Chapter 300: She Can Use Metal Qi Too?

Chapter 300: She Can Use Metal Qi Too?

Xi Menxia followed Chu Ning silently as he made his way through the market, purchasing various materials that she had never heard of, let alone seen.

The one thing that stuck with her the most was a name that Chu Ning inquired about in every shop they visited but failed to find—Thunderstone.

Xi Menxia wanted to suggest that he try the Frost Moon Pavilion, a place she had visited several times with her parents, which had the widest variety of items. However, she figured that if she knew about it, Chu Ning surely would too, and he must have his reasons for not going there, so she kept quiet.

"Could it be that even the Frost Moon Pavilion doesn't have it, which is why this senior came here?" Xi Menxia couldn't help but speculate as she trailed behind Chu Ning, who had merely wandered into the market on a whim.

Chu Ning was now looking for a casual teahouse or restaurant where he could ask Xi Menxia some questions, but he couldn't find any suitable places.

The loose cultivators of Iceland Immortal City used their spirit stones to enter the city and were naturally reluctant to spend more on such trivial matters.

Chu Ning shook his head and turned to Xi Menxia, asking, "Where are you staying now? Let's go to your place."

A hint of surprise flashed across Xi Menxia's face at his suggestion, but she didn't say anything and instead led him to a modest courtyard in a corner of the city.

As Chu Ning surveyed the small courtyard, which was about a tenth the size of his own cave abode, he noticed the lack of accompanying herb gardens or other facilities, with only two rooms for cultivation and living purposes.

"How much is the rent for this courtyard now?" Chu Ning asked out of curiosity.

"Fifty spirit stones per month," Xi Menxia replied.

Chu Ning was taken aback by the amount, as he could sense that the spiritual energy here was relatively sparse compared to the rest of the city. Based on the introduction he had received from the Long Sky Hall cultivator when he first entered the city, he had expected the rent to be ten or twenty spirit stones at most.

"Why is it so expensive?" Chu Ning asked, perplexed.

Xi Menxia, on the other hand, looked at him with surprise. "There have been significant changes in the Immortal City recently. Senior, have you not been in Iceland Immortal City for a while?"

"I've been here, but I've been in seclusion for a period of time," Chu Ning replied, then added, "I was actually looking for you to ask about this. I noticed that there seem to be a lot more cultivators in the city now. There used to be more cultivators occasionally in the lower city, but not to this extent. What's going on?"

Xi Menxia sighed softly, a hint of sadness appearing on her face. "Actually, all of this is still related to the disturbances caused by the sea beasts in recent months. Senior, have you heard about the sea beasts attacking the islands inhabited by human cultivators?"

Chu Ning nodded. That had happened just before he left for the Sea Cloud Basin.

"My parents and I used to live on that island," Xi Menxia said quietly. "They chose to live there instead of in Iceland Immortal City to save up on cultivation resources for me. But a few months ago, during a sea beast attack, they both..."

Chu Ning had actually suspected as much, so he wasn't too surprised to hear it confirmed. It also explained why Xi Menxia seemed so different from when he had first met her—going through such a tragedy would naturally change a person.

Xi Menxia quickly composed herself and continued, "I lost a lot of my resources in that accident, but I dared not stay on the island, so I came to live in the Immortal City. There are many cultivators like me, both Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators. The key point is that it's not just that one island—over the past two months, almost all the islands in the Inner Sea inhabited by cultivators have been attacked by sea beasts to varying degrees. Everyone is flocking to Iceland Immortal City for safety, and the housing in the lower city is in short supply, driving up the prices."

Chu Ning shook his head inwardly at the situation. He hadn't expected to encounter a housing crisis even in the cultivation world. Since there were fewer Golden Core cultivators living in the Inner Sea islands, the upper city was less affected by the influx of cultivators. That was probably why he hadn't been informed of any rent increases for his cave abode.

"To be honest, I don't know how long I can stay here either," Xi Menxia said, her face filled with bitterness. "Not only are there too many people, but we also don't dare to venture into the sea to hunt sea beasts or gather spirit herbs and materials. As a result, cultivation resources in the entire Iceland Immortal City are becoming more and more expensive. I'll have to leave eventually and find a way to accumulate resources for my cultivation."

Hearing this, Chu Ning's heart stirred. He still had quite a few high-grade materials and demon pills stored in his storage bag, obtained from hunting high-level sea beasts in the Central Sea region the previous month. These items were usually only useful to Golden Core cultivators. He also had a lot of items from the Western Alliance Continent and even the Eastern Sacred Continent, suitable for Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators. Selling them at the Frost Moon Pavilion might not be the best option.

However, it seemed like a good opportunity to offload all these items. With the current situation in Iceland Immortal City, the cultivation environment for cultivators was becoming increasingly challenging. Even as a Golden Core cultivator, he might not be immune to the fallout. It would be wise to take this chance to accumulate more spirit stones.

