was extremely thin, almost nothing but skin and bones.

On that massive head, his cheeks were sunken, just like a skull. Inside his eye sockets were a pair of scarlet eyes, like two leaping flames, which were sizing up Meng Yifan.

The Wanxiang Tower Master wore a black robe with blood-red Runes. Standing at the entrance of the Valley, he looked at Meng Yifan's body as if looking at a treasure, saying meaningfully: "Full of vitality, tough tendons and bones, vigorous blood and energy, and a decent appearance. Truly a fine skin bag."

Meng Yifan was startled and subconsciously took a few steps back, holding the Ghost Head Blade, ready to fight a great battle at any moment.

"Don't be nervous. What business do you have coming to find me?" the Wanxiang Tower Master said.

Meng Yifan suppressed the unease in his heart, bowed, and said: "Tower Master, this junior wishes to purchase the method for Condensing Qi into Steel and an Immortal Cultivation Technique."

The Wanxiang Tower Master was silent for a moment and said: "The method for Condensing Qi into Steel is a secret passed down within every major sect, and Immortal Cultivation Techniques are even more priceless. If you want to purchase them, ordinary silver won't do. If you want them, you can only trade with treasures."

"How about this: that Ghost Head Blade in your hand is not bad. Give it to me, and I will give you the method for Condensing Qi into Steel. How about that?"

Meng Yifan was stunned. The Ghost Head Blade was his most important treasure besides the Game Panel. If he lost the Ghost Head Blade, he would be unable to control the Bloodthirsty Ghost Rat Shuke, nor could he drive the ghost soldiers and ghost generals.

It could be said that without the Ghost Head Blade, Meng Yifan's combat power would instantly drop by a large margin. Of course, he was unwilling to give up the Ghost Head Blade.

Moreover, the Ghost Head Blade was mysterious and unfathomable, and currently only a broken item. If it were completed, its functions would surely be even more powerful. Therefore, even if he could not buy the method for Condensing Qi into Steel, he could not sell the Ghost Head Blade.

"Tower Master, the Ghost Head Blade is my beloved item and cannot be sold. Look at this Artifact Shield and this Binding Demon Rope Dharma Artifact; how about these? I can sell these two Dharma Artifacts to you," Meng Yifan said.

The Wanxiang Tower Master said with disdain: "The shield and the Binding Demon Rope are just standard Dharma Artifacts of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty. To you, they might be treasures, but in my eyes, they are all trash. Especially since your Dharma Artifact is already damaged; according to how you use it, it will be completely scrapped after a few more uses. My place is not a scrap collection center; I don't want such trash."

Meng Yifan took out from his bosom a Dharma Bell and a palm-sized Stone Disk.

This Dharma Bell was the Dharma Artifact used by Zhang Chao of the Divine Machine Battalion to control the Bloodthirsty Ghost Rat, while that Stone Disk was obtained from the Flying Tiger Demon and could control clouds and mist in a small area. If one knew the method of control, one could also use this Stone Disk to release fog and seal off an entire village.

"Tower Master, I wonder if these things can be exchanged for the method for Condensing Qi into Steel and an Immortal Cultivation Technique?" Meng Yifan asked.

From the Valley, a wisp of condensed Spiritual Power spread out, sweeping over the Dharma Bell and the Stone Disk.

After a moment, the Tower Master said: "I didn't expect you brat to have so many good things. That Dharma Bell is also a standard Dharma Artifact and is worthless."

"As for this Stone Disk, the refining technique is very crude. It should have been manufactured by the Demon Race imitating the refining techniques of us human Immortal Cultivators. It's not even as good as the standard Dharma Artifacts of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty. However, the Demon Race's refining techniques are different from those of Immortal Cultivators and have some unique aspects; it's quite interesting. It's a pity this Stone Disk is useless to me; it's also trash."

Meng Yifan was speechless. He only had these extraordinary items on him, yet in front of the Wanxiang Tower Master, they were basically all trash. Only the Ghost Head Blade was considered a good thing by the Wanxiang Tower Master, but the Ghost Head Blade definitely could not be sold, which was a bit troublesome.