Private Discussion

Qin Sang's face darkened, his brows furrowing tightly. He made no attempt to conceal his displeasure, letting the Yue sisters see it clearly, for this asking price was indeed rather steep. Among rogue cultivators, even someone at the Foundation Establishment stage would consider themselves fortunate to find a spirit vein rich in spiritual power. Whether it possessed a spirit eye was entirely a matter of luck, while a spirit spring was an unattainable blessing one could only dream of encountering. Only powerful sects like Shaohua Mountain, which occupied the greatest spirit veins, possessed the resources to grant most of their Foundation Establishment disciples cave dwellings comparable to spirit eyes. The only reason Qin Sang had been able to purchase a spirit eye cave dwelling with just a few magic tools was that the white cat had been desperate to journey to the Heavenly Demon Mound to seek the Dao. It distrusted humans, had no other channels, and needed a secret technique that could save its life. Truth be told, the Yue sisters were indulging in wishful thinking if they thought a mere dried-up spirit spring object could fetch a cave dwelling with a spirit eye. Yet Qin Sang was determined to obtain a spirit spring object, so after they stated their condition, he turned it over in his mind. As for actual spirit eye cave dwellings, he genuinely knew of two. One was the cave dwelling on the island where the spirit stone mine was situated; that was indeed a spirit eye cave dwelling. Originally managed by a Foundation Establishment cultivator, it was now occupied by Shen Youdao. As the spirit stones were mined out, the associated spirit vein and spirit eye would slowly dry up, but not quickly—it would take at least a century or more. However, that spirit vein had nearly been ruined by Shen Youdao and his accomplices, and such damage was bound to accelerate the exhaustion of the spirit eye significantly. Moreover, even a nearly depleted spirit stone mine was not something he could afford. The underground veins and branches running deep into the earth would yield a staggering sum if mined out gradually. He could hardly become a miner himself, and mining spirit stones was exceedingly difficult, requiring great expertise; high cultivation alone would not suffice. He could apply to become the overseer, but transferring the cave dwelling to outsiders on his own authority was something the sect would never permit. The second was the Heavenly Corpse Sect branch altar inside the subterranean cavern. Qin Sang dismissed that without a second thought. Had it been an ordinary spirit eye cave dwelling, that might have been fine, but three naturally formed spirit eyes clustered together, while not equal to a true spirit spring, were still enough to incite immense envy. After he and Senior Brother Yu reported it to the sect, news of the cavern had surely spread. Although the distance was somewhat far, the allure of a "spirit spring cave dwelling" was enough for anyone to disregard such travel. Since it had already been surrendered to the sect, there was no chance of reclaiming it. That was why, when leaving Sect Master Peak, Qin Sang had not asked, nor had Senior Brother Chu mentioned it. Nonetheless, in any trade, opening terms were merely starting points for bargaining. The higher of the Yue sisters' cultivation was only at the eleventh layer of the Qi Refinement stage. A spirit vein rich in spiritual power would be more than enough to sustain their cultivation; their true baseline likely lay there. He wondered what Baiyun Shanren's Baiyun Island was like. If the man had no powerful friends, taking it by force was an option. With this in mind, Qin Sang spoke up. "Fellow Daoist Yue, I haven't yet seen the spirit spring object you possess. Might I broaden my horizons and have a look first?" Yue Xing nodded. "Of course." As she spoke, she lightly brushed her mustard seed bag, and a gnarled, withered tree root appeared in her palm. She held it out generously for Qin Sang to inspect. The root was about the size of two human heads, tangled with twisted rootlets and gleaming with a peculiar luster akin to mineral ore—the result of long being washed by a spirit spring. It matched the descriptions of spirit spring objects in the ancient texts to the letter. Qin Sang returned the tree root, thought for a moment, and said, "A dried-up spirit spring object is rare, but it is hardly a priceless treasure. Fellow Daoist Yue, your asking price is truly far too steep. I daresay that even if you asked every cultivator across the four cultivation markets, not a single one would agree to such terms. How about this: Shaohua Mountain rears spirit beasts specialized in finding spirit veins. I will pay the spirit stones to lease one for you to use for a year. The Yuncang Great Marsh is vast beyond measure, crisscrossed by countless spirit veins. Perhaps you might actually find a spirit eye on your own." The Yue sisters neither agreed nor refused outright. Exchanging a glance, one of them asked, "Could Senior allow us sisters a moment to discuss it?" Qin Sang gestured for them to go ahead. Granny Jing pointed toward the main hall in front and said indifferently, "The main hall has sound-insulating restrictions. Go discuss it there." "Many thanks to both seniors for your accommodation..." Yue Xing pulled Yue Rou along as they briskly walked to the front. After casting another sound-insulating restriction, Yue Rou grumbled indignantly, "The Yuncang Great Marsh isn't just full of monster beasts—it's teeming with villains waiting to kill and loot. If we parade around with a spirit beast, we won't even know how we died! I don't think he's sincere at all!" "Enough." Yue Xing tugged her gently. "Spirit beasts raised by Shaohua Mountain wouldn't be shoddy, and the cost to hire one for a year certainly won't be cheap. Senior Qin is being quite sincere." Yue Rou's eyes widened. "Sister, you're not actually thinking of selling the tree root like this, are you?" Yue Xing wore a thoughtful expression. "Sell it, we definitely must! The tree root has been passed down from our ancestors for hundreds of years, and not a single drop of spring water has ever seeped from it. This proves the legends are true—once a spirit spring dries up, it can never be restored. But we certainly can't sell it this cheaply. I want to proceed with what we discussed before coming here." Yue Rou furrowed her dark brows. "But we still don't know what kind of person he is. If it really turns out to be a spirit eye cave dwelling inside, Granny Jing might not be able to keep him in check. Could it be..." "Probably not," Yue Xing mused. "Senior Qin was right: a spirit spring object is indeed rare, but hardly an invaluable treasure. Father and Mother tried to sell it in the past, but no one wanted it at such an exorbitant price. When I deliberately brought up a spirit eye cave dwelling, he didn't fly into a rage or berate us; instead, he seemed to be considering it carefully. From this, we can see two things: first, he genuinely wants to buy it; second, a spirit eye cave dwelling is not an unattainable blessing to him. I've heard that at Shaohua Mountain, every Foundation Establishment cultivator is allocated a spirit eye. Such is the foundation of a great sect..." Yue Xing let out an envious sigh. "It's rare that the tree root could fetch a good price. With Granny Jing mediating, Senior Qin is practically the best choice we could ask for. The two of us can barely sustain our own cultivation. Even if we had spare wealth to hire another Foundation Establishment cultivator, they might not be trustworthy. As long as we can obtain an excellent cave dwelling, we will have hope of reaching Foundation Establishment. And if we can never reach Foundation Establishment, merely staring at that place without ever entering—what's the point of keeping it?" Yue Rou pondered for a moment before relenting grudgingly, "All right..." ... Seeing the Yue sisters return, Qin Sang straightened up. He heard Yue Xing say softly, "Senior Qin, we can forgo the spirit eye cave dwelling and present the tree root to you. We only ask that Senior do us a favor..." Qin Sang frowned silently, looking into Yue Xing's eyes, waiting for her to continue. Yue Xing smiled somewhat awkwardly, glanced at Granny Jing, and said, "We discovered an ownerless cave dwelling. Its master is already dead, but there are dangerous restrictions outside that we dare not brave. If Senior Qin can help us break the restrictions, whether the cave dwelling inside is good or bad, we sisters will accept it and will certainly give the tree root to you."