Chapter 130: Consecutive Successions

The appearance of the second-grade treasure garment quickly became the most talked-about topic within Deyang City, spreading throughout the Forty-Two Pavilion in just a few days.

However, along with the influx of customers came a fair share of troubles.

Every day, Li Mu used his spiritual awareness to detect that there were at least dozens of cultivators near the Forty-Two Pavilion, constantly watching him at every moment.

Inside the shop, at least half of the visitors were not there for the treasure artifacts themselves, but rather to observe Li Tian. In their eyes, Li Tian was already considered one of the best treasure refiners in the Yunshan Realm. If time allowed, they would even be willing to purchase his works at a suitable price.

Although Li Tian only forged low-grade treasure artifacts of a very basic level, these items contained cultivation techniques, and he seemed to have mastered an ancient treasure refining method, indicating great potential for the future.

Yet, within Deyang City, these cultivators refrained from any direct action. But if Li Mu were to step outside the city, dozens might ambush him.

Li Mu smiled as he observed the situation, choosing simply to ignore it. He had other matters to attend to and did not wish to dwell on this. Moreover, he was no longer the Li Mu of the Mu Yu Hall; no one could manipulate him at will, not even within Deyang City.

A young cultivator dressed in blue slowly entered the Forty-Two Pavilion. He appeared very youthful and gentle, but as soon as he stepped in, about half of the original customers quickly slipped away.

Li Mu’s interest was piqued. Mu Tongfeng—that name was familiar. During the Jade Iron Assembly, many had made Mu Tongfeng the primary topic of discussion, though the two had never met.

Mu Tongfeng nodded politely at Li Mu, raising a fist in greeting and speaking amicably, “I am Mu Tongfeng, the steward of the Jade Iron Sect. I have come today to speak with the steward of this establishment.”

Li Mu inclined his head in response, returning the gesture with clasped hands. “Please, speak inside.”

The two walked together toward the back room, where several blue-robed cultivators stood guard at the door like sentinels, drawing much attention.

“Mu Tongfeng, what brings him here?”

“Who knows? Perhaps trouble at the Forty-Two Pavilion? He is now the steward of the Jade Iron Sect, a major figure in the city, known for his ruthless nature.”

“Lately, the influence of the Forty-Two Pavilion has grown too strong. It seems to be causing some unease.”

As Li Mu walked, he probed Mu Tongfeng’s cultivation strength with his spiritual awareness. With his current perception, it would be difficult to avoid notice. He quickly discerned that although Mu Tongfeng was in the post-Foundation Establishment realm, his power far exceeded that of ordinary cultivators at this stage. Moreover, he seemed to possess several excellent third-grade treasure artifacts.

After setting up a small silencing array, Li Mu spoke first. “Steward Mu, what would you like to discuss?”

Mu Tongfeng smiled faintly. “Steward Li, how many Green Sharp Armors do you have here?”

“Three.”

“Excellent.”

Mu Tongfeng nodded, fixing his gaze on Li Mu. “The Jade Iron Sect wants all of them, four of the mid-grade Thousand Spirit Crystals each. In the future, if there are more, we want them all. Steward Li, you are not to sell them to anyone else.”

Though his voice was low, the tone carried an innate arrogance, as if no opposition was possible.

Li Mu remained silent, inwardly amused. “Is this Mu Tongfeng a disciple of Ye Yibai? Their speech is almost indistinguishable.”

That said, the Jade Iron Sect’s demands were quite reasonable. Treasure garments were highly valued by cultivators, and if the sect acquired them, they could gain several formidable individuals. Yet, they did not want their rivals to obtain them either.

Seeing Li Mu’s silence, Mu Tongfeng raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying no, Steward Li? We are willing to pay a very high price.”

Li Mu shook his head. “I run the Forty-Two Pavilion not for the Jade Iron Sect. If you want them, wait outside; if you can buy them, you will.”

Mu Tongfeng was stunned and surprised. Since taking office, the Jade Iron Sect’s demands had never been ignored in Deyang City.

