Spirit Bamboo Island.

Su Qing set foot on the unfamiliar island.

There were quite a few Cultivators here, and it seemed a large family held sway over the island.

Half of the island was covered in bamboo groves.

He was currently sitting in a tavern, gazing at the distant bamboo forest and the ocean beyond.

His black cloak wasn’t particularly conspicuous.

Many others in the tavern were dressed similarly.

There were ordinary people and Cultivators alike.

"Sir, your food is ready."

The waiter brought the dishes over and placed them on the table one by one.

"Mm," Su Qing nodded.

He picked up his chopsticks and took a bite.

The bamboo here was said to be quite famous, so there were many dishes made from bamboo shoots.

Unfortunately, none of them were Spiritual Artifacts.

This tavern was just an ordinary one, too.

There were only two taverns on Spirit Bamboo Island. One was an ordinary establishment where you paid with mortal currency, and the other specialized in food made from Spiritual Materials.

It only accepted Spirit Stones.

Su Qing had come to this tavern simply for the experience.

’So many years have passed,’ Su Qing mused, feeling a wave of emotion as he gazed at the distant sea.

Stir-fried pork with bamboo shoots, sour bamboo shoot and chicken stew...

As Su Qing ate in silence, he noticed a small, mischievous hand trying to sneak some food from his table.

A quick scan with his spiritual sense revealed a little boy.

He just smiled, paying it no mind.

Su Qing sampled a bit more, but having no real appetite, he got up to leave.

The boy hiding under the table curled into a ball, terrified of being discovered.

Inside the Spirit Bamboo Island Marketplace.

Almost everyone here was a Cultivator.

Although some mortals passed through, everything was still purchased with Spirit Stones.

All sorts of hawking cries filled the air.

"Spiritual Bamboo! Freshly harvested today! Perfect for Alchemy, Artifact Refining, and making talisman paper! It has countless uses! Come and buy, come and see! Great prices!"

"Spiritual Bamboo Water! Extends your life! One Spirit Stone a pot!"

[Tier One Lower Grade Spiritual Bamboo: A tough Spiritual Bamboo that has grown for half a year. Seems to have many uses...]

[Purified Spiritual Bamboo Water: Rootless water from within Spiritual Bamboo. After being infused with the bamboo’s Spiritual Qi, long-term consumption can heal some physical injuries.]

’I should probably buy some Spiritual Bamboo,’ Su Qing thought.

Among the legacy of the Sea-covering Master was the art of puppetry.

It included methods for crafting puppets up to Tier Four.

However, Su Qing didn’t know why the puppets he had found were only Tier Two, with no Tier Three or Tier Four ones among them.

If there had been, he probably would have had to flee for his life back then.

But the quality and quantity of the Spiritual Bamboo here were far too low.

It was nowhere near enough to meet his needs.

Nevertheless, Su Qing still bought some.

Half the Cultivators in the entire Marketplace were selling Spiritual Bamboo.

Almost all of it was Tier One Lower Grade. There were a few stalks of Tier One Middle Grade, but they were extremely rare.

In total, he collected over three hundred stalks of Spiritual Bamboo.

He spent more than seven hundred Spirit Stones.

’An average of two Spirit Stones per stalk is a little expensive.’

Su Qing’s large purchase of Spiritual Bamboo attracted some attention.

For instance, just as Su Qing was about to leave, a young and beautiful Female Cultivator approached him. She wore no makeup, yet she was exceptionally graceful.

"Senior, if you wish to purchase Spiritual Bamboo, you can do so at our Li Family’s shop."

"We have Tier One Middle Grade, Tier One Upper Grade, and even Tier Two Spiritual Bamboo."

"Our Li Family controls all the Spiritual Bamboo on Spirit Bamboo Island."

"All the best Spiritual Bamboo is with our Li Family. We hope you will honor us with your business, Senior."

"In that case, do you have any Pill Formulas?"

Su Qing asked quietly. He had never even seen a Tier Two Pill Formula, let alone attempted to use one for Alchemy.

"Pill Formulas? Of course, we have them."

"If you’d like to know more, Senior, please follow me."

Upon hearing this, Su Qing nodded. "Lead the way."

