Chapter 18: Can You Lower the Price?

Upon hearing this, Pang Dahai spun his head around, his large, bright eyes fixated on Ye Chen as if he were looking at an idiot.

A single glance was all it took for Ye Chen to understand.

He couldn't help but let out a dry laugh, scratching his head and realizing the foolishness of his own question.

Both Earth Fire and True Fire were flames born from the heavens and earth, but in terms of grade, Earth Fire simply couldn't compare to True Fire. If Earth Fire could refine Jade Spirit Liquid, then the even more potent True Fire was certainly capable.

"Elder, I want this Jade Spirit Ancient Scroll." Tucking the scroll into his robes, Ye Chen promptly produced twenty spirit stones.

"Then continue to look, and don't try to steal anything," Pang Dahai said, taking the spirit stones before turning and walking away.

After Pang Dahai departed, a flicker of excitement ignited within Ye Chen. With the True Fire he possessed, he now had the qualification to refine Jade Spirit Liquid. As long as he diligently studied the refining method, he was certain he could produce it.

In that instant, he could almost envision bottles upon bottles of Jade Spirit Liquid laid out before him.

His mood lifted, Ye Chen was about to turn away when the True Fire within his body suddenly trembled.

"A treasure!" This thought instantly surged in Ye Chen's mind. Earlier, when selecting a spirit weapon, his True Fire had trembled, leading him to choose Tian Que. Upon forming a bond with it, he had obtained the Barbarian Desolation Body Refining secret technique.

From that point on, a suspicion had taken root within him: the mysterious True Fire residing in his body possessed the ability to identify treasures.

"If it can attract your attention, that treasure must be extraordinary."

Ye Chen patted his lower abdomen, his gaze sharp as he swept across the shelves, examining every item displayed. It wasn't until his eyes fell upon a small purple-gold gourd that the True Fire within him trembled violently.

"Say no more, it's you." Having located the treasure, Ye Chen strode over and grasped the small gourd.

The gourd was no larger than an adult's palm, exhibiting a purple-gold hue and showing signs of wear. Aside from a few unrecognizable runes etched into its surface, it seemed unremarkable.

Yet, Ye Chen knew that true treasures couldn't be judged by their appearance. His Tian Que, outwardly unimpressive, was simply a heavy sword, yet it contained a terrifying body refining secret technique.

*Pop!*

Gently pulling out the stopper, Ye Chen closed one eye and peered into the small gourd. To his surprise, he discovered that it contained a world of its own, the space vast enough to hold over a dozen jars of water.

"You're interested in it just because of the large space inside?" Ye Chen glanced at the True Fire in his Dan Sea.

The True Fire, seemingly possessing sentience, trembled once.

"I trust you," Ye Chen said without hesitation, looking at the price noted below the gourd. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch.

"Goodness! One thousand three hundred spirit stones!"

"I'd be bankrupt and still couldn't afford it!" Ye Chen clicked his tongue in exasperation, but the True Fire continued to tremble insistently.

"Little fellow, you fancy this small gourd?" Pang Dahai, truly like a ghost, appeared behind Ye Chen without a sound, startling him.

Ye Chen chuckled, scratching his head sheepishly. "Um, Elder Pang, can you perhaps make this small gourd a bit cheaper?"

"That's not possible. This purple-gold gourd has space within it. One thousand three hundred spirit stones is already very cheap."

"Is that so?" Ye Chen's face fell with regret.

Seeing Ye Chen's awkward posture, Pang Dahai tucked his hands into his sleeves and asked, "How many spirit stones do you have?"

"One thousand one."

"Two hundred short, eh? Do you want to trade other things to make up the difference?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Chen cleared his throat and leaned towards Pang Dahai, then pulled a small black bottle from his storage bag.

"What is this thing?" Pang Dahai took the small black bottle, pried open the stopper, and lightly sniffed it.

Suddenly, the old man choked, hurriedly plugging the stopper back in.

"Little rascal, this is a poison pill!" Choking, Pang Dahai glared, his beard bristling. "Where did you get this wicked thing?"

"I... found it," Ye Chen said, touching the tip of his nose. The small black bottle he gave Pang Dahai was something he had obtained from the hunched-back old man. It was absolutely a top-grade poison. He truly had nothing else of value to offer and could only use this Bloodthirsty Pill to make up the amount.

"Found it? Are you trying to fool me or not?"

"Then I only have this bottle of Bloodthirsty Pills," Ye Chen said, waving his hand. "Elder, if you think it's acceptable, just use it to offset the two hundred difference."

