Chapter 17 Green Vine Hairpin

After acquiring the Medicine Cauldron, Lin Yue purchased some auxiliary medicinal herbs for refining Low Grade Medicinal Pills at a nearby pharmacy. Turning his gaze, he stopped before a small stall selling Magical Artifacts at the entrance of the alley.

The stall owner was a middle-aged Cultivator in his early forties, dressed in luxurious brocade robes with a hint of arrogance in his eyes. He glanced at Lin Yue's doddering appearance, didn't even bother to lift his eyelids, and simply dismissed him as an old man with no wealth.

The stall displayed some ordinary low-tier Magical Artifacts, their spiritual light dim; most were common, mass-produced goods.

However, Lin Yue's gaze instantly locked onto an inconspicuous wooden hairpin squeezed into a corner—the hairpin was entirely lustrous and emerald green, neither bamboo nor wood, appearing like jade yet not quite jade. The body of the hairpin was delicately carved with entwining green vines; the patterns were ancient and vivid, with every vine leaf appearing to tremble in the wind, faintly flowing with a wisp of extremely faint yet exceptionally pure wood-attribute Spiritual Qi.

Lin Yue's heart stirred, and he recognized it at a glance: this Magical Artifact was of extraordinary quality.

This hairpin was not an ordinary low-tier Magical Artifact; it was crafted from the core of the ancient spiritual wood, the "Green Pattern Spirit Vine." Although the rune Formation on it was somewhat damaged, its strength lay in its extremely high compatibility with Spiritual Roots. It possessed an affinity for wood-attribute Cultivators nearly on par with a life-bound Magical Artifact, capable of actively drawing in the drifting wood-attribute Spiritual Qi from heaven and earth to slowly nourish the Meridians and stabilize the dao foundation. It was far superior to the crudely made wood-attribute Magical Artifacts on the market.

It was especially suitable for A He's Azure Vine Mysterious Water Spiritual Root. With the hairpin worn close to her body, Spiritual Qi would generate on its own. By nourishing it day and night, her Cultivate would yield twice the result with half the effort, and it would be of great benefit to her future condensation of spiritual power and Breakthrough in Realm.

A He's gaze also instantly glued itself to the green vine hairpin, unable to look away.

She gently touched the lustrous body of the hairpin with her fingertips, her eyes filled with undisguised affection. However, fearing the price might be too high, she subconsciously clenched the corner of her clothes, timidly not daring to say a word.

"How much for this wooden hairpin?" Lin Yue asked calmly.

The stall owner squinted at Lin Yue. Seeing his ordinary attire and obvious signs of age, he assumed he was a penniless wretch who couldn't afford it. A mocking smile immediately curled his lips, and his tone carried undisguised contempt: "You have a discerning eye to dare covet this. This green vine hairpin is made from the Green Pattern Spirit Vine and is best suited for the Cultivate of wood-Spiritual Root Cultivators. One price: one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. I won't sell it for a single coin less!"

After speaking, he looked up and down at Lin Yue's faded Daoist robe and sneered: "But looking at your decrepit old man's appearance, I'm afraid you can't even produce ten Spirit Stones, right? Don't crowd around here, lest you embarrass yourself."

Upon hearing this, A He hurriedly pulled on Lin Yue's arm and whispered: "Husband, let's not buy it; it's too expensive. You just earned some Spirit Stones, and you still have to pay the Sect's monthly wife-support payment. You can't be so extravagant."

One hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones was already the entire annual income for the Guo Family, which was affiliated with the Qingyun Sect.

The young girl's voice was soft and full of concern for him. Lin Yue felt a warmth in his heart and raised his hand to stroke the top of her head, the tenderness in his eyes nearly overflowing—he truly had not married the wrong wife; in everything, she planned for him.

However, the stall owner's contempt and mockery were like a thorn, pricking Lin Yue's heart uncomfortably. He looked up at the stall owner, his expression calm, but his tone carried an unquestionable force: "One hundred Spirit Stones, I can afford it. It's just that your attitude is far too bullying."

