Chapter 457: Immortal Mansion Grand Gathering

The outskirts of Long Yuan Island.

Penglai Sect's trans-national spiritual ship slowly docked near Long Yuan Island.

Shi Tian Shu had long since scrambled out, climbed onto Qin Ming's shoulder to gaze into the distance at the spiritual island, his expression brimming with excitement.

"Hey! As expected of the sea races' territory; compared to this Great Lord's rat nest in the Beast Cry Mountain Range, it is truly far wealthier."

"This time, I must properly witness this grand gathering that occurs only once in a thousand years."

Subsequently.

Qin Ming followed the crowd from Penglai Sect, passed through the external formation security checkpoint, and entered Long Yuan Island.

The island was already packed with people; from the outside in, trading zones were demarcated for Qi Condensation up to Jin Dan stages.

Stalls lined every street and alley, while dazzling shops created a bustling scene.

Within the major and minor streets, various strangely shaped sea race demon cultivators appeared as well, coexisting harmoniously with human cultivators—a rare sight indeed.

"Whoa! That's the Fish-Man Race, that's the Giant Shark Race, and there's the Sea Rakshasa Race..."

"The Giant Crab Race, the Green Snail Race..."

"Their appearances are truly strange; Master, looking at them, I feel as if individual pieces of seafood are walking down the street... Hehehe!"

Shi Tian Shu acted as though he had discovered a new continent; it was also his first time seeing so many sea races.

Hearing this, Qin Ming found it quite amusing and turned to say to him, "Among those here are seafood creatures that have reached the Form-Transformation realm; be careful that disaster springs from the mouth, for to them, your land-based demon races are equally great tonics."

"Hehe! I was just speaking casually; from now on, I will certainly be cautious with my words and actions." Shi Tian Shu also realized that those able to reach the island undoubtedly included fourth-stage Demon Saints from among the sea races.

At the same time.

Qin Ming slightly extended his perception and discovered that the two Ghost Nether Palace cultivators, disguised as a shrimp soldier and a crab general from that day, were currently also on Long Yuan Island.

Upon arrival, he had already unfolded his divine sense to probe hundreds of li around Long Yuan Island, yet he had not detected any trace of demonic cultivators.

But these two demonic cultivators had clearly infiltrated the interior of Long Yuan Island, which made Qin Ming somewhat puzzled.

'This group of demonic cultivators' plan has already been exposed; could it be that they have other backup plans?'

'It seems that in a moment, I must find those two and forcibly search their souls to see.'

After entering the island, Qin Ming was immediately attracted by various rare treasures and exotic gems.

Thus, he said to Long Mu Zhenjun, "Fellow Daoists, Qin Mou will first wander around casually; we shall meet again at the Nascent Soul peer gathering."

"Very well; although all manner of immortal mansion treasures emerge endlessly at this grand gathering, obtaining them relies entirely on one's own fortune. This old one wishes Fellow Daoist Qin success in gaining something here," Long Mu Zhenjun said with a smile.

Next.

Qin Ming then took Shi Tian Shu and began wandering all over the island.

He had also heard that at previous Immortal Mansion Grand Gatherings, there were even Nascent Soul True Lords who found tremendous bargains at Qi Condensation stalls, incidents that people still discussed with relish to this day.

Therefore, Qin Ming also started browsing from the outer perimeter, purchasing whatever items caught his fancy on the spot.

At the same time, he contacted Hua Tianxiong via the black talisman: "Hua Tianxiong, you should have arrived on the island by now, correct?"

"Reporting to Master, I arrived two days ago ahead of time with Senior Xia and the others; right now, I have secured a spot in the Jin Dan trading zone to sell goods and simultaneously keep an eye out for items Master needs."

"Mm, help me pay close attention to any news regarding the 'Azure Sky Spiritual Soil'; notify me immediately once there is news."

"Yes, Master."

After giving instructions to Hua Tianxiong, Qin Ming continued strolling along the streets.

That fellow Shi Tian Shu was extremely sensitive to the aura of treasures and would hardly ever easily miss any valuable item for him.

"Fellow Daoists, everyone passing by, come take a look, come take a see! Special Sea Spirit Ginseng from East Sea's Biling Island, letting men regain their confidence..."

