Chapter 1291: Earth Dragon Tendon

He shook his head, unaffected.

“Then, what do you think of this Crescent Blade, sir? This sword is refined from pure copper, making it not only as light as a feather but also incredibly tough. It’s a rare, high-quality soft sword.”

“It’s too short, doesn’t feel right,” Han Li said dismissively, glancing at it without interest.

“Too short?” The shop assistant, who had been smiling apologetically, froze, seemingly unsure how to respond.

“What’s that item over there? It looks quite interesting,” Han Li suddenly walked a few steps, pointing to something on another table, and asked with interest.

The item he pointed to was a coil of pitch-black, thumb-thick, soft rope.

“This is a Coiled Dragon Rope, made from refined gold threads and specially designed for binding. Even low-level demon beasts with immense strength cannot easily break free once bound by it,” the assistant said, regaining his composure and explaining the item.

“A Coiled Dragon Rope? Let me see.”

Han Li reached out without ceremony and took the item into his hand. With a slight flick, it straightened with a *whoosh*, becoming as rigid as a thin rod.

The assistant standing by watched this scene, his eyes widening slightly.

Having served countless customers in this weapons shop, he naturally had some discerning vision. To be able to wield such a soft rope so effortlessly meant the person was definitely not ordinary; they were likely a Body Refiner. A hint of awe appeared on his face.

“This is quite good. But it’s still a bit too soft. Do you have anything similar but finer?” Han Li asked, lightly waving it twice, a frown still on his face.

“Finer? That… I’m afraid our shop doesn’t have anything like that,” the assistant stammered, replying somewhat awkwardly.

“Oh, looking for something finer? I happen to have an item here, would you care to see it? However, its price is not cheap.”

A gruff voice suddenly came from behind Han Li. Han Li’s expression shifted, and he slowly turned around.

Behind him stood two burly men. One was tall with long, flowing hair, exuding a dangerous, bestial aura. The other had a sallow, somewhat gaunt face.

Both men wore leather robes. The tall man had a long golden spear strapped to his back and a large package on his shoulder, while the gaunt man held a wooden box several feet long in one hand, his expression somewhat gloomy.

What caught Han Li’s eye was that each of them wore a spirit stone-inlaid ring on one of their fingers, though these were noticeably cruder than the one Zhang Kui wore, and the spirit stones themselves were smaller.

“Spirit artifacts,” “Body Refiners.”

These thoughts flashed through Han Li’s mind as he instantly recognized the two men’s identities. With a slight curve of his lips, he said, “As long as the item is suitable, the price is not an issue.”

“Very well, but this is not the place to talk. Please come with my brother to a quieter location to discuss it,” the gaunt man scrutinized Han Li, then offered a broad smile.

“No problem!” Han Li nodded without hesitation.

He then followed the two men out of the weapon shop and back onto the street.

These two seemed extremely familiar with the area, leading Han Li through a series of turns until they arrived at an inconspicuous alley.

There was no one else here; it was incredibly quiet.

“This is it. Brother Xin, please show that item to this gentleman,” as soon as the three stopped, the gaunt man instructed the tall man.

“Understood, Brother Bao!” The tall man acknowledged, grasping the package on his shoulder and giving it a shake.

With a clatter, a pile of items fell to the ground. Among them were bottles and jars, as well as some beast skins and horns.

The gaunt man bent down and picked out another palm-sized wooden box from the pile.

“Please take a look, sir. This is a demon beast sinew obtained by my brother and several other Body Refiners after killing a Ground Dragon. This item is not only slender and incredibly tough, but also extremely elastic, capable of easily stretching and lengthening several times its original size.”

*Ground Dragon?*

Han Li naturally didn’t know what kind of demon beast this "Ground Dragon" was, but it appeared to be a low-level one. Without showing any unusual expression, he reached out, took the wooden box, and opened the lid.

A thin, milky-white object was neatly coiled and tied with a red string inside.

Han Li didn't stand on ceremony. He simply squeezed the red string with his hand, and it immediately crumbled into pieces.

Then, with a *thwack*, the coiled beast sinew sprang out, one end shooting straight towards Han Li's face.

Han Li raised a single hand. His movement seemed slow, yet somehow, his five fingers firmly grasped one end of the beast sinew. Then, with a flick of his fingers, the taut sinew instantly went limp, as if its elasticity had vanished in a flash.

He then brought the two-zhang-long item closer to his eyes.

The gaunt man opposite him, seeing Han Li’s swift movements, and the tall man beside him, couldn't help but exchange glances.

By this time, Han Li had thoroughly examined this section of Ground Dragon sinew.

With his experience and keen eye from having slain countless low-level demon beasts in the past, he naturally recognized the properties and characteristics of this sinew at a glance, as well as how to slightly modify it to better suit his needs.

After fiddling with it for a while, Han Li flicked the item with one hand.

The beast sinew blurred and danced, coiling rapidly around his wrist, transforming into a light bracelet.

