Chapter 266: Selling Demon Corpses, Foundation Establishment at the Ninth Level

The atmosphere was silent for a while.

Seeing Wang Yu's expression, Wei Hao wondered if he had said something wrong, or if Wang Yu didn't actually have an urgent need for the Earth Spirit Fruit.

After some careful thought, Wang Yu still felt that Wei Hao was a good partner for cooperation, and despite his unguarded words, he was indeed worth serious consideration. Moreover, Wei Hao was a former true disciple of Tian Corpse Peak, and his learned skills complemented Wang Yu's corpse refining well.

Honestly, ever since he began cultivating the Grand Yin Fiend Corpse and the Thunder Corpse, he had realized that the Demonic Corpse, which was yet to emerge, already exceeded the limits of his spiritual sense control. After all, the first two would also advance; they couldn't remain at the early third-tier indefinitely. Once they advanced to the mid-tier, the pressure on his spiritual sense would surge. This was a drawback of not cultivating corpse-path techniques.

It seemed the Demonic Corpse could be sold to Wei Hao. His natal corpse had its origin refined by True Disciple Jiang, becoming a Corpse King, and was currently still without one. The Demonic Corpse could be cultivated to the third tier with just a little effort. Therefore, with their combined strength, and the Golden Core experts from the Wei clan, they could indeed contend for the Earth Spirit Fruit.

Thinking of this, Wang Yu directly produced a Styx Contract.

Wei Hao was puzzled, asking, "City Lord Wang, what is the meaning of this?"

"Come, let's make a deal first. I need spirit herbs that can directly increase my True Essence limit. The quantity doesn't matter, as long as the total increase is a thousand drops of True Essence."

Wei Hao didn't understand, saying with a hint of helplessness, "Spirit herbs that increase True Essence by a thousand drops? Brother Wang, are you perhaps joking?"

Wang Yu shook his head, speaking seriously. "Trust me, you'll be satisfied. And it's something you urgently need. With it, perhaps Brother Wei might even turn the tables on that Jiang fellow."

Wei Hao fell into contemplation, then, recalling his recent judgment of Wang Yu, he gritted his teeth and said, "Alright."

"Brother Wei is truly generous, rest assured! You will definitely not regret it. Besides the spirit herbs that increase True Essence, after our cooperation to seize the Earth Spirit Fruit, I will have the right to take one more." The other conditions were the most basic ones, such as not harming each other.

Seeing him add more conditions, Wei Hao began to feel a little unconfident. "Just what could be so valuable?"

Wang Yu smiled but said nothing. After Wei Hao signed the contract, he took out the Demonic Corpse, which could be revived at any moment, from the Corpse Nurturing Coffin.

"How's this?"

Instantly, Wei Hao approached the Demonic Corpse and, with a slight tremor, reached out to touch it. "This... this... this is a Demonic Corpse refined from a living Corpse Ghoul! It only needs to reverse this breath of vitality to emerge!"

The other party was indeed knowledgeable. The Demonic Corpse was merely the most basic version; it could evolve into different types of Demonic Corpses depending on the fiend qi used in its refining. Each one was a unique variant. Given the rarity of Corpse Ghouls, they would only be found in places like Dongjijing. And for Wang Yu to disperse its demonic soul and refine it into a living zombie, it was absolutely a peak-grade item among items of its kind. For a corpse path cultivator, a top-tier zombie was no less valuable than the most perfect cultivation partner. This Demonic Corpse was even more remarkable than Wei Hao's previous natal corpse. He even began to feel fortunate that he had lost the Corpse Fighting Grand Meeting; otherwise, how could he have easily replaced his natal corpse?

"Excellent! This is truly excellent! Brother Wang is willing to offer such a treasure. I am extremely satisfied."

"It's good that you're satisfied. If I were a disciple of Tian Corpse Peak, I would absolutely not sell this Demonic Corpse. Brother Wei, how much time do you need to prepare for the Earth Spirit Fruit matter...?"

