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Chapter 439: Selling Items!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Su Ming did not immediately speak. Instead, a pensive look appeared on his face.

After some time, he asked unhurriedly, "Brother Zhong, what method do you have to be able to obtain a large amount of Crimson Stones from under the noses of numerous Latter Shamans during the second part of the treasure gambling event?"

"This is…" Wu Duo hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. He continued, "Please forgive me for this, brother Mo. If you're willing to work with me, then I will tell you in detail. The only thing I can say is that for this to work, I've already enlisted three of my Shaman friends for help. Our likeliness to succeed is six out of ten, but if you join us, then we will have seven or even eight!" Once he finished speaking, Wu Duo looked at Su Ming with eyes filled with sincerity.

After a moment, Su Ming shook his head and replied in a hushed voice, "I need to think about this. I can't give you an answer at the moment."

He could understand why Wu Duo could not tell him in detail. After all, if Su Ming was the one making the deal, he would react like this most of the time as well. However, this was too much of a risk, and if he was just to place his judgment based on the rewards itself, then unless the rewards were truly great, he was otherwise not the type to take risks for something unknown, which in this case, were the Crimson Stones, whose existences were already a gamble on their own.

"All right, I hope you'll think about it carefully. I hope to be able to work with you again, brother Mo." Wu Duo was not expecting that Su Ming would immediately agree to this either. After all, trying to fight over the Crimson Stones against Latter Shamans would end in their deaths if they were even the slightest bit careless. The fact that Su Ming did not reject him right from the get go was already a good thing in Wu Duo's books.

He knew that Su Ming was a cautious person. It was something he had learned when they had met and worked together before. He also knew that if Su Ming said that he would think about it, then he would definitely do so instead of using it as an excuse. That was why he did not continue trying to persuade him. After all, even if he truly wanted Su Ming to join him, if he said too much, it would just end up backfiring on him.

Wu Duo talked to Su Ming a little more about the legends in the World of Nine Yin, and when dusk was about to arrive, the two of them left the place.

Su Ming did not immediately return to the inn, but started taking a stroll around Shaman City. There were quite a large number of shops there, and they were selling a lot of items Su Ming had never seen or heard of before. In fact, there were also some herbs that were usually rare in the world outside being sold in large quantities here.

In Shaman City itself, Su Ming could already find about seven to eight of the herbs drawn on the bamboo slip he had, which had a large amount of medicinal herbs listed on it. This made him incredibly excited. After all, while Su Ming was still reluctant to use the Spirit Plunders he had to open the next door in that strange dimension, but as time passed by, there would come a day where he would still need to create the medicinal pills that came after Spirit Plunder.

Even if he did not know what the next medicinal pill was called, and neither did he know what sort of herbs he needed, but if he bought some of every type of herb he could find, he would still be able to get some that were useful to him.

In his excitement, Su Ming spent almost all of his time the next few days in search of herbs in Shaman City. Not only did he manage to find a large number of medicinal herbs listed on the bamboo slip, he also found all the materials required to make Scattering Dust, South Asunder, Mountain Spirit, and even Spirit Plunder!

All of these materials were sold separately and in small amounts. In fact, there were quite a number of these herbs that were used in other manners, but in Su Ming's eyes, these herbs were all treasures.

However, the number of Shaman Crystals Su Ming had was incredibly limited. While the price for these herbs was not high, if Su Ming wanted to buy all of them, then he would still need to spend quite a lot of Shaman Crystals. Besides, Wu Duo had also mentioned that if he wanted to try his luck during the treasure gambling event, he would need to prepare a large amount of Shaman Crystals.

Nonetheless, Su Ming did not have too much of an interest towards this treasure gambling event. To him, the percentage of being able to win was simply too low in this sort of treasure gambles. He did not have too many Shaman Crystals for him to gamble anyway. The disparity between the effort and reward was simply too great.

'I can choose not to enter the treasure gambling event, but I'm almost running out of Shaman Crystals to buy these herbs. This is a little troublesome…'

Half a month later, Su Ming stood by the window in his room at the inn, caught in a mix of joy and gloom. He was happy because he had browsed through almost all of the shops in Shaman City and bought a large amount of medicinal herbs, causing him to be confident in being able to create more medicinal pills. He could even create about ten Spirit Plunders from the herbs he had at hand, though it was still a problem for him to get living dead people.

But he was feeling dejected because he was running low on Shaman Crystals. When he saw that there were some medicinal herbs that he could not buy, he was worried that once he missed this chance, there would be required an unknown amount of time before he could come to the World of Nine Yin again.

'Oh well, I'll have to sell medicinal pills. Thank goodness I've been asking around in secret when I was buying herbs, so I know quite a bit about this. While the selling and trading of medicinal herbs is incredibly rare here, but there are still people who do it.'

A glint flashed through Su Ming's eyes, and he made his decision. He had been asking about by beating around the bush during the past few days to know whether medicinal pills such as Scattering Dust could be sold.

Once he walked almost the entire Shaman City, he had actually managed to find a shop with two Scattering Dusts, though there were barely any medicinal properties left in them. However, the smell of the pill allowed Su Ming to recognize that it's method of creation should be identical to his own Scattering Dust, even though there were still some details that were different about them.

Su Ming lifted his right hand, then once he turned it over, three Scattering Dusts immediately appeared on his palm. The color of the three Scattering Dusts was radiant, and they were letting off wisps of refreshing medicinal fragrance, making them incredibly exceptional.

He stared at the three Scattering Dusts in his hand, then put them away. Once he did so, he sat down cross-legged on the bed in his room and started meditating with his eyes closed. During the past half a month, he did not have time to bother with Lan Lan and Ahu, but he had left the Brand of his divine sense on them. If the two of them got into any sort of danger, then Su Ming would rush over just like he did half a month ago.

Su Ming had made a promise. If he had not agreed to the Patriarch's request from White Bull Tribe, he could have ignored them, but since he made a promise, then he would fulfill his promise to the best of his abilities. Outsiders would only be able to see and think about the rewards he would gain based on the importance he placed on fulfilling promises, but in truth, in his heart, he did not want to break any more promises to anyone else...

That was why even though it did not seem like Su Ming was placing a lot of attention towards Lan Lan and Ahu, that was not the case in reality.

Night went by. When the next morning arrived, Su Ming opened his eyes, and a glint appeared within them. He got up and left the room. Nan Gong Hen was still in isolation, having not left his room during the past half a month. Su Ming swept his gaze past Nan Gong Hen's room, then looked away and left the inn.

After a brief stroll through Shaman City, he changed his appearance without anyone noticing him. His mask was no longer on his face, and he wore a straw hat on his head. He looked a little more built than he originally was. Outsiders would not be able to see the details on the extra mass he gained, but in truth, Ji Yun Hai's black beetles had already stuck themselves on Su Ming's body under his clone's will, causing his body to become taller and buffer by one whole size.

Once he was done changing his appearance, Su Ming appeared outside a large shop in a rather lively street. It was a six story shop, and there were only about ten of such shops in Shaman City.

There was a stone monument stuck right in front of the shop, and there were three huge words carved with a flourish on it - Nine Shaman Pavilion!

Su Ming came to this Nine Shaman Pavilion twice during the past half a month, purchasing a large amount of herbs each time. He knew that this was a place with nearly all types of herbs, and besides herbs, this pavilion sold almost everything else. It did not matter whether it was Enchanted Vessels, weapons, unique items belonging to the World of Nine Yin, or even some information not privy to others. The things they sold were quite all-rounded.

Su Ming averted his gaze. He was wearing a bamboo hat at the moment and had his divine sense enveloping his entire body, which also had the power of his Nascent Soul fused within, causing his aura to be incredibly mixed up, but also looking quite balanced. He walked into Nine Shaman Pavilion.

The ground floor of the pavilion was huge and looked incredibly spacious. There were three big, broad stone walls that were several dozens of feet tall right at the center of the building. On these stone walls there were some glowing words, and there were some Shamans who were reading them at the moment.

Occasionally, they would walk hastily towards the shop attendants dressed in uniforms waiting on both sides of the stone walls. Usually, after a brief, hushed exchange, the attendants would guide them to enter one of the dozens of closed off chambers located around the hall on the ground floor.

Su Ming had come to this place twice before, so this was his third time here. He was already familiar with the place. He knew that the glowing words on the three stone walls were the items that were for sale, and if people were interested, they could go to the shop attendants to make a deal.

