The cultivators below took turns presenting their items, and as expected, none were ordinary goods—most were rare treasures suitable for Core Formation cultivators. No wonder the secret market held this exclusive exchange meeting.
Han Li observed coldly from the side. Though he found none of these items particularly impressive, they stirred excitement among the other cultivators, gradually heating up the atmosphere. When it was Han Li’s turn, he casually took out a few rare materials from level-six and level-seven demon beasts from his storage bag and placed them in front of him, naturally drawing surprised gazes from others.
In the blink of an eye, it was the turn of the last cultivator, a dark-skinned middle-aged man, one of the only three mid-stage Core Formation cultivators present. The others’ gazes toward him carried a hint of reverence.
At this moment, his expression remained unchanged as he slowly took out two items from his person and casually placed them on the table: a palm-sized, dull copper plate and a half-foot-long, grayish-white bone strip, resembling the spine of some animal.
These two items left most of the cultivators stunned, unable to discern anything special about them, and they eagerly awaited his explanation.
To everyone’s surprise, after presenting the items, the middle-aged cultivator said slowly, “These two items are only for those who recognize their value. Those without the fate to understand them need not bother!” With that, he leaned back nonchalantly, squinting slightly, ignoring the glamorous female cultivator sitting close beside him, leaving her visibly embarrassed. His words left the others speechless, exchanging bewildered glances.
Only Han Li and Yun Tianxiao, after clearly seeing the two items, showed subtle changes in their expressions.
A strange look flashed across Han Li’s face. Though the items were far from him, with his powerful divine sense, a single glance revealed their details clearly.
The bone strip was unremarkable—though not ordinary demon beast material, it wasn’t significant to him. But the copper plate piqued his interest. It was inscribed with peculiar ancient characters, strikingly similar to those on the beast hide book containing the nameless qi-refining technique. Could there be a connection? He had never been able to decipher the contents of that ancient text.
As Han Li pondered quietly, Yun Tianxiao let out a hearty laugh.
“Haha! I didn’t expect Brother Sun to be so bold, presenting the spiritual bone of a level-eight demon beast. Even I, Yun, am tempted,” he said, glancing at the bone strip as if joking.
His words caused a stir in the room, shocking everyone. This item was arguably the most valuable presented so far. A level-eight demon beast—what kind of existence was that? Its spiritual bone was undoubtedly a rare treasure for Core Formation cultivators.
Han Li’s heart stirred at these words. Could this man know something about level-eight demon beasts?
Seeing Yun Tianxiao identify the bone’s origin, the Sun-surnamed cultivator merely chuckled, giving him a meaningful glance without saying more.
The exchange meeting grew truly heated, with excitement evident on everyone’s faces. Even the accompanying female cultivators stared at the items on the round table, their eyes burning with unconcealed fervor.
Seeing this, Han Li glanced down at Wen Siyue in his arms and noticed a trace of envy in her eyes. It seemed these items were irresistible to cultivators, regardless of gender.
At this point, the fat elder spoke up, listing the items and conditions for his exchange.
“A Heavenly Spirit Seed in exchange for a few spiritual herbs over five hundred years old. For the demon core, I’ll trade for a level-seven demon beast’s spiritual tendon. Of course, if someone offers enough spirit stones, I’d sell it as well…” After seeing the rare items others presented, the fat elder’s initial arrogance had largely faded. However, when mentioning the spiritual tendon, his gaze subtly flicked toward Han Li, as the materials in front of Han Li included one that met his condition.
Unfortunately, Han Li had no interest in a level-six demon core and showed no intention of standing to trade. He simply held Wen Siyue loosely, sitting calmly without moving.
“I’m interested in the level-six demon core, but I don’t have a spiritual tendon. How many spirit stones would you part with it for?” a gray-haired elder asked with interest.
