"Kid, what kind of look is that? I braved a thousand perils and nearly died getting here to warn you, yet you don't seem pleased...?"
Nearly died?
A thousand perils?
Lu Li had seen shameless people before, but he had never met someone this shameless.
He stared dumbfounded at Wu De, who had been putting on an act this whole time, before slowly saying, "You... what scheme are you plotting?"
"Scheme!" Wu De looked agitated. "Kid, I've treated you like my own grandson, and you..."
"Get lost!"
"Cough, cough. Like my own brother, surely you should show some appreciation?"
There it was—his real motive.
Lu Li sized up Wu De, asking curiously, "What do you want?"
It was bad enough for a thief to steal from you. Worse was knowing he had his eye on something you owned. Lu Li felt it was better to ask clearly. Knowing what the other party wanted, he could set a proper price. After all, he had his own plans as well.
When Wu De heard this, joy immediately lit up his brow. He shifted his body closer to Lu Li and said with a grin, "I'm not picky. However... I'm very curious as to what kind of treasure you obtained that made that mysterious person value it so much. Why don't you... take it out and let your older brother appraise it?"
"Treasure?" Lu Li frowned slightly. "Where did you hear that I obtained a treasure?"
Speaking of treasures, there were only three things on him that could make people scheme.
First was his Three Treasures Glazed Pagoda.
Second was the Piercing Acupoint Pill formula.
Third was the Blood Soul Banner.
The Glazed Pagoda's concealment was quite good. Even if he used it right in front of others, they wouldn't be able to tell, so it was unlikely to be exposed.
As for the Blood Soul Banner, although it held some might, it wasn't enough for someone to issue a bounty across all six strongholds, right?
Then there was only one possibility. Could it be... Zhang Song leaked the news about the Piercing Acupoint Pill formula before he died?
That shouldn't be right either. Zhang Song should have regarded this item as more important than his own life. How could he easily leak it? Moreover... Zhang Song couldn't even be sure Lu Li had the formula.
After thinking it over, Lu Li still couldn't figure it out.
"Kid, stop pretending. If you didn't have a treasure, how could that mysterious person create such a massive commotion to put a bounty on you?" Wu De said, his face filled with suspicion.
"Believe it or not! If I really had a treasure, I would have long fled to who knows where to hide. Would I still be swaggering back and forth through the Lei Fire Mountains?"
"Then why is he chasing you?"
"How should I know..." Halfway through his sentence, Lu Li suddenly thought of a possibility. Frowning, he said, "Could it be... he's seeking revenge?"
"Revenge? When did you offend such a mighty figure!"
The more Lu Li thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He abruptly stood up and told the truth, "When I first arrived at Dihu Town, I accepted a commission to help Dihu Stronghold's Lei Ming save his daughter..."
He gave a rough account of the strange events he encountered at Youlong Stronghold.
When Wu De heard this, his expression instantly turned grave. "Kid, you might have truly provoked a massive disaster!"
"How so?"
"According to your account, that person named Zhang Yu was most likely controlled long ago and cultivated as a spirit corpse. Yet, before he could fully become a spirit corpse, you scattered his Soul Essence, turning him into an ordinary puppet... In doing so, all the painstaking efforts of the person behind this went down the drain. No wonder they won't stop hunting you until you're dead."
"Spirit corpse? What is a spirit corpse?"
Wu De frowned and said, "From what I understand, a spirit corpse is a higher-tier puppet. The biggest difference is that once a spirit corpse's refinement is complete, it can cultivate and grow just like a normal person, and its physical constitution far exceeds that of ordinary cultivators. It can be considered a bizarre kind of clone."
"So miraculous!" Lu Li's face was full of shock.
"Miraculous?"
Wu De looked at Lu Li strangely. "Now isn't the time to marvel over miracles. The real issue is that this spirit corpse refinement method has only ever been accessible to the absolute upper echelons of the Corpse Sect. And this Corpse Sect has been extinct ever since the great war between the righteous and demonic paths a thousand years ago.
Now it seems that during the demon-exterminating battle back then, the Corpse Sect probably wasn't completely wiped out... and now they seemed to be rising from the ashes."
"For the cultivators of the Eastern Wasteland, this is likely an ill omen."
"What great war between righteous and demonic paths? What Corpse Sect?" Lu Li stared at Wu De blankly.
"Don't ask me, I have only heard rumors." Wu De stood up and patted his rear, shooting Lu Li a depressed look. "Since you didn't get any treasure, I won't keep you company. You are on your own."
Saying this, he prepared to leave.
"Wait, wait!" Lu Li's figure flashed, blocking Wu De's path. "Don't be in such a hurry to leave!"
"What for!"
"Cough, cough. To tell you the truth, I am quite interested in your Meridian-Nourishing Pill formula..."
"Don't even think about it!" Wu De retreated two steps, a look of sudden realization dawning on his face. "I was wondering why you were acting so strangely eccentric just now. Turns out you were scheming for my formula."
"Don't make it sound so unpleasant. I'll trade something for it, won't that do!"
"Trade?" Wu De raised an eyebrow. "For such a heaven-defying formula, what do you have to trade!"
Lu Li pondered for a moment and said, "What do you want?"
"What do I want?" Wu De instantly laughed. "Don't say I'm looking down on you, but besides that movement technique of yours, there's nothing on you that catches my eye. However... although your movement technique isn't bad, it still falls a bit short to trade for my formula."
"Tch, don't hurt yourself boasting." Lu Li scoffed. "My movement technique is a high-grade Earth-rank art. How dare you compare a broken formula to my technique?"
"H-high-grade Earth-rank!" Wu De cried out in alarm. "Kid, you aren't trying to trick me?"
"If I deceive you, I'm not human!"
Wu De's heart pounded wildly. "K-kid, I truly misspoke just now. I will trade with you!"
An Earth-rank movement technique, and a high-grade one at that. Such a technique—never mind the Eastern Wasteland—even if placed in the entire Profound True Realm, it would be considered outstanding.
"Trade? Did I say I was going to use my movement technique to trade with you?"
"What do you mean?"
Lu Li feigned hesitation for a moment. "It's not impossible to trade for my movement technique, but your cultivation is higher than mine. I don't trust you. You must give me the formula first."
Although the movement technique had a high rank, one had to possess a wind attribute to cultivate it. He worried that Wu De might regret the trade after seeing it.
Hearing this, Wu De stared at Lu Li again and again. Suddenly, he gritted his teeth and took out a yellowed piece of silk. He then brought out paper and a brush, handing them to Lu Li. "Copy it yourself!"
So decisive?
After a moment of mild astonishment, Lu Li accepted the formula and began copying it down.
Tier-one Photinia Grass, tier-one Buddha-Heart Fruit, Earth Milk Essence, tier-one Soul-Calming Flower.
Like the Piercing Acupoint Pill, it also required four types of spiritual herbs. However, he had plenty of Earth Milk Essence on hand, so there was no need to worry. What remained were the other three spiritual herbs.
The formula also detailed the medicinal properties of the spiritual herbs. Since Lu Li had seen these materials in the Precious Mirror of Spiritual Herbs before, he didn't waste time copying that section. He only copied down the refinement sequence and some precautions before returning the original formula to Wu De.
Stowing away the handwritten copy, Lu Li suddenly retreated two steps, staring at Wu De with utmost vigilance. He smiled sheepishly, "Say... old man, can I put this on a tab first?"