The Purgatory Calamity
Chapter 178 - 163: The Right Way to Make Money_1

Chapter 178: Chapter 163: The Right Way to Make Money_1

Fifty-sixth cave dwelling.

"Sorry to have dragged you into this,"

As soon as Han Ting entered, she let go of Pang Jian’s arm and apologized sincerely, "I just wanted to make Zhang Bin uncomfortable."

Under the faint glow of the Luminous Pearl, her cheeks were tinged with a blush of embarrassment, and she nervously clenched her fists.

Apparently, the words she had just spoken and the actions she had taken required a great deal of courage for her.

Outside the cave dwelling, Pang Jian, who had been silent all the while, nodded after entering and said indifferently, "Heal."

"Um, okay."

Han Ting let out a sigh of relief.

She quickly settled down properly on a wooden chair, and the flirtatious boldness she displayed outside the cave dissipated without a trace.

Since Pang Jian already knew the exact location of her injury, she didn’t need to pull her clothes down too much, just removing a small part of her upper garment to reveal a shoulder as smooth as jade.

Pang Jian was expressionless, placing his finger on her shoulder and deftly transferring Life Vitality.

"Don’t worry, Zhang Bin is very cowardly, now that he knows you’re from a great family of the Upper Realm, he wouldn’t dare do anything to you,"

Fearing Pang Jian would blame her, Han Ting explained with her head low and feeling guilty, "He has always been a bully in fear of the strong, and doesn’t dare show his anger to the scions of the five major powers, let alone you from the Upper Realm?"

Pang Jian was indifferent, completely ignoring her.

Because of Luo Hongyan’s disappearance, he only wanted to figure out who the hidden enemy was, and then planned to vanish from Yuanmang’s Number One Peak with his bronze medal.

After all, once he disappeared out of thin air, he wouldn’t have any chance to come into contact with people like Han Ting and Zhang Bin.

Seeing that Han Ting wouldn’t stop talking about her past adventures with Zhang Bin and others, as they teamed up in the Forbidden Land to jointly hunt a fifth-level Ferocious Beast,

Pang Jian’s thoughts stirred, and he suddenly asked, "Have you ever heard of the Ice Crystal Beast?"

He intended to sell the horn of the Ice Crystal Beast, but he was unfamiliar with the creature. He wasn’t sure if, like the Dark Giant Python, it was exclusive to the Fifth Realm.

If it was unique to the Fifth Realm, taking out the horn of the Ice Crystal Beast would certainly cause a huge commotion.

Cao and the others attending the meeting would question the origins of the Ice Crystal Beast.

The Ice Crystal Beast, as long as it’s not exclusive to the Fifth Realm, shouldn’t be a problem.

"The Ice Crystal Beast?"

"In the Third Realm, there was once a powerful sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast. To hunt it down, Blood Moon dispatched three Spirit Condensation Realm Elders," recalled Han Ting, "The Ice Crystal Beast usually lives in the frigid Forbidden Land, and a sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast can see a significant boost to its combat power in the icy environment."

"I heard that to kill the sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast, two of Blood Moon’s Spirit Condensation Realm Elders were injured,"

Han Ting, puzzled, looked at Pang Jian and asked, "Why do you ask?"

"It’s nothing."

Reassured, Pang Jian pondered for a moment and then asked, "How much would a horn of a sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast be worth in Spirit Stones?"

"The blood, skin, heart, and bones of the sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast are all treasures. But the most precious is its horn, which can be used to make extremely cold Spiritual Artifacts, naturally making it very valuable."

After laying some groundwork, Han Ting thought carefully and said cautiously, "A horn from a sixth-level Ice Crystal Beast, in my estimation, should be worth at least... forty to fifty thousand Spirit Stones."

Pang Jian’s eyes lit up from behind her, saying, "What if it’s a horn from a seventh-level Ice Crystal Beast?"

"Seventh-level?"

After pondering for a while, Han Ting said, "I believe its value could increase tenfold."

Ten times that would be four to five hundred thousand Spirit Stones!

