Chapter 458

Li Zhangsheng had seen Spirit Beasts carrying treasures before; he recalled that back then, he had only spent five Soul Crystals to obtain a rare and precious Bloodline Stone from a small puppy.

The situation before him was similar to that time; this Clam Spirit also carried some kind of treasure, though unlike the Bloodline Stone from before, the light spot symbolizing the treasure flickered in and out, as if it had been concealed.

However, judging by the intensity of the flickering light, it already surpassed that of the Bloodline Stone from before; if it weren't for the concealment, its brightness would surely be even more intense.

At this thought, Li Zhangsheng immediately became excited; he subconsciously walked toward the Clam Spirit, determined to obtain her.

The Clam Spirit was beautiful and graceful, her most striking feature being her exceptionally fair skin, which was lustrous, moist, white with a rosy tint, and incredibly delicate; her upper body was covered by shells, and her lower body was wrapped in a skirt of water grass, full of exotic allure and charm.

This was why she attracted the attention of so many men; at the same time, due to their unique appearance, humanoid Spirit Beasts like Clam Spirits, mermaids, and sea sirens were often eyed by hunters, which directly made them rare types of Spirit Beasts.

Under the gaze of the "Wolf Pack," this female Clam Spirit's face turned pale with fright, and she trembled all over, yet this only made her seem more pitiful, stimulating the protective instincts of the "werewolves" present.

Li Zhangsheng did not squeeze into the crowded "Wolf Pack"; he simply floated up lightly, stepping through the void, and stood in the air not far from the Clam Spirit.

Perhaps it was Li Zhangsheng's way of appearing, or perhaps it was his astonishing charm and temperament, but the Clam Spirit couldn't help but look at Li Zhangsheng, and to her surprise, she saw no naked desire in his eyes.

Well, Li Zhangsheng only had eyes for the treasure, not her!

Upon this discovery, the Clam Spirit couldn't help but stare fixedly at Li Zhangsheng, hoping that he would take her away; even if the other party wanted to do those unspeakable things to her, she would accept it.

After all, this was a world that looked at appearances, and appearance represented justice; if it had been Zhang Yi, the Clam Spirit would likely have been even more terrified.

Li Zhangsheng was a prominent figure at Yuanling Academy, and his reputation had spread throughout the entire Academy District, so they naturally could not fail to recognize Li Zhangsheng.

This was the Yuanling Academy Market District, and most of those who could come here were students and Instructors from the various academies in the Academy District, or Monster Tamers attached to the various academies.

When the merchant selling the Clam Spirit saw Li Zhangsheng, he couldn't help but reveal a fawning smile on his fat face and hurriedly greeted Li Zhangsheng; with Li Zhangsheng here, he had a better chance of selling at a high price.

"Alright, state your price?"

Li Zhangsheng did not want to waste time; the longer he stayed here, the easier it was to cause unnecessary misunderstandings.

The merchant's eyes rolled, and he hurriedly said: "This humble one has decided to auction the Clam Spirit; the highest bidder wins!"

Li Zhangsheng frowned slightly, but he did not interrupt.

The Clam Spirit belonged to the merchant, and Li Zhangsheng had no say in how he wanted to sell it.

"Everyone, please look here; this is the information for this Clam Spirit!"

The merchant took out a wooden board with the detailed information of the Clam Spirit written on it.

【Spirit Beast Name】: Clam Spirit (Growth Stage)

【Spirit Beast Realm】: Upper 3rd Rank

【Spirit Beast Race】: Medium Warrior

【Spirit Beast Quality】: Mid-grade

【Spirit Beast Bloodline】: Jiaotu (Sparse)

【Spirit Beast Attribute】: Water

【Spirit Beast Status】: Fearful

【Spirit Beast Weakness】: Earth

Jiaotu is the ninth son of the Ancestral Dragon, resembling a snail or clam, with a gentle temperament; because it is rather introverted, it always keeps its shell tightly closed when encountering external intrusion. Therefore, people often carve its image on the door knockers or engrave it on door panels to keep petty thieves away.

However, unlike the information on the wooden board, Li Zhangsheng was surprised to find that there was content in 《》 on the Clam Spirit's data, which read: "Due to absorbing a large amount of Life Force, the Clam Spirit has gained a Life Body; every short interval, it will automatically recover a certain degree of injuries and stamina."

"Life Body, it must have consumed a treasure containing rich Life Force; wait, that's not right!"

Li Zhangsheng seemed to have thought of something, and his heart stirred; from the feedback of his Mental Power, it was a green light spot, and unlike ordinary Wood Energy, the energy aura emitted by this treasure was full of life.

