At the same time, Yuan Ming, who had escaped, first returned to his hiding place and then headed to the toad valley. He stopped at the door of the first stone house in the valley, where the named disciple who was lying on the chair reading a book was still there.

“Zhao Tong, it’s time to do business,” Yuan Ming called out.

The person on the chair heard the voice and slowly moved away from the book, revealing a fair and clean round face with a slightly chubby baby fat, slightly thick eyebrows, and bright round eyes. He couldn’t be called handsome but could be considered decent.

Seeing that it was Yuan Ming, his face showed a slight smile. Although they were not close, they had dealt with each other a few times, so they were somewhat familiar.

There were many named disciples doing business in the toad valley, but they all had a proud attitude. Zhao Tong was slightly more normal than the others, but when it came to trading with beast slaves, he never softened the price. Perhaps because they were both from the Central Plains, he was relatively kind to Yuan Ming, so when Yuan Ming had a harvest, he would come to him first to exchange.

“Hey, these pig teeth are not bad. It looks like they have condensed spiritual power and have reached the threshold of refining low-level magic weapons. So, what do you want to exchange for this time?” Zhao Tong said.

“Earth Spike Technique,” Yuan Ming replied without hesitation.

“You are really persistent… but the rules are the rules. The price we agreed on before cannot be changed. Have you saved enough?” Zhao Tong asked.

“It’s all here,” Yuan Ming nodded.

He began to take off the pair of wild boar tusks from his body, took two pouches from his waist, and took out two dark red stones and a withered purple herb from his arms.

After hearing this, Zhao Tong stood up and began to check each item that Yuan Ming placed on the table. After careful inspection, he nodded in satisfaction and said, “Not bad, everything is here. To be honest, I thought it would take you at least six months to collect these things, but I didn’t expect you to do it in less than three months.”

“I need the Earth Spike Technique urgently and can’t wait for six months,” Yuan Ming said.

During this period of time, he had fully realized his lack of strength. He might be able to deal with beasts, but when it came to conflicts with other beast slaves, he always felt that he had too few means and was too dangerous. Especially after offending the Qinglang Gang this time, his situation would only become more dangerous.

He had learned from Zhao Tong that Qi refining cultivators could also learn some spells, and the Earth Spike Technique was a relatively easy-to-learn primary-level lower-class attack spell for Qi refining cultivators, and its power was related to the caster’s mana.

Of course, these spells could only be learned by becoming a named disciple of the Biro Cave, but for the sake of profit, some named disciples would secretly copy them and exchange them with beast slaves, although the price was often high.

“Okay, this is the copy of the Earth Spike Technique, and you have one hour to memorize it,” Zhao Tong took out a thin white booklet from his arms and threw it to Yuan Ming.

“I can’t take it with me?” Yuan Ming frowned and asked.

“What are you thinking? If you take the copy with you and learn it, then sell it to others, how can I do business in the future?” Zhao Tong sneered.

“Good point,” Yuan Ming nodded.

He then opened the book and began to read it carefully.In his ear, Zhao Tong’s voice came, “If you have any questions within this hour, you can ask me anytime.”

Yuan Ming didn’t react to his words at all, as if he hadn’t heard anything, which made Zhao Tong unhappy.

But before he could sit back down on his chair, Yuan Ming closed the book, stood there with his eyes closed, silently chanting.

After a moment, he opened his eyes again and asked Zhao Tong, “In the technique, it says that when using this skill, you need to transfer your mana into the ground and connect with the earth’s aura. Do you have to touch the ground with your hand?”

Zhao Tong was stunned for a moment, then replied, “Oh… that’s right. The Earth Spike technique has three stages. At the beginning, if the skill proficiency is not enough, it is best to touch the ground with your hand to shorten the release time and increase efficiency. When the skill is at a lower level, you don’t need to use your hands. When you step on the ground, you can still communicate with the earth.”

“When the skill is at the highest level, even if you are in mid-air, you can release mana through hand seals to use the Earth Spike technique?” Yuan Ming asked after a moment of contemplation.

“Yes, but you need sufficient mana and mastery of the skill,” Zhao Tong nodded.

“Understood, thank you,” Yuan Ming said.

“Do you have any other questions? You can ask me more,” Zhao Tong said with a smile.

“No, that’s all,” Yuan Ming said calmly, then returned the book.

Zhao Tong was puzzled by Yuan Ming’s behavior and asked, “Why aren’t you reading it anymore?”

“I’ve memorized it all. If I have any doubts, I can only discover them during practice,” Yuan Ming said.

Although the Earth Spike technique was only three thousand words long, it was much simpler than the Nine Elements technique.

