Mortal: Refining Weapons for Immortality

Chapter 27 The Ring

The lanterns illuminated the Fairy Pool, making the originally silent waters appear exceptionally lively.

Lin Changqing walked along the long street, also buying or exchanging some spiritual materials he needed. After all, he consumed a lot of materials in his daily alchemy and weapon crafting, and he needed to replenish them in time.

Especially when it comes to refining materials, Lin Changqing will buy any that catch his eye.

While Lin Changqing was focused on buying materials, a young and strong man in the distance was also carefully examining him.

A robust man with a bronze complexion, dressed in simple robes, was watching Lin Changqing's back. He felt a sense of familiarity with the figure, but couldn't quite place where he had seen it before.

However, before he could continue thinking, Lin Changqing, who had finished shopping, felt someone watching him. He turned around and looked at them.

"Wang? Brother Wang?" Lin Changqing looked at the young man at the opposite stall with some surprise and walked over.

Wang Yi was also somewhat surprised, not expecting to see Lin Changqing again, and immediately greeted him.

"Brother Lin, I didn't expect to see you at the Tainan Gathering after we parted ways in Qingzhufang City. It's wonderful." Wang Yi was just like before, never looking down on those with lower cultivation levels than him, and never putting on airs.

"Nice to meet you! I never expected to meet Brother Wang at the Tainan gathering." Lin Changqing waved his hand, and smiled at Wang Yi, showing his delight at meeting him.

Wang Yi was a fellow Daoist he could get along with in his early years, only a little older than him, and now he was only in his thirties.

"Brother Lin, I wonder if you've come to this Tai Nan Small Gathering to participate in the Ascension Conference and seize that precious Foundation Establishment Pill?!" Wang Yi quickly made way for Lin Changqing, intending to have a chat with him.

"How could I dare participate in any Ascension Ceremony? Even if there were Foundation Establishment Pills available, I wouldn't dare take the risk!"

"I wonder how many cultivators will die on the arena this year."

Lin Changqing's expression changed, and he uttered a sigh.

He didn't want the Foundation Establishment Pill from the Ascension Ceremony; it simply wasn't worth it. He already had six Foundation Establishment Pills. Fighting to the death on the arena for just one would be a waste of time and would hinder his breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

With the Ascension Ceremony in full view of everyone, including many Foundation Establishment and Core Formation cultivators, he didn't want to reveal his strength.

"Ah! Brother Lin's current strength is beyond my comprehension. You weren't even going to participate in the Ascension Ceremony?" Wang Yi's face twitched slightly as he paused in surprise.

Lin Changqing didn't boast too much, instead asking, "Brother Wang, you're now a cultivator at the eleventh level of Qi Refining. Don't you have any interest in the Foundation Establishment Pill from the Ascension Conference? Or do you plan to stay in the Chen family for the rest of your life, abandoning the path of cultivation and enjoying pleasure?"

Upon hearing Lin Changqing's question, Wang Yi scratched the back of his head, his face slightly flushed, and said, "No, it's just for a few spirit stones. Look, I'm setting up a stall at the Tai Nan Small Gathering, aren't I?"

Lin Changqing didn't ask about Wang Yi's relationship with the Chen family in detail, but instead glanced at the items on Wang Yi's stall.

Most of the items listed above are scattered materials, unlike the items that alchemists, weapon refiners, or other professions require to be crafted.

"Wait a minute? This is spirit wine?"

"I never knew you had this skill, Brother Wang!"

Lin Changqing held up a jade bottle, sniffed it, and exclaimed in surprise.

Wang Yi saw that Lin Changqing had noticed the spirit wine on the stall. Although he was a little embarrassed to introduce the spirit wine in the jade bottle to this acquaintance, he couldn't help but ask Lin Changqing for help because he was so curious!

"Brother Wang, what kind of spirit wine do you brew? How effective is it? What's it used for?"

Under Lin Changqing's persistent questioning, Wang Yi had no choice but to give a brief explanation, since setting up a stall was still about selling spirit stones.

"This is Longjin Tiger Bone Wine. It is made primarily from the bones of a first-level tiger demon, with the addition of many spiritual herbs. It is then refined using special techniques and aged in a special environment over ten years."

"As for the effects, your brother Wang has verified that it is several times stronger than ordinary spirit wine."

"However, the use of this spirit wine, cough! cough cough!! um... it's for health preservation."

As Wang Yi finished speaking, his face turned red, showing the shyness of an honest man, as he felt it was inconvenient to speak in front of his fellow Daoists whom he hadn't seen for many years.

Lin Changqing was confused, but after learning that it was a health-preserving wine, he still suggested buying a few bottles of spiritual wine to nourish his body, even though these spiritual wines wouldn't have much effect on him, since he cultivated a wood-based technique known for its health-preserving effects.

However, supporting Brother Wang's business is still quite necessary.

Moreover, he could tell from their conversation that Wang Yi wasn't very good at this job. He didn't even actively promote it to fellow Daoists he hadn't seen in years, so who else could he sell it to?

"Brother Wang, collect all of these kinds of wines for me, I'll buy them all," Lin Changqing said extravagantly, as if he were buying ordinary liquor.

Wang Yi wasn't surprised that Lin Changqing had so many spirit stones. He had known for many years that Lin Changqing was a weapon refiner, so he figured he probably didn't lack spirit stones.

He realized that Lin Changqing hadn't intended to sell him anything; he was simply delighted to have met a fellow Daoist he hadn't seen in many years in this vast world.

However, since Lin Changqing wanted to buy it, he wouldn't refuse, since no one would complain about having too few spirit stones.

"Alright, Brother Lin, thank you for your patronage. You're my first customer today!"

"Look around my stall, see if there's anything else you like, I'll give it to you for free."

Seeing Lin Changqing's magnanimity and generosity, Wang Yi, not to be outdone, spoke up with a strong voice.

Lin Changqing had roughly surveyed the stalls before arriving, and apart from the spirit wine, he didn't see anything particularly novel. But since Wang Yi said so, he continued to explore to see if there was anything he wanted.

Wang's stall had a lot of items, which were quite messy, but after Lin Changqing looked at them, he still found a small and exquisite ring, which was black and dull.

Out of curiosity, he reached out and beckoned the ring over.

After examining it carefully, he felt that it was just an ordinary magical artifact, but he didn't know what its purpose was.

However, the ring was probably not very valuable and wouldn't put Wang Yi in too much of a predicament, so Lin Changqing chose it.

"Brother Wang, how about this ring? I think it's quite interesting."

Seeing that Lin Changqing had made his choice and his expression remained unchanged, Wang Yi generously expressed his agreement.

"These are things I found while exploring the ruins. I don't know what they're good for, but you can take them if you like."

After buying the items, things changed. Wang Yi became even more open with Lin Changqing, telling him about the Chen family, how many children he had, how many of them possessed spiritual roots, what rewards they had received, and how he planned to stay in the Chen family to try and gain a chance to establish his foundation.

Lin Changqing could guess some of the thoughts of Wang Yi and his sons-in-law; they were basically after spirit stones or a sliver of a chance to establish their foundation.

Therefore, Lin Changqing did not underestimate Wang Yi and his group.