Chapter 670 - 452: Trading the Golden Bell Shield
The affairs of the Black Nether Saint Son did not affect Wei Fan and Li Jianchen. The two quickly returned to the location of the Transmission Domain Gate, but did not leave immediately.
Beiding Continent only has cross-continent Transmission Domain Gates and cannot directly transfer to the Holy City. Even these cross-continent Transmission Domain Gates don’t allow anyone to leave immediately; one must wait for a sufficient number of people to open it, otherwise the cost is very high.
Li Jianchen had a head full of white hair, a tall figure, and carried a large sword, making him even more noticeable than Wei Fan.
His character was very cold; aside from the initial greeting to Wei Fan with a ’Let’s go,’ he didn’t speak again.
The two attracted the eyes of almost everyone as they stood there.
"He’s a real cultivation fanatic!"
Wei Fan couldn’t help but glance at Li Jianchen. Even standing there, the man was condensing his Sword Intent, never relaxing from cultivation.
"Are you really only nineteen years old?"
Suddenly, Li Jianchen’s voice sounded. He couldn’t hold back anymore. A nineteen-year-old at the Saint Realm shocked even him, especially since Wei Fan had just revealed the possible cultivation of Martial Arts Celestial Eye.
The Martial Arts Celestial Eye is something that practically exists only in legends, and he was seeing for the first time someone who might cultivate it.
"Yes!" Wei Fan nodded.
Both were not very talkative people, and after saying these few words, the atmosphere soon turned cold again.
"What did you dye your hair with?"
Wei Fan also couldn’t hold back, as he realized that even though he was a nineteen-year-old at the Saint Realm, surpassing the talent of Xuanyuan Peak, he was not as eye-catching as Li Jianchen.
Especially with the passing female martial artists, most were attracted by Li Jianchen’s full head of white hair, often ignoring him.
Li Jianchen’s lips twitched: "This is from practicing cultivation techniques!"
He wasn’t facing this question for the first time; many people would think his white hair was intentionally for style, but it was actually due to the overwhelming killing power and annihilation of vitality from the cultivation technique he practiced.
Generally, Martial Saints can live for three to four thousand years, but because of his cultivation technique, he wouldn’t even live up to two thousand years, with a lifespan shorter than some Martial Kings.
"How long will it take us to get to the Holy City?"
The two gradually became familiar with each other, and Wei Fan asked the most important question.
He had seen the map of the Five Great Domains. The territory occupied by the Human Race is actually small, and all the humans are like a giant lotus with only four petals. The Eastern, Southern, Western, and Northern Domains are the petals, and the Central Domain is the stamen.
The Eastern Domain Holy City is at the top of the petal, and they were heading there.
"It will take about ten days or so, but it’s hard to say."
Li Jianchen’s silver hair flew, and his voice was deep: "As you saw, this kind of cross-continent transmission requires accumulating a certain number of people to transmit, making it very uncertain.
We need to take the Domain Gate that only transmits between continents all the way to Qingzhou; only Qingzhou has the cross-multiple-continent Transmission Domain Gate that can send us directly to the Holy City. We need to transmit seven or eight times along the way, with each transmission possibly taking one or two days of delay."
Wei Fan slightly furrowed his brow. Riding the Transmission Domain Gate all the way, he didn’t expect it would take more than ten days to reach Holy City, with seven or eight transfers along the way.
To know that each cross-continent transmission costs at least fifty thousand Spirit Crystals, the cross-multiple-continent transmission directly to Holy City from Qingzhou may require even more.
In other words, just the Spirit Crystal cost to get to the Holy City would be hundreds of thousands, with a conservative estimate of at least fifty thousand, no wonder many Martial Kings never leave a continent in their lifetime. Such costs would be painful not just for Martial King Powerhouses, but even for some Martial Saints.
Of course, Martial Saint Powerhouses wouldn’t be confined to a single continent; if they truly wish to explore the Five Great Domains, even without Spirit Crystals to take the Transmission Domain Gate, they can fly through the Void World with their abilities. It would just take more time for flying, yet they wouldn’t be unable to go.
By taking the Transmission Domain Gate, they can arrive in the Holy City within half a month. If a Martial Saint Powerhouse flies with their full effort, it would only take about half a year to reach the Holy City, which is insignificant for their lifespan of several thousand years. Saving hundreds of thousands of Spirit Crystals is very cost-effective.
Had he not relied much on Spirit Crystals, he would have considered flying to the Holy City himself.
"More than ten days to the Holy City. What if something urgent happens here that requires help from the Main Hall?" Wei Fan raised a query.
Li Jianchen shook his head: "The Main Hall has Transmission Domain Gates directly reaching each continent, capable of arriving in any one of them in an instant, but they can only transmit people here, and cannot send people from here."
Wei Fan was secretly shaken; the depth of the Demon Hunter Organization was simply unfathomable. Saint Realm Powerhouses had to fly for months, yet they had means to cross it in an instant. No wonder they could intimidate the world’s demon fiends.
As long as the main hall has enough powerhouses, no place in the Human Race can fall into chaos, as they have means to suppress demon fiends across continents.
After a while, the number of people taking cross-continent transmission was sufficient, and the two followed the crowd into the Transmission Domain Gate, disappearing from Beiding Continent.
Eight days later, the two appeared in Jiangzhou. In front of them was an even larger square compared to the one at Beiding Continent’s Transmission Domain Gate location, bustling with people, with dozens of Transmission Domain Gates set up.
Some led to other continents, and some were transmission gates within Jiangzhou.
The Martial Dao in Jiangzhou was even more prosperous than in Beiding Continent. Wei Fan noticed that the closer they got to the Holy City, the more prosperous the martial arts became in each continent. This could also be felt from the concentration of Essence Qi in the air and the activity level of the Great Dao between heaven and earth.
