Chapter 348 – Preliminary Deal Struck: What Is the True Identity of the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Girl?
by spirapiraSu Xing nodded slightly after hearing this.
He naturally knew that the Celestial Secrets Pavilion only dealt in intelligence. As for trading other goods, they generally did not get involved.
Unless the item in question was an exceedingly rare and precious treasure.
And the Spirit-Gathering Flowers in Su Xing’s possession were coveted by cultivators across the Three Thousand Worlds — they absolutely qualified as precious.
And so, Su Xing produced a storage ring, turned it over in his fingers for a moment, then looked at the girl and said:
“I once stumbled into an ancient Secret Realm… Within that Secret Realm, there were several thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers.”
“I’m sure I don’t need to tell you how precious Spirit-Gathering Flowers are…”
“But unfortunately, this old man walks the path of body tempering, and Spirit-Gathering Flowers are of little use to me… Therefore, I simply hope to sell them for a good price.”
After hearing Su Xing’s words, the girl did not doubt him.
Spirit-Gathering Flowers had indeed gone extinct in the current era, and virtually no cultivator could successfully grow them.
But in Secret Realms dating back to ancient times, Spirit-Gathering Flowers could indeed be found…
Every so often, some lucky soul exploring a Secret Realm would unexpectedly obtain a large quantity of Spirit-Gathering Flowers.
But without question, these fortunate cultivators would not readily sell them. Most kept them to renovate their cave dwellings for their own cultivation…
After all, in an era of depleted spiritual energy, for an ordinary cultivator to rely on the meager spiritual energy between heaven and earth for cultivation was harder than ascending to the heavens.
But with Spirit-Gathering Flowers, a cave dwelling’s environment could be gradually transformed…
Moreover, with Spirit-Gathering Flowers, one could even produce a steady supply of spirit liquid. For cultivators, this was equivalent to a stable source of resources — a guaranteed profitable venture!
For precisely this reason, whenever Spirit-Gathering Flowers appeared at auction, they would be snatched up instantly, even if the price ran high.
Upon hearing that Su Xing intended to sell Spirit-Gathering Flowers, a flash of surprise crossed the girl’s eyes as she asked with puzzlement:
“Spirit-Gathering Flowers are extremely precious, and they never lack a market… You could easily consign them to an auction house for trading, which would earn you far more spirit stones than selling to our Celestial Secrets Pavilion!”
Su Xing waved his hand dismissively after hearing this:
“I’m in urgent need of money recently, which is why I want to sell the Spirit-Gathering Flowers… The quantity is rather large — over two thousand stalks in total. How many spirit stones can you put up to buy them?”
The girl pondered after hearing this. Two thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers — that was quite a substantial amount indeed!
Typically, when an ancient Secret Realm opened, finding a hundred or so stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers was considered common… Having over a thousand counted as exceptionally lucky.
But over two thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers still fell within the realm of possibility.
Therefore, after thinking it over, the girl said:
“A single stalk of Spirit-Gathering Flower generally sells for two hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones at auction… If bidding gets fierce, selling for three hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones wouldn’t be unusual…”
“But here, I can only offer you market price. Two thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers — I’ll buy them from you for four million high-grade spirit stones. How does that sound?”
Su Xing’s expression remained unchanged. A thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers priced at two million high-grade spirit stones — this was indeed the same selling price as in the simulation.
But Su Xing didn’t rush to agree. Instead, he shook his head and said:
“Does Your Excellency truly think I’m ignorant of market conditions?”
“Spirit-Gathering Flowers are different from other treasures… The greater the quantity, the more precious they become!”
“Over two thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers, if planted together, would be enough to give rise to a blessed land! I’m afraid quite a few Earthly Immortal and Celestial Immortal realm cultivators would flock to it…”
“So in my mind, the minimum price is five million high-grade spirit stones!”
