Chapter 950: Talismans and Arrays

“It’s a Ye family cultivator,” Ge Tianhao said slowly.

“The Ye family? The imperial Ye family?” Lin Yinping’s expression showed surprise.

“Do you know who sent him? It’s a senior elder of the Ye family surnamed Han—and this Han elder bears a striking resemblance, seven or eight out of ten, to the man we’re pursuing,” Ge Tianhao said, his face tinged with oddness.

“Such a thing? Are they the same person? How could that man be connected to the Ye family?” Lin Yinping asked, startled.

“It’s still unclear. The one I soul-searched was merely a freelance cultivator hired by the Ye family. But whether or not they’re the same person, they’re certainly closely linked. Otherwise, why would someone send a tracker after us? If that man truly is a Ye family elder, this is going to be troublesome,” Ge Tianhao’s expression grew grave.

“What? Is the imperial family that powerful? I thought the Ye family was just a clan propped up by your sects. Why are you so wary, Brother Ge?” Lin Yinping chuckled.

“The Ye family isn’t an ordinary cultivation clan. Not only are they the imperial house of Da Jin, known as the foremost clan, but they alone have six or seven Nascent Soul elders. Never mind the large number of freelance cultivators they’ve secretly recruited or the hidden factions they’ve cultivated. Their true strength likely rivals any major cultivation sect. Take the cultivator tracking us—he may be low in cultivation, but the banner he wields is extraordinarily mysterious. If not for your Wonderful Sound Treasure Mirror, we’d never have noticed him sneaking behind us,” Ge Tianhao sighed.

“Nothing much. My cultivation method emphasizes spiritual perception. Since leaving the marketplace, I’ve felt something amiss, so I naturally used the mirror to check. It’s just bad luck for him—he happened to run into me with the Wonderful Sound Treasure Mirror in hand. Brother Ge, how will you handle this? Will your sect still honor your agreement with our Hall?” The Tianlan Holy Maiden fixed her gaze on Ge Tianhao and asked calmly.

“Heh! The Ye family may be powerful, but our sect won’t fear anyone. Besides, this involves our sect’s treasured artifact and the life of one of our Enforcement Elders. Even if this man truly is a Ye family elder, we’ll make them hand him over. Rest assured, Sister Lin. The hour is late—let’s head to the Jiaoyi Society first,” Ge Tianhao said, glancing toward the distant horizon with a faint tone.

“If Brother Ge says so, I’m at ease,” Lin Yinping nodded in satisfaction.

Instantly, the three transformed into three streaks of light and shot away.

Unaware of this, shortly after they departed, a flicker of black light suddenly surged nearby, and a figure blurred into view—a young man in blue robes appeared mysteriously, staring at the direction where the three had vanished, sneering coldly.

"So the Yinluo Sect and the Tianlan Holy Hall have teamed up. Fine. I’ll spare you for now—let you help me find that Han kid. I’ve never forgotten the revenge from that chase," the youth murmured, then his figure flickered and vanished again.

…

Han Li stood amid a greenish haze, glanced around, and sighed inwardly.

He was now inside a dim, vast hall, containing four to five hundred seats arranged evenly around a circular open space in the center.

To his great surprise, upon entering, a masked cultivator at the gate had slapped a special talisman onto him; after passing through a simple teleportation array, he was instantly enveloped in green light, rendering his form faint and indistinct.

Han Li was startled and looked around. Dozens of cultivators were scattered sparsely around the hall, some standing, some seated—all similarly shrouded in colored auras, their true appearances hidden.

Curious, Han Li sat casually in a corner and quietly extended his spiritual sense toward a nearby cultivator, testing whether it could pierce through the aura.

To his shock, the auras felt tangible—no matter how forcefully he pressed his spiritual sense, it was effortlessly repelled. Though he hadn’t unleashed his full strength, he doubted even maximum pressure would help.

Han Li’s mind shifted, and his spiritual sense swept instinctively across the entire hall. He realized the whole chamber seemed under the influence of a peculiar array—no deadly restrictions were active, but the array’s spiritual energy subtly resonated with the auras enveloping everyone.

Han Li himself was proficient in talismans and arrays. After a moment’s thought, he understood the mechanism and inwardly marveled.

Clearly, these talismans were designed specifically to work with this strange array. Once applied and brought within the array’s range, their concealment effect activated automatically. Thus, no matter how powerful a cultivator’s spiritual sense, it could not overcome the entire array.