The fingers Pang Jian had placed on Han Ting’s shoulder trembled slightly with his excitement.

Han Ting clearly felt it, as Pang Jian’s breath became erratic, the Life Vitality that was entering her body wasn’t accurately directed into the wound, but instead scattered in all directions.

Unaware of the reason for Pang Jian’s excitement, Han Ting secretly rejoiced.

Pang Jian had already agreed to help her fully heal her injuries, and now the Life Vitality that was meandering everywhere was just what she needed to cleanse the dark ailments within her body.

A moment later.

Pang Jian adjusted his state of mind and refocused the wandering Life Vitality, pouring it into the location of her injury.

"Ten times!"

Pang Jian was silently exhilarated.

He had not expected the horn of a seventh-level Ice Crystal Beast to be worth such an exorbitant amount.

He and Luo Hongyan had ransacked Blood Moon’s Beast-Catching Ship in Sky Fortune City, and more recently in Ice-rock City, he had acquired many relics from the bodies of deceased Individual Cultivators.

Yet, even if all these gains were combined and converted into Spirit Stones, it would not reach four hundred thousand!

Feeling financially embarrassed due to Luo Hongyan’s departure, Pang Jian suddenly discovered a new method to earn Spirit Stones.

He didn’t need to rob Individual Cultivators all over the place, nor did he need to hijack Beast-Catching Ships like Blood Moon’s, nor hunt Ferocious Beasts in the Forbidden Land.

He just needed to trade with the Alien Tribe woman from the Fifth Realm to acquire an incredibly rich reward!

The Gold Friday Stones, Thunderstrike Wood, and Sun Essence Stones he had given her altogether only amounted to about ten thousand Spirit Stones in total value.

To get a horn of a seventh-level Ice Crystal Beast meant a return of forty to fifty times that!

Moreover, he had also acquired quite a bit of the Ice Crystal Beast’s blood, and the value of the blood from a seventh-level Ferocious Beast should also be quite substantial.

If he added all these up, he would be making a fortune, which was much higher than what Luo Hongyan managed to obtain after much effort robbing Individual Cultivators near the Three Immortal Islands.

"All right, come back tomorrow night,"

Feeling that the Life Vitality was almost depleted from the three leaves inside his chest, Pang Jian immediately stopped and said indifferently, "In two more nights, your injuries should be fully healed."

"Thank you."

Han Ting, having straightened her clothes, prudently walked toward the stone door and came to a stop before saying, "Lei Kun, after I met you that day, I left cave dwelling number fifty-seven and didn’t rent it again. Since I saw it empty for a long time and was going to meet you these days, I spent a few more Spirit Stones to stay there."

Pang Jian nodded.

He knew it was he who should have gone to apologize and make amends, successfully allaying Lei Kun’s suspicions.

This great cultivator from the Spirit Condensation Realm, therefore, hadn’t stayed in cave dwelling number fifty-seven to continue secretly observing him from the shadows.

"Luo Hongyan’s disappearance should have nothing to do with Lei Kun, or else he would still be watching..."

Pang Jian silently thought.

"Are you going to the meeting tomorrow?"

Han Ting asked from the doorway.

After a moment’s consideration, Pang Jian shook his head and said, "I’m planning to head directly to the trading grounds inside in a couple of days."

"Alright, then I’m informed."

With that, Han Ting finally pushed the door open and left.

Back in her own cave dwelling, she gazed thoughtfully at the rock wall beside her, aware that Pang Jian was in the cave dwelling she had just left.

"The Upper Realm, scions of great families, yet wholly uninterested in me..."

Suddenly, Han Ting let out a self-mocking laugh and said, "If he really wanted me, even as a concubine, I wouldn’t necessarily reject it."

...

Another Calming Pill was consumed.

After calming his excited state of mind, Pang Jian thought of communicating with the Sapling to see if any of the odd flowers and plants growing in Cloud Marsh had bloomed or borne fruit.

He planned to gather some exotic flowers and plants to sell at the trading ground.

With a thought, the connection was established.

The vision of the Corrosion Boundary Vine suddenly became Pang Jian’s own view.

