Appearance Fee

"Hold on!" Wei Yuan called out to stop the elderly Mountain Folk giant. "Although the Patriarch has agreed to the Dao debate, the details have yet to be settled." "What details?" the Mountain Folk immortal asked. Wei Yuan said, "First, the debate arena must be chosen by our side. Second, neither participant may use any cave heaven during the debate, nor may they draw upon the power of a cave heaven in any manner. Third, no restrictions on medicinal pills. Fourth, no restrictions on immortal treasures... Sixty-seventh..." The Mountain Folk immortal grew dizzy listening to the endless list. By the time Wei Yuan reached rule two hundred and something, he could no longer bear it and interrupted, "Are you quite finished? Are we fighting or not?" Wei Yuan sneered. "If you won't even listen to all the conditions, it shows you have no sincerity at all! In that case, the fight is off." The old Mountain Folk felt his temper flare. "Make it brief! Stop listing repetitive rules one by one. Keep it simple!" Wei Yuan answered at once, "Fine! Then there's only one condition left: the appearance fee." "The appearance fee?" The old Mountain Folk was baffled, as was the assembly of immortals looking on. Wei Yuan said, "Our Patriarch became an immortal before turning five hundred years old, and he is a lightning cultivator—a rarity in this world! Furthermore, he is the Vice Palace Master of the Palace of Grand Beginning, the foremost of the four great immortal sects, governing both the Water Moon and Sky Azure Halls. His erudition bridges heaven and man, rivaling the ancient sages. When you invite a figure of his stature to a contest of magic and a debate on the Dao, wouldn't you feel ashamed not to offer a handsome token of appreciation?" The old Mountain Folk finally understood—the boy was demanding money! "How much of an appearance fee do you want?" A smile instantly broke across Wei Yuan's face. "Not much. Just one jin of Earth Mother Primordial Essence." "Earth Mother Primordial Essence?!" The old Mountain Folk nearly leapt out of his skin. Earth Mother Primordial Essence was nothing other than the essence of the old physical husk shed by a Mountain Folk immortal upon ascending. Only the essence of an immortal's former husk earned that name, and a Mountain Folk immortal possessed at most a dozen or so jin of it in total. For Wei Yuan to demand an entire jin right off the bat was an outrageous extortion. "Out of the question!" "Is the dignified Fifth Mountain so destitute that he lacks even a handful of medicinal material? Am I asking for that much? It's merely some dead skin from his feet! If you won't even give that, there's no point in fighting." The old Mountain Folk was incandescent with fury. How could this possibly be compared to dead skin on someone's feet? It was the layer of flesh shed from outside a Mountain Folk immortal's heart that was called Earth Mother Primordial Essence! It was the paramount natural treasure of the Earth element; across this entire realm, barely a handful of immortal materials could rival it. At that moment, the old Mountain Folk tilted his head slightly, listening to a message, before saying, "Agreed!" Wei Yuan smiled faintly. "Then it's settled. Together with all the terms listed earlier, I will draw up an immortal pact. Once the Fifth Mountain has signed it and delivered the appearance fee, we may proceed with the debate." The gathering of immortals in the sky had originally been watching the spectacle for amusement, but now they grew utterly restless. The greatest use of Earth Mother Primordial Essence was in concocting longevity-extending pills. Given Qingming's current mastery of alchemy, wouldn't a jin of Earth Mother Primordial Essence grant that old scoundrel another thousand years of lifespan? Their sole remaining hope was that the Fifth Mountain was not an empty name and could beat the old scoundrel Xuanyue to death. With the matter settled, the Mountain Folk retreated, bringing Xuanyue's Ascension Grand Ceremony to a successful close. After the guests dispersed, Wei Yuan and Zhang Sheng remained behind to discuss why the Mountain Folk had abruptly demanded a duel. Immortal Monarch Yanshi spoke first. "Perhaps someone did not wish to see Fellow Dao... Daoist Xuanyue step into the immortal heaven, and thus deliberately laid a trap." Xuanyue glared at Yanshi. "Is it really that hard to address me as Senior Brother Daoist? Hmm, Little Yanshi?" Yanshi gave a heavy harrumph, letting the remark pass unanswered. Xuanyue was a lightning cultivator, naturally countering Yanshi's heavenly divination arts. Zhu Yan chimed in, "Their choice of timing is rather peculiar. It's clearly meant to disrupt our momentum. What were we originally planning to do?" Xuanyue said, "Investigate the true culprit who murdered Tinghai, naturally!" Yanshi said, "Xu Wangu? He doesn't seem capable of moving Qilizhai. Even in his