Chapter 67: Murder and Arson Bring a Golden Belt
“Hmm?”
Ji Yuan, who had just taken out three storage pouches, raised his head and looked at Qiu Qianhai. “Didn’t we agree to split them evenly?”
“I didn’t contribute to killing them. You did all the work. Besides, all of this happened because of me, yet I dragged you into risking your life with me.”
Qiu Qianhai looked a bit embarrassed.
“Let’s just leave it at that. You keep all of it. If I were to take a share of these spoils… my conscience would never rest. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.”
“This…”
Ji Yuan looked at Qiu Qianhai and, seeing that his expression didn’t seem to be faked, could only nod in agreement.
Qiu Qianhai let out a sigh of relief and even broke into a grin. “Damn it, the Qin family bastards really were filthy rich. Who would have thought they’d be carrying so much good stuff.”
As he spoke, he dumped out everything from the storage pouch.
Naturally, Ji Yuan noticed this as well.
Not to mention anything else, even the storage pouches themselves were bigger than Ji Yuan’s.
The one he was using now was only about a foot square, and it already felt a bit too small.
For example, after killing that Stone Armored Crab, he had no place to store it.
However, Hu Da’s storage pouch was three feet square, and the internal space was clearly much larger.
“There are quite a few magical artifacts too.”
Qiu Qianhai casually rummaged through the items and pulled out all the magical artifacts.
Each of the two men carried a flying dagger magical artifact and a defensive magical artifact called a Mysterious Light Shield.
It seemed these were specially prepared for them by the Qin family.
The one who fought Qiu Qianhai had been killed by the Golden Seal Talisman and Yin Ghost, so the robe on him remained undamaged.
But the boot-type magical artifact was only found on the one Ji Yuan had fought.
After discussing it, they each took a flying dagger and a Mysterious Light Shield.
The intact robe went to Qiu Qianhai, and Ji Yuan kept the boots.
As for the two medium-grade magical boats, they each took one.
When it came to talismans, all the high-grade ones… were gone.
After such a fierce battle, it was only natural that all the good stuff had already been used up.
By the end, the one Ji Yuan killed was even using medium-grade defensive talismans.
The remaining talismans and pills weren’t anything special, so they simply split them evenly.
Ji Yuan estimated that if sold, they could fetch about forty to fifty spirit stones.
There weren’t many spirit stones left—likely used up by the two men for their cultivation.
In the end, Ji Yuan only got twelve spirit stones.
However, the spirit stones in the storage pouches of the Liu brothers were a different story.
Ji Yuan glanced over them, and excluding talismans and pills, the spirit stones alone added up to one hundred and eight.
Tsk, no wonder they were the most notorious rogue cultivators in Qingbo Pool.
They didn’t have many magical artifacts—each carried only one offensive and one defensive artifact.
Clearly, they specialized in their combat style, unlike Ji Yuan, who relied more on resources.
At this point, Ji Yuan already had over ten magical artifacts on him.
If he used them all at once, he would be armed to the teeth.
He even managed to acquire a rare boot-type magical artifact, though it was just a low-grade one.
Both brothers carried the most common defensive artifact—a shield, and both were medium-grade.
This meant Ji Yuan’s Dragon Scale Shield could finally retire.
He refined both shields slightly. Liu Da’s iron-like shield was called the “Golden Iron Shield,” while Liu Er’s rounded shield was named the “Vinewood Shield.”
The Golden Iron Shield was somewhat bulky but offered stronger defense. It could even enlarge to three zhang, covering the entire body.
The Vinewood Shield was more lightweight and easier to maneuver.
Since Ji Yuan wasn’t short on spirit stones, he decided to keep both shields and choose between them based on the battle situation.
As for the Liu brothers’ offensive artifacts… they both carried Water Piercing Daggers.
Ji Yuan took them out and held them in his hands, feeling something was off.
“These two Water Piercing Daggers… seem to be a pair.”
Qiu Qianhai leaned in to take a closer look and muttered, “I think so too. Try refining them and see.”
