Chapter 37 – A Wondrous Treasure Born from the Sea

Li Fan examined the item in his hand without betraying any emotion.

At first glance, it appeared to be nothing more than an ordinary azure-blue glazed glass sphere. But upon closer inspection, one could see light flowing within, as though a vast expanse of blue was being nurtured inside.

“Heavenly Treasure: Azure Sea Pearl (nascent).”

“When one azure sea passes, another azure sea is born.”

Li Fan had never imagined he would encounter a heavenly treasure here! And a heavenly treasure still in its nascent stage, not yet fully formed, at that.

Suppressing his excitement, Li Fan placed the Azure Sea Pearl back where it had been.

He put on an air of complete indifference and turned his attention to the other items nearby.

Right up until Emissary Wu announced that time was up, he did not spare the Azure Sea Pearl another glance.

Yin Yuzhen emerged carrying several items, a mix of regret and excitement on her face.

“Aren’t you going to pick a few things? It’s rare for Emissary Wu to be this generous—miss this chance and there won’t be another,” Yin Yuzhen said, noticing Li Fan’s empty hands.

Emissary Wu chimed in as well: “Shopkeeper Yin is right. What kind of person enters a treasure trove and leaves empty-handed? Wouldn’t that be an insult to me?”

Li Fan thought to himself: Good thing you two brought it up—otherwise I would have had to raise the matter myself.

“Then it would be rude of me to refuse.” He walked over to the area near the Azure Sea Pearl, selected a jade sculpture, and then casually picked up the Azure Sea Pearl along with it.

“I’ll just take these two,” Li Fan said with an air of nonchalance.

The sculpture was carved in the shape of an ancient tree. Emissary Wu glanced at it and praised: “The elder has excellent taste. I found this Ancient Tree Jade Statue on a remote island at the northernmost edge of the Layered Cloud Sea.”

“The statue had been worshipped by a primitive tribe on the island for thousands of years and possesses remarkable properties. For an ordinary person, keeping it at home can calm the mind, focus the spirit, and strengthen the body.” Emissary Wu lavished praise on the jade tree sculpture but only gave the Azure Sea Pearl a single glance before dropping the subject entirely.

“Much obliged to Emissary Wu.” Li Fan cupped his hands, speaking with apparent delight.

“And what about this one?” Li Fan asked, rolling the Azure Sea Pearl between his fingers.

“Oh, that? I acquired it from a fisherman on Flowing Cloud Island.” Emissary Wu thought for a moment before the memory came back. “Nothing particularly special about it—it just looked a bit unusual, so I picked it up on a whim.”

“Flowing Cloud Island…” Li Fan committed the name firmly to memory.

He quickly changed the subject: “Shopkeeper Yin, what did you choose?”

Emissary Wu’s attention immediately shifted to Yin Yuzhen.

Seeing that Yin Yuzhen had selected a painting, a pair of jade bangles, and a gemstone, he launched enthusiastically into introductions of each item.

Li Fan listened half-heartedly, his thoughts entirely consumed by the heavenly treasure—the Azure Sea Pearl.

While Li Fan’s mind was still wandering, both parties concluded the transaction.

The Heavenly Splendor Merchant Association had acquired a large trove of treasures, while Yin Yuzhen had amassed a substantial amount of gold and silver.

“Shopkeeper Yin, until we meet again.” Emissary Wu let out a sigh of emotion, then piloted the Myriad Splendor airship until it vanished from their sight.

On the journey back, although Yin Yuzhen’s haul from this trip had been bountiful, worry still lingered between her brows.

“Worried about Heavenly Treasure House’s future business?” Li Fan asked.

“Yes. Without the Thousand Splendors Merchant Association, we’ve lost an important sales channel. I’m afraid Heavenly Treasure House’s profits will take a serious hit going forward,” Yin Yuzhen lamented. “I have no idea why the Thousand Splendors Merchant Association would suddenly withdraw from the Layered Cloud Sea.”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. No need to worry too much.” Li Fan couldn’t think of a good solution at the moment, so he could only offer words of comfort.

