Chapter 587: Long-term Residence

A month has passed since Aaron rented a place in Dongmen Market.

He still has not broken through the bottleneck of the Qi Refining Late Stage, but Aaron is not in a hurry.

The transition from the Qi Refining Middle Stage to the Late Stage is a small leap, so naturally, it is not something that can be broken through easily.

With the experience from his previous breakthrough, he just needs to polish his Dharma Power every day and keep trying slowly.

However, he can vaguely feel signs of the barrier loosening, which is already considered quite fast.

"With the dual assistance of Spirit Rice and the Spirit Vein, it really is different..."

"Even if I didn't eat Spirit Rice, in this cultivation environment, perhaps I could complete the sixth layer of my original Hunyuan Art in just six or seven years!"

This makes Aaron somewhat envious; although he is very skilled with the Fireball Technique and the Golden Light Shield, casting spells and crafting Talismans are two different things.

And lending Spirit Stones directly to Donglong is even more inadvisable; since they are neither kin nor friends, the old man might think he has some bad intentions.

"There is just no comparison, no comparison at all..."

At a stall, the gray-haired Donglong is wearing a pleading expression, speaking kindly to the stall owner: "Lower it by one more, lower it by one more Spirit Stone!"

Immortal Cultivators are fickle-minded; joining in now might make the stall owner think they are working a double act, which would not help the person but instead create an enemy.

His words are full of traps, but Aaron does not care.

At this moment, he simply comes to the market to walk around and observe, learning the prices of the Immortal Cultivation World.

"The mortal world outside is in chaos again; the old man heard that another mortal city has been slaughtered..."

"Oh? Let's go together!"

According to the inquiries and summaries he has made during this time, there is a hierarchy of contempt among the Four Arts of Cultivation; specifically, those who practice Alchemy despise those who practice Artifact Refining, and those who practice Artifact Refining despise those who practice Talisman Making!

Aaron looked at the menu and found that a bottle of 'Hundred Flower Brew' costs one Spirit Stone, but he does not care much about that; he ordered a few more dishes, bringing the table to three Spirit Stones, which made Donglong praise his generosity repeatedly.

"What is it, fellow Daoist? I am a tenant of the Dongmen Family!" Old man Donglong spoke in a weak tone, but he was clever and stated his identity directly.

After the two were full of food and drink, old man Donglong pulled out the Jade-Mouth Purple-Gold Copper Tobacco Pipe tucked into his waist, took a satisfying puff, looked at the empty bowl, and sighed: "This old man has farmed for half a lifetime; the number of times I've enjoyed this Spirit Rice and Spirit Rice wine can be counted on ten fingers... What does fellow Daoist want to ask? As long as it does not involve Secrecy, this old man will tell you everything he knows without reservation..."

"People have ancestral craftsmanship; the Magic Tools they forge are all high-quality... Your Black Iron Shield already has some defects; look at this corner, there are even scratches on it! Besides... if it's stolen goods, this old man has to bear the risk too; seven, let's make it seven!" Old man Donglong laid out the facts and reasoned, but the big man simply would not sell.

He is an expert at the Qi Refining Late Stage; at this moment, he glared, and old man Donglong's expression froze, his words swallowed back.

The stall owner is a big man wearing a tiger-skin apron, answering quite impatiently.

After finishing his daily lessons, Aaron strolled out of his room to wander around the market.

"Oh, isn't this old man Zhou?"

He sports a goatee, has a refined appearance, and his cultivation is around the fifth or sixth layer.

Aaron watched the back of old man Zhou as he left with his hands behind his back, sighing in his heart.

Old man Zhou gave a lukewarm greeting, appearing somewhat arrogant.

In interpersonal relationships, starting with sincerity is important; if the first impression is very bad, then everything is ruined.

However, he does indeed have a reason to be arrogant, because he is a 'Talisman Master' capable of crafting Talismans!

Although he can only craft the lowest-level 'Fireball Talisman' and 'Golden Light Shield' Talismans, he can still maintain a long-term Cave Abode in Dongmen Market and occasionally eat a meal of Spirit Rice, remaining safe and secure.

