Outer Sect. Tenth District.

The dreary weather cast a gloomy shadows against the cracked sandstone street, where a scrawny man walked all alone.

Insects scurried in the shadows, but the scrawny man, known to the locals as Rotten Ya, paid them no mind. He had bigger things to think about.

"Should I try for a Qi condensation pill or a night at Twin Fragrance Tower?"

Both sounded good to him, but he could only go for one.

Weighing his options, Rotten Ya swung a small pouch in his hand, letting the spirit stones clack loudly, as if he wanted to invite trouble.

And trouble he got.

Rotten Ya abruptly stopped in place, vigilantly staring at sketchy figure blocking his path.

The figure wore a weimao that obscured her face and a baggy, black robe that hung loosely, but he could still barely make out the voluptuous shape beneath.

A woman. A big beauty. Definitely a gal he didn’t mind taking into an alley for a good time.

Rotten Ya checked the area, noting there happened to be no one around. The perfect time and place for a crime, but…

Rotten Ya trusted his instincts and backed up a step, his hand sliding to the dagger at his belt. "Who are you? What do you want?"

At this moment, a breeze did its work, partially parting the weimao to reveal a masked woman’s face with plump lips that was curled into a sultry smile.

"Who I am, you don’t need to know. Just know... I have a good deal for you."

Rotten Ya narrowed his eyes, decisively refusing. "Not interested. Now, don’t get in my way."

The mysterious beauty giggled, a soft, musical sound that seemed rather confident. "What if I say this deal can earn you up to two spirit stones?"

Rotten Ya's hand trembled slightly at the mention of spirit stones. His pouch only had three. Two was a considerable sum and could change his fortune!

But he wasn't about to show his excitement. He raised an eyebrow, pretending indifference. "Two spirit stones? Are you pulling my leg?"

Seeing through his facade, the masked lady’s hidden smile widened. "Oh, I'm quite serious.”

Rotten Ya’s eyes roamed the mysterious woman’s figure, his fingers instinctively rubbing the hilt of his dagger, “So, you got two spirit stones on you?”

“I don’t.” The woman giggled teasingly, "But I do have something that can get you two spirit stones."

Rotten Ya then saw a gloved hand snake out from the sleeves of her robe, and resting on her palm was a black scorpion!

Death scorpion? Rotten Ya’s grip tightened on the hilt of his dagger as he took another cautious step back, his eyes darting between the masked woman and the black arachnid.

No wonder his instincts warned him. He wasn’t sure of the mysterious woman’s cultivation level, but poisonous creatures were definitely no joke!

While he might be able to handle the woman, dealing with toxins was another matter entirely. Just one sting was enough to give him a run for his money!

Noting his cowardice, the woman giggled softly, raising her hand slightly to show off the scorpion.

"Don’t be afraid. This little guy is pretty friendly once you get to know him. And you'll like him even more because…”

Her gloved fingers gently sealed up the critter that wanted to escape, “He's the key to your two spirit stones."

Rotten Ya’s eyes jumped from the scorpion to the masked woman, “What do you mean?”

"Vitalized scorpion, heard of it?" She let the implication hang in the air, watching Rotten Ya's reaction.

Rotten Ya was lost for a moment before recalling where he heard that name, “Those scorpions all the big shot stalls are looking for?”

Then, as if realizing the connection, Rotten Ya’s eyes narrowed, jumping back to the scorpion, “You mean…”

The woman nodded, her fingers picking up the scorpion by its stinger, lifting it up to show its abdomen.

Rotten Ya's eyes squinted, observing the dark green streaks running through the wriggling black creature’s abdomen.

He never saw one in person before, but death scorpion plus greens streaks - it definitely matched the description! But...

Rotten Ya looked back at the mysterious woman. He wasn't sure if he could trust this masked stranger.

Alas, he was already too deep in the conversation to back out now. So, he clenched his jaw and asked, "What do you want for it?"

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“One spirit stone.”

Rotten Ya widened his eyes, growling incredulously. "One spirit stone? For this little guy?! Why don't you just go rob someone!?”

The woman was clearly not fooled by his outburst. "It’d really be robbing if I went lower. After all, this scorpion can be sold for three spirit stones."

“IF it’s genuine!” Rotten Ya retorted, still trying to argue, “Maybe it’s just painted on there.”

“Oh…” The woman giggled softly, “Then, it's a bet on your eyesight, isn’t it?”

Sneakily gripping his dagger’s hilt, Rotten Ya silently stared at the masked woman, searching for any cracks to drill, only to occasionally see an unchanging professional smile hidden beneath her weimao’s veil.

Seeing his hesitation, the woman gave the final push, "Oh, since you don't have the balls, I'll just go look for someone else."

The mysterious woman retracted her hand back into her sleeve, turning around and walking away, leaving him a seemingly open back.

Rotten Ya’s grip tightened on his dagger for mere moments before letting go, his hand reaching for his pouch instead and hurriedly called out, “Wait! I’ll take it!”

The woman stopped and turned back, remarking with a hint of mockery. "It seems your eyesight isn’t so bad after all.”

After dropping those words, she pulled out a small wooden box from her sleeve and slipped the scorpion inside, snapping the lid shut with a satisfying click.

Then, with a casual toss, she sent the box flying toward Rotten Ya.

Whoosh! The box cut through the air, and Rotten Ya caught it with both hands, feeling the weight and hearing the frantic scurrying of the scorpion inside, its restless movements like a drumbeat to the anxious rhythm in his chest.

