“Daoist Wen, please stop!” Cui Wuran was shocked, waving his sleeve to release several beams of white light that formed a white barrier around the room.

The red-haired youth ignored him, his eyes turning bloodshot as if he had lost his sanity. With a single wave of his hand, his black whip shattered the table into pieces and lashed towards Yuan Ming again. The black flames on the whip affected those near Yuan Ming, forcing them to retreat in shock and anger.

Yuan Ming frowned, this person was relentless. He waved his sleeve.

The Blood Transformation Blade glowed with a sudden burst of blood light, transforming into a streak of blood that shot towards the red-haired youth, its speed doubling from before.

The red-haired youth was startled, hastily activating his protective technique. Black flames emerged from nowhere, enveloping his body. A green shadow flashed in his hand, revealing a bamboo basket-like magical artifact, which he used to block the Blood Transformation Blade.

However, the Blood Transformation Blade blurred and disappeared, and nine blood-colored flying knives appeared around the youth, emitting a fierce aura as they stabbed down simultaneously.

The red-haired youth was terrified, unsure which flying knife to block with his bamboo basket.

In that moment of hesitation, he lost his last chance. The nine flying knives pierced his body, the black flames proving useless as they were easily penetrated.

“Ah!” The red-haired youth screamed in agony, the black flames on his body dissipating as he fell to the ground, a bloody hole in his chest.

A sinister force, ten times stronger than before, rapidly spread through his body, rendering him numb and immobile.

Everyone in the room was horrified by the scene, remaining silent for a long time.

Yuan Ming dispersed the soul power entwined around the Blood Transformation Blade, dispelling the illusion. The nine flying knives merged into one and flew back into his sleeve with a flash of blood light.

Fighting was strictly forbidden in Quicksand City’s inner city, and killing was even more taboo. Yuan Ming didn’t want to cause too much trouble. Otherwise, even without activating the Blood Transformation Blade, the blade’s blood poison alone could easily take the red-haired youth’s life.

Ignoring the red-haired youth, Yuan Ming continued to explore the jade slip with his spiritual consciousness.

“Daoist Wen!” Cui Wuran hurried over to help the red-haired youth.

A layer of blood-colored light appeared on the red-haired youth’s face, and he quickly regained his mobility, seemingly using a secret technique.

“Your strength is formidable. I, Wen, admit defeat. We’ll settle this score another time!” He broke free from Cui Wuran’s support, applied a green rune to his chest wound, and staggered away.

Yuan Ming paid him no mind, continuing to examine the contents of the jade slip. The others, seeing that it had nothing to do with them, remained silent.

The jade slip described two methods. One was a profound technique called the “Flower Transplantation Technique,” which allowed one to integrate a third-level demonic core into their dantian and refine it to serve as a Golden Elixir.

This secret technique had many restrictions. First, the demonic core’s attributes had to match the cultivator’s exactly; any deviation would result in failure. Secondly, during the refining process, one had to endure the residual soul of the demonic beast within the core.

If one could overcome these two hurdles, there was a seventy to eighty percent chance of successfully forming a Golden Elixir.

However, the Golden Elixir formed through this opportunistic method was vastly inferior to a genuine Golden Elixir. It did not extend lifespan and essentially eliminated any future breakthroughs.

Despite these drawbacks, the Flower Transplantation Technique had one advantage: the cultivator could perfectly inherit the power contained within the demonic core and even use the demonic beast’s innate abilities.

The second secret technique was relatively normal. It mentioned a type of “Elixir Purification Liquid” that could cleanse the dantian, purify the dantian’s mana, and make forming the Golden Elixir smoother.

However, the jade slip did not specify where to buy this Elixir Purification Liquid, only vaguely mentioning that someone had seen it in Purple Thunder City over a decade ago.

“Purple Thunder City…” Yuan Ming muttered to himself.

Purple Thunder City was the largest city in the Black Wind Desert region controlled by Zhao Country, governed by the Wulei Sect. It was more than ten times larger and far more prosperous than Quicksand City.

“Daoist Cui, you mentioned earlier which of these two methods is reliable and which is unverified?” Yuan Ming asked Cui Wuran via voice transmission.

“The more reliable method is the Elixir Purification Liquid, which I heard about in Purple Thunder City. As for the Flower Transplantation Technique, I found it on a corpse and have not verified it.” Cui Wuran replied via voice transmission.

As soon as he finished speaking, he sent another transmission, apologizing: “Daoist Yuan, I apologize for the earlier incident. Daoist Wen is usually quite calm. I don’t know why he lost control today. Please forgive him.”

“No problem. Can you tell me more about the origin of this Flower Transplantation Technique?” Yuan Ming asked.

“Of course. A few years ago, while hunting demonic insects in the Black Wind Desert, I accidentally found a long-decayed corpse underground. It wore a storage ring on its finger, and inside was a cultivation journal that recorded this Flower Transplantation Technique.” Cui Wuran explained via voice transmission.

Yuan Ming remained silent. The second method could be verified in Purple Thunder City, but the first method’s origin was untraceable and unverifiable. The key risks were too great, especially the inability to break through further, which was unacceptable to him.

