Lou Guyang's offer ultimately received no response.
The elderly Grandmaster Alchemist remained seated in his private room, waiting patiently for someone to contact him through divine sense, but as the silence continued, it gradually became apparent that none of the Golden Core cultivators present was willing to part with a precious longevity item merely to obtain an Epiphany Pill. Nobody openly opposed the transaction, nor did anyone attempt to dissuade Lou Guyang from making his offer, yet the lack of interest was itself an answer.
Lin Sheng could understand their reasoning.
There was a considerable difference between watching a fellow cultivator acquire a valuable resource and personally helping that cultivator overcome a major bottleneck. If Lou Guyang obtained a longevity item and successfully used the additional years to advance into the Nascent Soul Realm, his status would rise considerably, and as one of the few Grandmaster Alchemists in the Eastern Region, he would become even more difficult to approach.
For an ordinary Golden Core cultivator, such a development might not matter much, but among those who had reached the same realm, the difference could be significant.
Human nature was complicated in this regard. Seeing a peer make a little more progress than oneself might inspire surprise, admiration and even a competitive desire to catch up, but watching that same peer pull far ahead could awaken something considerably uglier. People might congratulate a fellow cultivator who had obtained a small advantage, yet when the gap became too great, their thoughts could gradually turn towards resentment, suspicion and the uncomfortable desire to see the other person fail.
It was not necessarily because they wished the other person harm from the beginning. Sometimes, it was simply difficult to accept that someone who had stood beside them for centuries might soon occupy a position they could never hope to reach.
Lou Guyang's breakthrough into the Nascent Soul Realm would be a particularly troublesome example.
Once he became a Nascent Soul cultivator, his position in the Eastern Region would change dramatically. He would no longer be merely a respected Grandmaster Alchemist whom Golden Core experts could approach for pills and advice, but an existence standing above them in cultivation, with a lifespan, strength and influence that most of them could only envy.
Nobody could openly prevent him from pursuing that opportunity. The cultivation world did not operate according to such simple rules, and even if some cultivators were uncomfortable with his potential advancement, they could hardly justify interfering with his pursuit of a breakthrough.
But there was also no reason for them to help him.
They could simply remain silent, allowing the opportunity to pass without offering the resource he needed, and that was precisely what happened.
As the minutes passed, Lou Guyang's turn gradually came to an end without a single meaningful negotiation. The host did not interfere, nor did he attempt to persuade the other participants to reconsider, and after waiting a little longer, the elderly alchemist finally withdrew his offer.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward.
Nevertheless, the banquet continued.
The next cultivator to offer an item spoke through the formation, introducing a special ore known as Phoenix Blood Iron.
The name immediately caught the attention of several Golden Core experts, particularly those whose cultivation methods or weapons were related to the Fire attribute.
"Phoenix Blood Iron is an extremely rare spiritual ore that can only be found near the core of a deep mine where Fire-attribute spiritual Qi has accumulated to an extraordinary degree over a long period. Ordinary mines may contain traces of Fire-attribute minerals, but this ore forms under much harsher conditions, where the spiritual Qi has become so concentrated that the surrounding mineral deposits gradually undergo a profound transformation."
The cultivator paused briefly before continuing, "For most Golden Core cultivators, its usefulness is rather limited. It cannot directly increase one's cultivation, and refining it into an ordinary defensive artefact would be an inefficient use of such a rare material. However, for a fellow Daoist who possesses a Fire-attribute natal weapon, Phoenix Blood Iron is an excellent resource for strengthening that weapon and improving its affinity with Fire-attribute spiritual Qi. I wish to exchange it for a genuine Fire-attribute divine ability."
Lin Sheng's attention shifted towards the new offer.
Phoenix Blood Iron was not something he particularly needed, but the owner's explanation was reasonable. A spiritual material's value depended heavily on its compatibility with the person using it, and an ore that offered little benefit to an ordinary Golden Core cultivator could become exceptionally valuable to someone whose natal weapon was designed around the Fire attribute.
A natal weapon was different from an ordinary magical artefact.
Through years of refinement and cultivation, its owner could establish a deep connection with it, gradually integrating the weapon's power into their own combat methods. A suitable spiritual material could improve that connection, strengthen the weapon's structure and allow it to withstand greater amounts of magical power without suffering damage. If the material possessed an attribute compatible with the weapon, it might even improve the weapon's ability to gather and release that type of energy.
For someone who had spent centuries cultivating a Fire-attribute sword or spear, Phoenix Blood Iron could therefore be worth far more than its market price suggested.
As soon as the owner finished speaking, several strands of divine sense appeared throughout the hall.
