Chapter 194

Senior, please follow me.

Piao Xiu'er brought Chen Zheng into a guest room inside the grand pavilion and warmly entertained him, offering immortal fruit and fragrant tea.

This tea is no ordinary brew; its vapor shifts into the shapes of immortal cranes and phoenixes, the leaves are clear, and as water splashes over them they hiss with a lively sound, as if sentient—it is actually a marvelous variety known as Spirit Crane Immortal Mist Tea,

Furthermore, Piao Xiu'er summoned seven women dressed in fine silks to attend to Chen Zheng attentively.

These seven women, like Piao Xiu'er, had fair skin, beautiful features, excellent bearing, and delicate frames.

If Chen Zheng wished, all he needed to do was crook his finger, and they would obediently line up, offering their yin essence for him to harvest.

They had all heard Piao Xiu'er say that earlier, at the gate, this senior's glance alone had made the perpetually stern Junior Master Xing, who had reached the Third Level of Longevity, break out in a cold sweat and never dare to overstep again.

Chen Zheng even rewarded Piao Xiu'er with a medium-grade Dao artifact, making them envy her to the point of wishing to take her place, or to serve Chen Zheng comfortably and earn a reward themselves.

Such a generous senior is rare.

Elsewhere.

The middle-aged beautiful lady, Aunt Xin, had already entered the deepest part of the huge pavilion, hurriedly came to outside a room, lightly knocked on the door, and then walked in.

The room was decorated elegantly, filled with a subtle fragrance; in the center stood a large screen, behind which lay an exquisite ivory bed, draped with pink gauze curtains.

Faintly visible, a girl with delicate features sat cross-legged at the center of the bed, wearing a phoenix crown, draped in rosy robes, her bare feet as white and smooth as mutton-fat jade.

The rosy-robed girl closed her eyes; before her floated a crystal shard shaped like a blade, rising and falling with her breath, as if she were refining this blade fragment.

"Miss, a mysterious senior says he wants to do a big deal of a trillion Pure Yang Pill with our Brocade Manor; he is now waiting in the guest chamber. Would you like to see him?" Aunt Xin approached the bed and reported to the rosy-robed girl with a bow.

"A trillion Pure Yang Pill deal? That's rare indeed, truly a big deal." The rosy-robed girl opened her eyes, a look of interest appearing on her petite face, she looked at Aunt Xin and asked: "Tell me, what kind of senior is he, what realm is he in, and how mysterious is he?"

"He appears young, his looks and bearing are one in a billion, but I cannot see through his realm..."

Aunt Xing quickly sent the message via divine sense, recounting how she had met Chen Zheng at the gate, how extraordinary he was, and how a single glance from him left her drenched in cold sweat from shock.

"Oh? Then this person likely possesses a treasure that conceals his realm, and being so young, his background is surely not small; perhaps he is a Young Master of some major power in another great world." The rosy-robed girl's eyes flashed with thoughtful light.

Immediately she broke into a lovely smile and ordered: "Go arrange a banquet, then invite him to attend; I will personally receive him..."

Hum!

Before the rosy-robed girl could finish her sentence, she was suddenly cut off by a metallic vibrating sound.

She reached out and grabbed, and a small metal token appeared in her hand, from which an urgent voice transmitted: "Miss, the Young Master of the True Lord Tower, Qi Minghao, has come again!"

Upon hearing this, the rosy-robed girl's face instantly turned cold.

The blade-like fragment before her also changed with her mood, displaying a startling brilliance that cut the infinite space into a frantic collapse.

She snorted coldly: "Don't think I don't know, Qi Minghao is a wolf with ambition; he keeps coming to me again and again, merely wanting to annex Brocade Manor's industries, strengthen the True Lord Tower, and then obtain this divine artifact fragment of mine!"

According to the oldest Daoist scriptures of the cultivation great world, countless years ago, various calamities frequently erupted in the three thousand great worlds, one after another, leaving the people unable to survive.

The supreme existence of the immortal realm, the Eternal Heavenly Sovereign, sensed a calamity in the mortal world, felt compassion, and thus bestowed down swords, spears, towers, furnaces, etc., a total of sixteen immortal artifacts, all named Eternal, enabling mortals to rely on these artifacts to successfully survive one calamity after another.

Time flowed on, and most of the sixteen Eternal Immortal Artifacts have since been shattered by calamities or mysteriously lost after their owners' deaths, their whereabouts unknown.