Right at the back of the hall on the ground floor was a Relocation Rune that was several dozens of feet big. This Rune would only relocate a person to one place, and it was the first floor, and besides this Relocation Rune, there was no other way to enter the first floor.

Su Ming swept his gaze across the hall. No one was able to see his appearance, since it was covered by the straw hat, but that messy but balanced aura had captured the shop attendants' attention. One of them, a middle-aged man, immediately took a few steps forward to stand in front of Su Ming and wrapped his fist in his palm before bowing towards him.

"My friend, how may I serve you?" The middle-aged man was a Medial Shaman, and he did not seem too weak. He looked at Su Ming with a smile on his face.

"I'm here to sell things," Su Ming said flatly, and his words were few.

"Oh? Sir, what are you selling? Nine Shaman Pavilion will offer a satisfactory price for any and all sorts of treasures in the world based on the price they should have." As the man smiled, he sent his perception [1] outward, and when it gathered on Su Ming, a great wave of power immediately bounced off him, causing the man's expression to change, and he instinctively took a few steps back.

"Since when did Nine Shaman Pavilion started being so oblivious to the rules?!" Su Ming's raspy voice came from underneath the bamboo hate. His voice was incredibly ghastly and sounded as if it was a terrifyingly biting, cold chill.

When the middle-aged man was bounced off by Su Ming's divine sense, he felt as if there was thunder booming in his head. The strength of that divine sense was so great that even Latter Shamans would feel fear towards it, much less this male Medial Shaman. The man's face immediately turned pale, and just as he was about to speak, Su Ming let out a cold harrumph and flung his right hand outward, immediately tossing out a small white bottle.

"Bring this to your manager. I will only wait for the time of the burning of an incense stick on whether you will accept this or not!" Su Ming's voice echoed in the air in an aloof manner.

The middle-aged man instinctively caught the small white bottle, and while he was shocked and terrified by Su Ming's power, he opened the bottle and sniffed it after lowering his head. He frowned. There was a medicinal fragrance within that small bottle that smelled rather extraordinary, but the bottle was empty. There was only some of that fragrance lingering inside.

Out of caution, once the man wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming and bowed, he walked towards the Relocation Rune, then disappeared with a flash.

Su Ming stood in the hall and his expression remained as calm as ever under the straw hat. However, before half the time required for an incense stick to burn after the man disappeared, the Relocation Rune shone once again, and the man walked out with a look of shock on his face. Behind him was an old man.

Translator's Notes

I realize that I should make an explanation about this. You lot are familiar with divine sense, which is 神识 (shenshi). The Shamans use 感知 (ganzhi), which is perception. Why not senses? Because from what I understand, 感知 isn't used to sense something but to perceive something, hence perception.

Chapter 440: Su Ming's Shock

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

There were not many changes on Su Ming's face while he remained hidden under the straw hat. However, he did focus his attention and sized up the old man. He looked to be a Medial Shaman as well, but Su Ming noticed that while the Relocation Rune shone and the middle-aged man with Su Ming's bottle was the first one to walk out, he instinctively slowed down a little, causing the old man to be able to overtake him and making the middle-aged man to be the one following.

When this minor detail fell into Su Ming's eyes, it allowed him to find some clues.

There was still shock on the middle-aged man's face. When the old man looked towards Su Ming, he took a few quick steps forward and stopped ten feet away from Su Ming.

"I am Zuo Dao Ming. Sir, this way, please!" The old man turned all his attention towards Su Ming and was very polite towards him. He even wrapped his fist in his palm and bowed.

Su Ming gave him a slight nod, then walked forward in a relaxed manner. The old man followed behind him. When the both of them walked past the spot where the middle-aged man was, the man immediately lowered his head and bowed respectfully.

Su Ming did not bother with the man. He walked straight towards the Relocation Rune with the old man beside him, then as the Relocation Rune shone, they disappeared.

Only when Su Ming left the place did the middle-aged man let out a breath of relief. The memory of him bringing the small bottle to the first floor resurfaced in his mind. The manager of the first floor had originally been displeased about it, but when he took the small bottle over and sniffed it, his expression immediately changed drastically and he quickly went to the second floor. By this point, the man already had no idea which floor manager was in possession of that small bottle.

However, by the looks of it, that small bottle was definitely not any common item, but the man simply could not wrap his mind around just what made that bottle so extraordinary.

The light from the Relocation Rune made Su Ming's vision blur slightly. A slight medicinal fragrance wafted into his nostrils. That scent was very odd, but when he tried to get a detailed sniff, it was gone.

Besides that medicinal scent, the first thing Su Ming saw was a man sitting by a desk made of purple wood, positioned right ahead of him. That man wore a white, long robe, and his face was as fair as a piece of jade. The man was incredibly handsome, and while he was a little old, the thin beard on his face made him seem even more striking.

He had his head lowered as he sat by the desk, and he was holding Su Ming's bottle in his hand. There was a slight crease between his brows, making it seem as if he was frowning. Occasionally, he would take a sniff from it, and then he would close his eyes slightly.

"Grandmaster Yu, I brought him here." Once the old man by Su Ming's side bowed to the white robed man respectfully, he took a few steps back into the Relocation Rune. This man might not have given him even the slightest bit of attention, but he did not mind. The Rune shone once again and he disappeared.

At that moment, only Su Ming and the white-robed man remained at this floor of the pavilion.

Su Ming remained calm. He could not really gauge this man's level of cultivation. When his divine sense fell on the person, a gentle power bounced it away, but that power was not alive. It actually felt quite rigid. Clearly, this person did not have a power that far surpassed Su Ming's own but instead had some treasure that made it hard for others to examine him using divine sense.

If Su Ming truly wanted to check this man's power, then he would need to force his way through. While he had the confidence that he would be able to break this power that bounced him off, there was no need for him to do so.

The white-robed man did not speak, and neither did Su Ming. He swept his gaze across the floor. This was a room that absolutely could not compare to the size of the ground floor; it was only about a third of it. There were a dozen something illusionary, glowing objects floating around, causing this floor to be brightly illuminated.

There were black stone boards spread on the floor and even some sculptures that protruded off the walls around them. These sculptures were not of birds, but were an endless amount of plants and flowers that looked alive. It was a pity that they did not have color, or else there was a possibility that a person would feel confused as to where he was when he cast his first glance into the room.

Right before Su Ming and behind the white-robed man sitting by the long purple wooden table was a window. Sunlight shone through it, making the room seem like a fantasy.

When Su Ming was about to look away from the window, his gaze suddenly focused, and he cast a scrutinizing look at the sky outside the window, and then, he felt his heart quiver.

What he saw was an endless mass of sky; he could not see the ground.

'This isn't the first floor… If it was, then I would be able to see the ground. Judging by the height, this floor is at least the third floor.' Su Ming no longer looked at the window, but cast his gaze at the center of the floor.

There were three incense burners of the same size there. They were all about half the height of a person, and it would take two men to fully encircle them. Wisps of green smoke floated up from them, turning into layers of smoke rings that spread in all directions.

The incense burners were not of a single color, but were instead of a variety of them. They looked incredibly pretty, but Su Ming only let his gaze stay on them for a moment before he looked at the thing placed at the center of these three incense burners.

It was an oval-shaped stone. It was dark red and did not look smooth. It actually looked very ugly. There were even a lot of holes decked on it, and judging by the looks of these holes, they did not seem as if they were formed naturally, but were made by man.

That stone was very big and surpassed the height of those incense burners. It was twenty something feet tall, and it was about the size of several of these incense burners. It was placed at the center of this floor and stood out like a sore thumb.

As the wisps of smoke rising from the three incense burners turned into smoke rings in midair and started spreading out, some of them were absorbed by the small holes on the stone. Later, they would seep out from another hole. There had to be some sort of unique changes made within the stone that caused the smoke that seeped out of the stone to turn into smoke butterflies that looked as if they were dancing in midair.

Even though they disappeared quickly, new smoke butterflies would reappear. The cycle repeated, and it could be even said that the sight could not be compared with anything else in the world.

Su Ming took a few steps forward and stood before the big stone to look at the wisps of smoke surrounding that stone before turning into pairs of butterflies that danced with each other. Suddenly, the faint medicinal fragrance that he'd sensed before spread out faintly once again. The origin of it was between the stone and the three incense burners. Su Ming could smell it straight away, but when he tried searching for it, the smell was already gone again.

