Chapter 561: Coincidence

Lu Ye rose from his cultivation spot in the spiritual land and once again approached the Heavenly Mystery Pillar. Connecting his consciousness to the Heavenly Mystery Treasury, he wasn't there to buy anything this time. Instead, he intended to upgrade his Panshan Saber.

The Panshan Saber was currently a mid-grade spiritual artifact with eighteen restrictions, having been upgraded from low-grade only a few months prior. However, Lu Ye's cultivation had advanced rapidly; in less than five months since entering the Cloud River Battlefield, he had already reached the fourth level of the Cloud River Realm. He was now qualified to wield higher-grade spiritual artifacts.

Normally, cultivators in the Spirit Stream Realm used low-grade spiritual artifacts. Upon reaching the Cloud River Realm, they could switch to mid-grade, and around the fifth level of the Cloud River Realm, they could upgrade to high-grade spiritual artifacts. Top-grade spiritual artifacts were typically used by True Lake Realm cultivators, with magic tools being even more advanced. Although Lu Ye's cultivation was one level lower than the fifth, it wasn't a significant issue. With nothing pressing to do and no immediate need for combat, he decided to use this free time to upgrade the Panshan Saber, ensuring it wouldn't be neglected later.

In the Heavenly Mystery Treasury, Lu Ye softly murmured, "Commission: Spiritual artifact upgrade!"

He had done this before, so he knew the process. As his voice fell, his vision shifted, and he appeared in a small, empty room with only a platform in front of him. Lu Ye waited there.

For his spiritual artifact upgrade commission, he needed an available artifact refiner to accept the request. They would then negotiate the price, terms, and deadline. If no refiner accepted, he would simply have to keep waiting. For cultivators in Kyushu, this method was undoubtedly convenient. They didn't need to painstakingly search for artifact refiners; they could simply use the Heavenly Mystery Treasury to complete the task. Not only could spiritual artifacts be upgraded this way, but one could also commission custom spiritual artifacts, refine spiritual pills, and so on. So, as long as one possessed a specialized skill, earning merit points was not difficult. Cultivators specializing in artifact refining or pill refining didn't even need to fight; by simply accepting various commissions in the Heavenly Mystery Treasury, they could earn enough merit points to meet their cultivation needs.

There were many artifact refiners taking on jobs in the Heavenly Mystery Treasury. Lu Ye only waited a moment before the space before him twisted, and a figure appeared. He looked up and saw that the newcomer was not old, probably around thirty, with fair skin, a charming face, and wearing a fitted floral dress that outlined her graceful curves. Lu Ye was surprised.

The Heavenly Mystery provided a natural concealment and protection for both parties involved in such commissions. It was a method where they were enveloped in mist, preventing them from discerning each other's identity, appearance, or even gender. After all, such trading parties might come from opposing factions, and concealing their identities and appearances could reduce many unnecessary troubles. However, ever since Lu Ye received the Heavenly Mystery's blessing, this concealment no longer worked on him. He seemed to possess some rather useless privileges; in his sight, the cultivator he was trading with was not enveloped by any mist.

What surprised Lu Ye was that the artifact refiner who appeared this time was the same woman from last time! This was quite a coincidence. The Panshan Saber's upgrade from low-grade to mid-grade had been done by her, and Lu Ye was very satisfied with the result. Since it was her again this time, there were no issues.

Lu Ye, without showing any change in expression, placed the Panshan Saber from his hand onto the platform before him. The woman reached out and picked it up, her brow furrowing. She spoke with an old, dissatisfied voice, "Just a mere mid-grade spiritual artifact..." Last time, she had said, "Just a mere low-grade..." Clearly, the low quality of the spiritual artifact meant she wouldn't earn much profit.

However, unlike last time, the woman didn't finish her sentence. As if discovering something, she flipped the Panshan Saber over, glanced at it, and her expression subtly changed. On the hilt of the Panshan Saber, there were originally only the characters "Panshan," but after its upgrade by this woman last time, a feather symbol had been added. It didn't affect its use. Lu Ye knew that some artifact refiners liked to leave special marks on their works to prove their mastery, and that feather was undoubtedly the woman's unique mark.

Now she saw her own mark. She looked up in surprise, glancing at Lu Ye, seemingly not expecting such a coincidence—a spiritual artifact she had upgraded herself now appearing before her again. With a brief recollection, she remembered what happened a few months ago. After all, not many people were willing to spend a huge price to upgrade a low-grade spiritual artifact; most cultivators would simply replace it, which wouldn't waste much merit. "In just a few months, he wants to upgrade again? Is this little guy's cultivation speed so fast?" the woman muttered inwardly. Although she couldn't clearly see Lu Ye's face, the Panshan Saber in her hand allowed the woman to infer some things.

"Upgrading to high-grade?" the woman asked, still using that aged voice. Judging by her voice alone, one might have thought she was an elderly person, but in reality, she was a charming woman.

"Yes."

"Any specific requirements?"

