The four of them arrived in the courtyard.

Qiu Qichen then asked, "Xiao, I happen to have some free time these next couple of days, so a few friends and I are planning to hold an exchange meet to trade for things we need."

"We’ve set the time for tonight."

"If you aren’t busy, perhaps you’d care to stay and have a look?"

Xiao Chen had no objections and nodded in agreement. "No problem. I happen to have a few things I don’t need anymore."

"However, I had a sudden insight while I was out today. Mr. Qiu, do you have a quiet place I could use?"

Of course, that wasn’t the real reason. Xiao Chen hadn’t had any sort of insight.

He just wanted to study that strange Spirit Pearl and figure out what was going on with it. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"Of course, no problem. Someone, attend me."

Qiu Qichen immediately called for a handmaiden and arranged for a top-quality guest room for Xiao Chen.

Qiu Qichen’s so-called "humble abode" was anything but simple.

Not only was it located in the very center of the Marketplace, but it was an entire garden estate.

It contained pagodas, ponds, rockeries, temples, and a back garden that covered ten mu.

You couldn’t find a second courtyard this large in the entire Xianghe Market.

The furnishings inside were also extraordinary, with impeccable materials and craftsmanship.

The bed alone, meant for meditation and rest, was a Mandarin Duck Thousand-Work Bed.

’Well, I’ll be. It’s even made of Zemu wood.’

Xiao Chen sat on the edge of the bed and realized it actually had a Wood Attribute.

’If this isn’t a coincidence, does he actually prepare different attribute-aligned items for his guests based on their Five Elements Spirit Root?’

’That’s a bit extravagant. I wonder what kind of background this Mr. Qiu has.’

’But none of that matters. The Spirit Pearl is what’s important right now.’

Xiao Chen took out the cracked Spirit Pearl again. Judging by the mark, it seemed a Flying Sword had cut a fissure into it.

When he infused it with Magical Power, a bright white light shone, indicating its original grade was extraordinary.

Just looking at it like this, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

But as soon as he observed it with the Eye of Truth, he could see a brilliant red light coming from the crack.

The deeper he looked into the Spirit Pearl, the more brilliant the light became, to the point of being somewhat blinding.

Xiao Chen leaned in for a closer look and sensed what seemed to be a cloud of blood-red mist inside.

"Hiss... This looks a bit like something from the Demon Dao."

"But it doesn’t have the feel of a Demon Soldier, nor are there any residual traces of a Demon Technique’s aura."

"What in the world is going on?"

This was actually to be expected. Any easily identifiable Demon Soldier, even a fragment, would have long been confiscated by the Lingyuan Sect. How could one possibly be circulating out here?

As a major sect of the Righteous Dao, they at least had that much integrity.

But the problem now was that his Spiritual Eye had clearly seen an anomaly. And thanks to his Divine Protection Veil, there was no need to consider if it might be an Illusion.

After failing to probe it with his Divine Sense, Xiao Chen tried infusing his Magical Power into the Spirit Pearl’s interior, making direct contact.

’In any case, with my Divine Protection Veil, I don’t have to worry about being poisoned.’

Who would have known that the moment the red mist touched his Magical Power, it would act as if it had found its target, immediately surging along his Magical Power and into his Dantian.

Xiao Chen felt a sensation in his Dantian, as if it had been pricked by a needle.

He immediately performed a Divine Sense Internal Observation on his Dantian, only to see a thin red thread had appeared on the Spirit Flower manifested by his Spirit-Nurturing Technique.

Hm?

"What is this?"

Xiao Chen frowned. The red light before him had vanished, evidently absorbed by him.

’It looks like it even affected my Nurturing Spirit Flower. After all, the color is all wrong now.’

But the problem was, the Divine Protection Veil hadn’t activated.

’So this doesn’t count as a negative status effect?’

Xiao Chen tried circulating his Cultivation Technique, wanting to see if he could feel any difference.

However, he didn’t notice anything unusual. Everything was the same as before.

’Huh? Could it be that I’m using the wrong Cultivation Technique?’

After a moment of thought, Xiao Chen rummaged through his Storage Bag and pulled out the Blood Sea Divine Fire Record he had seized earlier. He then tried to cast the Demon Fire described within it.

This time, it was different. The red thread immediately turned back into mist and shot out from his fingertip, following the path of his Magical Power.

A ball of blood-red flame erupted in front of him in an instant.

Its power was far greater than Xiao Chen had anticipated.

It was so powerful that the Jade Pendant at his waist activated on its own, sending out several Water Curtains that unfolded like a lotus flower to protect him.

"Holy crap!"

Xiao Chen blinked. In that single moment, nearly everything in the room had been incinerated.

Even one of the Water Curtains had been burned through, filling the room with a great deal of white steam.

’Was it because of that red thread?’

Xiao Chen tried to cast the Demon Fire again. But this time, he lacked proficiency and hadn’t refined it with his Essence Blood.

He could only barely manage to condense a small cluster of Demon Fire at his fingertip, about as bright as a candle flame.

And after flickering once, it went out due to his unsteady flow of Magical Power.

This was actually the normal outcome. Using a Magic you hadn’t practiced would naturally not produce much power.

’So that wisp of mist amplified the Demon Fire’s power by several dozen times?’

Xiao Chen looked at the furniture that had been reduced to ashes. ’A single wisp of mist has such an effect. If I had a whole cloud of it, wouldn’t I be invincible?’

This level of power was already close to his Red Flame Radiance when enhanced by the Yang Fire Seal. It absolutely could not be underestimated.

’They say the Demon Sect’s methods are all strange and unpredictable. I wonder what kind of special technique this is.’

’I’d better find out what this is, so I can be prepared if I encounter it in the future.’

Although Xiao Chen didn’t yet know what that strange mist was, he had already made a rough guess about its origin.