Upon a brief thank you, the two men found themselves at the fat man’s stall perusing the goods laid out.

”Come take a look, see if there’s anything you fancy!” The fat cultivator’s eyes curved into crescents whenever he smiled.

It was easy to take a liking to him.

“Fair prices guaranteed!”

Caspian did not cast his sights onto the hemlock at first.

He pretended to look around, scanning the merchandise of the stalls next to that one.

There were antlers with stripes that glistened golden.

No one knew what creature they came from.

There were dry, shriveled fingers with pointy nails.

Potted plants bore colorful flowers but with leaves that were completely withered.

Caspian looked at all of them, reaching out to feel them from time to time if he wanted.

The fat man seemed equally uncaring of Caspian’s wandering.

None of these things were of any value, after all.

Caspian hardly gave them a second glance.

Upon putting down a shiv, Caspian moved to pick up the hemlock.

It sank with weight the second he picked it up.

Caspian’s eyes froze slightly.

‘It’s heavier than I expected it to be,’ Caspian thought to himself as he cast the stall owner a glance.

Instantly, Caspian was able to see the flash of panic that briefly overtook the fat man’s features when he picked the hemlock up.

Suspicion arose in Caspian immediately.

Instead of hurrying to inquire about the price, he began to analyze it.

The hemlock looked real and fine at first glance.

The chasm was struck by thunder.

Caspian, having absorbed the Bone of Thunder, knew more about lighting than the average cultivator.

The part of the hemlock that was charred black was caught in a forest fire caused by a lightning strike.

was exactly the kind

Or so it seemed.

Caspian seemed interested in the hemlock, the fat man put

you the truth… I came across it in a forest that was burnt into

would come in handy with

to be

never mentioned the price

was someone that did business for a long

take another look…” Caspian nodded, bringing the hemlock

wanted and needed the hemlock, he would have

Eye of Insight, after all, was

upon the

came into Caspian’s hands when he picked the hemlock up, on top of

in his hands yet again, fingertips running over the calloused wood,

to other cultivators that passed by his

see that the man’s gaze would flicker to him every once in

obvious that something

down the

eyes were not working well enough, he would

stronger than that of cultivators

use divine sense as he noticed the fat man looked visibly relieved when he put the

long before

something wrong

the

was an opening so thin it was hardly

discovered that the hemlock was stuffed with

iron was a lot heavier

why the hemlock

discovering the loophole, Caspian knew what

held the hemlock up to the

had it in his mind to purchase and smiled so brightly his pupils were

you to me, young man!

Five hundred spirit stones.

How’s that?”

Caspian

man smiled, “Hemlock grows deep in the forest,

seem like a well-read

it takes at least two hundred years of growth for

two hundred years, it has to keep from

once it’s been struck, a devastating fire must follow for lightning to pass through it

sure you’d also know, young man, that lightning and thunder usually

the fires are put out with

to yield a piece of hemlock that has passed through lightning,

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