Hearing Su Xing haggle, the girl did not refuse and simply nodded:
“Then as you say — five million high-grade spirit stones it is!”
With that, the girl handed over another bag of spirit stones. Su Xing extended his divine sense into the storage bag, and after tallying the contents, he nodded and clasped his hands in salute:
“Since the deal has been concluded… then this humble one shall take his leave!”
“Wait!”
Just as Su Xing was about to leave, the girl’s voice came from behind him.
She tossed over a communication jade slip and said:
“Regarding the intelligence sale, there’s still a balance of five million high-grade spirit stones remaining… If the intelligence proves genuine, I’ll contact you!”
Su Xing didn’t refuse. He caught the communication jade slip and left the Celestial Secrets Pavilion.
After Su Xing departed, the girl tilted her head to one side, assuming a posture of deep contemplation. After a long while, she murmured:
“Today’s divination indicated that a person blessed with fortune would appear… Could it have been him?”
“It’s just strange — the karmic ties on this person are somewhat blurred. I can’t seem to divine them clearly?”
The girl thought for a moment, then began calculating on her fingers. Streams of white light flashed across her body, and a heavenly eye appeared at the center of her brow.
After another round of divination, she produced several jade slips and deliberated for a long time before saying:
“This person seems to have concealed his cultivation? His true cultivation is likely more than just the Earthly Immortal realm…”
“As for his origins… Su Ye? Supposedly some body-tempering cultivator who went into seclusion for a thousand years?”
“Spends lavishly… Somewhat lecherous. Has been purchasing large quantities of low-grade metals in White Emperor City…”
After a pause, the girl said:
“What does this person want with so many low-grade ores?”
“Is he from some reclusive sect? Purchasing on behalf of his sect? Or perhaps the cultivation technique he practices… requires large quantities of low-grade metals?”
After pondering for a while, the girl still couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
The Three Thousand Worlds were vast and abundant. Some peculiar cultivation techniques that absorbed metals and converted them into cultivation power were hardly unheard of.
As for those reclusive sects, their numbers were beyond counting.
Quite a few sects had encountered calamities and sealed their gates for tens of thousands of years without emerging… The outside world simply assumed the entire sect had been wiped out.
But after ten thousand years, those sects might very well reappear in the cultivation world — and that would be nothing surprising…
“This person… seems rather interesting…”
The girl tilted her head, thought it over for a moment, then resumed her listless demeanor, sprawling across the table and dozing off.
…
Meanwhile, after leaving the Celestial Secrets Pavilion, Su Xing detected a faint probing intent.
“Hm? Is that the Celestial Secrets Pavilion girl’s divination?”
“Her Dao of Divination is indeed impressive… But fortunately, I’ve also dabbled in it somewhat. I shouldn’t have given anything away, right?”
Su Xing was confident that he had been sufficiently discreet throughout. Even if the Celestial Secrets Pavilion girl had divined a few things, they shouldn’t be anything critical.
“In the simulation, I only sold around a thousand stalks of Spirit-Gathering Flowers, but in reality I sold over two thousand — and at a higher price too!”
“After all, the simulation is merely for avoiding risks… How things play out in reality still requires adapting to actual circumstances!”
Su Xing did a mental calculation. Currently, his stock of high-grade spirit stones had reached close to twenty million.
But there was still a gap before reaching thirty million…
The remaining shortfall would have to be covered by selling supernatural arts and cultivation techniques.
“Right, next up, I should pay a visit to the White Emperor Tower…”
If Su Xing wanted to trade with the Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion, he naturally couldn’t avoid dealing with the person backing them — that Earthly Immortal realm independent cultivator from the White Emperor Tower.
Before both sides fully established their cooperation, Su Xing needed to demonstrate a certain degree of “capital”!
Beyond the spirit stones in his possession, cultivation level was naturally the best form of capital!
With this in mind, Su Xing followed the memories in his head and walked toward the center of White Emperor City.
White Emperor City was divided into five districts: east, south, west, north, and central.
