Eternal Tale
chapter-119

The big black ox didn't disturb Chen Xun and ran to the spirit beast room in the cave. Occasionally, it would come out to glance at the man.

It hid all their belongings under the array formation and began silently organizing. Next year, they would still have to attend the auction event, and they weren't sure if they had enough spirit stones.

"Moo~"

The big black ox lowered, and the spirit beast room changed drastically. Dozens of storage bags appeared, and it opened its big mouth to reveal two storage rings from its belly.

Purchased with a hefty sum of thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones, although small in size, they were much larger than storage bags and much more convenient, making the storage of spirit stones no longer feel crowded.

The big black ox sat on the ground and began counting slowly. Occasionally, it would murmur something.

Over the years, they had accumulated quite a sum of money, earning over three hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones.

However, Chen Xun was overly cautious, sometimes not even selling pills but wandering around and selling some century-old spirit medicines to scattered cultivators in the northern city. Otherwise, they could have earned even more.

But they also spent a lot. After comparing countless options, they bought a set of five-element spiritual root techniques from the Foundation Building Stage to the Golden Core Stage, costing five thousand spirit stones.

Named "Thousand Practice Five Element Mantra", Chen Xun subconsciously asked, "Is there a 'Ten Thousand Practice Five Element Mantra'?"

However, this technique was truly an advanced version of their Foundation Building Stage technique, which was quite suitable for them. Even their body techniques were upgraded, called "Five Elements Escape".

With the enhancement of their spiritual energy, the effect was quite terrifying. Various transformations were like shadows, no longer just merging into the ordinary five elements of heaven and earth.

The big black ox also bought many formation items, still self-learning and exploring. It spent tens of thousands of spirit stones on miscellaneous items—not something ordinary cultivators could afford to play with.

Even Chen Xun once joked, "Not only alchemy, but refining tools, talismans, and formations all require a hefty price tag. It's not like you can play around with them just because you have some talent."

"Moo~" The big black ox mournfully cried out.

Chen Xun also spent a lot of spirit stones on talismans. They also bought Golden Core Stage pill formulas to enhance their cultivation. But except for a few spirit medicines brought out by the Five Element Sect, other spirit medicine shops didn't sell them at all. These were truly rare items in the Qian Nation’s cultivation world.

Now they only had over a hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones left. Over the years, they hadn't even upgraded their own life-saving magic treasures but had been cultivating spirit medicines.

Fortunately, they were immortal beings, otherwise, like those cultivators, they would have to risk their lives and fight. The lifespan of the Golden Core Stage wouldn't be enough.

"Moo!" The big black ox angrily cried out suddenly, its eyes filled with intense admiration.

After acquiring the cultivation techniques, the Five Elements Pill Chen Xun refined still effectively improved their cultivation, but the consumption of spirit medicines was enormous, requiring five pills to be consumed.

However, Chen Xun broke through the Golden Core Stage, and the success rate of pill refining increased significantly, but having many cultivators had both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage was that their spiritual energy was quite vast, and even without the enhancement, their spells were quite powerful, and their endurance was also strong!

The disadvantage was that, during cultivation advancement, the required spiritual energy was also considerable; even if they were meditating in the cave, it felt like returning to the Foundation Building Stage... It was exhausting.

It could also be said that the concentration of spiritual energy in the Qian Nation was simply not enough to allow the Five Element Spiritual Roots to break through.

Over the years, they had intended to allocate all their immortal points to spiritual energy, but they encountered a bottleneck at 140 points, so they had to allocate some to defense first.

Their current immortal points were Strength 90, Speed 90, Essence of All Things 90, Spiritual Energy 140 (90), and Defense 137 (90).

Two days later, excited shouts echoed outside the cave.

"Old Ox!"

"Moo!" The big black ox bellowed, its tail wagging incessantly as it hurried out.

At this moment, Chen Xun had completely lost his usual demeanor, grinning widely. "It’s been forty-nine years, I finally feel something."

