https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-16-You-Deserve-to-Die-You-Really-Do/12831379/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-18-Soul-Piercing-Nails-and-Calming-Incense/12831387/
Chapter 17: Unexpected Wealth
Chapter 17: Unexpected Wealth
"Did you kill him?"
Before Luo Chen could respond, Wang Yuan nodded to himself.
"Looks like it."
Seeing Luo Chen's nervous retreat, Wang Yuan walked over to the charred corpse and swung his broadsword, casually severing the burned, unrecognizable head.
Wang Yuan glanced at the nervous Luo Chen and the storage bag in his hand, his gaze complex.
The night breeze was cool, and the blood-soaked body felt even colder.
Luo Chen forced a grim smile. "Brother Wang, I haven't finished reading that book yet."
Wang Yuan's complex expression faded, and his eyelids drooped again.
"Go home early. The Great River Market is dangerous at night."
"Sure, sure."
Luo Chen turned to leave but hesitated, then walked over and struggled to carry the snake-skin bag full of herbs on his back.
It was all he had.
Watching Luo Chen's back as he neared the alley's exit, Wang Yuan sighed.
"Here, consider this a reward for that head."
A black nail, about the length of a chopstick, landed at Luo Chen's feet. The black nail was stained with fresh blood and flecks of flesh.
"Brother Wang, you're too kind."
"Get lost. Take the small forest path, not the main road."
"Got it."
With a heavy nod, Luo Chen disappeared into the small forest without looking back.
In the alley, Wang Yuan stood with three heads in hand, then gradually vanished into the darkness.
"Whine."
Ding!
"Phew!"
Luo Chen slumped against the bedpost, drenched in sweat, even his underwear soaked through.
On the floor in front of his bed was a Soul-Piercing Nail embedded in his waist.
Gritting his teeth against the intense pain, Luo Chen grabbed the bottles and jars beside him and poured the contents into the wound.
This was his homemade healing potion, specifically designed to treat the dangers of exploding cauldrons during alchemy. It had helped him many times before.
Today, it had an even greater use!
As the medicinal powder entered his body, a cool sensation washed over him, followed by a burning pain.
"Damn! Damn, damn, damn!"
Low, growling curses echoed periodically.
Luo Chen had never been angrier than he was at that moment.
Not at the enemies who had hurt him, but at his own weakness.
If he were as strong as Wang Yuan, he wouldn't have ended up in this situation today.
Once he finally bound the wound with a cloth, Luo Chen let out a sigh of relief.
Bearing the pain, he limped to the living room, opened the snake-skin bag, and sorted the various herbs onto the shelves.
These low-grade medicinal herbs and spiritual materials couldn't be mixed for long, or their effects would diminish.
His slow, halting steps, illuminated by the small oil lamp, looked pitiful.
Luo Chen even felt this scene resembled the times in his past life when he had gone to work sick after surgery.
"Can't escape a life of hard work, no wonder I only lived to seventy-five in my last life."
After finishing all this, he finally had a moment to lie down on the bed.
The pain in his waist made him too exhausted to sleep.
Frustrated, he sought a distraction.
"Let's see what this short-lived guy had in his storage bag."
Storage bags for Qi Condensation cultivators were unguarded because they lacked spiritual sense and couldn't set restrictions.
After the owner died, the magical imprint naturally dissipated.
Luo Chen used the little remaining spiritual energy to open the storage bag.
A pile of items instantly filled his wooden bed.
"Today must have been market day. This guy bought a lot of stuff."
A low-grade magical robe, a box of calming incense, five bottles of fasting pills, a bottle of qi-nourishing pills, a bottle of Golden Treasury Powder, and a stack of talismans.
Additionally, there was a bunch of dried spiritual herbs, which occupied most of his bed.
Besides these items, the thing Luo Chen was most interested in was the spirit stones.
"Ninety-two low-grade spirit stones. Damn, he was a pauper!"
Luo Chen spat, then happily packed everything back into the storage bag.
The spirit stones were indeed few, not matching the Qi Condensation Fifth Layer cultivator's level.
However, the value of the other items far exceeded the ninety-two low-grade spirit stones.
The low-grade magical robe, though a bit worn, was worth at least a hundred spirit stones if sold.
This robe's activation speed was even faster than the talismans.
That's why Luo Chen could quickly activate it earlier, and when the short-lived guy was hit by the Fireball Spell, the robe's built-in defensive light shield activated immediately.
