Seeing the dejected expressions on everyone's faces, Lin Hao also dropped his smugness and sighed softly, "When I first learned of this, I was just as shocked as you are. This Millennium Black Iron is far too rare. Even if all of us joined forces to search, we probably wouldn't be able to find a trace of it. The generous reward from the master craftsman seems tempting, but it's actually as difficult as ascending to heaven."
Upon hearing this, everyone echoed Lin Hao's words.
After all, they had only heard of this Millennium Black Iron; they had never actually seen it.
Far away in the courtyard, Qin Changsheng's heart was already stirred when he heard the words "Millennium Black Iron."
Others only considered this Millennium Black Iron a priceless treasure, something that could only be encountered by chance.
But Qin Changsheng possessed golden-level intelligence.
As long as the Millennium Black Iron appeared within a thousand miles, Qin Changsheng would know its exact location.
Qin Changsheng quietly channeled his spiritual power into the golden inscription. A faint golden halo instantly appeared in his mind, and as the halo shifted, countless fragments of information flashed by, all related to the Millennium Profound Iron.
In the blink of an eye, the search was complete, and clear information appeared directly on the attribute panel.
[Millennium Profound Iron: Nourished for a thousand years in a cold, yin land, suitable for forging Earth-grade magic weapons.]
[Location: Inside Lin Hao's storage bag]
Seeing this information, Qin Changsheng was somewhat astonished.
He hadn't expected Lin Hao to possess Millennium Profound Iron.
At the same time, Qin Changsheng's gaze fell upon Lin Hao.
Lin Hao frowned, a hint of resentment and regret on his lips. He shook his head slightly, muttering, "Such an opportunity, ultimately missed... If only I had a piece of Thousand-Year-Old Mystic Iron, I could obtain the secrets to forging a natal magic weapon."
He sighed heavily, his face filled with genuine regret, as if he had only ever heard of Thousand-Year-Old Mystic Iron and had never actually seen it.
Seeing Lin Hao's demeanor, Qin Changsheng immediately made a judgment.
Although Lin Hao was arrogant and conceited, he was completely incapable of acting.
He clearly hadn't seen Thousand-Year-Old Mystic Iron before, nor did he know its true appearance; otherwise, he wouldn't be so regretful,
nor would he have casually placed it in his storage bag.
It seemed that he had obtained this piece of Thousand-Year-Old Mystic Iron by chance.
He didn't know that the treasure was indeed Thousand-Year-Old Mystic Iron.
He might even mistake it for ordinary black iron, casually storing it in his storage bag without a second thought.
With this thought in mind, Qin Changsheng immediately had an idea.
The trade fair was about to begin; he would find a pretext to exchange Lin Hao's thousand-year-old black iron for it.
Spirit stones, though precious, were far less valuable than even a fraction of the value of thousand-year-old black iron, let alone the insights gained from crafting a natal magic weapon.
Since Lin Hao was unaware of the true value of the thousand-year-old black iron, he would surely be tempted by spirit stones. Qin Changsheng, on the other hand, could obtain the black iron and, in turn, gain the insights into crafting a natal magic weapon by paying only a small amount of spirit stones. This deal was a sure-fire profit.
After a short while, Jiang Lijuan, who was seated at the table, suddenly stood up and said, "Fellow disciples, instead of lamenting the lack of opportunities here, why not gather here today and hold a trade fair!"
"Everyone probably has some unwanted items in their storage bags. It's a shame to throw them away, but keeping them takes up space. Why not take them out and exchange them? Everyone can take what they need, and it won't be a wasted gathering."
Jiang Lijuan's suggestion instantly ignited everyone's interest, sweeping away the previous regret and gloom.
The Foundation Establishment cultivators' eyes lit up, and they echoed, "Senior Sister Jiang's idea is excellent! I do have quite a few unused treasures in my storage bag, and I'm just wondering what to do with them!"
"Yes, yes, taking what we need is perfect! Maybe we can exchange them for something useful!"
Before the words were even finished, everyone eagerly raised their hands and took out their storage bags, displaying their unused treasures on the table in front of them.
There were ordinary-looking pills, incomplete cultivation manual jade slips, failed attempts at crafting magical artifacts, useless remnants of spiritual herbs, and scattered ores and talismans—a dazzling array that filled most of the table.
"I have three Qi-Nourishing Pills here. Although their grade isn't high, they're suitable for early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators to stabilize their cultivation. I'd like to exchange them for an entry-level short sword. Is there any fellow disciple willing to trade?"
"I have a piece of useless bluestone jade here. It can weakly gather spiritual energy. I'd like to exchange it for some cinnabar for crafting talismans. If you have any, just name your price!"
As they displayed their unused treasures, everyone stated their needs, their tone full of anticipation.
The private room instantly became lively, filled with the sounds of bargaining and discussions.
Before long, several Foundation Establishment cultivators had reached deals. Some traded their unused pills for suitable magical artifacts, while others traded useless ores for spiritual herbs needed for cultivation.