Nowadays, only one Eternal Immortal Artifact remains known to all: the Eternal Divine Furnace of the Taiyi Sect.

The blade fragment hovering before the girl is one of the pieces of the Eternal Divine Blade among those immortal artifacts; she obtained it by chance, and she often uses this fragment to contemplate the immortal Dao principles contained within, gaining many benefits.

The true aim of Young Master Qi is also this fragment of the Eternal Divine Blade on her person.

If he could obtain both the person and the treasure, that would be even better.

"Young Master Qi has come again?"

Aunt Xing also heard the voice from the metal token and carefully asked: "Miss, will you see or not see Young Master Qi this time? Although he harbors wolfish ambition, the status of the True Lord Tower far surpasses our Brocade Manor; we rely on it for many businesses, so it's not easy to break ties. Moreover, if you go to meet Young Master Qi, you probably won't be able to receive the mysterious senior waiting in the guest chamber—should we still set up that banquet?"

Upon hearing this, the rosy-robed girl did not answer; instead, she was suddenly drawn to the metal token in her hand, staring at it unblinking, her small mouth forming an "o" shape as she let out a soft exclamation, seeming quite startled.

Aunt Xing hurriedly leaned in to look, and saw on the token a scene: Young Master Qi driving a carriage pulled by nine dragons, rudely charging into the city; Chen Zheng refused to yield the road, and with thunderous force flung eight Black Tribulation Guards into the universe, harshly dealing with Young Master Qi, kicking him out of the city.

"It's him—he has become this strong, beating Young Master Qi to the point of having no power to retaliate! Young Master Qi is a Sixth Heaven of Longevity Rank cultivator—what realm could he possibly be?"

Aunt Xing recognized Chen Zheng in the image, couldn't help but tremble all over, and exclaimed in shock.

"Oh, you know this young man who injured Qi Minghao?" The rosy-robed girl withdrew her gaze from the image and stared in astonishment at Aunt Xing.

Aunt Xing took a deep breath and hurriedly said: "Miss, the mysterious senior who wants to do big business with our Brocade Manor is this person!"

"It's actually him?"

The rosy-robed girl's astonishment deepened; she looked again at the image of Chen Zheng, pinching her fingers as if calculating his origins.

Yet she could not derive any information at all.

Her astonishment turned to horror as she silently thought: "What is this person? My Heavenly Rank laws cannot even calculate any of his information, as if he has no past, present, or future—his fate is a total void. Even if he possessed a treasure that blocks others' calculations, or a mighty expert shields his heavenly secrets, such a situation would still be impossible!"

She is a cultivator of the Sixth Heaven of Longevity Rank, possessing Heavenly Rank laws, communicating with the heavens, able to calculate others from the hidden heavenly secrets; thus she is called Heavenly Rank, equivalent to the heavenly deities.

But now, her Heavenly Rank laws fail on Chen Zheng; she cannot trace any clue of him, as if this person does not exist at all in the three thousand great worlds.

This was too astonishing; startled, she rose from the bed, her body swaying with the wind, raising a waft of fragrance, and vanished within the room, leaving only a sentence: "Xin Rong, hurry and, according to Brocade Manor's highest hospitality standards, prepare a banquet; I will personally invite that person."

…………

In the guest chamber, Chen Zheng reclined on a master's chair, eyes closed, expression relaxed, enjoying the attentive service of Park Soo-er and the lovely maids, who massaged his shoulders and legs, fed him spiritual fruits, making him extremely comfortable.

For a long time, he has either been fighting others or diligently cultivating, hardly having any time to enjoy himself.

Now, having come to the cultivation great world, he has finally had a good experience.

At that moment, a rosy-robed girl flashed in from outside, entered the guest chamber, and approached Chen Zheng—she was exactly the Brocade Manor miss from the bed earlier.

She smiled and gave a graceful salute to Chen Zheng on the master's chair: "I am Yun Jin, the miss of Brocade Manor; I have met this young sir. I also wish to thank you for your righteous intervention, which drove away the Young Master of the True Lord Tower. May I ask how you wish to be addressed?"

Chen Zheng raised his eyes and saw that her skin was fairer than snow, her brows clear and eyes beautiful, very pleasing to the eye; especially her figure was fine, with slender branches bearing lush fruit, making him glance again.