“Steward Li, have you not considered it further?”

His tone grew heavier. Though stern, it was much better than Ye Yibai’s approach; he made no threats, which would have been useless against Li Mu.

Li Mu smiled coldly. “Steward Mu, best be on your way. If you want them, wait outside.”

Mu Tongfeng was left speechless, no longer pressing the matter. His youthful face showed traces of anger but remained courteous as he bowed and left.

“Make way.”

At the door, Mu Tongfeng’s rare loss of composure caused him to bark an order, then turn and leave.

Such incidents did not disrupt the atmosphere much; the few treasure artifacts sold quickly. Li Mu smiled and closed the shop door.

Inside the back room, a small but highly capable containment array—the Flowing Radiance Seal—had been set up. Even cultivators at the post-Refining Vein stage could not detect the activities within. Since there was no sufficiently large place in Lianshan to use such an array, Li Mu brought it here.

Within the courtyard sat a large black bird, calling loudly.

“Blackie, you’re growing fast. At this rate, this place won’t be big enough.” Li Mu tossed several beast pills for Blackie to consume.

When first acquired, Blackie was barely half a meter tall. Now it stood several meters high, growing and changing daily.

“Bone Refinement...” Blackie called out in various ways, eagerly watching Li Mu.

Li Mu sighed, retrieving a large jar of Bone Refinement Pills and giving some to Blackie.

Since acquiring many spirit crystals, Li Mu had been mass-producing Bone Refinement Pills. After several rounds of refinement, he had amassed several jars, all consumed by Blackie. As a result, its skeletal frame was much stronger than a typical black hooked eagle. According to Li Mu’s calculations, Blackie’s current strength was at least third-grade. Once fully grown, it could very well reach fourth-grade.

Though Li Mu and Blackie did not communicate heart-to-heart, they could exchange brief messages through spiritual awareness. Compared to the big monkey, Blackie seemed far more intelligent.

Li Mu took out a second-grade spiritual material, accompanied by several Bone Refinement Pills, consumed them quickly, and slowly sat down. After applying his disguise technique, he could no longer cultivate, only research spiritual towers.

“Transform.”

“Transform.”

The spiritual crystal income of the Forty-Two Pavilion now far exceeded that of the former Mu Yu Hall. Only mid-grade spirit crystals were in short supply. Although he had asked the Yajian for some exchange, the number of low-grade spirit crystals was too few. No shop could use low-grade crystals as common currency, so he couldn’t dream of relying on them.

“If I could use mid-grade spirit crystals to restore tower points, even five hundred points at a time would suffice. Using only low-grade ones is truly troublesome.”

“Ah, the Heart-Sealing Branch.”

After countless transformations, Li Mu suddenly burst into joy, calling out.

The Heart-Sealing Branch was a material used to forge the fourth-grade treasure artifact known as the Bewitching Heart. He had been missing just this one ingredient, having attempted many times to find it, and now, finally, it appeared.

“Hm? The Scarlet Xu Leaf?”

Joy followed immediately. After the Heart-Sealing Branch came the Scarlet Xu Leaf, a material for the third-grade treasure artifact called the Mourning Departure, which was another item Li Mu had been missing.

Who would have thought that after tens of thousands of transformations with no result, two items would appear consecutively?

These two materials cost Li Mu nearly a hundred thousand low-grade spirit crystals, but in the end, it was well worth it.

“Combine.”

“Forge.”

Seeing the two top-grade treasure artifacts nearby, Li Mu was ecstatic.

The third-grade Mourning Departure was versatile, both offensive and defensive, capable of flight, and contained three cultivation techniques: Mourning Departure, Qi Dragon Circle, and Water Circle Art.

The fourth-grade Bewitching Heart was an extremely rare spiritual awareness combat artifact. Many post-Refining Vein cultivators could not withstand even a single blow. It also contained four cultivation techniques.

An unprecedented grand achievement.