Chapter 628: Lo She Inner Core

A man and a woman, both appearing valiant and full of vigor.

The woman leading the way wore a pale yellow form-fitting outfit that accentuated her perfect figure. She had fair skin, long black hair resting on her shoulders, and a slender waist that seemed graspable with one hand. In terms of beauty alone, she was in no way inferior to Mo Yu or Zhao Feiwu.

The man beside her appeared to be thirty-two or thirty-three years old. He had a robust build and a resolute face, with an imposing aura between his brows, indicating his high status at a glance.

Zhang Xuan paid no mind to their appearance. When it came to beauty, no one could surpass Zhao Ya, whose unique physique had been awakened; even Mo Yu and Zhao Feiwu were in no way inferior. He didn't scrutinize any of those three, let alone a woman he didn't even know.

Looking at their cultivation levels, he was surprised.

Neither of them was very old, yet their strength was formidable, giving off an impression as profound as the ocean. They were at least as strong as, if not stronger than, Teacher Hong.

“Transcendental Mortal 6-dan experts?”

His eyebrows rose.

Transcendental Mortal 6-dan! The strongest among the 28 factions hadn't even reached this level, yet he encountered two such young individuals just while shopping. As expected of the Phantasmfeather Imperial Capital, it truly harbored hidden dragons and crouching tigers.

Feudatory states were indeed feudatory states; they simply couldn't compare to the imperial capital.

“There’s no need. If you feel bored, you can go back!” the beautiful woman replied indifferently, disregarding his good intentions. It seemed their relationship was not particularly harmonious.

“Haha, why would I feel bored? If you want to look, I’ll accompany you!” The man gave an awkward laugh.

The two continued to browse along the counter. Zhang Xuan, too lazy to pay them further attention, began to examine the treasures one by one.

Activating the Dragon-Rhino bloodline required the blood or core of spirit beasts with similar attributes, or special medicines and ores. These items were extremely rare and not easy to find.

“Purple Morning Pearl? Worn on the body, it can cleanse dust, keeping one spotless!” His eyes landed on a round pearl.

He had read about this item; it was a special artifact, neither offensive nor defensive, but something cultivators enjoyed wearing.

Once worn, it could keep clothes and the body spotlessly clean, allowing one to look radiant even without washing.

“This item is also marked ‘two’…” He shook his head.

A 7-realm artwork was only worth ‘two’, yet this item had the same price.

It seemed that the Pavilion of Exotic Treasures didn't price items based on their inherent value, but rather on their rarity.

Though not of great practical use to cultivators, the Purple Morning Pearl was an exceptionally rare treasure, much beloved by women.

The continent was vast, and sometimes one would fly for many days without the chance to cleanse oneself, which would be extremely uncomfortable for anyone. With this pearl, one could remain clean at all times; not just for a month or two, but even a year without washing would be perfectly fine.

Its rarity made it valuable.

However, this also indicated that the value of calligraphy and paintings, compared to actual weapons and artifacts, was still not high.

But this was merely a 7-realm work. If it reached the 8-realm or higher, it could create mirages, turning illusion into reality, and its value would be completely different. Some powerful paintings could even transform into an entire city, trapping cultivators within, making escape impossible.

To be recognized as a special profession by the Master Teacher Pavilion, those who reached the pinnacle of each profession were incredibly powerful, possessing strength that ordinary people could not contend with.

Just like the Celestial Chess he had comprehended recently, it was said that mastering it to its highest realm allowed one to truly use the heavens and earth as a chessboard, and the stars as pieces, shifting the universe and reversing yin and yang.

Unfortunately, Teacher Hong had only obtained an incomplete fragment, and even though the puppet had passed the legacy to him, it wasn't whole, thus failing to achieve such effects.

He continued to look, quickly circling the entire second floor, but still found no suitable treasures. Zhang Xuan then led the two of them towards the third floor.

The items on the third floor were even rarer. With a glance, he noticed that the treasures here were no longer marked as uniformly; some were marked 'three', some 'four', and some even 'five'.

As he went along the counter, examining each item, he saw a 6-realm painting that was marked 'four', twice as expensive as the previous 7-realm painting.

He paused in confusion, but quickly understood.

Although this painting was of a lower realm than the previous one, it was a treasured ink painting left by a renowned calligrapher and painter from the Phantasmfeather Empire. It was said to be a work he created with his heart's blood just before dying in battle, containing the five-star calligrapher and painter's deepest obsession and resentment. Its extreme preciousness naturally justified its high price.

“Hmm, is this a peak mid-tier spirit-grade longsword?”

He quickly spotted a weapon.

His swordsmanship was exceptional, yet he had never possessed a suitable weapon. If he could acquire one, his strength would undoubtedly increase significantly.

This sword was of a higher grade than any he had seen before in Honghai City. It was also sharper, radiating a cold gleam that gave off an icy sensation.

“Ice Rain Sword, Six!” Four characters were written below it.

“A value of six?” Zhang Xuan clicked his tongue in wonder.

He had also seen mid-tier spirit-grade weapons on the first floor, but they were all priced around 'one'. For this one to be marked 'six' seemed incredibly exaggerated!

“Young master, this sword was personally forged by the artifact forging master Hu Qingzi. It is a progressive artifact that can be re-tempered and is incredibly precious; it cannot be compared to the ordinary weapons on the lower floors!” A young attendant by the counter explained upon seeing his confusion.

