166: Chapter 166 Five Elements Materials

Li Qing did not stop, walking all the way out of the Luoshui Sect mountain gate. His steps appeared leisurely, but in reality, every step hid a mystery. He circulated his Spiritual Qi slightly, deliberately slowing his aura to feign being completely unguarded. Secretly, however, his Divine Sense had already spread out, constantly monitoring the movements behind him.

Sure enough, not long after leaving the mountain gate and slipping into the dense forest of the nearby Yunling Mountain Range, he sensed two obscure auras behind him, sneaking up on him.

There was no need to think; it was definitely the Du Family. The Du Family had operated within the Luoshui Sect for so many years and had eyes everywhere. They had been watching him for a long time, just waiting for him to leave the Luoshui Sect so that, without Luo Bing's protection, they could secretly take revenge.

Those two auras were weak, with cultivation around the Foundation Establishment Early Stage. They were likely monitors sent by the Du Family. Not daring to follow too closely, they trailed far behind, intending to first figure out his destination before finding an opportunity to strike or returning to report.

A cold sneer curled the corners of Li Qing's mouth. With only such tricks, they dared to show off before him.

In the Xuanbing Secret Realm, he had experienced pursuits a hundred times more dangerous than this; shaking off a few small fry was simply child's play.

He did not act immediately to avoid alerting the enemy. Instead, he continued along the forest path, specifically choosing rugged, difficult-to-traverse, and densely overgrown areas. From time to time, he deliberately took a few detours, pretending to admire the mountain scenery to lull the trackers behind him into a false sense of security.

After walking for about half an hour, seeing the two people behind him getting closer and closer, Li Qing spotted a corner. He abruptly circulated the Spiritual Qi in his body, and his figure, like a ghost, instantly darted into the dense bushes nearby. He held his breath and restrained his entire aura, hiding in the grass like a stone, without letting a single bit of Spiritual Qi leak out.

The two Du Family Disciples behind, who had been in close pursuit, suddenly discovered that Li Qing had vanished. They panicked, hurriedly ran over, and searched back and forth, muttering to themselves:

"Where is he? He was just here; how did he disappear in the blink of an eye?"

"Did he discover us? This forest is so dense, what if he's hiding? Search carefully!"

The two held their Magical Artifacts and searched around, even parting the grass several times. But Li Qing was hidden too well, and his aura was completely restrained. They searched for a long time without even finding a shadow, becoming anxious and drenched in sweat.

Li Qing remained motionless in the bushes. He waited for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, listening to the two's footsteps getting further and further away as they cursed and searched in other directions, before slowly standing up.

He did not stop for even a second, immediately changing direction and walking for a distance in the opposite direction of Luoshui City. Only after confirming he had completely shaken off the trackers did he change his appearance.

His originally sharp-angled face became ordinary and unremarkable, his skin tone darkened slightly, and even his aura became bland. He was like a different person compared to the previous Li Qing; even if Luo Bing and Zhou Yao were standing right in front of him, they might not be able to recognize him for a while.

Adjusting his clothes, Li Qing confirmed there were no flaws, then turned and walked toward Luoshui City.

Luoshui City was the only main city of the Luoshui Sect and one of the eight most prosperous cities in the Yunling Mountain Range area.

At the city gate, Outer Sect Disciples of the Luoshui Sect were guarding and checking people entering and exiting the city. It was not very strict; after all, there were too many people coming and going to check everyone. As long as they were not obviously evildoers, they could enter the city smoothly.

Li Qing blended into the crowd, following the flow of people forward. The Disciples guarding the gate saw his ordinary appearance and bland aura, assuming he was just an ordinary Loose Cultivator, so they didn't ask any questions and just waved him through.

Once he entered Luoshui City, he was immediately surrounded by the liveliness of the city.

The streets were wide and straight, lined with shops selling Medicinal Pills, Magical Artifacts, Spiritual Plants, and Spirit Medicine, as well as stalls selling miscellaneous Cultivate Materials. Shouts and bargaining voices rose one after another; it was bustling with noise and excitement, a completely different world compared to the quiet and orderly Luoshui Sect.

