Chapter 71: The Aura of Opulence

Watching Chen Shangyi begin to collect spirit stones—only picking up the low-grade ones that Wang Changsheng had already left behind—Wang Changsheng finally breathed a sigh of relief. At least it showed that Chen Shangyi wasn’t hopelessly stubborn and could still take advice.

As for Wang Changsheng’s earlier claim that he could handle ten of someone as headstrong as Chen Shangyi, he hadn’t meant it in terms of cultivation or strength—he knew that even ten of himself together wouldn’t be a match for one of Chen Shangyi’s fingers in sheer power. From what Elder Yun had told him, Chen Shangyi was already at the Core Formation stage, which was enough to qualify as an elder of the Corpse Refining Sect.

What Wang Changsheng really meant was that, when it came to wits, even ten Chen Shangyis were no match for him. After all, he’d spent years cultivating and navigating the murky waters of the martial world—what schemes hadn’t he seen? Dealing with someone like Chen Shangyi, raised like a flower in a greenhouse, was child’s play.

Thinking about it, Wang Changsheng found himself looking forward to this journey. Leaving aside the Wild God Temple for now, just accompanying the disciples of the Corpse Refining Sect to visit Cloud Palace Peak and the Li family of Shangyang promised to be quite entertaining.

It took over thirty cloth bags before Wang Changsheng finally stopped. He estimated he’d packed almost twenty thousand spirit stones, most of them of the middle grade. Yet even after this haul, he hadn’t cleared out a single room in the side hall—there were still many rooms inside, each piled high with spirit stones.

The only reason Wang Changsheng stopped wasn’t out of conscience, but because his storage ring was full. The ring he used had been a gift from a cultivator aboard Yun Zhou, but it was a low-grade item with very limited capacity—the cheapest kind in the cultivation world, practically worthless. With nearly twenty thousand spirit stones packed in, it was already bursting at the seams.

“I’m so frustrated…” Wang Changsheng sighed.

To be troubled simply because your storage ring isn’t big enough for all your spirit stones—if the cultivators of the world knew how much wealth he was carrying, he’d be the first target for every thief around!

He reached into his robes and pulled out another storage ring. This one he’d picked up in the Spirit Medicine Hall last time, pilfered while Old Mou wasn’t looking. Though Old Mou had noticed, he hadn’t demanded it back; Wang Changsheng had even found a cultivation manual and a jade token inside.

This ring was much larger than the one he currently wore, but Wang Changsheng hadn’t dared to use it until now. Why not? Because it was stolen property! If he stayed inside the Corpse Refining Sect, it would be fine, but if he took it out and was discovered, wouldn’t he be taking the fall for the sect?

Still, given the current situation, Wang Changsheng had no choice but to use the ring.

“Forget it, I’ll just pack it full and hide it afterward—so long as I don’t show it off, there shouldn’t be any problem!” he muttered.

With that, he grabbed another bag and headed toward the side rooms, determined to fill this storage ring with as many spirit stones as it could hold.

When he’d finally filled the bags, he realized he’d packed a hundred thousand middle-grade spirit stones—these were all middle-grade, unlike the other ring, which still had many low-grade stones mixed in. Counting it carefully, Wang Changsheng found he now had about a hundred and twenty thousand middle-grade spirit stones.

The realization left him trembling with excitement. He’d never possessed such wealth before. Even when he’d been rich enough to rival nations, that had been within the mundane world, not like now—spirit stones were genuine resources for cultivation.

“If this plan works, fine—if not, I’ll flee back to the Celestial Realm. All these spirit stones will be enough to guarantee my safety,” Wang Changsheng said, exhilarated.

Leaving the side hall, he saw Chen Shangyi still busy with the spirit stones, but only collecting low-grade ones—leftovers Wang Changsheng hadn’t bothered with.

“Hey, Shangyi!” Wang Changsheng called out to the bent figure.

Chen Shangyi immediately straightened up. After what had just happened, he’d actually gained a measure of respect for Wang Changsheng. He understood that although his own cultivation was much higher, when it came to life experience, Wang Changsheng was like a senior to him. Simple and straightforward as he was, Chen Shangyi had no idea Wang Changsheng was simply making things up.

“Steward Wang!” Chen Shangyi cupped his hands in greeting.

