(These past few days it's been scorching hot and muggy here — I nearly got heatstroke! Really miss the cool of winter!)
At this moment, Shopkeeper Tian began introducing the items inside the brocade box to Han Li.
"The Golden Ant Mother-Child Blade Set — one mother blade and eight child blades, forged from refined iron and fine gold by a Foundation Establishment master over three days and nights. Simply by holding the mother blade, the user can simultaneously control all eight child blades to attack the enemy, leaving opponents no chance to defend. The edges are incomparably sharp." He pointed at a set of pale golden, oddly-shaped blades inside a box as he spoke.
Han Li said nothing. He reached out and picked up one of the child blades, studied it closely for a moment, then nodded and set it back down.
"The Black Iron Flying Shield — an exceedingly rare defensive magical artifact. Refined from large chunks of black iron sourced from a frigid yin region, it is not only incredibly sturdy and virtually unbreakable, but once activated with spiritual energy, it automatically orbits the user to provide defense." Shopkeeper Tian picked up a palm-sized miniature iron shield, said this, then handed it to Han Li for inspection.
Han Li held the shield in his hand and gently traced the patterns on its surface. After a moment's thought, he asked:
"Can I try activating it?"
"Of course! Please, go right ahead, Brother Li!" Shopkeeper Tian said generously.
Since the other party had said so, Han Li didn't stand on ceremony. He slowly channeled spiritual energy into the object.
The iron shield instantly blazed with a dark luster, swelling several times its size in the blink of an eye. It flew off his palm, hovering in the air and beginning to circle slowly around him. Its size was just right to shield certain vital areas of his body.
Han Li felt a spark of delight. He focused slightly to control it, and sure enough, the shield could move freely up and down at his will — nimble and agile beyond expectation.
After trying it out, Han Li was quite satisfied with this magical artifact. What he lacked most at this moment were exactly these kinds of life-saving treasures. With this shield, his chances of survival in the Blood Forbidden Trial would surely increase considerably.
However, Han Li didn't immediately show his hand. He simply placed the iron shield back into its box in silence and continued to await the introduction of the next item.
Shopkeeper Tian showed no displeasure at Han Li's reserved behavior. He enthusiastically moved on to the next item — a blue pearl the size of a pill.
"The Heavenly Thunder Pellet. Centuries ago, a mysterious cultivator inadvertently captured a bolt of heavenly lightning and refined it into this form. Each pellet possesses tremendous power — it is said that even a Foundation Establishment cultivator struck head-on would be utterly annihilated. Originally there were seventy-three in existence, but very few remain to this day. This one was acquired by our establishment at tremendous effort."
After finishing this description, Shopkeeper Tian couldn't help but show a trace of pride — a testament to just how precious and rare this thunder pellet was.
Han Li's expression shifted. Something powerful enough to kill a Foundation Establishment cultivator — such might was truly a once-in-a-lifetime find! If he could add it to his arsenal, the trip to the forbidden grounds would come with a devastating trump card. But its price was probably terrifyingly high, or it would have been sold long ago.
After introducing the blue thunder pellet, Shopkeeper Tian fell silent. Instead, he cast a meaningful glance at Han Li, then picked up a cup of fragrant tea and began sipping it leisurely. Although there was still a tightly sealed brocade box on the table that hadn't been introduced, he made no mention of it whatsoever.
Han Li smiled faintly, understanding Shopkeeper Tian's intentions perfectly. He knew it was time to show the other party his financial strength — otherwise, the treasure in that final box would not be revealed to him so easily.
For this visit, to guard against the unexpected, Han Li had brought not only the two thousand-year spirit herbs but also all of his spirit stones, including two mid-grade spirit stones and nearly a hundred low-grade spirit stones.
However, Han Li had no intention of casually spending these spirit stones. His real bargaining chips were those two spirit herbs.
Truthfully, while Han Li knew that herbs over a thousand years old were extremely rare in the current cultivation world and should be worth a considerable fortune, he had little idea exactly how many spirit stones they could fetch or what kind of magical artifacts they might be exchanged for.
But he believed that trading them for the small shield and the initial Golden Ant Mother-Child Blade Set would be more than enough. As for the Heavenly Thunder Pellet, which he wanted even more — there, Han Li felt no confidence at all.
He didn't simply pull both spirit herbs out bare. Instead, he first retrieved from his storage pouch a small wooden box that looked exceptionally elegant, with one of the herbs placed inside it.