The central district belonged entirely to the White Emperor Tower. Apart from various White Emperor Tower buildings and shops, what filled the area most were the secluded cultivation caves of the various guest Elders and retainers.
Su Xing walked all the way to the White Emperor Tower in the central district, where he beheld a tower pavilion roughly a hundred zhang (333 m) tall, built in an ancient, austere style.
This was the White Emperor Tower!
Outside the White Emperor Tower, the most iconic structure was naturally the statue standing ten zhang (33.3 m) high.
The statue depicted a man clad in a fitted martial outfit, holding a sword. He had a dignified appearance and exuded the elegant bearing of a Sword Immortal… This was the master of the White Emperor Tower, a Grand Luo Golden Immortal — the White Emperor!
Su Xing stood beneath the statue for a moment, admiring the bearing of the Grand Luo Sword Immortal, then strode directly toward the White Emperor Tower.
After climbing the hundred steps of the staircase, Su Xing arrived at the entrance to the White Emperor Tower, where he was stopped by two guard cultivators standing sentry.
“This fellow Daoist, you look somewhat unfamiliar. May I ask what business brings you to our White Emperor Tower?”
Su Xing sized up the two guards — roughly Body Integration stage cultivation, and their attitude was acceptable enough.
So Su Xing said:
“I’ve heard that the White Emperor Tower recruits independent cultivators as guest retainers. This old man believes his cultivation to be passable… so I’d like to give it a try.”
After hearing Su Xing’s words, the two guards exchanged a glance. One of them headed toward the rear hall.
The other spoke courteously to Su Xing:
“Fellow Daoist, only those at the Tribulation Crossing stage and above are qualified to become guest retainers. Those below the Tribulation Crossing stage can only join as disciples…”
Su Xing smiled after hearing this. So he was being looked down upon?
But Su Xing didn’t mind and simply stood in place, waiting quietly.
After roughly half a quarter-hour, a middle-aged cultivator of distinguished appearance walked over.
With just a single glance, Su Xing discerned the man’s cultivation — mid-stage Human Immortal Realm!
“This person should be the Elder in charge of recruiting disciples and retainers for the White Emperor Tower.”
Su Xing thought to himself.
When the newcomer saw Su Xing, he looked him up and down. Finding himself unable to see through Su Xing’s true cultivation, his attitude became extremely respectful:
“Fellow Daoist, may I ask where you hail from? What is your cultivation level? Do you wish to join our White Emperor Tower?”
These were just routine questions. Su Xing answered straightforwardly:
“This old man has been in seclusion for a thousand years and has only just emerged… I’m looking for a faction to align with, to facilitate my future cultivation.”
“In this vast Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, only the White Emperor Tower suits my fancy…”
“As for this old man’s cultivation — after bitter training for over ten thousand years, I’ve barely managed to reach Peak Earthly Immortal realm. Nothing worth mentioning!”
As he spoke, Su Xing deliberately released the aura and cultivation pressure of the Peak Earthly Immortal realm.
The Elder in charge of recruitment immediately changed expression, his attitude becoming even more deferential.
“So it’s a Senior Immortal of the Earthly Immortal realm gracing us with your presence! Please, please come in!”
With that, the Elder led Su Xing to a VIP reception room inside the White Emperor Tower, then quietly issued a few instructions to his subordinates.
An Earthly Immortal realm cultivator joining the White Emperor Tower was no small matter!
Even in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm’s White Emperor Tower, on average they might not get a single Earthly Immortal realm cultivator joining in a hundred years…
Moreover, Su Xing’s cultivation had already reached the Peak of the Earthly Immortal realm, meaning he could advance to the Celestial Immortal realm at any time!
This naturally drew even greater attention from the White Emperor Tower!
Su Xing waited inside the White Emperor Tower for half a day before finally meeting the branch tower’s master.
That True Immortal realm cultivator!
