“It’s a pity that Iron Claw Moles are extremely difficult to tame, otherwise, they could be trained to help with farming.”
The fur, scales, and claws of the Iron Claw Moles could all be used for Artifact Refining. It’s just that these few had low cultivation, so they probably wouldn't sell for a high price, but they could still make up for some of his Spiritual Field losses.
He pulled out the heavily gnawed purple beard root from the Iron Claw Mole’s mouth.
“The rest will be extra food for the Medicine Seeking Badger.”
These days, the Medicine Seeking Badger was finally not as irritable and had become much tamer. It shouldn’t be far from being fully tamed.
He initially estimated that this Iron Claw Mole weighed between thirty and fifty catties, like a growing piglet.
“Cluck cluck!”
While Xia Jingxing wasn't paying attention, the Iron Claw Mole was actually gnawing on the thousand leaf rope.
Seeing this, he merely smiled. This thousand leaf rope was not cheap; it had cost him quite a few Spirit Stones at the time, and he had personally verified its hardness. It would be difficult to cut without being at the fourth or fifth layer of Qi.
However, he still needed to quickly take these Iron Claw Moles to the Market to sell.
He still hadn't finished eating the few Late Stage Yao Beasts that Li Biao had hunted last time.
The Spiritual Qi in the meat of these Late Stage Yao Beasts was abundant. He would need several days to digest one meal and fully absorb all the Spiritual Qi.
But eating this Yao Beast meat was also good; his cultivation and physique were improving simultaneously.
He carried the Iron Claw Moles, weighing over two hundred catties, to the Bamboo House.
Staying here, he wondered if he would attract higher-cultivation Yao Beasts.
He walked to the Medicine Seeking Badger and threw the remaining purple beard root at its feet.
When this fellow first saw him, it looked unwilling, but upon seeing the purple beard root, its emerald eyes suddenly brightened, and it began to gnaw on the purple beard root.
“I’m giving you a task. Help me guard these Iron Claw Moles, and the reward will be one purple beard root. How about it?”
The Medicine Seeking Badger’s emerald eyes flickered with a human-like light. After some thought, it nodded.
Xia Jingxing then used the remaining thousand leaf rope to reinforce the net bag, and only after confirming there were no weaknesses did he enter the house.
He thought that next time he would buy an iron cage, which would make it easier to store captured prey. Live Yao Beasts were certainly more valuable than dead ones... Two days later, at Chen Shi.
The letter Xia Jingxing sent back to the Family finally received a reply, granting his request to go to the Market.
After all, his task was to guard the Spiritual Fields on Banzhu Mountain. Although this place had been abandoned for many years, it still belonged to the Family’s resources and had been redefined as a task.
And since it was a task, he certainly couldn't leave at will. He had to report to the Family. If the Family came to investigate and couldn't find him, he would be considered derelict in his duty.
“It took two days to arrive. I don't know what they were deliberating.”
Logically, he should have received a reply to his message on the same day, a clear answer of whether to go or not.
He thought it must be because his previous reputation was too bad. Going to the Market had always been seen as idleness, and the Family was probably afraid he would go to the Flower Moon Tower in the Market to enjoy himself again.
After the Family’s Task Hall received Xia Jingxing’s request, they immediately held a small discussion. After learning that Xia Jingxing had not gone to the Market for nearly a month, they approved the request.
The moment Xia Jingxing received permission to go to the Market, he immediately changed into a convenient Dharma Robe, a raven-blue thin robe, with a black jade hairpin in his topknot.
This made him look more like a Cultivator.
He thought for a moment and then put on a white mask.
The original owner had spent many years in Clear Spring Market, so there must have been many regular customers. If he ran into them, it would be awkward. It was better to appear as a stranger to avoid being remembered.
Then, he put the Iron Claw Moles from the net bag into his Storage Pouch and took out a flying leaf to fly towards Clear Spring Market.
Clear Spring Market was named after being built beside a river called Clear Spring. It was very close to the Xia Family, less than fifty li from the Xia Family's territory, but it was in the opposite direction from Banzhu Mountain.
