Chongming Xianzong

Chapter 487 Wanbao Trading Company
Ten days passed, and Kang Da, unusually, did not hesitate to spend spirit stones, so the group quickly arrived at Tengwen Mansion in the Kui Xing Shuttle.

With the encouragement of the elders, whether intentionally or unintentionally, Kang Lingyi, the young mistress, got along very well with Pei Xiangcao. The two little girls and Xiao Que'er chattered all the way, but it didn't sound noisy to anyone.

The market town where Wanbao Trading Company was located was extremely prosperous, and no other place in the entire Shannan Road could compare to it. Kang Dabao had been here several times before, so he knew the way well and quickly led everyone to the place.

The gatekeeper outside wore a red turban and looked heroic and imposing; the pretty maids on both sides of the entrance were dressed in silk and brocade, and were more beautiful than flowers.

Just by looking at the spiritual energy emanating from him, one can tell that he is indeed quite remarkable to be chosen by Wanbao Trading Company to serve as its representative. If he were placed in a small, unassuming household, he could probably be considered a pillar of the clan.

When Sect Leader Kang arrived, there were still a few Qi Refining cultivators doing business in the inner room of Wanbao Trading Company. They were only talking about small transactions worth a few dozen spirit stones. However, although the low-level manager who was serving the customers was much more powerful than these customers, his expression was quite warm. He was not like the arrogant attitude that some business managers often displayed. This showed that Wanbao Trading Company's style of doing business was unmatched by other companies.

Wanbao Trading Company has been established for a long time, and its welcoming and sending off of guests are all conducted in an orderly manner. When they saw Kang Dabao and his entourage enter the hall, the shop assistants were quick-witted. Just by looking at the three leaders, Kang Dabao, who was upright and imposing, Fei Dabao, who was elegant and noble, and Chongming Jiang, who had an extraordinary bearing, they knew that the visitors were not people they could handle. They first sent their pretty maidservants to serve ginseng soup, while they went to the back and selected a superior who was truly in charge to come out and make contact.

"If this ginseng soup were sold in a restaurant, it would probably cost at least ten spirit stones." Headmaster Kang took a sip and found that although the taste was good, it was useless to him. So he gave the cup in his hand to Kang Lingyi to drink, not caring whether his innocent and lovely eldest daughter wanted to taste her father's saliva.

It was Zhang Qingran, who felt sorry for her daughter, who gave the innocent and ignorant Que'er the ginseng soup, thus relieving the little girl's immediate crisis.

Fei Shuhe gave her husband a reproachful look, and was about to offer some advice when a middle-aged man who looked like a fat rich man came up from behind.

The man was dressed in a brocade robe, and on his head, a crown of scholars was inlaid with a yellow rainbow jade the size of a chicken egg. It was a top-quality material for refining second-tier spiritual weapons. Normally, even a piece the size of a fingernail could provoke a Foundation Establishment cultivator to fight to the death, and it would not be surprising if several lives were lost. But now, this man was only using it as decoration, which at most had some effect on nourishing the spirit and calming the mind. It was a case of casting pearls before swine.

Having seen much of the world over the years, Master Kang didn't notice anything amiss. His expression remained unchanged, and with a slight upturn of his lips, he went to greet him.

The middle-aged man was very polite, cupping his hands in a respectful bow: "Yan Fengwu, the sixth manager of Wanbao Branch in Shannan, greets fellow Daoist."

Headmaster Kang displayed his usually reserved and cheerful demeanor, returning the greeting with a laugh: "Kang Dabao of Chongming Sect in Yunjiao Prefecture greets fellow Daoist."

"It was actually Sect Leader Kang in person. My apologies for my disrespect," Yan Fengwu said with a natural expression. Even someone as perceptive as Kang Dabao could hardly tell whether Yan Fengwu had heard of his reputation.

Before he could think it through, Yan Fengwu asked first, "I wonder if Sect Leader Kang has come to Wanbao Trading Company to select rare items or to sell precious treasures?"

This time, Kang Dabao smiled but did not answer. He simply peeked the invitation from his sleeve. Yan Fengwu was slightly taken aback, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes, but he quickly returned to normal.

The Wanbao Trading Company sells Qi Refining items on the first floor, Foundation Establishment items on the second floor, and Golden Core items on the third floor. The fourth floor is not open for the time being.

The first three floors are indeed different from what ordinary people imagine. There are no barriers to entry, and any cultivator with sufficient spirit stones can climb up and take a look. Judging from the way Wanbao Trading Company operates, there is no need to worry about being robbed.

However, if a cultivator wishes to ascend a higher level, they must pay a substantial deposit, which will be refunded after the transaction is completed. This provision alone can prevent most minor cultivators from causing trouble by trying to broaden their horizons.

However, contrary to what Master Kang had imagined before his departure, the Wanbao Trading Company's auction was not held on the mysterious fourth floor.

After Yan Fengwu led Kang Dabao and his party into the hall, they took a few steps and saw a seemingly ordinary mirage screen inside.