This True Immortal realm cultivator was named Li Jian. He had a head of white whiskers and white brows, carrying quite the air of a Sword Immortal.
tower master Li’s attitude toward Su Xing was also exceedingly warm. After verifying Su Xing’s strength and confirming he was not a demonic cultivator, he directly granted Su Xing the status of a first-class guest retainer elder!
First-class guest retainer elders — in the entire White Emperor Tower branch, there were no more than ten.
Su Xing then spent ten thousand high-grade spirit stones to rent a grotto-heaven cave dwelling for ten years at a discounted price.
The next day, news that the Earthly Immortal Su Ye had joined White Emperor Tower as a first-class guest retainer spread throughout all of White Emperor City.
For a time, quite a few factions within White Emperor City were discussing what kind of temperament this newly arrived Earthly Immortal had, and whether he was easy to get along with…
Many lower-level cultivators also felt relieved. The addition of an Earthly Immortal undoubtedly made White Emperor City safer.
After Su Xing joined White Emperor Tower, in just a day or two, quite a number of cultivators came to his door bearing gifts.
They ranged from Tribulation Crossing cultivators all the way up to Earthly Immortal cultivators…
Most of these welcoming gifts were ores, spirit fruits, and the like — their combined value no more than tens of thousands of high-grade spirit stones — but it was the thought that counted.
Over the next three days, Su Xing cultivated in his rented cave dwelling while setting up numerous formations to prevent outsiders from spying on him.
It was not until three days later that Su Xing finally received the news he had been waiting for.
Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion’s master, Jin Sanniang, invited Su Xing, saying that the person behind her wished to meet him…
In his cave dwelling in White Emperor City, Su Xing ended the communication jade slip transmission and nodded:
“Finally… Whether or not I can successfully complete this deal depends on this meeting!”
With that, Su Xing strolled leisurely out of his cave dwelling and headed toward Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion…
In a private room within Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion, Su Xing slowly pushed open the door. Jin Sanniang’s coquettish voice greeted him:
“Darling Su~ What took you so long? Senior and I have been waiting anxiously…”
As she spoke, Jin Sanniang took Su Xing by the arm and led him to a long chair to sit down.
At the same time, a voice reached Su Xing’s ears:
“Hahaha, Brother Su, you’ve been making quite a splash in White Emperor City these past couple of days!”
“From now on, this little brother will need Big Brother’s generous care!”
Su Xing looked toward the voice and saw an elderly man wearing a long robe, with dark circles around his eyes, looking as though he had indulged excessively in pleasures. The old man stepped forward and greeted Su Xing warmly.
With a single glance, Su Xing could tell the old man’s steps were unsteady and his foundation unstable.
Though he possessed late-stage Earthly Immortal realm cultivation, his actual combat strength was probably only at the early-stage Earthly Immortal realm…
“It seems this must be the guest retainer of White Emperor Tower… the true owner of Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion, Bai Xuan!”
Su Xing thought to himself, but on the surface wore a cheerful expression as he said:
“Brother Bai, I’ve just arrived here. Please take good care of me in the future!”
With that, Su Xing and Bai Xuan began chatting warmly, as though they were old friends who hadn’t seen each other in years.
The two of them tacitly ignored Jin Sanniang, and Jin Sanniang tactfully excused herself.
On the surface, Su Xing and Bai Xuan chatted with smiles on their faces.
But in truth, as old foxes who had cultivated for many years, both of them saw the situation with crystal clarity.
In Bai Xuan’s eyes, Su Xing’s strength was formidable — at Peak Earthly Immortal realm, he could break through to the Celestial Immortal realm at any time.
Moreover, he had just arrived in White Emperor City and his roots were still shallow — this was the perfect time to build a good relationship!
In Su Xing’s eyes, although Bai Xuan’s cultivation was lacking, he had operated in White Emperor City for many years and possessed impressive connections and financial resources.
