Chapter 1989: Child Tianhua

They were, after all, disguised as merfolk. Their knowledge of the sea race mostly came from Jiao Qing'er, so having someone lead the way would prevent many unnecessary troubles.

"Fellow Daoist Gui is currently unavailable," Jiao Yao said politely. "You two fellow Daoists should first settle down in Heavenly Merman City. When Fellow Daoist Gui is free, I will immediately introduce you."

This statement was clearly a polite formality; when "Fellow Daoist Gui" would be available was entirely up to her. This was normal. For a first meeting, Jiao Yao couldn't be expected to immediately open up to Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

"Alright then. We'll trouble you, Fellow Daoist."

Wang Changsheng agreed, then he and Wang Ruyan bade farewell and left.

"Grandma," Jiao Qing'er asked, sounding a bit puzzled, "those two seniors are very kind. If it weren't for their help, I might not have seen you again."

"Hmph, you're getting bolder, girl," Jiao Yao reprimanded coldly. "I've repeatedly warned you not to leave Heavenly Merman City, and you just let my words go in one ear and out the other?"

"There were no Blue Marrow Fruits in the market," Jiao Qing'er explained softly. "Uncle Gui said that for you to recover quickly, you need a thousand-year-old Blue Marrow Fruit as a medicinal primer, so I went out to look for one."

Jiao Yao's expression softened upon hearing this. "Don't do it again," she said. "Who knows their true intentions? Once my injuries are better, I'll take them to Xuan Turtle Island. Go invite Fellow Daoist Gui; the materials have been gathered."

"Yes, Grandma." Jiao Qing'er beamed with joy, agreed, and left to carry out the order.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan strolled along a street paved with seashells, looking at the shops lining both sides. It was their first time in Heavenly Merman City, and they were curious about many things, though they didn't show it.

Half an hour later, they arrived at a shop over a hundred *zhang* in size. The shopkeeper was an elderly man in his seventies, wearing a green robe. He was in merman form, though only at the Foundation Establishment stage. The shop displayed many shimmering shells, which were unique to the sea race and equivalent to the human race's jade slips.

"You two seniors have come at just the right time," the green-robed elder said enthusiastically. "Our shop just received a new batch of sea charts."

"We'd like to buy some sea charts, the more detailed the better," Wang Changsheng said directly, "and also some historical records and legendary texts."

The green-robed elder was immediately delighted, realizing he had a major customer. He personally began selecting items. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan purchased a large quantity of varied texts, which would help them deepen their understanding of the sea race.

After leaving the bookshop, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan continued to wander along the street. The shops on both sides of the street were mostly built from coral stone and seashells, vibrantly colored and shimmering with spiritual light, showcasing distinct sea race characteristics. The goods sold were mostly unique to the sea race.

"Hmph, this is our merman territory, not a place for you humans to run wild!"

"Exactly! Do you really think we wouldn't dare kill you?"

A heated argument erupted ahead, seemingly a conflict between a human cultivator and some merfolk. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan's hearts stirred, and they quickly walked towards the sound.

At the entrance of a nine-story golden pavilion, where the silver characters "Heavenly Merman Pavilion" were inscribed on the plaque, a human cultivator was confronting two male merfolk. The human was a tall, burly middle-aged man with eyes like bronze bells, a fleshy face, a thick neck, and a bulging belly, layers of fat overlapping like a fan. He wore a string of golden Buddhist beads on his hand, a shimmering coral jade belt around his waist, and a glowing green jade pendant on his chest, displaying extreme opulence.

The middle-aged man, who had a late-stage Soul Transformation cultivation, frowned deeply.

"I, Tong Tianhua, conduct business honestly," the middle-aged man's voice was cold. "If you don't want to trade, then fine, but don't accuse me. If you want to kill me, then do it, don't waste words. I'd like to see if you can bear the wrath of the Seven Stars Alliance."

The two male merfolk's faces showed clear apprehension upon hearing this. The Seven Stars Alliance had considerable power on the Mysterious Spirit Continent; they were not someone the merfolk could afford to provoke.

"Since you're not going to kill me, I'll be leaving." Tong Tianhua snorted coldly and strode away.

A glint of severity flashed in one merman's eyes. He clapped his hand in the air towards Tong Tianhua, and a dazzling blue light shot out, heading straight for Tong Tianhua.

Just then, a cold male voice suddenly rang out: "You fighting in the market really shames our merman race." As soon as the voice faded, ripples appeared in the void, and a tall, thin blue-robed elder unexpectedly appeared behind Tong Tianhua. He waved his hand, conjuring a shimmering blue shield to block in front of him.

"Clang!" With a dull thud, the blue shield blocked the blue light, which turned out to be a misty, water-element shuriken.

"Elder Hai!" The two male merfolk's expressions grew tense when they saw the blue-robed elder. The blue-robed elder showed no spiritual power fluctuations, but judging by the male merfolk's address, he was clearly a Void Refinement cultivator.

"Senior Hai, thank you for your assistance," Tong Tianhua said gratefully. "Otherwise, I truly don't know how this would have ended."

The blue-robed elder nodded and said, "It's good that you're alright, little friend Tong. Those below are ignorant and offended Fellow Daoist Tong. Rest assured, I will severely punish them."

"Elder Hai, he clearly started it..." The male merman tried to argue, but the blue-robed elder cut him off: "No matter how much you explain, it's no excuse for you to harm someone in the market. You'll explain everything clearly to me later."

The blue-robed elder looked at the other merfolk and said solemnly, "No one, regardless of who they are, is allowed to fight in the market. Furthermore, little friend Tong is an honored guest of our merman race, and I will not tolerate anyone disrespecting him."

The numerous merfolk agreed in unison, their expressions respectful.

"Now disperse, all of you! Get back to what you were doing!" The blue-robed elder waved his hand, signaling the onlookers to disperse.

Wang Changsheng didn't believe that two Soul Transformation merfolk would be foolish enough to attack a human in their own market. Either they were bribed to deliberately instigate conflict between humans and merfolk, or the merfolk race was staging the entire incident themselves. The exact truth, however, was none of their concern.

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan entered the Heavenly Merman Pavilion. The hall was spacious and brightly lit, with shelves displaying ores, spiritual medicines, demon cores, and more. They headed straight upstairs, reaching the seventh floor, where a spirited white-robed elder with early-stage Soul Transformation cultivation was drinking tea.

"I am Hai Yunfan," the white-robed elder said politely. "How may I help you two fellow Daoists?"

Wang Changsheng took out a shimmering blue shell and handed it to Hai Yunfan, saying, "We wish to purchase some materials. This is the list."

Hai Yunfan took the blue shell, swept it with his divine sense, and nodded. "We have all the materials except for the Sea Tide Divine Crystal and the Ten-Thousand-Year Gathering Waterwood. Please wait a moment, fellow Daoists."

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan nodded and began to chat idly with Hai Yunfan.

"Fellow Daoist Hai," Wang Changsheng asked casually, "has the Golden Scale race had any unusual movements recently? We encountered a few of them on our way here, and they weren't very friendly towards us."

"Hmph, the Golden Scale race just wants to annex our merman race," Hai Yunfan said with some resentment, seemingly having suffered at the Golden Scale race's hands. "They rely on the fact that a Grand Ascension cultivator appeared in their tribe, and they've been encroaching on other tribes' territories. Fortunately, the Silver Shark race is able to contend with the Golden Scale race, so they haven't gone too far. However, the Golden Scale race has constantly made things difficult for us, and it's gotten worse over the years."