Ji Yuan infused them with spiritual energy, and after a few breaths, there was a “ding—” sound.
The two daggers instantly merged.
The handles fused into one, extending into a long spear with sharp blades on both ends.
“This is… a high-grade magical artifact!”
Ji Yuan gripped it with one hand and casually swung it.
A water-blue halo radiated from the blade edges, exuding a chilling gleam. At the same time, new information surfaced in his mind.
He quickly scanned through it and his eyes lit up.
“No wonder those two managed to kill a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator.”
“What do you mean?”
“This high-grade magical artifact is called the ‘Water Dragon Spear.’ It contains a powerful spell that can summon a water dragon when activated. They probably used this move to kill that late-stage Qi Refining cultivator. Normally, it can be split into two parts and used as two medium-grade magical artifacts.”
“That explains it.”
Ji Yuan weighed it in his hand.
With his mid-stage Qi Refining cultivation, activating this high-grade artifact would consume a tremendous amount of energy.
That was likely why the Liu brothers had split it into two and used them as medium-grade artifacts.
Still, it wouldn’t be long before Ji Yuan advanced to late-stage Qi Refining.
By then, he would be able to wield the Water Dragon Spear freely.
At that point, whether in close combat or ranged attacks, he would have nothing to fear.
After storing away his first high-grade magical artifact, Ji Yuan turned to the remaining items in the storage pouch.
There were two high-grade talismans, both defensive ones called “Water Dragon Shields,” taken from Liu Er’s pouch.
Their effect was similar to Ji Yuan’s Mysterious Light Shield magical artifact.
This saved him from having to buy more Iron Wall Talismans.
But why didn’t they have any high-grade offensive talismans?
The only time Liu Da had used one was when killing the Stone Armored Crab. Could it be that the brothers only had that single talisman between them?
That didn’t seem likely. Ji Yuan didn’t believe the Liu brothers would be that poor.
He rummaged through the pouch again and finally found two black stones that felt more like heavy pills when held.
The moment he took them out, Ji Yuan sensed a dangerous aura.
“Water Thunder Bombs?!”
Qiu Qianhai recognized them too, his eyes widening.
“Indeed. What a treasure. Thank goodness they didn’t use these in the Dead Cave.”
Ji Yuan felt a chill as he recalled the thought.
Water Thunder Bombs were a type of disposable magical artifact that exploded with immense power when thrown, nearly equivalent to a full-force strike from a peak-stage Qi Refining cultivator.
It was said that there was an even stronger version called the Heavenly Thunder Bomb.
When activated, it was as powerful as a full-force strike from a peak-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Ji Yuan was about to suggest splitting them, but Qiu Qianhai spoke first. “I don’t want them. You keep them.”
“You…”
“Alright then.”
Seeing how Qiu Qianhai seemed desperate to avoid owing him any favors, Ji Yuan didn’t insist.
Instead, he pulled out all the medium-grade talismans and excess pills that he didn’t need.
“Don’t turn these down. I won’t be using them anyway.”
“…Fine.”
In the hands of others, these items would be fought over. Yet between the two of them, it was like tossing out trash, pushing them back and forth.
As for the Stone Armored Crab corpse, Ji Yuan pried it open with the Whitescale Flying Sword but found no roe, no fat, and barely any meat.
He had no choice but to sell it at the Treasure Pavilion for spirit stones.
But that wasn’t the most valuable thing in their pouches. The most valuable item was the Cold Iron Sand.
Ji Yuan weighed it in his hand and estimated there were about twenty-four or twenty-five catties.
Qiu Qianhai flatly refused to take any of it, saying that if he ever needed it, he could get as much as he wanted.
Ji Yuan glanced at his own storage pouch. Adding in what he had dug up in the Dead Cave and what he had stored over the past few days, the total came to about forty-one catties!
If he sold it all at once, he’d be rich.
After finishing their division of the spoils, the two set off again, arriving once more at the Treasure Pavilion in Jingde Square.
They had already profited once, and now it was time for round two.