Seeing this, the eldest son of the Iron Dragon Mansion immediately straightened up and waved his hand to the side. The two maidservants obediently withdrew, leaving only the eldest son and Dongbo Xueying in the garden.
“This corpse of a Hunyuan lifeform belongs to the Void lineage and is extremely precious. Given my father’s temperament, he wouldn’t normally be willing to sell it. However, since he has no use for it, he gave it to me long ago, and the decision is now mine.” The eldest son smiled at Dongbo Xueying. “If you want it, you’ll need to trade it for a ‘Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl’ and throw in a ‘Leaf of the Withered Realm’ as well.”
Dongbo Xueying’s pupils contracted.
Since revealing part of his strength after slaying the master of the Demonic Heart Society, he had purchased numerous intelligence reports from the Tianxin Pavilion, including those detailing the various treasures of the Divine Realm. After all, it would be a tragedy to miss out on a treasure simply because he failed to recognize it.
The Leaf of the Withered Realm was a rare treasure used by the inhabitants of the Divine Realm to aid their cultivation, particularly for those refining their bloodline power. In the history of the Tianxin Pavilion, the Leaf had only appeared in three auctions—the lowest price being 3,900 Hunyuan Crystals, and the highest reaching 5,800. Of course, more than just these three leaves existed in the Divine Realm; many were held by peak Divine Emperors and bestowed upon disciples or subordinates.
Regardless, the Leaf of the Withered Realm was worth roughly 5,000 Hunyuan Crystals—an exorbitant price. To put it into perspective, the last auction Dongbo Xueying attended saw a Hunyuan lifeform corpse sell for just under 20,000 Hunyuan Crystals.
The Leaf of the Withered Realm was one thing, but compared to the ‘Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl,’ it paled in significance. The Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl was an exceedingly rare treasure that had never appeared in an auction before! According to Dongbo Xueying’s knowledge, only three such pearls had ever been discovered in the history of the Divine Realm. The price of any single one surpassed that of an ordinary Hunyuan lifeform corpse.
While a Void-lineage Hunyuan lifeform corpse was also extremely rare, in the eyes of most Divine Realm experts, its value likely fell short of the Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl. After all, utilizing a corpse was far less convenient than employing the Pearl.
“A Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl? Eldest Son, isn’t your demand a bit too steep?” Dongbo Xueying said.
“Ha! Too steep?”
The eldest son of the Iron Dragon Mansion scoffed. “Not at all. There are only three Void-lineage Hunyuan lifeforms in existence. One corpse is in my possession, another is under the protection of one of the three great royal clans—the Polaris Clan—and the last roams freely in the Divine Realm, possessing such formidable survival skills that even six peak Divine Emperors working together failed to capture it. If you miss this opportunity with me, where else will you find such a corpse? In fact, many have already expressed interest in this corpse—far more than just you. I’ve given them all the same condition: no Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl, no deal! Whoever brings me the Pearl first gets the corpse.”
“Then surely you don’t need the Leaf of the Withered Realm as well?” Dongbo Xueying pressed.
“My daughter is cultivating and happens to be in need of a Leaf. If you can procure a Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl, obtaining a Leaf should be trivial by comparison,” the eldest son said, eyeing Dongbo Xueying. “These are my terms, Brother Qingyun. Once you acquire both the Pearl and the Leaf, bring them to me, and we can trade for the Void-lineage Hunyuan lifeform corpse.”
“May I inspect the corpse first?” Dongbo Xueying asked.
“Certainly.”
The eldest son was surprisingly accommodating. With a flip of his hand, a storage-type treasure appeared in his palm. “I’ve already lifted the barriers. You should be able to peer inside.”
Dongbo Xueying focused.
A wisp of his consciousness immediately extended forth, encountering no resistance as it penetrated the storage treasure.
Inside, he saw a massive, serpentine corpse sprawled like a mountain range across the ground. Though long dead, the body still exuded a peculiar aura. Every part of it displayed profound manifestations of the Dao of Void—its emerald scales, its tail, the sharp spines along its back, even the intricate patterns on those spines—all were covered in countless esoteric runes, each more profound than the last.
Dongbo Xueying swept his gaze across it.
