When Chu Xingchen returned to his sect's courtyard, his First Disciple had not yet returned from shopping.

He wondered where his disciple had gone to make purchases, as it had been quite a while without any sign of him.

However, the most pressing issue of Spirit Stones had been entrusted to his old acquaintance, Yaoqin.

The most important matter had been arranged, which was the primary reason for his visit to Yuzhou City.

He believed there was a good chance of resolving it smoothly.

After all, according to Chu Xingchen's speculation, the entire Bamboo-Jade Courtyard was likely connected to a cultivation sect.

When he first met Yaoqin, she was already at the Golden Core level.

In this remote area, a Golden Core cultivator could be considered an ancestor and hold the position of an elder.

Yet, in the Bamboo-Jade Courtyard, she was still playing the zither.

This setup... was likely part of a sect from the Central State.

Therefore, Chu Xingchen had considerable confidence in Yaoqin's ability to handle the matter.

After all, the Spirit Stones in his spatial ring were all Blood Qi Spirit Stones.

If he were to use them as currency, he would surely be targeted by righteous cultivators.

Moreover, no one except evil cultivators would accept these Blood Qi Spirit Stones.

Currently, Chu Xingchen appeared wealthy, but he couldn't produce a single usable Spirit Stone.

He had money but couldn't spend it.

Chu Xingchen retracted the small formation he had set up before leaving.

He entered the main room that his disciple had thoughtfully left for him.

His gaze swept across the room, which was relatively clean, with tables and chairs. Sitting down, Chu Xingchen took out a Blood Qi Spirit Stone to study it.

Now that he had reached the Immaculate Golden Core stage, he felt qualified to examine it.

However, the more he studied it, the more he realized how sinister the stone was.

The Blood Qi seemed to have a tendency to merge with the spiritual energy within the stone.

This... in a way, was quite remarkable.

Spirit Stones formed when spiritual energy, following the movements of spiritual veins, attracted and bonded due to its high density, gradually stabilizing and excluding anything other than spiritual energy.

Once spiritual energy became a Spirit Stone, this property became more pronounced.

Thus, manipulating Spirit Stones in this way was a skillful task.

Not impossible, but very difficult.

The technical level of this Blood Qi Spirit Stone seemed beyond what this remote area could produce.

Just as Chu Xingchen was frowning in study, he heard the call of his First Disciple.

"Master!"

Chu Xingchen put away the Spirit Stone, stood up, and walked outside, pausing as he opened the door.

Li Yingling entered with a big smile, carrying a large bag on her back.

Behind her, Li Xingtian carried a package two or three times his size... strictly speaking, Chu Xingchen thought it exceeded the scope of a package.

Such a large package couldn't fit through the door.

Li Xingtian glanced around, and seeing no one paying attention, he hurled the package over the courtyard wall.

Then, he flashed into the courtyard to catch the package he had thrown.

Chu Xingchen raised his hand slightly, controlling the package in the air and letting it land gently.

Looking at the large package before him, Chu Xingchen curiously asked Li Yingling:

"Has the cost of living in Yuzhou City dropped so much? How did you buy so much with so little silver?"

Li Yingling proudly lifted her head, putting down her package and signaling her junior brother to recount her glorious achievements to their master.

"This wasn't bought by Senior Sister." Li Xingtian showed a hint of emotion on his face. "A new vendor set up a stall on the street, offering a ring toss game with random prizes. Senior Sister spent all her money on that stall."

Chu Xingchen was taken aback. Was his disciple's fortunate luck at play?

Li Yingling proudly pulled out a set of clean, luxurious white men's clothing from her package and said:

"Master, I specially got this for you. Your old clothes were too worn out."

As she spoke, Li Yingling unfolded the garment, adorned with gold-threaded cuffs and light blue embroidery with elegant patterns along the collar.

"This is the shop's top-grade product! They say it can automatically adjust to size, crafted by an Artifact Refiner, with auto-dust-repelling cleanse."

Li Yingling smiled as she neatly folded the clothes and handed them, along with matching pants, to Chu Xingchen.

Taking the clothes, Chu Xingchen felt their smoothness.

It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from "pawread.com".

"Good..." Chu Xingchen nodded with a smile. "Thank you, First Disciple."

Meanwhile, Li Xingtian opened his large package.

Inside were a variety of items... not many seemed particularly useful.

Fortunately, there were three sets of bedding, as Li Yingling hadn't forgotten the essentials.

They wouldn't have to sleep on bare wooden beds tonight.

Chu Xingchen curiously walked forward, examining the items closely.

Among them were some familiar pots and pans, albeit with unique designs, strange-shaped ancient copper coins, talismans, and a broken longsword.

There was a rattle drum, a war drum, a sword made of copper coins, and even a set of wooden fish bells like those used by monks.

Chu Xingchen picked up the mallet for the wooden fish bell, examining it closely but finding nothing special.

Was this a consolation prize?

"Master! This wooden fish bell is special!"

Li Yingling stepped forward and explained, "According to the vendor, this wooden fish bell was infused with the merit of a high monk before he passed away. It's an extraordinary treasure."

Chu Xingchen tapped Li Yingling's head lightly with the mallet, saying:

"What's so extraordinary about it? It doesn't even sound as loud as a wooden fish when I tap your head."

This was clearly a sales pitch by the vendor!

He thought his First Disciple wasn't that gullible, so why did she believe it?

Li Yingling pouted, feeling insulted despite the lack of pain, and retorted:

"If you don't believe me, ask Junior Brother!"

"…It really is a wooden fish infused with the merit of a high monk at the time of his passing," Li Xingtian confirmed, though his expression was hesitant, as if he wanted to explain but then shook his head helplessly.

Chu Xingchen looked at his Second Disciple with a puzzled expression. Had this disciple lived in vain in his past life? How could he be as naive as the First Disciple?

"How do you know the vendor was telling the truth?" Chu Xingchen questioned them.

"We saw the high monk pass away on the spot…" Li Xingtian replied, his tone unchanged, though his expression showed shock.

Li Xingtian had never imagined such an audacious move.

Chu Xingchen was stunned. "Passed away on the spot?!"

"Yes… he was a Qi Refining monk practicing ascetic meditation. After Senior Sister won the wooden fish, he ignored her attempts to stop him and passed away on the spot, infusing his merit into the wooden fish. He even entrusted Senior Sister to use it wisely, claiming she had great destiny and would surely make a name for herself in the cultivation world."

"Which vendor is so bold? Take me to see!"

"No need, Master… after Senior Sister's win, they packed up everything, cursing their bad luck, and ran out of Yuzhou City."

"Thinking back, they must have left Yuzhou City by now."