Chapter 467: Tomb Robbing

Gold coins are generally accepted throughout the Myriad Kingdoms Alliance, but their usefulness diminishes as the level of the kingdom increases.

A single spirit stone cannot be bought even with a million gold coins. You're offering only fifty gold coins for something worth fifty spirit stones? Are you serious?

Beside them, Zhao Feiwu's eyes nearly rolled back, and she almost fainted from exasperation.

He had painstakingly negotiated down from 100 spirit stones to 15, thinking it was a significant breakthrough. Yet, this person, with a single opening offer, suggests 50 gold coins?

Just moments ago, she thought the vendor was trying to rip them off. Now, it seemed the vendor was quite honest, while this Master Zhang was acting more like a robber.

Trying to buy something, no matter what it was, with such a meager sum was no different from outright robbery.

"Fifty... gold coins?" Appraiser Liu Chang, who had expected a much higher offer, almost burst out laughing upon hearing this.

Where did this bumpkin come from? Spirit stones and gold coins were two completely different currencies, incomparable in value. "I offered fifty spirit stones, and you offer fifty gold coins? Why don't you just say, 'give it to me for free'?" Appraiser Liu Chang thought, casting a scornful glance. What audacity!

No one else in the entire trading house would dare to propose fifty gold coins with such a straight face.

"I'm sorry, I won't sell it to you anymore..." The vendor quickly waved his hand, having recovered. He had thought this was some rich young master, but after all that, it turned out he was just a pauper. What a waste of time.

"Do you think my price isn't high enough?" Zhang Xuan asked, not angered in the slightest, but instead smiling faintly.

The vendor was speechless. It wasn't a matter of the price not being high enough; it was as if there was no price at all! Had Zhang Xuan ever seen someone try to buy something with waste paper? Even if waste paper had some minuscule value, it was nothing compared to real currency.

"Appraiser Liu Chang, I'll sell this item to you. Do you see anything else you like? I can package them together for you..." The vendor turned away, no longer bothering with Zhang Xuan.

"So, you won't sell it to me?" Zhang Xuan shook his head, a hint of regret in his expression. "Ah, I was originally thinking that if you sold it to me, I could easily resolve your problems with sleepless nights and recurring nightmares. Since you don't need it, then forget about it!" With that, he casually tossed the item he was holding and turned to leave.

"What did you say?" The vendor, who had initially been indifferent, stiffened and his face turned pale. "Young master, please wait!" As a cultivator, one's body was nourished by spiritual energy, and under normal circumstances, sleeplessness and nightmares were rare. Yet, for the past six months, he had been unable to sleep almost every night, and even when he did, he would immediately wake up in fright. A day or two would have been bearable, but after six continuous months, even with his considerable strength, he felt his nerves were frayed and on the verge of collapse. He had secretly consulted many physicians, but none had found a solution. Now, this person before him had suddenly spoken of it; how could he not be agitated?

"Have you recently been experiencing night sweats, waking up startled, and do you lightly twitch in your sleep like a corpse?" Knowing the vendor would surely call out to him, Zhang Xuan smiled faintly and turned back.

"How... how do you know?" The vendor was once again shocked. His sleeplessness, even with continuous cultivation to compensate, had made his complexion abnormal, appearing slightly pale. Many physicians could spot this at a glance, but the night sweats, waking startled, sleeping like a corpse, and accompanying twitches were things only he knew. He had never told anyone, not even his wife. How did this person know? And why did he state it so directly?

"I can help you resolve it!" Zhang Xuan said calmly.

"Help me resolve it?" The vendor swayed, hardly daring to believe.

"You can believe me, or not. However... for you, it's an opportunity. If you don't resolve it, your life might be shortened, and you won't live much longer!" Zhang Xuan stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his expression serene. Although he greatly desired the dragon scale amulet, the vendor had to believe him first; otherwise, nothing he said would be effective.

"I..." The vendor hesitated. After a moment, he gritted his teeth and looked up at the middle-aged man before him. "Appraiser Liu Chang, I'm truly sorry, but it seems I cannot sell this item to you..." While money was important, it was nothing compared to one's health and life. Over the past six months, plagued by this condition, he had spent no less than fifty spirit stones on physicians, yet there had been no progress. If this person could resolve it, then giving him this item for free would be insignificant. As for whether to believe him... the fact that he could discern the root of the problem with a single glance already surpassed the insight of many physicians. Perhaps, as he said, he really could resolve it.

"Hmph, there are many glib-tongued charlatans around here, you should be careful!" Appraiser Liu Chang scoffed, turning to narrow his eyes at Zhang Xuan, irritated that his offer of fifty spirit stones was inferior to the other's fifty gold coins.

"Whether I'm a charlatan or not is no concern of Appraiser Liu's!" Zhang Xuan waved a hand dismissively.

"Hmph, very well..." With a grim expression, Appraiser Liu Chang flicked his sleeve and turned to leave. As a dignified appraiser, revered by countless people, it would be truly embarrassing to continue arguing over an item he couldn't acquire. Of course, the main reason was that he didn't know the true value of the item. He had only found it curious when he first saw it, without recognizing what it specifically was, and had only wanted to buy it out of curiosity. Not being able to purchase it wasn't a big deal to him. However, being shown up by some unknown bumpkin, and not getting the item despite his substantial offer, still left him quite annoyed.

