Chapter One Hundred and Twenty Nine – Five Colored Pagoda
Zuo Mo couldn’t let go of the dimensional ring once he had it in his hands.
“Mister Zuo really has good eyes. The space inside this dimensional ring is nine square zhang, more than two times the area of a normal third-grade dimensional ring, but the price is only thirty percent more expensive than a third-grade dimensional ring. Stored inside the dimensional ring, there’s no rotting or decay. It will be as fresh as it was even one hundred years later. It is easy to take items out. The mind only has to move, and it will enter the palm.” The shopkeeper praised and then handed Zuo Mo a jade scroll, “This jade scroll has some of the special jinzhi for dimensional rings. This shop gives them for free. Mister Zuo is really a promising youth. This store has opened for a long time yet Mister Zuo is the first customer to have a dimensional ring in zhuji.”
It really was a good item!
Zuo Mo threw everything from the hundred treasures pouch into the dimensional ring, and felt his body become light. His hundred treasures pouch had been holding a huge mountain of items. If it wasn’t that he had made slight progress with the [Vajra Profound Sutra], he would have been crushed under the weight of the items. Now that it was all in the dimensional ring, he couldn’t feel any weight. The feeling was too good! A nine square zhang area was empty. His large pile of items only took up an extremely small corner. The gigantic space was enough to put countless formation disks.
What medicine-seal-style? With the dimensional ring, then it would be the true medicine-seal-style!
Even though he had known before, but he still sighed at the contrast between the dimensional ring and the hundred treasures pouch. No wonder it was so expensive. One piece of jingshi, one kind of item. What Zuo Mo was especially satisfied with was the appearance of this dimensional ring was plain. It looked like a normal metal circle and was unattractive to the eye. If one didn’t already know, they wouldn’t ever think that this non-descript metal circle was a dimensional ring worth one hundred fourth-grade jingshi.
Zuo Mo knew that his cultivation was low. If he was too flashy, then that was no different than asking for death. Dong Fu might look orderly on the surface, but things like killing people for their treasures, and people suddenly disappearing were common occurrences. People were moved by wealth, people died for wealth, birds died for food. This was the same no matter the place. He didn’t want to lose his little life for a dimensional ring. The plain appearance of the dimensional ring was well suited to his mentality.
It was worth spending one hundred pieces of fourth-grade jingshi.
Extremely satisfied, Zuo Mo thought about the remaining ninety pieces of jingshi.
Let’s continue!
The shopkeeper was slightly surprised at the wealth Zuo Mo had. This was the first time he had seen a zhuji xiuzhe spend one hundred pieces of fourth-grade jingshi without batting an eye. He didn’t know that Zuo Mo was racing against time with Pu Yao. If Pu Yao didn’t exist, he would have tightly gripped onto the one hundred pieces of fourth-grade jingshi and certainly couldn’t bear to buy the dimensional ring.
But right now, the jingshi would only be his if he spent it.
Even though Pu Yao would always offer things like spells in what he called an exchange, but thinking about the things that Pu Yao gave, Zuo Mo was so upset he wanted to spit blood. No matter if it was the [Embryonic Breathing Spiritual Cultivation] of the first time, or the mo matrix, and yao seed later, all of them had side effects. As for things like [Fragrance Knowledge], he wanted to kill someone.
It wasn’t a crime to spend. If he didn’t spend, he definitely would cry.
Zuo Mo kept walking forward. His eyes landed on a five colored pagoda. This five colored pagoda was made up of five levels, each level a different color. Familiar with the five elements, Zuo Mo instantly recognized it as a five element talisman. Each level represented an element of the five elements.
“This Five Element Pagoda was made by a roaming xiu. Originally, this roaming xiu had intended to make a talisman that could increase control over the five elements, but his cultivation went astray and his spirit was extinguished. This unfinished talisman was sold to this store by his family. The thought behind this Five Element Pagoda is extremely clever. The five levels of the tower might not be made from the best materials, but it would have been hard to gather all five. It is a pity that Dong Fu is dominated by sword xiu and not many cultivate the five elements which is why none have asked about this talisman. I heart that Mister Zuo has a side profession of ling farming. This Five Color Pagoda is very suited for you. If you are willing, this store would also give to you the spells to forge the Five Color Pagoda for free. It is the jade scroll that the original owner of the Five Color Pagoda left.”
Zuo Mo looked at the price, fifty pieces of fourth-grade jingshi. He couldn’t help but be tempted, “The item is good, but the price… …”
Hearing this, the shopkeeper said apologetically, “I’m sorry. It’s not that this one is unwilling, but the store does not bargain.”
The other might have said it politely but the tone was resolute. It looked like he really couldn’t bargain, Zuo Mo muttered inside. But he was greatly tempted by the Five Colored Pagoda. He could only say, “Could you take it out for me to see.”
“No problem.” The shopkeeper crisply took out the Five Colored Pagoda and handed it to Zuo Mo.
Once the Five Colored Pagoda came into Zuo Mo’s hands, he felt the lively five element energies. He started out as a ling plant farmer and was extremely sensitive to the five elements. Even the sword scriptures that he had practiced afterwards had clear inclinations towards the five elements. The levels arranged from the top of the pagoda to the base were gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. When ling power was channeled into the pagoda, the pagoda instantly shone with five colored light. Zuo Mo felt as though he was holding an extremely pure ball of five element energy. His mind moved as he silently casted Little Art of Cloud and Rain. Then he felt the moisture surrounding him gather in his hand.
So quick!
Zuo Mo was very shocked!
It was twice as fast as when he casted the Little Art of Cloud and Rain by himself.
Such a powerful talisman!
