Chapter 337: Chapter 324: Barbaric Beast Heart!
"Fellow Daoist Huang, this fairy is Jiang Fengxian, Fairy Jiang, the host of this exchange meeting. Fairy Jiang is known as the number one beauty in our Nanman Country and also the female Loose Cultivator with the highest cultivation here. She is also an expert in Beast Taming skills."
"Fairy Jiang, this is Fellow Daoist Huang Yi, whom I mentioned to you before as the Tier Four Refining Master. Fellow Daoist Huang is kind-hearted and enjoys mentoring younger generations; his character is absolutely reliable."
Outside Phoenix Cloud Mountain, the colorful-clothed lady Jiang Fengxian came out to greet them after they arrived, and Xiao Feng, acting as the intermediary, hurriedly took the initiative to introduce Zhouyang and her together.
As Zhouyang was a guest, and Fairy Jiang’s eighth-layer Purple Mansion Stage cultivation was obviously far superior to his, he quickly clasped his hands respectfully after Xiao Feng’s introduction and said, "Huang Yi from Longchuan Country, greetings to Fairy Jiang."
Jiang Fengxian, atop the Five-Colored Peacock, smiled slightly and said, "Fellow Daoist Huang is too kind; I trust Fellow Daoist Xiao. Since Fellow Daoist Xiao introduced Fellow Daoist Huang, let us refer to each other as fellow daoists from now on."
Her voice was like a yellow oriole coming out of the valley, clear and melodious, extremely pleasant to hear.
So pleasant that one wished to hear it again.
Zhouyang, in any case, was somewhat entranced by her voice.
Fortunately, he was a Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator. After slightly losing his focus, he regained his composure and hurriedly said, "As a guest, I shall follow the host’s lead; everything will be as Fairy Jiang says."
"Then, fellow daoists, please follow me into the mountain."
As Jiang Fengxian spoke, she lightly tapped her lotus feet, and the Five-Colored Peacock beneath her let out a spiritually resonant cry, spread its wings, and carried its master into the Spirit Mountain in a colorful spiritual light.
Zhouyang and Xiao Feng, seeing this, hurriedly followed by controlling their swords and soared up to pursue her.
After a while, Zhouyang and Xiao Feng followed Jiang Fengxian into her usual cultivation cave dwelling.
At this moment, besides Jiang Fengxian as the host, there were also more than ten High-Tier Cultivators who were invited to participate in the exchange meeting. Most of these High-Tier Cultivators were Loose Cultivators from Nanman Country and nearby countries, with only a few Clan Cultivators among them.
As for Sect Cultivators, there was none.
This clearly showed that the scale of this High-Tier Cultivator exchange meeting was not very large.
After all, in a country, there might only be a few Loose Cultivators who have cultivated to the Purple Mansion Stage, and this number excluded those who were in seclusion or traveling and unable to be reached.
Indeed, as Zhouyang had guessed, after they arrived, Jiang Fengxian only went out twice more to bring in two other cultivators, a man and a woman, before announcing the official start of the exchange meeting.
By then, the total number of participants in the exchange meeting was only eighteen.
"For this exchange meeting, aside from Fellow Daoist Huang Yi introduced by Fellow Daoist Xiao Feng, the rest are familiar faces. Before proceeding with the exchange meeting, I would like to inform Fellow Daoist Huang of the rules of our exchange meeting."
In a spacious hall within the cave dwelling, Jiang Fengxian, the host, sat at the head while Zhouyang and other participants of the exchange meeting were seated on either side. In front of each person was a wooden table, adorned with fresh Spirit Fruit and Spirit Wine, provided by the host for guests.
At this moment, Jiang Fengxian’s enchanting eyes swept over the attendees in the hall before resting on Zhouyang, gazing at him steadily as she said:
"Fellow Daoist Huang must have noticed, our exchange meeting is very small in scale, held only among a relatively fixed Loose Cultivator community. Therefore, for safety reasons, we generally do not invite Golden Core Stage Cultivators to participate, nor do we wish to invite those with grand backgrounds to participate."
"Moreover, since we many cultivators are of Loose Cultivator origin, lacking guidance from elders and masters in cultivation, after the exchange meeting, we will share and exchange cultivation experiences and insights. If Fellow Daoist does not wish to participate, it is best to state in advance."
"Thirdly, among the fellow daoists at this exchange meeting, we know each other well, so when exchanging treasures, cheating by offering fake items is strictly prohibited. Violators will face joint sanctions from everyone!"
Upon hearing this, Zhouyang promptly clasped his hands again and said, "Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Jiang. Although Huang is not of Loose Cultivator origin, I am not one to hoard my experiences. If I can exchange insights with fellow daoists, it would be my pleasure."
With these words, the gaze from Jiang Fengxian and other cultivators towards him clearly became much more friendly and amiable.
Jiang Fengxian nodded in satisfaction and said, "Since Fellow Daoist Huang has this intention, myself and other fellow daoists naturally welcome it with open arms. Let’s begin the treasure exchange now."
According to the rules, the host of the exchange meeting naturally exchanges first.
Jiang Fengxian waved her jade hand, and over a dozen scattered treasures were taken out and placed on the wooden table before her.
