Transmigration: The Peerless Immortal Husband

The attendant frowned upon seeing this scene. These disciples of Tailuo Sect were acting as if they were extremely important. With just their Foundation Establishment strength, they dared to show disrespect to Golden Core seniors. They were relying on the Tailuo Sect behind them, but they didn’t consider that these four people were also prodigies, even within Tailuo Sect. Who’s to say they didn’t have a Nascent Soul powerhouse backing them?

Lingyuan Pavilion had its own information channels, so while preparing for the auction, they were also trying to investigate the backgrounds of the four. However, up until now, they hadn’t found any conclusive results. The only information they had was from the Yan family, who claimed they encountered the four at sea, lost and stranded, and then boarded a ship to Jiangyun City together.

Even though they hadn’t uncovered any concrete results, Lingyuan Pavilion wasn’t willing to offend Gu Yao and the others. They didn’t look kindly on the behavior of the Tailuo Sect disciples.

“Ah, so you are the esteemed disciple of the Nascent Soul elder from Tailuo Sect. Please forgive our earlier rudeness. Please, take a seat. Attendant, bring in some spirit tea.”

Gu Yao smiled warmly, appearing very good-natured, not at all angry.

“Master Yao, you are too kind. This is what we should do. If there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to let the attendants know,” the attendant said, pointing out Gu Yao’s identity, then cupped his fists and exited the private room.

Gu Yao’s identity as a seventh-grade alchemist caused the displeased expressions of the Foundation Establishment cultivators to soften somewhat. Mu An, however, spoke directly: “I’ve heard that Master Yao’s alchemy skills are extraordinary. I wonder if I could trouble you to refine a furnace of Tianyuan Pills for me?”

Gu Yao glanced at the expressions of the group, as if the request for him to refine pills was a favor to him. He extended his hand and said, “Since you’re not beating around the bush, I’ll make it clear upfront: the same rules as Lingyuan Pavilion—provide the materials, and I’ll refine a furnace of pills. If you’re not satisfied with the result, feel free to seek someone more capable.”

Mu An hadn’t spoken yet when one of his followers stepped forward: “Aren’t you supposed to be a great alchemist? How come you need three sets of materials just to refine one furnace of pills? It seems like you’re not as impressive as they say. This is Jiangyun City, a small place, where they can’t find many seventh-grade alchemists, so they’re overly respectful of someone named Yao. But in Tailuo Sect, what’s the big deal about a seventh-grade alchemist?”

Of course, beyond the seventh-grade alchemists in Tailuo Sect, there were also sixth-grade alchemists, and even within seventh-grade, there were significant variations. But could these Foundation Establishment cultivators really afford to hire a seventh-grade, or even a lower seventh-grade, alchemist to refine pills? It was all a fantasy.

Tian Feirong chuckled lightly: “Since you think Master Yao’s price is too high, why don’t you take your materials back to Tailuo Sect and have your so-called experts refine them for you? No need to make things so difficult for yourself.”

“How dare you!” The Foundation Establishment cultivator was enraged and pointed his finger at Tian Feirong, about to curse at him.

“Enough,” Mu An waved his sleeve, immediately stopping the brewing confrontation, “Master Yao and this friend are right. It’s my fault. Next time, I’ll prepare everything properly before seeking Master Yao’s assistance. My apologies for the disturbance.”

With that, Mu An led his people out of the private room. However, once they stepped outside, his expression turned grim. For the Tianyuan Pill’s materials, he could barely gather two sets. If those two sets could refine one furnace of pills, he would consider it a big win, because Master Yao refined mid-grade Tianyuan Pills. As long as he could bring some back to the sect and reprocess them, the cost would be easily recouped, and perhaps even more.

He didn’t expect the person named Yao to reject him outright! Clearly, the other party didn’t take him, a Nascent Soul elder’s disciple, seriously.

“Master, those people were too disrespectful to you. You were giving them face by asking them to refine pills, yet they treated you like this! They deserve to be taught a harsh lesson!” One of the Foundation Establishment cultivators, who had been stopped by Mu An earlier, was dissatisfied. If they were representing Tailuo Sect, even Foundation Establishment cultivators wouldn’t easily be disrespected by Golden Core cultivators. But these people treated them this way!

“Don’t act recklessly,” Mu An snapped at them. “One of those four has cultivation higher than mine. If I can’t deal with them, what makes you think you can?” He snapped, and then stormed off to the private room Lingyuan Pavilion had arranged for him. Given his status, Lingyuan Pavilion would not offend him, and they would still show him the proper respect.

Mu An’s words immediately subdued the other Foundation Establishment cultivators. Since even Mu An wasn’t sure he could deal with them, they, being mere Foundation Establishment cultivators, would only be seeking their own demise by provoking them. But they still felt dissatisfied. The Tailuo Sect disciples and the status of a Nascent Soul elder’s disciple hadn’t been enough to earn them the respect they expected.

Once they left, the private room became quiet again. Tian Feirong and the fatty boy sneered, openly mocking: “This Mu person really dares to dream. He wanted you, Gu Yao, to do all the work for free. What a clever calculation.”

Gu Yao sighed: “But he’s the disciple of a Nascent Soul elder. Offending him, I wonder what kind of trouble it might cause.” Gu Yao rested his chin on his hand, thinking. With a Changxian Sect standing in front of them, it wouldn’t be easy to provoke another equally powerful enemy. He didn’t want to end up with enemies on all sides in this vast Qianhao continent. So, the pills he was directly trading with Lingyuan Pavilion were reasonably priced. He also hoped to use this opportunity to build a good relationship with them, which would make their future movements on Qianhao continent much easier.

