Chapter 563: Hu Elder

Pure spiritual energy surged into his body along his acupoints, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea, rushing into his Dantian. The Heaven's Path cultivation technique, Mortal Transcendence Second Stage, circulated within him. Zhang Xuan's expression was serene, and his aura rose steadily.

Early Qi Yuan Realm!

Middle Qi Yuan Realm!

If anyone were to witness his cultivation state, they would surely be driven to madness.

The cultivation levels that others took years, or even decades, to increase were as easy as eating and drinking for him, without any hindrance or pressure.

In a luxurious mansion in Myriad Kingdom City, a young man paced anxiously in front of the courtyard gate, his face filled with worry.

If Zhang Xuan had been there, he would have recognized him as Song Chao, the wealthy patron who frequently bought items from him.

"When will the Elder finish his secluded cultivation?"

After pacing a few more times, Song Chao couldn't help but ask the guard standing by the door.

"I don't know either. After meeting with Master Song last time, the Elder went into seclusion and hasn't come out since!" the guard replied.

"Alright..."

After returning from the Herb Garden, he had brought the Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin here, only to be told that the Elder was in seclusion. He had no choice but to wait, but to his surprise, he had been waiting for several days, and the Elder still hadn't emerged.

He knew that the Elder must have become too engrossed in studying the Soulless Golden Human after obtaining it.

"Never mind, I'll go back for now and come again next time!"

Knowing that continuing to wait was futile and he couldn't force his way in if the Elder wouldn't emerge, he shook his head and turned to leave. He had barely taken a few steps when he heard a "creak!" behind him, and the door opened.

"Haha!"

He quickly turned around to see the Elder walking out of the room with a smile.

"Greetings, Elder Hu!" Taking a step forward, he bowed with clasped fists.

"You've come at just the right time. This Soulless Golden Human is indeed remarkable. Studying it for several days has benefited me greatly! If I can break through to the Spirit Fusion Realm because of it, you will certainly have contributed significantly."

Elder Hu stroked his beard and smiled faintly.

The Spirit Fusion Realm, Mortal Transcendence Fifth Stage, was a huge hurdle compared to the Fourth Stage, as it involved the mysteries of the soul.

He had been stuck at the peak of the Fourth Stage for many years, always wanting to break through but unable to. A while ago, when Song Chao brought the Soulless Golden Human, it was immediately treated as a treasure for study.

The Soulless Golden Human, a personal guard of ancient Soul Oracles, involved the mysteries of the soul. Although his research these past few days hadn't fully uncovered how it was formed, it had given him a deeper understanding of the soul, which would be extremely helpful for his future breakthrough to the Spirit Fusion Realm.

"Elder, you exaggerate. As long as this item is useful, then my purchase wasn't a loss..." Song Chao quickly nodded.

"Hmm!" Hearing his humble words, Elder Hu nodded in satisfaction. "You've been looking for me so urgently, coming several times in a row. Is there something important?"

Although he was in seclusion, he still knew that this fellow had been coming almost every day.

Song Chao quickly nodded. "I encountered the person who sold me the Soulless Golden Human a few days ago. This time, he happened to have a Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin, specifically for housing golden human figures. I thought it might be useful for your research, Elder... so I bought it!"

"A Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin? A coffin specifically crafted by Soul Oracles for Soulless Golden Humans? Where is it? Show me quickly!"

His eyes lit up, and Elder Hu's breathing quickened.

Because he couldn't break through, he had shifted his focus to the path of Soul Oracles. Through years of research, he had learned a great deal and understood the importance of such coffins.

If he had obtained this item earlier, his progress these past few days would surely have been even greater. Even if he couldn't reach Spirit Fusion, it would definitely make his soul more complete and robust.

"Yes!" With a flick of his wrist, a massive coffin appeared before them.

It was precisely the one that Zhang Xuan had sold to him for one mid-grade spirit stone back in the Herb Garden.

"It's actually a perfectly preserved Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin..." Seeing the various inscriptions carved on the coffin before him, Elder Hu's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

This type of coffin was specifically commissioned by Soul Oracles from artifact masters for Soulless Golden Humans. It could preserve the golden human for ten thousand years without decay. Its value was immeasurable.

"According to the seller, this coffin was precisely used to house the Elder's golden human!" Song Chao continued.

"Oh..."

Elder Hu nodded repeatedly, circled around it, and couldn't help but look up and ask, "The person who sold you these two items... where is he now? Did you ask where he got them?"

"Well... I didn't ask!" Song Chao shook his head.

Every time they met, he was influenced by the Master Teacher's Impartation of Heavenly Will, losing control of himself. He had no normal discernment; he only knew to obediently pay money. How could he ask?

"Didn't ask?" Elder Hu frowned.

"Although I didn't ask about those specific details, I do know that he still has three more Soulless Golden Humans like this, and at least three Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffins. And even... a higher grade one... a Crimson Gold Coffin!"

Recalling the young man's words from that day, Song Chao quickly replied.

"Are you talking about the kind that 'Crimson Gold locks, none can break, sleep ten thousand years without worry'... a Crimson Gold Coffin that even peak Mortal Transcendence experts cannot open, specifically used to house the physical bodies of Soul Oracles?"

Elder Hu's breathing became rapid, and his eyes gleamed.

The Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin was only for housing Soulless Golden Humans, but the Crimson Gold Coffin was the most important item for a Soul Oracle. Though both were coffins, its value was absolutely far greater than that of a Soulless Golden Human!

This fellow actually possesses such a valuable item?

