"Everything you desire?"
Fang Xiyuan originally intended to buy two bottles of 'Wood Essence Pill' and leave.
But upon hearing Song Qing's confident tone, he couldn't help but ask involuntarily, "Are there spirit objects or secret techniques that can enhance the wood spirit root aptitude?"
Song Qing's smug expression froze momentarily, then he thought seriously and inquired, "Friend Fang, do you possess a wood attribute spirit root?"
"Indeed!"
Fang Xiyuan's heart stirred. Could it be true?
"Haha, isn't this a coincidence?"
Song Qing clapped his hands. "Friend, the item you seek, our shop does have it!"
"Could it be that Friend Song is teasing me?" Fang Xiyuan eyed him suspiciously.
Could it be that he had underestimated things before, and enhancing aptitude was actually a simple matter in the Southern Wasteland cultivation world?
"In fact, once I mention this method, Friend will surely understand it is true. That is..." Song Qing didn't beat around the bush and directly said, "It requires a wood attribute spiritual body!"
If Fang Xiyuan hadn't refrained from drinking spirit tea, he might have sprayed Song Qing in the face with his saliva.
"Cough... I am not a cultivator with a spiritual body, not even a latent one!"
Fang Xiyuan was certain of this.
"Haha... Who said a spiritual body must be innate?" Song Qing laughed. "There are countless miraculous techniques in the cultivation world. Cultivating a special spiritual body after birth is not impossible!"
At that moment, Fang Xiyuan's heart raced!
But in the next instant, he regained his composure and smiled wryly. "Even if it exists, I cannot guarantee its authenticity, and... I probably can't afford it."
Although the temptation was great, Fang Xiyuan knew one thing: there's no such thing as a free lunch!
"Haha... I can swear a Heart Demon Oath. This technique is absolutely genuine."
Song Qing seemed to have anticipated Fang Xiyuan's reaction, smiling as he said, "Friend, why not listen... This technique has deep ties with the Qingzhu Mountain Market and the Situ Family. Have you heard of the Purple Solitude Mountain Secret Realm?"
Fang Xiyuan's heart stirred. "This secret realm is famous. It is said to have been divided between the Situ Family and the Red Leaf Valley, leading to the downfall of both families!"
"Exactly!" Song Qing clapped his hands and said, "This technique was obtained by my Song Family from the Situ Family's treasure trove, based on information obtained from a captive's soul search. It is indeed from the Purple Solitude Mountain Secret Realm! Unfortunately... this technique is only suitable for cultivators practicing wood attribute techniques, and the conditions are quite strict. Otherwise, our family would never sell it."
As he spoke, he took out a verdant jade slip from his storage bag, with a talisman attached to it.
Fang Xiyuan couldn't hide his eagerness. "Is this the jade slip from the Situ Family's treasure trove?"
"Of course not, it's just a replica, but it is inscribed with spells to ensure it is identical to the original!"
To ensure this, Song Qing even swore a Heart Demon Oath, guaranteeing its authenticity.
As cultivators are susceptible to demonic influences, especially during emotional turmoil or breakthroughs, this oath held weight.
Fang Xiyuan sneered. "Pills, talismans, and artifacts are all limited in quantity... but techniques can be copied endlessly. The shopkeeper is quite shrewd in his calculations."
"You're mistaken, friend. Within the family, there are only a few copies of this replica, and we won't sell any more."
With a determined expression, Song Qing pushed the jade slip over. "There are restrictions on this jade slip, and you can only view a small portion."
This was the standard practice for purchasing technique-related items, to prevent cultivators from memorizing everything after a few glances.
Fang Xiyuan took it and placed the jade slip on his forehead.
"Longevity Technique!"
He quickly read the name of this technique.
Looking at the introduction, many details were obscured, but it seemed to focus on nurturing spirit plants, absorbing the essence of plants, and so on... truly a method for cultivating a postnatal spiritual body!
"It's actually real."
Fang Xiyuan was shocked, setting down the jade slip and looking at Song Qing. "I wonder, how much is this 'Longevity Technique' technique?"
"Hehe, it's not expensive at all, just five hundred spirit stones." Song Qing smiled. "If you don't have enough spirit stones, our shop also accepts various spirit materials as collateral."
At that moment, he seemed to have revealed his true intentions!
After much hesitation, Fang Xiyuan reluctantly took out a storage bag and swept his hand over it, revealing various monster hides.
"Monster materials?" Song Qing's eyes lit up as he quickly appraised them. "Mid-grade first-tier Wolf Demon hide, well-preserved... What kind of monster is this? I haven't seen it before, but it's also a mid-grade first-tier... Wolf Demon tooth, slightly damaged..."
Fang Xiyuan emptied two storage bags, fortunately having obtained many monster materials from Han Pangzi earlier. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to gather so many.
In the end, he sold them for over two hundred spirit stones.
Together with the proceeds from selling the Golden Spike Pill earlier, plus the hundred or so spirit stones he already had, Fang Xiyuan barely managed to gather five hundred spirit stones.
Song Qing solemnly drafted a contract, making two copies. After both parties imprinted their mana on it, he smiled and said, "Friend Fang, the deal is done!"
