Han Li frowned slightly, feeling somewhat speechless as he looked at the prescription from the expert before him.
It was already noon on the second day since Han Li had arrived at Yanling Castle.
After a morning of enthusiastic discussions among the newly joined members, the dozen or so cultivators from various sects in the room began exchanging the items they needed. Each took turns stating what they required and what they could offer in exchange, hoping to find willing traders among the other cultivators present.
Surprisingly, even in such a small-scale exchange, several cultivators brought out some genuinely valuable items.
For instance, the woman surnamed Fang from Tianque Fort offered a piece of Tianhua Stone, the best material for crafting top-tier earth-attribute magical instruments. Even some earth-attribute magical treasures with lower requirements could be made using this material.
Another newly joined cultivator from the Spirit Beast Mountain sect presented an egg of a first-grade upper-tier demon beast, the Wind Howl Eagle. Once hatched, it would become an excellent companion for a cultivator, extremely useful for scouting or searching for items.
Although the items offered by others were not as dazzling as these two, they were still materials rarely found in ordinary marketplaces.
Among them, Han Li actually found one of the herbs needed to refine the Spirit Gathering Pill, which took him by surprise. Excited, he exchanged seven or eight upper-tier primary talismans for it. Of course, the herb’s age was insufficient and would require him to nurture it further upon his return. Still, both parties were pleased with the trade.
When it was Han Li’s turn to speak, he unhesitatingly mentioned that he had some upper-tier primary talismans for exchange and listed the two remaining herbs he needed for pill refinement. After a moment’s hesitation, he added that he would also accept any pill prescriptions.
Since these were materials required for an ancient prescription and Han Li had been unable to gather them fully in the Yellow Maple Valley and Tianxing Sect markets, they were undoubtedly rare. Most of the other cultivators had never even heard of the materials Han Li mentioned. Even those who had some knowledge of them did not possess any. As for pill prescriptions, none of the cultivators were willing to trade them for mere talismans. They all assumed Han Li was just casually mentioning it without any real expectation.
After speaking for a while with no one stepping forward to trade, Han Li felt disappointed and was about to sit back down. Unexpectedly, someone suddenly spoke up, “Any pill prescription? I have one here, though it’s a bit peculiar. How many talismans would you offer for it?”
Hearing this, Han Li felt a surge of joy and replied without hesitation, “Of course! As long as it’s a pill prescription, I’m willing to trade.”
Only after speaking did Han Li notice that the person offering the prescription was the somewhat aloof and eccentric Taoist Wuyouzi.
Upon hearing Han Li’s response, Wuyouzi revealed a rare smile and tossed a cyan jade slip to Han Li. The other cultivators, seeing someone actually trading a pill prescription for talismans, began whispering among themselves in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Wuyouzi’s senior brother, Wuzi, appeared indifferent, closing his eyes as if meditating.
After a brief glance at the jade slip, Han Li understood why the other party was willing to trade it.
This was also an ancient prescription, specifically designed for ancient cultivators to raise spirit beasts—the “Spirit Nurturing Pill.” According to the prescription, not only did most demon beasts greatly enjoy these pills, but long-term consumption could also miraculously help spirit beasts advance in rank. It was undoubtedly the best pill for nurturing spirit beasts.
At this point, Han Li was shocked! How could such a valuable prescription be offered for exchange? But when he saw the ingredients required for refining the pill, he suddenly understood and laughed at himself, realizing why the other party held it in such low regard.
The materials needed to refine the “Spirit Nurturing Pill” were astonishingly rare for ordinary cultivators. They were almost as precious and hard to find as the ingredients for Han Li’s “Qi Refining Powder.”
Not only were the ingredients difficult to gather, but even if someone managed to collect them, who would actually use such rare materials to refine something like the “Spirit Nurturing Pill”? It would be far more practical to use them for personal cultivation, as improving one’s own magical power was much more beneficial than using them on spirit beasts.
“Benefactor, you did say any pill prescription would do. Surely you won’t go back on your word now?” The lean Taoist suddenly revealed a sly expression, a far cry from the simple and honest image he had initially presented to Han Li, who could only smile wryly.
Thus, the scene from the beginning unfolded.
However, while the prescription was useless to others, its value to Han Li was undeniable, and he had no intention of letting it slip away.
