Chapter 9: Night Talk

In the dark night, Ji Ning traveled through the void and arrived at the central capital of the entire Great Xia world.

Within the Tianbao Mountain in the Great Xia royal capital, inside a residence, Ji Ning was drinking alone facing the bright moon.

"Hmm?" Ji Ning's ears twitched, and he glanced over.

A white-robed, silver-haired man walked over from the direction of the door.

"Senior Tianhu." Ji Ning stood up with a smile.

"Rushing here late at night, it must be urgent." The silver-haired man also smiled. "Ji Ning, just say what you need. His Majesty has already spoken, so naturally I won't be the least bit remiss."

Ji Ning nodded: "I want to buy some rare treasures."

"Rare treasures? What rare treasures?" The silver-haired man pressed.

"I need thirty thousand jin of Heavenly Realm Gold Crystal, six thousand jin of Green Spirit Jade Bamboo Shoots, nine thousand jin of Tianhe Profound Yin Primordial Water, three thousand jin of Fish-Dragon Spirit Nectar, and twelve hundred jin of Chaos Spirit Earth." Ji Ning said in one breath.

The silver-haired man's expression changed: "So much?"

"Yes, at least that much." Ji Ning nodded.

Of course he had substitutes, but for cultivating the fourth rotation of the 'Six Rotations of the Star Picker,' the treasures imbued with the power of the Five Elements that Ji Ning had listed were the cheapest... Now that he was short on funds, he naturally chose the most cost-effective ones. For example, the Five Elements Peacock Feathers of a divine beast peacock at the Heavenly God level would be more than enough!

But the essence of a Heavenly God-level divine beast's bloodline was too precious, even more valuable than an ordinary top-grade Pure Yang magic treasure! Most importantly, it was extremely rare! Since Pangu created the world, the number of divine beast peacocks that reached the Heavenly God level and possessed all Five Elements was less than a handful, and only two had died. Their remaining Five Elements Peacock Feathers had long been obtained by 'Great Powers' for other, more precious uses. Where could one buy them? And even if one could, they couldn't afford them!

"You're asking for too much. These are all rare treasures of the Three Realms, representing the Five Elements. They have wide uses, whether in artifact forging or alchemy. I'll ask His Majesty for you." The silver-haired man said.

Ji Ning smiled and nodded.

The silver-haired man sat down, poured himself some wine, and laughed: "Let's drink first. His Majesty will reply shortly."

"Good." Ji Ning knew that the other was the Xia Emperor's spirit beast and could communicate mentally.

"Ji Ning, what do you need these for? Alchemy? Forging artifacts? Making puppets?" The silver-haired man inquired. "You've been cultivating for less than a hundred years. Whether alchemy or artifact forging, both require a very long time to master. In the Three Realms, the masters of alchemy and artifact forging are at least Celestial Immortals, because they have endless lifespans to slowly study."

Ji Ning also smiled. Yes, the time the spirit of the Water Mansion spent forging the 'Thousand Bull Swords' was terrifying. To some extent, the spirit of the Water Mansion was only mediocre in artifact forging; otherwise, it wouldn't have taken so long.

"I have my own uses." Ji Ning said.

The Star Picker Hand was famous, but no one knew how to cultivate it! By buying Five Elements treasures, he wasn't worried about leaking information.

"Haha..." The silver-haired man laughed and didn't press further. Then his eyes lit up. "Ji Ning, His Majesty told me he can gather enough Heavenly Realm Gold Crystal and Tianhe Profound Yin Primordial Water, but he can't gather the other three in the amounts you need."

"Then I'll exchange the other three treasures." Ji Ning listed three substitutes.

...

"Not available."

"Can't gather enough."

"Ji Ning, what you're asking for are all Five Elements treasures of the same level." The silver-haired man shook his head. "His Majesty also said he's not skilled in artifact forging or alchemy, so he doesn't have much stock. He can go to some friends and exchange treasures to help you gather what you need."

Ji Ning quickly expressed gratitude: "Then I'm very grateful."

"Ji Ning, you should know that the more precious a treasure is, the less it's sold. They are all exchanged for other treasures." The silver-haired man looked at Ji Ning. "To get these, you also need to offer enough treasures in exchange. Do you have that many treasures?"

"What treasures do I need to offer to make the exchange?" Ji Ning asked.

"A normal top-grade Pure Yang magic treasure would be enough for the exchange." The silver-haired man smiled. "Or twenty of those arrows you had last time."

Ji Ning sighed inwardly.

The price for Five Elements treasure materials was so high, but there was no help for it. The further one cultivated the 'Star Picker Hand,' the higher the cost. Fortunately, it only cultivated a pair of hands. If it were the whole body, like the 'Eight Nine Mysteries,' the cost would be even more outrageous.

Now that his Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Diagram had reached the sixteenth level, he could cultivate the Star Picker Hand to the fourth rotation, and the Eight Nine Mysteries to the deeper sixth rotation. But the cost for the Eight Nine Mysteries was a thousand times the original... estimated to require a full ten top-grade Pure Yang magic treasures. This left Ji Ning helpless!

The power of a top-grade Pure Yang magic treasure was equivalent to a mid-grade innate spirit treasure. Many Pure Yang True Immortals and Heavenly Gods used treasures of this level. Offering ten of them was a considerable burden even for a Pure Yang True Immortal. For example, Ji Ning's senior fellow apprentice, the Heavenly God Silver Moon, had only cultivated the Eight Nine Mysteries to the sixth rotation.