As he looked at the stone, Su Ming's eyes sparkled. He extended his divine sense to the stone, but the instant his divine sense touched it, it was immediately absorbed by a powerful suction force. It was like a piece of stone sinking into the ocean. Unless he withdrew his divine sense right when he touched the stone, perhaps a large amount of his divine sense would be devoured.

Su Ming's expression changed under the straw hat. He stared at the stone, and a surprised glint appeared in his eyes.

Right at that moment, the faint and indistinct medicinal fragrance reached him once again. This time, even though the fragrance was still as faint as ever, but it was a little thicker than before. When Su Ming smelled it, while his expression remained as usual under the straw hat, he was already shocked to the core.

Because right at that instant, he felt a faint ripple spreading out from the storage bag in his bosom. That ripple might only have lasted for an instant and everything returned to normal right at the next moment, but Su Ming knew that he was not imagining things.

Besides his clone and the Poison Corpse, there seemed to be nothing else that could send out ripples from his storage bag, but the thing that made Su Ming shocked was not the clone, neither was it the Poison Corpse… Naturally, it was not the strange snake either. It was instead a material Su Ming had obtained a long time ago to create medicine!

It was a small, black, humanoid creature contained within a gigantic mountain rock as if it was sealed within! Su Ming had obtained that rock from the auction hosted by Western Sea Clan outside Freezing Sky Clan. It was one of the main ingredients to make the Welcoming of Deities.

Those ripples came from the mountain rock, or more accurately speaking, they came from the small black humanoid that looked as if it was dead!

This item had once caused a small stir in the past, and after that, due to the Battle of Sky Mist, Su Ming hadn't had the time to ask around about what happened to the person from Enlightenment Gathering Tribe. In fact, he had already forgotten about this.

When he saw the ripples from the mountain rock, Su Ming was shocked.

He might have only seen this stone once, but through the discussions he had with Wu Duo, if he still could not recognize that this was the Crimson Stone that was used in the treasure gambling event, then he was no longer Su Ming.

'A small number of these Crimson Stones used for the treasure gambling event contain either completely fossilized, partially fossilized, or… herbs that are not fossilized at all. This is… incredibly alike to the small black humanoid contained in my mountain rock! However, one of them contains herbs, and the other a humanoid thing!

'Wu Duo also said before that there are not just herbs contained within these Crimson Stones, there are many other things contained inside as well!' Booming sounds were going off in Su Ming's head. He had never linked these two items together before, but the mountain rock's ripples had lifted a corner of the fog's mystery!

'Could it be that the mountain rock containing this black humanoid actually came from this place?!' Su Ming was in shock as he looked at the stone before him. He was absolutely certain that the fragrance did not come from the incense burners' smoke from that stone.

After all, the smoke from the incense burners was constantly around, and was unlike the medicinal fragrance, which was always faint and indistinct.

Su Ming stood there for a moment before he took a few steps forward and got closer to the stone. He closed his eyes, and after a long while, the medicinal fragrance appeared once again. He sucked in a huge breath, and as he breathed in, a large amount of that medicinal fragrance entered through his nostrils and surged right into his mind. At that instant, he placed his divine sense on his storage bag to observe the black humanoid sealed in the mountain rock.

It was right at that instant that Su Ming felt the small black humanoid shuddering a little, and he felt those ripples clearly. More ripples spread out, and if it was not in the storage bag and Su Ming didn't have his divine sense hiding it, then the people around him would have definitely been able to sense it as plain as day.

Soon after, Su Ming's divine sense immediately saw black light flickering on the mountain rock in the storage bag and the small black humanoid shivering. Then, right in the midst of it all, a faint and blurry picture appeared at the center of its brows.

That picture was of an herb with seven leaves, and each tip of these leaves was sharp, looking like that of a poisonous snake's head. In fact, there was even one of the poisonous snake-head-like leaves that would occasionally hiss with its forked tongue out of its mouth, and it looked as if it was alive!

However, that was the only leaf that acted in that manner. The other leaves were dull, as if they were void of life, and only contained the shape of a poisonous snake's head.

"Sir, you have been watching this Crimson Stone for a long time. Could it be that you've seen it before?" As Su Ming's heart was filled with shock, a gentle voice reached in his ears.

"Sir, you have been watching the small bottle for a long time as well. Could it be that you've smelled that medicinal scent before too?" Su Ming asked flatly, having turned around and quelled the shock in his heart.

Chapter 441: Dragon Leaf

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"I bought this Crimson Stone many years ago at a treasure gambling event, but even after digging out all those holes to explore the stone, I didn't manage to find anything. Breaking it would be a waste, so I wrote a method and turned it into a decoration to generate these dancing butterflies." The white-robed man smiled faintly. He lowered his head and looked at the bottle in his hand, and faint sentiment appeared on his face.

"As for this medicinal fragrance, not only have I smelled it before, I have even seen the treasure. Judging by the medicinal fragrance remaining in this bottle, there should have been many Scattering Dusts contained inside before, and it has been less than three days since they were taken out." The white-robed man lifted his head and looked towards Su Ming.

"Sir, how many Scattering Dusts do you have? We of Nine Shaman Pavilion want all of them!"

"How much will you offer?" Su Ming's expression was calm when he asked languidly.

"It doesn't matter whether you want Enchanted Vessels, Shaman Crystals, information, medicinal herbs, or anything else. Choose one of them, and I will give you a satisfactory answer," the white-robed man said firmly.

"Shaman Crystals," Su Ming said calmly.

"I will give you twenty thousand superior Shaman Crystals for one Scattering Dust. The more you have, the more I will offer you." The white-robed man smiled faintly.

If Su Ming had mentioned anything else, he might not have been able to offer such a deal. However, since he asked for Shaman Crystals and since Nine Shaman Pavilion had prepared a large amount of Shaman Crystals for the treasure gambling event, offering this amount was not a loss for them in his eyes.

"I don't quite understand. Why is this Scattering Dust so valuable?" Su Ming asked.

"Haha! Sir, why do you ask even though you already know the answer? These Scattering Dusts can help us obtain the protection of the Spirits of Nine Yin, and since they are rare, it would be an incredibly fortuitous event for us if we were able to find any. So it is only natural that the price for them is high."

The white-robed man smiled, then said with a shake of his head, "If you have three, I can give you thirty thousand Shaman Crystals for each. If you have nine, I can give you fifty thousand Shaman Crystals for each. If you have more than nine, then I will add five thousand Shaman Crystals to each additional Scattering Dust!

"Sir, how many do you have?"

A light crease appeared between Su Ming's brows, though it was hidden by the straw hat. The price this man offered was filled with temptation, and based on his reaction, he was certain that these Scattering Dusts were not just for him to obtain those Spirits of Nine Yin. There was a high possibility that he had another use for these medicinal pills.

Su Ming mulled over it for a moment, but since he needed a large quantity of Shaman Crystals at the moment, he decided to simply force down his doubts. He said slowly, "The price of one for thirty thousand isn't high. That's not enough for us to split among ourselves."

"Oh? Sir, so you know the value of these Scattering Dusts as well? We of Nine Shaman Pavilion…"

The white-robed man's face was calm, but a thought had bloomed in his head. The 'we' in Su Ming's words had caught his attention. Clearly, this person was not acting alone but was a member of a group… When this thought appeared in his head, the white-robed man shook his head with a smile, and as he spoke, his words were cut off by Su Ming, who interrupted with a low voice.

"There were only three Scattering Dusts in the bottle," he stated flatly.

The moment these words came out, the white-robed man's pupils shrank and his expression immediately changed. He brought up the small bottle and took a sniff once more before he closed his eyes.

After a long while, he opened them and looked towards Su Ming.

"From what I deduced, there should have been at least seven to eight of these pills in this bottle. But since you're certain that there were only three, then it's clear that their quality is much higher than of those I've met before.

The white-robed man remained silent for a moment before he said, "If that's the case, and if your Scattering Dusts are indeed of high quality, then I will buy each of them for fifty thousand Shaman Crystals! However, I must take a look before I can make my final decision."

Su Ming lifted his right hand, and as he flipped it over, he flicked his hand towards the white-robed man. Immediately, a ray of green light containing a medicinal pill within shone and charged to the man.