Entering the city this time, he was not in a hurry. He first strolled leisurely along the street to familiarize himself with the environment, while simultaneously keeping an eye on his surroundings to see if there were any Du Family spies. Only after confirming it was safe did he begin to attend to his business.

He had two main purposes for coming to Luoshui City this time. The first was to find the Materials to refine his Lifebound Treasure, the five elements sword. The five elements sword required second-order Spiritual Materials of the Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth attributes, especially the core Materials: Geng Metal, Cyan Wood Marrow, Water Spirit Crystal, Fire Spirit Sand, and Earth Origin Crystal.

The second was to purchase second-order Spiritual Plants and Spiritual Plant seeds. His Cultivate required a large amount of Medicinal Pills, and refining his own pills could save a lot of expenses. Growing Spiritual Plants from seeds could also provide a long-term supply, so he wouldn't always have to buy them everywhere.

The eight major merchant associations of the Yunling Mountain Range all had branches in Luoshui City, located on the most prosperous central street of the city. Associations like Tianyun Tower, the Qingyun Merchant Association, and Jubao Pavilion were all famous and had comprehensive stocks; the items inside were much more reliable than those at roadside stalls.

Li Qing first went to the largest, Luoshui Hall. Luoshui Hall was a full five stories high, magnificently decorated, with two Qi Refining Perfection guards standing at the entrance.

Walking into the shop, the interior was spacious and bright, with shelves filled with all kinds of Cultivate items. The first floor sold basic Magical Artifacts, Medicinal Pills, and Spiritual Plants; the second floor held second-order items; and from the third floor upwards were more precious third-order treasures, as well as special VIP rooms.

The shop assistants were all Cultivators with not-low cultivation, observing everything and listening to all directions. Seeing Li Qing enter, although he looked ordinary, they did not dare to neglect him and immediately smiled and greeted him:

"Fellow Daoist, what would you like to see? Our Luoshui Hall has a complete stock. Whether it is Spiritual Plants, Magical Artifacts, or Artifact Refining Materials and Medicinal Pills, we have everything, guaranteed to be high quality and reasonably priced."

Li Qing did not beat around the bush and spoke directly: "I am looking for Geng Metal, Cyan Wood Marrow, Water Spirit Crystal, Fire Spirit Sand, and Earth Origin Crystal. Do you have these? Also, I want to purchase a batch of second-order Spiritual Plants, as well as seeds for common second-order Spiritual Plants. The more, the better."

Upon hearing this, the assistant's eyes lit up. This was a big deal, so he hurriedly replied:

"Fellow Daoist, please wait a moment. The Artifact Refining Materials and Spiritual Plants you want are all top-tier second-order items. We don't have them on the first floor. I will take you to the second floor to take a look. The second floor specializes in second-order items; these goods should all be there. It's just that the quantity of some Materials is not large, so I need to go to the warehouse to check."

Li Qing nodded and followed the assistant to the second floor.

The second floor was much quieter than the first, and there were far fewer customers. The quality of the items displayed was obviously a grade higher, and the Spiritual Qi was more concentrated.

The assistant led him to the Artifact Refining Materials area and called over a manager who specialized in Materials, telling the manager what Li Qing wanted.

The manager was a Middle-aged Cultivator with Mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation. He was very capable. After hearing, he immediately had someone go to the warehouse to take inventory and returned before long to report:

"Fellow Daoist, we have three pieces of Geng Metal, all of superior quality; we have a small bottle of Fire Spirit Sand, and two pieces of Earth Origin Crystal. However, we are out of stock of Cyan Wood Marrow and Water Spirit Crystal. The production of these two Materials in the Yunling Mountain Range has been low recently, and none of the major merchant associations have much stock. We have been out of stock for several days."

Li Qing felt a bit regretful; he was still missing two key Materials. But there was no help for it; such rare Materials were naturally hard to come by.