He had to cross almost the entire Xia Family territory to get to the Market, which would take two hours round trip, equivalent to a trip back to the Family's ancestral land.
Clear Spring Market was not built with funds from the Xia Family, but by the Golden Core Sect, Qing Tian Sect. However, during the construction process, the Xia Family, along with several surrounding Foundation Establishment Families, contributed a lot, so they had many shops in the Market.
Two hours later, Xia Jingxing paid one Spirit Stone and entered Clear Spring Market.
Clear Spring Market looked more like a bustling large market, with a large number of Cultivators coming and going, but no Mortals.
Stalls were not allowed near the entrance and exit of the Market, only in the central streets.
However, there were certain restrictions on stalls; setting up a stall once required paying one Spirit Stone.
Although he remembered having been to Clear Spring Market several times, this was his first time from his own subjective perspective.
The Market streets were filled with Cultivators dressed in various ways. There were many Cultivators wearing masks and veiled hats, so Xia Jingxing's attire was not unusual.
He wandered for a long time before finding a Spirit Beast shop called 'Spirit Beast Zhai'.
Various Families in the vicinity, including the Qing Tian Sect, were also enthusiastic about the path of beast taming. However, the path of beast taming consumed a lot of assets, burning money, and did not bring actual profits like Alchemy or Artifact Refining.
Therefore, only a certain group of people truly pursued beast taming.
Xia Jingxing was only interested; he probably would only keep the Medicine Seeking Badger as his Spirit Pet. If he raised a few more, he wouldn't be able to afford it.
Upon entering the Spirit Beast Zhai, he smelled a faint, slightly fishy odor of Yao Beasts, which was acceptable.
“May I ask, Fellow Daoist, what kind of Spirit Pet you are looking for?” The shop assistant immediately asked Xia Jingxing with a smile.
“I caught a few Iron Claw Moles. I wonder if your esteemed shop buys them!”
“We do! We do!”
When the shop assistant heard “Iron Claw Moles,” he became a bit more enthusiastic, and a slight smile appeared in his eyes.
“How much do you plan to give for one?”
“That depends on its appearance and Aptitude.”
Upon hearing this, Xia Jingxing took out the net bag containing the Iron Claw Moles.
“Squeak, squeak, squeak...”
“Take a look! Their appearance is excellent. They haven't been mistreated.”
He had anticipated this, so he had fed them normally these two days, which kept the moles looking plump and energetic.
“Their appearance is indeed good. However, their Bloodline Aptitude is a bit poor, and their cultivation is not high, so the price might be a bit lower.”
“Would fifty Spirit Stones per one be acceptable?”
“Too low! These moles have a keen sense of smell and can seek out medicine. Eighty Spirit Stones each.” Xia Jingxing shook his head, raising the price by thirty Spirit Stones.
The Iron Claw Mole's medicine-seeking ability was indeed mediocre. Yesterday, he caught one and searched around for a while, only finding some low-grade Spiritual Plants of little value. However, with this advantage, he could raise the price more.
“Seventy at most. Eighty is too high.”
“Let’s meet halfway, seventy-five!”
“Deal!” The shop assistant’s cheeks were slightly flushed. This price was for high-grade Bloodline Yao Beasts in his shop, but since the moles had this medicine-seeking characteristic, he would still make a good profit in the end.
“Does your esteemed shop have any Dharma Arts that can make Yao Beasts docile and obedient?” Xia Jingxing asked, thinking of the disobedient Medicine Seeking Badger.
Although the Medicine Seeking Badger’s attitude had improved these days, it would still take a lot of time to fully tame it.
“Yes! Our shop has ready-made contract formation diagrams. You just need to put your essence blood and the Spirit Beast into it to form a contract. This allows the Spirit Beast to communicate with its master’s thoughts. Of course, once the master dies, the Spirit Beast will also perish!”
“Then give me two formation diagrams!” Xia Jingxing found this very convenient and bought an extra one for unforeseen needs.
“Also, I want some sturdy iron cages!”
“Fellow Daoist, you’ve come to the right place. The iron cages in our Spirit Beast shop are cheaper than those sold in other general stores!”