He rose from the master's chair and said: "Dao friend Yun, I am Chen Zheng; no thanks needed—Young Master Qi bumped into me, so I gave him a lesson."

"Chen Zheng... Chen Zheng?"

Yun Jin repeatedly murmured, searching her mind for information about the name Chen Zheng, then suddenly widened her eyes and exclaimed in shock: "But not long ago, in the underground thirty-second layer of the Zumá Great World, he crossed six major realms to slay the Elephant Heaven, exterminated the entire ancient giant elephant clan, was invited by the Zumá Sect Leader to be a guest at the Cloudtop Heaven Palace—the number one genius of the Linglong Blessed Land, Chen Zheng, the young sir!"

"What?!"

"Cross... cross six major realms to kill enemies? How could that be possible? This completely defies the laws of heaven and earth!"

The women around, including Pu Xiuer, all wore expressions of disbelief, staring at Chen Zheng with a ghost‑like gaze.

"My reputation spreads that fast?"

Chen Zheng's eyes showed surprise; he hadn't expected that anyone in this Cultivation Great World could recognize him.

This place is unimaginably far from the Zuma Great World—more than ten quadrillion light‑years away.

And the deeds he performed the last time in the Zuma Great World were only recent, so there is no reason the news could travel so quickly.

Yun Jin seemed to notice Chen Zheng's doubt, quickly composed her shocked expression, and explained, "To be frank, Young Master Chen, the only reason I know about you is that my Jinxiu Mansion does business with the Zuma Divine Church. A few days ago, Vice Patriarch Yuan Potian of the Zuma Divine Church came to my Jinxiu Mansion to trade treasures; while we were chatting, I learned of Young Master Chen from him. As for the others in this Cultivation Great World, unless the Former Patriarch spreads the word, no one should know your information. Young Master, I have already ordered a banquet to be set; may I have the honor of your presence?"

"I see," Chen Zheng said, understanding.

The Zuma Divine Church has many Vice Patriarchs, and Yuan Potian is one of them.

The last time the Zuma Patriarch invited him to the Cloud‑Top Heavenly Palace as a guest, he met many Vice Patriarchs and also had a brief encounter with Yuan Potian, a cultivator at the peak of the King‑of‑Realm stage, who even offered him a toast.

However, Yuan Potian's visit to the Cultivation Great World at this moment is unlikely to be as simple as doing business with Jinxiu Mansion.

He is probably trying to sneak into the Fenbao Rock, the top power in the Cultivation Great World, to plot the hidden source of all evil inside.

Thinking this, Chen Zheng felt a slight heat in his heart and lost the mood for idle chat with Yun Jin; he only wanted to quickly sell the treasures on his body, boost his strength, then acquire all the assets of the Nine Tripod Pavilion, and afterwards slip into Fenbao Rock to look for that source of all evil.

He knew exactly what the so‑called source of all evil was: the corpse left behind after a Witch‑clan Immortal King fell in the previous Chaos Era!

He waved his hand at Yun Jin: "No need for the banquet. My purpose in coming to your Jinxiu Mansion is to sell a batch of magical artifacts; tell me how many Pure Yang Pills they are worth."

With a grand sweep of his sleeve, the Vast Sea Divine Pearl, the Great Wilderness Ancient Furnace, the Hate Heaven Compass, the Great Chaos Thunder Sword, the Che Yuan Battle Chariot, the Iron Blood Battle Banner… altogether eighteen high‑grade Dao artifacts, including the seven colorful high‑grade Dao swords he had obtained from Young Master Qi and the splendid battle chariot that Young Master Qi rode, all flew out from his sleeve.

In addition, the semi‑legendary State Cauldron of the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord also flew out, hovering in mid‑air and radiating brilliant divine light.

"So many high‑grade Dao artifacts!"

Pu Xiuer and the other women gasped, nearly blinded by the flash of treasure light.

Yun Jin was also a bit surprised, but after a quick glance over the many high‑grade artifacts, her eyes landed on the State Cauldron, and she exclaimed in shock, "This is the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord's State Cauldron; how could it…"

She stopped mid‑sentence, realized something was amiss, and quickly shut her mouth.

The Nine Tripod Immortal Lord is a King‑of‑Realm who controls the Nine Tripod Pavilion; although not the topmost Great Business Guild in the Cultivation Great World, and inferior to her Jinxiu Mansion, he still ranks 125th, conducting trade across the Xuanhuang Great World and several other Great Worlds and Star Regions, and enjoys a considerable reputation.

