Chapter 150: Chapter 108: Poison Spider

Zhang Ting sighed again, stealing a glance at Zheng Xiuhong’s closed courtyard gate. ’Senior Sister Zheng is truly a good woman,’ he thought to himself.

Despite Bai Ming facing certain death, she was still spending her entire fortune to try and save him.

Chen Qing hadn’t expected Zheng Xiuhong to be so loyal and righteous. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Zhang Ting, he returned to his own courtyard to pack briefly before setting off to the Prefecture City to meet with Yang Zhicheng.

“Brother Chen, I’ve taken care of everything.”

Yang Zhicheng handed a stack of silver notes and a list to Chen Qing. “The Turtle Shell, Bone Spikes, Sharp Claws, and Poison Fangs have all been sold at market price. The buyer was very straightforward. The total comes to ten thousand and seven hundred taels of silver.”

Chen Qing took the list and the silver notes, glanced at the amount, and nodded. “Thank you for your hard work, Brother Yang.”

He counted out two hundred taels of silver from the stack and handed them to Yang Zhicheng. “A little something for your trouble. Please don’t refuse, Brother Yang.”

Yang Zhicheng accepted it with a smile. “You’re always so polite, Brother Chen. By the way, I also brought the items you asked me to look out for last time.”

He then took out a tightly sealed wooden box from behind him. After opening it, he revealed several medicinal ingredients emitting strange auras: the dried petals of a Bone Decay Flower, the concentrated juice of a Seven-step Intestine-breaking Vine, and the powder of Soul-Attracting Incense.

“These total one thousand one hundred and sixty taels. Would you like to check them, Brother Chen?”

Chen Qing inspected the medicinal ingredients and promptly paid. “You’re as reliable as ever, Brother Yang. Getting these so quickly has saved me a lot of trouble.”

Yang Zhicheng put away the silver notes and asked curiously, “Brother Chen, you need these highly poisonous items… could it be you’re planning to hatch a poisonous insect?”

Chen Qing nodded. The insect egg he had obtained from Jiang Baoqing, according to the *Brief Introduction to Hundred Poisonous Insects*, should be the ’Bone-Eroding Spider’, ranked seventy-seventh.

The herbs he had just purchased were for the express purpose of hatching this egg.

“Brother Chen, you must be extremely careful when raising it. Poisonous insects are incredibly difficult to care for.”

Yang Zhicheng said slowly, “However, if you succeed in raising one, it will certainly be a great asset. I’ve heard that in Hundred Gates Mansion there is a ’Master of Poisonous Insects’ who raises hundreds of types of poisonous insects and kills without a trace. Although he’s only at the Embracing Pill Force realm, even Astral Force experts are wary of him.”

Chen Qing put away the poisonous herbs. “Thank you for your trouble, Brother Yang. By the way, about the Inner Armor we discussed last time…”

The so-called Inner Armor was a type of protective Treasure Artifact worn close to the skin, under one’s clothes. It was mostly woven from special metal threads mixed with the hides of Exotic Beasts, or even fibers from certain Heavenly and Earthly Treasures.

Not only was it fireproof and poison-resistant with extremely high defense, but it was also light and soft, barely impeding movement.

Owning a piece of Inner Armor was like having an extra life in a critical moment.

A bitter smile appeared on Yang Zhicheng’s face. “Brother Chen, that stuff is absurdly expensive! The most common Lower-Grade Treasure Armor starts at fifty thousand taels of silver! A slightly better mid-grade one will run you more than one hundred thousand, even two hundred thousand taels. If you really want one, the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion has them…”

Hearing this, a look of astonishment appeared in Chen Qing’s eyes. “That expensive?”

’An ordinary piece of Lower-Grade Treasure Level Inner Armor actually costs fifty thousand taels!’

’To think, my Upper Grade Cold Li Spear only cost a little over thirty thousand taels.’

“Crafting Inner Armor is too complicated, and the material requirements are extremely high. Have you heard of the ’Ice Silkworm Snow Silk Armor’ from Cold Jade Valley that can weaken True Qi by twenty percent? It has a sky-high price of six hundred thousand taels, and that’s just a rumor—they’re not even selling it!”

“Six hundred thousand taels…”

Even though Chen Qing had been mentally prepared, he was still shocked by this number.

It was a fortune he could barely imagine at his current level.

Yang Zhicheng said, “There are also some decent ordinary inner armors. Would you like one, Brother Chen?”

Chen Qing refused.

For his current Flesh Body’s strength, an ordinary piece of Inner Armor would be practically useless.

After the two chatted for a while, Chen Qing prepared to head back to the Fishery.

Yang Zhicheng suddenly remembered something. “Right, in a few days, the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion is holding an auction. There will be a lot of good stuff. Do you want to come and take a look, Brother Chen?”

Chen Qing shook his head. “I’ll pass.”

’Any treasure I might like would surely be priceless, and with my tight budget, it would only lead to frustration.’

’Besides, I’ve never liked crowded, lively places. They’re just breeding grounds for trouble.’

Chen Qing cupped his fist in farewell, then left the Prefecture City and returned to Nanzhe No. 7 Fishery.

After entering his house, he immediately shut the doors and windows tightly and took out all the materials.

The highly poisonous medicinal ingredients provided by Yang Zhicheng, a specially made Jade Bowl, and the insect egg with its faint life force.

He followed the method recorded in the *Brief Introduction to Hundred Poisonous Insects* and began to work with his full concentration.

He mixed the three poisons in the Jade Bowl, and a black smoke immediately began to rise.

Chen Qing held his breath, placed the insect egg in the black smoke, and then circulated his True Qi, channeling it into the egg.

Hues of dark green, deep red, and black-brown churned and intertwined madly. Bubbles rose, and a cloyingly sweet, fishy, and poisonous bloody aura filled the air.

Dark red patterns appeared on the insect egg, like blood vessels, greedily absorbing the poisonous essence and bloody aura!

The insect egg’s temperature rose, and a faint but gradually strengthening pulse could be felt from within.

When the very last drop of poisonous essence was completely absorbed…

CRACK! A crisp sound rang out!

The surface of the insect egg instantly cracked like a spiderweb.

A thumb-sized spider, its entire body as dark red as blood, violently broke through the shell and emerged!

Its feelers were like thorns, its chelicerae exuding a chilling aura.

The Bone-Eroding Spider, hatched successfully!

It instinctively felt an affinity for Chen Qing, who had given it life. It tore through the translucent egg membrane and struggled out, its fine legs still covered in a cold, damp slime.

It didn’t crawl onto the back of his hand, but landed directly in Chen Qing’s open palm, its long, needle-like legs gripping his skin firmly.

Chen Qing looked at the newborn arachnid in his palm. ’This creature has enormous potential. Once it matures, it will definitely become a secret and deadly trump card.’

He gently placed the Bone-Eroding Spider into a small Jade Box lined with soft cloth and perforated with air holes, then dropped in a single drop of diluted Iron Armor Turtle Essence Blood.

The Bone-Eroding Spider immediately began to drink it greedily.

Chen Qing put the box away safely and then entered a state of Cultivation.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep