Pure Yang treasures… and even Nine Yang Holy Water on auction!
If he could win either of those, this trip to the Great Xuan Empire would be more than worth it. Fang Han's pulse quickened. The stronger Yan became, the more terrifying the Yellow Springs Diagram would be.
A flawless Pure Yang treasure was comparable to Hua Tiandu's Nine-Palace Golden Pagoda, or the Nebula Child's Sun-Moon Five-Star Bracelets—mystic tools of immeasurable value. Once obtained, such treasures rendered their owner immune to corruption, superior in both offense and defense. The sort of treasure that, once in hand, could change a cultivator's entire fate.
And someone was actually putting one up for sale.
Unthinkable.
Maybe someday even Dao-tools will appear on the auction block…
The moment Fang Han received this news, he shot into the air like a bolt of green lightning, racing toward the Heaven's Way Pavilion auction hall.
"Dao-friend, wait for us!"
Piaoyun and Lianyun quickly swept the piles of three hundred thousand Yuan Infant Pills into a massive treasure pouch before taking off after him. To them, someone who could casually bring out so many pills was a treasure far more valuable than the pills themselves. And if the rumors were true—that he'd refined them himself—he was practically a mobile Taiji Sect pill furnace.
"Fang Han," Yan cackled as the two women followed behind, "looks like they're trying to recruit you. Any thoughts?"
"Anyone who can hand over three hundred thousand Yuan Infant Pills in one go is bound to attract attention." Fang Han's eyes narrowed. "And yes, I do have thoughts. Those three mysterious Golden Core assassins want me dead. If I could quietly cooperate with Linglong Paradise… I might borrow their blade to eliminate them."
"You intend to use them to kill the three Golden Cores!?"
Yan and the Blood Night King were taken aback.
They hadn't expected Fang Han to be so cold-minded, planning counter-assassination before the enemy even struck.
And indeed, the three Golden Cores' shadow hung over him like a constant curse. If he left the empire, he would surely face a fatal ambush. Even with Lianyun's help, she alone couldn't handle three Golden Cores—let alone kill them.
To slay three Golden Cores outright, even Longevity giants would tread carefully. A doomed Golden Core expert could self-detonate—an act capable of annihilating everything within miles.
Fang Han estimated he'd need at least:
— himself
— Fang Qingxue
— five additional Golden Core masters
— plus a pre-laid formation centered on a Dao-tool
Only then would they have a seventy-to-eighty-percent chance of killing all three without suffering casualties.
Hardly an easy plan.
Still, the desire burned fiercely. No one wanted three invisible executioners trailing behind them forever.
"Hmph. If I can obtain a flawless Pure Yang treasure, and raise my strength to something near the Unity Stage, I'll be able to wield far more of the Yellow Springs Diagram's power. With the 'Annihilation Demon Array' and the Blood Night King assisting, trapping a Golden Core shouldn't be impossible. Even if he self-detonates, the Diagram protects us. During the ancient Immortal-Demon War, dozens of Golden Cores blew themselves up inside it and I wasn't scratched." Yan grinned viciously.
"That's absurd," the Blood Night King scoffed. "Dozens of Golden Cores exploding would reduce even Longevity cultivators to dust. Stop bragging."
"Blood Night King, one day I'll show you exactly how terrifying I am!" Yan snapped.
"All right, enough," Fang Han cut them off. "We've arrived."
He descended in a streak of green light, landing at the entrance of Heaven's Way Pavilion. He had barely steadied his feet when Greenbrow hurried over.
"Senior, about the Yuan Infant Pills…"
"That can wait." Fang Han waved the topic aside. "I heard you're auctioning a flawless Pure Yang treasure and Nine Yang Holy Water today?"
"Ah, so senior seeks those items. Please, this way."
Greenbrow led him toward a private guest hall. "Today's auction is extremely grand. Many masters have arrived. Securing the treasure you want won't be easy. But should senior require additional funds, Heaven's Way Pavilion offers borrowing services."
"Oh?" Fang Han chuckled. "Loans? Cultivators actually run high-interest loans?"