It is said that his life‑bound treasure, the State Cauldron, was forged after he spent tens of thousands of years gathering various celestial gold and divine iron, with the assistance of his friend Bai Xi, the head of the White Emperor Business Guild; it is truly his lifeline.

But now, the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord's lifeline has fallen into Chen Zheng's hands; Chen Zheng is from the Xuanhuang Great World, and the Immortal Lord also happens to have business there, so it is likely that Chen Zheng has already eliminated it.

"Young Master Chen, you have already managed to slay a King‑of‑Realm like the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord; how long ago did you slay the prodigy Xiang Tian?" Thinking this, Yun Jin's mind roiled like a storm, and she fell into a daze.

Seeing her like that, Chen Zheng slightly furrowed his brows, waved his hand in front of her, and said, "Daoist Friend Yun, will your Jinxiu Mansion accept this batch of magical artifacts or not?"

"Accept… I accept. Rest assured, Young Master Chen, the matter of the State Cauldron in your hands will never be disclosed by my Jinxiu Mansion; I will first erase their memories."

Yun Jin snapped back to herself and prepared to act on Pu Xiuer and the other women, erasing their memories of Chen Zheng.

Chen Zheng replied indifferently, "No problem; I don't mind others knowing I killed the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord, nor am I afraid of trouble. Just give me a price for this batch of magical artifacts."

He truly was indifferent.

This is merely one of his avatars; even if it dies in the Cultivation Great World, it would not significantly affect his true body, and re‑forming another avatar with the "split" method would at most consume a large amount of vital energy.

Hence his actions are so reckless, completely unafraid of Young Master Qi's retaliation.

If pressed to the limit, he could cause this avatar to self‑detonate; even a cultivator of the eighth level of the Immortal Long Life Mixed Cave Realm would be blown to death or maimed.

"This… very well."

Yun Jin paused, pondered briefly, then bared her silver teeth and said, "Young Master Chen, a single high‑grade Dao artifact in my Cultivation Great World usually fetches between ten billion and fifty billion Pure Yang Pills. How about this: for your eighteen high‑grade artifacts I will give you the top price—five hundred billion each. The battle chariot you obtained from Young Master Qi is also five hundred billion. As for the seven divine swords of Young Master Qi, they are a set of treasures and far more valuable than a single artifact; I will give you eight thousand billion. The State Cauldron, being a semi‑legendary Dao artifact, is rarely seen at auctions in my Cultivation Great World, so I will give you three trillion. Adding all the artifacts together, the total is five trillion seven hundred fifty billion Pure Yang Pills. How does that sound?"

"She is indeed interesting," Chen Zheng said, surprised, his gaze toward Yun Jin turning appreciative. He smiled and nodded, "Daoist Friend Yun, I am very pleased with the price you offered; I consider you a friend, Chen Zheng hereby befriends you."

According to his original estimate, this batch of magical artifacts could fetch at most about three trillion Pure Yang Pills, but now it inexplicably added more than two trillion.

What does that mean?

For major powers like the Feather Ascension Sect, the entire sect's total stock is only about seven or eight trillion Pure Yang Pills, so two trillion more equals roughly a third of the sect's assets.

It's harder than scaling the heavens for the Feather Ascension Sect to part with even one thirty‑thousandth of its assets, let alone a third, unless one steps over the corpses of the three old beings known as the Three Saints of Feather Ascension.

Yet Yun Jin of the Jinxiu Mansion, whose cultivation is inferior to the Three Saints of Feather Ascension, possesses a resolve countless times stronger than theirs; to befriend him, she readily offered a premium of over two trillion.

Compared to her, the Three Saints of Feather Ascension are like cultivators who have regressed to dogs.

No, they're not even dogs.

When his true body uses the Three‑Life Stone to absorb the remaining cosmic qi within the fragments of creation and cultivates into the Immortal Longevity Secret Realm, that will be the death of those three old beings.

"Being able to be friends with Young Master Chen is my blessing," Yun Jin said joyfully, smiling sweetly, "Please wait a moment, I will go fetch the pills now."

She vanished into the VIP room, but after three or four breaths she returned, handing Chen Zheng a storage bag: "Young Master, please tally the amount."

"Hmm, the count is correct."

Chen Zheng took the storage bag, sent his spirit mind inside for a sweep, and saw a Pure Yang River inside, which, when converted, equaled exactly five trillion seven hundred fifty billion Pure Yang Pills.

