Chapter 319: News

As Daoist Changhe was speaking, Han Li noticed another pair of eyes being trained on him, and it was none other than Shu Tiansheng.

With Han Li looking his way, Shu Tiansheng immediately put on a fawning smile.

Han Li withdrew his gaze, then shook his head with a decisive expression. "My apologies, but I'm only going to exchange this Blush Cloud Fire Crystal for one of the nine aforementioned materials."

Daoist Changhe was quite disappointed to hear this, but he was still unwilling to give up. "Is there no room for negotiation at all, Fellow Daoist Li?"

After a brief moment of contemplation, Han Li said, "I won't exchange this piece of Blush Cloud Fire Crystal for anything else, but I do have some smaller pieces of the same material that I'm willing to exchange for any leads on where I can obtain one or more of the nine materials I mentioned earlier."

He swept a sleeve over the table once again as he spoke, and a pair of fist-sized Blush Cloud Fire Crystals appeared.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Daoist Changhe took a longing glance at the two pieces of Blush Cloud Fire Crystal, but ultimately sat back down with a defeated expression.

Shu Tiansheng also sat down in his chair with a sullen expression, while Han Li heaved an internal sigh before stowing the three Blush Cloud Fire Crystals on the table away again.

The exchange event continued, but in contrast with the Blush Cloud Fire Crystals, everything else that was presented was made to look completely mediocre, and the atmosphere gradually died down.

An hour later, the exchange event concluded, and Han Li immediately stood up to leave with Qi Liang.

Once again, Daoist Changhe asked Han Li whether he was willing to exchange one of the two smaller Blush Cloud Fire Crystals for something else, and he brought out an array of rare and exotic items for Han Li's consideration.

However, none of those items caught Han Li's interest, and much to Daoist Changhe's disappointment, he was turned down once again.

However, Han Li did leave a communication array plate to Daoist Changhe so that he could contact Han Li if he ever did come across one of the nine materials or news on any one of them.

A glimmer of hope was sparked in Daoist Changhe's heart, and he promised that he would do his best, while also imploring Han Li to save one or two of the Blush Cloud Fire Crystals for him.

Han Li was rather surprised by how urgent Daoist Changhe was in his pursuit for a Blush Cloud Fire Crystal, and he agreed to his request before departing with Qi Liang.

"Where are you going next, Brother Li?" Qi Liang asked.

"I'm going to go to some other places to search for some materials. It's not every day that I get this opportunity, so I have to make the most of it," Han Li replied.

Qi Liang nodded in response. "I have some matters to take care of as well, so I won't accompany you any further, Brother Li. Take Care."

"Alright, then I'll see you at the preaching ceremony," Han Li said with a smile, then promptly departed.

Qi Liang looked at Han Li's departing figure for a while, then heaved a faint sigh before departing in another direction.

Han Li made his way down the street for a while before suddenly stopping in his tracks, then turned around with a cold expression. "You've been following me for quite some time now. What business do you have with me?"

Standing not far away behind Han Li was none other than Shu Tiansheng.

"I am Shu Tiansheng of the Heavenly Sage Peak. Please accept my apologies for my rude actions during the exchange event, Fellow Daoist Li," Shu Tiansheng said in an earnest manner as he cupped his fist in an apologetic salute.

Han Li's expression eased slightly upon hearing this, and he said, "Don't worry about it, it's not a big deal. My question is why are you following me around?"

"Thank you for your understanding, Fellow Daoist Li. I came here to ask you if you were planning to continue searching for the materials that you mentioned during the exchange event just now," Shu Tiansheng explained.

"I don't like to talk in circles, so if you have something to say, then be more straightforward," Han Li said.

"Truth be told, I have information on where you can secure one of those materials, but I didn't want to say it in front of everyone back there," Shu Tiansheng replied as a serious look appeared on his face.

Han Li's eyes immediately lit up slightly upon hearing this. "Which material do you have information on?"

Shu Tiansheng opened his mouth to reply, but then decided against it.

Han Li could see that Shu Tiansheng had some reservations, so he said, "Rest assured, the offer that I made earlier still stands. If you can provide me with information on one of the materials, then you can have one of my Blush Cloud Fire Crystals."

"Well... I do have information one of the materials, but instead of one of the nine, it's the Blood Crystal Lotus Root," Shu Tiansheng said.

Han Li faltered slightly upon hearing this, then nodded in response. "That's fine, that's also one of the things that I'm looking for. What would you like in exchange for this information?"

"I can see that you're a very straightforward man, so I'll cut straight to the chase. I want to exchange the information I have for a Blush Cloud Fire Crystal," Shu Tiansheng said with a smile.

Han Li offered no response to this.

Shu Tiansheng took a deep breath, then continued, "I know that the Blood Crystal Lotus Root is lesser in value than the other nine materials that you mentioned, so I'm willing to throw in some Immortal Origin Stones as well in exchange for a small piece of Blush Cloud Fire Crystal."

