"What can I do for you, Fellow Daoist?"

A female attendant bowed softly in greeting. Looking at the Azure Cauldron emblem on Gu An's chest, her eyes held a trace of envy.

Gu An gave a slight nod. "Show me the talisman paper and spiritual ink. First-Grade Middle-Tier."

The attendant blinked. "Does Fellow Daoist have any specific elemental attributes in mind?"

Gu An was well aware that talisman paper and spiritual ink carried elemental properties. Matching the attribute of the ink to the paper when drawing a talisman would slightly raise the success rate and marginally enhance its power.

However, back in the day, Gu An had always bought basic First-Grade Middle-Tier Yellow Origin Paper and picked whatever spiritual ink was cheapest, never paying much attention to such details.

After all, the general quality of goods at the minor gatherings in the Yun Kingdom left much to be desired. But now that he was in the immortal city, he could afford to be a bit more meticulous.

"Give me five bundles of First-Grade Middle-Tier water-attribute talisman paper, five bundles of earth-attribute, and three bundles of attribute-less paper. As for the ink, a jar of attribute-less will do. Go ahead and introduce what you have."

Gu An pondered for a brief moment before listing his requirements.

Water-attribute paper was for drawing Water Shield Talismans, earth-attribute was for Rock Armor Talismans, and attribute-less was for Spirit-Soothing Talismans. These were the only three First-Grade Middle-Tier talismans recorded in his Water Cloud Talisman Scripture.

Though he had yet to master the latter two, he wasn't far off.

The attendant curtsied gracefully and led him to the talisman section.

"Our Treasure Gathering Pavilion offers three varieties of First-Grade Middle-Tier water-attribute paper: White Wave, Azure Xuan, and Cang Yuan. Of the three, White Wave Talisman Paper sells the best. Its quality matches the other two, but it costs one less Spirit Stone."

"Oh? Why is that?" Gu An asked out of curiosity.

"The Chen Kingdom has numerous waterways connected to the Yong River, which teems with White Scale Demon Fish. The scales of these beasts are the raw material for White Wave paper, making production costs far cheaper."

"The same goes for our earth-attribute Earth-Horn Paper and attribute-less Spirit Source Paper."

"The water and earth-attribute papers are five Spirit Stones per bundle, while the attribute-less is four."

Gu An felt a phantom ache in his teeth. The paper alone would cost sixty-two Spirit Stones, and a jar of First-Grade Middle-Tier spiritual ink would easily demand another dozen or so. Feeling a pang of frugality, he said, "What options do we have for the ink? Just pick a cheap jar for me."

"The most economical option we carry is Three Mysteries Ink, priced at thirteen Spirit Stones for a large jar."

Gu An waved his hand weakly. "That will do. Bring them over."

A moment later, the attendant returned with the selected items. Gu An carefully counted out sixty-seven Spirit Stones from his Storage Bag and handed them over.

The Treasure Gathering Pavilion offered a ten percent discount to disciples of the Qingyuan Sect, and Gu An took the liberty of rounding down the loose change. Even so, once the sixty-seven Spirit Stones were paid, only eight remained in his possession.

With his pockets thoroughly drained, a sense of emptiness washed over him. He couldn't help but ask, "Does your establishment purchase spiritual items from cultivators?"

The attendant nodded with a smile. "Certainly. Please follow me."

She guided Gu An into the rear hall, where an old man dressed in a green robe sat behind a wooden desk, idly spinning an emerald thumb ring.

"Master Gu, a disciple from the Qingyuan Sect wishes to sell some goods."

Meeting the old man's searching gaze, Gu An stepped forward and cupped his hands. "Greetings, Senior Brother. This Junior Brother has a few items to part with."

With a flick of his wrist, he produced the giant centipede corpse and the Ghost-Head Saber from his Storage Bag, placing them upon the wooden desk.

The Ghost-Head Saber was a Magical Artifact designed for close-quarters combat. Gu An preferred unleashing techniques from a distance, and given that his current Divine Sense and spiritual power could not sustain managing multiple weapons, selling it caused him no regret.

The elderly Senior Brother Gu didn't inspect the items immediately. Instead, he looked at Gu An and asked, "Junior Brother, did you just return from the frontline against the Beastmaster Sect? The craftsmanship on this Ghost-Head Saber doesn't bear the hallmark of our Qingyuan Sect."

