Chapter 130: Chapter 128 Koushao
Several days later, outside the Yellow Dragon Square, in the dense forest.
Ning Daoran donned a blue Daoist robe and placed the Big Stupid Deer inside the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven.
He slowly circulated the Body Tempering Technique of the Returning to Nature Level, and instantly, a ‘crackling’ sound came from his bones. After the transformation of his bones, his face changed into that of another person.
Although completely different than before, his new appearance had a refined charm.
He displayed his cultivation at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, finding this level to be the best.
It wouldn’t attract the prying eyes of Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivators, but it was also imposing enough to prevent lesser forces from offending him easily.
...
Xiyu Pavilion.
Indeed, Chen Ping’er had not recognized him. After receiving ten Spirit Stones, she handed Ning Daoran a jade talisman to attend the exchange meeting.
At this moment, Ning Daoran was known as “Independent Practitioner Jianjia”.
…
In the backyard of Xiyu Pavilion, several Foundation Establishment Cultivators had already gathered.
Some wore masks made of Magic Artifacts to hide their faces, others wore broad hats that covered their features, totaling six or seven Foundation Establishment Cultivators, whose true faces were indiscernible for the time.
“Fellow Daoist Jianjia,”
Chen Ping’er ushered with a hand towards the side, smiling, “Here are the maids of my Xiyu Pavilion, would you care to have one attend to you at the side? It would be most agreeable.”
“Hmm?”
Ning Daoran glanced over and indeed saw more than a dozen women of varying beauty standing together like a flock of swans.
Among them, there were female cultivators at the Qi Refinement Realm, as well as mortal women, giving a breath-taking impression of contrasts in beauty.
‘Old Lu.’
Ning Daoran, currently posing as a Loose Cultivator, had to adopt the style of a Loose Cultivator, transmitting his voice, ‘You pick one.’
“Awooo???”
The Big Stupid Deer inside the Spirit Garden Cave Heaven rounded its eyes in surprise; such a good deal?
It let out a cry, signaling Big Brother to pick the third one from the left.
‘Exactly what I had in mind!’
Ning Daoran nodded, that third maid’s appearance could not be considered breathtakingly stunning, but she had a natural grace, exuding the sense of a graceful young woman.
“Her then,”
Ning Daoran pointed with his hand.
“Yes,”
Chen Ping’er smiled, “Koushao, come and meet Senior Jianjia, do well to serve him.”
“Yes!”
The woman approached, performed a curtsy, and with a shy look in her eyes, said, “I have seen Senior Jianjia.”
This woman possessed a Spirit Root, and her cultivation was at the second layer of Qi Refinement.
This level of cultivation could only be considered the very bottom tier of the Cultivation World.
If it weren’t for her physical beauty, she would likely not even qualify to earn her keep at the Xiyu Pavilion.
…
Shortly after, the exchange meeting was about to begin.
The attendees entered the secret chamber in single file.
Koushao bit her red lip, stepped forward, and gently took Ning Daoran’s wrist, leading him with a soft voice, “Senior, this way, please.”
Ning Daoran was slightly taken aback, an alertness tightening within him.
Inside the chamber, a huge round table spanned across, with six Foundation Establishment Cultivators sitting to one side.
Each Cultivator had a maid beside them, and at this moment, the hand of one bald Cultivator was already wandering around his maid’s waist.
Most cultivators still harbored a fondness for such pleasures.
Even more so, there was a fat Cultivator who had called for two maids, each nestled on one side of him, his eyes glinting in a way that was impenetrable.
“Fellow Daoists, shall we start?”
A black-robed elder Cultivator lifted the corners of his mouth, “How about starting with this old man?”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
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This old Cultivator slapped his Storage Bag, and a cerulean cup-shaped treasure floated out, “Gathering Spirit Bowl, a Second-Order Lower Grade Spirit Artifact, it has the miraculous effect of gathering Spiritual Energy to assist in cultivation.”
“Oh?”
A few of them lit up with interest.
