The Fiercely Toxic Fire Burning Heavens

Seeing the two yellow talismans Senior Brother Xu produced, Song Wen's heart gave a violent, involuntary thud.

He had never seen the runes drawn on these two talismans before.

Yet, he could feel a trace of majestic heavenly authority emanating from them, as if they possessed the power to suppress all evil under heaven.

Upon encountering these two talismans, Song Wen felt the flow of corpse baleful energy within his body grow sluggish, instinctively urging him to step away.

"What talismans are these?" Song Wen asked in surprise.

Senior Brother Xu merely flashed the two yellow sheets for a fleeting moment before sweeping them back into his Storage Bag. He looked about warily, as though these two talismans had absolutely no business appearing within the territory of the Corpse Demon Sect.

"Heavenly Lightning Talismans! First-grade High Grade."

Song Wen instantly understood the vendor's vigilance.

Heavenly lightning embodied the majestic will of the Heavenly Dao, possessing devastating lethality against foul things, which extended directly to demonic and unorthodox cultivators.

Among orthodox cultivators, a rare few managed to master lightning-attribute techniques, making them the most despised adversaries of the demonic path.

Naturally, lightning-attribute talismans were also the ultimate counter to demonic cultivators.

Song Wen felt a stir of interest. If utilized correctly, these two first-grade High Grade talismans could easily threaten a late-stage Qi Condensation cultivator.

Detecting Song Wen's temptation, Senior Brother Xu leaned in and continued.

"I obtained these two talismans years ago after slaying an orthodox cultivator. Though the Heavenly Lightning Talisman is immensely powerful and highly effective against demonic cultivators, it bears a fatal flaw."

"What flaw?"

"They can only be triggered by the righteous energy of heaven and earth. In other words, we demonic cultivators cannot use them. The cultivation methods we practice inherently imbue our spiritual power with the turbid energy of the world, making it impossible to stimulate the Heavenly Lightning Talisman."

Senior Brother Xu sighed, shook his head, and said, "That is exactly why these two talismans have languished in my hands for so long. I haven't been able to sell them, nor have I been able to use them."

Song Wen was a regular customer, so Senior Brother Xu had no intention of cheating him. After all, if Song Wen bought them and took them back to test, he would realize the issue immediately.

'Triggered by the righteous energy of heaven and earth? The Everlasting Longevity Art is a pure, orthodox Daoist method. Isn't the spiritual power it produces exactly that?'

For reasons Song Wen still did not comprehend, his cultivation in the Everlasting Longevity Art had not dissolved even after he joined the Corpse Demon Sect and began practicing the Corpse King Blood Refining Art.

Ordinarily, a cultivator could only maintain one primary cultivation method unless they broke through to a major realm and officially switched paths.

A freak like Song Wen, who simultaneously cultivated a demonic body-refining art and a pure Daoist Qi-refining method, was entirely unprecedented.

Unable to comprehend the reason behind this, he could only credit it to his bizarre and mysterious physical body.

Though he had not actively cultivated the Everlasting Longevity Art over the past year, the dense Spiritual Qi of the Corpse Demon Sect and his frequent use of Spirit Stones had allowed the orthodox art to progress sluggishly on its own. It was currently bordering the third layer of Qi Condensation-surely enough to ignite a Heavenly Lightning Talisman.

"Senior Brother Xu, what is your price for these two talismans?" Song Wen inquired.

Seeing that Song Wen was actually interested in buying the functionally useless items, Senior Brother Xu's spirits rallied.

"How about one hundred Spirit Stones for the pair?"

"Too expensive," Song Wen countered, shaking his head. "Since they can only be unleashed with righteous energy, they are little more than novelties in the hands of us demonic cultivators."

"Then how about eighty Spirit Stones? They are first-grade High Grade talismans, after all."

Song Wen replied, "Still too high. I will give you forty Spirit Stones at most. Left in your hands, Senior Brother, they are merely two scraps of waste paper. You might as well sell them to your Junior Brother for a cheap price to recoup some Spirit Stones."

After a brief round of haggling, Song Wen secured both talismans for fifty Spirit Stones.

Once the transaction concluded, Senior Brother Xu lowered his voice and asked, "Junior Brother, are you about to head out for a sect mission?"

Song Wen's eyes narrowed, his gaze turning icy as he stared at the vendor.