Having just arrived in the Lesser Azure Cloud Realm, Su Xing needed exactly this kind of local guide to pave the way.
And so, the two found themselves in perfect accord…
…
Su Xing and Bai Xuan chatted animatedly, and after a while, Bai Xuan finally brought up the real business.
“Brother Su, when you first came to White Emperor City, before you’d even joined White Emperor Tower, you sought out this little brother… We really must be fated!”
“Setting everything else aside — when it comes to purchasing low-grade ores, coming to me is absolutely the right call!”
“I can guarantee… in all of White Emperor City, the cultivators who can supply the goods you need number no more than three, and I am one of them!”
Su Xing listened with a smile and nodded:
“Indeed, I do trust Ten Thousand Gold Pavilion’s reputation!”
“Brother Bai… shall we discuss the matter of purchasing goods?”
Hearing Su Xing’s words, Bai Xuan produced a storage ring and placed it on the table before them, saying:
“Brother Su, this storage ring contains thirty million pieces of Iron Essence, twenty million pieces of Fire Copper… and three million pieces of refined iron!”
“Hehe, as soon as I learned that you were buying low-grade metals, I immediately mobilized my connections… As of now, all three types of metal in White Emperor City have been bought up by yours truly!”
Su Xing’s eyes lit up. This Bai Xuan really knew how to do business!
At the very least, these purchased exotic metals saved Su Xing a considerable amount of effort.
Su Xing took the storage ring, and with a thought, a notification sounded in his ears.
【Ding — Detected large quantity of origin energy substances… Total value: 790,000 origin energy points. Absorb?】
“Yes!”
Su Xing didn’t hesitate and absorbed it directly.
He then took out a bag of spirit stones — roughly ten million high-grade spirit stones — and after handing the bag to Bai Xuan, Su Xing said:
“Brother Bai, I’ll be counting on you for future purchases of these metals!”
“Rest assured — use every connection and resource at your disposal to buy up these three types of ore… As for spirit stones, that won’t be a problem!”
Hearing Su Xing’s words, Bai Xuan accepted the storage bag with a smile, though his trembling hands betrayed the excitement in his heart!
This was ten million high-grade spirit stones!
Even for an Earthly Immortal like Bai Xuan, this was a windfall!
After receiving the spirit stones, Bai Xuan thumped his chest in guarantee:
“Brother Su, don’t you worry!”
“I’ve already mobilized my connections to purchase the three types of metal from dozens of surrounding cities… and I’ve rallied the independent cultivators of White Emperor City to go mining in the Hundred Thousand Mountains!”
“One month at most, and the remaining ores will all be delivered to you!”
Su Xing nodded. It seemed Bai Xuan was truly putting in the effort. One month was quite a bit faster than Su Xing had anticipated!
So Su Xing continued:
“Brother Bai, this ore trade isn’t a short-term affair! Over the next ten years, I plan to continue purchasing these three types of ore. As for the price — same as what we previously agreed. How does that sound?”
Hearing this, Bai Xuan froze for a moment, then could barely contain his excitement.
Good heavens — continuous purchases for ten years?
How many high-grade spirit stones would that earn? Could it reach the hundreds of millions?
Although Bai Xuan claimed there was no profit margin, the sheer volume made up for it!
Even if he earned only a tenth of a spirit stone’s profit on each piece of ore, a single transaction would net him millions of high-grade spirit stones…
Such easy spirit stone earnings — never mind Earthly Immortals, even Celestial Immortals would be tempted!
Bai Xuan nodded repeatedly:
“Hahaha, Brother Su is truly generous! It seems we’ll be working together quite a lot in the future!”
After chatting with Bai Xuan for a while longer, Su Xing thought for a moment, then took out two cultivation manuals from his storage artifact and said:
“Brother Bai, when I previously went exploring a Secret Realm… I happened to obtain several cultivation techniques passed down from ancient times. They’re all quite impressive. Would you happen to have channels to sell them?”