“Can you memorize everything?” Zhao Tong asked in disbelief.

“I have good memory,” Yuan Ming said before leaving.

Watching Yuan Ming’s back as he walked away, Zhao Tong became more interested in him. Having a photographic memory wasn’t a particularly impressive skill for cultivators like them, but for those who didn’t have it, it was a gift from the heavens.

“Brother Yuan.”

As soon as Yuan Ming left the valley, someone called out to him.

A person jumped down from a large rock not far from him and walked over.

“Wu Lu, do you need something from me?” Yuan Ming was surprised to see him, as they didn’t interact much.

“Did you kill someone from the Green Wolf Gang?” Wu Lu asked bluntly.

“We had a conflict, and I injured one person. Why… did he die?” Yuan Ming furrowed his brows in confusion.

“He did. When they mentioned someone from the Central Plains, I guessed it was you,” Wu Lu grinned, not caring about the person’s death.

“They?” Yuan Ming asked.

“I joined the Green Wolf Gang,” Wu Lu admitted frankly.

“So you came to arrest me?” Yuan Ming’s gaze narrowed.

“I came to persuade you,” Wu Lu shook his head.

“To persuade me?””I told them to persuade you to submit and join the Qing Wolf Gang. But I know your personality, you won’t agree. So I just came to remind you in advance, to be more cautious.” Wu Lu laughed.

Yuan Ming was slightly surprised at his words.

“What, surprised? This is also a repayment for your previous kindness.” Wu Lu asked and answered himself.

“Then I thank you.” Yuan Ming smiled and said.

“After I go back this time, they should issue a wanted order for you and even offer a bounty. According to their style, as long as someone reports your whereabouts, that person can avoid harassment from the Qing Wolf Gang and even get their protection. So your situation will not be good in the future.” Wu Lu continued.

“I guessed it.” Yuan Ming nodded without surprise.

“If I’m not mistaken, Ba Yin will be the one chasing after you. He is a fierce bald man who has just broken through to the third level of Qi Refining. He is also considered a master among the beast slaves in the Ten Thousand Mountains. Don’t take it lightly if you encounter him.” Wu Lu said.

“Understood, thank you.” Yuan Ming nodded and saluted.

After that, Wu Lu left first and returned to his hiding place outside of the toad valley.

Yuan Ming immediately began practicing the Earth Spike technique when he returned to the cave.

…

Half a month later, in a sparsely wooded area.

Yuan Ming crouched down, propped up with one hand on the ground, and pinched a gesture with the other hand, sending a strand of mana into the ground.

Suddenly, a yellowish light flashed in his eyes, and he shouted, “Rise!”

As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp, earthy-yellow stalagmite shot out of the ground like a dagger, about a foot long and as thick as a child’s arm, with a metallic sheen at the tip, indicating its sharpness and sturdiness.

Yuan Ming wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and smiled when he saw this.

After practicing for this period of time, the distance that he could use the Earth Spike technique had increased several times from the initial few feet, and its sharpness and sturdiness had also made great progress, making him quite satisfied.

“The Earth Spike technique is not difficult to practice, but it consumes a lot of mana. If it is used continuously, I’m afraid the mana will not keep up. I still need to improve my cultivation.” Yuan Ming muttered to himself.

Just then, his ears moved suddenly, and he turned his head sharply towards a direction and shouted, “Who’s there?”

As soon as he finished speaking, rustling sounds were heard all around, and five figures appeared, surrounding him in the center. It turned out to be Ba Yin and his men.

“You brat, you’re really hard to find.” Ba Yin stepped forward and scolded.

Yuan Ming immediately put on the ape skin and transformed into a white ape.

“I advise you not to act recklessly. I don’t want to kill anyone.” Yuan Ming spoke.Upon hearing this, Ba Yin was not afraid but laughed instead. He said, “You killed that useless Zaha and now you think you’re somebody? Today, if I don’t twist your head back, I don’t deserve to be the vice-leader of the Green Wolf Gang.”

With that, he also put on a beast skin and performed the Beast Transformation Technique.

His body slightly swelled, and long, dense hair began to grow all over him. His forehead became broader, his eyes smaller and rounder, his nose flatter and blunter, and sharp, hard claws grew on both his hands and feet.

However, the most eye-catching feature was the white hair that ran from the top of his head to his back, about two feet wide. It looked like he was wearing a silver-white long cloak.

…

Friendship recommendation: “Cultivation: Three Thousand Great Creations.” This is a book written by a friend of the Alliance Leader’s group. It’s a fantasy love story with humorous language and novel ideas. If you like it, you can go and have a look^^