If it were a complete mid-grade robe, it could have easily withstood six or seven fireballs. Unfortunately, Wang Yuan had already damaged it before.
It couldn’t even withstand the third fireball.
In the span of three breaths, Chen Xiao, who was severely injured, didn’t have time to use any other means.
The five bottles of Spirit-Quelling Pills weren’t very valuable, and their quality wasn’t as good as those Luo Chen had refined himself, but they were still worth a spirit stone each.
As for the other items, they were much more valuable.
Soothing Incense, one of the best external aids for low-rank cultivators.
One stick of Soothing Incense per day could allow a cultivator to practice their life-bound technique five more times. It was rumored to help restore the fragile souls of low-rank cultivators.
A box of twelve sticks was worth 120 spirit stones.
The Qi-Nourishing Pills were even more valuable. The pattern on them indicated they were from the Spirit Medicine Pavilion.
The price was fixed at 100 spirit stones per bottle!
These were good items; swallowing and refining them could increase one’s spiritual energy.
As for the stack of talismans, based on Luo Chen’s experience, they should be worth about 50 to 60 spirit stones.
The dried spirit herbs spread across the bed were unknown to him, but the fact that the storage bag contained so many indicated they were useful.
All in all, the total value was around 400 spirit stones!
What a windfall!
Indeed, a horse won’t get fat without night grass, and a man won’t get rich without unexpected wealth.
In just that short while tonight, Luo Chen’s wealth quadrupled.
But the most valuable thing he gained wasn’t these items.
It was the storage bag itself!
Although its capacity was small, just one cubic foot, it was the smallest and cheapest type of storage bag.
But even in the Ten Thousand Treasures Tower, it would cost 10,000 spirit stones!
Luo Chen had no idea whether the short-lived cultivator had received it as a gift or stolen it, but he definitely couldn’t afford it.
Or rather, most low-rank cultivators couldn’t afford even the smallest storage bag.
This kind of item was a standard for inner disciples of major sects, and even outer disciples didn’t have them!
“Rich, rich!”
“Killing and plundering, no wonder it’s one of the most classic tropes in web novels. No matter the genre, it always has a place.”
“But the risk is too great. One wrong move and you’re done, losing a lifetime of effort.”
Tonight, Luo Chen witnessed two instances of killing and plundering.
Li Zixiong of the Great River Gang, who gathered three others to kill Wang Yuan, ended up failing spectacularly.
The short-lived cultivator at the Fifth Layer of Qi Refinement, who planned to instantly kill Luo Chen, also failed spectacularly.
“Such dangerous things should be left to the professionals. I can’t handle the shock.”
Luo Chen thought for a moment and picked up the last bottle that hadn’t been put into the storage bag.
Golden Treasury Powder, one of the signature pills from the Spirit Medicine Pavilion.
It had excellent healing effects for any metal-based magical weapon injuries, and it only cost 10 spirit stones.
It was both high-quality and affordable, and it had always been popular among the scattered cultivators of the Great River Market.
He sniffed it; the smell was fine, and it wasn’t a poison.
Besides, no one would put poison in a healing pill bottle in their storage bag.
If you were severely injured and confused, you might grab the wrong bottle, and that could be disastrous.
He had to untie the bandage he had just wrapped around himself.
Sighing, Luo Chen got up and started the task.
The next day at noon, Luo Chen woke up in a daze.
This was a rare occasion for him to sleep in.
In the early hours of the morning, he couldn’t resist his weakness and fell asleep.
He opened his eyes and lay in bed for a while, then gritted his teeth and forced himself to get up.
No matter how hard or difficult it was, lying around wasn’t an option.
He went to the living room, picked up a handful of spirit herbs, and spread them out on a basket, preparing to take them out to dry.
He pushed open the door, and the midday sun made him squint. When his eyes adjusted, he saw Wang Yuan standing outside.
Wang Yuan casually tossed something into the basket filled with spirit herbs.
“Take it. From now on, you’re a member of the Broken Mountain Gang.”
“If anyone gives you trouble, just tell them that you’re under my protection.”
Luo Chen looked at the iron token in the basket, his eyes wide with surprise.
“Thanks, Brother Wang.”
Wang Yuan waved his hand. “Don’t mention it. When I was at my lowest, you lent me a few bottles of Spirit-Quelling Pills, and I didn’t even thank you.”
“Alright, I’ve given you the token. I’ll head back now. The outer city might not be peaceful in the coming days, so be careful when you go out.”
With that, he turned and left without any delay.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