There were fewer than those that had responded to Lin Sheng's Hundred Yuan Origin Pills, but the number was still considerable, and some of the divine senses carried obvious interest in the ore. A few cultivators appeared to be examining its purity, while others began negotiating over the exact nature of the requested Fire-attribute divine ability.
The owner had chosen his request carefully.
A genuine divine ability was not something that could be obtained merely by accumulating enough Spirit Stones, and a cultivator who possessed a suitable inheritance might be more willing to exchange it for a rare material that perfectly complemented their cultivation. The Phoenix Blood Iron owner was therefore offering an opportunity for both parties to obtain something that could be difficult to find through ordinary channels.
Lin Sheng did not participate.
He already possessed two fully formed divine ability seeds, Five Elements Profound Light and Yin-Yang Treasure Robe, and his current Golden Body cultivation was sufficient to support combat strength close to the limit of an ordinary Rank 4 cultivator. Although he still needed a third divine ability seed to advance his external cultivation further, he was not interested in acquiring an ability merely for the sake of increasing his collection.
The ability had to suit him.
That consideration was more important than rarity alone. Which is why he bantered to get the Rainbow Illusion Butterfly divine ability.
He continued observing the banquet as the exchange involving Phoenix Blood Iron progressed, and after a while, another cultivator introduced an item, followed by another and then another. Some offered rare medicinal ingredients, others presented ancient artefacts or incomplete inheritances, while a few sought resources that were so specialised that only one or two people in the hall appeared interested.
Several of the offers even caught Lin Sheng's attention.
One involved a rare spiritual material that could potentially improve the stability of a formation, while another concerned an ancient cultivation record whose contents might help an alchemist understand the interaction between several difficult medicinal ingredients. Neither exchange was suitable for him at that moment, but he still took note of the information, knowing that a resource which seemed unimportant today might become useful under different circumstances.
The private trading banquet continued for a considerable period, with the Myriad Dao Pavilion's managers moving quietly between the rooms, collecting items and delivering agreed-upon treasures without revealing the identities of the participants. Every successful transaction brought another valuable resource into circulation, and although the exchanges were conducted in silence, the invisible movements of divine sense gave the hall an atmosphere of constant activity.
Gradually, however, Lin Sheng noticed a change.
The number of cultivators introducing new items had begun to decrease.
At the beginning of the banquet, the offers had followed one another with little delay, as though everyone had arrived with several treasures they were eager to exchange. Now, the intervals between announcements were growing longer, and the remaining participants seemed increasingly content to observe rather than put forward their own resources.
It appeared that the banquet was approaching its conclusion.
Lin Sheng was not disappointed.
He had already benefited considerably from the gathering, particularly from his third exchange, which had yielded something far more valuable to his martial cultivation than he had initially expected. Even the transactions that had not directly benefited him had allowed him to learn more about the resources circulating among the Golden Core cultivators of the Eastern Region.
Information alone could be valuable.
He had come to Zhenyuan City intending to obtain several resources and broaden his options, and by this point, he had accomplished considerably more than he had anticipated.
A few minutes later, the host finally appeared in the central hall.
"Fellow Daoists, the private trading banquet has continued for some time, and it appears that most of you have completed the exchanges you intended to make. If anyone still wishes to offer an item, you may do so now. Otherwise, the Myriad Dao Pavilion will bring today's gathering to a close."
Nobody responded immediately.
The host waited for a short while before cupping his hands towards the surrounding rooms.
"Since there are no further offers, I shall thank everyone for attending. We hope that today's gathering has been worthwhile, and the Myriad Dao Pavilion looks forward to welcoming you again in the future."
His words marked the end of the banquet.
The formations separating the private rooms gradually relaxed, and the Golden Core cultivators began emerging from their respective sections. Some exchanged polite greetings with acquaintances, while others left without speaking to anyone, clearly preferring to keep their movements and identities as private as possible.
Despite the apparent calm, nobody behaved as though the gathering had been an ordinary social occasion.
The cultivators maintained a certain distance from one another as they made their way towards the exits, their divine senses occasionally sweeping across the surrounding area before withdrawing. Even those who had exchanged greetings earlier appeared reluctant to walk too closely together, and a few deliberately waited until other groups had moved ahead before leaving their rooms.
Lin Sheng noticed the behaviour immediately.
It was hardly surprising.
The banquet had allowed the participants to exchange valuable resources while concealing their identities, but it had not erased the greed or calculations that existed outside the pavilion. A cultivator might have failed to obtain a treasure during the auction, learned that someone else possessed a resource they wanted or simply decided that a wealthy Golden Core expert would make a suitable target.