The instant the man lifted his hand to grab it, the pill suddenly sped up, causing the man to grab at air, and during that moment, the medicinal pill closed in on the center of his brows. As the man's expression changed, the pill came to a halt three inches away from the center of his brows and stayed there, remaining still while floating in the air.

The man's pupils shrank. He hesitated for a moment, then lifted his hand slowly and grabbed that Scattering Dust. A hint of wariness appeared in his gaze when he looked towards Su Ming.

To him, if the stranger could throw that Scattering Dust to him so confidently, then it simply went to show just how confident this person was in his heart. Unless, of course, he was a moron. If he was not, then if this person could do such a thing without any hesitation, then it meant that he was very confident and was completely not bothered by the possibility of the white-robed man doing anything that could bring harm to him.

But if that was all Su Ming did, the white-robed man would have still continued making assumptions, but when that Scattering Dust flew towards him, the sudden change of speed actually gave him no chance to dodge. The blatant intimidation forced the white-robed man to believe in his own assumptions.

He brought that Scattering Dust to his eye and looked at it carefully, then sniffed it. His expression changed constantly. He was first stunned, then surprised, and his face gradually settled on disbelief. Eventually, he sighed. He tapped his bosom with his left hand, and when he lifted his hand, there was a green medicinal pill on his palm.

It did not matter whether it was the size or the color, the medicinal pill he had was incredibly similar to Su Ming's Scattering Dust, but the feeling these two pills gave to others was this - One was dull, and the other was overflowing with life.

The difference of quality between the two was instantly determined!

Once the white-robed man finished comparing both pills, he put away his Scattering Dust, then brought out another item from his bosom with his left hand. It was a brocade box. Once he placed that box on the purple wooden desk by the side, he opened it cautiously right before Su Ming.

Su Ming looked over at the box, and his eyes immediately shrank. There was a three-leafed herb inside.

Two of the three leaves seemed to have withered, and the one that was not withered was sharp like a poisonous snake's head. However, while it might not have withered, it looked rather listless, as if it no longer had much life left inside.

The white-robed man cautiously brought Su Ming's Scattering Dust towards the living leaf with two of his fingers pinching that pill, but right the instant he brought that Scattering Dust close to the leaf, the leaf that looked like a poisonous snake's head suddenly lifted itself and even hissed while sticking out a tiny forked tongue with hints of green in it, just like a real poisonous snake. It charged straight towards that Scattering Dust.

The white-robed man swiftly pulled his right hand back and brought his left hand to the lid of the box, slamming it shut with a bang. His lips curled up into a smile.

"There's no wrong about this. If it can make the Dragon Leaf Grass so excited, then it's definitely Scattering Dust. You actually have Scattering Dusts that have perfect quality? We of Nine Shaman Pavilion will buy all three of your pills for seventy thousand Shaman Crystals each. If you have more, I can add to the price!" The white-robed man looked towards Su Ming, waiting for his answer.

"I only have three. I'm fine with seventy thousand for each, but I want that stone!" Su Ming stated calmly, pointing towards the Crimson Stone at the center of the incense burners.

The white-robed man hesitated for a moment. "About that… While that stone is a useless stone, but when I bought it, I spent a lot of Shaman Crystals to get it… If you can sell one more Scattering Dust to us, then we might be able to make a deal for it."

"I only have three." When Su Ming saw that the man still couldn't make his decision, he turned around and walked towards the Relocation Rune.

"Brother, wait. All right, I'll just treat this as a gift for a friend. I'll give the stone to you!" the white-robed man immediately said.

Chapter 442: Same!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Su Ming stopped moving, then turned his head around to look at the white-haired man.

The man lifted his left hand and brought out a storage bag from his bosom. Once he briefly sorted and counted the things inside, he threw it towards Su Ming, and that bag immediately charged towards him. Once he caught it, Su Ming turned his attention towards it.

There were exactly two hundred and ten thousand Shaman Crystals in there. This large sum of money was perhaps nothing to the people in the World of Nine Yin, but to Su Ming, this was the largest amount of Shaman Crystals he had ever possessed.

However, compared to these Shaman Crystals, Su Ming was more concerned about the Crimson Stone placed in the middle of the room! He took a few steps forward, and right under the white-robed man's eyes, he walked up to it, then lifted his right hand and swung it forward. Immediately, the gigantic Crimson Stone disappeared into his storage bag. However, Su Ming was very cautious, he did not place the stone in the same bag as the black humanoid but in another bag.

Once he placed the Crimson Stone away, Su Ming brought out the remaining Scattering Dusts from his bosom and flicked his wrist at the white-robed man. Immediately, those Scattering Dusts flew out. Once the man caught them, Su Ming turned around and walked towards the Relocation Rune.

The Relocation Rune shone. When Su Ming disappeared, the white-robed man lifted his head and a dark expression appeared on his face. He looked as if he was hesitating about something, but at that moment, ripples suddenly appeared behind him, and an old man wearing a long black robe walked out with a snake-head cane in his hand.

The white-robed man immediately lowered his head and bowed towards him. He looked incredibly respectful.

Once the old man walked out, he looked at the Relocation Rune, which Su Ming had used to leave, and spoke in a hoarse voice. "This person's power is very diverse. I can feel a sort of threat coming from him. Don't think about anything else."

The white-robed man lifted his head and asked hesitantly, "He could make you feel threatened, my liege? Could it be… This person is an End Shaman?"

The old man remained silent for a moment before he asked unhurriedly, "There's that possibility. Just what is the deal with your Crimson Stone? And how many Scattering Dusts do we still need?"

"My liege, I obtained this Crimson Stone by chance in the past. It was one of the stones used during the past treasure gambling events. I originally wanted to examine it, but it was empty. It's a useless stone.

"As for the amount of Scattering Dusts we still need, with the three good quality pills we obtained today, we will still need two more and we'll be all ready!" the white-robed man immediately said.

"Two more…" The old man fell into a moment of pensive silence before he turned around and disappeared into the distorted ripples.

As for Su Ming, once he walked out of Nine Shaman Pavilion, he did not immediately return to the inn, but started taking a stroll around Shaman City. He had his divine sense spread outwards, and once he was certain no one was following him, he returned to his original appearance and put on the black mask. When evening arrived, he had already gone to a large number shops in Shaman City and spent almost one hundred thousand Shaman Crystals to buy all the medicinal herbs he needed before he returned to the inn with a calm expression.

Once he returned to his room, it was already slightly dark outside. Su Ming sat down cross-legged and filled the entire area with his divine sense, causing the place to be within his control. Then, he took a deep breath, and brought out the mountain rock he had bought from the auction hosted outside Freezing Sky Clan from his storage bag. As he looked at the small, black humanoid sitting cross-legged inside, Su Ming narrowed his eyes.

"Just what is this thing… I only know that its finger is one of the main components I need to create the Welcoming of Deities…" he mumbled, and he sized up that small black humanoid.

There were certain properties within this mountain rock that were similar to a Crimson Stone's, but it was difficult to use divine sense to perform a complete check. Su Ming had not linked the both of them together before, but at that moment, as he looked at this rock, he began to find an increasing amount of similarities between them.

After a moment, Su Ming averted his gaze and lifted his right hand to slap his storage bag. Immediately, as a dark red light shone, that gigantic Crimson Stone appeared before him.

The instant that Crimson Stone appeared, Su Ming immediately saw the small black humanoid in the mountain rock shuddering as if it was struggling to open its eyes. The picture at the center of its brows began flashing, and the seven poisonous, snake-head-shaped leaves appeared once again.

The small black humanoid began trembling more furiously with each passing moment. Waves of black mist began spreading outwards from its body as if a drop of ink had fallen into water and was spreading outwards through that transparent mountain rock.

At that moment, Su Ming's pupils shrank. A sense of danger suddenly formed in his heart, and it was one that arrived incredibly abruptly.

"Give it to me… Give it to me.." Suddenly, a hoarse and hate filled voice echoed in Su Ming's mind. When that voice spoke, Su Ming's divine sense, which was hanging around in the room, immediately sensed a cold chill. That voice seemed to have come from ages ago, and his words were filled with longing and age. It could make the people who heard it feel as if they were rotting away.

"Give it… to me… I promise you a life of riches… I will give you a life where you are given the highest form of respect… Give it… to me…"

There was a strange power contained in the voice. As it spread around the room, it stirred up Su Ming's divine sense, causing an endless amount of distortions to appear around him, and all the things that contained physical form in the room looked so indistinct that they even lost their general form.

