In July, a grand event took place in Jiangnan. The annual Fanzhou Auction, spearheaded by the Wanxian Chamber of Commerce, was held as scheduled.
Sects and families from across the world attended, and the Wendao Sword Sect was naturally among them.
The auction lasted for three days.
After a series of intense bidding wars, the deputy hall master of the Wendao Sword Sect's Merchant Hall successfully secured the Innate Bitter Bamboo and the Ten-Thousand-Year Heaven-Connecting Wood that Xu Xian required.
The total cost was one hundred thousand spirit stones.
Converted into merit points, it amounted to a full ten million.
One should not underestimate one hundred thousand spirit stones. In Fanzhou, a small-scale spirit mine could only produce around fifty thousand spirit stones in an entire year.
A medium-grade spirit mine produced about one hundred thousand a year.
One hundred thousand was equivalent to the annual output of a medium-grade spirit mine.
Furthermore, not every sect possessed a spirit mine.
In the Central Plains, over seventy percent of medium-grade spirit mines were controlled by the Three Sects.
The remaining thirty percent were scattered among the seven great sects and the various Hundred Schools.
As for the other families and sects, they controlled nothing more than a few small-scale spirit mines.
They often came to blows over these resources.
Wars between sects were frequent and endless.
A sect might vanish without warning, only for a smaller one to rise silently in its place.
Of course, in the eyes of the Wendao Sword Sect, these so-called wars of extermination were nothing more than minor squabbles.
After all, the Central Province was vast and rich in resources, with a massive and diverse population. Various forces resided there, keeping each other in check.
Countless small sects were born there. In the Central Province, a cultivator at the mere nascent soul stage—a level seen everywhere in the Wendao Sword Sect—could already establish their own sect.
As soon as the auction ended, the Merchant Hall dispatched a sixth-stage Elder to traverse half of Fanzhou and bring the items back to the Wendao Sword Sect immediately.
That afternoon, Xu Xian received word that the items he wanted had arrived.
Xu Xian was weeding his spirit herb field at the time. Upon hearing the news, he was overjoyed. He tossed aside his hoe and hurried to the Merchant Hall.
As usual, Elder Qian received him personally.
"Little Martial Uncle, you certainly got here fast, didn't you?"
Xu Xian offered a couple of perfunctory pleasantries before getting straight to the point. "I heard the things I asked for have arrived?"
Elder Qian smiled. "Don't be in such a hurry, Little Martial Uncle. Let's sit and talk."
Xu Xian didn't stand on ceremony and took a seat.
Elder Qian took his time, first pouring Xu Xian a cup of tea before slowly producing two sandalwood boxes from the storage bag in his sleeve.
The boxes were exquisite, adorned with carvings. Peering with his Pupil of Insight, Xu Xian noticed restrictions on the boxes that would be difficult for a youth to detect.
Elder Qian silently recited a mantra and swiped his fingertip across the two wooden boxes, dispelling the specialized restrictions.
He pushed them gently toward Xu Xian and smiled. "Little Martial Uncle, take a look first. See if there are any issues?"
Xu Xian was not polite at all as he opened the boxes one by one.
The boxes were small, barely larger than a palm.
Upon opening them, he saw a sphere of white light and a sphere of green light.
This was an immortal art: the Size Manipulation Art (low-tier earth grade).
Xu Xian had happened to see it in the Dao Pavilion and had learned it, though he wasn't yet proficient.
This art could use spiritual power to enlarge or shrink objects. When paired with small spatial formations, it allowed large items to be placed in a storage bag while maintaining their reduced volume.
Of course, even if one mastered this art, it could only be used on inanimate objects and could not affect living beings.
Xu Xian's Pupil of Insight pierced through the surface of the light spheres to see their true nature.
[Item: Heaven-Connecting Divine Wood. Quality: immortal plants. Age: 20,000 years. Length: eleven feet.]