He collected the pile of spirit stones and, reciting a secret spell, a flash of light from his hand tore open the talisman on the jade slip.
This was a special restriction. If not followed correctly, it would self-destruct!
However, in Song Qing's smile, there seemed to be a hint of something else.
Seeing this, Fang Xiyuan's heart sank, but to him, monster materials were worthless. It was just a small price to pay for a possibility.
Placing the jade slip on his forehead, he soon turned pale and red, his eyes bloodshot.
Slap!
Fang Xiyuan slammed the table hard, his eyes filled with bloodshot veins. "Song, you deceived me?!"
"Friend, what do you mean by that?" Song Qing had already anticipated this and distanced himself, smiling. "I have sworn a Heart Demon Oath. Isn't the technique described in this jade slip a method for cultivating a postnatal spiritual body?"
"But... this damn..."
Fang Xiyuan stood up, seemingly about to act, but then he sneered. "This Heavenly Spirit Root, and the lengthy conditions, are indeed extremely strict!"
Seeing Fang Xiyuan control his anger, Song Qing was somewhat surprised.
"Friend, are you not afraid of tarnishing the reputation of Wanhai Tower?" Fang Xiyuan's face turned slightly green.
"This contract, did you not read it? Wanhai Tower sold you the postnatal spiritual body cultivation method for five hundred spirit stones. It's definitely a great deal for you. I didn't force you to buy it, you came to me willingly!"
Song Qing coldly responded, "If you have no evidence, and you tarnish the reputation of my Song Family, we won't take it lightly!"
He emphasized the 'Song Family' deliberately!
"I've suffered a loss... Can the shopkeeper return me some spirit stones, even a hundred would do!" Fang Xiyuan's expression kept changing, finally forcing a smile, pleading pitifully.
"Haha..." Song Qing's face was as cold as ice. "Guest, it's time for you to leave."
He was confident, as Wanhai Tower's defenses were at least second-tier!
"Alright, the green mountains will remain, and the clear waters will flow long. We'll meet again!" Fang Xiyuan stood up disheartenedly and left Wanhai Tower.
His steps quickened, disappearing into the crowd in no time.
After changing directions several times and altering his appearance, ensuring no one was following him, Fang Xiyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Touching the storage bag and sensing the jade slip inside, he struggled to control his facial muscles, refraining from bursting into laughter.
The 'Longevity Technique' was truly a scam!
According to this technique, cultivating a postnatal spiritual body required extremely strict conditions.
Not to mention the wood attribute spiritual root, the real challenge lay in the need to refine a 'Heaven and Earth Spirit Root' as the foundation, transforming it into the cultivator's 'Life Spirit Plant'!
Only then could one continuously cultivate the Life Spirit Plant, absorbing its essence and power, tempering the cultivator's own postnatal wood spiritual body!
The so-called 'Heaven and Earth Spirit Root' had to be a rare treasure, at least third-tier, making it a bottomless pit for Qi Refining cultivators!
Moreover, the spiritual plant needed a suitable spiritual vein to grow!
In other words, it required planting the spiritual root in a land with at least a third-tier spiritual vein to cultivate properly!
And that wasn't even the most deceptive part of the 'Longevity Technique'!
The most deceptive part was that during the cultivation of this technique, the cultivator couldn't stray too far from the Life Spirit Plant. They had to stay together year-round for it to be effective. If they left for too long, the cultivation would immediately fail!
And time was measured in hundreds of years!
"A hundred years for the Green Wood Spirit Body, a thousand years for the Ethereal Wood Law Body, and ten thousand years for the Eternal Greenness Body, also known as the 'Longevity Dao Body' rumored to lead to immortality and enlightenment!"
"This cultivation method is truly..."
To be honest, when Fang Xiyuan saw it, he felt somewhat speechless.
Even the lowest-level Green Wood Spirit Body required at least a third-tier spiritual root and had to be rooted in a third-tier spiritual land for a hundred years without leaving!
"A third-tier spiritual vein land... perhaps only the Xuantian Sect in the entire Yue Kingdom has one?"
"Even if these issues were resolved, it would take a hundred years to cultivate a postnatal spiritual body. I would have died of old age long before then!"
"Not to mention the Ethereal Wood Law Body. Perhaps only Nascent Soul Ancestors or even True Immortal Lords would have enough lifespan to attempt it? But since they can form Nascent Souls and True Immortal bodies, their spiritual roots must be extraordinary, possibly awakening innate spiritual bodies long ago. Why bother cultivating postnatal spiritual bodies?"
"This is simply a white elephant! A waste of effort!"
"Although it mentions later on that special spiritual fluids can be used to promote the growth of spiritual plants, the cost is exorbitant... especially for the highest-grade 'Heavenly Creation Spiritual Fluid,' which is said to instantly age a spiritual plant by a hundred years. But damn, I've never even heard of this! Perhaps it can be found in the Immortal Realm, but it's probably not available in the Southern Wasteland cultivation world!"
Song Qing from Wanhai Tower was clearly trying to swindle Fang Xiyuan with the Longevity Technique!
However, Fang Xiyuan realized he had outsmarted him!
Because he suddenly remembered the 'Demon Tree' in Heishi City!
(End of Chapter)