"You can afford it?" The stall owner laughed heartily as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world. "You, an old Trash at Qi Refining Level 3, who is usually stingy even when buying damaged Magical Artifacts, dare to say you can afford a Magical Artifact worth one hundred Spirit Stones? I don't think you can even produce fifty, let alone one hundred. If you can produce them right now, I'll sell you this green vine hairpin for fifty Spirit Stones! If you can't, you must compensate me two hundred Spirit Stones. Do you dare to bet?"

He was certain Lin Yue was short on funds and was merely putting on a brave front. As he spoke, his eyes swept over A He, filled with malicious covetousness—the young girl was lovely and spirited, and although she had no Spiritual Root, she was pure in character, which was much more pleasing to the eye than those pretentious female Cultivators.

He decided to make things difficult for Lin Yue and take the opportunity to take advantage of A He.

Lin Yue's gaze turned slightly cold, and he said indifferently: "Empty words are no proof. Do you dare to draw up a written agreement with me as evidence? If I can produce fifty Spirit Stones, you will sell me this green vine hairpin for fifty Spirit Stones; if I cannot, I will compensate you double, two hundred Spirit Stones, based on the one hundred figure."

The stall owner was stunned, seemingly not expecting this old fellow to dare bet against him. Then, a hint of gloom flashed in his eyes. He was certain Lin Yue would lose without a doubt. Two hundred Spirit Stones was no small sum; even if he couldn't get the Spirit Stones, he could use this as an excuse to cause trouble for the old fellow later and, incidentally, get his hands on his three beautiful wives.

His eyes rolled, and he deliberately made things difficult: "Two hundred Spirit Stones? You old thing probably couldn't scrape that together even if you sold everything you own. How about this: if you can't produce it, you stake this beautiful young woman beside you and the two beautiful wives in your Immortal Cave as the wager. How about that?"

As soon as these words were spoken, A He's little face turned deathly pale. She leaned tightly against Lin Yue, her eyes filled with terror.

Lin Yue's expression instantly darkened, and the aura around him suddenly became sharp. Although it was suppressed by Breath Concealment and Essence Hiding, it still made the stall owner inexplicably feel a chill.

He looked coldly at the stall owner and said word by word: "My wife is priceless and can never be used as a wager. If you dare not bet according to my terms, then I will simply not buy this green vine hairpin."

With that, he made a move to pull A He away.

The stall owner, seeing this and fearing that the fat meat already in his mouth would fly away, hurriedly said: "Fine! We'll bet according to what you said! A written agreement it is. I want to see what tricks you old thing can pull!"

He immediately took out paper and brush and scribbled down the agreement. The gist was that if Lin Yue could produce fifty Low-Grade Spirit Stones, the green vine hairpin would be sold for fifty Spirit Stones; if he could not produce them, Lin Yue would need to compensate two hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones. Both parties signed and pressed their fingerprints, each keeping a copy.

The stall owner held the agreement, unable to hide the smirk on his lips. In his view, he was guaranteed to win this round. Two hundred Spirit Stones would be enough for him to squander for a long time. Even if Lin Yue couldn't produce them, there would be plenty of ways to force him to submit later, and his three beautiful wives would sooner or later be his for the taking.

Lin Yue took the agreement and put it away, then reached out to pick up the green vine hairpin and handed it to A He, saying gently: "Take it, it's a gift from your husband to help you Cultivate."

A He dazedly took the green vine hairpin. As her fingertips touched the lustrous spiritual light of the hairpin, a wisp of faint wood-attribute Spiritual Qi surged into her body through her fingertips, making her narrow her eyes in comfort.

She looked up at Lin Yue, her eye sockets slightly red, her little face full of joy and emotion. She carefully inserted the green vine hairpin into her hair; the emerald green hairpin made her skin appear whiter than snow, and her features were as beautiful as a painting.

"Th...thank you, Husband."

"Hmph, you just took it like that, but where are the Spirit Stones?" The boss, watching Lin Yue and A He showing affection here while holding his Magical Artifact, could no longer stand it. "If you can't produce the Spirit Stones, this matter won't be settled today."