"Moo moo~" The big black ox happily trotted around Chen Xun like a large black coal ball.

"Old Ox, prepare to set off in three days," he said, placing the mountain-opening axe on his waist, his eyes gleaming. "Yuan Chen Ginseng, Yu Chen Grass, Green Petal Night White Mushroom, we won't miss a single one."

With the Five Elements Pill, they were about to advance to the Mid-Golden Core Stage smoothly. But just in case they couldn't advance further, like with the Foundation Building Pill, they naturally needed to prepare early.

They were still lacking these three medicinal herbs, all for refining the precious pill 'True Yuan Pill' in the Golden Core Stage.

They found a branch of the Four Symbols Alliance in the North City, spending two hundred spirit stones to buy some information. In three days, there would be an auction exchange meeting between Foundation Building Stage and Golden Core Stage cultivators in the East City.

According to the organizer, there would be Yuan Chen Ginseng available. The members of the Four Symbols Alliance were quite professional and never asked too many questions, only accepting spirit stones for their services.

However, their well-connected information network also made Chen Xun secretly amazed. They were in the East City, yet they hadn't heard of this news.

The big black ox's ears flicked; its expression was quite serious. Every step they took now was in preparation for crossing the Tian Duan Great Plains in the future.

"Moo~!"

It pressed its hoof down, its spiritual sense scattered, and arrays appeared everywhere. The surrounding winds suddenly intensified, green light flickered, and the entire cave resonated with a low rumble.

In these forty-nine years, the big black ox hasn't wasted its time. The area around the cave had been arranged into a tight net; perhaps what you saw was only the first layer of illusion arrays.

Gradually, a bright and spacious road appeared, leading outside the array formation.

Chen Xun turned around slowly, his hands behind his back, and looked at the plaque above the cave entrance, a hint of a smile in his eyes.

Three days later, the sky above the city was slightly overcast.

With the grand event approaching, cultivators gathered from all over, some holding small gatherings for discussions, while others with more prestige would host auction meetings.

On a certain high mountain in the East City, Chen Xun, guided by the information, arrived with the big black ox, sensing that there were more and more cultivators around.

There were hundreds of Foundation Building Stage cultivators and, surprisingly, more than a dozen Golden Core Stage cultivators, which was quite extraordinary.

Chen Xun's eyes sparkled with anticipation as he walked calmly into the mountain. The surrounding atmosphere was filled with the spiritual power of cultivators. His goal was to obtain the spiritual herbs used in the Golden Core Stage.

If he showed up with only Foundation Building Stage cultivation, he might truly be regarded as a pig to be bullied.

The big black ox was still at the Mid-Foundation Building Stage, quietly following behind Chen Xun.

On the way, there were many Foundation Building Stage cultivators dressed in strange attire. When they saw Chen Xun, they were all astonished and bowed respectfully. Oh my god! A big shot!

Chen Xun just glanced over at them, nodding slightly. At the top of the mountain, someone had been waiting for a long time.

It was a woman in palace attire, with delicate eyebrows and phoenix eyes, exuding an elegant aura. Surprisingly, she was also a Golden Core cultivator, and her gaze was fixed on Chen Xun as he ascended the mountain.

"Friend, you honor us with your presence. Please forgive the remote welcome." The woman smiled gracefully.

"Coming uninvited, I hope my friend won't mind," Chen Xun replied calmly, walking up slowly, but his figure was remarkably fast, with the big black ox following step by step.

The woman smiled even more, tilting her body slightly. "Please, my friend."

As soon as she finished speaking, Chen Xun had already arrived at the mountaintop with the big black ox, causing the surrounding Foundation Building Stage cultivators to twitch their eyelids.

"Please." Chen Xun looked around the venue. Surprisingly, it was an open-air venue, different from what he had imagined.

The big black ox also wagged its tail, looking around. There were quite a few people, Foundation Building Stage cultivators everywhere.

Indeed, the level of interaction was different, and so were the people encountered.