Chapter 32: Calculating Against Each Other

"Two Lightning Talismans, and bring out all the other talismans for me to see—both offensive and defensive types," Lu Xiaotian said.

Following his instructions, the white-haired elder took out all the talismans in the shop and displayed them before Lu Xiaotian.

Earth Shield Talismans, Fireball Talismans, Golden Spike Talismans, Wind Blade Talismans...

Lu Xiaotian selected several of each, totaling exactly one hundred and ten low-grade spirit stones.

"That's all. Give me a price. If we agree, I'll pay the spirit stones immediately; if not, I'll move on to the next shop," Lu Xiaotian said, pulling a heavy bag of spirit stones from his storage bag.

"How about this: one hundred and five spirit stones. Consider it a gesture of friendship with you, young brother."

The white-haired elder's eyes lit up. Because of his advanced age, he had never been able to break through to the late stage of Qi Refinement, leaving him with no hope of Foundation Establishment; thus, he had come to manage this family talisman shop. Having spent over a decade here, customers like this were few and far between. Even for a cultivator at the Great Circle of Qi Refinement, few could produce over a hundred spirit stones at once. Someone who spent all their spirit stones on consumable talismans was either incredibly wealthy or a complete fool.

Whether it was traveling out of the city into the Wangyue Mountains to find spiritual items, buying pills for healing or cultivation, or repairing spiritual tools damaged during adventures, everything required spirit stones.

"Let's be decisive. Forget the extra five. One hundred spirit stones," Lu Xiaotian said.

"This... that's too low. My shop doesn't make much profit on individual talismans. One hundred is truly impossible. Young brother, please add a little more," the white-haired elder said with a bitter face.

"Though I'm cutting into your profit, I'm buying in bulk. This is my final offer. Think about it," Lu Xiaotian said firmly.

"Very well. But next time you buy talismans, you must come to my shop," the white-haired elder finally relented after several rounds of haggling. Although he was conceding, the shop would still net at least twenty spirit stones from this deal—an amount he wouldn't normally make in several days. It was a good deal.

To his surprise, it actually worked. Lu Xiaotian was momentarily pleased; he had originally prepared to offer a few more stones. Now he could save them, thanks to Luo Qing's reminder. Otherwise, he would have wasted spirit stones needlessly, which would have been painful.

As he walked out of the talisman shop, the sky over Wangyue City had already darkened, but the streets were brightly lit and the crowds were still thick.

Perhaps, like many others in the city, he would be facing a sleepless night. A sharp glint flashed in Lu Xiaotian's eyes as he hurried back to the inn.

After locking the door, Lu Xiaotian sat cross-legged on his wooden bed. After a moment of hesitation, he took out a jade box and swallowed the Purple Spirit Grass inside. The violent spiritual energy, as before, surged wildly through his meridians. However, since he was now at the second level of Qi Refinement, his meridians and dantian could hold much more energy than before, making the pain far milder than it had been at the first level.

"Spiritual energy! Haha, spiritual energy has finally appeared! I've waited so long for this!" Inside the Green Fruit Boundary, the primordial spirit of the black-robed elder laughed with joy. Although this energy was incredibly weak to an old monster at the eleventh level of Qi Refinement, it was better than nothing.

"Good disciple, come out quickly, or I might eat all the spiritual energy myself!"

"You dare! If you eat even a little more, don't expect to get a single drop next time!" Lu Xiaotian shouted angrily through the boundary.

"I just want you to come out and talk to me! Staying in this ghost place for a year is boring to death," the black-robed elder chuckled.

"I have nothing to say to you. Hurry up. Once I absorb the energy, I'm leaving." Lu Xiaotian remained as impatient with the elder as ever. Despite the protection of the mist shroud, even Lu Xiaotian didn't fully understand how it worked. Every time he traded with the elder, Lu Xiaotian would make him move far away after consuming the energy, just to avoid looking at him.

The black-robed elder didn't mind. He greedily swallowed the wisps of green essence floating in the air. The Purple Spirit Grass had produced twelve wisps; the elder ate six and smacked his lips with lingering desire. "Alright, I'm leaving. Your turn."

With that, the elder's primordial spirit flew into the distance. Although there was mist within the boundary, the elder's dark primordial spirit remained clearly visible. Every time, he would cautiously observe the surroundings first, only consuming the energy once he was sure the elder had flown far away.

Following his usual routine of repeated observation, Lu Xiaotian finally entered the boundary. However, shortly after passing through, his pupils contracted. The occasional mounds of sand on the ground seemed abnormal; several lines looked like freshly overturned soil. Had he not been extremely wary and cautious of the black-robed elder, he might not have noticed. Lu Xiaotian sneered inwardly; perhaps the elder was plotting something, but he was not entirely unprepared.

He swallowed the green essence as usual. As he reached the third wisp, a sudden *whoosh* sounded from beneath the ground. Lu Xiaotian's heart jolted—there was indeed a trap.

*Whoosh!* Several curtains of fire erupted from the ground simultaneously, sweeping toward Lu Xiaotian's primordial spirit. Startled, Lu Xiaotian dared not let the flames hit him and scrambled backward. Before he could retreat more than a few feet, a sinister, mocking laugh rang out. The black-robed elder's primordial spirit emerged from underground, and another curtain of fire—a blazing wall—erupted from the earth, connecting with the previous flames to form a closed space. Surrounded by raging fire, Lu Xiaotian was trapped in unbearable heat.