After a moment’s thought, Han Li took out ten upper-tier primary talismans from his storage bag and tossed them to the other party. This should be sufficient, as the prescription was essentially worthless to ordinary cultivators. Otherwise, the Taoist would have traded it long ago instead of holding onto it until now.
Sure enough, Wuyouzi accepted the talismans with satisfaction and said nothing more.
After Han Li sat down, the next cultivator immediately stood up and eagerly said, “I have some centuries-old ironwood that can…”
The exchange of items seemed to heat up the atmosphere in the room even further!
Meanwhile, in the conference hall of the Yan family’s Feiyun Pavilion, an extremely secret clan meeting was underway.
All the influential managers and elders had gathered, seated in two rows, listening to the Yan family’s patriarch speak from the main seat. Standing beside the patriarch was a stunningly beautiful young woman, around seventeen or eighteen years old, with an ethereal, fairy-like appearance.
“The conditions offered by the Ghost Spirit Sect for the Yan family’s return are exceptionally generous. Not only have they offered to lend us the supplementary volume of the ‘Ten Thousand Spirits True Scripture,’ but they are also willing to let a member of the Yan family serve as the vice leader of the Ghost Spirit Sect. Their only requirement is that we must marry Yan’er to their young master so they can practice the Blood Spirit Grand Technique together. Furthermore, the future head of the Yan family must be a child of their young master and Yan’er. The same applies to the position of the Ghost Spirit Sect’s leader.” The Yan family patriarch spoke with a solemn expression, his voice soft yet clear to everyone present, as if he were speaking directly into their ears.
“Everyone, speak your minds. Where should our Yan family go from here? It is worth noting that our ancestors were originally cultivators from the Ghost Spirit Sect. It was only due to disagreements with other sect members that they left and established this foundation in Yue Kingdom. In fact, the current leader of the Ghost Spirit Sect is my junior. So, emotionally, there’s no need for reservations. The only consideration is the gains and losses for the Yan family’s interests.”
“Additionally, the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect brought news that the six demonic sects of Tianluo Country will invade Yue Kingdom in five days. Meanwhile, Jiang Country and Cheqi Country fell half a month ago. Most of their sects were destroyed, while a small portion surrendered and became subordinate sects of the six demonic sects. Therefore, even if our Yan family does not agree to the Ghost Spirit Sect’s conditions, we must consider how to ensure the family’s survival and continuity after the seven sects of Yue Kingdom are destroyed. This is our top priority.”
Before the Yan family members could fully process the first issue, the patriarch dropped another bombshell, leaving them even more shocked and sparking heated discussions.
“What? The cultivator world of Jiang Country and Cheqi Country has been conquered? That can’t be!”
“These two countries are not weak! They’ve held their own against the six demonic sects for so many years. How could they fall so suddenly?”
“Could there be some hidden circumstances behind their rapid defeat?”
Clearly, the Yan family’s decision-makers found it hard to believe the news.
“Enough! If anyone has questions, raise them one by one. What is this unruly behavior?” The Yan family patriarch frowned, his expression turning stern.
At his words, the previously noisy hall fell silent. However, everyone’s eyes turned to a middle-aged scholar seated third to the right of the red-haired elder.
Noticing this, the Yan family patriarch frowned slightly before addressing the scholar kindly, “Xuanye, what are your thoughts on this matter? You are the Yan family’s strategist. This concerns our family’s survival. Please analyze it carefully.”
“Yes, Patriarch!” The scholar responded promptly, rising to his feet.
“However, may I ask a few questions first before sharing my thoughts?”
“Of course! Feel free to ask anything. I will answer truthfully,” the patriarch assured him solemnly.
With this permission, the scholar nodded and asked seriously, “First, how powerful is the Blood Spirit Grand Technique? How much will it benefit from a dual cultivation between Yan’er, with her heavenly spiritual root, and the young master of the Ghost Spirit Sect? Second, how did the Ghost Spirit Sect find our Yan family, and how did they learn about our ancestral origins? Lastly, did you learn about the fall of Jiang Country and Cheqi Country solely from the Ghost Spirit Sect? If it’s true, what is the Righteous Alliance of Fengdu Country currently occupied with?”
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