Su Ming's gaze sharpened. As his divine sense was shaken and sent into a state of agitation, he let out a cold harrumph and cut off that voice that was spreading outwards. With a wave of his arm, he immediately put away that mountain rock containing the small black humanoid into his storage bag and placed a seal outside the bag rapidly with his divine sense!

"Give it to me… Give it to me… Give it… to me.." The voice in the storage bag started fading away only after a long while. It grew increasingly weaker, and eventually, under Su Ming's observing eyes, the small black humanoid slowly calmed down. The black mist that had spread out also started flowing backwards, little by little, returning to the small humanoid's body.

As the black mist disappeared, that sense of danger Su Ming had felt also went away. His eyes sparkled, and when he turned his head back to look at his surroundings, his pupils shrank. All the things in the room had turned to dust. When Su Ming looked at them, that dust was disappearing into the ground.

The entire room was now empty.

Only the Crimson Stone remained a quiet existence before Su Ming. Not a hint of change could be seen on it.

Su Ming remained silent for a long while, and a frown could be seen constantly between his brows. This was the first time Su Ming had heard that small, black, humanoid's voice. He had originally thought that it was a dead thing, but now… it did not seem so.

'Just what is that small, black, humanoid thing..? Why did such a change happen to it when it saw that Crimson Stone? And could it be that the flashing picture at the center of its brows is actually the thing contained within the Crimson Stone?' Su Ming looked at the Crimson Stone, and a look of resolution appeared briefly in his eyes.

'I can put aside the matter of what that small black humanoid is for now. As for the Crimson Stone... If it is empty, then nothing will change. But if there really is a medicinal herb in there that no one could find, and that medicinal herb is really the picture at the center of the small humanoid's brows, then…'

Su Ming stood up and moved beside the Crimson Stone. After casting it a few glances, he lifted his right hand and pressed it on the ground. With that, the Crimson Stone immediately started trembling and chips fell off.

Su Ming frowned. The power of that one palm strike just now was enough for him to split apart mountains and break stones, but when it fell on that Crimson Stone, only a small part of its outer layer was crushed.

He looked towards the numerous small holes on the Crimson Stone, took a few steps back, then green light shone at the center of his brows. The small sword immediately flew out, and with a sword whistle, green light began shining brilliantly. The small sword charged towards the stone and sliced down on it.

With that one slash, rumbling sounds immediately rang oit. If Su Ming had not sealed his surroundings with his divine sense, that sound would have immediately spread through the entire inn.

Once those rumbling sounds died down, the small sword was lifted up. A crack that was about three inches deep appeared on the outer layer of the Crimson Stone that was positioned before Su Ming. When he saw this, Su Ming's expression changed.

'What a sturdy rock!' Su Ming remained in pensive silent for a moment, then lifted his right hand and pointed at the small sword. It immediately closed in on the Crimson Stone with a whistle again. This time, the sword did not try cutting down the stone. Instead, Su Ming plunged the sword into the stone with the intention of piercing it through.

With a bang, the small sword was buried deep into the stone, straight up to its hilt. This scene made Su Ming's eyes sparkle. After a moment, the small sword flew out, changed position, then stabbed the stone again.

He repeated the process multiple times, right until the holes that the sword had created after stabbing into the stone and subsequently pulled out formed a straight line that split the Crimson Stone right down from the center.

'This stone is really strange. If I try cutting it down, I can only cut three inches into it, but it's easier if I pierce through it with the tip of a sword…'

Su Ming lifted his right hand, and after one seal, he pointed at the small sword. It immediately rose into midair, and as it shone, the sword swiftly grew larger. Once it turned into a sword that was nearly ten feet long, it cut straight down at the Crimson Stone beneath it, right at its center, where the straight line formed by the numerous amount of sword holes was.

With that one slash, rumbling sounds mixed with cracking sounds rang out, formed as the spaces between the small holes shattered and these holes connected together. As the rumbling sounds disappeared, due to the sharpness of that large virescent sword, when Su Ming lifted it, the Crimson Stone before him shuddered, crumbled, and split into two halves right from the center.

The center of each half of this big stone was empty. If they were connected together, they would create a spherical empty space. By the looks of it, someone had used some sort of method to separate that part from the stone.

Su Ming took a few steps forward and stared at the two halves of the big stone. Eventually, his eyes fell on the right half of the stone. The faint medicinal fragrance he had detected came from this half.

After a moment of pensive silent, Su Ming controlled the small virescent sword and cut down on that half of the stone, just like he had done before. When he had split that half of the stone into eight pieces, Su Ming picked up one of them.

This was an uneven stone piece that was about the size of two palms. As Su Ming held it, a faint medicinal fragrance wafted into his nose. The source of that scent was indeed from this stone piece.

In fact, Su Ming could even see the broken part of a leaf at the spot he was looking at right then. The leaf had already fused together with the stone piece, but if he took a closer look, he could still that it truly existed.

It was a leaf, but when Su Ming had cut the stone down, he had cut off a corner of that leaf.

Holding the stone in one hand, he used the other to strike the piece repeatedly. His actions were very gentle. A large amount of chips fell off, and gradually, the stone piece became smaller. After two hours, there was only a half of that stone piece remaining in Su Ming's hands.

He stared at it blankly, but gradually, a sharp glint appeared in his eyes, because the stone piece in his hand was no longer dark red, but transparent…

That transparency was the exact same as the mountain rock's containing the small black humanoid!

Within that transparent stone was a medicinal herb with seven leaves. Six of them no longer had any signs of life, and one of them had even lost a corner as it had extended to the surface of the stone.

However, there was a long leaf with a tip that looked like a snake. Although it was sealed within the stone, it still looked as if it was alive.

Chapter 443: World of Nine Sanctities?

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

If Su Ming compared the mountain rock with the small black humanoid with the stone in his hand, he would find that the level of transparency of both stones was the same, and by the looks of it, even the components of both stones were the exact same! The only things different were that one was big, and the other small, and one of them contained a medicinal herb, while the other a small, black humanoid.

'The small, black humanoid came from here! And here I was wondering why the materials for the Welcoming of Deities were so hard to find. Besides obtaining the ninth leg of the spider, which I obtained from Han Mountain City by complete coincidence, I'm positive that the black humanoid will only appear in this place!

'If that's the case, than that tail scale from the python should be an item that can only be found here as well. Perhaps I can gather all the materials required for the Welcoming of Deities from the World of Nine Yin!'

Su Ming stared at the transparent rock in his hand and at the seven-leafed medicinal herb inside. The herb's form was incredibly similar to the herb he saw in Nine Shaman Pavilion earlier in the day. The only difference between them was that his herb had seven leaves, while the white-robed man's had only three.

Even if he compared the living leaves, the white-robed man's herb was already very obviously withered, but the herb in Su Ming's hand was overflowing with life, though something caught his attention as he observed that herb, something that made him narrow his eyes. Because he saw that the remaining six leaves showed clear signs that they were bitten and torn off.

Those bite marks seemed to be left behind by a poisonous snake…

As Su Ming looked at the lively leaf, a picture formed in his head. In that picture, he saw that once this Dragon Leaf Grass was sealed inside the Crimson Stone, it bit down on one of the leaves by its side and absorbed its life to survive through the endless passage of time. After an unknown amount of time went by, it bit down on another leaf. Once it bit down on all the leaves by its side, it managed to persevere and survive.

"If that's the case, I can understand why it managed to survive… but perhaps, it's not like this," Su Ming mumbled. The herb might be in that transparent piece of stone, but he could still feel a presence akin to that of a ferocious beast coming from inside.

But this was clearly a medicinal herb!

It was this brutal presence belonging to a ferocious beast that made Su Ming feel that perhaps during the instant the herb was sealed, this leaf had swiftly killed the other leaves and absorbed their essence. It also made sure that no other leaves could share the nutrients from the roots with it. By doing so, it had greatly increased the chances of its own survival.

Su Ming could not determine the value of the herb in his hand, and neither did he know of the effects of this medicinal herb. He only knew that the white-robed man had used this herb to test whether his Scattering Dust was real.

Judging by the white-robed man's cautious attitude when he handled the herb, this thing should be extremely valuable. If that was truth, then Su Ming had reason to believe that the herb in his hand was even rarer.

After a moment of pensive silence, he put away the transparent stone into his storage bag and returned to his sitting position in the empty room. His eyes sparkled with an introspective light.