Several glittering treasures were originally displayed on the screen, suitable for exhibition. However, when Yan Fengwu slowly walked to the mirage screen, took a small hexagonal seal from his waist, and gently pressed it onto the screen...

As soon as the golden characters were imprinted on the screen, the slowly surging and drifting white mist suddenly dispersed. After a vortex of spiritual energy gradually appeared inside, Sect Leader Kang's eyes lit up and he realized that the Wanbao Trading Company had refined the entrance to a cave within the mirage screen.

He was inexperienced, but found the scene somewhat novel. Fei Shuhe, on the other hand, was not surprised at all. He and Zhang Qingran each took a little girl and moved to the front of the mirage screen to wait quietly.

After the spiritual energy subsided slightly, the sound of horns gradually came from the vortex within the screen. The sound of the horns was quite ancient and carried a sense of desolation, which frightened even the sparrow that was peacefully perched on Pei Xiangcao's wrist, causing it to hide behind Headmaster Kang.

The latter did not drive it away, but quietly probed out with its still relatively strong divine sense, only to find that it could not find out the details inside the screen at all, so it had no choice but to give up.

Fortunately, the person inside the screen didn't keep Kang Dabao waiting for too long. After a few breaths, when the horn sound coming from the screen became clearer, Yan Fengwu made a gesture, leading everyone to jump into the mirage screen.

The inner world, however, presented a completely different scene, resembling a vast void, utterly empty, with even the spiritual energy seemingly much thinner than the outside world. When Master Kang probed further with his divine sense, he felt that this cave dwelling seemed boundless.

Since he mastered the Bright Moon Contemplation Technique, even top-tier rogue cultivators like Yuan Buwen and Yue Lin would likely be inferior to him in terms of spiritual sense. Now, even he cannot see the edge of this cave dwelling. The cave dwelling covers a vast area, probably comparable to the Guanshan Cave Dwelling of yesteryear.

However, Kang Dabao was in no hurry to ask questions. He just looked at the huge beast-drawn carriage in front of him with a look of shock in his eyes.

The beast-drawn carriage was pulled by a colossal beast with gleaming golden armor and silver horns on its head. Master Kang did not recognize the beast's origin, but he could sense that the beast's spiritual power was vast and boundless, far beyond his own reach.

"A third-tier spirit beast?!" Kang Dabao was surprised for a moment, but without asking, he became very certain.

Not only was he surprised, but the old man in the leather robe driving the beast-drawn carriage was also astonished, and he exclaimed softly, "Quite a few young friends have come to this auction. We just finished one group, and now another group has arrived."

"This is actually a high-level cultivator?!" Even Fei Shuhe was surprised. After all, even the Fei family of Yingzhou, a world-renowned family, could not afford to entertain high-level cultivators who were at the Golden Core stage.

Yan Fengwu, understanding people's hearts, stepped forward to explain, "The Huiming Cave is one of the sixteen Class B caves in the Great Wei Immortal Dynasty. This cave was opened by my family's True Man Fengde, and it has only been sixty years since then. Thunder Qi and Fire Qi occasionally spill out. If one gets tainted, even ordinary cultivators will be in trouble. Therefore, we specially assigned Senior Wu Xuan to drive the Ruilin Beast Chariot for liaison." "To actually be willing to move one of the sixteen Class B caves to Shannan Road, if Wanbao Trading Company were to invest such a large sum of money, it would be hard for outsiders to believe that it wasn't for Kuang Liuting."

"Thank you for your protection, senior." Headmaster Kang immediately led everyone to bow twice, once to the cultivator and once to the spirit beast.

The auspicious unicorn beast was quite enthusiastic, raising its head and snorting. The martial arts master on the beast-drawn carriage merely bowed slightly in return, but his words were quite polite: "Gentlemen, you are distinguished guests of our trade. I am but a humble coachman; how dare I accept a word of thanks?"

After exchanging pleasantries, Yan Fengwu led Kang Dabao and his group onto the beast-drawn carriage.

The interior was incredibly luxurious, needless to say. Pei Xiangcao felt the light inside the car was blinding, and just as her large, watery eyes were about to close, something strange came from outside.

"Snap",
A white bolt of lightning, as thick as Master Kang's waist, ripped through the void and slashed fiercely at the speeding beast-drawn carriage. Its power was so great that even Kang Dabao, who was sitting in the carriage, almost trembled.

But the martial arts master outside calmly raised the long whip he used for driving his chariot and lashed it fiercely at the thunderous energy above his head. The powerful thunderous energy seemed to lose its spirit after being struck by the whip, and after a moment it dissipated into the endless void.

Just as the thunder stopped, the fire elemental attack came again, as if half the sky had been set ablaze. Before the beast-drawn carriage even got close, a wave of heat swept over it, but it was eventually blocked by the heavy magical restrictions on the carriage. Even Pei Xiangcao, who was inside, did not seem to show any unusual reaction.

