Liu Zhen hesitated.
He had to admit, he was tempted. Though fear still lingered in his heart — the instinctive dread one feels toward the powerful, the worry of being shortchanged.
But experience after experience had taught him that these people's character was at least trustworthy, far better than dealing with anyone from the Fallen Heaven Society.
Seeing Liu Zhen still waver, the Peerless Emperor said sternly, "Boy, with your level of cultivation, you don't really have any room to haggle. My friend here has been polite enough to negotiate a fair deal with you. If you keep dragging your feet, that's just being ungrateful. To put it bluntly — if we walk away right now, you could very well end up dead on the street the next moment. And if we truly wanted to harm you, do you think you'd have made it here to Frost Moon City in one piece? If my friend here wanted to seize your Heavenly Crystal Grass by force, do you think you'd have any choice but to hand it over?"
Though the Peerless Emperor's words were blunt, they were the plain truth. If their strength were equal, there would indeed be room for negotiation — even refusal.
But under these circumstances, Liu Zhen clearly needed their help, yet he worried over this and that, unwilling to commit, as though they were trying to cheat him. The Peerless Emperor found this rather irksome.
"Liu Zhen, I may be the only person willing to deal with you fairly. The actual market price for a stalk of Heavenly Crystal Grass is right around this figure. Of course, I'll admit that Heaven-grade spiritual medicines rarely circulate on the open market. But keeping them on you isn't necessarily a good thing. You'd be far safer converting them into spirit stones."
Liu Zhen was genuinely tempted. Heavenly Crystal Grass was indeed valuable, but for him personally, converting it into actual Sacred Spirit Stones carried enormous risk.
Any time he produced a Heaven-grade spiritual medicine, he would inevitably attract unwanted attention.
For an Emperor-level powerhouse, producing a Heaven-grade spiritual medicine was nothing remarkable. But for a mere Yuan Realm martial artist to come into possession of one — it was impossible not to draw eyes.
"Liu Zhen, I'll say this one last time. If you're worried that we'll backstab you after the deal, you can put that fear to rest. I guarantee you on my honor as an Emperor — after the transaction is complete, we will absolutely not move against you. Honestly, do you really think my friend is that kind of person?"
Liu Zhen shook his head quickly. "No, no, no — of course that's not what I meant. I'm not wary of you honored lords, nor was I ever on guard against you. It's just that…"
"What?"
"The truth is, these Heavenly Crystal Grass stalks don't belong to me alone." Liu Zhen said honestly. "I discovered them together with a friend of mine. His share is among them. I can't make a decision on my own without his consent."
"What's his cultivation level?" Jiang Chen asked curiously. "Is he much stronger than you? If that's the case, how did the two of you end up working together?"
"No, no — he's also at the Yuan Realm. But his talent is rather unique; his growth rate has been remarkable. His potential in martial arts is immense. The only shame is that, for some reason, he was never taken in by any major sect or powerful faction when he was young. It really is quite baffling."
"A Yuan Realm cultivation — you two truly have no use for Heavenly Crystal Grass." Jiang Chen continued to guide the conversation.
"I know we have no use for them. It's just… I'm afraid that after I sell them, he'll come back upset." It was clear that despite Liu Zhen's somewhat shifty appearance and timid nature, he was a man who valued loyalty above all else. At this critical juncture, risking his life to rescue a friend rather than pocketing all the Heavenly Crystal Grass and fleeing on his own — that was not something just anyone could do.
After all, for a Yuan Realm martial artist to travel back and forth between Pill Fire City and Frost Moon City was extremely dangerous.
"I can see the bond between you two runs deep. I'm impressed." Jiang Chen smiled faintly. "How about this — we'll set aside his portion and wait until he's rescued before discussing it. How many stalks of Heavenly Crystal Grass do you have on hand? I'll take however many you've got. Heavenly Crystal Grass is the primary ingredient for refining Sacred Smile Pills. The day you break through to the Saint Realm, I'll give you a Sacred Smile Pill free of charge so you can unconditionally advance one full sub-realm within the Saint Realm."
Liu Zhen's eyes lit up. In that moment, his heart truly surged with excitement. He gritted his teeth and nodded. "Fine. Back then, we discovered a total of eighteen stalks of Heavenly Crystal Grass. We agreed to split them nine each. This time, to fund his rescue, I auctioned off one stalk, gave two to you as payment, and still owe you one more. That's four stalks consumed. Split evenly, that's two per person. So I still have seven Heavenly Crystal Grass stalks remaining."
Eighteen stalks!
The number stunned Jiang Chen.
Heaven-grade spiritual medicine — eighteen stalks discovered at once. What did that even mean? Even an Emperor wouldn't possess such heaven-defying fortune.
And this kind of miraculous luck had befallen two Yuan Realm martial artists. It truly couldn't be denied — encounters of this nature defied all reason and expectation.
Each person had their own fortune. It was something others could only envy.
"Good. Seven stalks of Heavenly Crystal Grass — I'll give you one billion, one hundred million Sacred Spirit Stones!"
For Heavenly Crystal Grass, Jiang Chen would take as much as he could get. He would never turn any away. Sacred Smile Pills were such incredible treasures — the more, the better.
Heavenly Crystal Grass was the sole primary ingredient for refining Sacred Smile Pills, and it was irreplaceable. With such a treasure before him, how could he not seize the opportunity?
One billion, one hundred million?
For a Yuan Realm cultivator like Liu Zhen, that was unquestionably an astronomical sum. These were Sacred Spirit Stones, not Yuan Spirit Stones.
Even one billion, one hundred million Yuan Spirit Stones would be an outrageous fortune for an independent Yuan Realm cultivator. One billion, one hundred million Sacred Spirit Stones — it was wealth he had never even dreamed of.
"Deal. I'll sell them all to you. But the Sacred Smile Pills…"
"Don't worry about the Sacred Smile Pills — you'll get yours. And your friend's share as well — talk to him when you get the chance. I'll purchase his portion too. Same price."
Liu Zhen nodded. "I'll convince him. The price is more than fair. He shouldn't refuse. I hear he's also in urgent need of money. If he can offload his Heavenly Crystal Grass through a deal like this, he'll think it couldn't get any better."
Eighteen stalks of Heavenly Crystal Grass — the mere thought made Jiang Chen's eyes burn with eagerness.
"It's settled, then. There are too many eyes and ears here. We'll make the exchange later. Let's go see what's happening outside." Jiang Chen noticed that Long Xiaoxuan hadn't come inside and knew the troublemaker was probably causing a scene again.
He left payment for the wine, and Jiang Chen led Liu Zhen outside alongside the Peerless Emperor. But when they stepped through the door of the tavern, the scene before them made both Jiang Chen and the Peerless Emperor laugh despite themselves.
There stood Long Xiaoxuan, hands clasped behind his back, shouting at the top of his lungs.