Zuo Mo instantly realized the value of this talisman. Maybe, in the hands of another person, this talisman would not be very useful, but in his hands, it would be very effective.
“This Five Colored Pagoda is suited to you.” A voice suddenly came from behind him.
Hearing this, Zuo Mo turned around. At some unknown time, someone had been standing behind him without his knowledge.
It was him! Zuo Mo couldn’t help but still.
In front of him was a person wearing a black gauze hat. It was the guy that had came to him to cut the cold magnet. This person called Su had mysterious origins. He was very strong and had easily won in the last few matches. He was ranked in the top ten of all the rankings. He had also made a wager with Chao An, which pushed Chao An into dangerous straits. He could be considered to have helped Zuo Mo out.
Of course, Zuo Mo didn’t have any relationship with him, so Zuo Mo had no reason to think the other had wagered just to help him out.
“I’ll buy it for you.” Su said shortly, “You just have to help me with something.”
The shopkeeper beside them perceptively moved to one side, not disturbing their conversation.
Zuo Mo was extremely wary. He shook his head, saying, “No need, I can buy it myself.” Fifty pieces of fourth-grade jingshi was not a small amount. Converted, it was twenty five thousand third-grade jingshi. A favor whose payment reached fifty pieces of fourth-grade jingshi. Even thinking with his feet, Zuo Mo knew the favor wasn’t an easy one.
“Adding on this.” Su took out a jade bottle, “Fort Chao’s Intense Fire Dan.Thirty six of them. Help me forge something.”
Forge something?
Zuo Mo’s heart rested slightly. What ge is most afraid of is fighting and killing. Oh, wait, thinking about his history of almost getting killed when he had processed the Inky Black Lotus seed, he hurriedly asked, “Forge what?”
“Forge the cold magnet into sword billets.” Su said.
“That’s not possible.” Zuo Mo said decisively, “That thing is fourth grade. It took all my power just to cut it. I don’t have the power to forge it into sword billets.”
“You can do it.” Su’s voice still was unaffected, “You could process the Inky Black Lotus seed. Adding on this Five Colored Pagoda, you can forge it.”
It would have been better if Su hadn’t mentioned the Inky Black Lotus seed. Once it was mentioned, the anger in Zuo Mo’s heart erupted. If this bastard in front of him hadn’t spread the information, then that business wouldn’t have come looking for him. Ge had almost lost his little life!
“I will also help you get into the top ten.”
Su’s light words instantly dissipated the fire in Zuo Mo’s heart.
Zuo Mo’s heart moved. He felt out with a question, “Then what do I do for the second round?”
“You’re the bye for the second round.” Su said.
Zuo Mo was secretly shocked. This guy did have some skill to be able to know such secret information. He had just found out from the sect leader that he was the bye and this person in front of him actually knew as well.
The other’s offer tempted him. Pu Yao was most likely going to wake up soon. If Pu Yao woke up, the jingshi would instantly change possession, then his idea of buying the Kun Lun Preliminary Formation jade scroll was not realistic. If he wanted to get that jade scroll, then he had to go through the competition. There would be one hundred people that would attend the last no-rules competition. Even though all one hundred people would get a prize, but the further back he was ranked, the less the chance he would get the jade scroll.
But Zuo Mo kept on feeling the other’s offer was not so simple.
“Tell me how to forge the sword billets?” He first decided to find out more.
“Carve a formation on each billet with Dying Flowing Moon. There are four formations in total.” Su said.
Dying Flowing Moon… …
Zuo Mo’s head shook like a rattledrum, “Not possible, not possible! Dying flowing moon isn’t a material I can use at this moment.” He was not being humble. Even though Dying Flowing Moon was a third grade material, but it was a rare one. It had extremely special properties and was truly a high-end material.
They might all be third-grade, but there would be great differences.
The so-called grades were, in reality, an extremely vague concept. Sometimes, it referred to the a horizontal ranking, while other times a a vertical ranking. This vague categorization system was not because cultivators were not rigorous but due to the complexity of the attributes of many materials.
For example, the Stalagmite fire. His was a second-grade fire seed. This was the horizontal ranking, because it held the attributes of a fire seed. There were many types of stalagmite fire, if it was nurtured for a long period of time in a place with denser ling energy, it would transform into another kind of fire – Cold Purple Fire, and if it kept on going, it would form yet another fire – Yin Wave Fire.
The Stalagmite fire was second-grade, the Cold Purple Fire was third-grade, the Yin Wave Fire was fourth-grade.
Cultivators would see them as a wholly different species, because they were of different grades, and they would have different attributes, but were in fact the same fire source.
Some materials would increase in quality but keep its appearance and fall under the vertical rankings. For example fire dragon grass. Third-grade fire dragon grass and fourth-grade fire dragon grass might be different in terms of the ling energy it contained and the color of its fruit, but it was still very easy to identify it as a fire dragon grass.
Dying Flowing Moon belonged to the second type. The so-called third-grade Dying Flowing Moon referred to, how in all of the Dying Flowing Moon, it was ranked in the third to last species.
In reality, the second situation occurred far more frequently than the first situation.
This kind of categorization had formed over thousands of years, according to convention.
Dying Flowing Moon was a truly high-end material. It was extremely difficult to gather and to process. It certainly wasn’t something a zhuji xiuzhe like Zuo Mo could forge. Zuo Mo suspected that he couldn’t even process first and second-grade Dying Flowing Moon, much less the third-grade Dying Flowing Moon.
He couldn’t take the business!
Translator Ramblings: Don’t take the rankings too seriously but just know that some will transform and others won’t when they level up. Horizontal and vertical are very weird so does anyone have a better suggestion?