The formations could protect the transactions within the pavilion, but once everyone left, the situation would become more complicated.
There was no guarantee that every participant would honour the same principles outside.
Some might already be considering whether they could identify a particular trader by observing their movements, while others might be waiting to see whether anyone left alone or displayed signs of carrying valuable treasures. A private exchange reduced the amount of information available to potential enemies, but it could not eliminate the risks associated with possessing wealth.
Lin Sheng was not particularly concerned.
He had taken sufficient precautions, and with his present strength, an ordinary Golden Core cultivator would have little chance of threatening him. Nevertheless, there was no reason to be careless, especially in a city where so many powerful cultivators had gathered within a relatively small area.
He rose from his seat, intending to leave with the others, when a manager from the Myriad Dao Pavilion approached his room.
"Senior, our host would like to meet with you privately. Please allow me to escort you to another room."
Lin Sheng paused.
He had already guessed the general reason for the invitation, but he did not immediately reveal his thoughts. Instead, he examined the manager briefly before nodding.
"Very well."
The manager bowed and led him through a side passage, away from the main hall and towards a quieter section of the pavilion. Unlike the rooms used for the banquet, this area appeared to be reserved for private meetings, with fewer attendants and several layers of formations embedded in the walls.
Lin Sheng casually examined the formations as he walked.
Their arrangement was different from the concealment formations used in the trading hall. These formations were designed to provide privacy while allowing the pavilion's internal channels to function without interruption, and there were several additional restrictions that seemed intended to prevent outsiders from tracing the movement of people or objects through the passage.
The Myriad Dao Pavilion clearly took its security seriously.
After passing through two corridors, the manager stopped before a wooden door and respectfully gestured towards it.
"Senior, the host is waiting inside."
Lin Sheng entered.
The room was not particularly large, but its furnishings were tasteful, and a faint fragrance drifted through the air from a small incense burner placed beside the window. A middle-aged man sat behind a wooden table, dressed in the formal robes of the Myriad Dao Pavilion, and the moment Lin Sheng stepped inside, the man raised his head.
Their eyes met.
The host immediately stood up and cupped his hands.
"Fellow Daoist, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Lin Sheng returned the greeting.
"The pleasure is mine."
The host smiled and gestured towards the chair opposite him.
"Please, take a seat."
Lin Sheng sat down, his expression calm as he waited for the other party to explain the reason for the meeting. The host did not rush into the conversation. Instead, he took out a small wooden box and placed it carefully on the table between them.
The box was made from a dark spiritual wood, its surface smooth and unadorned, but several thin lines of formation patterns had been engraved around its edges. The patterns were subtle enough that an ordinary cultivator might overlook them, yet Lin Sheng could immediately tell that the box was designed to seal the contents within and prevent their aura from leaking out.
The host rested one hand beside it.
"Fellow Daoist, it has been a pleasure doing business with you. I hope that our future dealings will be equally satisfactory."
Lin Sheng glanced at the box.
"Then I hope the item inside is as good as you promised."
The host chuckled softly.
"I believe you will find it satisfactory."
He pushed the box towards Lin Sheng.
Lin Sheng did not open it immediately. He first examined the sealing formations, confirming that they had not been tampered with, before releasing the restrictions and lifting the lid.
A faint five-coloured radiance immediately emerged from within.
Inside the box lay a stone roughly the size of a child's fist, its surface appearing smooth in some places and naturally uneven in others. Five distinct colours flowed across it, sometimes remaining separate like layers of coloured crystal, then blending together in a slow, almost imperceptible circulation. The spiritual energy radiating from the stone was unusually deep and harmonious, carrying traces of several attributes that seemed to coexist without interfering with one another.
Lin Sheng's gaze sharpened.
The moment he sensed that aura, he knew the stone was genuine.
A Five-Coloured Divine Stone.
He carefully examined it with his perception, paying particular attention to the five distinct currents of spiritual energy contained within. They were not merely five unrelated attributes forced together by an artificial process. Their energies possessed a subtle harmony, as though they had undergone a long period of natural refinement until their different properties could coexist within a single stable structure.
The stone's aura was neither particularly violent nor overwhelmingly powerful, but there was an unusual depth to it, and the longer Lin Sheng examined it, the more he understood why the treasure was so highly valued among internal martial artists.
He finally nodded.
"Not bad. The quality is as you described."
The host smiled, apparently pleased that Lin Sheng had accepted the item without raising further objections.
"I am glad that it meets your expectations. I hope we will have the opportunity to conduct more business in the future."
Lin Sheng closed the wooden box and stored it away.
"That will depend on whether our future transactions remain as satisfactory as this one."
The host laughed.