“Daoist Yuan, do you not believe me? I can swear an oath to the heart demon that everything I just said is true. If not, may I be plagued by heart demons, my cultivation ruined, and reduced to a mortal!” Cui Wuran solemnly swore via voice transmission.

Hearing Cui Wuran’s oath, Yuan Ming fell silent. He then put away the jade slip, picked up the three spiritual materials on the table, and handed them to Cui Wuran.

The transaction quickly resumed. Intimidated by the incredible abilities Yuan Ming had just displayed, everyone present was somewhat subdued, and the atmosphere was far less lively than before.

Yuan Ming remained silent and did not make any further moves.

Half an hour later, the exchange meeting ended, and everyone began to take their leave.

Yuan Ming also stood up to leave but was stopped by Cui Wuran, who said he had something to discuss.

“Daoist Cui, what is it?” Yuan Ming asked.

Cui Wuran waved his hand to form a barrier, then took out the three materials from earlier and pushed them in front of Yuan Ming.

“Daoist Cui, what is the meaning of this?” Yuan Ming asked after a moment of silence.

“During the transaction, if I had refused to accept these three materials, it might have disrupted the exchange meeting. I obtained those two methods with little effort, so how could I accept your precious materials? Besides, we are old friends. Consider these two secret techniques as my early congratulations on your Golden Elixir formation.” Cui Wuran said with a smile.

Hearing this, Yuan Ming’s eyes flashed with surprise. He pushed the three materials back: “Daoist Cui, you must be joking. Secret techniques to assist in forming the Golden Elixir are incredibly valuable. How could I take them for free? If you have something to say, please speak directly.”

“Since Daoist Yuan has seen through it, I will be straightforward. I do have a request, and these three materials are my greeting gift. Upon completion, there will be an additional reward of five thousand spirit stones.” Cui Wuran said with a wry smile.

“Five thousand spirit stones! What is it that you need?” Yuan Ming raised an eyebrow and asked.

“It’s not a complicated matter, just hunting two demonic beasts. With your formidable strength, you are perfect for the task.” Cui Wuran said.

“If it’s just dealing with two ordinary demonic beasts, you could handle it yourself. Even if you needed help, you wouldn’t offer such a high price of five thousand spirit stones. So, the demonic beasts you want to kill must be two third-level demonic beasts, right?” Yuan Ming asked, looking deeply at Cui Wuran.

“It’s a pair of high-level second-tier Crimson Gold Centipedes. Their combined strength rivals that of third-level demonic beasts. But don’t worry, this task involves several Foundation Establishment cultivators, and we will rely on a formation to deal with them. It won’t be too dangerous.” Cui Wuran explained.

“Crimson Gold Centipedes!” Yuan Ming’s eyes flashed with interest.

Crimson Gold Centipedes were metal-attribute demonic insects that could devour metals and had incredibly tough bodies, making them one of the most formidable second-tier demonic insects in the Black Wind Desert.

Recently, Master Lu had mentioned wanting a pair of Crimson Gold Centipede corpses to refine a special formation tool.

However, Crimson Gold Centipedes were extremely rare, and the last sighting was over a decade ago. Master Lu had posted rewards in several rogue cultivator alliances, but no one had completed the task. Unexpectedly, Cui Wuran had found their whereabouts.

This task was worth a try. If he could obtain the Crimson Gold Centipede corpses, he could gain Master Lu’s favor, making future requests for formation tools much easier.

Even without Master Lu’s request, the reward of five thousand spirit stones was very tempting.

Yuan Ming needed a large amount of spirit stones to support the dual cultivation of himself and “Zuo Qinghui,” controlled by his split soul. His current spirit stones were running low, and relying on Hua Zhi to hunt demonic insects for spirit stones was far from sufficient.

“Is this task issued by Master Lu of the Earth Spirit Pavilion?” Yuan Ming asked.

“Master Lu? Of course not. This task was issued by the City Lord’s Mansion, supposedly for a Nascent Soul elder of the Wulei Sect. The location of the Crimson Gold Centipedes was also provided by them. The City Lord’s Mansion has other operations and cannot spare experts, so they enlisted us rogue cultivators.” Cui Wuran shook his head.

“Wulei Sect!” Yuan Ming’s expression turned serious.

The area where Quicksand City was located was under Zhao Country’s influence. The Black Wind Desert was rich in mineral resources, attracting Zhao Country’s powerful sects, including the Yellow Sand Sect, which controlled Quicksand City.

As Zhao Country’s top sect, the Wulei Sect wouldn’t miss out on the lucrative Black Wind Desert, sending numerous elders and disciples to the region.

Due to the chaotic nature of the Black Wind Desert, the Wulei Sect enforced a strict rule, eliminating any challengers to their authority.

With their strength and iron-fisted rule, the Wulei Sect had established a fearsome reputation far beyond the desert. Within Zhao Country’s territory, the Wulei Sect was like an emperor, commanding obedience from dozens of underground cities.

Yuan Ming remained silent. If the Wulei Sect wanted to hunt the Crimson Gold Centipedes, even if successful, the centipede corpses wouldn’t end up in his hands. Should he give up this opportunity?