Wang Ba followed Shopkeeper Lu through the yard of Lu’s Grain Depot, past the coops and pigpens, to a dark room.
It was dark all around him.
Wang Ba began to feel nervous.
Did he find out?
Had Lu noticed the two Spirit Stones he was carrying and brought him here to kill him in secret?
His back chilled, and his throat grew drier.
“Ahem. Shopkeeper Lu… what exactly are you showing me? I thought we were discussing a substitute for Meridian-Unblocking Grass seeds?”
“Patience, esteemed guest. We are here.”
Shopkeeper Lu’s voice floated out from the darkness ahead.
Before Wang Ba could speak again, candlelight appeared ahead.
“Shopkeeper Lu, this is—”
The words died in his throat. Wang Ba’s eyes widened until they hurt.
In the candlelight, strange creatures writhed and twisted like tentacles, clinging to the walls, the rafters, and the table…
The entire room looked like a massive, grotesque insect nest.
“Cthul—”
Wang Ba exclaimed.
“Cthul-what?” Shopkeeper Lu looked puzzled, then explained, “These are Tendon-Severing Nematodes, a special kind of First Rank Low-Grade spirit insect.”
“They thrive by parasitizing living hosts,” Lu explained casually, as if discussing tea leaves. “They burrow through flesh to pierce meridians and sever tendons. A violent process, yes, and one that rapidly burns through their already short Lifespan… hence the name.”
As he spoke, a wet plop sounded.
Wang Ba watched, frozen, as a tentacle-like worm dropped from a ceiling beam and landed squarely on Shopkeeper Lu’s head. It writhed for a split second before finding his ear canal.
Squirm. Wriggle.
It forced its way inside.
Shopkeeper Lu didn’t even flinch. He merely frowned slightly, as if swatting a fly, and continued his pitch.
“They fear light and like to live inside humans, birds, beasts, fish… hss… and insects. But they like things rich in spiritual energy best. Spirit Stones, for instance.”
Lu reached into his sleeve and produced a Spirit Stone, holding it flat on his palm.
The next second, Wang Ba witnessed a scene straight out of a horror story.
Shopkeeper Lu’s jaw went slack, his mouth falling open involuntarily. A pitch-black, glistening tentacle erupted from his throat, slithering out over his lip. It moved with terrifying speed, darting down his arm to wrap greedily around the Spirit Stone.
The creature pulsed and writhed against the stone in Lu’s palm, radiating an aura of sheer ecstasy.
Shopkeeper Lu stared at his hand. A flicker of disgust—and helplessness—crossed his face. He extended his arm toward Wang Ba to give him a better view.
“This is the treasure I spoke of. It can dredge your blocked meridians and accelerate your cultivation of the Physique Strengthening Scripture.”
“The price is a steal. One hundred nematodes for only two Spirit Stones. That is enough to sustain your cultivation for over ten days!”
Lu paused, offering a strained smile. “Of course… it is a bit disgusting.”
“A bit?” Wang Ba managed to choke out. “You have a gift for understatement.”
Only a bit disgusting? His hair was standing on end, and he hardly dared move!
“How… how exactly do these things assist cultivation?”
“Just let one enter your body, then practice the Physique Strengthening Scripture. There’s no need to draw it out with a Spirit Stone. It will keep gnawing at your acupoints and meridians, gradually dissolving in the process and opening the channels.”
Lu shrugged. “There is a small side effect, however. The process is… excruciating. The pain can be quite hard to endure.”
“Of course, compared with obtaining a Spiritual Root, that is a small matter.”
Shopkeeper Lu explained everything with great candor.
Wang Ba was silent for a while.
“Two Spirit Stones for a hundred…” Wang Ba shook his head. “Too expensive.”
Lu didn’t blink. “Then what do you consider appropriate?”
Wang Ba recalled a piece of wisdom from his mother in his previous life: When haggling, take a machete to the price. Cut it in half and wait for them to counter.
He gritted his teeth.
“Two hundred worms. Two Spirit Stones.”
“Deal!”
Shopkeeper Lu agreed at once.
It was so fast that even as Wang Ba walked out of the depot, clutching the gourd filled with nematodes, he felt a lingering sense of confusion.