Just the surface of the corpse—its scales, spines, claws—revealed Void Dao principles in nearly 90% of its structure, each part showcasing different applications of the Dao at the Hunyuan level.
“Seen enough?” The eldest son closed his hand, withdrawing the treasure as he smiled at Dongbo Xueying.
Dongbo Xueying’s heart burned with desire.
He *had* to obtain this.
His initial inspection had been cursory. Memorizing the runic structures within a single eyeball of a Hunyuan lifeform would take him considerable time, let alone the entire corpse. Recording just the surface alone might take centuries. Dissecting it, examining its internal structures—the time required would be immense.
And the time needed to comprehend it all? Unfathomable.
“They say to learn from the heavens and earth. But at my level, the Void Dao principles inherent in nature may no longer surpass my own insights,” Dongbo Xueying mused. The Divine Realm itself was incomplete, its rules fragmented and oppressively rigid.
His goal was the Hunyuan level.
That was something nature itself could not encompass. The *Seven Strikes of Hunyuan* was formidable, but only its sixth and seventh strikes touched upon the Hunyuan level—and even then, only superficially. At best, they allowed him to contend with lower-tier Hunyuan lifeforms.
For him, a Void-lineage Hunyuan lifeform corpse was an invaluable reference, one that could greatly accelerate his progress.
“As I said, this corpse was given to me by my father, and the decision is mine,” the eldest son stated. “If you obtain what I seek, come find me.”
“I’ll do my best,” Dongbo Xueying said, rising to his feet.
“Then I won’t see you out,” the eldest son replied, watching with amusement as Dongbo Xueying departed.
The Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl was the eldest son’s greatest desire—one that even his status had failed to secure.
“With the Pearl, my strength would increase by half. Even peak Divine Emperors would struggle against me,” he thought to himself. His power was already formidable, ranking among the upper echelons of late-stage Divine Emperors—comparable to the Northriver Emperor during the era of the Broken Tooth Mountain Range. Few treasures could significantly enhance his strength, but the Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl was the one that could elevate him the most.
—
After leaving the Iron Dragon Mansion, Dongbo Xueying slipped into a secluded alley within Iron Dragon City and silently activated the Great Void Transference Technique, vanishing without a trace.
He first traveled to a remote town, altering his aura and disguising himself as a peak Divine Lord. There, he purchased detailed intelligence on the ‘Leaf of the Withered Realm’ and the ‘Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl.’ While he had previously acquired general information on Divine Realm treasures, the more detailed reports came at a steeper price.
“So expensive,” Dongbo Xueying lamented silently.
The intelligence on the Leaf and the Pearl cost him a staggering 8,000 Thunder Stones.
“The Leaf of the Withered Realm—quite a few possess it,” he noted, scanning the report. The Tianxin Pavilion’s intelligence was indeed formidable, listing no fewer than fifteen current owners.
“As for the Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl—only three exist.” He quickly located their current whereabouts. Unsurprisingly, those capable of safeguarding such treasures were all individuals of immense power and influence.
“It seems I’ll have to spill some blood,” Dongbo Xueying mused. “I’ll target those with the greatest sins.”
He wasn’t looking for the easiest targets, but the most wicked. Had the eldest son of the Iron Dragon Mansion been a demonic fiend drowning in sin, Dongbo Xueying might have considered assassination. But the man was merely a typical strong cultivator, unburdened by excessive karmic grievances. Thus, Dongbo Xueying preferred a fair trade.
Besides, the Iron Dragon Mansion was the domain of the Iron Dragon City Lord—a terrifying figure in his own right. Within his own residence, bolstered by countless formations, the City Lord’s strength would be even greater.
Not an enemy to provoke lightly.
As for the bloodshed to come—it had always been part of his plan. Dongbo Xueying possessed few treasures of his own. While he had slain the master of the Demonic Heart Society and other Divine Emperors, their possessions were insignificant compared to the Golden Thunder Hunyuan Pearl or a Void-lineage Hunyuan lifeform corpse. To amass such treasures, he had no choice but to take them by force.
But he refused to target the innocent.
If he was to kill, it would be the most heinous of fiends.
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