“No need to stand on ceremony!” Wang Changsheng replied with a smile. “How much have you collected so far?”

“About ten thousand spirit stones,” Chen Shangyi answered promptly.

“Why so slow?” Wang Changsheng asked. There were at least several million spirit stones left in the hall—granted, most were low-grade, but surely he could move faster.

Chen Shangyi looked a little embarrassed.

“How many spirit stones can your storage ring hold?” Wang Changsheng pressed.

After thinking for a moment and examining his ring, Chen Shangyi replied awkwardly, “About… about five hundred thousand more spirit stones, I think. Most of the space is already taken up by other essentials for cultivation.”

Wang Changsheng nearly swore aloud. Middle-grade and low-grade spirit stones were about the same size—the only difference was the concentration and purity of spiritual energy. In other words, if Chen Shangyi used his ring for spirit stones alone, it could hold at least five hundred thousand middle-grade stones, and that was with much of the space already occupied by other items!

Wang Changsheng, who had just been feeling satisfied with his own haul, suddenly felt deflated.

“Just how big is Chen Shangyi’s storage ring?” Wang Changsheng thought enviously. If he had a ring that size, he’d fill it with nothing but spirit stones—all middle-grade!

“What’s wrong?” Chen Shangyi asked, noticing Wang Changsheng’s expression.

“Nothing,” Wang Changsheng recovered quickly, trying to sound casual. “That’s plenty. Just try to pack as many as you can.”

“But don’t fill it to the brim,” he added. “Just a reasonable amount will do.”

“All right, I think this will be enough,” Chen Shangyi replied. “Given our situation, spirit stones probably won’t be all that useful.”

“Not all that useful, my foot!” Wang Changsheng was cursing Chen Shangyi in his heart. What a waste—a huge storage ring in the hands of someone who didn’t even appreciate it! Wang Changsheng started to contemplate how he might get his hands on Chen Shangyi’s ring.

“Shangyi, how about this,” he said aloud. “Why don’t you give me your storage ring, and then you can pick one from the Spirit Medicine Hall?”

“No.” Chen Shangyi refused immediately. “This was given to me by the sect; I can’t just hand it over. If the sect were to investigate, it would be a big problem.”

Though inexperienced, Chen Shangyi was no fool. For disciples of the Corpse Refining Sect, each storage ring bore a unique mark—an emblem of their identity. It was absolutely forbidden to give it away.

“Fine,” Wang Changsheng said, seeing Chen Shangyi’s earnest expression. “I was just joking.”

Chen Shangyi smiled.

“All right, stop dawdling—keep packing!” Wang Changsheng ordered. “We’ll definitely need a lot of spirit stones on this journey. We’ll be relying on your storage ring!”

“My ring can only hold so much. Why don’t we bring in some more disciples to help?” Chen Shangyi suggested.

“No need,” Wang Changsheng refused at once. “What you’ve packed should cover all our expenses for this trip. No need to be wasteful.”

Of course not! Wang Changsheng wasn’t foolish—these disciples didn’t value spirit stones at all, and Chen Shangyi would only limit his own take. In Wang Changsheng’s mind, these spirit stones were practically his private property. He swore that one day, he’d empty both the Spirit Stone Hall and the Spirit Medicine Hall. Why would he let others share the spoils? If Chen Shangyi hadn’t intervened, Wang Changsheng wouldn’t have let him take any at all.

Besides, after this expedition, the disciples would likely realize the true value of spirit stones. By then, getting more would be much harder.

“All right,” Chen Shangyi agreed.

“Good, Shangyi, take your time. There’s no rush—whether you fill it or not, we’ll have enough,” Wang Changsheng said. “After all, one of our main goals on this trip is to make a name for the Corpse Refining Sect. And our first step is to impress the Celestial Realm with our overwhelming wealth!”

“Got it!” Chen Shangyi grinned, though he didn’t quite understand Wang Changsheng’s point or what “overwhelming wealth” meant, but it sounded reasonable enough.

Wang Changsheng quickly exited the Spirit Stone Hall—mainly because he was afraid that if he stayed any longer, Chen Shangyi would come up with another question to vex him.

“This time, I have to get myself a better storage ring!” Wang Changsheng muttered under his breath as he left.