This allowed the participants—those seasoned monsters—to exchange items freely, unafraid of encountering enemies or being targeted for their trades.

Han Li felt a slight relief. His earlier concern that Yinluo Sect cultivators might attend the Jiaoyi Society vanished. He placed his magic disc on the table before him and sat back, closing his eyes to rest.

Time passed slowly; more cultivators arrived via teleportation into the hall.

When Han Li opened his eyes again, nearly two hundred cultivators filled the hall, and in the center’s circular space, a white jade table several zhang wide had appeared out of nowhere.

Han Li narrowed his eyes and fell silent, gazing ahead.

Soon, a flash of spiritual light appeared beside the white jade table, and a figure shrouded in white aura materialized behind it.

“Time’s up. All who are coming have arrived. The exchange begins now,” the figure in white light said, scanning the hall with a calm tone.

He waved his sleeve, and three or four bulging storage bags floated onto the table.

All cultivators in the hall instantly fixed their gazes on the items, their eyes blazing with eagerness.

“This exchange follows the usual format. Primarily, rare materials are traded. Rare ancient treasures or magic artifacts may also be exchanged here if truly uncommon. As per tradition, we will first offer a batch of materials for direct spirit stone auction—highest bidder wins. Then, participants may trade items directly. But this year differs: we’ve been entrusted by a major patron to auction a supreme treasure as the finale. This treasure will be exchanged only for a few exceedingly rare items. If no one possesses them, we’ll auction it for spirit stones. Whether you have the fortune to obtain this treasure depends on your own destiny,” the figure in white light said slowly.

“Supreme treasure? What exactly is it? Material, pill, or magic artifact? Could you at least hint? Otherwise, if we trade away the needed items beforehand, we’ll regret it,” someone suddenly asked.

“Heh! I can only call it ‘exceedingly rare.’ The exact nature will be revealed at the end. As for your concern—it’s unnecessary. Whoever possesses the items required for this treasure would never part with them,” the figure smiled faintly.

These words, spoken with such arrogance, stirred murmurs among the cultivators. Curiosity stirred in every heart, yet no one dared ask further.

At that moment, the figure behind the jade table casually reached for a storage bag before him, and black light flashed in his palm—a fruit resembling a jujube, dark and glossy, appeared.

“Yin Zao. A fruit that grows occasionally on graves of those born in Yin year, Yin month, Yin day. It takes three hundred years to mature, then is refined for seventy-seven days using the Yuanhunyuanqi with secret techniques. It can be consumed directly or used as a medicinal ingredient. Starting bid: one hundred thousand spirit stones. Increment: five thousand.”

The moment the figure spoke, Han Li’s heart jolted.

“One hundred twenty thousand.”

“One hundred forty thousand.”

“One hundred forty-five thousand spirit stones.”

…

In moments, this Yin Zao—something Han Li had never heard of—sold for a shocking price. Every bidder wore aura of black and gray, clearly indicating they were from the demonic path, who valued this item highly.

In the end, the Yin Zao was sold for one hundred ninety thousand spirit stones.

“Xueyang Iron. Forged by fusing the primordial spirits of three cultivators above Foundation Establishment who practice fire-elemental arts. A rare material for crafting Yin Fire magic artifacts. Starting bid: one hundred fifty thousand spirit stones. Increment: ten thousand.”

“One hundred eighty thousand.”

“Two hundred thousand.”

…

This rare material, which Han Li had faintly heard of, drew few bidders—but those who bid were clearly wealthy and unwilling to yield, and it eventually sold for an astonishing two hundred fifty thousand spirit stones.

“Gui Li Cao…”

One after another, items with names steeped in malevolence appeared—and each was instantly snatched up with heaps of spirit stones, utterly unlike the atmosphere of a grand auction.

Han Li touched his waist pouch and inwardly sighed.

For the first time, he worried his pouch of spirit stones might be insufficient. Though he knew a batch of items would be auctioned for spirit stones before the barter began, he hadn’t expected the items to be so extraordinarily rare—and their prices soaring higher with each bid. Any single item’s price surpassed the finale items of grand auctions.

“Yu Xiang Jiao. A substance produced once every thousand years by the heavenly spirit tree, Yu Xiang. The finest material for crafting peculiar magic artifacts and mechanical puppets. Starting bid: one hundred twenty thousand spirit stones. Minimum increment: five thousand…”

“One hundred fifty thousand.”

When the figure in white light unveiled a milky, gelatinous substance, Han Li—who had been listless until now—suddenly perked up and bid without hesitation.

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