Wang Yu didn't finish his sentence, wanting to hear if Wei Hao's sudden change of mind was due to other variables or something else.

Upon hearing this, Wei Hao gradually regained his composure. The spirit herbs for increasing True Essence...

"Just now, Brother Wang mentioned going to Peach State to find Purple Gold Peaches. My family still has some reserves of that spiritual item. Perhaps we can use that for the trade?"

"Agreed."

"As for the Earth Spirit Fruit, I heard there was trouble in Huangbai City, which allowed my subordinates to be freed up. Brother Wang, rest assured and wait a few days; you and I can go a little later."

Seeing that he had a plan, Wang Yu temporarily stayed at the City Lord's Manor in Wanglong City. He wanted to break through to Foundation Establishment Layer Nine before the Earth Spirit Fruit contention concluded. At that time, he might be able to use the power of the Earth Spirit Fruit to reach the peak of Foundation Establishment in one go. Upon returning to Guiling, he could then proceed with forming his Golden Core, effectively saving thirty to forty years of time. Such spiritual items that directly boost cultivation were rare. Wang Yu had only encountered the Ghost Eye Spider and Black Cloud Cordyceps. The Earth Spirit Fruit he now encountered was an ancient spiritual item, only found in ruins.

Zhuyue State was too far from the sect, and the Wei clan's ancestral land was within Xueyuan State, so the spiritual items couldn't be transferred quickly. However, because the Styx Contract had been signed, the Demonic Corpse had already been given to Wei Hao. He was now preparing to directly refine it into his natal corpse. As for whether he would make an extra effort to cultivate it directly to the third tier, that would depend on whether he had the confidence to survive the lightning tribulation. The difficulty of a third-tier lightning tribulation was not too great, as there were only three bolts. The fourth-tier, however, was truly fatal, with nine bolts, each strike doubling in power. Wei Hao had a Golden Core Layer Two cultivation, so he wouldn't directly attempt it without preparation.

While waiting for the spiritual items to arrive, Wang Yu used his entry-level Aura-Gazing Golden Pupils to take some time and walk outside the city, collecting all the four-directional earth qi. This material was quite easy to gather. Wherever there were tall, beautiful, and majestic mountains, earth veins were indispensable. Fertile plains with surging rivers would naturally have both water and earth veins. As long as the source wasn't cut off, earth qi, like spiritual qi, was virtually inexhaustible. This way, only ink copper was needed to refine a Feng Shui compass with effects like positioning, geomancy, array breaking, mystical gates, and vein tracing. While compensating for one of his major disadvantages, it would also contribute to his main cultivation path, serving as an aid to his practice.

Days passed one by one. The news about the Earth Spirit Fruit became more detailed, and Wang Yu understood why Wei Hao wasn't in a hurry at all. It turned out that the fruit was trapped by the He clan of Luofu Mountain, a local power in Yunling State. This was a top-tier Golden Core family in Yunling, primarily cultivating demonic sword techniques! During this period, there were consecutive fierce battles. The cultivator holding the Earth Spirit Fruit, desperate to escape, stumbled into Luofu Mountain's sword array during the chase. The person died, but the storage bag was left behind. Of course, there were also rumors that this person was the paramour of a female cultivator from the He clan and had gone to seek refuge. However, since the person was gone, no one discussed this joke anymore, and the Earth Spirit Fruit remained the focus of attention.

The He clan of Luofu Mountain wanted to monopolize all the Earth Spirit Fruits, but before they could, they were caught by the cultivators pursuing them from behind. Almost all of these people were Golden Core cultivators. Some were rogue cultivators, some were from local forces in Yunling State, and among them were several peak Golden Core cultivators from the border of You State. Both sides were in a standoff. No one was allowed to enter the sword array to retrieve the storage bag, and it was said that daily fights were occurring, though no one had died yet. They claimed to be discussing a distribution plan.