Chi Changye pushed the plate of spirit fruit in front of Gu Yao and said, “It’s not your fault. With the way the Mu family acts, it was bound to happen. This situation couldn’t have been solved by you stepping back. The more you yield, the more they’ll take advantage and think we’re afraid of their Tailuo Sect disciples. Their behavior will only get worse.”

Gu Yao grabbed a spirit fruit and took a bite, nodding: “I understand that. Besides, three sets of materials for one furnace of pills is already a fair price. I didn’t ask for five sets, but now it seems like even two sets is pushing it. He really was trying to get something for nothing.”

It was only because of his unique soul and divine sense that his pill success rate was higher than most alchemists. He could guarantee that two sets of materials would yield one furnace of pills, but that wasn’t a reason to lower his standards or price.

“Let’s leave once the auction is over. Before we go, let’s ask the shopkeeper about any recent news or interesting places around here,” Chi Changye decided.

Gu Yao and the others nodded in agreement. They had already offended the Mu family and Mu An, and they didn’t believe Mu An would let this slide without doing something. While they couldn’t take action against Mu An for now, they were determined to make the Mu family regret their actions—those pills would be visible to the Mu family, but they wouldn’t be able to get their hands on them.

The auction quickly began, and the intensity of the bidding surpassed anything they had seen before. The price for a single high-grade Tianyuan Pill was so high that Tian Feirong nearly swallowed a fruit pit in shock.

First, he thought the people outside had gone crazy! Second, he realized just how many wealthy people there were on this continent! Third, he remembered how much spirit stones he had spent when refining his Golden Core and felt a pang of regret!

The person who won the high-grade Tianyuan Pill was ecstatic, while those who didn’t win would have to wait for another chance. Fortunately, there were still several pills available. What they didn’t know was that some of them had already been secretly traded between Lingyuan Pavilion and Gu Yao. After all, Lingyuan Pavilion needed to cultivate their own cultivators to strengthen their defense.

In addition to the pills, several other items were also auctioned. Some were collected and transported by Lingyuan Pavilion, while others were entrusted by cultivators for auction—much like what Gu Yao had done. The only difference was that this time, Lingyuan Pavilion did not charge a fee; all the proceeds from the auctioned items went to Gu Yao.

Gu Yao had already seen the detailed list of items before. Those who were interested had already made private deals, and those who had entrusted their items to the pavilion were satisfied with the prices offered. Therefore, they weren’t too interested at the moment. However, when a seventh-grade talisman was auctioned, Gu Yao’s interest was piqued. That talisman was one that Chi Changye had given to the pavilion.

When the shopkeeper asked Chi Changye who had drawn the talisman, Chi Changye simply said it was something he had come across by chance. The shopkeeper didn’t press further, as not all cultivators were willing to reveal their backgrounds. Lingyuan Pavilion kept two of the talismans, and the remaining four were auctioned off. Seventh-grade talismans weren’t like eighth or ninth-grade ones, which could be easily produced in large quantities. A single seventh-grade talisman could instantly kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Making them was difficult, and the requirements for the talisman paper and talisman blood were extremely high, so the cost was not low either.

These life-saving items caused a bit of a stir at the auction. Even though some talisman masters could create seventh-grade talismans, most of them were unwilling to sell them. They preferred to keep them for themselves or give them to their disciples for protection.

Halfway through the auction, the four of them decided to leave and return to the guesthouse to wait for the delivery of the spirit stones after the auction ended. During this time, Gu Yao asked the steward who had previously greeted them. This steward was a trusted aide of the shopkeeper, and Gu Yao asked him about any recent news or interesting places nearby that could serve as trial grounds.

The steward had been instructed by the shopkeeper, so he told them everything he knew. He provided several locations suitable for newly promoted Golden Core cultivators to undergo trials, but none of them were near Jiangyun City. The closest one was the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, where they had stayed before.

Gu Yao and the others marked these places on the map. They didn’t have much time left, so staying in seclusion wasn’t the best way for them to cultivate. Although these trial places were dangerous, they also offered opportunities alongside the risks.

The steward secretly guessed that they were likely planning to venture into these dangerous trial areas. He thought to himself, no wonder they were so accomplished at such a young age—not only were they highly talented, but they also had a fierce determination. If they could survive, their future achievements would definitely surpass Mu An’s.

After the auction, the shopkeeper delivered all the spirit stones to them, converting them into mid-grade ones. The total amount was over two hundred thousand. Considering the exchange rate between mid-grade and low-grade spirit stones, Gu Yao felt like he was carrying a large sum of wealth. After a moment’s thought, he habitually handed the sum over to Chi Changye to manage, keeping only a small amount for his own cultivation.

Chi Changye smirked slightly, then casually stored the spirit stones into the storage ring he had purchased from Lingyuan Pavilion.

The shopkeeper had hoped to keep the four of them, especially Gu Yao, around for a little longer. However, they had already made up their minds to leave. The shopkeeper understood that if they weren’t gathering spirit stones, they likely would have left for the other side of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains after reaching their Golden Core.

Reluctantly, the shopkeeper gave them a special token from Lingyuan Pavilion. With this token, they could receive a ten percent discount on purchases at any branch of Lingyuan Pavilion. The shopkeeper also hoped that if Gu Yao ever decided to sell pills in the future, he would consider Lingyuan Pavilion. Gu Yao agreed, expressing that he would definitely consider Lingyuan Pavilion first when making any future deals.