The Clam Spirit's Life Body was likely related to this treasure, but the puzzle was that Li Zhangsheng had observed for a long time and still could not see where the Clam Spirit had hidden the treasure.

"The starting price for the Clam Spirit is one hundred Soul Crystals, and each increment must be no less than 10 Soul Crystals; begin!"

As soon as the merchant finished speaking, some interested buyers spoke up one after another.

"110 Soul Crystals!"

"120 Soul Crystals!"

……

However, their increments were not large; after all, if one ignored the Clam Spirit's appearance, her value would be at most two hundred Soul Crystals.

"Two hundred Soul Crystals!"

Li Zhangsheng didn't want to waste time and directly raised the price to two hundred Soul Crystals.

The other interested buyers were all stunned for a moment; some buyers immediately chose to give up, but there were also some who continued to bid.

"210 Soul Crystals!"

Before other buyers could speak, Li Zhangsheng's voice sounded again: "Three hundred Soul Crystals!"

Gulp~

At this, the buyers who were about to speak all shut their mouths; even taking the Clam Spirit's appearance into account, three hundred Soul Crystals had almost reached the limit.

The merchant hurriedly stood out and said loudly: "Is there anyone higher than three hundred Soul Crystals? Such a beautiful Clam Spirit, I fear it will be hard to see one again in the future."

Not far away, a youth with dark circles under his eyes hunched his body slightly, gritted his teeth, made up his mind, and shouted: "I bid 310 Soul Crystals!"

Li Zhangsheng glanced at the other party sideways, focusing on the youth's crotch where a "small tent" was pitched, and calmly shouted: "320 Soul Crystals!"

The youth with dark circles naturally noticed; although Li Zhangsheng's gaze was plain and unremarkable, the moment he thought of Li Zhangsheng's strength and background, he couldn't help but shiver, and all the unspeakable fantasies in his mind vanished into thin air.

The youth with dark circles shook his head and did not continue to bid.

Seeing the youth with dark circles give up, the merchant felt anxious and repeated his temptations once more, but unfortunately, no one was willing to offer a higher price, and in the end, the deal was made with Li Zhangsheng.

After signing a Temporary Contract with the Clam Spirit, Li Zhangsheng did not stay in the Market District long and returned directly to the Number One Courtyard.

The first thing Li Zhangsheng did was to summon the Clam Spirit.

The Clam Spirit was nervous and fearful; her shell subconsciously closed halfway, leaving only a small gap, terrified that Li Zhangsheng would turn into a "werewolf" and take her right there.

"I, I am not ready yet!"

Hearing the shy and timid words of the Clam Spirit, Li Zhangsheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry; knowing she had misunderstood, he had to ask straightforwardly: "Clam Spirit, are you carrying some kind of treasure?"

"Treasure?"

The Spirit Beast looked at Li Zhangsheng in confusion; her expression did not seem to be Pseudo.

"A treasure containing life force!"

"Life force, so that's what you're talking about!"

Upon hearing "life force," the Spirit Beast revealed a look of sudden realization, subconsciously looking toward her right chest covered by the shell, as if remembering something, and said with a blushing face: "Wait a moment!"

After speaking, the Spirit Beast closed her shell completely, leaving not a single gap.

Li Zhangsheng shook his head with amusement; from the Spirit Beast's demeanor and eyes, he naturally saw where she was hiding the item, but he said nothing and waited quietly on the side.

Within a few breaths, the shell opened slightly, and a fair, delicate jade-like hand reached out from within.

"Here, take it!"

After handing a fingernail-sized dark green seed to Li Zhangsheng, the Spirit Beast hurriedly closed her shell again.

Li Zhangsheng retreated a few steps while clutching the seed, and using the feedback from his Mental Power, he discovered that this was indeed the treasure he had scanned.

However, because there was no longer any concealment, the brightness of the light spot representing the green seed rose by a clear notch; according to Li Zhangsheng's experience, it had almost reached the strength of a Heaven and Earth Rare Treasure Grade treasure.

The key... this was just a tiny seed!

With such a small volume, yet containing so much life force, it could be called the most he had ever seen in his life; it could only be described as terrifyingly powerful.

Taking a step back, he had not even seen a seed with the energy concentration of a Heavenly Essence Grade.

According to common sense, the energy concentration of a seed should be at least one notch lower than the final finished product.

In other words, if the dark green seed grew successfully, the final product would very likely be a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure of World Wonder grade.

"What kind of Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure is this seed from?" Li Zhangsheng could not help but think to himself; he had never seen such a seed before.

Knock, knock~

Li Zhangsheng could not help but knock on the shell; he felt it would be better to ask the Spirit Beast.

The shell opened a tiny gap, and the Spirit Beast's voice, as thin as a mosquito's, sounded: "I really am not ready!"