Wang Yu felt a little anxious. The longer it dragged on, the wider the news would spread, and the more competitors there would be. Luofu Mountain must surely understand this simple logic. But two fists are no match for four hands, let alone ten or twenty! How could a single Golden Core clan contend with so many Golden Core cultivators? Even if they wanted to stall, they might not be able to. As long as the numbers reached a certain disparity, they would surely be forced into an attack. This was the moment Wei Hao was waiting for.

Fifteen days after arriving in Wanglong City, the Purple Gold Peaches, the True Essence spiritual items Wang Yu had been longing for, finally arrived. There were eleven in total, each capable of increasing his True Essence limit by one hundred drops. This was comparable to a top-grade second-tier spirit pill.

"Junior Brother Wang, how is it? Are you satisfied?"

"Satisfied, of course I'm satisfied." He examined the plate of spiritual peaches. Each one was plump and succulent, with a rose-red hue throughout and purple-gold tips. Their rich fragrance made his mouth water.

However, Wang Yu pointed out, "Brother Wei, why are there eleven of them?"

Hearing this, Wei Hao chuckled even more, "Junior Brother Wang, since you're willing to give such a top-tier zombie like the Demonic Corpse to me, this extra one is a gift in return for your trust. After the struggle in Zhuyue State concludes, if I am still alive, I will certainly establish a close relationship with your Guiling City."

"No problem at all." This meant he was favored. The Wei clan had a Nascent Soul Ancestor, giving them a certain degree of influence. After they exchanged a few more pleasantries, Wang Yu resumed his secluded cultivation. Eleven Purple Gold Peaches were enough for him to advance another level.

After entering the cultivation chamber Wei Hao had prepared for him, Wang Yu wiped a peach and took a bite. Spiritual energy suffused the air, and the juice was abundant. Every bite brought a sweet peach fragrance. It was crisp and refreshing, not only a spiritual item for increasing True Essence but also a rare and delicious treat. One Purple Gold Peach was consumed in just over ten seconds. Wang Yu kept the peach pit, even though it was very difficult to grow the same type of Purple Gold Peach tree from it. But if planted in Guiling City Lord's Manor, it could provide another type of spiritual peach to taste. He was always thrifty and hated waste.

During the refining process, Wang Yu discovered that the third-tier perfected cultivation technique also significantly enhanced the refining efficiency. It was much easier to refine than a top-grade spirit pill, and he had completely digested it within a day. "This means it only takes ten days to increase a thousand drops of True Essence. These second-generation family members are truly wealthy; fed with such top-tier resources, it's no wonder they break through so quickly."

As he thought of this, the figures of the three young masters of Reverse Spirit appeared in Wang Yu's mind. Given their status, they shouldn't lack such True Essence spiritual medicine. Blockages would only occur at bottleneck stages such as the third, sixth, or ninth layers, not at the fourth layer... yet Zhuo Shouqing had openly displayed a cultivation of Foundation Establishment Layer Four. Could the cultivation of accumulating True Essence be blocked? He always felt that the other party was hiding something from him, and from Zuo Qiuming and Yu Xing.

"Since things are like this, I'll eat the peaches first."

And so, eleven days passed in a flash.

"Foundation Establishment Layer Nine!"

After consuming all the Purple Gold Peaches in one go, Wang Yu spent eleven days in motionless refinement, and the results were pleasing. With the help of these peaches, his True Essence increased by another 1100 drops, surpassing his efforts over the past six years. Thinking about it, he felt a little bittersweet. His total True Essence reached 6150 drops, entering the final sprint stage, which was also the longest path. Increasing his True Essence to 9999 drops would allow him to reach the peak of Foundation Establishment, and once he condensed a sea of True Essence, he could begin forming his Golden Core. Normally, it would take a long time, unless he encountered a fortuitous opportunity.

Just as he pushed open the stone door of the cultivation chamber, Wang Yu looked up at the sky.

"A third-tier lightning tribulation? It's the Demonic Corpse!"