Chapter Six: An Unexpected Gain

Just as she expected, a gray, striped serpent’s tail slammed down before her, carving a deep gash into the earth. An oppressive aura, akin to a Foundation Establishment cultivator’s pressure, surged toward her.

Qu Yiqiu sensed danger. With a single thought, she vanished from where she stood.

Moments later, the head of a whip-tailed serpent, crowned with fleshy growths, extended into view. It twisted about in confusion, as if puzzled by the sudden disappearance of its target.

Hidden within her own pocket space, Qu Yiqiu tapped the void. Instantly, the interface for the All-Realm Cultivation Marketplace appeared before her eyes.

She skimmed past the flashy items and went straight to the category marked with lethal attributes.

“Heavenly Thunder Pearl—gather five to kill a Core Formation cultivator, single price: one hundred thousand cultivation experience points.

Blast Pellet—one can kill a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, price: fifty thousand cultivation experience points.

Thunder Seed, price: thirty thousand cultivation experience points...”

“These won’t do—far too expensive!” Qu Yiqiu reluctantly kept scrolling. Though the items were good, the experience cost was simply prohibitive.

“At last, here it is!” she exclaimed to herself.

[Bramble Sphere: Requires Wood Spiritual Energy to nurture. Once it bears bramble fruit, it can immediately explode. Unstoppable by anyone below Core Formation. Price: nine hundred cultivation experience points.]

With a pained heart, Qu Yiqiu pressed purchase. This was by far the cheapest option she’d found.

Almost as soon as she confirmed the purchase, a bramble sphere seed materialized in her hand.

Clutching the black seed, she decided to wait until nightfall before making her move. She couldn’t see what was happening outside from within her space—she had no idea if the second-tier whip-tailed serpent had left. The safest choice was to stay hidden for a while longer.

She relaxed into a cross-legged position, opening her pores to draw in the spiritual energy that swirled within her space.

Outside, the second-tier whip-tailed serpent was still circling the area, its thick tail rustling through the tall grass. Its cold eyes remained fixed on the spot where Qu Yiqiu had vanished.

As dusk fell, a half-moon rose slowly in the sky. A chilly wind swept across the slope, flattening the tender shoots of immortal ganoderma that poked from the earth.

The serpent’s blood-red eyes flashed with malice. Suddenly, it darted away.

Not long after it left, Qu Yiqiu emerged from her space, shrouded in a protective shield.

The moment her feet touched the ground, she slipped agilely into the nearby tall grass, making not a sound.

By the slanting moonlight, she could make out the trail left by the whip-tailed serpent.

“If it were merely century-old immortal ganoderma, no second-tier monster would bother to guard it. There must be something else hidden beneath that slope!”

Qu Yiqiu wasn’t sure whether Mu Yunjin was lucky or unlucky. There was treasure here, yet he hadn’t noticed it. Still, at least he hadn’t encountered the second-tier monster—otherwise, he wouldn’t have escaped with his life.

She took out the bramble sphere seed, gently infused it with wood spiritual energy, and tossed it toward the end of the slope.

This small action failed to attract the serpent’s attention.

Relieved, she crept forward a few more steps, channeling the wood spiritual energy stored within her core into the bramble sphere from a distance.

The black seed began to grow visibly, swelling before her eyes. When it was nearly ready to bear fruit, Qu Yiqiu stopped the flow of energy.

She drew her bow, aiming once more at the immortal ganoderma.

Twang!

The arrow clattered against the rocks, instantly provoking the second-tier whip-tailed serpent. Hissing, venom dripping from its fangs, it lunged—half its massive body rearing up, maw wide to swallow her whole.

At that moment, she swiftly stowed her bow, her slender hand flashing with a burst of green light that shot toward the bramble sphere. Dozens of gray, spiked balls ballooned outward.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Explosions rent the air as Qu Yiqiu rolled aside. The airborne serpent was blasted into several huge chunks, blood crashing down like a torrential rain.

Once the bramble spheres had all detonated, Qu Yiqiu hastily cleaned up the aftermath. With a cleansing spell and a rain of spiritual energy, the grassland was restored to calm—only a few crushed stalks betraying the mayhem.

Stepping cautiously toward the end of the slope, Qu Yiqiu remained on high alert.

Using the tall grass to weave a rope, reinforced with wood spiritual energy, she tied it to a large tree and climbed down.

“So there is a hidden world below,” she murmured.

Suspended in midair, she peered at a dark cave concealed behind a crooked tree.

She produced a jade box, carefully dug up three stalks of immortal ganoderma, then nimbly leapt onto the tree trunk and slipped into the cavern.

“There’s still a lingering serpent aura here. It must have dwelled in this den for some time,” she muttered, enduring the stench as she drew out a luminous stone to light her way.

At first, the cave was narrow and cramped, but after crawling for a while, the darkness gave way to sudden brightness.

“There’s actually a spiritual spring here! No wonder a second-tier whip-tailed serpent could appear on the Green Origin Mountain cliff!” Qu Yiqiu dropped to her knees, scooping up the spring water and drinking it down.

“So sweet! If only I could take it with me!” she thought, remembering her empty storage space.

Could she perhaps move the spiritual spring into her space?

She slipped back into her pocket dimension and opened the All-Realm Cultivation Marketplace.

In the auxiliary category, she found just what she needed.

[Root-Transplant Talisman: Can relocate spiritual eye objects. Price: nine hundred cultivation experience points.]

Spiritual eye objects included springs, stones, trees—things only found in places of extreme spiritual abundance. Whenever such objects appeared, they drove the cultivators of the world mad with desire.

“That’s outrageous—a support talisman costs as much as a bramble sphere!” she grumbled, but hesitated not a moment before purchasing.

Her painstakingly hoarded two thousand experience points now dwindled to just two hundred.

The talisman landed in her hand, and she immediately flashed back out.

The spiritual spring exuded a faint, refreshing aroma. She took a deep breath, then tossed the Root-Transplant Talisman above the spring, chanting softly.

“Collect!”

The talisman glowed green, blanketing the spring in a shimmering veil before flying back to her hand.

“How fascinating—the spring has become an image on the talisman,” she mused, smiling as she entered her space.

Using her feet as a measure, she paced out a spot inside her dimension and chose a location.

“Release!”

She tossed out the Root-Transplant Talisman. The green aura reappeared, and the spring slowly descended to the ground, releasing its alluring fragrance.

Qu Yiqiu circled the spring a few times. Satisfied all was well, a smile crept across her lips.

“So this space really can hold items aside from myself. It seems creating a spiritual field here won’t be a problem.”

With such dense spiritual energy, any spirit herbs grown here would surely surpass those cultivated outside.

Qu Yiqiu stroked her chin, already forming new plans for her pocket dimension.