"Naturally. I look forward to hearing from you again."
After exchanging a few more polite words, Lin Sheng took his leave. The manager escorted him through a separate passage, and after leaving the Myriad Dao Pavilion, he did not immediately head towards the outer districts. Instead, he blended into the flow of cultivators leaving the central area, occasionally changing direction as he made his way towards the city gates.
Only after he had travelled a considerable distance did he quietly spread his perception across the surrounding streets.
He paid particular attention to the auras behind him, examining the movements of nearby cultivators and searching for anyone whose behaviour suggested that they were deliberately following him. Several powerful auras were moving through the district, but none appeared to be maintaining a suspiciously close distance, and after checking the surrounding area carefully, Lin Sheng found no immediate indication that he had attracted a pursuer.
He did not relax completely.
A skilled cultivator could conceal their aura, and the absence of an obvious tail did not guarantee that nobody was watching him. Nevertheless, the precautions were sufficient for the moment, and he continued towards the city gates without displaying any unusual behaviour.
Once he finally left Zhenyuan City, Lin Sheng travelled several dozen li before choosing a secluded stretch of terrain away from the main road. Only then did he stop and take out the wooden box again, examining the Five-Coloured Divine Stone with a thoughtful expression.
His third exchange at the private trading banquet had indeed given him a considerable surprise.
The Five-Coloured Divine Stone was a renowned treasure among martial artists on the Martial Continent, particularly those who had reached the Astral Gang Realm and were preparing to advance into the Five Qi Returning to Origin Grandmaster Realm.
For internal martial artists, the Astral Gang Realm was a stage in which the practitioner gradually opened their acquired acupoints, refined their Gang Essence and established a complete internal circulation. Reaching the peak of the realm required more than simply accumulating a sufficient quantity of Gang Essence. The martial artist had to open all the necessary acupoints and connect them through a complete Great Heavenly Cycle, allowing their internal energy to circulate through the entire system without obstruction.
Only when this circulation had reached a sufficiently complete state could the practitioner begin preparing for the next realm.
The Five Qi Returning to Origin Grandmaster Realm was an entirely different threshold.
A martial artist could not simply gather more Gang Essence and force their way through the bottleneck. Instead, they had to use the completed Great Heavenly Cycle as the foundation for fusing their cultivation with their Martial Concept, bringing the two into harmony until the transformation became sufficient to trigger the Three-Nine Lightning Tribulation.
Passing that tribulation was essential.
The lightning was not merely a test of physical endurance, nor was it simply a punishment imposed upon those who attempted to defy the heavens. It marked the dangerous transformation through which a martial artist's accumulated cultivation and comprehension were brought together, forcing the practitioner to prove that their foundation was stable enough to support the next stage.
If the martial artist's Martial Concept was insufficiently profound, the fusion could fail before the tribulation was even properly completed. If their Gang Essence lacked purity, the transformation might become unstable, and if their foundation was weak, the lightning could destroy the very cultivation they had spent centuries building.
But those who passed would enter an entirely new realm.
After surviving the Three-Nine Lightning Tribulation, the cultivator's Gang Essence would undergo a profound transformation, gradually coalescing with their Martial Concept to form Origin Qi. At the same time, the first Qi within their Qi Divine Treasure would open, creating the foundation upon which their Grandmaster cultivation would develop.
The breakthrough was not complete merely because the first Qi had opened.
The newly transformed Origin Qi had to fill it, and the process required an enormous quantity of energy. The cultivator needed to continue refining their Gang Essence, converting it into Origin Qi and directing it into the newly opened Qi until the entire space reached saturation.
Only then could they be considered to have properly established themselves in the Five Qi Returning to Origin Grandmaster Realm.
Lin Sheng's gaze grew more serious as he considered this process.
The resources required for the breakthrough were not limited to medicinal pills that replenished energy or spiritual materials that improved the purity of Gang Essence. The cultivator also needed treasures capable of strengthening their origin, allowing the newly formed Origin Qi to develop more efficiently and supporting the process of filling the first Qi Divine Treasure.
The Five-Coloured Divine Stone was one such treasure.
Its five harmonised attributes could help stabilise and strengthen the cultivator's origin during the transformation, accelerating the process through which Origin Qi filled the first Qi. For an ordinary martial artist, the difference might determine whether the breakthrough required several additional years or could be completed considerably sooner.
For an exceptional cultivator, the benefits might extend even further.
Under suitable circumstances, the stone could help improve the foundation of the first Qi sufficiently to support the opening of a second Qi, although such an outcome was far from guaranteed. The requirements for opening another Qi were considerably more demanding, and possessing the Five-Coloured Divine Stone alone would not compensate for insufficient comprehension or an unstable cultivation foundation.
