Chapter 268: Setting Off
Stunned, the crowd stared blankly at Shen Daoxing. ’Just who is this guy?’
First, it was the Nine-curved Spirit Ginseng, and now the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword!
Aren’t these all items from five hundred years ago? And yet, the young man before them looked to be no more than seventeen or eighteen.
Everyone was dumbfounded.
"My friend, I’ll offer three thousand Spirit Stones to buy the Nine Bends Spirit Saint and the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword from you."
Suddenly, someone shouted.
Immediately, someone else scoffed, "A few thousand Spirit Stones for the Nine Bends Spirit Saint and the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword? You wish! If these two treasures were sold at the Qinyuan Festival in Tianze, they would fetch a handsome price—far more than a mere three thousand Spirit Stones."
"That’s right! That’s right! The Nine Bends Spirit Saint and the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword are incredible treasures! How could they be worth a paltry three thousand Spirit Stones?"
The surrounding crowd instantly erupted into a commotion.
Shen Daoxing remained composed, offering a faint smile. It was true he hadn’t prepared any treasures for this occasion, but he had acquired quite a few from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land and the Xu Family back in the Huangliang Secret Realm. When it came to treasures, he was hardly lacking.
He had taken this Heavenly Qian Divine Sword from a disciple of the Celestial Profound Sacred Land. Unfortunately, the battle had been so fierce that Shen Daoxing had ended up shattering it. After escaping the secret realm, he had asked Elder Mu to restore it as best he could.
However, the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword was a Divine Soldier, and Elder Mu’s skills were not enough to restore it to its former glory.
The moment the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword appeared, even the discerning Elder Xu’s expression faltered, and he gave Shen Daoxing a peculiar look.
Of course, if the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword wasn’t enough, Shen Daoxing also had the Celestial Brilliance Bell, a legacy of the Profound Celestial Secret and one of the World Divine Soldiers. And then there was the Taotie, left behind by Yuwen the Sword Fool.
The problem was that the Taotie was far too conspicuous. Everyone knew that the Taotie, ranked second among the World Divine Soldiers, was the Magical Artifact of Yuwen the Sword Fool—and Shen Daoxing had just killed the man.
"Good! Good! Good!"
Elder Xu suddenly burst out laughing. "This young friend is truly extravagant, presenting such a Divine Soldier. In that case, you are most certainly qualified to attend the Qinyuan Festival. Please, make your way to the second floor."
As he spoke, Elder Xu beckoned with his hand. A maidservant with a graceful figure emerged and approached Shen Daoxing, gesturing for him to follow her to the second floor.
Watching Shen Daoxing slowly ascend to the second floor, a dumbfounded Jiang Shaohe called out from below, "Yang, didn’t you say you hadn’t prepared anything?"
Shen Daoxing turned his head and smiled faintly. "Oh, it just slipped my mind that I had these on me."
Jiang Shaohe froze. "Slipped your mind?"
Shen Daoxing followed the maidservant up to the second floor and stopped before a private room.
The maidservant pushed the door open for him. Shen Daoxing stepped inside and saw three men already there. All were dressed in fine silks and jade, clearly people of extraordinary status.
"Ha, someone else has finally arrived! And how should we address you, young sir?"
Upon seeing Shen Daoxing, the portly man among the three stepped forward with a welcoming smile.
"I am Sikao Dao, the Sixth Prince of the Daqi Empire. And you are?"
The portly man smiled, carrying none of the typical airs of a Prince.
Shen Daoxing was slightly surprised. "I am Yang Xing."
Sikao Dao then gestured to the other two men. "These are Yan Cheng, the Fifth Prince of the Great Yan Empire, and Yang Ye, the Eighth Prince of the Great Sui Empire."
’They’re all princes from various empires.’ Shen Daoxing understood at once. The Celestial Essence Ore Vein within Tianze was vital to every nation, so of course the various empires wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to trade with them.
However, Yan Cheng and Yang Ye were clearly far more aloof than Sikao Dao. They spared Shen Daoxing a single glance before ignoring him completely.
Sikao Dao, on the other hand, kept engaging Shen Daoxing in idle chit-chat. His mannerisms were less like those of a Prince and more like those of a merchant.
After Shen Daoxing’s arrival, they waited for a long time, but no one else entered the room.
Only after a long while, when the floor below had grown quiet, did more people begin to trickle upstairs.
Soon, all fifteen people had been gathered.
Coincidentally, Jiang Shaohe was also among them.
Upon seeing Shen Daoxing, Jiang Shaohe hurried over, his face a mask of astonishment. "Yang? Who in the world are you? To possess an ultimate treasure like the Heavenly Qian Divine Sword... that’s a Divine Soldier the Celestial Profound Sacred Land lost five hundred years ago! And that Nine-curved Spirit Ginseng is a Treasure Medicine that vanished ages ago! Who *are* you?"
"Just someone from a minor family in a remote little kingdom, that’s all."
Shen Daoxing said calmly.
This time, he wasn’t lying.
But Jiang Shaohe shook his head, his expression full of disbelief.
At that moment, Elder Xu walked into the room with a kindly expression and clapped his hands.
"Elder Xu!"
"Elder Xu!"
...
Everyone stepped forward and bowed respectfully with clasped hands.
"Now that everyone is here, please follow me. We will now depart for Tianze."
Elder Xu said with a faint smile.
With that, he headed downstairs.
The others followed closely behind.
After going downstairs, Shen Daoxing first approached Elder Mu.
"Tianze is located within the Celestial Lake Swamp, and the journey is too dangerous. Elder Mu, you and Xin should stay here in town and wait for my return."
Shen Daoxing said.
Elder Mu nodded. "We still have more than ten days before we must head to Cangzhou. Besides the Wind Source Ore, there are many other things to prepare. You go on ahead. Xin and I will wait here for word from you."
"Right."
Shen Daoxing acknowledged, then turned and followed after Elder Xu and the others.
The group left the small town and headed toward the Celestial Lake Swamp. After walking for a while across an open meadow, Shen Daoxing spotted a ferry dock at the edge of a lake.
Several soldiers in silver-white armor stood at the dock; they were men from Tianze.
Shen Daoxing observed them closely. These seemingly ordinary soldiers were all at the Ninth Layer of the Profound Platform Realm. ’Clearly, in a place like Tianze with its abundant Spirit Stones for cultivation, the limiting factor isn’t hard work, but innate talent.’
When Elder Xu reached the dock, several soldiers hurried forward and bowed respectfully. "Elder Xu!"
’It seems that for an outsider, Elder Xu’s status in Tianze is quite high,’ Shen Daoxing thought.
"Hahaha! Elder Xu, you have to organize the Qinyuan Festival every year. It must be hard work."
Just then, a boisterous voice rang out, and a tall man in a red robe over white clothes slowly emerged.
Shen Daoxing watched as the man took a single, light step, yet the ground beneath his foot sank, leaving a clear imprint. ’A master at the Ninth Layer of the Spirit Transformation Realm.’
And not just any master at the Ninth Layer of the Spirit Transformation Realm. With a single glance, Shen Daoxing could sense an overbearing, scorching power emanating from him, like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
"General Wu, we’ll be troubling you to escort us," Elder Xu said with a pleasant, smiling expression.
"But of course."
General Wu laughed heartily, then turned and waved his hand. "Please, follow me."
The group followed him to the edge of the dock, where they saw a wooden boat slowly drifting toward them from a short distance away.
Shen Daoxing glanced down at the water’s surface and was startled to see that the wooden boat was being carried on the back of a gigantic turtle.