Chapter 74: Chance Encounter with Dragon Tooth Rice

After Li Xuan returned to the inn, he took the auction handbook for the auction from the Void Pearl.

The auction three days later is not an ordinary auction, but the Tian Dou Royal Auction, the once‑a‑year annual auction.

Inside there are well over a hundred lots, and many of them are high‑quality items.

From soul bones and Soul Guide Devices down to various ornaments, weapons and slaves, everything imaginable is available; if you want it, you can buy it.

However, Li Xuan's goal is a Soul Guide Device that can store living beings, since his room still holds a few precious plants with nowhere to place them; keeping them in the room is uneasy, and carrying them on his body is inconvenient.

Yet in this auction handbook Li Xuan found no Soul Guide Device capable of storing living beings, meaning the auction may have nothing that requires Li Xuan to act personally.

Moreover, the biggest highlight of this auction is a treasure that can accelerate Soul Power Refinement.

Li Xuan found this treasure on the last page of the auction handbook.

It is a patterned mat. It is said to increase cultivation speed by twenty percent.

Yet Li Xuan is not very interested; no matter how good the mat's effect is, it's not as fast as an Alchemy Pill.

Closing the handbook, Li Xuan frowned helplessly; it seems this auction is just a chance for him to see the world.

Though he had no expectations, he still feels a bit disappointed.

Additionally, he plans to buy a manor near the academy to grow medicinal herbs and brew wine, forming a perfect closed loop and freeing Li Xuan's time for winemaking.

"Looks like I need to go out and ask the Courtyard's price," Li Xuan thought, rubbing his bare chin.

Doing as he says, Li Xuan stepped out of the inn, inquired around, and finally found the Tooth Exchange in Tian Dou City! The Tooth Exchange is a place that handles all kinds of transactions, equivalent to a modern trading hub.

"Oh my, young master, you truly have an impressive bearing! Are you here to buy something today?" a young servant said as he saw Li Xuan who had just found the Tooth Exchange, and hurried to speak.

No wonder he's a servant of the Tooth Exchange; his tongue is indeed slick.

"You're quite chatty, here's a reward; I want to buy a manor, show me the way," Li Xuan said, eyeing the servant oddly, then tossed a Silver Soul Coin and continued speaking to him.

"Thank you for the master's gift, the area where we trade land is inside, young master, I'll take you there now," the servant said, his smile growing more obsequious after receiving the Silver Soul Coin, then bowed and made a beckoning gesture toward Li Xuan.

Li Xuan nodded and followed the servant into the Tooth Exchange.

The Tooth Exchange in Tian Dou City looks exceedingly tidy, unlike the Slave Market; it is more upscale, and the people coming and going are all impeccably dressed, appearing either wealthy or noble.

Soon, the servant led Li Xuan to a meeting room at the very back.

At that moment, a middle‑aged man in his forties wearing a tailcoat sat on a sofa, studying a map before him.

"Hello, may I ask if you're here to purchase land?" Li Xuan knocked on the door and asked the person inside.

"Oh? Young master, you want to buy land?" the middle‑aged man turned his head and asked.

"Exactly, I want to build my own winery and need a plot of land," Li Xuan nodded and conveyed his idea to the man.

"Greetings, young master, I am Fenglu, a supervisor here at the Tooth Exchange, mainly handling land deals. May I ask what requirements you have for the manor's location?" Fenglu stood, pointed at the map, and asked Li Xuan.

"First, the area must be large enough for sufficient farmland; second, it must be close enough to Lanba Academy. Please check whether any land for sale meets these criteria," Li Xuan said after a moment, then told Fenglu his requirements. "Young master, please have a seat; I'll look up nearby plots right away," Fenglu nodded, took out a small booklet, and began leafing through it.

Li Xuan was in no hurry; after all, he had taken a half‑month vacation, and once the auction ends he can wander outside for a while.

"Found it, young master. About ten kilometers from Lanba Academy, the manor covers fifteen mu, with mountains and water, an excellent environment, surrounded by a thousand mu of wasteland and two thousand mu of forest—perfectly matching your requirements," Fenglu pointed to a spot on the map and explained to Li Xuan.

Following Fenglu's indication, Li Xuan also looked; the location is good, relatively remote, far from Tian Dou City but only ten kilometers from Lanba Academy.

"Mr. Fenglu, could you first take me to see the land? After all, I'll be building the manor there," Li Xuan rubbed his forehead and said to Fenglu.

"That's natural; the place is habitable. We can set out now, should reach the manor by night, tour it tomorrow morning, and return to Tian Dou City by evening. I'll accompany you personally," Fenglu nodded and said seriously.

"Then I'll leave it to you, Mr. Fenglu," Li Xuan nodded.

"Young master, please wait a moment; I'll arrange a carriage and we'll depart shortly," Fenglu nodded, stood, and left the meeting room.

A deal worth ten thousand Gold Soul Coins is enough for a supervisor like Fenglu to make a personal trip.

"Young master, please wait while I contact the carriage," Fenglu turned and left the meeting room at once.

At that moment, Li Xuan turned back and saw on a nearby windowsill a delicate vase with a stalk of rice grain inserted.

The stalk was unlike ordinary rice; it was about half a meter long, each grain slender and shaped like an animal's tooth.

【Plant: Dragon Tooth Rice】

【Quality: Heavenly Material Earth Treasure】

【Cultivation: 1 year】

【Description: A rare grain fruit with a faint dragon lineage; long‑term consumption can strengthen the flesh. Edible, one of the finest ingredients for winemaking, usable in the refinement of various Spiritual Wines. It is not picky about growing conditions and can replenish the soil, increasing fertility.】

Li Xuan never expected to encounter such a treasure.

Although Dragon Tooth Rice is not a top‑tier Heavenly Material Earth Treasure, its greatest trait is hardiness—unfussy about environment and can thrive anywhere. Its effect is modest, but its sheer quantity is unbeatable! Li Xuan set his sights on this plant, determined to obtain it.

After a short while, Fenglu walked in from outside.

"Young master, the carriage is ready; we can depart now," Fenglu nodded at Li Xuan and said.

"Mr. Fenglu, this rice looks different from ordinary rice; where did it come from?" Li Xuan asked without standing.

"Ah, that's a stalk I discovered a few days ago while roaming outdoors. I intended to cultivate it as an experiment, but I've been busy lately and haven't had time to study it," Fenglu explained with a smile.

"Little one, thank you for the master's gift; the area where we trade land is inside. Young master, I'll take you there now," the servant said after receiving the Silver Soul Coin, his smile growing more obsequious as he bowed and gestured for Li Xuan.

"That won't do. How about this: I'll give you ten Gold Soul Coins as payment for buying this item, plus a fee for accompanying me to view the Courtyard," Li Xuan shook his head, then took ten Gold Soul Coins from the Void Pearl and handed them to Fenglu, after which he removed the Dragon Tooth Rice stalk from the vase and placed it into the Void Pearl.

Then Li Xuan and Fenglu boarded the carriage, arrived at the Tooth Exchange's entrance, and rode away.

"Ladies and gentlemen, good night," (End of chapter).