Chapter 5: A Spiritual Spring (Part 1)

Xing Yunzi exclaimed in surprise, “I’ve heard of it—it’s the third-ranked exotic fire! Extremely rare! I didn’t expect you to have this. What do you want in exchange?”
Purple talisman fire was also rare in the world of talismans, though not entirely unseen. Guo Shier had obtained many of them, along with other types of talisman fire and a small number of extremely rare ones, all stored in the altar. This kind of talisman fire was essential for altars, as every altar-level professional collected such flames due to their excellent compatibility with talismans.
If Guo Shier were to bring out the Jie Baina Pearl, Xing Yunzi would be even more astonished. It was composed of thousands of different flames and served as a powerful tool for breaking down materials. Of course, Guo Shier wouldn’t be foolish enough to use it as trade.
Guo Shier asked, “Uh, how should we proceed with the exchange?”
Wang Dayang was about to speak when Ku Mu pulled him aside. Knowing Guo Shier well—having seen him skillfully negotiate since childhood—Ku Mu quietly stopped Wang Dayang from interjecting. Wang Dayang, being astute, immediately understood Ku Mu’s intention, smiled slightly, and nodded in agreement.
Xing Yunzi was overjoyed. He was in need of exotic fire and immediately took a liking to the purple flame. He could even see delicate natural runes circulating within it, absorbing beneficial elements from the air. He wanted to observe it further, but as soon as Guo Shier moved his fingers, the purple flame vanished. Anxiously, he said, “Let me see it again!”
Unfazed, Guo Shier summoned the purple talisman fire once more and said with a smile, “No problem. I only have one extra of this flame.” Implied was that it was very precious. In truth, he had many more, but he wanted to keep some for himself, as such flames might be hard to find elsewhere. Using one meant losing one, and there was no way to replenish them here. Even in the broader world, they would likely be hard to locate.
After observing it carefully for a while, Xing Yunzi grew increasingly excited. After a while, he straightened up and said, “Great stuff. Tell me, what do you want in exchange?”
Guo Shier acted nonchalant and said, “You go first. If there’s something I like, we’ll trade. If not… forget it.”

Xing Yunzi repeated repeatedly, “Yes, yes, I have what you want! I definitely do. If not, just say… whatever you want, I’ll snatch it and exchange it with you!” Everyone was drenched in cold sweat—this guy was utterly unrestrained. In fact, Xing Yunzi already regretted it a bit; he shouldn’t have made a deal with them from the start. He should have just taken it by force. Unfortunately, according to his own rules, once a deal started, he couldn’t back out. Of course, this also depended on the opponent—only top professionals like Li Ran, who possessed strength that made Xing Yunzi hesitate, would earn his trust enough for him to do business with them.

For exchanges and deals between masters to proceed smoothly, both parties had to be roughly equal in strength, with each having something to worry about, so as to have a chance to obtain rare materials. Ordinary masters, on the other hand, often had no access to many materials they’d never even heard of, making it impossible for them to trade with true masters. It was like a wealthy man not trading with an ordinary person.

Xing Yunzi swept his hand across the stone platform, and a row of items fell down. He said, “Choose first.”

Among these items were many that had been traded before, such as Tianqing Liquid, along with some special metals—many of which were collected from the void and refined by him. There were some items he was reluctant to part with, but the purple talisman fire was too tempting, so he decided to get it at all costs. If he missed this chance, he might not find another like it for a long time.

Guo Shier selected a few items and set them aside, saying, “This isn’t enough!”

Xing Yunzi nodded. “I know, I know! Don’t worry!”

Guo Shier said, “If anyone needs anything… feel free to choose. It’s all part of the deal.”

Xing Yunzi immediately smiled. “That works, that works. Hehe, everyone, don’t hesitate. Let’s do this together.” Having everyone choose together would help him quickly accumulate more items for trading, so he welcomed it.

He took out another batch of materials and finished products. Guo Shier chose first, then the others stepped forward. Soon, everyone had a pile of materials and finished products in front of them.

Guo Shier said nothing, just staring at Xing Yunzi.

Xing Yunzi knew it still wasn’t enough, but he felt uneasy under Guo Shier’s gaze, unsure when the other would be satisfied. After thinking for a while, he took out a small piece of wood and said, “Take a look at this…”

Guo Shier took it and examined it briefly before smiling and asking, “Is this thing… very precious?”

