togophonebook Chapter 15 I Have a Connection in the Yunfu Sect
Chapter 15 I Have a Connection in the Yunfu Sect
Huang Dan, who came back in, sent all the servants away.
After a long silence, Huang Dan slowly spoke: "Fellow Daoist Zhang, I have a connection outside that might be able to find you a suitable spiritual plant."
"if only……"
Li Ya feigned displeasure: "However, what?"
"As long as you swear an oath by the Great Dao that you will never reveal what happened today, will this path be feasible?"
Seeing an opportunity to obtain a large number of spirit plants, Li Ya immediately became interested. Why would he leak today's events? Would he be digging his own grave?
However, the act still had to be played out completely: "Why didn't you say so earlier? Did you change your mind now that you've taken out this money, showing you're not poor?"
"Fellow Daoist, please don't be offended. It's just that this matter is of great importance, and we have to be cautious."
"I'm not stupid, why would I not make money?"
Li Ya stared at him, pretending to think, and nodded after a moment.
He then adopted a solemn and dignified expression, raised his hand, and spoke loudly.
"Zhang Junbao swore an oath by the Great Dao that he would never reveal what happened today. If he breaks this oath, he will suffer a backlash from the Great Dao, his cultivation will be completely destroyed, and he will die a terrible death."
It was Zhang Junbao who made the oath, what does it have to do with me, Li Ya? Li Ya made this oath with absolute confidence.
Seeing this, Huang Dan's worries completely disappeared.
"Fellow Daoist, to be honest, it's not that I can't gather the spiritual plants you need, but rather that we only met today, and I dare not be careless. In the past, only very familiar guests would take this route."
"It involves far-reaching issues. If it were to leak out, not only would my life be in danger, but you, fellow Daoist, would also be unable to withstand the wrath of those above."
Li Ya was overjoyed. This guy was finally starting to open up. He quickly said, "Fellow Daoist Huang, rest assured, I am not a gossip. What happened today is known only to Heaven, Earth, you, and me. No third person will know."
"Please tell me, fellow Daoist, what method is available to gather the spiritual plants I require?"
Huang Dan took a deep breath and lowered his voice unconsciously: "Fellow Daoist, do you know that besides the largest medicinal field in the back mountain, Yunfu Sect also has many other high-grade medicinal fields?"
Li Ya nodded, signaling him to continue.
"These superior medicinal fields cultivate rare spiritual plants to supply the sect with high-level cultivation pills and other cultivation materials."
"Output is finite, and so is loss."
"What does this mean?" Li Ya wondered.
"Of a hundred high-quality spiritual plants, only one or two out of ten will survive to grow into mature plants. Those that don't survive are what we call losses."
"Whether the losses were actually incurred is not something the sect will investigate!"
A meaningful smile appeared on his face: "Those cultivators who guard the high-grade medicinal fields seem to be strict in their supervision, but they secretly select those spiritual plants with average growth and count them as losses while they are tending to the medicinal fields."
"The lost spirit plants will then be entrusted to us for sale."
"So that's how it is!" Li Ya suddenly realized, and his mind cleared up.
He never expected that the Yunfu Sect's high-grade medicinal fields would have such a secret transaction.
However, he had some doubts. With the Foundation Establishment stage cultivation of the Yunfu Sect leader, how could he not see through the trickery?
It's probably not that they can't see it, but that they're deliberately ignoring it, because they always have to leave some benefits for those below them.
Moreover, if they do this, the cultivators who cultivate spiritual herbs will be even more diligent in nurturing them, hoping that more of these herbs will survive. The more that survive, the more profits they can reap.
"Currently, there are eighteen 200-year-old black dragon vines in the warehouse..."
"There are quite a few Yin-Erosion Flowers, about thirty, but they're not very old, only around 150 years old. They're worth 300 taels of Moon Toad Coins."
With a thought, Li Ya reached into his sleeve and took out the last tael of gourd coins from the Ling Shu Cave.