"Maintain the same shape and length, twenty-seven restrictions, sufficient durability, and double the weight."

"Alright, name your price."

Lu Ye pondered. Last time, upgrading the Panshan Saber from low-grade to mid-grade cost two thousand merit points. This time, upgrading from mid-grade to high-grade would definitely cost more. After a slight pause, he said, "Five thousand merit points."

The woman raised an eyebrow, a smile playing at the corners of her lips. She was clearly satisfied with the price, mainly because she hadn't expected a young man, only in the Cloud River Realm, to be so generous. Yet, she said, "At least eight thousand merit points. Upgrading from mid-grade to high-grade requires a lot of materials, and I'll need to purchase all of them."

Lu Ye watched her. Had he not possessed the Heavenly Mystery's special privilege to see her expression, he would have found her words reasonable. But having perceived her changing expression, Lu Ye knew that his offer of five thousand merit points was already a bit high. This woman was probably trying to take advantage of him. On second thought, because merit points came easily to him, he didn't feel bad about spending lavishly. But for any other Cloud River Realm cultivator, spending thousands of merit points would require careful consideration.

"Never mind then. I don't have that many merit points," Lu Ye said, moving to retrieve the Panshan Saber.

"It's not entirely non-negotiable," the woman quickly said.

"Four thousand merit points?"

"What did you say?" The woman's eyebrow twitched.

"It seems I only have four thousand merit points left."

"Young man, are you toying with this old one?" The woman's face darkened. "A flat price of five thousand merit points. The saber will be ready in three days. If that's acceptable, sign the Heavenly Mystery Contract!"

"Alright... fine!" Lu Ye agreed somewhat reluctantly. He secretly decided that next time he upgraded the Panshan Saber, he would let the other party state their price first, then observe their expression and slowly haggle.

The woman immediately summoned the Heavenly Mystery Contract, listing out the terms. Lu Ye inspected it, confirmed everything was correct, and both parties signed the agreement. "In three days!" the woman stated, and her figure quickly vanished.

Lu Ye lingered in the Heavenly Mystery Treasury for a moment and, by chance, noticed that a few portions of Earth Core Fire, which had previously been out of stock, had reappeared. He immediately spent merit points to purchase them. It seemed, as he had suspected, that everything in the Heavenly Mystery Treasury had a source. He had bought all the Earth Core Fire previously, and now a few more portions had appeared, undoubtedly meaning someone had collected Earth Core Fire somewhere and sold it to the Heavenly Mystery Treasury. It looked like he'd have to check back occasionally in the future; perhaps he'd find something good. Now that there was a Heavenly Mystery Pillar in the spiritual land, doing this wouldn't take much effort.

His consciousness exited the Heavenly Mystery Treasury. Lu Ye turned around, his eyebrows slightly raised. Behind him stood a large group of demon wolves, quiet and still, their wolf eyes fixed on him. The largest of them, the alpha wolf, was just three zhang in front of him.

Although Lu Ye had grown familiar with a few of the demon wolves recently, most of them ignored him. Not just him, but aside from Ju Jia, none of the demon wolves had shown any particular closeness to anyone. The alpha wolf, especially, was extremely proud and usually bothered to spare neither Lu Ye nor anyone else a glance. Yet now, it waited here, accompanied by the entire pack.

Beside the alpha wolf was the demon wolf that had received the Sharpness Spiritual Tattoo. Standing side-by-side with the alpha was undoubtedly a great honor; it certainly hadn't had that privilege before. Moreover, it seemed somewhat smug, with fresh bloodstains around its mouth. This clearly looked like it had won a fight against its packmates!

Lu Ye immediately realized what was happening. "You also want that special ability?"

The alpha wolf slightly lowered its head, its intent already obvious. Just a simple Sharpness Spiritual Tattoo could increase a demon wolf's biting force by at least 30 to 40 percent. Such an improvement naturally enticed all the demon wolves. This was why the alpha wolf had brought the pack to wait for Lu Ye.

Lu Ye was somewhat surprised by this situation. He had originally planned to find a few other demon wolves he was familiar with and continue practicing on them. Now, it saved him a lot of trouble. The effect of them approaching him versus him seeking them out was naturally different. There were over a hundred wolves in the pack. If he could tattoo every single demon wolf, Lu Ye would accumulate more experience and insights, which was something he welcomed.

After a brief thought, he took out a demon core from his storage space and held it before the alpha wolf: "Exchange it for this!"

The wolf pack went out hunting every few days, not only bringing back fresh meat but also some demon cores, though these cores were usually consumed by the pack itself. Not just Amber, but all demon beasts liked to consume the demon cores of other demon beasts. This allowed them to grow faster, especially if the demon cores matched their own elemental attributes, which could provide significant boosts. While Lu Ye could certainly apply these spiritual tattoos to the demon wolves for free, it would naturally be better if he could gain some benefits from it, especially since he had spent merit points to purchase the materials from the Heavenly Mystery Treasury and would also expend effort and time to apply the tattoos.