Chapter 577: Transaction

‘My ancestor came here before? And left behind a spear shaft without a head?’

She touched her Dantian, soothing the restless spearhead within, and slowly shook her head.

“I don’t have a soul to trade with you.”

‘There was no way she would trade her own soul.’

“What a pity.”

Jianmu sighed softly. A branch quietly emerged from the void, extending to a spot before Zhou Ruxuan.

The branch unfurled before her, revealing a piece of withered wood.

“This is Soul Nourishing Wood. Consider it a gift for our first meeting. It can store souls. If you kill people in the future, remember to capture their souls and come back here to trade with me.”

?

Zhou Ruxuan narrowed her eyes, contemplating the withered wood before her for a moment before reaching out to take it.

“Then, thank you.”

“Senior Jianmu,” Ming Nianwei said, her eyes flashing as she spoke.

“Having gained sentience within this Divine Mansion, I imagine you know very little about the true Cultivation Realm.”

“I, however, do. I wonder if this knowledge is something we could trade?”

“The true Cultivation Realm?” Jianmu looked baffled.

“What do you mean?”

Having never left the Divine Mansion, it clearly had no inkling of the world’s vastness.

“Simple.”

Ming Nianwei chuckled softly, touching a finger to the space between her eyebrows. She then split off a sliver of her consciousness and sent it toward the airborne Jianmu.

This sliver of consciousness contained some common knowledge about Divine Mansions, the ranks of Cultivation, and the human and demon races.

This knowledge might be trivial to someone from the Outer Sect, but for Jianmu, it was a colossal shock.

Divine Heaven, True Martial, the Celestial Sect, the East Sea Dragon Race, Ninth-Grade Experts…

In the more than six hundred years since gaining sentience, Jianmu had believed this world was all that existed.

Little did it know…

…that the world it inhabited was nothing more than a Divine Mansion left behind by some mighty expert after their death.

“And the rest?”

The stream of information cut off midway, leaving Jianmu fidgeting with anxiety as it pressed urgently:

“Quick, give me the rest.”

“Senior,” Ming Nianwei beamed.

“A trade!”

“…Hmph!” Jianmu’s giant face contorted, and with a final, cold snort, countless branches stretched out into the air. Upon each one rested an object glittering with Spiritual Light.

The dense Spiritual Qi even caused the surrounding Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi to stir restlessly.

Ming Nianwei’s gaze swept over them, quickly appraising each Spiritual Object as her brow furrowed slightly.

There were plenty of good things.

But…

…there were few that suited her needs.

Though her Cultivation was not high, her standards were. Jianmu’s collection, however, was a mixed bag of good and bad.

The good items, like that spear shaft, were at least Third-Grade Qi Blood Divine Weapons.

The bad ones, like simple grass stalks, were merely Grade-Entering Spiritual Medicines.

Jianmu couldn’t accurately discern the value of these Treasures, and the truly good items were, after all, in the minority.

“Is this all you have?”

Scanning the offerings, Ming Nianwei’s voice was laced with displeasure.

“It seems your collection is rather lacking. You won’t make a good merchant with wares like these.”

She recalled several other treasure troves awaiting discovery, many of which contained top-tier Magical Treasures.

RUSTLE…

The branches shook.

A look of shame and annoyance appeared on Jianmu’s giant face. As the old boughs retracted and new ones extended, some of its “true collection” was revealed.

“These are the good things I’ve collected over many years. Some I found, some I took.”

“Take a look. See if anything catches your eye.”

The concentration of Spiritual Qi from the Treasures that appeared this time was clearly much stronger than before.

Ming Nianwei examined them closely, her gaze finally stopping on a fist-sized, glistening, fleshy orb.

‘A Demon Core?’

‘No!’

‘It’s an Outer Pill!’

Her eyes lit up, and wild joy surged in her heart.

With this Outer Pill, she could use Fifth-Grade Techniques and have the power to contend with Fifth-Grade experts.