Xingyunzi immediately became displeased and said, “Joking! Look carefully—this thing… is a priceless treasure in our place!”
Li Ran, Qi Wuzhen, and the others also curiously stepped forward to take a look. Once they recognized it, they couldn’t help but laugh. Xingyunzi felt a bit uneasy and asked, “Why are you laughing?”
Guo Shier flipped his wrist and took out a piece of wood as thick as an adult’s arm and about a meter long. The difference was that the wood he took out emitted a faint glow with natural runes on its surface. In comparison, Xingyunzi’s wood was far inferior.
“This is Soul-Nurturing Wood. I don’t know what it’s called where you are, but I have this too… and it’s of better quality than yours.”
Xingyunzi’s eyes almost popped out as silver light flashed in them. In shock, he exclaimed, “Good heavens! Where did you get this? Such a huge piece of divine wood!” Suddenly realizing something, he said, “You mean… this is Soul-Nurturing Wood? Hmm, that’s quite fitting! I… I’ll exchange something for it!”
Guo Shier flipped his wrist again, and the Soul-Nurturing Wood disappeared. He not only had ready-made Soul-Nurturing Wood but also cultivated ones, all stored in a small secret realm on the altar. As long as he had time, he could have as much as he wanted.
Xingyunzi was nearly going crazy. The other party simply took out an item, leaving him at a loss. He stared at the vanished Soul-Nurturing Wood—such a massive piece of divine wood he had never seen before. He insisted on keeping it at all costs.
More items were then taken out. Only then did Xingyunzi realize he didn’t have many valuable things. Just one item from the other party could leave him stunned. He had traveled to countless places and could move freely in the void, having visited as many spaces as Guo Shier and the others. Yet he never imagined that the World of Talismans could be so abundant in precious treasures.
After much effort, Xingyunzi finally managed to exchange for purple talisman fire, then tried to trade Soul-Nurturing Wood again.
Guo Shier smiled and said, “Same old rule—only if you have what I need will I trade.”
Xingyunzi said, “I have large pieces of top-quality spiritual jade. Can we exchange them?” He took out several large pieces of spiritual jade, each about a foot square. As soon as they were taken out, an unknown energy emanated from them. Although Guo Shier hadn’t found a way to use it yet, he knew that spiritual jade combined well with talismans and was a natural talisman matrix. He nodded and said, “That counts as one.”

Xingyunzi almost sat on the ground—this was top-grade spiritual jade of immense value. But after some thought, he realized that even though such spiritual jades were extremely valuable, they couldn’t possibly be exchanged for such a large piece of divine wood. After taking out ten pieces of top-grade spiritual jade, his face turned dark; he really had nothing more attractive left. After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, “Forget it, just add this too.”

It was a black box, added to the spiritual jades.

Everyone was curious: What was this thing that made him suffer such a loss?

Guo Shieru reached out to pick up the box, but his wrist suddenly felt heavy, and he couldn’t lift it. Surprised, he said, “So heavy?” His entire arm emitted dazzling talismanic light before he finally managed to lift the black box. In shock, he exclaimed, “It weighs at least thirty thousand jin! Damn, what is this?”

Xingyunzi said, “This is a spiritual spring that can nourish all things! It’s enough to exchange for your divine wood.”

Li Ran was astonished. “A spiritual spring! Shieru, exchange it!”

Guo Shieru didn’t know what a spiritual spring was, but Li Ran knew well that in the vast universe, wars often broke out over such springs. This man was truly amazing—having obtained a spiritual spring with just a box. It wasn’t easy to acquire such a thing. Before learning talismans, Li Ran couldn’t think of any way to obtain one either. It was truly remarkable that this man could do it.

Qi Wuzhen asked, “How does a spiritual spring compare to a Soul Spring?”

Li Ran explained, “A spiritual spring is different from a Soul Spring. A spiritual spring can nourish the physical body, while a Soul Spring has a miraculous effect on the soul.”

Hearing the words “Soul Spring,” Xingyunzi became confused again. He quickly asked, “A Soul Spring? Can I see it?” He inwardly groaned: Who are these people? Where did they get so many rare treasures? A Soul Spring that can nourish the soul—what kind of concept is that? A piece of Soul-Nourishing Wood can drive people crazy; what about a Soul Spring?

Guo Shieru smiled and said, “We’ve only seen a Soul Spring once, and we can’t take it with us.” He quickly shut down that possibility. Even those in the talisman profession understood how precious a Soul Spring was—it was far more valuable than Soul-Nourishing Wood.

With the spiritual jades and the spiritual spring in hand, Guo Shieru was satisfied. This transaction was completely unexpected. Ever since leaving the talisman world, he hadn’t seen anything of value. Who would have thought that just before leaving, he would encounter such a person with so many treasures? This time, Guo Shieru had reaped a huge harvest.

Everyone also brought out some materials they didn’t need or were excess, letting Xingyunzi choose from them in exchange for some of his items. This guy had quite a lot of things, especially the most spiritual jade—excellent talisman cores. In the world of talismans, they had never seen such precious spiritual jade before.
Xingyunzi couldn’t stop thinking about the Soul Spring. He had found two such springs in a certain space and had to exert great effort to obtain them. It pained him greatly to give up one of them for the trade. Hearing about the existence of another Soul Spring made his heart ache again as if being scratched by a hundred claws. After the transaction, he grabbed Guo Shier and wouldn’t let go, asking, “Where was that Soul Spring found? Hehe, how about I exchange something for this information?”