Wu Xuan Shangxiu then put away his whip and made no further movement, while the auspicious unicorn beast in front showed a hint of displeasure in its eyes. Two wisps of white steam emerged from its nostrils, and with a wide-open mouth, a white orb of light rolled out from its throat, dazzling to the eye, and shot out with a bang.

The sea of ​​fire was suddenly blasted open by the beast, and the auspicious unicorn beast, with its swift hooves and lightning-like body, easily led the beast-drawn carriage through in the blink of an eye, which truly inspired awe in the cultivators inside.

Sect Leader Kang had excellent eyesight and could naturally sense how powerful the person and beast outside were. Compared to Gu Chengsen, the Daoist disciple of the Red Heart Sect, whom the entire Chongming Sect had fought together back then, they were far superior.

Therefore, in Kang Dabao's opinion, the task of welcoming and seeing off Wanbao Trading Company is not something that any cultivator can do. At least, someone like Wufeng, a cultivator, would be somewhat lacking in this role.

After traveling for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the beast-drawn carriage arrived at a place of outstanding natural beauty and clear blue skies. Before their eyes, dozens of ancient and simple courtyards were scattered across a fertile spiritual land.

Wu Xuan picked up his whip, squinted, and quickly selected an empty courtyard. The auspicious unicorn beast took a few steps without haste and arrived at the location.

Kang Dabao and the others stayed behind to exchange pleasantries with the person and the beast, while Kang Lingyi, along with Pei Xiangcao who couldn't contain herself any longer, skipped off the beast-drawn carriage and pushed open the door to enter the courtyard.

“This courtyard is much more magnificent than Father’s, and even Mother’s cannot compare.” Kang Lingyi’s background was not bad, but as soon as she entered the courtyard, she was still dazzled by the sight.

Among them was a woman in palace attire, a maidservant in the courtyard. Her appearance wasn't particularly striking, but her serene demeanor made it difficult to dislike her. After seeing that Master Kang and his entourage had also entered the courtyard, she led them to explain the layout of the courtyard.

Although the seclusion room, alchemy room, and weapon-refining room are small, they are fully equipped and designed for the use of Golden Core cultivators, which is quite rare.

Over the years, Chongming Sect has spared no expense in carrying out large-scale construction projects, but in the eyes of Headmaster Kang, they are still far inferior to this small courtyard. There are dozens of such courtyards in this area alone, enough to make him extremely envious.

The maid added at the end of her introduction, "The auction will begin in five days, and the head manager will personally preside over it. A catalog of the auction items is displayed in the main hall, with detailed explanations, which our distinguished guests may consult. If any of our family members do not wish to accompany us in five days, they may remain in the courtyard. Hidden in the green pond in the courtyard is a mirage screen, through which one can observe the proceedings in the auction hall."

Kang Dabao thanked her, thinking that the female cultivator was about to bow and leave, but to his surprise, she kept smiling at him. This reaction left the sect leader Kang somewhat puzzled.

Finally, Fei Shuhe came up and handed over a Mirror Lake Pearl, which satisfied the man and made him leave.

"What kind of custom is this?!" Kang Dabao's face twitched, a slight pang of regret on his face. Fei Shuhe glanced at him with her beautiful eyes, seemingly disgusted by his shabby manner, but in the end, she still explained softly:
“These maids are all from extraordinary backgrounds; otherwise, how could they have gotten such a good job serving the Golden Elixir? Even if they don’t say a word, we still need to get close to them and show our appreciation.”

What are a few measly riches worth? It would be truly regrettable to offend someone important for such a petty gain, without even realizing it.

"Being able to listen to advice" is one of the few bright spots in Master Kang's character. Since his wife's words were insightful, he suppressed his feelings of heartache.

If he had known this place was so wonderful, he might not have brought his wives, concubines, and daughters. Instead, he would have brought all the outstanding disciples from his sect who were skilled in alchemy, artifact crafting, and talisman arrays, and made good use of this excellent place in the courtyard. The rent for just a few days might have been enough to recoup the Mirror Lake Pearl that Fei Shuhe had paid.

Putting aside these distracting thoughts, Master Kang stepped into the main hall and, with a flick of his finger, caused the picture album hanging above to slowly unfold.

"Yellow Dragon Wood is a spiritual material belonging to the Wood element that can help Foundation Establishment cultivators increase their chances of forming a Core by 10%, and its medicinal effects do not diminish with age. It can also be used as the main ingredient to refine the Yellow Dragon Hundred Flavor Pill, a cultivation pill used by late-stage Golden Core cultivators."

"The Dragon Horn Sword is a top-grade magic weapon crafted by the current leader of the Chen Gong Sect. It is imbued with the essence of a dragon. If a sword cultivator uses it, they must be careful not to lose their sword heart and become violent."

"The molted cicada shell of a thousand years is one of the auxiliary ingredients in the Infant Transformation Pill."

There wasn't a single item on this list that Master Kang didn't want, but there weren't many items he could afford either. After sketching and weighing his options, he spotted something in the corner of the sketchbook that caught his eye:
"Ivy?!"

(I didn't want to stop here, but I really don't have time to write today.)

(End of this chapter)