"Huh?" Chen Quanxu, who didn't consider himself a pushover, was startled. "You just shook someone down, didn't you?"
Not only had the extortion succeeded, but the other party had even helped him get revenge, giving him peace of mind.
The youth glanced at him, his eyes still clear. "If there might be a hidden danger, why not kill him?"
"Well..." The horned owl was somewhat speechless. "I thought I was already being unreasonable."
"It benefits you too. Just say it—will you help or not?"
"There's no reason not to help," Chen Quanxu answered without hesitation. "But you'll have to give me some time."
"Make it as soon as possible," the youth said after a moment's thought. "Senior, you said that guy wasn't even a match—what about you?"
"Hey, show some respect." The horned owl couldn't help but flap his wings. "You want me to kill him in this form?"
"I need to gather my strength and first find out his background."
"I don't mean to offend you," the youth sighed, "but before Xiao Ha comes of age, it's the most dangerous time."
Chen Quanxu fell silent, then answered after a long while. "I understand. Rest assured, within half a month!"
The human and bird stared at each other for a long while before Wu Youren spoke up. "Out of stock?"
The other party had never mentioned the jade-white Guizu relic, and he hadn't asked either, but now he couldn't not ask.
"It turns out I found out," the horned owl answered sullenly. "It should be an ability master I ambushed, one who returned from the Nanyuan Guizu domain."
Spoils taken from an ability master... The youth was also speechless. At your peak, how crazy must you have been?
"Forget it if there isn't one," this kind of thing really couldn't be forced. "I'm not lacking that much; we'll take it slow."
"I am lacking!" The horned owl couldn't bear it. "This might affect Xiao Ha's growth."
When he used the flawless crystal for experiments, he hadn't hesitated at all.
But that didn't mean he liked to squander resources. Quite the opposite—this was an optional means that could let him save himself, and there were far too few of those.
"You can't possibly go to Nanyuan right now?" The youth scratched his head in distress. Nanyuan was nearly on the border with Jin.
"I've prepared another batch of things from the Nanyuan Guizu domain," the horned owl said calmly. "They should arrive tonight."
The use of "things" rather than confirming they were Guizu relics showed how desperate he was.
This time the messenger was a sable, again in a white hide pouch, but this time there were only seven items of various sizes.
The largest was a fist-sized rock, unusually heavy, slowing the sable down so much it didn't arrive until nearly dawn.
But Wu Youren immediately ruled it out—it felt like a meteorite, heavy and hard, nothing else unusual.
"I also think it might be sky steel," the horned owl said leisurely. "You'll find it useful once you're a grand knight."
Chen Quanxu's stockpile really wasn't lacking in good things.
"Huh, what's this?" Wu Youren found a small white hide pouch. "Feels like a winner!"
The horned owl wasn't used to this slang, but he could understand it. "This one is merely suspected to be from Nanyuan..."
He had stolen it from someone else's home, its origin dubious, but he thought the energy fluctuation seemed somewhat similar.
"Exactly, it is useful," the youth said, opening the pouch. His eyes went wide. "Damn?"
Inside was a verdant green bead, faintly glowing, about the size of a chicken egg but very light.
"Great tonic!" Wu Youren instinctively sealed the pouch. "Whose place did you steal it from?"
"That crow has been dead for many years," the horned owl answered helplessly. "But he wasn't any important figure."
It really wasn't his fault. Back then, his animal corps numbered in double digits, and he'd stolen too many things.
He could keep this item because besides the strange energy on it, it also... resembled a legendary night pearl.
Chen Quanxu could also confirm it definitely wasn't a night pearl.
But he thought his own opinion didn't matter.
As long as someone thought it might be a night pearl, you could hype it up and sell it for a huge price, so it was absolutely worth collecting.
He really ignored the item's origin. "Probably a low-level clerk from some department, investigated for corruption, and the crow scavenged the leftovers."
When Chen Quanxu scrounged treasures, he was also careful about his influence—at most pushing the envelope, never openly challenging all of Great Liang.
"Stole from a low-level clerk; not remembering is normal, right?"
The youth answered with a smile. "Better than nothing. I'm not picky. You're the one in a hurry."
"But it turns out small-time officials embezzling huge sums really does happen."
"I didn't expect it either," the horned owl answered sheepishly, then urged him again. "Hurry up and absorb it, cultivate!"
"At least let me wait until nightfall," the youth said, rolling his eyes. "Hmm, if you can analyze the energy, then go look for more!"
"I'll wait until nightfall too," the horned owl said, nodding. "Rest assured, there should be more. Wait for my good news."
"Don't push yourself too hard," Wu Youren said seriously. "We already have hope now. Protecting yourself is the most important thing."