The two did not immediately go to the cross-continent Transmission Domain Gate to pay the fee because the man with the follow-up cultivation technique of the Golden Bell Shield was in Jiangzhou. Zhou Shen had already contacted the Demon Hunter Organization here, arranging a meeting with the man.
"This place used to be one of the martial arts sanctuaries of the Eastern Domain, and many martial emperor powerhouses have emerged from here."
As they became more familiar, Li Jianchen spoke more. He knew that Wei Fan came from a secluded place like the Wilderness and had only been in the Five Great Domains for four or five months, so he knew little. Along the way, Li Jianchen introduced him to many things.
The martial arts in Jiangzhou are extremely prosperous. In the Beiding Continent, the top Holy Sect, the Celestial Profound Sect, has only three Martial Saints, but in Jiangzhou, there are no less than seven or eight Holy Sects like the Celestial Profound Sect, and even two Martial Emperor influences exist.
In comparison, places like the Beiding Continent can be considered backwater.
The two quickly entered the city and went to the Demon Hunter Sub-Hall of Jiangzhou, stating their purpose and asking the people here to help contact the person with the Golden Bell Shield.
After a short time, a young man hurried in.
This man looked young, had the cultivation of the Eighth Level of Martial King, was covered in dust, but carried a noble aura, like a fallen noble.
"I’ve met you two. Is it possible for us to find a new place for a detailed discussion?" the man cupped his fists and asked.
Wei Fan glanced around, found no reaction from the panel, and nodded in agreement.
The man was pleased to see this and quickly led Wei Fan and Li Jianchen to an inn, requesting a private room. After the food and wine were served, he took out an Array Banner and set up an isolating array.
Wei Fan showed a surprised expression but did not stop him.
In the eyes of most people, the Golden Bell Shield is nothing extraordinary, practiced only by the poor and lowly. It is not an important item, indicating that if this man wanted a face-to-face discussion, the topic might be unusual.
"I beg your pardon!"
After setting up the array, the man gave a slight bow before sitting down and speaking, "May I ask, are you the one who offered the bounty for the subsequent cultivation technique of the Golden Bell Shield?"
"It’s me!" Wei Fan responded.
Li Jianchen helped himself to the food and drink, not caring about the dealings between Wei Fan and the man.
"What are your terms for handing over the subsequent cultivation technique of the Golden Bell Shield?" Wei Fan directly asked. As long as the other party didn’t make outrageous demands, he would not refuse.
However, Wei Fan did not expect that after he spoke, the man fell silent, seeming to hesitate over something.
After a few breaths, the man finally spoke, "If I’m not mistaken, sir, you are a Venerable Saint Realm powerhouse, right?"
"Yeah!"
Wei Fan nodded.
This was not difficult to guess; such a considerable reward of Spirit Crystals being posted throughout the entire Eastern Domain was beyond a Martial King’s "financial capacity."
The man was delighted and said, "I don’t want Spirit Crystals; I just ask for your help with something. Once it is done, the cultivation technique of the Golden Bell Shield will be presented to you with both hands."
Wei Fan raised an eyebrow, "You want me to kill someone? I don’t kill indiscriminately."
Rejecting Spirit Crystals and inquiring if he is a Saint Realm powerhouse, it is likely that the man wishes to have him kill someone; otherwise, there would be no need to confirm his cultivation level, and the matter might involve other Saint Realm powerhouses as well.
Although Wei Fan wanted the subsequent cultivation technique of the Golden Bell Shield, he did not want to kill unrelated individuals just for the cultivation technique.
"Wei Fan doesn’t kill indiscriminately?"
The drinking and eating Li Jianchen couldn’t help but twitch at his lips, thinking that if someone asked the people from the Beiding Continent, few would believe.
He was truly surprised to hear Wei Fan say such words. In his memory, Wei Fan was even more ruthless than himself. He did not expect that Wei Fan would be willing to spend five hundred thousand Spirit Crystals on a bounty and yet refuse to kill people without a grudge.
Suddenly, his impression of Wei Fan greatly improved, and upon further thought, Wei Fan indeed had not killed anyone without reason.
The man’s expression changed, also not expecting Wei Fan to have such principles. In his experience, those Saint Realm powerhouses would hardly consider human life, destroying entire families for things they desire without a second thought.
"He seems to be a true knight!"
Realizing this, the man was pleased rather than surprised. Dealing with such a person would be more reliable; even if the deal couldn’t be struck, there wouldn’t be concerns about problems arising.
"Sir, what if the person isn’t a good thing?" The man took a deep breath.
Wei Fan laughed and said, "If they’re not a good thing, then they can be killed. However, whether they’re a good person or not isn’t decided by just your words."
The man found himself in a dilemma as he couldn’t prove the person he wanted killed wasn’t a good thing, and the opposing force was quite powerful. If the person before him wasn’t a knight and spread the word, he’d be in trouble.
"I can’t prove he’s bad because I’m the only one who knows what he’s done. How about this, sir? You don’t have to kill, just help me rescue someone."
Li Jianchen couldn’t help but interject, "Stop being so wishy-washy, just say it directly. How can we trust you if you don’t, considering your concerns involving Saint Realm powerhouses, worrying about us spreading the word if we can’t agree?
Rest assured, even if we can’t agree, we won’t tell anyone. We’re Town Territory Envoys from the Demon Hunter Organization, not bad people. If the person you speak of is wicked, even without a deal, we’ll handle it."
To swiftly conclude the matter, he directly revealed their identity as Town Territory Envoys and even took out his waist token to prove his identity.