Ning Daoran only gave it a flash of gaze, the item was of little use to him.
In the end, the bald Cultivator traded a First-tier Top-Grade Magic Artifact and four hundred Spirit Stones to the elder for the Gathering Spirit Bowl.
Then a lean Cultivator pulled out a herb, which turned out to be three hundred year-old Purple Blood Ginseng, one of the main medicines for a Foundation Establishment Pill!
Although those present were all Foundation Establishment Cultivators, they had disciples and descendants, so that Purple Blood Ginseng sparked a competition.
Finally, a tall Cultivator traded a Second-Order Lower Grade Spirit Artifact for the Ginseng.
Ning Daoran frowned slightly.
After several rounds, no treasures he was interested in appeared.
At last, the black-robed old Cultivator, the only one at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, showed a trace of impatience. He looked towards the lean Cultivator not far away and smiled,
“Fellow Daoist Luo, I heard you know the whereabouts of the Jiedan Elixir, the Dust-falling Grass. Is it true? I have come here specifically for that Dust-falling Grass, and I hope you won’t disappoint this old man.”
“That’s right.”
The bald Cultivator’s eyes also brightened as he said, “Fellow Daoist Luo, though the whereabouts of the Dust-falling Grass are highly confidential, you can still share with us what kind of opportunity it is, just to give us a rough idea.”
“It seems my fellow Daoists have indeed come for the Jiedan Elixir.”
The lean Cultivator laughed, “The Dust-falling Grass is indeed an exceptional opportunity; I happened to learn of this secret. In Luzhou territory, there’s a Secret Realm that is nearing its opening year. It is said that within the depths of that treasured site is a ten-thousand-year-old Dust-falling Grass.”
“Luzhou?”
Ning Daoran frowned, “Not to mention that Luzhou is thousands of miles away, it also has numerous Great Cultivators. Are we supposed to go to Luzhou to compete with those Great Cultivators for opportunities?”
“Fellow Daoist Jianjia, your words are mistaken,”
The lean Cultivator smiled, “We cultivators must naturally go against heaven’s will; the road to cultivation is one of fierce competition. If one does not compete, how can one speak of cultivation?”
Ning Daoran felt there was some truth to the other’s words, so he didn’t object.
However, exploring the Secret Realm in Luzhou was something he absolutely wouldn’t do.
The danger was immense. By then, it was likely not just Foundation Establishment cultivators but also Golden Core and Nascent Soul Cultivators might appear in the Secret Realm.
The interest of the others was piqued, especially that black-robed elder. He was over a hundred and twenty years old, about to enter the late stage of Foundation Establishment, it was time he planned for his Core Formation.
Several of them moved their lips without making a sound, evidently communicating through voice transmission.
Ning Daoran crossed his arms, closed his eyes in meditation, presenting the demeanor of a high-standing senior.
By her side, the maid Koushao lightly pressed her red lips, her charming eyes stealing glances at Ning Daoran more than once, a battle of emotions raging in her heart.
“Senior…”
Finally, Koushao spoke, “Regarding the Dust-falling Grass, I do know a bit of a clue.”
“Oh?”
Ning Daoran opened his eyes, “You know a clue about the Dust-falling Grass?”
“Indeed.”
Koushao bit her silver teeth and said, “However, Senior must offer a certain price before I can reveal this clue to you.”
Immediately, not just Ning Daoran, but the other Foundation Establishment Cultivators also turned their attention to her.
“You little maid.”
The bald Cultivator sneered, “Empty words can’t be thrown around carelessly, how could you, merely at the Early Stage of Qi Refining, possibly know the clue to the Dust-falling Pill, a third-tier major medicine?”
The rest of the Foundation Establishment Cultivators also showed a sneer.
Ning Daoran’s expression was indifferent, his Divine Sense merely sweeping over Koushao once.
He discovered that her mental state had not wavered in the slightest; she might truly know the whereabouts of the Dust-falling Grass.
“Speak.”