He did not understand how this man had discerned his upcoming departure.

Noticing the sudden hostility, Senior Brother Xu quickly explained, "Do not be alarmed, Junior Brother. The annual sect mission is mandatory for all disciples. For someone like you, who prefers to remain holed up in the sect long-term, a sudden spending spree on life-saving items can only mean one thing: you are being sent out into the field."

Song Wen's expression softened slightly, though he remained wary of the man's underlying motives.

"Does Senior Brother Xu have some advice regarding the sect missions?"

Senior Brother Xu waved his hand dismissively.

"Not at all. Every disciple's mission varies. How could I offer guidance when I don't even know what your assignment is?

However, I do have an exceptional item on hand. I wonder if Junior Brother might be interested?"

Senior Brother Xu had long realized that Song Wen was a fiercely pragmatic cultivator who valued his life above all else-the type who would lie low and farm inside the sect indefinitely if permitted. Thus, he seized the opportunity to pitch another asset.

"What is it? Let me see."

"A lethal poison called Fire Burning Heavens! Any mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivator will drop dead upon contact. Those at the seventh or eighth layer will suffer agonizing torment and a severe reduction in combat capability. Even if a ninth-layer cultivator is infected, they will feel as though they are being roasted over a blazing furnace, making it nigh impossible to expel the toxin in short order."

Song Wen's interest was thoroughly piqued. "Senior Brother actually possesses such a lethal substance? Are you truly willing to part with it?"

Senior Brother Xu smiled. "As long as Junior Brother can produce the Spirit Stones, there is nothing I cannot sell. Besides, I recently broke through to the ninth layer of Qi Condensation, so this poison is of limited use to me now."

"Congratulations on your advancement, Senior Brother. Foundation Establishment is surely within your grasp," Song Wen offered smooth flattery.

Senior Brother Xu grinned widely, clearly enjoying the compliment.

"I appreciate your auspicious words, Junior Brother. So, do you want this Fire Burning Heavens?"

"Naturally, I am interested, but I fear my pockets are not deep enough."

"I have ten drops of Fire Burning Heavens in total. If your Spirit Stones are tight, purchasing just one or two drops is perfectly fine."

"How much are you asking, Senior Brother Xu?"

"Twenty Spirit Stones per drop."

"Far too expensive," Song Wen argued, driving down the price. "Though the toxicity is potent, it must make direct contact with a cultivator's skin to take effect. Twenty Spirit Stones is enough to buy a first-grade Middle Grade talisman."

Following another intense round of verbal tug-of-war, Song Wen ultimately spent one hundred and twenty Spirit Stones to sweep up the entire stock of Fire Burning Heavens.

This caused Senior Brother Xu to view him in a completely new light. He had not expected this seemingly mundane Junior Brother to possess such a substantial net worth.

At the same time, he realized just how desperately terrified of death this Junior Brother truly was.

To drop such an exorbitant sum on a poison he might not even use spoke volumes.

Senior Brother Xu internally noted that if he ever came across items designed for fleeing or dirtying opponents in the future, he should market them directly to this regular-the boy clearly had a profound weakness for underhanded survival gear.

Song Wen stowed away the jade vial containing the Fire Burning Heavens, bid farewell to Senior Brother Xu, and departed.

He circled the market stalls one more time but failed to spot Chen Yi. After purchasing five flying talismans, six swift-movement talismans, and ten thunderclap bombs-which offered negligible threat to mid-stage Qi Condensation cultivators but served as excellent distractions-he finally returned to his cave abode.

Swift-movement talismans were first-grade Middle Grade assets, commonly used by Qi Condensation cultivators for pursuit and evasion to drastically enhance their speed.

Following this shopping spree, the Spirit Stones Song Wen had painstakingly amassed over the recent months were essentially depleted.

Though he was highly satisfied with his haul from the market, one loose end remained untied: locating Chen Yi.

His primary objective in seeking her out was to obtain intelligence regarding the Seven-Color Grass.

Regarding his upcoming sect mission, apart from knowing he was meant to audit the quantity and growth status of the Seven-Color Grass, he was completely in the dark.

As a worker in the Spirit Grass Garden, Chen Yi would have easy access to such botanical records.

Although Elder Shen of the Alchemy Hall would likely provide some documentation when they met in three days, having an extra layer of preparation was always the sensible course.

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