It might be inconvenient for him to sell these items directly, but he had a ready candidate in front of him.

With this in mind, Chu Ning smiled and asked, "Would you like to earn some spirit stones?"

"These are some things I gathered before reaching the Golden Core stage. I have no use for them now, and with the recent influx of cultivators in the lower city, I thought it would be a good opportunity to sell them. If you have time, help me sell these items. I'll give you a ten percent cut of the spirit stones we make." Chu Ning said.

Xi Menxia's eyes lit up with joy at his words. "Are you serious, Senior?"

Chu Ning glanced at her and replied indifferently, "Do you think I have the time to joke around with you?"

Xi Menxia's eyes sparkled at his response, and she quickly agreed, expressing her gratitude. "Thank you, Senior! Of course, I have time. Senior, what prices should I sell these items for?"

Chu Ning waved his hand. "Just sell them at the current market prices in the Immortal City. I suspect that the prices for these items might fluctuate daily."

Xi Menxia nodded repeatedly, surprised by how well-informed Chu Ning was. She had no idea that he had once been a merchant himself.

At that moment, Xi Menxia realized that she didn't even know Chu Ning's name. "Senior, I don't even know your name. How will I give you the spirit stones once everything is sold?"

Chu Ning took out a few communication talismans and handed them to her. "My name is Chu Ning, and I reside in Cave Abode 19 on the fourth layer of the upper city. You don't need to look for me specifically. I'll come to the lower city every ten days and find you. If something like today's situation happens again, just send me a message."

Xi Menxia took the communication talismans and said, "That person was actually an old acquaintance of my father's. He knew about my family's misfortune and deliberately caused trouble today."

Chu Ning nodded, having already guessed as much. He then proceeded to explain to Xi Menxia the details of the pills, magical artifacts, and talismans he had taken out. Many of these items were from other continents, and some were even refined by Chu Ning himself, so it was unlikely that Xi Menxia, who had always lived on the Northern Cold Continent, would have seen them before.

After giving Xi Menxia her instructions, Chu Ning stood up to leave.

"Senior Chu, can I keep two bottles of the pills?" Xi Menxia suddenly asked, quickly adding, "Don't worry, Senior. I won't take them for free. I'll deduct the cost from the share of spirit stones I owe you later."

Chu Ning looked at her and asked, "Are you cultivating a metal-attributed cultivation technique? These pills here aren't suitable for you. Show me a few of your spells so I can see if there's anything unique about your cultivation technique. Next time, I'll bring you a couple of bottles that are suitable for metal-attributed cultivators."

Xi Menxia's face lit up with joy once again. She stood up and took out a pair of short swords from her storage bag—the same magical artifacts Chu Ning had given her earlier.

She held a sword in each hand and channeled her spiritual power into them, causing a sword aura to emerge from each blade. With a flick of her wrists, the sword auras flew toward the formation restrictions within the room.

The courtyard was designed for cultivators and naturally had formation restrictions in place to prevent them from casually testing their techniques and causing unnecessary trouble.

However, to Xi Menxia's surprise, just as the sword auras were about to hit the restrictions, Chu Ning's figure flashed, and he appeared in front of the incoming attack. He casually reached out and caused the sword auras to vanish.

"Senior?" Xi Menxia looked at Chu Ning in astonishment.

Little did she know that Chu Ning was even more astonished at that moment. However, he kept his expression neutral and asked, "What cultivation technique do you practice? What level is it?"

Xi Menxia, though unsure of Chu Ning's intentions, answered honestly, "I cultivate the Golden Origin Technique, a high-grade profound-level cultivation technique."

"Golden Origin Technique, high-grade profound-level..." Chu Ning murmured, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes. "Do you have the technique with you? If so, let me take a look."

Chu Ning's request was undoubtedly impolite, as asking to see another cultivator's technique was a major taboo in the cultivation world.

Xi Menxia's eyes reflected her confusion, but after a brief hesitation, she took out a jade slip from her storage bag and handed it to him. She didn't think that Chu Ning, a Golden Core cultivator, would covet her technique, and even if he did, given his actions during their two meetings, she would be willing to give it to him. After all, finding a Golden Core cultivator as a backer in Iceland Immortal City was a rare opportunity.

Chu Ning took the jade slip and examined it carefully before falling into deep thought once again. He was still astonished by what he had discovered.

The Golden Origin Technique was indeed a high-grade profound-level cultivation technique, and its grade was decent, but Chu Ning couldn't find anything particularly special about it. A technique like this shouldn't have given birth to the Metal Qi he had sensed.

Yes, Metal Qi.

Just now, when Xi Menxia had launched her attack, Chu Ning had clearly sensed the presence of Metal Qi. That was why he had intentionally intercepted the sword auras. And upon closer inspection, he could confirm that the sword auras did indeed contain Metal Qi.