"Young master..." Seeing Appraiser Liu Chang turn and leave with a displeased expression, the vendor looked at Zhang Xuan. If this person had truly been speaking idly and couldn't solve his problem, he would be truly distraught. Offending a two-star appraiser while running a stall in the trading house was definitely an unwise move.

"Don't worry. Since I could discern it, I can help you resolve it! Come, throw a punch for me to see!" Zhang Xuan instructed.

"Yes!" Without much hesitation, the vendor threw a punch, the air whistling. It was surprising that a mere vendor at a common stall had already reached the Half-Grandmaster realm, just one step away from becoming a true Grandmaster. As expected of the Myriad Kingdoms Alliance, with abundant resources and renowned teachers, its overall strength was many times greater than that of the Tianxuan Kingdom.

"That's enough!" Zhang Xuan waved his hand. Although the vendor's strength was inferior to his own, his Eye of Insight could already perceive many issues. However, to completely cure him, he would still need the assistance of the Library of Heaven's Path to find the root cause of the ailment.

"Many of the valuable items in your possession were not acquired through purchase, but rather... ill-gotten gains. The items have an antique color, covered in a greenish patina, which indicates poor air circulation. Furthermore, you exude an aura of death... If I'm not mistaken, you specialize in grave robbing!" Zhang Xuan approached the vendor, scanned his surroundings, and spoke calmly.

"You, you..." The vendor's face turned white, and he nearly collapsed from fright. "Grave robbing" was a polite term; to be honest, he was a tomb raider. No matter how powerful a cultivator, even a supreme expert or a Transcendent Mortal, none could escape the punishment of time, eventually disappearing into the river of history. Upon their deaths, these individuals left behind relics and tombs, which contained valuable burial objects. He had built his fortune from nothing by excavating these places, acquiring his current wealth by selling items belonging to the deceased. However, this history was well-hidden, unknown even to many who knew him well. For this person before him to reveal it so casually, it nearly made him faint.

"Don't be nervous; what you do has nothing to do with me!" Zhang Xuan chuckled lightly and continued, "I'm merely explaining the origin of your ailment."

"If you had only excavated ordinary tombs, there would be no problem. But eight months ago, you excavated the tomb of a Transcendent Mortal realm expert, didn't you?" Zhang Xuan looked at him.

"That... is correct!" The vendor gritted his teeth.

"If this Transcendent Mortal expert had simply died of old age, it would be fine. Unfortunately, he was betrayed by his wife and cruelly slain by a friend, leaving an undying resentment in his heart... If I'm not mistaken, you kept an item he carried with him and have been wearing it close to your body?" Zhang Xuan continued to observe him.

"...Yes!" The vendor nodded again, looking at Zhang Xuan as if he had seen a ghost. The expert's tomb was very simple and contained nothing valuable except for an intimate jade talisman of considerable worth, which he had taken. How did this person know such a secret? It was as if he had witnessed it himself!

"It's the lingering resentment contained within that item that causes your sleeplessness. Once you fall asleep, you twitch incessantly like a corpse... The solution is simple: return the jade talisman to its original place, find the tomb owner's descendants, treat them kindly, and offer sincere sacrifices. The hidden danger will then be completely gone!" Zhang Xuan explained.

In fact, the vendor's situation was somewhat similar to that of Alchemist Chen Xiao, whom he had encountered during the pill debate. Chen Xiao had forcibly taken an alchemist's cauldron but failed to avenge him, thus incurring a curse. For this vendor to be afflicted by a Transcendent Mortal expert's resentment for so long, it was no surprise that such symptoms appeared! If left unresolved, his lifespan would undoubtedly be severely shortened, and he likely wouldn't last more than a few years, following in Alchemist Chen Xiao's footsteps, with a strong aura of death and a short remaining life. Therefore, when Zhang Xuan said he wouldn't live much longer, it was not an exaggeration.

"Thank you, young master... for your guidance!" Many of Zhang Xuan's statements were accurate, and the vendor now believed him largely, filled with gratitude. He had assumed his problems stemmed from a physical ailment and had never imagined the true cause would be this.

"This item... young master, please take it!" Knowing the solution, the vendor handed over the dragon scale amulet. He didn't know what it was, but no matter how valuable, exchanging it for his life was absolutely worth it.

Zhang Xuan nodded, put the item away, then with a flick of his wrist, produced a pile of gold coins—exactly fifty. "This is your payment!"

"No need..." The vendor quickly waved his hand. It was better to give it away than to keep it; at least it would count as a favor.

"How can it not be needed? When I say I'm buying it, I mean I'm buying it. If I don't pay, wouldn't that be the same as stealing?" Zhang Xuan declared righteously.

"This... alright!" The vendor had no choice but to accept.

"This is possible?" Witnessing the entire scene, Zhao Feiwu felt all her prior knowledge being overturned. Fifty gold coins bought a treasure worth fifty spirit stones, and the other party was so grateful, almost wanting to worship him as a deity... This was too incredible! As the daughter of the Myriad Kingdoms Alliance's leader, a dignified princess... she had seen countless powerful physicians, yet this man could discern someone's illness with a single glance and even know their profession as a tomb raider... "You're not a physician... you're a fortune teller, aren't you?"