'I was originally uninterested in the treasure gambling event, but… by the looks of it, I must join this event, and not just that, I'm going to use the small black humanoid's unique ability to reap the greatest rewards possible!

'As for attracting attention and bringing trouble to myself... I now have the warrior spirit's protection and the chances of having the Spirit of Nine Yin equivalent of an End Shaman attack for me. If that is the case, I might as well… be flashy in the World of Nine Yin!' A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. He was a cautious person, but there was also a resolute being lying within that cautious man.

As long as he believed that there was something beneficial for him, he would take action without any hesitation! If the treasure gambling event only relied on luck, he would not have entered. He would not have wanted to waste his time on these sort of things that gave him no certainty of success.

However, the situation now was completely different. Once Su Ming learned of the strangeness of the small black humanoid, he felt his heart start beating in excitement. Even if he put aside the value of the medicinal herbs, there were other items in the Crimson Stones, and once he added all of these things together, this was practically a fortuitous event and serendipity to him. There was in no way Su Ming would give up on a chance like this.

'Looks like I will change my decision regarding Wu Duo's offer. I hesitated before because I didn't want to join, but now… joining that thing is not of a problem to me!'

A cold glint flashed in Su Ming's eyes. Once he understood that he was going to bring up a storm due to this serendipity, he closed his eyes and immersed himself in his meditation. Since he was most certainly going to join this treasure gambling event, most definitely going to be the center of attention during the event, and absolutely going to cause great bloodshed…

...then right now, he chose to isolate himself during the remaining two weeks he had left till the event. He chose to use this amount of time to make sure that he was in peak condition, so that he could be ready… for the surprise he would bring to these people!

As the treasure gambling event slowly crept in on the people, more Shamans arrived to Shaman City from all directions every single day. These people who managed to rush over were either lucky that they were Relocated not too far away from Shaman City, or they had extraordinary power, which was why they could eventually reach Shaman City from anywhere within those one million lis.

Shaman City was incredibly lively at the moment. Everyday, numerous intense trades were made, and these trades did not decline in number even when night time arrived.

Even so, there were still very few people who went to the Spirits of Nine Yin. After all, the prices for renting these Spirits of Nine Yin were too high… Besides those from middle-sized tribes or larger tribes who could afford them, most of the others could only sigh in envy.

Half a month gradually passed by with the bustle of activity in the city every single day. Lan Lan and Ahu also stopped wandering about Shaman City after the first few days and chose to stay inside. After all, the situation in Shaman City was a little complicated by then. There were too many people in the city, and these two children, who were not even Fledgling Shamans and who came from small tribes, were nothing but ants to these people.

If they did not have Su Ming's protection, forget surviving in Shaman City, they might not have even been able to see the walls of Shaman City and would have died on their way there.

The last night before the treasure gambling event was the quietest night in the entire Shaman City during the past few days. Almost every single one of the shops had closed and stopped operations early in the day. Most of the Shamans had also returned to their lodgings to meditate in silence so that they could be in the best possible condition to participate in the Shaman Tribe's great treasure gambling event hosted in the World of Nine Yin.

This would be a festival, a competition between their financial abilities, a clash of luck, and most of all, a test filled with bloodshed!

There was a pavilion located northeast in Shaman City. This was not an inn, neither was it a shop. It was instead the permanent lodgings of Autumn Sea Tribe in this place.

At that moment, there was a woman standing under the moonlight in a room at the top floor of the pavilion. The woman's hair floated in air, and she was dressed in a pink robe. Moonlight fell on her face, revealing a beautiful countenance that would make people's hearts race. She was so beautiful that not a single flaw could be found on her face… Besides her frowning brows and the faint dash of gloominess between them.

The wind was not strong, but it managed to lift up the woman's black locks to float them in the air. She had been standing there for a long time. When the wind gradually became stronger, she lifted her right hand and caught her windblown hair. Under the moonlight, when she lifted her arm, the mark of a crimson dragon could be seen on her snowy white arm!

Wan Qiu, the Sacred Lady of Autumn Sea Tribe…

In another direction in Shaman City was a very extravagantly decorated shop, and in that shop was a woman in white. There were several people standing respectfully before her. All of them were incredibly nervous, and were talking to the woman in hushed whispers.

However, while the woman was listening to their words, the occasional dazed and exhausted look gave people the feeling of her having lost her soul.

The woman's beauty could not compare to Wan Qiu, but there was something ethereal about her. The profound eyes and the gracefulness that radiated off her allowed others to be able to tell that this woman was not from the Shaman Tribe!

She was from the Immortal Tribe. She… was a Celestial Maiden.

In another direction in Shaman City was another pavilion located not too far away from where Su Ming was. Inside it, there was a middle-aged man sitting cross-legged. He was a skinny man, filled with a dignified air, without any anger on his face, the air of a leader. Sitting before him properly were two women.

These two women were almost identical in appearance, but one of them had a gentle look, and the other aloof. Their clothes were also different. The two of them sat in the room with their eyes closed, and they were both exercising their breathing.

"Meng Er, You Er, I will have the both of you by my side during this trip, but it is up to your serendipity this time as to who I will choose to take up my mantle and inherit my legacy." After a long time, the middle-aged man opened his eyes, and his eyes were filled with profundity when he spoke with a hoarse voice.

If Su Ming was there and heard the man's voice, he would definitely find it familiar. If he listened to it carefully and thought about it, then it was highly likely that he would remember that this voice only belonged to one person, and that was Sky Mist's ancestor!

One of the two women was Tian Lan Meng, and the other was Tian Lan You! When Sky Mist's ancestor spoke, the two women opened their eyes at the same time.

A resolute look appeared in Tian Lan You's eyes, and as for Tian Lan Meng, she lowered her head and sighed in her heart.

"Once the treasure gambling event ends, your trials will start!" Sky Mist's ancestor swept his gaze past Tian Lan Meng and a light crease formed between his brows, but he did not say anything.

Time slowly passed by. The nine moons in the sky faded away and dawn gradually approached, causing the world to be plunged into darkness…

In that darkness, Shaman City turned into a large shadow, and if anyone looked from the distance at the city, it would look as if it was a ferocious beast hiding in the dark.

At that moment, on a mountain nearby stood a person dressed in black robes. He looked at Shaman City, and a glint appeared in his eyes.

"I don't know why my master's projection disappeared after his fight with Hong Luo. Now I can't contact him for a short period of time… but I'm still here, so that means that Hong Luo must be gone. Then Destiny… is not a problem to fear!

"Destiny, do you think you can escape from my gaze..? Before master's second projection descends upon me, I will restore order and use this chance to land a great achievement…"

An aloof voice fell from the person's mouth. That person was Di Tian's servant, an Immortal that existed solely for Su Ming in the land of the Berserkers.

"The only thing I have to pay attention to is the End Shaman in this place… and the frightening legend of the World of Nine Sanctities…" The person mumbled to himself and walked towards Shaman City.

Light gradually appeared in the sky at dawn. The darkness on the ground was like a black veil that covered the land and was slowly lifted by an invisible hand, causing the earth to gradually brighten up…

A new day arrived. The treasure gambling event… was about to start!

Chapter 444: Great Treasure Gambling Event!

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

When sunlight shone through the window into Su Ming's room, he opened his eyes for the first time since he isolated himself half a month ago in meditation. A sharp glint appeared in his eyes. He had already reached the peak of his condition.

As sunlight brightened up the entire room, and Su Ming brought out a small blue bottle from his storage bag at a moderate pace. Once he uncorked the bottle, he took a sniff from it.

'Sea Marrow… This thing can allow me to recover rapidly, perhaps I will be able to use it here.' Su Ming put away the small blue bottle and stood up. Once he smoothed out his robes, he pushed open the door and walked out.

When he walked out, a door nearby also flew open, and Nan Gong Hen walked out of his room full of confidence and spirit. Once he saw Su Ming, he let out a boisterous laugh and wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming.

"Brother Mo, it's been a month since we last met, and you look even more refined than before!"

Su Ming smiled faintly, and when he cast a glance at Nan Gong Hen, he was slightly shocked.

"Brother Nan Gong, your power seems to have become considerably greater. Looks like you didn't just fuse with the Spirit of Nine Yin, you also had a serendipitous event happen to you."