There was nothing unusual about the technique itself, nor the magical artifacts he had given her. As for the spells she had cast, he couldn't detect anything out of the ordinary either.

"Eh? Senior, did you notice that?" Xi Menxia's eyes widened at Chu Ning's question.

"Actually, I've noticed since I was little that my metal-attributed spells are stronger than those of other cultivators. But my parents and I never knew the reason, not until I reached the Foundation Establishment stage."

Xi Menxia paused briefly, even more hesitant than when she had taken out the Golden Origin Technique earlier.

Chu Ning continued, "It was only after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage that you discovered the Metal Qi in your spells?"

"Metal Qi?" Xi Menxia blinked. "So that's what it's called! Senior, how did you know about it?"

Chu Ning didn't answer her question, but his mind was racing with thoughts.

He had never come across any records of this Metal Qi in any ancient texts.

Ever since he had refreshed his Yin Wood Spirit Body, he had assumed that the Metal Qi was one of the talents the system had granted him, unique to him.

But now, he had suddenly discovered another cultivator with the ability to use Metal Qi, which came as a great surprise.

Chu Ning casually took out a piece of refining material from his storage bag and asked Xi Menxia, "Can you sense if there's any Metal Qi in this?"

"Yes," Xi Menxia nodded.

Chu Ning asked again, his voice solemn, "Then, how did the Metal Qi in your body form? Did you absorb it from these heavenly treasures and rare materials as well?"

Xi Menxia's expression changed slightly as Chu Ning probed further. She bit her red lips lightly and then replied honestly, "I've had Metal Qi in my body since the beginning, but I don't know how it formed. It seemed to generate automatically when I cultivated. However, after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, I could actively absorb and refine this Metal Qi."

Xi Menxia pointed to the refining material in Chu Ning's hand as she explained, "Senior Chu, just like the Metal Qi in this material, I can absorb and refine it if I want to."

"Give it a try," Chu Ning said.

Without hesitation, Xi Menxia struck the material with several incantations. Then, she reached out with her slender hand and grabbed it.

A faint Metal Qi drifted out of the material and into her hand, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

However, Chu Ning could clearly sense that the Metal Qi had entered Xi Menxia's body, just like when he had first absorbed it.

Moreover, the technique she used to absorb it was the same as his initial attempts.

This caused Chu Ning's eyes to flicker with surprise.

"Where did you learn the technique to absorb and refine Metal Qi?" Chu Ning asked.

Xi Menxia shook her head in response. "I didn't learn it anywhere. After reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, I suddenly felt like I knew how to do it."

"Senior Chu, how are you so familiar with Metal Qi? Do you also..." Xi Menxia trailed off, her curiosity evident.

"I've seen a friend use it before," Chu Ning said casually, not letting Xi Menxia continue her line of questioning.

"Oh!" Xi Menxia exclaimed, her face still filled with curiosity.

It was clear that she was very interested in the fact that Chu Ning's friend shared the same talent as her.

Little did she know that Chu Ning was equally curious, his mind filled with questions.

"Could it be that she also has a Metal Spirit Body? Or does she also have a system? No, that can't be right. She doesn't even know what this Metal Qi is called. If not, how can I explain Xi Menxia's unique body constitution?"

These thoughts raced through Chu Ning's mind.

He asked Xi Menxia more questions, wanting to know if there was anything else unusual about her cultivation besides the Metal Qi.

Xi Menxia thought for a while and said that her cultivation speed seemed to be faster than that of ordinary cultivators, but there wasn't anything else particularly special.

To test if Xi Menxia had a spirit body talent, Chu Ning asked her to cultivate a few cycles of a technique.

After sensing her absorption of spiritual energy, he couldn't detect the presence of a spirit body.

Chu Ning then took out a metal-based spell from his storage bag and taught it to Xi Menxia, allowing her to comprehend it.

Xi Menxia was delighted to receive a spell from Chu Ning.

Her talent for metal-attributed spells was indeed remarkable, as she grasped many concepts with ease.

However, when it came to the actual cultivation and comprehension, she couldn't match Chu Ning's level after he had awakened his Yin Wood Spirit Body.

Nonetheless, Chu Ning still felt uneasy.

So, he took immediate action and set up a barrier with restrictions, asking Xi Menxia to try attacking it.

Although Xi Menxia was curious about Chu Ning's intentions, she complied without hesitation.

After this test, Chu Ning finally had a better understanding of the situation.

He could confirm that Xi Menxia did not possess a Metal Spirit Body. She couldn't match his level of comprehension in techniques and spells, and her spells didn't have double the power against the restrictions.

However, her spells were indeed stronger than those of ordinary cultivators, resembling the abilities of someone with an exceptional spirit root talent.

After giving Xi Menxia a few more instructions, Chu Ning left with a head full of questions.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end