**Chapter 48: So Poor**

It was fortunate that he had run into Meng Guan. If it had been another cultivator, Wei Fan might have had another life on his hands.

Thinking about Meng Guan's expression at the time and the questions he blurted out, Wei Fan couldn't help but chuckle.

He really had the nerve to ask.

But after some thought, Wei Fan let it go.

He and Meng Guan were good friends. Seeing a friend disposing of a body, it was only natural to ask a few questions.

If it had been someone else, Meng Guan would have likely activated his Breath Concealment Technique and fled the moment he saw what was happening.

He wouldn't have approached to ask questions.

"I had just left the Crimson Spirit Gold Mine, no more than a hundred miles away, when I saw someone who looked like Brother Wei kill a rogue cultivator with a single sword strike. It scared me so much that I immediately activated my Breath Concealment Technique and hid, not daring to approach."

Hearing Wei Fan's words, Meng Guan's face turned red, his beard twitching as he added a few more sentences.

"Only after hiding and observing for a while did I realize it really was Brother Wei. That's when I came out to greet him. Sigh, I later found out that the rogue cultivator had offended you, Fellow Daoist. He deserved to die!"

By the end, Meng Guan was shaking his head, a fierce expression on his face.

He looked as if he were the one who had wanted to reduce Chen Zhou to ashes, not Wei Fan.

After listening to the vivid descriptions from the two, He Song was momentarily speechless.

Who could have imagined that while Wei Fan was leaving the immortal marketplace to kill someone for He Song, he would also bring Meng Guan back?

When He Song first saw Wei Fan and Meng Guan at the courtyard gate, he hadn't expected this either.

But it had really happened.

This... 

It could only be described as an incredible coincidence.

"By the way, I brought back some of Chen Zhou's ashes. They're in his storage bag. Here." After explaining the situation, Wei Fan quickly pulled out a storage bag from his robe and handed it to He Song.

Before leaving the courtyard, he had promised He Song to bring back some ashes.

Now that Chen Zhou was dead and his body had been burned, Wei Fan had naturally brought back some ashes.

Not much, but enough.

As for the storage bag, it had naturally been taken from Chen Zhou's body.

A small storage bag with a one-meter cubic space for storage.

These typically cost around a hundred spirit stones at the artifact pavilion.

The storage bag Chen Zhou had was one of these.

While a hundred spirit stones might be a significant amount for early-stage and mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators.

For Wei Fan, a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, this storage bag held little interest.

Taking the storage bag.

He Song channeled a trace of spiritual energy into it.

Instantly, a pile of items appeared before He Song.

A small jar.

A few talismans.

A small pile of spirit stones.

Some spare clothes.

A copy of the Earthbound Technique.

And a few other miscellaneous items.

His gaze swept over the items, pausing briefly on the small jar.

If he wasn't mistaken, Chen Zhou's ashes were likely inside this jar.

As for the other items.

He Song glanced at them and quickly calculated their value.

The few talismans were all low-grade, worth around twenty to thirty spirit stones.

The small pile of spirit stones, He Song counted, totaled fifty-four.

The spare clothes were worthless, the Earthbound Technique was worthless, and the miscellaneous items were also worthless.

In summary.

Chen Zhou's entire net worth, including the storage bag, was around a hundred and eighty spirit stones.

"So poor."

He Song sighed inwardly, shaking his head. This meager wealth didn't seem to match Chen Zhou's identity as a rogue cultivator.

Wasn't it said that rogue cultivators were wealthier than immortal marketplace cultivators?

Now it seemed that wasn't necessarily the case.

But after some thought, He Song understood.

Rogue cultivators lived dangerous lives, and the resources they obtained were likely mostly spent on their own cultivation.

If Chen Zhou hadn't joined the immortal marketplace as a spirit farmer and gained a stable income, his net worth might have been even smaller.

Thinking about himself, He Song couldn't help but laugh.

Chen Zhou was actually relatively wealthy.

He Song himself only had a dozen or so spirit stones and didn't even own a storage bag.

If anything, He Song was the poorest.

"Fellow Daoist, you can keep these spoils. Just remember you owe me a favor."

Beside him, seeing He Song empty the storage bag, Wei Fan smiled and spoke.

In their small circle of three, He Song had the lowest cultivation level and the smallest annual income.

Now that he had finally broken through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, his income had just increased, but he wasn't exactly wealthy.

Wei Fan, as a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator, had access to many resources.

Meng Guan, a sixth-layer Qi Refining cultivator, had served as a small overseer in the mine for three years and likely had a decent amount of wealth.

Only He Song, having just broken through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, hadn't yet started receiving this year's income.

Seeing He Song in such a tight spot, Wei Fan naturally wanted to help.

In a few years.

When He Song started receiving his mid-stage Qi Refining income, his financial situation would gradually improve.

By then, such a small amount of spirit stones wouldn't matter.

A hundred or so spirit stones? Wei Fan didn't care about that.

In a few years, He Song probably wouldn't care either.

The mention of owing a favor was just a pretext to get He Song to accept the items.

"That's right, Fellow Daoist, just take it. Remember you owe him a favor. Now that you've broken through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining, your income will increase. In a few years, you'll realize that this amount of spirit stones is nothing."

Seeing Wei Fan's encouragement, Meng Guan also nodded in agreement.

He had previously been a manager at the Spirit Herb Pavilion. Although his position and cultivation level weren't as high as Wei Fan's, he understood the ways of immortal marketplace cultivators.

Immortal marketplace cultivators, while their official income might not be high.

They often had other sources of income.

For example, Zhao Lin, as a talisman master, could earn spirit stones by crafting talismans in addition to his official income.

The official income alone might not be much.

But when combined with the earnings from various cultivation arts, the total income could increase significantly.

This was the main reason most mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators could save up spirit stones.

Daily cultivation, purchasing pills, artifacts, talismans, and spells—all of these required spirit stones.

Without additional income, relying solely on the official income would leave one struggling.

A few years was enough time for an ordinary cultivator to master a cultivation art and start earning spirit stones from it.

This was why they mentioned "a few years."

"Alright, then I'll accept it graciously. I'll remember this favor." After some thought, He Song didn't refuse.

Since Wei Fan and Meng Guan wanted to help, he would accept.

As they said, in a few years, no one would care about a hundred or so spirit stones.

Moreover, He Song would indeed remember this favor.

However, He Song was somewhat skeptical of their words.

Because after three years.

He Song's introductory chapter on array formation still hadn't been mastered.

And even if he did master array formation and could set up a Spirit Gathering Array, he wouldn't risk his life to help others set up arrays for spirit stones.

Therefore, He Song wasn't entirely confident that in a few years, he would be able to treat a hundred or so spirit stones as insignificant.

(End of Chapter)