Chapter 137: Golden Zhubei

“Two spirit stones!” A crisp female voice reached Han Li’s ears.

Han Li was momentarily stunned, only then realizing that the stall owner opposite him, who had been keeping her head down reading, was actually a sweet and charming young girl.

“Is this book complete?” Han Li asked after collecting himself.

“Yes, it contains all the incantations for the Evergreen Technique from the first to the thirteenth layer, not a single sentence missing,” the girl replied generously.

Han Li nodded, randomly flipped through a few more pages, and then closed the book.

“Do you accept pills in exchange?” Han Li asked directly.

“Pills?” The girl looked somewhat astonished, her beautiful eyes widening.

“It depends on what kind of pills. If they’re for healing or treating illnesses, they’re not very valuable!” The girl gently smoothed the stray hairs on her forehead.

Hearing her words, Han Li knew this deal had great potential. Without hesitation, he took out a bottle of “Yellow Dragon Pills” and placed it in front of the girl.

“Pills for strengthening foundations and boosting cultivation, capable of enhancing spiritual power!” Han Li stated without modesty.

“Foundation-strengthening and cultivation-boosting pills?”

The girl, who had been calm and composed until now, suddenly grew tense. She leaned forward, closer to Han Li, gently picked up the jade bottle, poured out one pill, and bent her head to examine and smell its properties.

From his higher vantage point, Han Li had a clear view of the girl’s exposed jade-like neck. Moreover, because she was so close to him, a delicate, feminine fragrance wafted into his nostrils, making his heart race and his face flush slightly.

“These really are pills that enhance spiritual power!” the girl exclaimed joyfully after smelling the pill for a while.

She lifted her head, looking at Han Li with a delighted expression, and said eagerly, “Do you have more of these pills? If you do, I’ll exchange as many as you have. You can pick anything from my stall. If that’s not enough, I can also pay with spirit stones!”

After saying this, she clutched the bottle tightly, staring unblinkingly at Han Li, afraid she might hear a “no” from him.

Han Li found it amusing to see the originally gentle and charming girl suddenly so nervous. But he couldn’t help thinking to himself that he had underestimated the value of these pills and would need to be more cautious in the future.

“Miss, don’t worry. Let’s finish this transaction first before discussing the next, alright?” Han Li had originally intended to refuse her, but when he saw the clarity in her eyes, he somehow thought of his younger sister back home, and his heart softened. These words slipped out almost involuntarily.

“I’m really sorry! I got a bit carried away.” The girl seemed to realize her impropriety, and her face flushed red.

“For this book, just two of these pills will suffice,” the girl said after calming down.

Han Li thought her price was fair and agreed. Then he began scanning the other items on the stall.

“What’s this?”

An inconspicuous small gray pouch caught Han Li’s interest. Especially because the pouch’s opening was tightly tied with a thin red silk thread, and it bulged as if full. Han Li reached out and picked it up.

“These are seeds of the Seven-Star Grass. Seven-Star Grass over ten years old is the best material for making talisman paper,” the girl explained clearly.

Han Li’s heart stirred—this item could be very useful. Without hesitation, he placed the pouch in front of him.

“Nothing else here is of use to me,” Han Li said slowly after giving the stall another once-over.

“Are you sure? This Frost Talisman is very powerful, and this Recovery Talisman can greatly restore your stamina…” The girl, somewhat unwilling to give up, stepped forward to recommend items to Han Li.

Seeing the girl’s adorable, “you-don’t-know-what-you’re-missing” expression, Han Li couldn’t help but chuckle.

“What’s so funny?” The girl blushed again.

“I actually just wanted to buy some cinnabar and a talisman-drawing brush. Unfortunately, you don’t have them here!” Han Li rarely spoke such blunt honesty.

“Cinnabar and a talisman brush!” The girl frowned, looking hesitant.

She lowered her head in thought for a moment, as if making a difficult decision, then suddenly looked up at Han Li and said, “I don’t have cinnabar, but I have a high-quality talisman brush made from the neck fur of a Golden-Eyed Ape, a demon beast. However, it’s very expensive. I’m not sure if you have enough pills to exchange for it.”

Han Li was surprised but still smiled. “As long as the item is good, I’ll make sure you’re satisfied with the pills.”

Hearing this, the girl finally relaxed.

She took out a talisman, traced a few symbols in the air above it, and then threw it into the sky, where it vanished in a trail of fire.

“Please wait a moment, sir. My brother will bring the item shortly!” The girl looked somewhat embarrassed.

“No problem. As long as it’s truly a good item, I don’t mind waiting a bit longer,” Han Li said calmly.

After that, Han Li and the girl fell silent for a while, creating a somewhat ambiguous atmosphere between them.

Han Li found himself somewhat enchanted by this unusual feeling, breathing in the faint fragrance from across the stall. The girl kept her head down, staring at her toes, lost in thought. Han Li noticed a faint blush rising on her fair neck.

“Little sister!” A loud voice suddenly shattered the delicate atmosphere, making Han Li want to glare at the intruder. But when he turned around and saw who it was, he was taken aback.

A burly man, no less imposing than Qu Hun, was rushing toward them, knocking over cultivators left and right along the way. Those cultivators initially flared up in anger, but when they saw the man’s extraordinary size, they all paled and, after a moment’s hesitation, decided to let it go.

The girl, seeing her brother’s behavior, felt a headache coming on. Her brother was too reckless—wasn’t he making enemies out of other cultivators for no reason?

“Here, little sister! I brought the item.” The burly man rushed to Han Li’s side like a gust of wind, extending a large hand to hand a slender wooden box to the girl.

The girl, too busy to scold her brother for his recklessness, passed the box to Han Li, gesturing for him to open it.

Han Li took the box, glanced at the girl, and then opened it to reveal a golden brush emitting a faint yellow glow from tip to handle.

“This brush is called Golden Bamboo. The tip is made from the neck fur of a Golden-Eyed Ape, a grade-two demon beast. The handle is made from a blend of gold essence and black iron, refined for three days and three nights by a Foundation Establishment cultivator using both civil and martial fire. Only then was this brush completed,” the girl explained softly, her eyes lingering on the brush with obvious reluctance.

Though Han Li didn’t fully understand everything she said, he knew this brush was extraordinary and had a significant background. He was surprised she was willing to part with it—was it really just for those pills?

“Miss, are you really willing to exchange this brush with me? This is a rare treasure!” Han Li murmured, gently stroking the smooth handle and examining the two characters “Golden Bamboo” inscribed at its end.

Seeing Han Li’s doubt, the girl hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell him the truth, lest he think the item was ill-gotten and refuse to accept it.

“This brush is an heirloom from our clan, once used by a master talisman maker. Unfortunately, neither my brother nor I have any talent for talisman making, so it’s been wasted on us. My brother is participating in the upcoming Ascension Assembly, and his cultivation has reached a bottleneck. He needs the help of pills to break through. That’s why we’re willing to exchange this for your pills,” the girl explained softly, her expression somewhat helpless.

“Another person whose cultivation has hit a bottleneck! What a coincidence,” Han Li thought suspiciously.

In truth, Han Li was overthinking it.

Among those preparing to participate in the Ascension Assembly’s tournament, seven or eight out of ten were stuck at a bottleneck, unable to progress further. Those who believed they still had potential to advance usually didn’t join the tournament immediately but instead went into seclusion to cultivate further, hoping to break through before the next assembly. This made their chances of success much higher. As a result, whenever the Ascension Assembly approached, pills that could enhance spiritual power became priceless and impossible to find.