[Item: Innate Bitter Bamboo. Quality: immortal plants. Age: 13,000 years. Quantity: one segment.]
Xu Xian licked his lips and said excitedly, "That's right. They match perfectly. This is exactly what I wanted."
Elder Qian stroked his beard and said with a beaming smile, "As long as they're correct. As long as they're correct."
Xu Xian reluctantly looked away and waved his sleeve, closing the two boxes.
Feeling slightly anxious, he asked tentatively, "I wonder if the last item, the Blazing Red Jade, has been found?"
Elder Qian's smile stiffened, and an apologetic look appeared in his eyes. "I was just about to discuss that with you, Little Martial Uncle. That Blazing Red Jade is a rare immortal metal. My subordinates have searched everywhere but have yet to find it. It didn't appear at the auction either."
Xu Xian remained silent, lost in thought.
As expected!
It was more or less what he had guessed.
Seeing Xu Xian lower his gaze, Elder Qian quickly consoled him, "But you can rest assured, Little Martial Uncle. The merchant caravans under our Merchant Hall have already spread the word. We are willing to pay a heavy price to acquire it. As long as it exists in Fanzhou, we will certainly buy it for you. Please wait a bit longer..."
Xu Xian raised his dark brows and gave a forced smile. "Then I shall have to trouble the disciples of the Merchant Hall to put in more effort."
For now, he could only place his hopes on the Merchant Hall and hope his luck wasn't too bad.
"It is our duty. You overstate it, Little Martial Uncle," Elder Qian said respectfully.
Xu Xian set aside his disappointment and returned to the main topic. "Let's settle the payment for these two items first. It's a total of two million merit points, right?"
Elder Qian said, "Yes, Little Martial Uncle."
"I don't have enough merit points right now, so I might need to pawn some things."
Hearing this, Elder Qian quickly asked, "How much is the Little Grand-Uncle short?"
Xu Xian didn't hide it and said casually, "I'm short 1.3 million."
After a pause, Xu Xian took out the long-preserved white snake skin from his storage bag.
He spread it out on the table.
The white snake skin was of a uniform color. It reflected the light in the room, shimmering with a piercing coldness that generated a natural chill.
The scales on it were dense and neatly arranged.
Except for a small gash at the seven-inch mark, it could be described as flawless.
Elder Qian's eyes went wide instantly. He stood up abruptly and leaned over, his eyes nearly glued to the snake skin.
He looked at it again and again.
His cautious manner was as if he had encountered an incredible treasure.
Suddenly, he looked up and asked urgently, "Little Grand-Uncle, this is?"
"Snake skin," Xu Xian replied with a smile.
He had answered, yet it explained nothing.
Elder Qian was startled and made a bold guess. "Could this be the skin of that Xiushe?" Having said that, he immediately shook his head in self-doubt. "No, rumors say the Xiushe is pitch black and enormous. This is a white snake's skin, and its size is like that of an ordinary python. It doesn't match the description of the Xiushe..."
Xu Xian said nothing.
Elder Qian looked at Xu Xian and asked, "Little Grand-Uncle, may I pick it up to examine it?"
"Please, Elder."
Elder Qian first took out a white cloth and spread it on the floor before taking the snake skin and carefully laying it out.
He knelt on the ground, scrutinizing it closely and touching it with his hands.
Spiritual light occasionally flickered in his deep eyes.
Xu Xian watched the whole process, thinking to himself: This is what you call a professional.
The Wendao Sword Sect's Merchant Hall considered the beast skin trade one of its primary industries.
Beast skins and treasures hunted by disciples on missions were all collected by the Merchant Hall and sold to the Central Plains.
Every qualified Merchant Hall disciple possessed the basic ability to identify beast skins.
As the Elder in charge of procurement, Elder Qian's experience was second to none.
There were three key steps to identifying a beast skin.
First, use the eyes to see.
Second, use the hands to touch.
Third, use the divine sense to feel.
"Well, Elder Qian? Have you discovered anything?"
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