Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Securing the Bone Sword

Lin Zhao turned to Ning Wen Gui immediately. “Do they accept trades?”

She didn’t bother hiding her urgency.

Ning Wen Gui’s expression sharpened. “Don’t panic. I’ll ask.”

Even with his influence, this wasn’t a decision a Crown Prince could make casually. A Seventh-Grade method was the kind of treasure that moved nations.

Still, his words carried weight.

At his request, the bidding was halted when the price reached one million mid-grade spirit stones.

By the one-to-one-hundred exchange rate, that was equivalent to one hundred million low-grade spirit stones.

Of course, spirit stones of different grades couldn’t be judged by exchange rate alone. Often, a cultivator would rather have a single mid-grade stone than a hundred low-grade ones.

High-grade spirit veins were controlled by top factions, spirit stones were nonrenewable, and the effort required to obtain them wasn’t something ordinary cultivators could afford.

A moment later, the auction house invited a silver-haired young man into their private room.

The instant Ning Wen Gui saw him, Lin Zhao noticed the flicker of respect on his face.

The You Lan National Preceptor.

Lin Zhao rose at once. “Lin Zhao greets the National Preceptor.”

The National Preceptor’s features were ordinary, but his silver hair made him striking. His dark green eyes were deep and cold, holding something unreadable.

Even with his aura restrained, the pressure rolling off him was overwhelming. It was second only to the Lin Family’s Old Ancestor—far stronger than the Nascent Soul elder on the stage.

Nascent Soul at great perfection, Lin Zhao judged.

One step away from Spirit Transformation.

Terrifying.

“So you’re the one who has a Seventh-Grade wind method?” The National Preceptor gave Ning Wen Gui a slight nod—courtesy to the Crown Prince—then looked straight at Lin Zhao.

Lin Zhao nodded and, following Granny’s instruction, took out a scroll that emitted faint turquoise spiritual energy. It came from the space where Granny’s soul resided.

“This is Windwalk Method,” Lin Zhao said evenly. “Even among Seventh-Grade methods, it’s one of the best. Please inspect it.”

As the scroll opened, the spiritual energy above it condensed into the phantom of a Hong Hu.

The National Preceptor’s eyes narrowed.

Among spirit beasts, the Hong Hu belonged to a wind-leaning branch of the White Phoenix line.

And Spirit Qi Manifestation was itself a sign of a Seventh-Grade method.

Still, he was cautious. He examined the scroll more than once, slowly, thoroughly, before closing it again.

When he looked up, his expression was complicated—heavy on excitement.

“It’s confirmed. Windwalk Method.” His gaze sharpened on Lin Zhao. “They say the White Phoenix line passed it down to the Hong Hu descendants as a Foundation Establishment method. How do you have something like this?”

Lin Zhao smiled politely. “If we’re trading items at the auction house, does Your Excellency still need to ask where it came from?”

She couldn’t expose Granny.

The National Preceptor’s mouth tightened, faint embarrassment flickering. In a trade, origins weren’t required. If she dared bring it out here, she believed she could back it up.

And the Lin Family was a noble house. Lin Zhao had Phoenix Fortune. Having such a method wasn’t impossible.

Lin Zhao asked, “Your Excellency, can you decide who that method will go to?”

The National Preceptor nodded, answer immediate. “In the past, I would have had to think it over. But what Miss Lin has produced today leaves me without the courage to refuse.”

Windwalk Method might “only” be Seventh Grade, but it came from the White Phoenix line. On this continent, anything tied to Phoenix inheritance stood in a different realm.

Lin Zhao finally released the breath she’d been holding. The matter was settled.

“Then thank you, National Preceptor.”

The National Preceptor chuckled, glanced at Ning Wen Gui with the kind of look that suggested misunderstanding, and even gave him a quick thumbs-up before hugging the scroll like a treasure and leaving.

He instructed the auction house to stop the auction and have the cultivation method and ancient sword packed and delivered to Lin Zhao.

Ning Wen Gui opened his mouth as if to explain—but the silver-robed elder on the stage was suddenly drowned in a flood of angry questions.

“Didn’t you say the bidding would be fair? How can the You Lan auction house do private deals like this?”

“If the auction house doesn’t give us an explanation, we won’t let this go!”

The hall buzzed toward chaos.

Then the elder released a wave of aura.

It swept over the room like a cold tide. Everyone fell silent.

He smiled, still kind. “This matter is important. Of course I will give you an explanation. This was the order of the You Lan National Preceptor. The National Preceptor asked me to show you this.”

A turquoise scroll floated above his palm. The spiritual energy above it shaped itself into a Hong Hu phantom that looked down over the crowd.

Sharp-eyed cultivators gasped. “A Seventh-Grade method of the Hong Hu clan?”

Discussion erupted again, hotter this time.

Seventh-Grade methods were rare, but not unheard of. A method from the Hong Hu descendants of the White Phoenix was something else entirely—like finding a phoenix feather or unicorn horn.

The elder withdrew the scroll, satisfied. “Now do you understand?”

He waited until the mood steadied, then smiled wider. “The auction house will not let you come excited and leave disappointed. The next two items can be said to be one of a kind—the You Lan auction house will not have a second set like them within 10 years.”

The crowd surged back to life.

To stir emotions so easily, this elder didn’t rely on cultivation alone. He knew how to hold a hall by its throat.

When the timing was right, he raised a tiny green lotus sealed in glass.

“This item is called the Tai Yi Realm Pure Lotus. It is one of the three main ingredients of the Seventh-Grade pill, the Tai Yi Realm Creation Pill. One step of creation, and you can reach the Tai Yi Realm. It can help a Nascent Soul cultivator break through ranks with no side effects. And even if you do not refine the Creation Pill, the Tai Yi Realm Pure Lotus is unmatched for nurturing the body’s constitution.”

The moment the elder finished, powerful auras flared from at least three private rooms—warnings, claims, threats.

The Mad Sword Sect and the Firecloud Alliance were among them.

From the Firecloud Alliance’s private room, a sharp shout rang out. “Sword Madman! Why do you have to snatch everything? Shameless!”

Zhou Xiu Wu’s roguish voice followed. “You can’t blame this all on me, can you? Everyone knows the Immortal Sect is about to start recruiting. I’m preparing so I can earn a chance to enter South Sea Academy.”