The Beast Core Economy

Chapter 383: Rising Wind Overseas Danfang and the Demonic Core

“Though our Sixfold Hall is not among the Four Great Merchant Alliances, we are still a reputable merchant house within the Starfall Sea. These two spirit essences, though rare, are nothing to us. Fellow Daoist Qu, feel free to accept them; consider them our Sixfold Hall’s advance congratulations on your Core Formation.” The bearded man waved his hand, speaking with an air of casual generosity.

Hearing this, Han Li did not immediately have Qu Hun accept the gift with delight. Instead, he frowned inwardly.

Freely giving such a precious gift? Han Li didn’t believe such good fortune existed in the world. Even if Qu Hun was perceived as being at the Half-Foundation stage, these two wouldn’t need to curry favor with him to this extent. Did they have some other motive?

With this thought, Han Li grew even more cautious.

He directed Qu Hun to shake his head and speak with a serious expression:

“How can this be? I understand the principle of not accepting rewards without merit. These two items should be priced accordingly. I can afford a few spirit stones. Or do you two perhaps have some unspoken difficulty?” After finishing, Qu Hun revealed a faint, knowing smile.

Seeing Qu Hun’s wariness toward the proffered benefit, Cao Lu and the bearded man paused, exchanging a glance.

After a brief look, Cao Lu cleared his throat and said, “You have seen through us, Fellow Daoist. Since you are a man of understanding, I will speak plainly. We do indeed have a matter requiring your assistance. These two spirit essences are merely a token of our Sixfold Hall’s goodwill. If the matter succeeds, our hall will have another generous gift to offer.”

This time, Cao Lu spoke with considerable sincerity, while the bearded man showed a hint of embarrassment.

Hearing this, Han Li sneered inwardly. He had Qu Hui smile faintly and decline:

“To be honest with you both, I am currently entirely focused on Core Formation and have no mind for other affairs. I’m afraid I must decline. You had best seek someone else.”

Qu Hun didn’t seem even interested in hearing the nature of the matter, immediately shutting down the conversation.

Hearing this reply, Cao Lu and the bearded man were not angered but instead laughed heartily.

“Hehe, since Fellow Daoist Qu is so concerned with Core Formation, then you should definitely help with this matter! Because upon success, our Sixfold Hall’s reward is a single Jiang Chen Pill. This pill is of great benefit to Core Formation, able to somewhat increase the chances of success!” the bearded man announced with a laugh.

“Jiang Chen Pill?” Qu Hun murmured in slight surprise.

“Indeed. This time, our Sixfold Hall requires six cultivators at the Half-Foundation stage. We have already found five; we need only one more. If you are willing to go, it would be perfect. Each cultivator who participates will be given a Jiang Chen Pill by our hall.” Cao Lu put away his smile and spoke solemnly.

‘Jiang Chen Pill.’ Perhaps it was famous throughout the Starfall Sea, but Han Li, who had secluded himself in Qixing Island immediately upon arrival, had no way of knowing if the pill was as miraculous as they claimed.

Thus, Qu Hun hesitated for a moment before asking cautiously:

“May I ask, in detail, what kind of assistance you require of me? Then I can decide.”

“Of course. It’s nothing too complicated. Our hall has discovered a sixth-rank demonic beast and wishes to obtain its demonic core. We are seeking some external help to eliminate it.” Cao Lu said lightly, as if it were a trivial matter.

“A sixth-rank demonic beast?” Qu Hun smiled bitterly. On the side, Han Li nearly jumped up and cursed them both.

He remembered that a fourth-rank giant mantis had nearly cost him his life. Now they were talking about a sixth-rank beast—wasn’t that sending a group of cultivators to their deaths?

“Rest assured, Fellow Daoist. Our hall has made thorough preparations for this operation; there is not much danger. Aside from two Core Formation elders serving as our hall’s guest reverends, we have also set up the “Sixfold Water Evasion Grand Formation.” We only need six Half-Foundation cultivators to oversee the formation,” the bearded man quickly interjected, sensing Qu Hun’s displeasure.

‘Sixfold Water Evasion Formation.’