He then followed the young woman into a building constructed entirely of bamboo.

Every piece of bamboo exuded a distinct, pleasant bamboo fragrance.

Inside was a huge chandelier. ’It seems the Zhengxuan Sect’s business has reached even here.’

After the young woman led Su Qing into the building, a middle-aged Cultivator nodded at them. His long hair was draped over his back, tied behind him with a cord.

The traces of time were clearly visible on his face.

The young woman walked over to the middle-aged Cultivator and said, "Uncle Tian, this Senior needs to buy Pill Formulas."

"Hss? Pill Formulas?" The middle-aged Cultivator’s expression turned serious as he looked at the black cloak obscuring Su Qing’s face.

"Hahaha, a distinguished guest has arrived! Please forgive our slow reception."

"I am Li Tianyun. May I ask what kind of Pill Formula you are looking for, Fellow Daoist?"

"Tier Two and Tier Three."

"I’ll buy them if you have them," Su Qing stated plainly.

’Tier Two isn’t a problem,’ Li Tianyun thought. But when he heard "Tier Three Pill Formula," his tone became deeply respectful. "Senior, we have three types of Tier Two Pill Formulas in our shop. They are each priced at thirty-five thousand Spirit Stones."

One had to understand that to use a Tier Three Pill Formula, a Cultivator needed their own Pill Fire or a Tier Three Demon Fire for the refining process.

Regardless of which it was, no one would dare offend a Pill Master with such capabilities.

"What are they? I’ll take them all."

"There is the Tier Two Cyan Spirit Pill, which all Foundation Establishment Cultivators can use, as well as the Tier Two Vein Forging Pill and the Tier Two Nourishing Essence Pill. All of them are useful for Foundation Establishment Cultivators."

"The Vein Forging Pill increases the True Essence capacity of one’s spiritual veins. The Nourishing Essence Pill aids in the cultivation of True Essence. And the Cyan Spirit Pill is for refining True Essence."

"I’ll take all of them. Bring them here quickly."

Without further ado, Su Qing took out a number of Pure Water Attribute Spirit Stones.

One thousand and fifty Pure Water Spirit Stones.

Li Tianyun took one look, accepted them, and said, "Senior, please wait a moment."

Li Tianyun headed to the back of the shop.

The young woman, meanwhile, looked at Su Qing curiously. She was truly wondering what he looked like under the cloak.

"Senior, how should I address you?" the young woman asked cautiously.

"A name is just a designation."

Su Qing clearly had no intention of chatting. After all, they might never meet again.

Besides, he simply didn’t want to say.

"Oh!"

"Senior, here are the three Pill Formulas."

Li Tianyun returned with three sheets of bamboo paper, each covered in text.

"These are the Pill Formulas?" Su Qing picked them up, looked them over, and asked.

"That’s right. The Li Family is based here on Spirit Bamboo Island; we would never give you a fake Pill Formula," Li Tianyun said carefully.

"Alright. This will do."

With that, Su Qing turned and left.

"..."

"That Senior is so cold. He wouldn’t even give us a name," the young woman grumbled after Su Qing had gone.

"Mind your own business," Li Tianyun snapped coldly.

"The last person who was as nosy as you... do you know what happened to her? She was captured and used as a Furnace Cauldron."

"It would be best if you even made your face uglier. Really, if you want to live a long life, you need to learn to be more discreet."

—

—

「Nightfall.」

Su Qing hadn’t left Spirit Bamboo Island.

He had spent the day fishing, and now it was night.

As night fell, Su Qing noticed something he hadn’t at first.

They didn’t need to light lamps at night.

And not a single Demon Fiend appeared on Spirit Bamboo Island.

’Why are the Demon Fiends gone?’

Su Qing frowned. He hadn’t noticed this problem when he first arrived in the Celestial Sea Realm.

But looking now, he realized the Demon Fiends were missing.

The scene was tranquil and picturesque.

It was utterly quiet and beautiful.

Even at this late hour, many fishing boats were docking. Candle flame flickered inside the boats, casting a dim, yellow glow through their windows.

’It’s truly beautiful. A shame that the mainland has to suffer from Demon Fiends.’

’I’ll have to investigate this when I get back.’

...