"At such a young age, you don't focus on progress but only dabble in these evil and crooked ways," Pang Dahai lectured in the manner of an elder teaching a junior. Yet, even as he spoke, he very consciously stuffed the small black bottle into his robes.

"The Bloodthirsty Pill's toxicity is too strong, it's better to keep it with me! I'll reluctantly sell you that purple-gold small gourd."

Hearing these words, even Ye Chen, with all his composure, couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth. He secretly thought Pang Dahai was an old fox, clearly wanting the pill but having to put on this act. Anyone who didn't know might think the old man had suffered a great loss.

Though he secretly cursed in his heart, Ye Chen still produced one thousand one hundred spirit stones.

"The purple-gold gourd is yours."

"Thank you, Elder."

Ye Chen tucked the purple-gold gourd into his robes and quickly exited the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, afraid that Pang Dahai might regret the deal and snatch it back.

After Ye Chen left, Pang Dahai took out the small black bottle again.

"The Bloodthirsty Hall's Bloodthirsty Pill, I've made a huge profit this time," Pang Dahai said, holding the small black bottle and chuckling to himself.

Back on his small mountaintop, Ye Chen sat cross-legged on a stone and took out the purple-gold small gourd.

He used a dagger to cut his finger, and a drop of fresh blood dripped onto the gourd, immediately being absorbed.

However, Ye Chen's hope that the purple-gold small gourd contained hidden secret techniques or intents was unfulfilled. This left him somewhat disappointed.

"One thousand three hundred spirit stones, ah!" Holding the purple-gold small gourd, Ye Chen clicked his tongue. Thinking of the thousand-plus spirit stones, a pang of heartache returned. "I originally wanted to buy several bottles of spirit liquid! All my family's possessions went to buy you."

*Sigh!*

Secretly shaking his head, Ye Chen placed the small gourd back into his storage bag.

What he didn't notice was that at the very moment the purple-gold small gourd was placed into the storage bag, a faint, almost imperceptible purple halo flashed. It was just that Ye Chen didn't see it.

Having received the purple-gold small gourd, Ye Chen then took out the Jade Spirit Ancient Scroll and meticulously studied it.

Since he had never ventured into the realm of alchemy before, Ye Chen spent a full nine hours repeatedly comprehending the method of refining Jade Spirit Liquid. Only when the refining process was completely ingrained in his mind did he put down the ancient scroll.

The process of refining Jade Spirit Liquid was not very complicated, requiring over a dozen types of spirit grasses. However, to his relief, these spirit grasses were not difficult to find.

By this time, the sun had already set in the west.

Ye Chen looked at the color of the sky, then flipped his body and leaped up, heading towards the back mountain of the Hengyue Sect.

Although the spiritual energy density in the Hengyue Sect's back mountain was slightly weaker than within the Spirit Mountain, it was still a good place to cultivate spirit grasses. Hengyue Sect disciples often came here to gather them.

Following the records in the Jade Spirit Ancient Scroll, Ye Chen moved through the dense jungle of flowers and grasses. Whenever he saw a needed spirit grass, he would collect it into his bag. After an hour of gathering, he had almost found all the spirit grasses he needed.

"Only the Snow Jade Orchid Flower is missing," Ye Chen muttered softly, carefully counting the spirit grasses he had collected. He discovered that only the Snow Jade Orchid Flower was absent.

"This Snow Jade Orchid Flower isn't like the other spirit grasses, it probably isn't here!" Softly muttering, Ye Chen still ventured into the jungle once more.

His luck was not bad, as he quickly found a Snow Jade Orchid Flower.

This type of spirit grass was gentle in nature, with lingering spiritual energy. Its entire body was pure white, like snow, and when held, it had a cool feeling.

Having found one Snow Jade Orchid Flower, Ye Chen did not leave.

When refining Jade Spirit Liquid for the first time, the probability of failure was still very high, so he needed to prepare more sets of ingredients.

Soon, a second Snow Jade Orchid Flower came into view.

"My luck is really good," Ye Chen chuckled, stepping onto a rock, leaping up, and picking the Snow Jade Orchid Flower with a wave of his hand.

Just as he landed, a discordant voice sounded.

"That Snow Jade Orchid Flower is mine."

As the words fell, a graceful silhouette emerged from the flowers. Reflected in the moonlight, she appeared especially bright and clean, like a lotus flower.

This person, upon closer inspection, wasn't she Su Xinyue from Renyang Peak?

(End of this chapter)