His eyebrows raised, he said, “As a condition for exchanging the clue to the Dust-falling Grass, what do you need?”
“I…”
Koushao, biting her red lips, said, “Nothing else, I only hope that Senior can redeem me.”
…
“Koushao!”
Not far away, a manager from the Xiyu Pavilion chastised, “Do you know what you’re saying? You lowly maid, how dare you be so presumptuous and disrespectful to Senior Jianjia!”
Koushao’s face suddenly turned deathly pale.
“Let it be.”
Ning Daoran said, “Manager, how many spirit stones does it take to redeem Koushao?”
The manager frowned, “Senior truly wants to redeem this girl?”
“Indeed.”
“This…”
After a moment’s contemplation, the manager said, “A fixed price, 1,200 spirit stones!”
“You…”
Koushao’s face turned pale, the price clearly far exceeding her worth as a maid.
But she did not retort; the contract was in Xiyu Pavilion’s hands after all, wasn’t the sale price merely a word from them?
“Here are 1,200 spirit stones.”
Ning Daoran immediately slapped his Storage Bag and handed over a bag of spirit stones to the manager, who gladly accepted them with a joyful face.
The next moment, he saw Ning Daoran’s stern gaze.
“Ah…”
The manager hurriedly took out the contract, “Senior, this is Koushao’s contract, please take it.”
“That’s enough.”
Ning Daoran stood up and said, “Koushao, come with me.”
“Yes, Senior…”
…
“Fellow Daoist Jianjia, you’re leaving just like that?”
Not far from the door, where Chen Ping’er was chatting with Fairy Yun Lan, she turned around.
“That’s right.”
After returning the identity jade token, Ning Daoran said, “I’ve redeemed her, so I can take her away now, can’t I?”
“You can…”
Chen Ping’er was slightly startled.
This Independent Practitioner Jianjia had quite an outstanding appearance, and being able to achieve Foundation Establishment at such a young age, theoretically, he could certainly be considered a Core Formation prospect among Loose Cultivators.
She really couldn’t understand what this Independent Practitioner Jianjia saw in that little girl.
Her Spirit Root was extremely poor, her talent for cultivation wasn’t high, and she wasn’t even intact…
“Let’s go.”
Ning Daoran’s body sank slightly as he took hold of Koushao’s slender waist.
The next moment, they lifted off from the ground, transforming into a tunneling light and left Yellow Dragon Square.
In their stead remained a perplexed Chen Ping’er and Fairy Yun Lan.
…
Within Yellow Dragon Mountain Range, among a lush and dense forest.
The birds sang and the flowers were fragrant, the scenery was exceedingly pleasant.
“Speak.”
Ning Daoran turned and sat on a fallen tree trunk, “What exactly is this clue about the Dust-falling Grass?”
As he spoke, with a rub of his thumb and finger, the contract in his hand had already turned into powder.
“Reporting to Senior Jianjia!”
Koushao curtsied and said, “When I was young, I traveled with my father deep into Yellow Dragon Mountain Range. That year, a mountain flood caused the collapse of several rock walls, which just happened to expose an area where a prohibition was placed.
“That prohibition contained several spirit grasses, and only years later, after I had read the Hundred Herbs Scripture, did I discover that those uniquely shaped spirit grasses were, in fact, the Jiedan Elixir known as the Dust-falling Grass.”
“Is that true?”
“Absolutely!”
Koushao bit her red lip and nodded fiercely.
However, in the very next moment, Ning Daoran, who had been sitting in front of her, suddenly vanished.
Immediately after, Koushao felt a strike to the back of her head.
Ning Daoran was exceedingly cautious; apart from Big Stupid Deer and himself, he wouldn’t completely trust anyone else.
All the more so for a woman like Koushao, who had asked for her freedom upon their meeting.
With many temptations and dangers present in the Cultivation World, it was imperative to be cautious every step of the way in order to live longer.
He began a Soul Search, for only by searching would the truth be revealed.
The reason he asked was to decide whether or not to spare the woman’s life afterward.