Seeing the group reach an agreement, Qin Changsheng knew his time had come.
He controlled Hu Nan to stand up and said, "Fellow disciples, I need to forge a treasure soon and urgently require a large quantity of Xuan Iron. Today, I'd like to take this opportunity to purchase Xuan Iron at three spirit stones per piece. I'll take whatever you have, and I won't delay payment."
"What? Three spirit stones per piece?"
"Really?"
"It's only two spirit stones per piece in the market!"
"There's probably a shortage in the market!"
Amidst the discussions, everyone's faces lit up with joy. Many immediately reached into their storage bags to retrieve Xuan Iron and quickly approached Hu Nan.
"Brother Hu, I have five pieces of Xuan Iron here, quickly exchange them for spirit stones!"
"I have eight pieces here, I'll exchange too!"
Qin Changsheng, controlling Hu Nan, remained calm. A storage bag full of spirit stones was produced, and he methodically settled accounts with everyone, collecting the Xuan Iron from their hands.
Lin Hao stared at the storage bag, his face terribly grim.
Lin Hao recognized the storage bag as his own.
The ten thousand spirit stones inside were what he had lost to Hu Nan last year.
Seeing this, the Foundation Establishment cultivators became even more eager, each bringing out their treasured Xuan Iron to trade, afraid of missing this golden opportunity.
In less than half an incense stick's time, a pile of Xuan Iron had accumulated in front of Hu Nan, totaling over two hundred pieces.
Not far away, Lin Hao watched Hu Nan buying up the Xuan Iron. His initially gloomy expression gradually faded, and his mind began to stir.
Not long ago, one of his trusted disciples, while exploring a secret realm, stumbled upon several dozen pieces of Xuan Iron for him.
This Xuan Iron was of ordinary quality, and he rarely used it, so it had been casually stored in his storage bag, taking up space. He had originally planned to dispose of it cheaply later, but now that Hu Nan was offering three spirit stones per piece, he could sell it to Hu Nan.
These several dozen pieces of Xuan Iron could be exchanged for a total of two hundred spirit stones.
While this amount of spirit stones wasn't a huge sum, it was enough for him to buy pills and cultivation supplies, much better than letting this useless Xuan Iron sit idle in his storage bag.
With this in mind, Lin Hao decided to sell all the unused Xuan Iron to Hu Nan.
Lin Hao stood up, quickly walked out from the crowd, and went straight to Hu Nan.
He raised his hand and patted the ordinary-looking black storage bag at his waist, which appeared instantly. He casually handed it to Hu Nan: "Junior Brother Hu, I have seventy pieces of Xuan Iron here."
Qin Changsheng, far away in the courtyard, was overjoyed. He controlled Hu Nan to accept Lin Hao's storage bag.
He carefully probed the storage bag with his divine sense.
After a moment, Qin Changsheng clearly sensed that among the seventy pieces of Xuan Iron, there was one extremely special piece.
It was encased in the other ordinary Xuan Iron pieces, and its unusual nature would be completely imperceptible without careful examination.
This Xuan Iron was entirely deep black, with a faint, eerie glow on its surface, and its patterns were as fine as silk.
Qin Changsheng immediately understood, confirming that this was the thousand-year-old Xuan Iron he had been searching for.
He quickly suppressed his inner turmoil and the joy in his eyes, not daring to reveal the slightest hint of it, while simultaneously controlling Hu Nan to swiftly complete the transaction.
"Seventy pieces of Xuan Iron, three spirit stones per piece, that's two hundred and ten spirit stones in total. Please count them." Hu Nan handed Lin Hao a bag containing two hundred and ten spirit stones.
Lin Hao quickly took the storage bag and eagerly began to check it.
When he realized there were indeed two hundred and ten spirit stones, a smile instantly appeared on his face.
"Not bad, exactly two hundred and ten!"
Lin Hao secretly rejoiced: This Xuan Iron was of ordinary quality and would normally be useless in his storage bag.
If he were to sell it at the market, it would fetch at most two spirit stones per piece, seventy pieces at most, totaling a hundred and forty spirit stones.
Now, selling it to Hu Nan had earned him a full two hundred and ten spirit stones, making an extra seventy spirit stones! This deal was incredibly profitable!
If he could make a few more transactions like this in the future, he could even recoup the ten thousand spirit stones he lost last year.
Meanwhile, in the small courtyard, Qin Changsheng was also quite remarkable.
He hadn't expected to obtain the Millennium Profound Iron so easily.
With this Millennium Profound Iron, Qin Changsheng could also obtain the crafting techniques for his natal magic weapon from the master craftsman of the Imperial Sword Manor.
With these techniques, crafting his natal magic weapon would be much easier for Qin Changsheng.
At the same time, Qin Changsheng was extremely grateful to Lin Hao.
Without Lin Hao's generosity, he probably wouldn't have obtained the Millennium Profound Iron so easily.
He wouldn't have achieved Foundation Establishment so easily, nor would he have obtained the Foundation Establishment cultivation method.