"Kid, you didn't see that coming, did you? I've spent over a year carefully setting this trap. I've seen that mist shroud of yours; it needs to draw in the surrounding mist to form. Now that I've blocked it with my spiritual fire, let's see what other tricks you have!" The black-robed elder's face twisted into a hideous grin. "You've kept me trapped for over a year; you must be quite proud. Now, will you hand over your cultivation methods, or shall I strip your soul and leave you in a state worse than death?"

"You... it's a dead end regardless! Even if you kill me, you won't get the way out!" As Lu Xiaotian's thought flickered, he realized his defensive mist shroud indeed could not form; the mist was being blocked by the spiritual fire.

"Even if I don't kill you, you won't tell me how to leave. My lifespan is limited; if I cannot get out soon, I will have no hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. To me, that is more terrifying than death. Therefore, I have no choice. You'd better not test my patience. Tell me how to leave, and I promise you a way out. Otherwise, even if I can never leave, I will certainly kill you!" the black-robed elder said fiercely, his tone absolute.

*Escape!* Without hesitation, Lu Xiaotian bolted toward the distance.

"It seems you've chosen to taste agony before death. You cannot escape!" The black-robed elder flew into a rage. He hadn't expected Lu Xiaotian to be so stubborn, which forced him to use his final trump card. Having planned this for over a year, how could he let the boy escape?

"Water Ball Technique!"

A water ball flew toward him from behind. Lu Xiaotian was momentarily puzzled as to why the elder would use such a non-lethal spell; a water ball only released water and wouldn't burn a primordial spirit like a fireball. However, the elder was cunning and had plotted for so long; he wouldn't do anything meaningless. Since he used the Water Ball Technique, it had to serve a purpose.

Facing this desperate situation, it was time to show his hand. Lu Xiaotian sneered. The elder had been so calculating, even digging tunnels underground to launch a sneak attack from below—truly insidious.

"Earth Shield Talisman!" "Lightning Talisman!" "Fireball Talisman!"

Suddenly, an earth shield snapped into place before Lu Xiaotian.

*Bang!* The water ball exploded, scattering into countless tiny droplets. Most hit the earth shield, but a few droplets bypassed the top and fell onto Lu Xiaotian's primordial spirit.

A faint current of electricity caused Lu Xiaotian's primordial spirit to shudder, a sensation of slight numbness spreading through his entire being.

There was indeed a trick. The black-robed elder had infused a trace of lightning into the Water Ball Technique. Although a Qi Refinement cultivator could use all basic spells, including lightning, to fuse two types of spells so skillfully required a level of mental acuity and control that sent a chill down Lu Xiaotian's spine.

If he hadn't brought talismans and had the earth shield to protect him, he would have fallen for the trap regardless of his caution. Fortunately, only a few droplets hit him, causing only a momentary numbness without affecting his movement. Had a large amount of water hit him, the consequences would have been catastrophic.

While Lu Xiaotian was shocked by the elder's cunning, the black-robed elder could only be described as being in a state of profound shock himself.

The moment Lu Xiaotian had unleashed the Earth Shield Talisman, the elder felt something was wrong, followed immediately by the scent of lightning. The elder was startled; the two spells had been launched almost simultaneously. While his cultivation and experience were far superior to a novice like Lu Xiaotian, he was still caught off guard.

"Earth Wall Technique!" Out of fear of lightning, the black-robed elder immediately condensed a thick wall of earth in front of him.

*Sizzle!* Lightning pillars the size of a man's wrist struck the earth wall, sending dirt flying. The wall was quickly breached by the powerful lightning. The elder's entire body went numb. Had he been prepared, a wall condensed by his eleventh-level Qi Refinement cultivation would never have been broken so easily by a basic Lightning Talisman. This kid had been hiding his strength too well; the elder had been completely deceived. He had thought Lu Xiaotian was merely cultivating on his own, perhaps possessing a spirit beast or the shadow ants, but certainly no spells, as no spirit beast could be brought into this mysterious space.

The elder never imagined that Lu Xiaotian had not only mastered spells but had also prepared over a hundred talismans for him.

Activating a talisman required only a sliver of spiritual power and no extensive preparation. Thus, the elder had been caught completely off guard.

The elder's primordial spirit was also numbed by the residual lightning, which, while not fatal, slowed his movements.

*Boom!* A fireball exploded nearby. The elder's earth wall was blasted apart when it was only halfway formed, and his primordial spirit screamed as it was sent flying several yards away.

"Water Arrow Talisman!" "Golden Spear Talisman!" "Earth Spear Talisman!"

Seeing his sneak attack succeed, Lu Xiaotian immediately pressed his advantage, unleashing talisman after talisman.

Under the onslaught of numerous low-level talismans, the black-robed elder struggled to cope, desperately defending himself while feeling immense frustration. If he had his dharma treasure flying sword in hand, he could have finished Lu Xiaotian with a single strike; or if he had his defensive umbrella spiritual tool, he would have been safe. What angered him even more was that Lu Xiaotian was not only attacking him with talismans but was also occasionally throwing them at the fire curtains. The elder was terrified—if the fire prison were breached and mist seeped in to form the defensive shroud, he would be utterly doomed.