"Forget the Eight Nine Mysteries for now, it's too far off. First, cultivate the Star Picker Hand." Ji Ning thought to himself.

"Ji Ning, can you offer them?" The silver-haired man looked at Ji Ning with a smile.

"Please ask His Majesty to help gather the Five Elements treasures." Ji Ning said. "When His Majesty is ready, I will naturally offer enough treasures for the exchange."

"Good."

The silver-haired man said, "His Majesty will personally help you gather these treasures. Once they are gathered, I will notify you immediately."

Ji Ning flipped his hand and handed over a jade talisman: "This is my communication talisman. Once it's crushed, I will sense it and rush to the royal capital immediately." Such jade talismans were very easy to make, and Ji Ning had prepared a bunch, leaving them for the Ji clan, Qiuye, his master the Immortal Diancai, and others.

"Mm." The silver-haired man stood up. "Then just wait for news."

"How long will it take?" Ji Ning pressed.

The faint sense of crisis urged him to cultivate the fourth rotation as soon as possible. Once he succeeded, his hands would be comparable to the ultimate top-grade Pure Yang magic treasures (mid-grade innate spirit treasures), even more powerful than ordinary top-grade Pure Yang magic treasures. His strength would leap by a major level. And with his Three Heads and Six Arms, his six palms would be equivalent to six ultimate Pure Yang magic treasures.

"Very soon. It's just exchanging treasures. I believe a month will be enough." The silver-haired man deliberately gave a generous estimate. In reality, it might take as little as two or three days, or at most ten days.

"Good." Ji Ning immediately stood up.

...

That night, Ji Ning went to the Yan Estate and temporarily stayed there, also spending time with his cousin.

...

In an ancient tower.

Five figures sat cross-legged, each in a different position.

Xuanji Ancestor opened his eyes and glanced around, his brow furrowing deeper. Since hiring the Blood Cloud Tower to kill Ji Ning failed, the Shaoyin clan increasingly felt that Ji Ning was a real threat! But they searched desperately and could never find an opportunity to strike against Ji Ning.

"If this continues, Ji Ning's strength will only grow. If he doesn't explode, fine, but if he does... my Shaoyin clan will suffer greatly." Xuanji Ancestor worried. "And according to intelligence, Ji Ning is very loyal and righteous. He will never forget the great enmity of his mother."

"Even when my Shaoyin clan assassinated him in the Great Xia royal capital, he endured."

"He can endure greatly!"

"Enduring until now, perhaps Ji Ning feels his strength is still insufficient. Once he feels it's enough... my Shaoyin clan will truly be in big trouble." Xuanji Ancestor was anxious.

Initially, he only acted to vent his anger.

But now he was worried about the clan. It must be noted that some top-tier large clans and powers rarely engaged in life-and-death struggles! Because top powers generally had a 'Celestial Immortal' as their foundation. Celestial Immortals were truly immortal. Even if their clan was destroyed, if the Celestial Immortal escaped, who knew if after millions or tens of millions of years, that Celestial Immortal would suddenly strike? Strike and then disappear, then strike again...

A long-lived Celestial Immortal, if deliberately opposing, would be utterly terrifying.

Thus—

The more top-tier a power, the fewer major clashes they had! They were more willing to compromise!

But once they truly clashed, they would go all out to annihilate the opponent completely, at least killing all top combatants.

For the 'Shaoyin clan,' Ji Ning was now a great calamity, a monstrous figure that even the Blood Cloud Tower's assassination failed to kill...

"Hmm?" Suddenly the five Celestial Immortals present opened their eyes.

They all took out a bronze token.

"It's the Abyss Gate." The white-haired, withered old man said in a low voice.

"The Abyss Gate wants to see my Shaoyin clan?" The handsome young man frowned. "What do they want? Previously they tried to recruit us, but we all refused. We don't want to be enemies with the Abyss Gate, and even less do we want to betray the Xia Emperor."

"The Xia Emperor's elder brother is the Dao Ancestor Yinglong. The Abyss Gate is not easy to mess with, and neither is the Xia Emperor."

"Everyone, I'll go." Xuanji Ancestor stood up. "Let's see what the Abyss Gate wants."

"Good."

"Xuanji, it's up to you."

"Just deal with them for now. The Abyss Gate is powerful; we can't resist them."

"Mm."

Xuanji Ancestor left the ancient tower alone.

...

In the dark night, a bright moon hung high, casting moonlight.

On a solitary peak stood a young girl, silently gazing at the moon. Behind her were a full nine golden-robed Celestial Immortals.

"Brother Xuanji, the special envoy is over there." In the distance, a cloud flew through the air, carrying two people. One was the tall, thin, narrow-eyed old man 'Xuanji Ancestor,' and the other was a golden-robed, humble-looking old man.

"Hmm?"

Xuanji Ancestor looked into the distance and his pupils contracted. That young girl had a full nine Celestial Immortals following her?

"This Abyss Gate is too powerful. Just one special envoy's team has this many Celestial Immortals. I'm afraid this single team could annihilate a top-tier large clan." Xuanji Ancestor felt a chill. Although he was arrogant and reckless in front of others, in front of the Abyss Gate, he felt tense.

Xuanji Ancestor landed on the peak and immediately said, "Xuanji pays respects to the special envoy."

...