Sensing a subtle undercurrent of approval in the old man's tone, Gu An's mind raced. "Senior Brother has an exceptional eye. This Junior Brother possesses meager talents, yet I managed to slay two scoundrels from the Beastmaster Sect!"

Inwardly, he rationalized his claim: If I count the one Xiao Wenyuan killed, that makes two, right? We fought them together, so I deserve a share of the credit!

With that thought, Gu An puffed out his chest to look more convincing.

The old man stroked his beard and let out a hearty laugh. "Excellent! Truly a worthy disciple of our Qingyuan Sect. This Senior Brother will ensure you receive a handsome price!"

He didn't question the claim further; after all, the Ghost-Head Saber and the centipede corpse were typical gear for Beastmaster Sect cultivators.

Gu An's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected his Sect identity to yield such a pleasant surprise. "Then I offer my deepest thanks, Senior Brother!"

Senior Brother Gu waved his hand dismissively and began evaluating the spoils.

After a brief inspection, he looked up and smiled. "A third-layer Qi Condensation Hundred-Foot Centipede with an intact corpse-twelve Spirit Stones. As for this First-Grade Middle-Tier Magical Artifact, the Hundred Evil Saber... let's call it sixty Spirit Stones. How does that sound to you, Junior Brother?"

It was an incredibly generous offer. A third-layer demon beast corpse normally fetched around ten Spirit Stones, but sixty for the saber was well above market value. The weapon's quality was thoroughly mediocre for a Middle-Tier artifact, and buyback prices were typically far lower.

Nodding in deep satisfaction, Gu An smiled. "Thank you, Senior Brother. I am highly pleased with this price."

"Bah, think nothing of it! Just focus on slaying more of those Beastmaster Sect dogs!"

Gu An felt a sudden prick of guilt. He had absolutely no intention of risking his life at the You Kingdom's Spirit Stone mines, but he saw no need to correct Senior Brother Gu.

The two chatted for a while longer and exchanged names. Gu An learned that this Senior Brother, Gu Tong, harbored a burning hatred for the Beastmaster Sect because his Dao companion had fallen by their hands.

Regrettably, when Gu Tong had sought vengeance years ago, he was so severely wounded that even a slight circulation of his spiritual power now caused agonizing pain throughout his body. He could only place his unfulfilled vengeance upon the younger generation of disciples.

...

Leaving the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, Gu An felt a weight settle on his chest. The blood feud between the Beastmaster Sect and the Qingyuan Sect ran incredibly deep, and Gu Tong's tragedy was likely one of many. There was no telling how devastating the ongoing war would ultimately become.

Then again, Gu An was merely an insignificant sixth-layer Qi Condensation cultivator. Such grand affairs were far beyond his station. Taking a deep breath, he quickly cast his worries aside and walked briskly toward the vendor stalls.

"The inheritance of a Golden Core True Person! Only for the fated!"

"A map leading to the hidden cave estate of a Foundation Establishment cultivator! Only one copy available, step right up!"

"Fragments of a Dharma Treasure! Razor-sharp and peerless!"

...

Gu An walked past the rows of stalls with an expressionless face, completely ignoring the paper manuals, weathered parchments, and scrap metal coated in cheap spiritual paste.

They hadn't even copied their texts onto proper jade slips-how could they possibly contain anything of value? The vendors couldn't even apply the spiritual paste evenly, yet they dared to come out and swindle people.

Did they take everyone for absolute fools?

And yet, the world was full of naive souls. There was never a shortage of fools who fancied themselves the Child of Destiny, willing to gamble their entire savings only to end up penniless. If not for them, these fraudulent setups wouldn't thrive so tirelessly.

Case in point: a young girl clad in fine brocade was currently crouching before a piece of parchment, examining it with rapt interest.

Noticing the gold-threaded Storage Bag hanging from her waist and the spiritual blue bird perched upon her shoulder, the stall owner immediately recognized an elite mark. He was weaving a grand tale about the map's origins, and the young girl looked thoroughly swayed.

Gu An shook his head in secret amusement. However, he believed in respecting the path others chose and had no desire to meddle in trouble. He turned away to search for vendors selling spiritual grains.

His supply of fish food was running low. The larger establishments in the immortal city didn't deign to handle petty goods like bran and rice husks, leaving him with no choice but to comb through the street stalls to find them.