"Freshly refined scales of a second-stage late-period Scale-Armor Beast, the perfect choice for crafting defensive magical treasures, produced by Cloud Sea Pavilion—honest pricing for both children and elders!"

"Third-stage early-period Earth-attribute Demon Core of the Ni Sea Beast, waiting for a fated person!"

"Thunder-Spirit Electric Eels, exclusively found beneath the ten-thousand-zhang deep sea, for sale; they are still alive, do not touch, consequences are your own responsibility!"

"Talisman from the East Sea Treasure Talisman Pavilion sold cheaply, an essential item for home and travel!"

On the streets above, the crowd was as dense as woven fabric, and the hawking cries of various vendors rose and fell one after another.

Qin Ming wandered along with great interest until he arrived before a stall selling spiritual seeds.

The stall was manned by a dark-skinned youth, a small Foundation Establishment cultivator; seeing Qin Ming approach and taking one glance, he perceived that his magic power cultivation was bottomless, realizing the other's cultivation far exceeded his own.

"Senior, may I ask which item has caught your eye? Allow this junior to introduce a few to you," the black-faced youth piled on a flattering smile, hurriedly rising to greet him.

Qin Ming casually picked up several pale purple spiritual seeds from the stall and asked, "How do you sell these spiritual seeds?"

"These are seeds of the Purple Sun Flower, a top-grade second-stage spiritual plant; their maturation period is about two years. Once matured, this flower becomes a rare and precious delicacy for immortal mansions, hehe!"

"If used to feed demonic beasts or spiritual pets, it can greatly enhance their reproductive capabilities."

The black-faced cultivator's gaze shifted to Shi Tian Shu on Qin Ming's shoulder, and he emphasized this point with an additional remark.

"If you want them, this bag of spiritual seeds will cost you only one hundred medium-grade spiritual stones."

Hearing this, Shi Tian Shu immediately became displeased: "How dare you speak like that, you junior? This Great Lord uses third-grade spiritual tea as mouthwash; who would covet your trifling stuff? Need your things to improve capabilities... Pah!"

Seeing the rat demon actually speak human language, the black-faced youth was somewhat terrified; coming to his senses, he hurriedly apologized with a smile, "Senior, please do not take offense; this junior was unaware of the situation and caused great offense, forgive me! Forgive me!"

Shi Tian Shu pursed his lips and ignored the other party.

Qin Ming smiled faintly and said, "I want all the bags of spiritual seeds on your stall; calculate how many spiritual stones that totals."

At these words.

The stall owner first froze for a moment, then an expression of extreme joy spread across his face.

He had not expected that after setting up his stall for only half a day, all his goods would be completely cleared out.

"Hehe! Thank you for your patronage, Senior; adding these up, the total comes to sixteen hundred medium-grade spiritual stones!" The black-faced youth's face was nearly splitting from smiling; he had acquired these spiritual seeds from various places, intending to come here to earn some price difference.

After deducting the stall fee, he would still make a huge profit; it was simply a single wave that sent him soaring straight up!

Qin Ming counted out the spiritual stones, handed them to the other party, and stored the spiritual seeds before him.

Money and goods were exchanged, settling the transaction.

He left the stall.

"Master, why have you suddenly taken an interest in second-tier spiritual seeds?"

Once they had walked far away, the Shi Tian Shu couldn't help but ask.

To be honest, it felt a bit guilty and afraid; if Qin Ming really used those Purple Sun Flowers to feed it, then cultivated more little mouse demons, that wasn't impossible either, after all, its Shi Tian Shu bloodline was quite valuable. Qin Ming picked out several gray seeds from that pile of spiritual seeds, examined them carefully, and said, "These few spiritual seeds are the fourth-tier lower-grade spiritual plant 'Deep Sea Purple Dew Grass' recorded in the 'Classic of Transforming Wood Spirits'; they can be used to refine elixirs for Nascent Soul cultivators to recover magic power."

"I didn't expect the Immortal Mansion Grand Assembly to truly live up to its reputation; finally, I, this seat, have managed to pick up a bargain."

"What? Could it be that you actually want to eat those Purple Sun Flowers to nourish your body? If you want them, just plant some yourself within the Small Spirit Realm."