With this amount of Pure Yang Pills, his strength could advance further.

He gestured, slipped the storage bag into his sleeve, shielded the surrounding people's perception, enveloped it with true fire bearing the character "Lian," and, together with the five hundred billion Pure Yang Pills he had obtained from Young Master Qi, refined an endless stream of essence, absorbing it into his body.

In an instant his magical power began to surge rapidly: four trillion five hundred billion… five trillion… six trillion… until it reached seven trillion and then stopped.

Seven trillion power is more than three times that of the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord, already comparable to many veteran Kings‑of‑Realm.

At this level, he fears no one.

And as this avatar's power rose, his true body in the Xuanhuang Great World, linked by unseen karmic ties, also attained seven trillion power.

Even if this avatar were killed instantly, his true body's power would not diminish at all.

One must admit that the "split" technique is truly divine.

"Young Master Chen, this is your first time in my Cultivation Great World, right? Would you like a tour? I happen to be free and can be your guide," Yun Jin said hurriedly as she prepared to leave after the transaction.

Chen Zheng, impressed with the woman, declined, "My going there may stir blood‑rain and corpse‑wind across the Cultivation Great World, and Young Master Qi will dispatch strongmen to kill me; there is a danger of a fall."

Yun Jin hesitated a moment, then gritted her teeth, "I am not afraid of danger; I can also help you solve some troubles, making Young Master Qi less daring."

"Then take me to the Nine Tripod Pavilion; I want to trade a batch of treasures with that guild," Chen Zheng said without further objection.

Yun Jin was puzzled: "You've already killed the Nine Tripod Immortal Lord and sold your treasures; what else is there to trade?"

She didn't ask further, turned and led the way.

The two, one in front and one behind, quickly left the huge attic, flew up into the high sky, heading toward Nine Cauldron Pavilion.

Along the way, Chen Zheng transformed his appearance, becoming a refined middle-aged man, exactly the appearance of the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable.

"Young Master Chen, you intend to……"

Seeing Chen Zheng's appearance, Yun Jin finally understood what he intended to do, and couldn't help but show a worried expression.

The various major merchant associations on the Grand World of Cultivation are protected by the Dividing Treasure Rock; even a True Immortal of the Longevity Tenfold dare not scheme against it.

Chen Zheng, having transformed into the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable, swaggered off to cause trouble, which is truly dangerous.

No wonder the other party just said there would be danger of falling.

Just observing Chen Zheng's transformation technique, one could not discern any falsehood at all, as if he were truly the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable, which put her mind at ease a little.

"Rest assured, I will be more careful; if nothing unexpected happens, I won't cause any major trouble," Chen Zheng soothed.

"Then that's good." Yun Jin let out a sigh of relief.

The two flew at extreme speed, passing over the huge cities one after another on the Grand World of Cultivation; Chen Zheng casually glanced downward and saw that shops filled those cities everywhere, with cultivators coming and going to trade.

In the Xuanhuang Grand World, low-grade Dao artifacts, rarely seen there, were openly displayed in shop after shop; sometimes customers would pick them up to examine, haggling with the shopkeeper, saliva flying back and forth, just like buying vegetables.

"Young Master Chen, that place is Nine Cauldron City, occupying nine million li, each million li forming a city; the central city is the residence of the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable and also the location of the Nine Cauldron Pavilion's treasury." Yun Jin pointed ahead at the nine great cities on the horizon and introduced.

"Good, let's go straight to the treasury." Chen Zheng took the lead, flying toward the central city, and soon landed before a cauldron-shaped palace inside the city.

"Chief, you…… you actually aren't dead?"

The palace was extremely magnificent; ten Eternal Giant Guards stood at the gate; upon seeing Chen Zheng, they all showed astonishment, repeatedly stepping back, causing Yun Jin to panic, thinking Chen Zheng had been exposed.

Chen Zheng, however, sank his face and shouted at the guards: "What's going on? Do I look like someone short-lived?"

"Ch…… Chief, Lord Bai Xi of the White Emperor Merchant Association says you have died in the Xuanhuang Grand World and wants to divide our Nine Cauldron Pavilion's treasury and assets."

One guard looked at Chen Zheng for a while, seeing that he truly was the Nine Cauldron Immortal Venerable, then mustered courage to step forward and report.

(End of chapter)