"Yes!" Song Chao nodded.

"Excellent! Where is he? Is he selling this Crimson Gold Coffin, and did you buy it?" Elder Hu urgently asked.

"Well... he did say he wanted to sell the Crimson Gold Coffin, but... I didn't have enough money, I couldn't afford it. Putting everything else aside, this single Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin alone cost a full mid-grade spirit stone..." Song Chao said.

"The Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin is crafted by a 4-star artifact master. It preserves Soulless Golden Humans for ten thousand years without decay. One mid-grade spirit stone for it is not just affordable, it's very cheap! Good, good!" Elder Hu nodded.

Crafted personally by a 4-star artifact master, with various rare materials, plus the secrets of Soul Oracles involved, from any perspective, one mid-grade spirit stone was not expensive.

One could even say it was a fair price, honest and trustworthy.

"Then... Elder, do you mean to buy it?" Hearing the other person say he hadn't made a bad purchase, Song Chao finally breathed a sigh of relief and looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"This item is something that can be sought but rarely found. We definitely must buy it. However... as you know, even though I am an Elder, my offerings are limited. A Refined Gold Grade-7 Coffin alone costs one mid-grade spirit stone, so a Crimson Gold Coffin will certainly be more expensive. Even I... might not be able to afford the price!"

Although excited, Elder Hu also had self-awareness.

Even as a sect Elder, his annual offerings were limited. He didn't have many good items of mid-grade spirit stone caliber.

"By the way, have you tried buying it with a lesson jade token?" He couldn't help but look over.

"A lesson jade token? The seller himself is a Master Teacher. His rank... is only higher than mine, not lower, so he won't want jade tokens..." Song Chao gave a wry smile.

When he bought the 'Drunkard's Dream Awakening' painting, the other party wouldn't sell it for anything other than spirit stones. After realizing that the private room belonged to Master Zhang, he understood why.

As a Master Teacher himself, he surely had even more powerful teachers. While lesson jade tokens were incredibly valuable to other cultivators, for people like them, they didn't really care about them.

Just like someone who runs a gold mine would want to trade gold for other things, they would certainly not want to use hard-earned treasures to exchange for gold again.

"A Master Teacher?" Elder Hu was startled.

If he wasn't a Master Teacher, they could have used other methods, like taking him as a disciple or offering guidance. But since his status was similar to theirs, it wouldn't work, and many clandestine actions wouldn't even be dared.

The Master Teacher Pavilion had the duty to protect Master Teachers. If they truly dared to take risks for the sake of these items, their entire sect might very well be investigated and disciplined by headquarters.

"How about this, where is he? You take me to see him. I want to ask how much the Crimson Gold Coffin costs, so I can prepare in advance."

After a moment of hesitation, Elder Hu said.

He couldn't forcibly seize it, nor could he think of other methods, so buying it was the only option. Fortunately, the other party wasn't against selling it.

"He's staying at the Guest Residence of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance!" Song Chao quickly replied.

These past few days, besides waiting outside the Elder's door, he had also inquired about Zhang Xuan's whereabouts.

After leaving the Herb Garden, Zhang Xuan hadn't hidden his tracks; even Master Su and others had easily found him, so it wasn't difficult for Song Chao to find out.

"Alright then, prepare the horses, let's go take a look!" Elder Hu nodded.

Zhang Xuan stopped.

"Still not enough spiritual energy..."

He had thought that one mid-grade spirit stone would easily allow him to advance to the peak of the Qi Yuan Realm, but it turned out not to be the case at all.

As his cultivation increased, he required more spiritual energy. This one only allowed him to reach the late stage of the Qi Yuan Realm, still a long way from the peak.

"I'll need at least two more mid-grade spirit stones to reach the peak!"

After a careful calculation, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

The spirit stones obtained from Hall Master Han were used up for cultivating his soul. This one spirit stone wasn't enough either. Finding more mid-grade spirit stones wouldn't be easy.

He had thought he was wealthy, but unexpectedly, with the start of his cultivation, he had to worry about spirit stones again.

Furthermore, it wasn't just his cultivation; the cultivation of Soul Awakening Grass also had immense requirements. According to his calculations, fully maturing it might consume even more resources than him breaking through to the peak of the Qi Yuan Realm.

"It seems I'll have to find a way to earn money again..."

He rubbed his brow and stood up.

Easier said than done, but how to earn it?

Even the Myriad Kingdom City Alliance Leader's mansion didn't have many mid-grade spirit stones, let alone anyone else.

"Never mind, I'll go to the Yin-Yang Pond first. According to Hall Master Kang, it's rich in spiritual energy and suitable for cultivation. Perhaps I can improve my strength even without spirit stones..."

His eyes gleamed.

Since it was a cultivation treasure land, perhaps his cultivation could advance even without spirit stones.

"However, before that, I need to get the Heaven's Path cultivation technique for Mortal Transcendence Third Stage!"

Only with a cultivation technique could he cultivate better. Otherwise, even in a treasure land with abundant spiritual energy, without the corresponding cultivation method, it would be in vain.

"The Master Teacher Pavilion must have many such cultivation techniques. Now that I'm a 4-star Master Teacher, I'm qualified to view them!"

If there was anywhere with the most cultivation techniques and battle techniques, it would definitely be the Master Teacher Pavilion's library. Collecting books here would be twice as effective with half the effort, certainly much simpler than going elsewhere.

Now that he was a 4-star Master Teacher, he was qualified to enter and read books. He happened to have some free time now, so he might as well go take a look.

Thinking this, he stood up and walked out.