Hearing this, the Shi Tian Shu let out a long sigh of relief, but upon hearing Qin Ming's subsequent words, it waved its hands repeatedly:

"No, no, no, I won't need them."

Qin Ming smiled, then continued walking toward the central area.

For the first few days, the buying and selling at the stalls and shops on Long Yuan Island were merely a warm-up for the Immortal Mansion Grand Assembly.

The true grand assembly would be held within the circular venue in the center of Long Yuan Island, large enough to accommodate tens of thousands of cultivators gathering together.

However, the threshold for entry here was very high; not just anyone could enter.

Various rare treasures from immortal mansions would be displayed and traded here.

Several large-scale auctions would also be held, jointly organized by the Tianhai Alliance and the East Sea Long Gong.

Just at this moment.

The cultivators on the street ahead all scrambled aside, fearing to be anywhere near it, clearing a wide path.

There, a handsome young man sat upon a precious carriage made of purple jade coral, slowly traveling down the street, pulled by several Blue Wave Seahorses.

The precious carriage was open-air; the handsome youth wore a luxurious robe of white jade and gold thread, possessed a pair of golden pupils, and his aura was profound and unfathomable, distinctly radiating the demonic power of a transformed great demon.

Upon the coral precious carriage, the golden-pupiled transformed demon cultivator had women embracing him on both sides; several female cultivators of peerless beauty and figure, dressed revealingly, leaned against him with all their might. This person's style of travel could be said to be extremely flashy, displaying luxury to the utmost.

At this moment, Qin Ming was standing before a stall preparing to purchase items, but upon seeing such a spectacle on the street, the stall owner didn't even care about doing business and ran far away directly, leaving only Qin Ming standing there all alone.

A moment later.

As the golden-pupiled transformed great demon passed by, his eyes suddenly narrowed, then landed on Qin Ming.

A smile appeared on his handsome face; he pushed away the woman beside him and asked Qin Ming, "May I ask from where you hail, honored guest? Why do you look so unfamiliar?"

"Qin Mou comes from the Southern Desolate Immortal Realm." Qin Ming also smiled faintly and replied politely.

These words immediately aroused great interest in the golden-pupiled demon cultivator.

"Oh? Then that is truly a coincidence."

"So, honored guest, you are none other than the newly promoted Wangyue Qin Zhenjun; hearing of you is not as good as seeing you."

"This King is Prince Xuanxiao, the third son of the East Sea Long Gong; I heard that old fellow Ao Feng mention you, and I heard you even saved his son's life?"

"Why not come to my residence for a sit?"

The golden-pupiled demon cultivator's smile grew even wider, directly extending an invitation.

"Thank you for Daoist Prince Xuanxiao's kind offer; Qin Mou intends to browse a bit first and will visit another day." Qin Ming replied with a smile.

Prince Xuanxiao nodded and said little more: "That is fine then; I wish Daoist Qin good luck."

He then immediately drove the precious carriage away.

At this time, the crowd on the street finally came to their senses; they hadn't expected that a legendary Nascent Soul great expert would actually browse stalls meant for Foundation Establishment cultivators, which was truly too baffling.

The person opposite clearly looked quite ordinary in appearance; if the East Sea's third prince hadn't recognized him just now, they wouldn't have been able to tell at all, at most assuming he was a senior from the Jin Dan stage.

But when they turned their heads back to look at the stall where Qin Ming had been, the person had already vanished in the blink of an eye.

……

……

Qin Ming left the outer area and arrived at the island's core region.

"I heard Daoist Long Mu say that the dragon tribe of the East Sea Long Gong carries the legendary ancient true spirit bloodline..."

"I wonder if it's true; it truly makes my heart stir..."

He thought this silently to himself.

It was not until he browsed to a shop in the Jin Dan district that he discovered an old acquaintance.

A long-unseen joyful smile instantly appeared on his face.

In front of the shop stall.

A cultivator resembling a youth in green robes was fiercely haggling with the shop owner.

"For just this late third-tier Dragon Rhino Horn, you want to sell it to this seat for three hundred high-grade spiritual stones; isn't this ripping people off!"

"Honored customer, you must look carefully before speaking; this is not the horn of a Dragon Rhino Beast, but an early fourth-tier Dragon Elephant Horn."

The shop owner said, utterly speechless.

……

(End of Chapter)