prime, he lacked that sort of clout and face. I have always felt that someone else was pulling the strings behind Tinghai's death." Xuanyue turned to Zhang Sheng and Wei Yuan. "What do the two of you think?" Zhang Sheng said, "Back then, Patriarch Tinghai fought a duel of magic against Xu Wangu, suffered defeat, and perished on his way back to our mountain gate. Afterward, Xu Wangu immediately retreated into deep seclusion, most likely dreading being entangled in the karmic repercussions. It shouldn't be Xu Wangu; he wouldn't have been able to kill Patriarch Tinghai anyway. Even so, if it wasn't him, we can still dig him out of his secret realm and question him thoroughly." Yanshi was somewhat surprised. "You have a way?" Zhang Sheng replied, "Following the Qingping Sword, I have made progress toward the third immortal treasure. Perhaps I can locate Xu Wangu's secret realm." With a flick of Zhang Sheng's finger, the image of an elderly Daoist manifested above his head, before whom hung a Taiji Diagram. The instant the Taiji Diagram appeared, Yanshi's expression shifted dramatically, and he actually took half a step back. His heavenly divination arts were completely suppressed by the Taiji Diagram; even executing a single divine ability had become exceedingly arduous. Wei Yuan waited until Zhang Sheng had displayed the Taiji Diagram for a moment before speaking up. "I think the Venerable Master is behind this!" Xuanyue frowned. "What evidence do you have?" "Just a guess." The three immortals of Grand Beginning looked at one another, momentarily at a loss for how to accept such reasoning. Wei Yuan continued, "There are only so many immortals in the heavens, and even fewer who commit misdeeds all year round. It's most likely the Venerable Master's doing. If it truly wasn't him, then he'll have to produce evidence to prove his innocence." The three immortals of Grand Beginning were thoroughly unaccustomed to such logic of shooting the arrow first and painting the target around it, yet Wei Yuan treated it as entirely natural. Zhang Sheng whispered, "Our seniors are right here. Try to sound a little more dependable." Wei Yuan whispered back, "Sitting here and debating aimlessly won't yield results anyway. We might as well settle our immediate vendettas first. Once we've dealt with our visible enemies, the real culprit might well be among them." Zhang Sheng thought it over and, to his surprise, found that it made sense. Next came the discussion regarding Xuanyue accepting the challenge. Among the immortal monarchs of the Mountain Folk, the Fifth Mountain had been renowned for millennia. He was also a lightning cultivator, backed by immense foundations. Even without using cave heavens, if he simply traded wound for wound with True Monarch Xuanyue, Xuanyue would certainly be unable to withstand it. Arriving at this point, Yanshi lamented with regret that it was a pity Wei Yuan had failed in his ascension. Now that the Splendor of the Many Realms no longer moved, it could no longer be used to house cave heavens. Otherwise, in a battle between cave heavens, the victor would have been far from certain. Wei Yuan reviewed all the intelligence on Qilizhai in his mind. An idea suddenly struck him, and he said, "I actually have a method. So long as Qilizhai doesn't intend to stake his life, we can remain invincible! But we must guard against him trying to drag you down with him." Xuanyue said slowly, "I am merely a newly ascended immortal. If I can trade my life for Qilizhai's, I will at least not have died in vain, and I'll have the face to meet our ancestral masters." *** In a secret realm within the Domain of the Mountain Folk, sheer peaks of ten thousand zhang rose like blades and swords, piercing straight into the sky. Upon the stone face of a sheer summit, a countenance emerged, gazing down at a black-robed figure as small as an ant before it. "What do I gain from fighting this battle for you?" The black-robed person said, "I will compensate you for the value of the Earth Mother Primordial Essence. If your dharma body is damaged, I will send someone to repair it. In addition, there is an extraterrestrial core—the remnant core left behind after the destruction of a minor world—which can help you advance half a step further." A look of greed surfaced on the stone face. "Fine, I agree. Still, having such treasures, you don't use them to strengthen yourselves, but instead spend them on slaughtering your own kind. Truly bizarre." The black-robed person said, "Certain hatreds within a race run deeper than the heavens and seas, far surpassing hatred for foreign races. Just like the enmity between you and the Prophet Faction." The stone face abruptly changed color and roared, "Do not mention those damned wretches in front of me, or I will devour you!" "You lack the ability. Take your rewards and go do your job!" The black-robed figure tossed out a storage bracelet.