Why didn’t he counter-offer?
Are the margins on these things that high?
He couldn’t shake the feeling that he had won, yet simultaneously been played for a fool.
As Wang Ba left, Shopkeeper Lu finally relaxed his hands.
The fingers he had clenched behind his back were white, and his face contorted.
“Gods… it hurts! It hurts like hell!”
Despite the pain, he was soon smiling and humming a little tune.
The strange sight drew the attention of his young attendant.
“Master? It was just a two-stone deal. Why are you so happy? I haven’t seen you this pleased even when we sell twenty stones’ worth of grain.”
“What do you know? That hurt terribly! At least I’ve finally gotten rid of some of those money losers. If he had more Spirit Stones, I’d sell him all the worms I have at a discount!”
Lu looked at the remaining worms on the walls with sheer hatred.
“Do you know how many of my Spirit Stones they’ve eaten?”
“Ah,” the boy realized. “Then… yes, that is worth celebrating.”
Back at the manor, Wang Ba sat on the stone steps, inspecting his haul.
Next to the gourd of nightmares lay a packet of medicine. “Rare Fowl Aphrodisiac.” It had cost him three hundred taels of silver at the herbalist.
“Three hundred taels… absolutely black-hearted,” Wang Ba muttered.
He didn’t waste time. He eagerly portioned out a dose, mixed it with water, and poured it into the feeding trough of the large male Rare Fowl.
Time to test the merchandise.
He watched patiently as the rooster pecked up the medicated water.
After a while, the rooster grew restless, pacing and flapping its wings. Although it was not morning, it stretched its neck and crowed.
The comb on its head swelled, turning a deep, angry red, as if engorged with blood.
Wang Ba’s eyes lit up. Success!
Anyone who had raised chickens knew the signs. That bird was fired up. The fire of desire was burning! This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Sure enough, the Rare Fowl strutted forward, chest puffed out, eyes gleaming with primal intent. It slowly approached the flock.
Wang Ba held his breath.
Then, the rooster plopped itself onto the back of another male Rare Fowl and began to shake frantically.
Wang Ba’s jaw dropped.
!!!
You idiot! That’s your brother!
“No!” Wang Ba screamed internally.
He sprinted forward, intent on dragging the confused rooster off its victim. But before he could reach them, the deed was done. The rooster hopped down, looking calm, enlightened—like a sage who had seen through the vanity of the mortal world.
“Uh…”
Wang Ba winced.
That was… fast.
Refusing to accept defeat, he dosed another male rooster.
To Wang Ba’s astonishment, the second rooster looked around and leaped onto a young rooster…
“I refuse to bloody believe this!”
Furious, Wang Ba shut that aroused rooster in with a group of hens.
Breed, damn you!
The rooster forced its way through the hens and jumped onto a boot Wang Ba had left nearby to dry, thrusting frantically…
Wang Ba stared blankly at the scene.
Finally, unable to endure the insult any longer, he stored some Lifespan into the bird. He’d slaughter the pervert in a few days.
“It seems… this path is a dead end.”
Exhausted, Wang Ba slumped onto the cool stone steps, feeling helpless.
He was beginning to understand how hard Rare Fowl were to breed. There was simply no getting through to the roosters.
No wonder the sect generously let them keep the surplus after tribute. It had long known how hard Rare Fowl were to breed; its generosity was only for show.
“Self-breeding is out of the question for now,” Wang Ba sighed.
That left him with few options.
He could only trade Spirit Poultry for Rare Fowl, use Lifespan Breakthrough on them, and repeat the process.
It was fast. It required little effort.
But there was one glaring flaw: The source.
He couldn’t explain how a humble servant had so many Spirit Poultry to sell.
He could disguise himself with Yin Spirit Power, but if he sold enough Spirit Poultry, the sect would notice sooner or later.
“So, the problem returns to the starting point,” Wang Ba muttered. “How do I launder these chickens? How do I make them look legitimate?”
His gaze drifted down to the gourd tied at his waist.
The Tendon-Severing Nematodes.
A plan began to form. Perhaps… the hope of legitimizing his stock lay with them.