Lin Yue immediately raised his hand to open his Storage Pouch. With a flick of his fingertips, fifty lustrous and plump Low-Grade Spirit Stones landed on the stall owner's stall, forming a small pile. The spiritual light glimmered, making the stall owner's eyes go wide.

The smile on the stall owner's face instantly froze, his eyes filled with disbelief. He stared fixedly at the pile of Spirit Stones, then looked at Lin Yue, as if he were seeing this decrepit old man for the first time: "You... how could you have so many Spirit Stones?"

He couldn't fathom how an old Trash at Qi Refining Level 3 could casually produce fifty Spirit Stones; this simply overturned his perception.

Lin Yue turned to look at the stall owner, who was standing there in a daze, waved the agreement in his hand, and said indifferently: "With the written agreement as proof, for fifty Spirit Stones, I am taking this green vine hairpin."

After speaking, he took A He's hand and turned to leave, leaving the stall owner standing there in a daze, looking at the fifty Spirit Stones on the stall. His face turned from green to white, and his heart was filled with such regret that his intestines turned green—not only had he earned fifty fewer Spirit Stones, but he had also been severely slapped in the face by an old Trash he looked down upon. He could not swallow this insult!

Lin Yue held A He's hand as they walked in the alley. The young girl's hand was soft, tightly gripping his, and the green vine hairpin in her hair emitted a faint spiritual light, making her heart full of joy.

Seeing the sun rising higher and the time getting late, Lin Yue took A He and set off on the road back to the Qingyun Sect.

Walking to a secluded corner, Lin Yue's gaze was suddenly drawn to an inconspicuous small stall by the side of the road.

The stall owner was a ragged old Loose Cultivator, who looked even older than the original owner, yet his cultivation level was somewhat unfathomable.

Very clearly, this old man's cultivation level was far above his own.

What truly attracted Lin Yue was a rusty nail placed on the old Loose Cultivator's stall.

"azure gang seven mystic nails!?"

Lin Yue could not help but feel a stir in his heart.

However, the bodies of these two nails were twisted, and the tips were cracked, even more damaged than the five he had.

Lin Yue did not change his expression: "May I take a look?"

The old man opened his eyes, glanced at Lin Yue, and nodded: "You may."

Lin Yue picked up the two azure gang seven mystic nails and examined them carefully, confirming that they were indeed the azure gang seven mystic nails.

The azure gang seven mystic nails were originally a set of Magical Artifacts. He currently only had five, and the Formation he had set up was merely incomplete.

If he could gather all seven and set up the complete Qinggang Seven Mysteries Array, the defensive power would increase several times over; even a Cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage would be able to be resisted for a while.

He thought for a moment and asked: "Senior, how much for this nail?"

The old beggar lifted his murky eyes, looked Lin Yue up and down, extended two fingers, and said in a hoarse voice: "Twenty Low-Grade Spirit Stones. I won't sell it for one stone less."

"Twenty?" Lin Yue frowned. "This should be a set of Magical Artifacts, and now there is only one left..."

"If there weren't only one left, how could it sell for this price?" The old man sat slumped on the ground, his eyelids drooping. "Kid, at twenty Spirit Stones, you've already gotten a great bargain."

Lin Yue knew clearly that the value of this damaged Azure Gang Seven Mystic Nail was such that if it were fully repaired and added to his Formation, the power could increase by more than double.

However, twenty Low-Grade Spirit Stones, for him who had just earned one hundred and twenty Spirit Stones, was not a lot, but it was not a little either.

Lin Yue pondered for a moment. Thinking of the defense of the Immortal Cave and the safety of the three women, he finally gritted his teeth and said: "Twenty it is."

He counted out twenty Low-Grade Spirit Stones from his Storage Pouch, handed them to the old Loose Cultivator, picked up the Azure Gang Seven Mystic Nail, and put it into his Storage Pouch.

The old Loose Cultivator took the Spirit Stones without counting them, stuffed them directly into his bosom, and remained slumped on the ground, as if nothing had happened.

Lin Yue took A He and continued on their way, his heart full of joy. With this Azure Gang Seven Mystic Nail, the defense of the Immortal Cave had gained another layer of security; these twenty Spirit Stones were well spent.