Yin Yuzhen nodded, but clearly hadn’t taken his words to heart.

Back on Glazed Glass Island, Li Fan bid farewell to Yin Yuzhen and hurried back to Listening Serenity Tower.

Sealing the door tightly behind him, Li Fan took out the Azure Sea Pearl in his room.

“My original purpose for this trip was only to verify whether the Star Sea Flowing Sand was meteorite iron. I never expected to obtain such a treasure—what a pleasant surprise.” Li Fan gazed at the Azure Sea Pearl in his hand, unable to contain his joy.

“But I wonder—what exactly makes this Azure Sea Pearl special?”

In Li Fan’s understanding, each heavenly treasure represented a certain property or rule of heaven and earth.

The Coiling Dragon Branch embodied using the small to overcome the great, the act of devouring. Rusted Sword Daoxuan represented an unyielding will, possessing the ability to slow and corrode.

The Halt Stele Fragment was about being inscribed with decrees and carrying out commands.

This tiny glazed pearl—why was it named “Azure Sea”? Could it truly contain an entire ocean within?

Li Fan held the Azure Sea Pearl aloft, losing himself in that deep, profound blue, his mind drifting and his eyes mesmerized.

Unfortunately, despite studying it for a long time, Li Fan could not discern the Azure Sea Pearl’s special properties.

Perhaps only a cultivator could glimpse its mysteries!

Li Fan let out a long sigh and reluctantly put the Azure Sea Pearl away with great care.

Should he absorb it now? Li Fan hesitated for a moment, but based on the feedback from Return to Truth, the Azure Sea Pearl was still in its nascent state. Absorbing it now would likely only add one to two percent to his charging progress.

Better than nothing, but it would be wiser to wait until it fully matured before absorbing it.

After all, the treasure was already in his possession—it wasn’t going anywhere.

It was quite some time before Li Fan calmed down from the thrill of obtaining a heavenly treasure.

Once his mind had settled, Li Fan immersed himself once more in cultivating the Mo《Xuanhuang Purification Mantra》.

A few days later, Li Fan was startled awake by urgent knocking at his door.

It was still dark out. Who could be coming to disturb him at this hour?

The cautious Li Fan drew a dagger and concealed it in his sleeve before going to answer the door.

“Who is it?”

“Brother Li, it’s me.”

Xiao Heng’s voice came from outside.

What does this kid want with me at this hour? Don’t tell me Heavenly Treasure House didn’t arrange the residence I promised him?

A flicker of confusion crossed Li Fan’s mind, but he opened the door and ushered Xiao Heng inside.

Xiao Heng’s face was a mask of panic and alarm.

“Sit down and talk.”

The two settled inside, and Xiao Heng blurted out: “Brother Li, disaster has struck! The fact that we smuggled over from the separated realm has been exposed!”

“Who leaked the information?” Li Fan asked, somewhat surprised.

“We don’t know. But everyone on the island now knows that we aren’t natives of the greater cultivation world—that we were smuggled here through Heavenly Treasure House. They say the immortal masters are furious and want to arrest and execute all of us. Some of our group were so terrified they fled by boat in the middle of the night. The rest of us have no idea what to do.”

“They all said you’d definitely have a plan, Brother Li, and sent me to ask you right away.” Xiao Heng explained in a rush.

After hearing everything, Li Fan considered briefly, then let out a light chuckle. “Don’t worry. This matter is nothing serious.”

Xiao Heng was stunned. “What makes you say that, Brother Li?”

Li Fan scoffed. “Since when do the authorities notify bandits before coming to arrest them? If they truly wanted to kill you all, you’d already be dead. Would they really let you hear the news first, then leisurely escape and discuss countermeasures?”

“You mean… this was deliberately leaked information, just to scare us?” Xiao Heng’s eyes lit up with sudden understanding.

“But why would they do that?” His face quickly filled with confusion again.

“If you ask me, this isn’t aimed at us at all.” Li Fan rose abruptly to his feet. “Their target is Heavenly Treasure House.”