The blade wasn't a traditional broadsword. It was longer than an average sword, but the blade itself was narrow, similar to the legendary Xiuchun knife.

Leaf Gray swung it a few times and found it very comfortable to use.

A good outcome. The sword was no longer usable, but he had gained a new weapon, saving him the need to buy another.

He tried channeling his spiritual power into the blade. A faint halo immediately surged on the long knife. The halo didn't appear sharp; instead, it gave a sense of solidity.

What surprised Leaf Gray even more was that he felt something seemed to be hidden within the blade.

Closing his eyes, he perceived through the flow of his spiritual power and gradually discerned the situation inside the blade.

There was actually a spirit pattern inside this knife's blade!

This is... a spirit artifact? Leaf Gray showed a surprised expression.

He had been to the market several times; his knowledge now was far greater than when he first entered the Spirit Creek Battlefield. He had heard of spirit artifacts; they were weapons specially used by cultivators. A fine spirit artifact could often provide significant assistance to its owner.

Leaf Gray's previous sword was a mortal weapon. Apart from being forged sharply, it had no special features. But spirit artifacts were different. Depending on the type of spirit pattern engraved within, each spirit artifact had its own unique power.

This blade had a spirit pattern inside. Leaf Gray could easily activate the power of the spirit pattern by channeling spiritual power into it, thereby granting the blade the characteristics of the spirit pattern.

He experimented for a moment and confirmed that the spirit pattern was used to reinforce the blade. This way, during fights with enemies, this spirit artifact would be less prone to damage or breaking.

Leaf Gray suddenly understood. No wonder when he used the Sharpness spirit pattern to enhance his long sword before, he couldn't cut through the opponent's blade...

This was an unexpected delight. Although reinforcing the blade might sound useless, it was actually an extremely practical spirit pattern. Moreover, Leaf Gray himself had mastered the Sharpness spirit pattern and could use it to enhance this spirit artifact at any time, greatly increasing its sharpness.

With such a spirit artifact in hand, Leaf Gray's strength could increase by at least ten to twenty percent. When encountering enemies again, he could hack and slash freely without worrying about weapon damage.

However, a spirit artifact with only one spirit pattern was probably just the lowest grade spirit artifact.

"Come in!" Leaf Gray sheathed the long knife and sat cross-legged again.

A small figure slowly floated in at the cave entrance. When she reached in front of Leaf Gray, she gave him an ingratiating smile and said obediently, "The other person's body has been dealt with too."

Leaf Gray casually tossed out a storage bag—it was Seraphina Vale's.

Evie took it, checked inside, and said with surprise, "This much?"

There was over a bottle of spirit pills alone, plus a few spirit stones.

"Split the contents fifty-fifty. Thank you for your help this time." Leaf Gray nodded to her. Although he had enough talismans and was confident he could kill the fair-skinned man on his own, if he had done so, he definitely wouldn't have been able to open the other's storage bag.

And he would certainly have had to take some risks.

When he went to find the big tiger and Evie earlier, he had intended to borrow their influence. Fortunately, Evie was quick-witted enough; with just one sentence from him, she knew what to do.

This cooperation was quite easy and pleasant.

The fair-skinned man's storage bag didn't have many good things; the only valuable item was his weapon. Seraphina Vale was somewhat richer, but not by much.

Moreover, the talisman Seraphina Vale had in her hand at the last moment was activated. If the big tiger hadn't taken the hit for him, Leaf Gray would have inevitably faced the power of that talisman himself, adding much danger.

Splitting the loot fifty-fifty, with Leaf Gray keeping the spirit artifact for himself, meant he actually came out ahead.

Evie didn't expect Leaf Gray to be so generous. She looked at him with a somewhat complicated expression and finally thanked him.

"Wait." Leaf Gray called out to her.

Evie turned back to look.

"You heard what the woman we killed earlier said, right?"

"Yes."

"Although this matter was her private action, and she deserved to die, she was still a member of the Providentia Merchant Alliance after all. I don't know how the Merchant Alliance will react after her death, but you'd better find a new territory. This place is too close to the Jade Market. If the Merchant Alliance investigates her cause of death, it would be easy for them to trace it back to you."

"What about you?" Evie asked.

"I will leave here soon."

This incident taught Leaf Gray a lesson. Currently, all the spirit pills he needed for cultivation had to be obtained by selling Metamagnetic Ore, and the only sales channel was the Providentia Merchant Alliance. He had only been there three times and was already targeted by Seraphina Vale.

Who knew if there was a second Seraphina Vale there?

So, he didn't plan to stay here any longer.

If reaching the first level of Spirit Creek Realm gave him the qualification to survive in the Spirit Creek Battlefield, then now, at the second level, he had the capital to travel.

What decision Evie and the big tiger would make was beyond his control. The Spirit Creek Battlefield was vast; they might not meet again. He was just giving a friendly reminder out of a sense of duty.

After Evie left, Leaf Gray took stock of his supplies.

Ninety-three Spirit Nurturing Pills. Eighty-one were bought from the Providentia Merchant Alliance, and twelve were obtained after splitting the spoils with Evie.

Four spirit stones, also obtained from splitting the spoils. His own spirit stones were all used to buy food.

Seven Healing Pills. Four were his own remaining stock, and three were found in the fair-skinned man's storage bag. In contrast, Seraphina Vale's storage bag had no Healing Pills. She probably never imagined she would need them.

Fewer than thirty various talismans.

Twenty-six pieces of Metamagnetic Ore of various sizes.

One lowest-grade spirit artifact long knife.

One copy of Cicada's Transcendent Metamorphosis.

The existing spirit pills were enough for him to cultivate to the third level of Spirit Creek Realm. Once he reached the third level of Spirit Creek Realm, his strength would increase again. He wouldn't dare say he could roam freely in the outer circles of the battlefield, but at the very least, his self-preservation ability would improve.

He vaguely felt he had forgotten something. After thinking carefully for a long time, he remembered.

He immediately channeled spiritual energy into the back of his right hand. Ripples of spiritual power fluctuated, transforming into a blue spirit pattern. The pattern squirmed and changed, and several lines of large characters appeared in Leaf Gray's field of vision.

Name: Leaf Gray.

Identity: Disciple of The Vermilion Guild.

Cultivation: Twenty-one Apertures.

Location: Spirit Creek Battlefield.

Merits: Eight.

Compared to the first time he saw the battlefield imprint, his name, identity, and location hadn't changed, but his cultivation level had changed from three opened apertures to twenty-one apertures. This was the result of his efforts over the past two months, so there was nothing noteworthy about it.

What caught his attention was the Merits!

The first time he saw this, he found it very strange – what exactly were these Merits, and how were they obtained?

Until now, he had a vague understanding.

These Merits probably had to be obtained by killing people.

He remembered that when the fair-skinned man died, a point of red light floated out from the back of his hand and flew into his own.

And when Seraphina Vale died, the light that flew out was yellow.

Did different colors represent different factions?

If so, the fair-skinned cultivator he killed probably belonged to The Ophidian Covenant, while the Providentia Merchant Alliance was considered a neutral faction? That's why they did business with both sides.

But what exactly were these Merits used for? Leaf Gray wasn't clear yet and could only explore slowly in the future.