He dropped his arm, and his long sleeve fell, completely concealing the beast sinew. From the outside, no abnormality could be detected.

“Good, this material is indeed rare among low-level demon beasts. However, such an item has limited use for cultivators; it's most suitable as a bowstring. It also works for me. As long as you don't overcharge, I can buy it,” Han Li said calmly, looking at the two men opposite him.

“Heh heh, it seems you, sir, are also a Body Refiner. In that case, payment will naturally be in spirit stones. This Ground Dragon sinew will cost thirty spirit stones!” The gaunt man's stern face revealed a hint of a smile upon hearing Han Li's words, and he stated his price.

“Thirty spirit stones? A bit high, but not unacceptable. Please take them.”

Through his interactions with Liu’er and the three other girls, Han Li had learned that while ordinary mortals in the Spirit Realm still used gold and silver as currency, Body Refiners, due to the high consumption of spirit stones for their spirit artifacts, exchanged special items using spirit stones, much like cultivators.

However, in the Spirit Realm, low-level spirit stones were not as valuable as they were in the Human Realm.

Most spirit artifacts and cultivator practices primarily utilized mid- and high-level spirit stones. After all, the spiritual energy density in this realm was far beyond what the Human Realm could compare to. Even top-grade spirit stone mines were not unheard of here, though most were controlled by high-level cultivators and powerful factions.

But even so, thirty low-level spirit stones for a somewhat useless material from a low-level demon beast was still a bit high.

Although Han Li had left his storage bag and all his treasures in the desert that day, being in the Spirit Realm, he naturally didn't forget the importance of spirit stones. To be safe, he had kept over ten mid-level spirit stones as backup.

Now, he reached into his embrace, and with a flick of his hand, a yellowish spirit stone flew out. The tall man stepped forward, grabbing the spirit stone in his large hand. After a quick inspection, he nodded with satisfaction.

Seeing this, the gaunt man, surnamed Bao, managed a faint smile on his sallow face. He promptly pulled out an ordinary small leather pouch from his person, counted out seventy low-level spirit stones from it, wrapped them in a piece of beast hide on the ground, and tossed the bundle to Han Li.

“These are your change, sir. You are so straightforward; perhaps we can cooperate sometime,” the gaunt man said with a chuckle.

“Cooperate? Perhaps there will be an opportunity in the future. But for now, I have matters to attend to, so I’ll take my leave.”

Han Li smiled faintly, cupped his fist to the two men, and calmly turned to leave.

Watching Han Li flash out of sight at the alley entrance, the tall man looked at the mid-level spirit stone in his hand, then back towards the alley entrance. His eyes suddenly flashed with a fierce light, and he asked the gaunt man in a low voice, “Brother Bao, this man’s face is unfamiliar, and he seems to have quite a fortune. Should we…?”

“Put away your thoughts. Did you not see that he wasn't wearing any spirit artifacts? A Body Refiner who does that is either too poor to afford spirit artifacts, or they are confident enough in their cultivation that ordinary spirit artifacts are of little help and they disdain to use them. Which kind of person do you think he is?” The gaunt man’s face sank as he retorted.

“This man is generous with his spending, so he’s certainly not a penniless Body Refiner. But didn’t he just buy Ground Dragon sinew from us?” The tall man hesitated, sounding unsure.

“Brother Xin, can you be sure that he bought the Ground Dragon sinew to use as a weapon? Perhaps he just wants to use it as a material to refine a special spirit artifact. Many foreign Body Refiners have flooded into An Yuan City recently, and among them are some incredibly formidable individuals. While we are not weak, it’s best not to be reckless. After all, I only have one life,” the man named Bao pondered for a moment, then sneered.

“Brother’s words have some truth. I was just too eager because I lacked spirit stones. But the beast tide is coming soon, and without mid-level spirit stones to replenish our spirit artifacts, we will also be in great danger,” as the gaunt man said this, the tall man surnamed Xin finally calmed down, but still felt greatly troubled.

“What's there to fear? As soon as the beast tide arrives, An Yuan City's lord will surely hire all the Body Refiners in the city, and a sum of spirit stones will naturally be allocated. If we use them sparingly, it will be enough to save our lives,” the gaunt man said confidently, as if he had already made up his mind.

“That’s true. According to the agreement between the Three Emperors and the Seven Demon Kings, cultivators above the Core Formation stage are not allowed to help major cities defend against beast tides. If they want to protect their cities, who can these city lords rely on besides us Body Refiners?” Hearing this, the tall man also brightened up.

“It's good that you know. Actually, this agreement is relative; similarly, no high-level demon beasts above level five will appear among the beast hordes. It's really hard to say who benefits more from this agreement,” the gaunt man said with some emotion.

The tall man also fell silent in thought.

Before long, the two men gathered up their items from the ground, walked out of the alley entrance again, and disappeared into the crowd on the street.