All at once, Pang Jian felt he could observe the entire Thousand Miles of Cloud Land from multiple angles, in all directions.

Every tree and plant in Thousand Miles of Cloud Land, whether seedlings and seeds obtained from Dong Tianze or those acquired from the women of alien tribes from the Fifth Realm...

As long as they took root in Cloud Marsh, they would resonate with the Sapling, becoming an extension of the Sapling’s sensory perception.

Just like the Mysterious Turtle.

The vision of every place in Thousand Miles of Cloud Land where plants and trees grew fell within Pang Jian’s perception.

"Hmm!"

He saw, far in the sky, a vast array of flying birds appear.

Eagles, Golden Rocs, Grey Falcons, Rocs—one after another, these large flying birds came from another Fragment Land in an impressive procession.

Beneath the iron anchor-like talons of these birds were suspended the beasts that could not fly.

The Black and White King Python, lizards, Ice Armor Beasts, Single-horned Rhinoceros, and other such beasts appeared like cargo being carried in the claws of the birds.

Shortly after, Pang Jian saw the flying birds set down the first batch of beasts and then continue flying further back.

Using the omnipresent viewpoint of the Sapling, Pang Jian kept a close watch and noticed that these beasts dropped at the edge of the Sky Fortune Fragment Land were not the first batch.

Hundreds of beasts, their eyes filled with savagery and bloodlust, had been discarded in the Sky Fortune Fragment Land.

The flying birds, batch after batch, carried the Ferocious Beasts—which had undergone mutations due to the infiltration of Filth Alien Power, and thus gained a boost in their rankings—from other Forbidden Lands to Sky Fortune Fragment Land.

Beasts lacking Cloud Sails, Fire Cloud Ships, and Golden Coaches migrated in the most primal manner.

"Why come to Sky Fortune Fragment Land?"

"Ferocious Beasts aren’t supposed to have Spiritual Intelligence, are they? These beasts, mutated and ranked up due to the infiltration of Filth Alien Power, clearly have a leader!"

"What are they planning to do?"

One question after another filled Pang Jian’s mind, making him sense something amiss.

Over the next two days.

Using the Calming Pills at his disposal, Pang Jian closely monitored the anomalies in Sky Fortune Fragment Land and saw more and more beasts being transported there by the flying birds.

The vegetarian Ferocious Beasts entered Thousand Miles of Cloud Land and feasted on plants and leaves, the easiest to adapt to the Filth Alien Power.

After eating the vegetation of Cloud Marsh, these herbivorous Ferocious Beasts seemed extremely elated, feeling that the food here contained more power than that in other Fragment Lands.

There were also ravenous Ferocious Beasts, which uncontrollably charged into Cloud Marsh, attacking the herbivores.

Fighting for food, more bloodthirsty beasts joined the fray, turning Thousand Miles of Cloud Land into a killing field where Beast Blood slowly stained the grasslands red and muddied the marshy streams with blood.

This, it seemed, benefited the growth of the trees and plants of Cloud Marsh, achieving a subtle balance.

By being scorched by fiery oil flames, the once barren Thousand Miles of Cloud Land began reverting to its former state.

Trees and plants grew robustly, and both herbivorous and carnivorous Ferocious Beasts started to stake out territories, warring with one another, devouring the corpses of their fallen adversaries.

The natural law of the survival of the fittest among all beings of the world once again unfolded in Cloud Marsh.

Compared to before the infiltration of Filth Alien Power, the only difference was that Sky Fortune Fragment Land now... was devoid of people.

On this day.

A gigantic black-colored Roc emerged from a faraway Fragment Land, stretching its wings. Its awe-inspiring presence prompted all the beasts of Cloud Marsh to look up instinctively.

The mysterious and extraordinary black Roc, with the light of wisdom shining in its eyes, gazed into the distance at a region yet untainted by Filth Alien Power.

Through the Corrosion Boundary Vine rooted in Cloud Marsh, Pang Jian saw this black Roc, its eyes gleaming with a yearning for the flesh and blood of human cultivators.