"There's no need for that. The Blood Crystal Lotus Root is one of the things that I'm looking for as well, so I won't ask for any extra Immortal Origin Stones," Han Li said with a shake of his head.

His expression remained unchanged, but he was actually quite excited. Compared with the nine ingredients required for dao pill refinement, he would actually rather acquire the Blood Crystal Lotus Root as that was the final ingredient he was missing for refining Myriad Axis Pills.

"Thank you for your generosity, Fellow Daoist Li. At the moment, there are many cultivators gathered in White Jade City, and there's no lack of True Immortals among them, so there are many more auctions and exchange events to come. There's a secret high-end auction that's going to take place in three days, and only those who are at or above the mid-True Immortal Stage can attend.

“I only learned about this auction by chance, and I've heard that the Blood Crystal Lotus Root will be one of the auction items," Shu Tiansheng informed through voice transmission.

An intrigued look appeared in Han Li's eyes upon hearing this.

The fact that only those at or above the mid-True Immortal Stage could attend the auction meant that most of the Blaze Dragon Dao's elders would not have been granted entry, so this was quite a prestigious event.

"Seeing as you were able to dispel my illusion so easily, I'm sure the cultivation base restriction won't be a problem for you," Shu Tiansheng said, having adopted his usual cheeky grin again.

Han Li paid no heed to this blatant attempt at probing out his cultivation base as he nodded in response. "Alright, I'll be sure to attend this auction, and I'll give you a Blush Cloud Fire Crystal if a Blood Crystal Lotus Root really does appear."

A hint of elation flashed through Shu Tiansheng's eyes upon hearing this, and he nodded as he said, "Great! I'll meet you back here at noon in three days."

After that, he promptly bade farewell to Han Li, and the two went their separate ways.

The day quickly flew by, and at night, a series of massive crescent-shaped gemstones appeared throughout White Jade City, releasing bright white radiance that made the city just as bright as it was during the day.

All of the buildings in the city also lit up, and with the night sky acting as a backdrop, the entire city appeared even more alluring and resplendent than it was in the day.

Right at this moment, Han Li emerged from one of the shops in the city.

He had visited all of the remaining materials shops in the city out of hope more than conviction, and sure enough, he hadn't found any of the materials that he was looking for.

He was already prepared for this outcome, but he still couldn't help but feel a little disappointment, and he had no choice but to place his hopes in the private auctions and exchange events.

However, his exploration of the city hadn't been entirely fruitless.

For example, he had learned from the owner of one of the shops that another exchange event was going to take place the next day.

This exchange event was likely going to be even smaller than the one held in the Heavenly Scorpion Pavilion, but Han Li wasn't going to miss it.

A short while later, Han Li arrived on a rather quiet street that was lined with inns.

Having explored the city for an entire day, he may not have exactly been tired, but it was still time to get some rest.

After looking around for a while, he chose one of the smaller inns and requested a peaceful room, upon which he was led by an inn employee to a room on the third floor.

"Have a good night, and if you need anything, just call for me,” the employee said.

Han Li took a glance around the room to find that it was to his liking, and he gave the employee a spirit stone as a tip before waving a dismissive hand, indicating for him to leave.

The employee was ecstatic and extended a grateful bow before quickly departing.

Han Li was just about to close the door when the sound of footsteps rang out nearby, and a woman in red passed by in front of his room.

The woman's face was obscured by a veil, but she seemed to have been quite young and possessed an exceptional figure.

White Jade City was quite a large city, but due to the excessive number of cultivators in the city, most of the inns were most likely quite full.

The woman in red took a glance at Han Li, then quickly made her way past him and disappeared down the corridor.

A hint of befuddlement emerged in Han Li's eyes as he looked on at her departing figure.

The woman had concealed her own aura, but with Han Li's immense spiritual sense, he was able to instantly detect that she was a True Immortal cultivator.

At the moment, True Immortals were a dime a dozen in White Jade City, but this woman struck Han Li with a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen her before somewhere.

However, he couldn't recall exactly where he had seen her before, so he could only set the train of thought aside.

After closing the door, Han Li set up a layer of restrictions in the room, then sat down with his legs crossed on the bed.

……

Three days passed by in a flash, and Han Li arrived at the rendezvous location at noon.

Shu Tiansheng was already waiting there, and he immediately greeted Han Li with a wide smile. "Welcome, Fellow Daoist Li."

Han Li merely nodded in response.

"The auction venue is quite obscure, so please come with me, Fellow Daoist Li," Shu Tiansheng communicated through voice transmission, then led the way ahead.

The two of them walked along the streets in silence, and only after walking for close to an hour did they arrive at a secluded little shop.

The shop didn't have any customers, and there was only an elderly shopkeeper resting on a reclining chair behind the counter, looking as if he were about to nod off at any moment.