After night fell, he began absorbing the "night pearl." The feeling this time was a bit different from the last time with the soybean-sized grain.
It turned out not every Guizu relic that could boost cultivation had the same effect.
And this time the Guizu relic didn't cause much of a stir around them.
So they might really just be natural treasures, not Guizu relics.
During this absorption, Wu Youren paid close attention to Xiao Ha the whole time, but it felt like... it was about the same as not paying attention.
He had thought he'd always been in the little guy's debt, but this time he confirmed there really wasn't anything owed.
The experience points contained in this night pearl felt not much different from that piece from the Azure Armadillo den.
Back then he hadn't understood, but now it was different. Since it was just fine bran, he ought to savor it properly.
In theory, absorbing with full force would take two hours, but this time he wasn't in a hurry—just absorb while experiencing the sensation.
However, as expected, the unexpected happened. After about an hour of absorption, a huge wave of experience points suddenly surged in.
In the past, he wouldn't have paid much attention. Experience points were experience points… well, they could all be converted into internal energy.
As long as he could withstand it, he could absorb it slowly.
But now it was different. He instinctively wanted to compare how different they were.
There was definitely a difference, and not a small one. Wu Youren hesitated, then decided to stop absorbing the night pearl and sealed it away.
The experience points this thing provided weren't as pure as national fortune, but the intensity of absorption could be controlled, not too violent.
This not only had less impact on the body, but could even achieve moderate nurturing of the body by controlling the rhythm.
This wave of experience points lasted a while too—over two hours, totaling roughly as much as two grand knights.
This was his own unit of measurement, as simple and easy to understand as "one shuang one kun year."
At Wu Youren's normal rate of absorbing experience points, absorbing today's haul at full force would take about two days.
His body's buffer zone could hold about two grand knights' worth, enough to steadily take in this wave.
This was an ability he'd cultivated by mercilessly damaging himself, healing hidden injuries only for them to relapse, over and over—more than that was just tears.
In theory, he could digest this wave unhurriedly.
However, experience points involving national fortune often came in batches.
That is, after one wave, a second wave, a third wave might come soon...
This also fit the characteristics of major events. It couldn't be like a random occurrence, just a single burst.
So he still had to absorb quickly, to avoid waste.
He absorbed for a day and two nights, leaving only a small tail, when another wave surged in, about equal to half a grand knight.
He persisted in absorbing for another whole day before Wu Youren finally sighed in relief. The remaining twenty percent of a grand knight was truly not urgent anymore.
He absorbed a bit too quickly, and his hidden injury showed signs of relapsing, but Xiao Ha was in high spirits.
By midnight, the youth took out the night pearl, wanting to try and see if it could repair the hidden danger.
Tested and effective!
It just took a long time—about four or five hours. No way around it; there was so little treasure, he had to use it sparingly.
After he fully ended his meditation, he was surprised to find Xiao Ha sleeping very soundly.
This situation... seemed like it was about to level up again?
Suddenly, a voice sounded. The horned owl had somehow perched on the wall top. "It seems... not quite the same?"
"I hope so," the youth said, furrowing his brow. "But it feels like it's still lacking something."
"Tsk..." The horned owl's sharp beak moved twice, lifting one claw to clutch an unremarkable brown hide pouch.
"Looks like this is the only piece left. I don't know if it suits your fancy."
Wu Youren didn't even reach for it, just shook his head. "Doesn't feel like it."
"Take a look." Chen Quanxu was truly a bit anxious now. He actually flew down to the ground and opened the pouch himself.
Inside was a milky-white stone shoot, less than twenty centimeters long, with a base diameter of six or seven centimeters.
The stone shoot was layered, lifelike and exquisite, but the youth still shook his head.
"Just for show," the horned owl nudged it with a claw, then carefully put it back into the pouch. "Buried with a queen—what sort of grave goods... sigh."
"Huh?" The youth blinked. Big brother, you're no ordinary tough—not only stealing, but also moonlighting as a grave robber?
Chen Quanxu guessed what he was thinking. "When she was buried, weren't there plenty of people coming and going? That's when they struck."
"Let me take a look then," Wu Youren also felt he shouldn't let the other party down too much, so he stepped forward and hefted the pouch.
He really felt nothing. He was too lazy to even open it, guessing it was like coral—a mundane treasure.
He was a bit puzzled. "Can you sense there's energy inside?"
"Of course there is," the horned owl said, his round eyes widening. "It's just weaker now... you really can't sense it?"
The youth shook his head and put the pouch back on the ground. "It's fine. I feel Xiao Ha is close too. Do you think Kelvin might have some?"
"That guy, I've already arranged it," Chen Quanxu answered casually.
After a pause, he couldn't help but ask one more thing. "Do you think we should hit another wave of corpse Guizu?"
Chapter 218