Only then did Zhouyang notice that the silver-white ring on her right hand was indeed a Storage Ring.
"All these treasures were obtained from the Wilderness Jungle over the years," she directly stated her exchange conditions. "I prefer to exchange these treasures for Spirit Pills that can refine cultivation; if unavailable, Fellow Daoists may bid with Spirit Stones."
Zhouyang was momentarily stunned upon hearing her words.
It was the first time he had encountered someone at the exchange meeting stating that treasures could be bid on with spirit stones.
Upon closer inspection, Zhouyang noticed all the treasures Jiang Fengxian laid out were at least Tier Four in rank, regardless of their use.
Such treasures could be bought with spirit stones, giving Zhouyang an immediate sense of having struck it rich.
Indeed, after Jiang Fengxian finished speaking, apart from one cultivator who exchanged two elixirs for a Tier Four demon pill, no other cultivator could offer spirit pills in exchange.
Then it was time for the cultivators to compete in financial power.
Zhouyang had hundreds of thousands of spirit stones on him, making him financially competitive against anyone.
So he unhesitatingly bid and bought a Tier Four spirit elixir "Thousand-year-old Red Reishi" and two pieces of Tier Four demon beast hides from Jiang Fengxian.
After this bidding round, all the treasures Jiang Fengxian presented were bought by others with spirit stones.
Then it was the second cultivator’s turn to bring out treasures for exchange.
From this person onward, the exchange meeting returned to the kind that Zhouyang was familiar with, where everyone bartered. No one was willing to exchange four-tier spiritual objects for mere spirit stones.
Zhouyang, having accumulated quite a few treasures from slaying several Purple Mansion cultivators, also participated a couple of times, trading for a few ingredients for artifact refining and alchemy.
"I have here a newly acquired Tier Three Top Grade Barbaric Beast Heart, looking to exchange for a Tier Four Middle Grade Flying Sword. Is there any fellow Daoist willing to make the trade?"
In the hall, when it was time for an exchange by a middle-aged man in a sage’s robe, he slapped his storage bag, took out a white jade basin as large as a water tank, placed it a yard in front of him, and stated his exchange requirements in a deep voice.
The heart of a barbaric beast is akin to a demon beast’s demon pill, containing the core power of its being. This item is filled with immense life essence, making it an optimal material for crafting various elixirs that restore essence blood and primordial qi as well as healing elixirs.
It’s said that a Tier Five barbaric beast heart can even be used as the primary ingredient in a life-extending elixir.
However, for human cultivators, a barbaric beast heart is of much greater significance to demon beasts. A demon beast that consumes a heart from a same-tier barbaric beast will significantly enhance in physical strength and vitality, possibly even triggering a bloodline mutation and directly upgrading its bloodline rank.
But today the cultivators attending this exchange meeting were all Purple Mansion Stage cultivators, mostly loose cultivators.
While the Tier Three top-grade barbaric beast heart was rare, it held little value for them, and none were willing to spend a considerable fortune to obtain it to improve a junior.
The most crucial point is that Tier Three barbaric beasts aren’t all that rare; they can be found if one ventures deeply into the Wilderness Jungle. Hence, in terms of value, this item is not as precious as a Tier Four Middle Grade Flying Sword.
"What a pity, if Fellow Daoist Zhang’s barbaric beast heart came from a Tier Four beast, I would trade my commonly used flying sword without hesitation. But for a Tier Three barbaric beast heart..."
A thin, elderly alchemist, after examining the barbaric beast heart for a while, shook his head regretfully and said.
His words genuinely echoed the sentiments of the crowd.
However, upon hearing this, Fellow Daoist Zhang seemed a bit displeased and snorted coldly, "Hmph, Fellow Daoist Luo speaks lightly. If Zhang could kill a Tier Four barbaric beast, would I lack this single Tier Four Middle Grade Flying Sword?"
He paused after speaking, a fleeting expression of pained reluctance on his face, then took out another item and said, "However, Zhang isn’t one to take undue advantage. Here’s also a Tier Four Barbaric Beast Fang as an addition!"
"Fellow Daoist Zhang, how about this set of [Mother and Child Golden Light Sword]?"
Zhouyang actually became interested in an exchange upon seeing the Tier Three Top Grade Barbaric Beast Heart, and now, seeing the other party added items, he promptly presented his own "Mother and Child Golden Light Sword" artifact for Zhang to inspect.
This "Mother and Child Golden Light Sword" is a complete set of artifacts and far surpasses ordinary Tier Four Middle Grade Flying Swords in quality. Zhang, therefore, is definitely making a profit with this trade.
Fellow Daoist Zhang, being a discerning individual, quickly inspected the flying sword in his hand and, with a face full of delight, said, "Good sword, good sword! Fellow Daoist Huang is indeed straightforward. Zhang will remember this favor."
He then pushed the jade basin containing the barbaric beast heart and the barbaric beast fang towards Zhouyang.
This scene was witnessed by the other cultivators, which greatly improved their impression of Zhouyang.
Just like Jiang Fengxian mentioned at the start, these cultivators attending the exchange meeting are familiar acquaintances.
Even though Zhouyang seemed to be at a disadvantage in this exchange with Fellow Daoist Zhang, his sincerity was something that couldn’t go unnoticed by everyone present.