“A progressive artifact?” Zhang Xuan was momentarily stunned, then nodded.

Although he hadn't systematically studied artifact forging, he had collected many books on the subject and understood its various grades.

Ordinary weapons, once forged, were finished products, completely fixed. If re-tempered, they could easily lose their sharpness and become useless.

However, progressive artifacts were different. If better ores were acquired in the future, they could be tempered and integrated, thereby enhancing the weapon's quality and upgrading its rank.

In other words, while this weapon was currently mid-tier spirit-grade, its eventual rank in the future was immeasurable. It was indeed worth the 'six' price tag.

“Hmm, a Luoshe inner core?”

He was somewhat tempted by the sword, but wasn't in a hurry. He continued browsing, and after just two steps, his eyes suddenly lit up.

On a nearby counter, a round spirit beast inner core was displayed, as red as fire, emitting a scorching aura.

The inner core of a Transcendental Mortal 7-dan spirit beast, a Luoshe!

The Luoshe was a type of spirit beast that lived in mountains, rivers, and vast marshes. Its entire body was covered in scales, making its defense unparalleled. Although its body was as cold as iron, its inner core was as red as charcoal, giving off a burning sensation.

“The Luoshe contains dragon bloodline, it should be able to activate the Dragon-Rhino bloodline!”

Zhang Xuan smiled faintly.

Although the Luoshe was a type of snake, it contained the bloodline of a flood dragon, and its unparalleled defense made it an excellent supplement for Yuan Tao’s Dragon-Rhino bloodline.

He looked down and saw a line of writing on a piece of parchment: “Luoshe Inner Core, Ten!”

“Ten points… but it’s worth the price!”

Only Transcendental Mortal 8-dan experts could hunt and acquire the inner core of a Transcendental Mortal 7-dan spirit beast. A price of 'ten' was indeed worth it.

“I’ll take this!” He secretly decided. “However, this item is too fiery, so I’ll need some medicine to neutralize it. Let’s see if there are any suitable herbs.”

Having found something suitable for Yuan Tao, Zhang Xuan nodded in satisfaction and continued browsing, looking for a suitable herb to neutralize the inner core’s properties, when he heard a faint voice.

“I want this Dwelling Sorrow Grass. How do I buy it?” It was a woman’s voice. He looked up and saw that it was the handsome man and beautiful woman he had encountered on the second floor, who had arrived on this floor at some unknown point.

“Dwelling Sorrow Grass?” Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

Dwelling Sorrow Grass was a cold-attribute herb with mild properties. It had a strong neutralizing effect on fiery-attribute medicines and provided excellent nourishment and protection for the human body’s internal organs and meridians. It was precisely the best herb to neutralize the Luoshe inner core.

“Replying to you, young lady, the treasures in our Pavilion of Exotic Treasures are not for sale. To purchase them, you need to earn points. With sufficient points, you can directly exchange them!” The young attendant in charge of the counter, seeing their confusion, quickly explained.

“Points? What are points?” The young man frowned.

“Oh, on the fourth floor of our Pavilion of Exotic Treasures, there are two rows of stone pillars. Various treasures are sealed within them. You earn points by identifying them within a set time; the more you identify, the more points you get…” The attendant explained the rules.

It was largely the same as what Yuan Tao had described, but more detailed.

“There’s even this? What a hassle! But it’s just identifying treasures, nothing difficult!” Hearing such complicated rules, the young man frowned, then a confident expression appeared on his face. He turned to the woman beside him: “Miss Liu… please wait here. I’ll go get some points for you now!”

“I don’t need your help. I’ll earn the points myself!” The woman, called Miss Liu, seemed indifferent to the young man’s fawning, even showing a hint of displeasure. She waved her hand and looked at the attendant before her: “Lead the way. I want to see for myself!”

“Yes!” The attendant, seeing that someone wanted to challenge the stone pillars, quickly nodded and led the two upstairs.

“Let’s go over too!” Zhang Xuan called out.

His purpose in coming here was to find items to activate Yuan Tao’s physique. Since the Pavilion of Exotic Treasures had such items, he could earn some points and exchange them all at once.

Following behind the others, he ascended to the fourth floor and saw a spacious hall. In the center were two neat rows of dozens of stone pillars, their surfaces smooth and carved from an unknown material. Several people stood in front of them, shaking their heads repeatedly, full of dejection.

“Gentlemen, do not be disheartened. It’s alright if you couldn’t identify them!” An elder smiled faintly at the front of the room.

It seemed these disheartened individuals had attempted to challenge the stone pillars and failed.

Zhang Xuan looked closely; these individuals were all dressed in attire indicating their status, and surprisingly, two of them were Four-star Appraisers.

Even Four-star Appraisers had failed, indicating that identifying these treasures was not as simple as he had imagined.

“Pavilion Master, these two also wish to challenge the stone pillars!” The attendant took a few steps to the elder, pointing at the young man and the woman.

This elder was precisely the Pavilion Master of the Pavilion of Exotic Treasures, Gan Yiping.

“Very well…” Gan Yiping nodded, turned, and smiled faintly, “Please pay the deposit first!”

“Deposit? Oh, right, I don’t have money for the deposit yet…” Zhang Xuan, standing not far away, froze for a moment, then felt a little awkward.