"Fellow Daoist, please make this Magic Tool a bit cheaper; after all, it is second-hand."

"So it is Brother Fang."

After all, time reveals a person's heart!

Old man Donglong took some tobacco from his pipe: "I don't know when the Lin Kingdom royal family will be able to suppress this..."

Hearing that these were all common questions, old man Donglong's expression relaxed further, and he answered in detail, finally making Aaron feel that he was no longer completely in the dark about the Immortal Cultivation World.

"Oh? Why are you so certain the royal family will win?" Aaron asked casually.

Aaron smiled; the name Fang Yu is very ordinary, so he can use it freely.

And even back in Taize Prefecture, 'Fang Yu' was not a famous figure; now that several generations have passed, there is absolutely no risk of exposure.

And since they are neither kin nor friends, old man Zhou obviously would not pass on his livelihood skills to him, nor would he even offer a hint!

'This is only the Talisman Master, who is at the very bottom of the contempt chain in the Four Arts of Cultivation...'

After the two went in, there were not many guests; after all, there are only so many Immortal Cultivators in the market, so they sat at a large table.

This kind of thing cannot be rushed, but fortunately, he is not in a hurry at all.

And then, Array Masters despise everyone! Because Array Formation is the hardest to get started with!

As for 'Spirit Planters', or 'Spirit Farmers'?

Sorry... those don't count as people...

After thinking about it, Aaron deliberately avoided the Dongmen Family and asked about the Lin Kingdom Immortal Cultivation World, the surrounding Immortal Cultivation World, and things like Monster Beasts.

A moment later, the two arrived at a Spirit Food shop that Donglong spoke highly of; it looked like an ordinary restaurant.

He has always been willing to put in the effort in this regard.

At this time, inside a Cave Abode not far away, an old man wearing a pitch-black Daoist robe with gray hair and beard walked out slowly.

Although Aaron is pondering learning a skill or profession, he also knows that inheritance is not easy and can only plan slowly.

By observing and understanding the market conditions more, he will not be at a disadvantage when he trades in the future.

Donglong looked Aaron up and down, his eyes holding the craftiness peculiar to a farmer: "I can answer your questions, but you must treat me to a good meal; I know a Spirit Food shop right here in the market, and the food and wine there are superb."

Aaron just watched silently, with no intention of intervening.

Therefore, he waited until old man Donglong had talked himself hoarse and was about to leave dejectedly before calling out to him: "This fellow Daoist..."

After his daily, unwavering cultivation time, he still has plenty of spare time, which he uses to silently observe, integrate into the market, and become a familiar face to his neighbors.

"And the Spirit Qi in the market is only second-rate; the place where the Dongmen Family resides is where the Spirit Vein is truly the most concentrated..."

And the higher the profession is on the contempt chain, the harder it is to get started!

"Haha... I am Fang Yu; I just saw you when I passed by the Spirit Field earlier and wanted to make a friend and ask for some information. We are all in the market, surely I couldn't possibly harm you?"

"I am charging you eight Spirit Stones for this Black Iron Shield; it really isn't expensive. Take a look in the Refining Fire Furnace—which Low-grade Magical Artifact is sold for less than ten Spirit Stones?"

Old man Donglong immediately called for wine to drink, then smiled at Aaron and said, "The Hundred Flower Brew at this place is truly brewed with Spirit Rice and infused with the fragrance of a hundred flowers; tsk tsk... it is indescribably wonderful."

Aaron laughed heartily.

"That is only natural. The Lin Kingdom royal family was established by the Golden Core Sect—the Qingding Sect, and has already been passed down for a thousand years. In the Lin Kingdom, as long as the Qingding Sect does not fall, the royal family cannot fall... at most, they will just change the Emperor!" Old man Donglong said with absolute certainty.

Aaron, however, suddenly realized the truth and somewhat understood why Huang Wenlong had met such an end back then.

(End of this chapter)