A world with flying swords, immortal sects, and cosmic battles… yet it still had loan sharks. Fascinating. And useful.
He currently held sixty million pills, but a flawless Pure Yang treasure might exceed even that. If he could borrow more, all the better.
After all, he could produce over thirty-six thousand Yuan Infant Pills a day. Repaying loans was trivial.
Seeing his interest, Greenbrow's face lit up.
"If senior is willing to disclose his identity, sect, and place of cultivation, we can lend up to ten million pills at once. Monthly interest is three percent."
Borrow ten million today, repay over ten million three hundred thousand next month—compounded monthly.
"Only ten million?" Fang Han waved it off. He had sixty million in hand; ten million was nothing. And revealing his identity was impossible. He understood the logic, though—ten million pills was a vast sum.
"Unless… senior wishes to borrow more?" Greenbrow hesitated. "I cannot approve that myself."
"Then call someone who can. I want at least one hundred million." Fang Han tapped the table, each tap echoing like a drumbeat.
"One… hundred… million!?"
Greenbrow sucked in a breath and scrambled to her feet. Before she could hurry out, Fang Han flicked a small bottle to her—one hundred Yuan Infant Pills as a tip.
"Oh—and tell me, does Heaven's Way Pavilion offer assassination services?"
"No! We are a righteous merchant hall," Greenbrow said quickly. "But we do offer protective services. You may hire any of our elders."
"Even Golden Core protectors?" Fang Han asked.
"Of course. We can even provide eighth-layer Fire-Wind Tribulation masters, or ninth-layer World-Manifestation experts. But their service fee is… several million pills at least."
"Hm. Go, then. Bring someone who can authorize my loan."
As Greenbrow left in delight, Yan's voice buzzed with excitement.
"Fang Han! Did you hear that? The three assassins were hired by Young Lord Ling. With the World Tree giving us infinite wealth, we could hire people to kill them instead!"
"Not so fast." Fang Han rubbed his temples. "Give me a year—once I stockpile enough pills, even hiring people to besiege Hua Tiandu wouldn't be impossible. But we must tread carefully. Heaven's Way Pavilion is trustworthy, but placing all our secrets with them would be courting disaster."
He trusted no one fully. Not outside his own circle.
"Dao-friend wishes to borrow funds?"
The curtain lifted.
Piaoyun and Lianyun stepped inside—Linglong Paradise's twin experts.
Piaoyun, a Heavenly Human master.
Lianyun, a Golden Core powerhouse.
"You?" Fang Han arched a brow. "Is Linglong Paradise willing to lend to me?"
"Indeed," Lianyun said. "Anyone who can produce three hundred thousand Yuan Infant Pills in ten days may borrow from us. Heaven's Way Pavilion's interest is outrageous. We can provide interest-free loans. If you require one hundred million pills, simply repay in Yuan Infant Pills within a year."
"You're not even asking my background?" Fang Han asked calmly.
"No need. You intend to hire protectors, yes? Linglong Paradise can provide protection." Lianyun toyed with a jade talisman.
"We'll discuss protection later. I do need the loan—but the exact amount depends on whether I win the Pure Yang treasure, the Nine Yang Holy Water, or the Nine-Heavens Earth-Breath Crystal."
As he spoke, a sudden uproar burst from below.
The first treasure of the auction had been carried onto the stage.
"So many experts…" Fang Han felt over a dozen terrifying spiritual senses sweep toward the central platform. The treasure was hidden beneath a shimmering brocade—brocade that was itself a lower-grade treasure used solely to mask its aura.
What kind of item required a treasure to hide it?
Fang Han's spiritual eyesight pierced the fabric.
A giant egg.
"This egg…"
His heart lurched.
It was identical to the enormous egg he had taken from beneath Seven-Leaf Demon Lord's throne.
"The first auction item is always something extraordinary," Piaoyun murmured behind her mask. "What could they be hiding beneath that brocade?"
Fang Han's pulse began to pound.
Why is there another egg identical to mine?