Chapter 137

“`

Hmm???

“`

Three question marks simultaneously popped up above Wang Chen’s head.

The black ring in the palm of his hand had appeared out of nowhere, without any warning.

But Wang Chen immediately realized what had happened.

It was Yuanyuan who had taken it out of his Storage Bag!

Wang Chen had long discovered that Yuanyuan possessed the ability to open spatial equipment.

So when he had a Spirit Pet Vest custom-made for it,

he specially asked the proprietress of the tailor shop to add a Mini Storage Pouch to the vest.

Yuanyuan had no problems using it.

However, what Wang Chen hadn’t expected came next.

Following that, Yuanyuan took out a vine as thick as a finger and a silver-grey stone the size of an orange.

Together, they nearly filled his palm!

“Ying ying.”

The little one called out to Wang Chen in a soft voice, like a child longing for daddy’s praise!

“Yuanyuan is such a good girl.”

Wang Chen placed it, along with the items in his hand, on the table and sincerely praised, “That’s amazing!”

Yuanyuan had just told him.

These things were all dug up from the ground and could be exchanged for dried meat, so he wouldn’t have to work so hard.

Wang Chen was so touched he almost cried.

Yuanyuan’s intelligence far surpassed his imagination, and he had definitely made the right choice in picking it.

It didn’t matter whether these things were worth any Spirit Stones or how much Monster Beast meat they could be exchanged for.

They were all dug out by Yuanyuan with great effort.

This made Wang Chen feel as if he owned a smart and warm little cotton-padded jacket, giving him warmth in this cold and cruel world!

Wang Chen couldn’t help but pick up the little one and kiss it, “Thank you.”

“Ying~”

Yuanyuan affectionately rubbed against Wang Chen’s cheek and wagged its little tail.

Just like its mother.

Wang Chen smiled, put it back on the table, and then picked up the black ring.

The ring was heavy.

He had no idea what material it was made from.

The surface of it faintly revealed dense talismans—this was a clear characteristic of a Magic Artifact!

Wang Chen tried to infuse it with mana.

The ring immediately emitted threads of dark gold light, revealing its true brilliance in an instant.

Mysterious Armor Ring!

A piece of text instantly appeared in Wang Chen’s Sea of Consciousness.

This was the information left by the Artificer who created the ring, and any Cultivator who infused it with mana could see it.

An introduction to the Magic Artifact!

The Mysterious Armor Ring was a protective Magic Artifact that, once refined and worn, would automatically activate Mysterious Armor to protect the body if it encountered a fatal attack.

He consulted his Immortal Cultivation panel and saw that there was no new display in the equipment section, signifying that this item was not of a very high grade.

Probably around the same level as the Soul-Shaking Bell.

But a Magic Artifact that could automatically protect its master was also very expensive.

It could save lives at a critical moment!

Wang Chen excitedly slid it onto the ring finger of his left hand.

The size was just right.

Wang Chen’s eyes turned to Yuanyuan,

Yuanyuan’s true talent was not using the Storage Bag, nor its superb digging technique.

It was a treasure-hunting rat!

Wang Chen remembered how Yuanyuan’s father had once brought him a Spirit Stone to exchange for food.

Little Yuanyuan had clearly inherited the divine powers of the Brocade Fur Rat.

And it had even surpassed its parent!

After petting the little one, Wang Chen picked up the vine and the silver stone.

But these two items definitely touched on the blind spots of his knowledge; he couldn’t make heads or tails of them.

However, with the example of the Mysterious Armor Ring, Wang Chen believed that the little treasures Yuanyuan had laboriously found to give him were not junk.

He’d have them appraised by someone.

Wang Chen was just about to go to Cloud Mountain City, so he stored the two items in his Storage Bag first.

He asked Yuanyuan, “Do you want to come with me to play in the city?”

But Yuanyuan shook its head, “Ying ying ying~”

It wanted to keep digging for treasures!

Wang Chen was truly impressed.

And quite ashamed.

The little guy was so hardworking.

Did he have any excuse not to be diligent himself?

Stepping outside his home, Wang Chen summoned the Willow Leaf Flying Boat and sped toward Cloud Mountain City!

With the Flying Artifact for transport, traveling was no longer a torment.

It only took him the time it takes to burn a stick of incense to reach his destination.

Since flying below the Golden Core level was prohibited above Cloud Mountain City, Wang Chen landed outside the city gates, put away his Flying Boat, and walked into the familiar city.

Half an hour later, he came out of the Four Seas Commerce Association with an ugly expression on his face.

Wang Chen’s main purpose in visiting Cloud Mountain City was to sell a batch of talismans he had crafted.

He planned to earn enough from selling talismans to buy a flying sword.