Nevertheless, the possibility was already valuable.
Resources capable of assisting a Grandmaster breakthrough were rarely ordinary treasures, and the Five-Coloured Divine Stone was particularly sought after because its effects were not limited to one narrow cultivation method.
On the Martial Continent, such stones were generally controlled by Grandmaster-level powers, and those factions tended to monopolise every specimen they could obtain. The reason was obvious. A treasure that could accelerate the filling of a Grandmaster's first Qi, potentially even supporting the opening of a second, could influence the strength of an entire faction for generations.
A Grandmaster who advanced more quickly could devote additional years to refining their Martial Domain, improving their combat strength and preparing for the Three-Nine Lightning Tribulation required for further advancement. Even if the stone could not guarantee a breakthrough, its influence on the cultivator's preparation was significant enough that no major power would willingly allow such a resource to circulate freely.
Lin Sheng had not expected to encounter one on the Immortal Continent.
Upon reflection, however, it was not particularly surprising. The two continents possessed different cultivation systems and different standards for judging the value of spiritual materials. A treasure that was exceedingly rare among martial artists might have a wider range of uses in the Immortal Cultivation World, where cultivators pursued different methods of refining and harmonising their spiritual energy.
That did not make the stone common, but it meant that its value might not be fully recognised by every cultivator who encountered it.
The host of the Myriad Dao Pavilion had apparently understood its significance well enough to negotiate a favourable arrangement.
Lin Sheng's expression became thoughtful as he recalled the terms of their agreement.
Three Hundred Yuan Origin Pills alone would never have been sufficient payment for a treasure of this quality. Even though each pill could restore most of a Golden Core cultivator's dharmic power almost instantaneously, their value was ultimately limited by the number of times they could be consumed and the resources required to produce them.
The host had therefore requested something more substantial.
In exchange for the Five-Coloured Divine Stone, Lin Sheng had agreed to refine a certain quantity of Hundred Yuan Origin Pills for the Myriad Dao Pavilion from time to time, with the exact arrangements to be settled according to their future needs.
It was a transaction that extended beyond the immediate exchange of goods.
The pavilion would gain access to a valuable recovery pill that could prove decisive during battles between cultivators of comparable realms, while Lin Sheng would obtain a treasure that could help him prepare for the future development of his martial cultivation. Neither side needed to reveal every detail of their circumstances, and both would benefit from maintaining a working relationship.
Naturally, the host had his own calculations.
The Myriad Dao Pavilion had not built its position in the Eastern Region by conducting transactions without considering their long-term consequences, and the willingness to exchange a Five-Coloured Divine Stone for a continuing supply of Hundred Yuan Origin Pills suggested that the pavilion regarded the pills as more than an ordinary medicinal product.
Lin Sheng could not be certain whether the decision was driven primarily by commercial considerations or by the increasingly unstable situation in the region.
The war between the Purple Extremity Dan Sect and Dao Reaching Sect against the Seven Star Palace had already begun to affect the movement of cultivators and resources. Reports of missing cultivators had become increasingly troubling, and the appearance of a mysterious Devil Head had added another layer of uncertainty to an already complicated situation.
Under such circumstances, a reliable supply of Hundred Yuan Origin Pills could become extremely important.
A battle between Golden Core cultivators was rarely decided by cultivation alone. Even when both sides possessed comparable foundations, the result could depend on who had more magical power remaining after their strongest divine abilities had been used, who could maintain their defensive treasures for longer, or who had sufficient reserves to launch another decisive attack after the opponent believed the battle was nearly over.
A Hundred Yuan Origin Pill could alter that balance in an instant.
If a Golden Core cultivator had already exhausted most of their dharmic power, consuming one could restore the majority of their reserves and allow them to continue fighting at close to their peak condition. Against an opponent who had assumed that victory was already within reach, such a recovery could reverse the entire course of the battle.
The same principle applied to a group of cultivators.
A faction whose Golden Core experts possessed a reserve of reliable recovery pills could sustain combat for longer, recover from the expenditure of powerful techniques and preserve enough strength to respond to an unexpected attack. In a regional conflict where the outcome of a single battle might determine control over a strategic location or the survival of an important force, such an advantage could prove decisive.
The Myriad Dao Pavilion might simply be preparing for the possibility that the war would expand.
Lin Sheng could not rule out other motives, but he saw no reason to reject the arrangement merely because the host had his own interests. In the cultivation world, a transaction rarely benefited only one side, and a sufficiently intelligent cultivator would naturally seek to obtain something useful from every opportunity.
What mattered was whether the exchange remained advantageous to him.