Moreover…

…refining the Demon Core would also enhance her own strength, allowing her to step into the Fifth-Grade Realm more quickly.

“I want that one!”

She pointed, then copied a portion of memories from her Sea of Consciousness into a Jade Scroll and tossed it over.

“Here!”

“Good.”

A smile appeared on Jianmu’s giant face. It sent over the Demon Core and caught the Jade Scroll, its Divine Thought instantly absorbing the memories within.

The Divine Dynasty, the Celestial Sect, the East Sea Dragon Race, the Mang Mountain Demon Saint…

As the many factions and experts appeared one by one in its mind, Jianmu became aware of its own weakness.

Having rarely met a worthy opponent within the Divine Mansion, it felt for the first time like a frog at the bottom of a well.

Composing itself, Jianmu turned its gaze to Zhu Ju, its voice tinged with a hint of apprehension:

“Sir, do you have anything you wish to trade?”

“Hmm…”

“I can offer you a favorable price.”

“My thanks.” Zhu Ju clasped his hands. After a moment’s thought, he said:

“I hear the Heart of Jianmu contains the marvels of the void and can connect to all realms. It is an essential material for crafting Void Spiritual Treasures. I was wondering…”

Before the words had even left his mouth, he felt an indescribable rage surge forth.

Jianmu’s giant face began to twist, and countless branches danced wildly in the air, causing the mountains to tremble and shake.

For hundreds of miles around, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi began to vibrate at a strange frequency.

“You want my heart?”

Jianmu bellowed,

“You really think I’m afraid of you?!”

“You misunderstand.” Zhu Ju frowned and spoke slowly.

“Just giving up a part of it shouldn’t be fatal, I imagine. If you are unwilling, then we can simply forget about it.”

The Heart of Jianmu was an Immortal Grade Spiritual Object.

If he could consume it, not only would his Cultivation be fully restored, but it might even allow him to reach new heights.

It would also help him refine the Venerable Immortal Bone and solidify his foundation for the Super Grade.

A shame…

But the other party had adopted a life-or-death stance. It was clearly impossible to trade for it.

“Friend, do you have anything else you can trade?”

Zhu Ju stroked his chin and said:

“Among all these items, there is nothing that I fancy.”

“…” Jianmu’s branches swayed. As if acknowledging that Zhu Ju was special, it paused before cautiously extending a few more branches.

This time…

…a fruit grew on each branch.

The Spirit Fruits shimmered, each concealing some sort of substance or Treasure within. A dense wave of Spiritual Qi washed over them.

Zhu Ju’s gaze swept over them, and his breath caught.

‘Innate Origin Qi!’

He had actually sensed the presence of Innate Origin Qi in one of the fruits.

This was a Spiritual Mechanism that could only be born at the dawn of the heavens and earth. It was also an Immortal Grade item.

“You want it?”

Jianmu was, after all, a being of the First-Grade Realm. Its perception was so keen that it could clearly sense even a fleeting emotional fluctuation.

Its branches swayed as it said:

“I’ve had this thing with me since before I gained sentience. I don’t know what it’s for, but I’m sure it’s incredibly precious.”

“What will you trade for it?”

“…” Zhu Ju pondered for a moment before speaking slowly:

“If I recall correctly, a Jianmu’s roots are sunk deep into the Great Dao, meaning it cannot move its physical body.”

“I have a method that can help you transform into a human, freeing you from your bindings to this place. Would that be a worthy trade?”

“You can let me leave this place?” Jianmu was stunned, its voice trembling.

“Is that true?”

“Naturally.” Zhu Ju nodded.

“The more powerful a Demon, the harder its Transformation. But this Cultivation Technique of mine originates from the Eight-Nine Mysterious Skill, a supreme Wonderful Dharma that leads all the way to the Daluo realm. Unfortunately…”

“Nowadays, the Great Dao is flawed, making it difficult to become an immortal. However, helping you achieve Transformation and break free of your bonds will be no problem.”