Wang Chen’s Primary Talisman Making Skill had already reached a Grandmaster level.

Not only was the success rate of his talisman production extremely high, but the quality was also exceptional.

Initially, Wang Chen was worried about drawing too much attention by being too successful and only sold talismans a few times to break even, not daring to brazenly rake in Spirit Stones.

After all, behind every talisman shop in the city stood one or even several Purple Mansion Superiors.

It would be easy to attract the attention of interested parties and cause trouble for himself.

Now that Wang Chen had been promoted to the Inner Sect, with the status of an Inner Sect Disciple, the situation was much better.

At worst, he could take turns operating in Cloud Mountain, Cloud Lake, and Cloud Sea cities and use the Thousand Mechanisms Changing technique to conceal his true identity, thus greatly reducing the risk.

The key point was, Wang Chen only needed to earn enough Spirit Stones to buy a Flying Sword and then he would stop, with no intention of challenging the status of others in the industry.

He believed he had thought everything through very thoroughly and should not encounter any major issues.

However, what Wang Chen never expected was that just as he was about to implement his fundraising plan, it completely fell apart!

The price of Magical Talismans for sale in the talisman shops of Cloud Mountain City had increased.

For example, an Evil-Repelling Talisman that was originally sold for one Low Spirit now required an additional twenty Fragmented Spirit Stones.

The price had increased by about twenty percent.

In theory, this should be good news for Wang Chen.

But the purchase price had dropped.

It had fallen by nearly twenty percent too!

The most infuriating aspect was the rise in the price of materials for Talisman Crafting.

Whether it was the Talisman Pen, Talisman Ink, or Talisman Paper.

Everything went up in price!

Wang Chen did a simple calculation.

Under the current market conditions, if he devoted himself completely to Talisman Crafting, he could still earn Spirit Stones.

However, the profit from selling to talisman shops, compared to before, had dropped to a pitiful degree!

It simply wasn’t worth it.

Of course, there were other options.

For instance, around the middle to late December, the Heaven Cloud Immortal Gathering would begin, and setting up a stall there could potentially fetch a good price.

Or, he could become a Traveling Merchant and venture to Loose Cultivator cities in the Outer Domain to peddle his wares…

But remote solutions couldn’t quench his immediate thirst, and were full of uncertainties — venturing into the Outer Domain as a Traveling Merchant was practically courting death.

It was only wishful thinking.

Wang Chen, unwilling to give up, had visited every talisman shop in the city and received the same response.

It was clear that these talisman shops had already formed an alliance.

They monopolized the supply of raw materials, sales, and purchasing channels, easily manipulating the talisman market.

For cultivators at the bottom who wanted to make Spirit Stones by crafting talismans.

In the face of such alliances, they were nothing more than easy pickings!

Wang Chen had also inquired at the Four Seas Commerce Association just a moment ago, only to find out that they no longer dealt in low-level talismans.

Birds of a feather!

Wang Chen was truly at a loss for words.

There was no turning back, for at the end of the day, this was a transcendent world where power resided within oneself.

Might made right.

If he were powerful enough, not only could he easily earn some Spirit Stones, but he could also hang those dishonest merchants on arrows shot from the Heavy Crossbows defending the city without any problem.

Without strength, there’s no point in resenting others!

Wang Chen quickly adjusted his mindset and, crossing two streets, entered a real estate agency.

The Flying Sword, he was determined to have it.

Mastering the Sword Control Technique would greatly improve Wang Chen’s ability to attack from a distance and enrich his combat methods.

It would also give him a new trump card when facing powerful enemies.

The lethality of a Flying Sword was undoubted!

Although the plan to earn Spirit Stones through Talisman Crafting had failed, Wang Chen still had one last resort.

It was the house left behind by Wang Shaoyuan!

Real estate prices in Cloud Mountain City were always high and had risen significantly in recent years.

Wang Chen had done his research beforehand.

This house could now be sold for tens of thousands of Spirit Stones, just enough for him to commission a Flying Sword!

Yet, this house carried countless fond memories of its original owner. As the successor of the original owner, Wang Chen truly felt a bit guilty about selling it for his own sake.

But on second thought.

He had already resolved all of the original owner’s karma and fully integrated the original owner’s remnant soul.

There was no distinction between them.

There was really no need to be sentimental.

Most importantly, the house was of no use now; leaving it empty would be an utter waste!

With his mind made up.

Wang Chen found a real estate agent in the agency.

And put the house up for sale.

———

The first update is here, and there will be two more this evening.

PS: Today is Father’s Day, wishing all dads a happy holiday!

PS2: This morning, Yuanyuan used her New Year’s money to buy a gift for the author-dad and treated him to a grand meal, happiness ing!