Bai Xuan took the manuals from Su Xing’s hands and after a few glances, his eyes immediately lit up. He nodded repeatedly:
“Brother Su, these are fine goods indeed!”
“These techniques — even an ordinary Earthly Immortal realm cultivator might not possess them! They’re definitely valuable!”
Su Xing naturally knew that these techniques were valuable.
Especially in this region under White Emperor Tower’s jurisdiction, where independent cultivators were numerous and demand was high, making them even more valuable!
So Su Xing wasted no time and took out all the supernatural arts he had prepared, saying:
“Brother Bai, I have a total of seven cultivation manuals here, every one of them top quality. I’m pricing them at ten million high-grade spirit stones altogether. Are you interested in purchasing them?”
Hearing Su Xing’s words, Bai Xuan’s eyes darted about as several thoughts flashed through his mind:
“Good heavens, these seven manuals are all extraordinary!”
“Even I’m somewhat tempted… If I find the right buyer, each one could sell for two million high-grade spirit stones!”
“This deal is profitable!”
With that thought, Bai Xuan handed back the bag of spirit stones that hadn’t even warmed in his hands yet, a flash of reluctance in his eyes, and said:
“Since it’s Brother Su making the request, naturally I’ll oblige!”
“Then this little brother will purchase these seven manuals… and see if I can find the right buyers down the road!”
Bai Xuan’s tone suggested he was taking a loss, but his hands moved with lightning speed, swiftly collecting all seven manuals and stuffing the spirit stone storage bag into Su Xing’s arms.
Su Xing didn’t call him out on the act.
He naturally knew that with the right channels, these seven manuals would certainly turn a profit — and a handsome one at that.
But Su Xing had such techniques in abundance. He couldn’t be bothered to find channels to sell them one by one. Better to let Bai Xuan handle the sales — it saved him the trouble.
Moreover, Su Xing intended to cultivate Bai Xuan as a long-term trading partner. A small sweetener like this was well worth giving.
Afterward, Su Xing and Bai Xuan discussed a few more transaction details before Su Xing returned to his cave dwelling.
…
Su Xing entered his cave dwelling. After confirming no one was watching him, he turned and entered the spirit field grotto-heaven.
Looking at the 1,162,001 origin energy points remaining on his panel, Su Xing felt a sense of confidence.
He silently intoned:
“I choose to bring out the Great Shaman Body Forging Scripture, Fourth Layer (Introductory) cultivation… and True Immortal Realm, Third Layer cultivation!”
【Congratulations on successfully bringing out Great Shaman Body Forging Scripture, Fourth Layer (Introductory) cultivation. Cost: 200,000 origin energy points. Remaining origin energy: 962,001 points…】
【Congratulations on successfully bringing out True Immortal Realm, Third Layer cultivation… Cost: 600,000 origin energy points. Remaining origin energy: 362,001 points…】
As the two notifications sounded in succession, the origin energy Su Xing had just acquired plummeted.
But at the same time, Su Xing’s aura began surging violently!
First was his body tempering cultivation — Su Xing broke directly from the Great Shaman Body Forging Art, Third Layer (Perfection) into the Fourth Layer!
In mere moments, Su Xing felt his qi and blood become several times more abundant. Within his body, some kind of mysterious energy began to emerge…
This caused Su Xing’s regenerative ability and vitality to increase dramatically!
This was the benefit of the Great Shaman Body Forging Art’s Fourth Layer — limb regeneration!
Injuries that would previously be considered minor could now probably heal within an hour…
And even severe injuries — Su Xing could likely recover from most of them within just a few days!
Su Xing carefully sensed the changes for a moment, and a look of satisfaction appeared on his face.
“Excellent! The Great Shaman Body Forging Art, Fourth Layer… combined with the regeneration from the Great Dao of Wood, the Ancient Shaman Physique, and the Unkillable Cockroach talent stacking together… Below the Golden Immortal realm, killing me would be no easy feat!”