"Spirit Beast, do not misunderstand. I do not have those thoughts about you; I just want to ask about the origin of this seed."

Hearing Li Zhangsheng say this, the Spirit Beast finally breathed a sigh of relief, and the shell opened a bit wider.

"You mean this? I found it by chance in the water."

Li Zhangsheng did not want to let go of any opportunity due to carelessness and continued to ask: "Where exactly was it?"

Where this seed was located, there was a certain possibility that other treasures still existed.

The Spirit Beast thought about it carefully, and finally shook her head, saying: "I don't know either. I only know that I lived in a lake, and there were big trees all around."

From a young age, she and her kin lived in a remote little lake; to avoid being discovered by Greed-filled humans, they lived a reclusive life year-round, so naturally, she had not taken the initiative to find out where she lived.

Unfortunately, they still exposed their tracks and ultimately could not escape the fate of being captured all at once, and she was sold here.

"Did you find anything else there?"

"No!"

"I see!"

Li Zhangsheng frowned, preparing to ask the merchant who sold the Spirit Beast later, hoping to get a clue there.

"Spirit Beast, in exchange for you handing over this seed, I can now give you two choices."

Li Zhangsheng paused and continued: "First, I find a remote place and set you free; second, I find a safe place for you where your safety can be guaranteed and you won't be bullied, though there won't be much freedom. You can consider it."

The Spirit Beast did not make a decision immediately; a conflicted expression appeared on her beautiful face, and she asked timidly: "Can't I follow you?"

"No!"

Li Zhangsheng directly rejected her. As the number of his Demon Pets increased, his energy became more dispersed, and coupled with the Spirit Beast's limited potential, he naturally had no intention of cultivating her long-term.

The Spirit Beast was somewhat disappointed. She considered it carefully and soon made up her mind: "I choose the second one!"

It was no wonder the Spirit Beast chose this; she knew very well that she could no longer go back.

Taking a step back, even if she returned to her hometown, she would never see her kin again, and with the Greed of humans, once her tracks were discovered, she would likely face the fate of being captured again; she might not encounter a 'good person' like Li Zhangsheng next time.

Rather than that, it was better to choose the second option.

"A very wise choice!"

Li Zhangsheng sighed and finally settled the Spirit Beast in the small courtyard where Lin Wan and her daughter lived.

The Spirit Beast was a kind and gentle humanoid Spirit Beast, and since Li Zhangsheng had not revoked the Temporary Contract, he did not have to worry about Lin Wan and her daughter being harmed.

Besides, the Spirit Beast was an Upper Realm Spirit Beast after all; with her presence, she could also deter those unruly Spirit Beast cubs, which would to some extent lighten the workload for Lin Wan and her daughter—it could be called killing two birds with one stone.

In the Yuanling Academy Market District, Li Zhangsheng found the merchant who was about to leave and asked where he had captured the Spirit Beast.

"I don't know about that; I bought her from someone else. Why are you asking about this?"

"I want to set her free, and the best choice is naturally her hometown. How about this: if you find where her hometown is, I can give you a reward of ten Soul Crystals. What do you think?"

A look of Greed flashed in the merchant's eyes, and he feigned generosity, saying: "Since that's the case, I'll help you ask around. This will take some time, and besides, I don't have absolute certainty."

"Good!"

After bidding farewell to the merchant, Li Zhangsheng came to the backyard of the Number One Courtyard and stood in front of a stone trough several meters long; all the Breathing Soil he had was placed in the stone trough, with dozens of medicinal herbs planted on it.

The Breathing Soil was too little and there was not much space left. Li Zhangsheng thought for a moment, pulled out a few mature medicinal herbs, cleared a spot in the middle of the stone trough, and solemnly buried the dark green seed inside.

Breathing Soil could automatically absorb energy from the surroundings, was suitable for the survival of the vast majority of plants, and had different growth acceleration effects on plants of different ranks.

This dark green seed reached the Heaven and Earth Rare Treasure Grade, and the Breathing Soil's growth acceleration effect on it was not very ideal, at most reaching twice the growth speed.

Just as the seed was buried in the Breathing Soil, a faint green light shone through the soil, and the two nearest medicinal herbs were also within the coverage.

Li Zhangsheng could feel a surge of life force, but it was slightly different from Life Jade and Life Water; its nature seemed to be of a higher grade.

"Perhaps it will have some benefits for them; I'll check the effect after a while!"

Li Zhangsheng did not move these two medicinal herbs; his only worry was that these two herbs might be 'too weak to withstand the nourishment.'

For the rest of the day, Li Zhangsheng stayed with Ning Bizhen, because tomorrow was the day to set off for the front lines.

(End of chapter)