The name sounded familiar. Han Li recalled that among the formation manuals Xin Ruyin had given him, there was indeed information on this formation.

“As this is a matter of great importance, may I ask the two of you to allow me a couple of days to consider? I will give you my answer in two days’ time,” Qu Hun said under Han Li’s control, offering a delaying response.

Hearing Qu Hun’s vague reply, Cao Lu was startled but immediately agreed with a smile.

As Han Li and Qu Hun prepared to leave, Cao Lu and the bearded man insisted that Han Li take the “Snow Spirit Water” and “Heavenly Fire Liquid” with him, politely saying that even if Qu Hun ultimately declined, it was of no consequence—they were resolved to befriend Qu Hun.

Hearing such words of conciliation, Qu Hun smiled faintly and accepted the jade box without further refusal. After a few polite farewells, he led Han Li out of the hall.

Once outside the White Water Pavillion, Han Li glanced back at the building, shook his head lightly, and then found a street leading away from the square.

Since these six pavilions were all under the same ownership, Han Li naturally couldn’t visit the remaining ones to haggle over purchases—he had already accepted their gift.

Thus, he decided to look for smaller peripheral shops to complete his shopping list.

Apart from the “Snow Spirit Water” and “Heavenly Fire Liquid” for Core Formation, he also needed to buy materials for refining second-tier puppets. While the main material—centuries-old ironwood—could be cultivated himself, he still needed a large batch of auxiliary materials like iron ore and cloud essence stone.

Additionally, he needed some herb seeds for refining the “Spirit Nourishing Pill,” so he could formally begin training the two white spiders.

With this objective in mind, Han Li entered a small general store and purchased most of his supplies. The rarer items he couldn’t find he secured after visiting a few more shops.

Feeling relieved, Han Li began browsing other types of shops.

His main focus, however, remained on shops selling pills and cultivation manuals. He had nearly exhausted his existing pill formulas and was eager to acquire one or two more. As for techniques, while he wouldn’t find any top-tier ones here, general ones would help him understand the types of techniques Starfall Sea cultivators used.

After a full circuit, Han Li was stunned.

When he had Qu Hun wait outside and entered a pill shop himself, asking if they sold Foundation Establishment pill formulas, the shop assistant simply tossed him several dozen of various types. Han Li nearly bit his tongue in shock.

Examining all the formulas with an expression of disbelief, he was dumbstruck.

Regardless of whether the pills they produced were valuable, the main ingredients listed were not spiritual herbs, but demonic beast inner cores of various grades. Some of the rarer pills even required the cores of sixth- or seventh-rank beasts.

While these pills also required some centuries-old herbs, in these formulas, the herbs had become mere auxiliary materials, easily replaceable with other medicines.

Holding the thick stack of formulas, Han Li stood frozen for a long time.

Under the shop assistant’s curious gaze, he casually bought a few suitable ones at a very low price and walked out in a daze.

A few moments later, still unsatisfied, he visited several more pill shops. All the high-level formulas required demonic beast cores—only the low-level Qi Condensation formulas did not.

Unable to contain himself, he cautiously asked a shopkeeper if they had any high-level formulas that didn’t require demonic cores. The shopkeeper looked at him as if he were an idiot before saying, “If high-grade pills aren’t made from demonic beast cores, what ingredient would one use?”

Hearing this, Han Li left in embarrassment, completely resigned.

Evidently, the pill-making path of Starfall Sea cultivators was entirely different from that of the Heavenly South. They treated the demonic beasts of the ocean as their primary medicinal ingredients.

After all, it made sense. The boundless sea nurtured countless demonic beasts. Even the ancients could never have exterminated them all. This was far better than the situation in the Heavenly South. These formulas were likely ancient recipes handed down over the ages.

Thinking thus, Han Li stood in an obscure corner of the street, pulled out a formula from his purchases that was also called “Foundation Establishment Pill,” and examined it carefully.

The formula was largely identical to the one he remembered from the Heavenly South, except that the rare spiritual herbs which could only be gathered from the Blood Forbidden Land had been replaced by the cores of fifth-rank demonic beasts.

Seeing this, Han Li put away the formulas, hugged his chest, and sank into deep thought.