Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
As soon as the Red-Haired Cultivator stepped down from the exchange platform, Xunuo immediately took a step forward. There was no time to waste. Xunuo knew that his actions would surely infuriate the Foundation Stage Cultivators present, but compared to the risk of losing his life, their anger seemed trivial. The three who had just exchanged were all Foundation Stage Cultivators, two of whom were at the Foundation Establishment Mid-Stage. So no one expected a Foundation Stage Practitioner to take the lead.
Instantly, countless pressures and angry glares surged toward Xunuo, even causing the Golden-Clan Cultivator hosting the auction to furrow his brow involuntarily. Since Xunuo had stepped up, there was no reason for him to back down. He anticipated these threats and intimidation; after all, no one dared to harm others within Cloud City. Once outside Cloud City, Xunuo was confident he had means to protect himself and chose to disregard the potential consequences. With a flick of his hand, he revealed a round pill in his palm, choosing not to speak yet and instead glanced at Zhu Xiu's face.
"Turtle Spirit Pill?" a Foundation Stage Cultivator questioned skeptically.
Xunuo chuckled lightly, "Senior has a keen eye; it is indeed this item."
The Auction House erupted with murmurs. Although these Foundation Stage Cultivators were suspicious of how a Foundation Stage Practitioner could possess a Turtle Spirit Pill, no one voiced their doubts. Any questions should be directed at the auction organizers, not them. Zhu Xiu was more concerned about what this pig-headed Masked Cultivator intended to exchange.
Seeing that the Turtle Spirit Pill had indeed garnered attention, Xunuo felt a surge of joy and said, "I wish to exchange this Turtle Spirit Pill for two Teleportation Talismans. If that is insufficient, I can supplement with spirit stones."
Through conversations with Dong Daihui, Xunuo understood that the price of the Turtle Spirit Pill was much higher than that of a Baili Talisman; however, it was still not enough to trade for two. As soon as he finished speaking, there was a brief silence before a voice asked, "Do you have a second Turtle Spirit Pill?"
Xunuo looked at the speaker and shook his head. "This pill is also something I obtained through exchange; I do not have a second one."
The Cultivator in question was slender and wore an oversized yellow robe that made him appear somewhat empty. The Yellow-Clad Cultivator approached the auction platform and examined the Turtle Spirit Pill for a moment before commenting, "The quality is average."
Xunuo couldn't argue with that; after all, it was his first time refining high-level pills, and simply producing one was already fortunate—he dared not demand higher quality. "I have two Baili Talismans here; however, one of them is exceptionally crafted and can teleport nearly two hundred miles. Although they are both Baili Talismans, its value is significantly greater. I hope you can offer more compensation; I am not lacking in spirit stones. If you have higher-grade pills like Unity Pills or similar items, I would be willing to accept those as well," he said while producing two Teleportation Talismans and waving them enticingly in front of Xunuo.
Xunuo sighed inwardly: even if it’s a pitfall, he had to jump in.
Xunuo gritted his teeth and selected over ten Unity Pills and Minor Rejuvenation Pills, placing them into a jade vial before handing it to him. "This is all I have for now. If it's still not enough, I can only offer you spirit stones."
The pills Xunuo had refined in the later stages were all of medium to high quality. The Yellow-Clad Cultivator glanced at them and nodded in satisfaction, then handed Xunuo a hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, completing the exchange. Nearby, a Foundation Stage Cultivator eyed the Turtle Spirit Pill with envy but was frustrated by the lack of a Teleportation Talisman, leaving him to watch this opportunity slip away.
As Xunuo and the Yellow-Clad Cultivator stepped down from the auction stage, a Female Cultivator invited them into a side room to settle the commission fee. The fee was charged based on the total value of the exchange and was split between the two. The Yellow-Clad Cultivator paid five percent, while Xunuo had to pay ten percent. Upon hearing this, Xunuo was about to protest when the Yellow-Clad Cultivator chuckled, "Someone must have referred you here."
Xunuo quickly understood; it turned out that Dong Daihui's referral fee accounted for half of his commission. No wonder he was willing to betray the Merchant Alliance to act as an intermediary; the benefits were quite tempting.
During the subsequent auction, Xunuo lost interest. This Underground Auction was different from formal auctions, with far fewer participants. He believed that once the auction concluded and over a hundred cultivators left simultaneously, someone would definitely recognize him among the few Foundation Stage Practitioners present. After all, there were too few Foundation Stage Practitioners around. His high-profile exchange and display of a treasure like the Turtle Spirit Pill would surely attract attention. Moreover, Xunuo planned to leave Cloud City overnight and did not want to be followed.
After leaving the auction, it was inevitable that someone took notice. Two Foundation Stage Cultivators exchanged glances; one shook his head slightly and communicated through sound transmission, "He obtained two Teleportation Talismans, so capturing him alive is impossible. Pursuing him would be futile. Since he is within Cloud City, we cannot act against him; it’s better to try our luck at the auction; perhaps there will be other gains." The other Cultivator reluctantly nodded and redirected his focus back to the Auction House.