"Haha, this improvement is nothing. But my communication with Sir Han was quite successful," Nan Gong Hen said with a smile and walked down the stairs with Su Ming.

When the both of them walked down, Lan Lan, Ahu, and Qi Dong also walked out of their rooms and bowed respectfully to greet them.

Su Ming looked at Ahu and Lan Lan. The boy and girl were filled with excitement and eagerness. Clearly, they also knew that this was the day of the Shaman Tribe's great treasure gambling event.

Su Ming fell into a moment of pensive silence before he looked towards Nan Gong Hen.

"Brother Nan Gong, I have a request."

Nan Gong Hen swept his gaze past Lan Lan and Ahu, smiled, and asked, "Is it related to these two children?"

"That's right. By the looks of it, they really want to see this treasure gambling event. Once we go there, I hope that you would be willing to take care of them in my place and let them return safely. There might be some changes on my side, and I might be stalled." Su Ming gathered his thoughts for a while, then wrapped his fist in his palm to Nan Gong Hen.

"That's easy. Brother Mo, you don't have to worry. If I can't even protect a pair of children, then I would be too embarrassed to face you." Nan Gong Hen spoke solemnly, with a stern expression on his face.

"Thank you very much!" Su Ming nodded.

"Brother Mo, let's not talk anymore. We should be heading to the treasure gambling event. Whether or not we can reap any rewards will entirely depend on our luck!" Nan Gong Hen said quickly, and once Su Ming agreed, the two of them brought the three youths and left the inn. Nan Gong Hen led the way with familiar ease, and the group moved further into the distance as they charged down the streets.

Almost all the people in Shaman City had left their own lodgings and were rushing at full speed towards the center of the city - the spot where the treasure gambling event was hosted.

At that moment, there were a thousand something Crimson Stones of various sizes floating in the sky above the center of Shaman City. The larger ones were about one hundred feet tall, and the small ones were about the size of a human head. They were densely packed, and while there were only one thousand something of those stones, when people looked over, these stones looked as if they had covered the entire sky.

When the crowd looked over, the sight was a shock to their eyes, and it made them feel as if there was a strong pressure on them.

Those stones shone with a crimson light that looked as if it had dyed half of the sky red. It made people's breathing quicken. The area under those Crimson Stones in the sky was divided into eight part, and there was a platform elevated off the ground. At that moment, there were countless people on that platform.

There was a densely packed crowd around this platform. They did not have the right to be on the platform, but they still had the right to buy Crimson Stones. That was why even though they were standing on the ground, they were still very excited.

There were eight halls floating in the sky right at the center of the floating Crimson Stones, and the platform on the ground. Each of these halls were shining brilliantly, and the people inside were clearly of incredibly high status.

There were nearly a hundred strange Enchanted Vessels floating around the eight big halls. These Enchanted Vessels sparkled and were shaped in the form of a ring, and it looked as if there were numerous rays of light criss-crossing against each other. As they shone, they also let off a sharp feeling.

These Enchanted Vessels were all slowly spinning around. Each time two of these light rings crossed paths, there would be a sizzling sound. These sounds were incredibly piercing to the ears, and they spread in all directions.

Further down, more people were rushing towards the place from all around Shaman City. Su Ming was among them. If they did not have Nan Gong Hen around, they would only be able to join the treasure gambling event with the crowd standing at the outer ring around the platform. However, with Nan Gong Hen's status, he could bring Su Ming and the others through the crowd and charge straight towards the platform, and they actually found reserved spots near the front.

The people around them were talking to each other animatedly, and their voices rose into a clamor of noise. Almost all of the people's gazes were focused on the floating Crimson Stones in the sky. Those gazes were filled with eagerness, yearning, excitement, and hope...

"It's about to start. Brother Mo, this is the first batch of Crimson Stones that will be sold. Once we start, everyone will fly into midair and examine those Crimson Stones. The stones have numbers right before them, and if you like any of them, remember the number, for there will be held an auction for these Crimson Stones after that.

"The one who offers the highest bid gets the stone!" Eagerness appeared in Nan Gong Hen's eyes, and he began providing explanations to Su Ming.

Su Ming, sitting in his seat, lifted his head to look at the Crimson Stones in the sky. His eyes were sparkling. There were far too many people here, and there were quite a lot of powerful warriors among them as well. It was not convenient for Su Ming to spread his divine sense outward, so he could not locate Wu Duo for the time being.

However, based on his own judgment, even if he did not go and find Wu Duo, Wu Duo would think of a way to find him.

He listened to the commotion in the place. The voices had now fused together to turn into a buzzing that reverberated through the area, causing the treasure gambling event to already be incredibly lively, even though it had not even started.

"This time, I'll definitely find a medicinal herb. I already prepared a large amount of Shaman Crystals for this treasure event before I came here!"

"This treasure gambling event is a mere gamble for us to reach extreme ecstasy for one instant and for that instant of excitement when we place everything on the line. There's no way I won't get it this time! I'll buy ten stones this round!"

"Heh heh. Compared to buying Crimson Stones, I'm more interested in others opening the stones once they buy them. Their expressions when they find that the Crimson Stones they bought are completely worthless after they spent a large amount of Shaman Crystals to buy them are so very exciting!"

The buzzing filled the air and time trickled by. Once another incense stick finished burning, the one thousand something Crimson Stones floating in the sky suddenly started shining brilliantly. Once that light dyed the entire sky crimson, a hoarse and ancient voice traveled towards the crowd slowly.

"Everyone, most of you came here to gamble for treasure!" As that ancient voice reverberated in the air, the people gradually fell silent, and right before their gazes, the sky distorted, and a person walked out slowly from within.

That person appeared indistinct and his face could not be seen clearly. The crowd could only see that he had a head full of white hair. He looked like an old man, but when he stood there, the pressure he exuded was almost comparable to the pressure of the one thousand something Crimson Stones gathered together, causing the people's gazes to be attracted towards him.

"He's the Great Elder of the God of Shamans Temple. It's said that he's already halfway through to becoming an End Shaman!" Nan Gong Hen said in a hushed voice. Su Ming already had his eyes opened, and at that moment, he looked at the indistinct person in the sky, nodding his head.

"Since most of you came to gamble for treasure, then I won't waste my breath here. The God of Shamans Temple prepared ten batches of Crimson Stones for the treasure gambling event this time! Each batch contains one thousand Crimson Stones. We have already numbered each of these Crimson Stones based on the rules. You may all now go and choose!

"We have also prepared Enchanted Vessels that are specifically used to open these Crimson Stones. If you use these Enchanted Vessels to crack open your stones, you can let everyone see what is inside your stone even more clearly!" The indistinct old man lifted his hand and pointed at the ring shaped Enchanted Vessels floating in midair.

"However, I will have to remind all of you once again. I don't care about the Crimson Stones you gained through other means, but all the Crimson Stones you bought during the treasure gambling event must be cracked opened on the spot, and you can't just cut it slightly. You must use this Enchanted Vessel to completely shatter it!

"Once we are certain that there are truly no medicinal herbs or anything else inside, we will consider the process of cracking that particular stone open finished. If there are any of you who refuse to follow the rules, then don't blame me for turning against you!" When the old man said the final few sentences, his voice became incredibly sullen.

"Now, the treasure gambling event starts!" Once the old man finished speaking, he waved his arm forward and flew towards one of the floating halls to sit down cross-legged within it. Then, with brightly flashing eyes, he looked downwards.

When Su Ming heard the old man's words, he frowned, but quickly stopped doing so. It was clear that this God of Shamans Temple was worried about some people managing to find treasures without their knowledge, which was why they decided to enforce these kind of rules. By doing so, they could practically control everything in their hands.

By the looks of it, while the people around him might be displeased with this, but most of them had already accepted it, so it was obvious that this rule did not just appear in this event for the first time but had always been around.

'No wonder Nan Gong Hen knew about the number of rare medicinal herbs that were found during the treasure gambling event. This sort of treasure gambling event then can't really be considered as such anymore.'

As Su Ming sank into his thoughts, some people flew up into the sky, straight towards the one thousand Crimson Stones in the sky. Soon after, more people flew up. Long arcs charged into the sky with loud howls, and in an instant, those Crimson Stones in the sky were surrounded by a large number of people.

The buzzing of discussions rose up once again, breaking the silence just now, causing the atmosphere to become lively as well.