His sharp eyes looked up at the woman, testing her, "You aren't afraid I will dash without paying?"

"You can try." Her reply shot back over, carrying a hidden edge.

Seriously, where is this woman’s confidence coming from? But, he'd made his choice, and now he had to live with it.

So, Rotten Ya grunted, taking out a spirit stone from his pouch and tossing it over toward the masked woman.

Snap! The mysterious woman caught the stone, weighing it in her hand as if gauging its authenticity.

After slipping the stone into her sleeve, she gave him a nod of approval, "I look forward to doing business with you again.”

Rotten Ya grinned back, flashing his rows of rotten teeth save for a golden one, but his smile didn't reach his eyes. "Oh, by the way, I heard those big shots are looking for the source…”

He stared at her, trying to gauge her reaction. “What if I report you? Could be quite the find for them, don't you think?"

“Laughable.” The mysterious woman turned around to leave, stating calmly, "You know it won't do any of us any good if you do. Of course, you can report me if you want. But here's a friendly piece of advice...”

The woman paused, her masked face turning back to give him a glance, “It’s best to say you found it crawling in the outer sect. It would save me—and you—a lot of unnecessary trouble."

Then, with a couple of steps, the mysterious woman leapt off the ground well over a meter before latching onto the nearby wall, eerily skittering up it like a spider, soon disappearing over the edge of the roof.

Seeing the sharp claw marks gouged into the sandstone wall, Rotten Ya’s eyes narrowed into a pinprick.

Seventh District.

Side-by-side, two outer disciples in ragged clothes passed through the alley in between two sandstone shacks lining the stained road.

One of the disciples, a tall man with a scraggly beard and a nervous twitch in his left eye, was grumbling to his companion, a shorter man with a hood pulled low over his forehead.

"...thought I was lucky to have got my hands on one. But who knew bad luck struck as soon as I sold it. Those cursed big clans, they locked me up for a week without food just to get an answer out of me! If it wasn’t for the law enforcement hall showing up, who knows how long I would be locked up for."

The shorter disciple snorted, adjusting his hood.

"That’s why you should have done it more cleanly. Who told you to go sell without dressing up? If I got my hands on one of those scorpions, I would have gone at night even if it’s past curfew. At most it’s just squatting a couple of days in prison."

"Huh. You’re right.” The taller disciple sighed heavily. “But too bad it’s impossible to get more now. I heard the original seller went into hiding-"

Before he could finish, a female voice cut through his suppressed voice like a blade slicing through silk. "Could it be you boys are looking for these?"

“Who?!” Startled, both disciples spun around, tracing the voice upwards to the roof, just to see a mysterious figure dressed in a clean, white robe that barely hid her curves.

For a moment, the two men let their eyes roam over her curves that spoke volumes before focusing on her face.

Though it was hidden by her weimao, from their angle below, they easily caught a glimpse of her fair wheat-skinned cheeks peeking out from behind a white face mask.

However, after a brief admiration of the beauty, the men’s eyes finally focused on the critters dangling casually from her fingers, as if they were nothing more than toys.

Two black scorpions, one with a distinctive green streak on its abdomen, the other with green trims on its exoskeleton

The taller disciple's eyes shrunk in recognition, and he secretly patted his companion on the back. The shorter, hooded disciple looked over, asking in a low voice, "Are those...?"

The taller disciple nodded subtly.

The shorter man’s eyes rolled slyly, looking back up at the woman on the roof, rubbing his hands together and calling out, "This... beautiful sister. Mind coming down so we can have a closer look?"

The masked beauty's lips curved in a mocking smile as she swung the scorpions around lightly, "One spirit stone each. Take it or leave it.”

“Tch.” Knowing his plan had failed, the sly man rolled his eyes in irritation before attempting a bargain, "Beauty, how about one spirit stone for both? Seems like a fair deal, no?"

The masked beauty's eyes narrowed beneath her weimao.

"It'll be three spirit stones if you keep pushing," she retorted, a sharpness in her tone that brooked no argument.

The two men exchanged a glance. Then, each pulled out a spirit stone from their inner robe and waved it above their heads.

The sly man made another attempt, "Beauty, here, come down and let's exchange-"

"Toss it up first, then I'll toss them down.”

The sly man scoffed, feeling the deal slipping from his grasp. "What if you run after you get—" he began, but the mysterious beauty turned on her heel, starting to walk away without a backward glance.

Seeing this, the man’s companion panicked and shouted, "Wait, wait, I'll give!"

He quickly tossed his spirit stone up to her, eager to salvage the deal before she vanished completely.

The beauty caught the stone with a swift backhand, barely needing to look at it. Satisfied, she nodded and flung out one of the scorpions in her hand.

“What- your mother!” The taller disciple shrieked, scrambling to catch it.

His sly companion saw this, knowing the deal was real! But when he looked up, the beauty was gone!

Not wanting to miss out on the chance, he hurriedly tossed his spirit stone up to the roof, shouting, "Okay, okay, I'm paying up!"

Clack. The spirit stone’s landing was heard, yet silence was his response, leaving him with a growing sense of dread that he might have just been swindled.

Just when he began to consider climbing up to the roof to retrieve his spirit stone, he saw a small black critter flying through the air at a tangent.

“Your ancestor!” Instantly, he rushed to catch it, soon using the flaps of his robe to bundle it up, just as his companion had done.

After he secured the valuable catch, he looked up at the roof, only to see his companion up top, shaking his head from the roof’s edge, “She’s gone.”