He pressed Huang Dan firmly onto the table, and only continued speaking when he saw Huang Dan's eyes were drawn to the gourd coins.
"This is the deposit. I'll leave it here. Whether it succeeds or not depends on you, fellow Daoist."
After saying that, he flicked the gourd of coins to the other side.
Huang Dan bowed and carefully put away the gourd-shaped coins on the table.
Li Ya then took out another list from his sleeve, which was full of medicinal materials used to treat erysipelas.
"Have everything on here prepared for me as well!"
"Fellow Daoist, please await good news!"
Once again lifting the legal restrictions and isolating the inside from the outside, Li Ya couldn't help but sigh, "This money just disappears so quickly."
There should be no problem with the spirit plant; now we've also acquired three additional magical artifacts suitable for the grotto-heaven.
"Those grand sects' grotto-heavens are said to be able to generate their own sun, moon, and stars, just like the Azure Lotus World. I'm truly envious and nervous."
"Unlike me, I have to build everything myself, from the sun and moon to the water and soil within the Ling Shu Cave Heaven."
Although it was self-deprecating, the joy was undeniable between the lines.
Of the remaining three plates—gold, silver, and bronze—two are Sumeru ritual implements of higher value than the mayfly bag, while the other three are only slightly inferior.
I don't need to buy all of these items; I won't give up on any that are reasonably priced.
……
"clang!"
After a gong sounded, the second auction began.
There were a total of eighteen Sumeru ritual implements on the copper plate, and they all looked much better than the previous batch.
Even if one knows that the value of the items hidden inside this Sumeru ritual vessel is not equal to its appearance, the more splendid ones will always fetch a higher price than the less impressive ones.
The only two magical artifacts of higher value than the mayfly bag—the Five Prisons Bracelet—were located in the copper plate floating in mid-air.
It seems that the results of the previous round were good, and this round started with fierce bidding as soon as it began.
That's the gambler's mentality: when they see others win and get rich, they feel that they will be the next lucky one.
"If it weren't for Ling Shu's help, I'm afraid I would have been just one of the many gamblers below."
The Sumeru ritual implements were auctioned off one by one, with prices varying from high to low, and Li Ya also made a purchase during the auction.
He doesn't just focus on high-value items; if he finds one at a reasonable price, below its true value, he'll make a decisive move.
The two Sumeru ritual implements they obtained also earned them a small profit of several taels of silver.
Next, the item photographed was the Five Prisons Bracelet, a Sumeru magic artifact that didn't sound very much like a celestial artifact.
The elderly man surnamed Zhu raised his hand and pressed down, and the surroundings immediately fell silent. Seeing this scene, the old man was extremely satisfied.
"Fellow Daoists, what are your thoughts on this object?"
As he spoke, he tossed the Five Prisons Bracelet, which was covered in ghost patterns and was pitch black, into the air.
Some of the longer-lived cultivators frowned, as certain unpleasant memories were stirred up by the Five Prisons Bracelet and surfaced from the depths of the lake.
"Zhu Wushi, your Qianjin Pavilion is courting death! You dare to sell demonic artifacts right under the nose of the Yunfu Sect..."
"I, on behalf of the manager, express my gratitude to Daoist Qiansong for his consideration of Qianjin Pavilion."
Zhu Wu bowed respectfully and then instructed the servant, "Prepare a jar of Green Bamboo Spirit Wine for Daoist Qiansong."
"Qianjin Pavilion is open for business, so it certainly wouldn't sell anything illegal."
"A month ago, at the invitation of the elders of the Yunfu Sect, the Qianjin Pavilion ambushed and killed some demonic cultivators who had smuggled themselves in from the Southern Wilderness Continent. Unexpectedly, following the clues, they discovered a group of demonic cultivators who had also smuggled themselves in from the Southern Wilderness Continent. This item is what they obtained in this operation!"