“Fellow Daoists, you all know that demon cores are harder to come by these days compared to years past. This level-six core naturally comes at a high price. If you can offer fifteen thousand spirit stones, it’s yours,” the fat elder said, clearly reluctant to sell the core for spirit stones, quoting an obviously inflated price.
The gray-haired elder sneered and said no more, evidently finding it too expensive and abandoning the idea.
“I’ll take the demon core!” a white-haired old woman said coldly, her expression impassive. As she spoke, she tossed a storage bag toward the fat elder.
The fat elder was momentarily stunned but, after inspecting the storage bag, showed a satisfied expression.
“Only Madam Qing has such decisiveness—truly beyond us poor cultivators,” he said with a grin, clearly familiar with the old woman, and tossed the demon core to her.
The white-haired old woman let out a cold humph, caught the demon core, inspected it briefly, and stored it without another word, showing no interest in further conversation.
Several of the fat elder’s other items were inquired about, and most were traded away. The remaining unclaimed materials were put back into his storage.
When it came to the red-scarfed eccentric’s “Pan Li Serpent” beast egg, it sparked a frenzy of competition.
His conditions were lenient: whoever offered the most valuable item or the most spirit stones would get the egg. In the end, it was traded to an unremarkable red-robed cultivator for several bottles of rare pills.
After five or six more people, it was Han Li’s turn.
Han Li glanced at the pile of materials before him. Before he could speak, he felt several fervent gazes land on his face, including that of the fat elder who had specifically requested a spiritual tendon.
Han Li gave a faint smile. Instead of standing, he leaned back slightly, bringing Wen Siyue along with him, and said calmly, “For these materials, I don’t want items—just information. If the intelligence satisfies me, all these materials are yours.”
“Information?”
“Intelligence!”
Han Li’s words caught the others off guard. Though surprised, they were no ordinary cultivators and didn’t make a fuss. Instead, curiosity stirred in their hearts as they waited to hear what Han Li would say next.
Yun Tianxiao’s gaze flickered, a trace of doubt crossing his face.
“Which fellow Daoist can provide the location of a level-eight demon beast’s lair? I’d like to trade these materials for that information,” Han Li said slowly, his voice unhurried.
“Level-eight demon beast!” The words sent a collective gasp through the room, nearly everyone’s expression changing.
“Is Fellow Daoist joking? Are you planning to target a level-eight demon beast?” the fat elder blurted out, his face full of disbelief.
“Of course not. I have other reasons for needing this information, which I won’t elaborate on,” Han Li said, tapping a finger on the edge of the round table, calm and composed. His gaze swept unceremoniously over the other cultivators’ faces. All showed shock and astonishment, leaving Han Li feeling a pang of disappointment. Finally, his eyes landed on the dark-skinned Sun-surnamed cultivator.
Seeing Han Li’s look, the man was momentarily taken aback but quickly understood. He smiled and said, “Does Fellow Daoist think I know about level-eight demon beasts? I’m afraid you’ve got the wrong person.” He shook his head in denial.
Han Li’s disappointment was undisguised as he let out a deep sigh.
But at that moment, a delicate voice sounded in his ear.
“I know where a level-eight demon beast is, but I don’t want these materials. I have another condition for Fellow Daoist Li to agree to,” an unexpected person suddenly spoke.
Han Li was stunned!
“You know about a level-eight demon beast?” Han Li could hardly believe it.
The speaker was none other than Wen Siyue, nestled in his arms.
“Yes, I know the approximate location of a level-eight demon beast’s lair,” Wen Siyue said, her voice calm and composed as she leaned against Han Li, looking up at him with a serene expression.
“Siyue, what nonsense are you spouting? How could you know about a level-eight demon beast? Don’t speak recklessly!” Madam Fan, initially stunned, scolded her with a cold expression.
“Aunt Fan! Siyue truly knows the whereabouts of a level-eight demon beast and has no intention of deceiving Senior Li. Please rest assured!” As Han Li’s doubts surfaced, he felt Wen Siyue tighten her grip on him, her voice resolute as she bit her lip.
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