However, not everyone shared this sentiment. Moments after Xunuo exited the auction house, a Foundation Stage Cultivator quietly left the venue as well. This person turned out to be none other than the Quacking Voice Practitioner. Xunuo did not linger and directly exited Cloud City, summoning his Black Iron Boat to fly in a specific direction. After traveling several hundred miles outside the city, Xunuo suddenly halted his escape light, stowed away the Black Iron Boat, and set up the Qian Kun Two Instruments Formation, concealing himself within it.
It wasn't that Xunuo had noticed anything; rather, he found it hard to believe that his actions at the auction had gone unnoticed. Regardless of whether anyone had designs on him or not, it was prudent to remain hidden within the Heaven and Earth Four Killing Formation for some time.
Sure enough, after about a cup of tea's worth of time, a golden light streaked across the night sky above Xunuo's head. He was startled; this passing Cultivator emitted no fluctuations of spiritual power whatsoever. If not for its dazzling golden light, he might not have detected it at all. Such skill was unimaginable for Xunuo; this opponent's Divine Sense was powerful enough to evade his scrutiny. However, as their flying artifact passed directly overhead without revealing any traces of spiritual energy, it indicated that their cultivation method was peculiar or that they possessed Rare Treasures. Given that he knew nothing about this enemy's situation, Xunuo prudently decided to let them go.
But moments later, that golden light returned from afar at a much slower speed while searching along its path. Only then did Xunuo see clearly that it was an emaciated Cultivator riding a gleaming Flying Sword whose formidable Divine Sense swept over his formation. Xunuo restrained his own Divine Sense and slowed his breathing as he watched the Emaciated Cultivator glide slowly above his formation.
Xunuo certainly knew who this Emaciated Cultivator was after; however, he did not expect such persistence from him—clearly having lost track of his target yet still unwilling to give up. If this individual continued searching relentlessly several more times, even with the strength of the Qian Kun Two Instruments Formation, there was no guarantee they wouldn’t discover him. It would be better to draw him into the formation and use this Foundation Establishment Stage expert as an offering for it. With this thought in mind, Xunuo began making preparations.
Trailing behind Xunuo out of Cloud City was indeed that Quacking Voice Practitioner who coveted more than just those two Baili Talismans from him. This Quacking Voice Practitioner was named Situ Mingmye; his identity was somewhat mysterious—others only knew he was a Loose Cultivator—but his bizarre cultivation method and spells far surpassed those of other Loose Cultivators at his level. Moreover, he had no fixed residence and could come and go without a trace; although he often appeared in markets where cultivators gathered and occasionally teamed up with other Loose Cultivators for treasure hunting or exploration, he would inevitably vanish afterward without forming deep connections with anyone due to his eccentric personality.
Ordinary cultivators were willing to work with him because he possessed a unique ability to sense the presence of treasures. For instance, the Ice Moth egg he had obtained was not a reward from slaying a Demonic Insect; rather, it had been left behind by an Ice Moth that had been killed by a powerful being, and this person had failed to locate the Ice Moth's nest. After several days, Situ Mingmye passed by that area and sensed the location of the Ice Moth's nest, thus gaining this benefit for free.
In the underground market, he vaguely sensed that Xunuo had a Rare Treasure. However, upon closer inspection, he found nothing. Still, he trusted his instincts and followed Xunuo all the way. After leaving Cloud City, Xunuo flew straight ahead, and Situ Mingmye was glad to keep his distance from Cloud City before making his move. Tracking someone who flew in a straight line was not difficult, so he relaxed his guard.
When Xunuo suddenly vanished from sight, Situ Mingmye became frantic. However, he did not believe that this Foundation Stage Practitioner could detect his pursuit or would easily use a Baili Talisman to shake him off. Situ Mingmye carefully searched along the path they had taken but found nothing. As he neared Cloud City without spotting Xunuo, he turned back to continue searching. The more concealed Xunuo was, the greater the likelihood that he possessed something valuable. Situ Mingmye lowered his flying height and began searching again from a hundred feet above ground.
Using the power of the Great Illusion Concealment Talisman, Xunuo remained hidden in the high sky and watched as Situ Mingmye slowly searched above the Qian Kun Two Instruments Formation. Situ Mingmye's flying height was just right—neither too high nor too low—placing him outside the shifting power of the Qian Kun Two Instruments Formation. Xunuo knew that only by leveraging this formation's power could he control Situ Mingmye, so he was already prepared to force him down.
As Situ Mingmye flew over a hill, an inexplicable sense of foreboding suddenly struck him, prompting him to look up. He saw a ten-foot-long Purple Light Halberd appearing directly above him. With a startled cry, Situ Mingmye summoned a small mountain-like artifact to shield himself from above. The Purple Light Halberd then struck down upon it with a deafening roar, causing the mountain-like Defensive Artifact to be cleaved in two. With one hand raised in defense, Situ Mingmye halted the descent of the artifact while drawing out a Flying Dagger Artifact with his other hand, ready to counterattack against his assailant.
However, at that moment, countless Purple Scale Flying Blades ignited with Blue Flame appeared out of nowhere in midair, circling around the mountain-like artifact and slashing toward him. Even though Situ Mingmye possessed immense magical power, he was startled by this sudden turn of events. He hastily activated his Flying Dagger Artifact and drew a circle around himself, producing a sound like raindrops as he blocked all of the Purple Scale Flying Blades. Yet immediately after, the Purple Light Halberd surged with renewed brilliance and struck back at him once more.
Comment 0 Comment Count