"The contraband inside has been taken away by the elders of the upper sect and a restriction has been left behind. The remaining items inside have not been inspected by Qianjin Pavilion. Fellow Daoists, you can come and bid with peace of mind."
Upon hearing this, some cultivators began to doubt whether they had gone mad or were hallucinating.
"Fellow Daoist Zhu, are you telling the truth or not? Cultivators from the Southern Wilderness Continent smuggled themselves into our Central Continent? Giving up their lawless, lawless, and carefree lives over there, they come here to become talents?"
"Ahem, ahem, ahem!" Zhu Wu coughed lightly a few times: "Fellow Daoist, please be careful with your words!"
The speaker immediately realized he had said something inappropriate, and quickly retreated, disappearing into the crowd.
What good things could a cultivator who can't even survive in the Southern Wilderness Continent possibly have if he has to sneak into the Central Continent to make a living?
If it weren't for Ling Shu's help, Li Ya wouldn't have believed that the Five Prisons Bracelet could be worth much money.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the starting bid for the Five Prison Bracelet is twenty taels of Moon Toad Coins, and each bid must be at least one tael of Moon Toad Coins higher."
After a while, there were not many bidders, and the bids were not high.
These demonic cultivators wield the Myriad Soul Banner and the White Bone Sword at will, and their cultivation techniques either involve extracting souls and refining spirits or summoning demons and monsters.
Even if there are valuable items inside, these immortal cultivators probably won't need them. Losing some money is a small matter; tarnishing their own foundation is a big deal!
There weren't many cultivators willing to pay such a price for a Sumeru ritual implement.
"Twenty-six taels!"
Seeing that no one was bidding, Li Ya decisively placed a bid, but as soon as he finished speaking, another cultivator followed suit and placed a bid.
"Twenty-seven taels."
Li Ya remained calm: "Twenty-eight taels."
The other party also placed an offer.
"Twenty-nine taels."
Thirty taels.
Thirty-one taels.
Even a fool would realize that someone was trying to stir up trouble for him once he got here.
"They're just being ridiculous."
It's inevitable to feel annoyed, but if this stalemate continues, others might notice something amiss.
Besides, if the price is raised again and again, this donkey will definitely follow suit, so I might as well raise it all at once.
If we can scare that fool away, that would be the best outcome.
Taking more of the other items, even those of slightly lower value, can still be useful.
After weighing the pros and cons, Li Ya made a direct offer.
"Fifty taels!"
"Fifty-one taels."
It seems we really are being watched.
"Fellow Daoist Zhu, could this person be a shill hired by your Thousand Gold Pavilion, specializing in inflating prices?"
As soon as the argumentative cultivator finished speaking, Li Ya took the lead in posting, and before Zhu Wushi could reply, he continued.
"I don't want this piece of junk anymore, you can play with it yourself!" At this point, if he still stubbornly made a purchase, someone with ulterior motives would probably notice something was amiss.
"Fellow Daoist!" Zhu Wu bowed towards the private room where Li Ya was.
"Qianjin Pavilion would never resort to such despicable means. As for that fellow Daoist who made the bid, if you truly wish to buy, you should bid openly and fairly. Why resort to such methods and disgust others?"
His gaze swept across the audience, locking onto the person who had just made the bid, a monk whose face was obscured.
"I'm sure you're familiar with the rules of Qianjin Pavilion. If you bid and then can't pay, then it's not up to me to argue with you."
Seeing that Li Ya did not continue to bid, the cultivator began to panic.
He had only come here to join in the fun. Just now, as he passed through the inner corridor, he saw a servant carrying several magical treasures into a private room. When he came out, three of them were missing.
He couldn't help but feel jealous, and silently made a mental note of this private room.
As soon as Li Ya made his bid, he thought of playing a trick on him and followed suit with his own bid.
Unexpectedly, Li Ya decisively raised the price, which made him grit his teeth in anger.
"You're so rich, why can't you contribute more? Putting me in this situation, doesn't your conscience bother you?"