Chapter 221: Divine Armory

Chapter 221: Divine Armory

When Qi Xuansu left The Inn, he had two brand new cash notes in hand. Each of these cash notes issued by the Taiping Bank was worth 1,000 Taiping coins and still smelled of fresh ink.

In addition, Qin Wubing also asked his confidants to give Qi Xuansu a Black Robes badge as proof of identity so that he would not be regarded as a secret society member. That way, he could freely enter and leave the West Gobi, which was on lockdown.

Qi Xuansu felt that his trip to the West Gobi this time was worthwhile, as he had gained a rare Blood Pill of unknown value and 2,000 Taiping coins. He would even go as far as to consider himself a rich man.

Qi Xuansu finally understood the concept of how one’s cultivation level could boost one’s income. In the past, he was only in the Kunlun stage, so he could only complete small missions and earn a meager commission. But after he reached the Yuxu stage, he found that it was easier to make money.

If he had been stuck at the Kunlun stage, the Innkeeper would not have selected him for the “weeding” operation. Even if he were chosen for the job, he would not have been able to defeat the giant living corpse or the Diviner from White Jade Hall. That way, he would not have been able to obtain the Blood Pill. Even if he were somehow lucky enough to get the Blood Pill, he would have been shot to death by those Black Robes who ambushed him.

Everything was different once he was in the Yuxu stage. Ultimately, improving one’s cultivation was most important.

Qi Xuansu decided to consume the Blood Pill after escaping from the West Gobi. That way, he could reach the Guizhen stage as soon as possible.

As for the manufacturing plant by the Cuowenbu Lake and White Jade Hall, Qi Xuansu did not think he could still intervene, especially since the Daoist Order and the Imperial Court had already been involved. Naturally, he would just have to forgo Madam Qi’s mission for him. There would be no consequences anyway.

At this moment, Qi Xuansu met The Innkeeper.

“Brother.” Qi Xuansu greeted him.

The Innkeeper looked at Qi Xuansu with a complicated expression. “Brother, you sure are lucky.”

“You know what happened at the manufacturing plant?” Qi Xuansu asked.

The Innkeeper nodded.

Qi Xuansu sighed and recounted his experience. “A giant devil appeared out of nowhere. I suspect it’s the legendary Great Asura. Everyone from The Inn was eaten by that monster one by one. Fortunately, I was far away from the epicenter and managed to escape.”

The Innkeeper’s lips twitched slightly, and he finally sighed in regret.

The Inn had mobilized their elites, but in the end, they suffered a huge loss. They not only lost the people they dispatched but also the reclaimed land and a branch of The Inn. The Innkeeper knew that his days as the leader of this branch were numbered. However, he was glad that he did not lose his life as well.

After they bid each other goodbye, Qi Xuansu began to wander around the city. Since he had the Black Robes badge hanging on his waist, the soldiers dared not harass him.

The Regional General subordinate to Qin Wubing specifically explained that this badge was not just a simple entry and exit pass. It also allowed Qi Xuansu to enjoy some of the Black Robes’ privileges. This was Qin Wubing’s show of gratitude toward Qi Xuansu.

Qi Xuansu accepted the gift and was surprised by the unity between the imperial clan and the noble families. The Deputy Protector Qin Wubing expressed his gratitude just because Qi Xuansu had saved Qin Xiang. Yet, according to Qin Xiang, she had never met Qin Wubing before. However, their fathers, who were both Commandery Princes, had some friendship. It was evident that the imperial clan and the noble families presented a united front in front of outsiders.

On the other hand, if Qi Xuansu killed a member of the imperial clan or the noble families, he would face their united hostility.

This was the reason the Great Xuan Dynasty remained superior to the surrounding small countries and could even sell firearms to outsiders to gain some profit.

The Armaments Officer said, “But you’re considered one of our own, so I’ll make an exception for you.”

Qi Xuansu asked, “Do you have any good recommendations?”

The Armaments Officer pondered for a moment, took out a wooden box, and placed it in front of Qi Xuansu. “The Divine Dragon Pistol—ivory handle, brass body, breech-loading, firing pin structure, rifled, with an effective range of 100 steps. It’ll only cost you 700 Taiping coins.”

Qi Xuansu took out his Divine Dragon Pistol from the holster. “Tianji Hall sells it for 600.”

The Armaments Officer looked a little embarrassed. He coughed lightly, put away the Divine Dragon Pistol, and muttered, “Well, that discount is for high-ranking Daoist priests.”

However, he did not think much about it. Qi Xuansu had a high cultivation level, and he had a badge issued by the Deputy Protector himself. Thus, the Armaments Officer thought it made sense for Qi Xuansu to have some connections in the Daoist Order.

The Armaments Officer pondered for a while and asked, “Brother, do you need any traditional weapons?”

Qi Xuansu looked interested. “A flying sword?”

“No, it’s a pair of cutlasses.” The Armaments Officer continued, “They were seized during a cult extermination. Since they were considered spoils of war, they were given to the Divine Armory for safekeeping. I examined them and found that they were spiritual objects. As long as you inject some qi into them, the blades will ignite, so I named them the Flaming Blades.”

Qi Xuansu disapproved of the name, but he was interested in the cutlasses. “Let me have a look.”

The Armaments Officer led Qi Xuansu to a warehouse that was temporarily set up and asked his subordinates to take out a box containing the cutlasses. When he opened the box, Qi Xuansu saw two red cutlasses about 70 centimeters long.

Qi Xuansu fell in love with the Dual Cutlass at first sight. He had just learned the Dayan Spirit Blade Technique from Zhang Yuelu. He had been using his short sword, Qing Yuan, to practice so far, but he could not reach his fullest potential because the Dayan Spirit Blade Technique was made for knives and sabers. A cutlass was essentially a short saber.

He reached out and took out the Dual Cutlass, waving them around and trying to inject some qi into them. Sure enough, flames ignited on the blades. He asked, “How much are they?”

The Armaments Officer replied, “3,000 Taiping coins.”

Qi Xuansu tried to bargain. “That’s too expensive.”

“They’re both spiritual objects, and they come in a pair.” The Armaments Officer explained, “If we sold them separately, it would be 1500 Taiping coins each. That’s a fair price for a spiritual object.”

Qi Xuansu stared at the Dual Cutlass. Although he liked them, he had to find fault with them for the sake of saving some money. “In today’s world, swords are the most valuable, as most people believed they could become a Great Sword Immortal. But there isn’t such a thing as a Great Cutlass Immortal. If these are a pair of flying swords, then 3,000 Taiping coins will be a fair price. Unfortunately, they’re just a pair of cutlasses. I reckon they’re only worth 2,000 Taiping coins.”

“That’s too little. Let’s meet in the middle and agree on 2500 Taiping coins.”

Qi Xuansu agreed. “Alright, deal.”