Nan Gong Hen wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming and got up, then charged towards the sky. Su Ming remained on his seat for a while in silence before he stood up and walked towards the sky as well. As for the youths who could not fly up, they could only watch from the ground in the midst of their excitement.

There were far too many stones in the sky, and most of them were surrounded by a large number of people. These people would either be staring at the stones with sparkling eyes, discussing amongst themselves in hushed tones, or examining the stones while circling around. However, there were seals placed around these Crimson Stones, so people could only look at them but not touch. Else there would be quite a large number of those who would touch them personally to test whether there were truly treasures contained within.

Su Ming walked over slowly and moved past the crowd. He swept his gaze past every single one of these Crimson Stones and kept a close eye on the small black humanoid in his storage bag with his divine sense.

Chapter 445: Unusual Light

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

"This stone doesn't look too bad. Look at the pattern. This is a horizontal pattern. I'm certain that there is an Enchanted Vessel in this stone. I did an analysis about this before. Vertical patterns are mostly medicinal herbs. Enchanted Vessels will only appear in those with horizontal patterns!"

"The light shining from this Crimson Stone is the strongest. From my years of experience, there is a seven out of ten chance that this stone isn't empty!"

As Su Ming walked past the people in the air, sounds of discussion fell into his ears. His gaze continuously swept past the Crimson Stones, and when it moved forward, he would also get closer to those stones. However, even after he had walked past a hundred something of the Crimson Stones, he did not smell a single hint of any medicinal fragrance. There was also not a single hint of change in the small black humanoid in his storage bag.

With a calm expression, Su Ming continued walking forward. Time passed by, and when he had walked past five hundred something Crimson Stones, he still had not smelled any medicinal fragrance. The small black humanoid was also as it was originally.

'Could it be that the small black humanoid only notices Dragon Leaf Grass?' Su Ming frowned. He continued walking forward, and when he walked past another hundred something Crimson Stones, he came to a sudden halt. He might not have detected any medicinal fragrance, but the small black humanoid in his storage bag had started trembling furiously.

As it trembled, a picture started flashing rapidly at the center of his brows.

Su Ming focused his gaze on a Crimson Stone that was slightly taller than a person. Besides its size, the stone was no different from the other ones. Su Ming got closer to it, and when came close to that Crimson Stone, the small black humanoid in his storage bag started trembling even more furiously. Soon after, the flashing picture at the center of his brows gathered together and manifested itself.

It was a black flower, and it only had three petals. Each of the petals wore the ferocious looking face of a ghost. However, the three petals looked rather withered, though there was still some life remaining at its roots.

A barely noticeable glint flashed past Su Ming's eyes, and he remembered the stone's number - 697.

He did not linger around that Crimson Stone, and without batting an eyelid, he walked to the next stone. When he had seen every single one of the Crimson Stones, a bitter smile appeared on Su Ming's lips, which was hidden under the mask.

'Looks like the small black humanoid is only sensitive towards medicinal herbs, or else why would all three of the stones that made excited it consist of only herbs?

'But this is good as well. Among the three of them, there is one that actually has a purple venomous wasp in it…'

Su Ming focused his gaze on the stone numbered 949. That stone was not big and was only about half the height of a normal person. The medicinal herb in it had completely withered away and was fossilized, however, Su Ming saw a purple poisonous wasp at its stamen!

The poisonous wasp looked as if it was deep in sleep and remained still. However, while its life was faint and weak, there was still a hint of it, which meant that it wasn't yet dead!

When Su Ming returned from midair, he waited for a little while longer. More people came back, and all of them harbored their own thoughts in their hearts as they looked at the Crimson Stones in the sky.

"Time's up. Everyone, please move back. We will first auction off a hundred Crimson Stones, and once we finish cutting them, we will continue with the auction!"

The indistinct old man sitting in one of the halls belonging to the God of Shamans Temple spoke slowly. His voice was like thunder rumbling that shook the air, causing the few remaining people who were still lingering around the Crimson Stones to move back to the ground reluctantly with various changes in their expressions.

"Crimson Stone No.1. Based on its size, the starting bid is one hundred thousand Shaman Crystals. The minimum increase in bid is twenty thousand. You may begin!" the old man with the indistinct figure stated calmly.

The Crimson Stones continued floating in the sky, but all the people who had examined them, they were already incredibly familiar with the numbers on them.

Crimson Stone No.1 was a gigantic rock that was thirty feet tall. There was nothing strange about its appearance, besides the slight difference that its patterns were horizontal, not vertical.

Once the old man finished speaking, someone from the crowd immediately shouted, "120,000!"

There might be plenty of people joining the treasure gambling event hosted by the God of Shamans Temple, but seldom would there be people who would place their bids carelessly. If they did not have the power to buy, then they would end up having made a fool of the God of Shamans Temple and made a fool of all the Shamans in the place. This sort of person would not be able to walk out of the World of Nine Yin alive!

"180,000!"

"260,000!"

"320,000!"

"400,000!"

The voices that called for the bids rose continuously, and it was clear that there were quite a lot of people who had noticed the uniqueness of this Crimson Stone. Su Ming sat there and looked at Crimson Stone No.1. He only knew that there should not be any medicinal herbs in that stone, as to whether there was anything else, he could only guess.

"This is a horizontal pattern. Horizontal patterns are rare, and I remember that during the few times they appeared, most of them contained items inside…" Nan Gong Hen mumbled in his seat, and a glint appeared in his eyes.

"500,000!"

Once he shouted that bid, Su Ming smiled wryly and shook his head. He only had about a hundred thousand Shaman Crystals on his person at this moment. Compared to these people, he was really low on funds.

However, since he already chose to come here, he had naturally made some preparations for this event. To prevent incidents where the people did not have enough Shaman Crystals, they could exchange their items for Shaman Crystals, and the God of Shamans Temple were not the only people who would buy them. There were also quite a lot of people who would use the chance to buy them.

Once Nan Gong Hen shouted his bid, while the people around them continued talking among themselves, no one continued placing any bids. The old man who was now sitting at the roof of the hall in the sky swept a glance towards Nan Gong Hen, and without even announcing to whom that stone belonged to, he started the auction for Crimson Stone No.2 leisurely.

This was something that sparked Su Ming's curiosity. He had attended Western Sea Clan's auction outside Freezing Sky Clan before, and in terms of extravagance, Western Sea Clan's auction was incredibly gorgeous. But if placed in comparison with the Shaman Tribe's auction, the Shamans' auction was more straightforward, and was also larger!

In fact, even the auctioneers' attitudes were completely different. The auctioneer from Western Sea Clan would mostly introduce the items to buyers, doing so with the idea of tempting them to buy those things. However, the Shaman Tribe was clearly holding onto an attitude that said they did not care whether these people bought these stones or not.

However, the more they acted this way, the better the results were. In fact, Su Ming could even feel most of the Shamans around him fighting over the stones...

But soon, he thought of Wu Duo's words and remembered that the God of Shamans Temple was clearly forced into this and was resigned to it, which was why they hosted this treasure gambling event. With that in mind, the people's attitude right then was understandable.

The auction went on quickly. Besides Nan Gong Hen buying Crimson Stone No.1 for 500,000, most of the other Crimson Stones numbered 1 to 100 were sold for 100,000 something Shaman Crystals, or several hundreds of thousands of Shaman Crystals.

When the first one hundred were auctioned off, Su Ming paid attention to the people cutting the stones. He wanted to see just how they would cut those Crimson Stones open.

Nan Gong Hen flew up nervously, and the other ninety-nine people joined him, moving to those Enchanted light rings in midair. The first one hundred Crimson Stones descended automatically from the sky and charged towards the hundred people, and by some unknown method, they flew straight to their respective buyers.

Su Ming gave them a few more scrutinizing looks and understood a little about what was going on. The stones went to their respective buyers because the Enchanted Vessels also had numbers on them, and Nan Gong Hen was naturally standing right before the ring numbered one, which meant that Crimson Stone No.1 was not flying towards him, but that Enchanted Vessel No.1.

As the people stood beside the Enchanted Vessels and the Crimson Stones descended on them, their expressions became different: most of them looked rather nervous, but they were also expectant.

Compared to them, the crowd of Shamans underneath were even more excited. All of them looked towards them, and the sounds of their discussions continuously rose into the air.

Su Ming turned his attention towards the people in the sky. The buzzing sounds rang incessantly by his ears. He saw Nan Gong Hen taking a deep breath, then lifting his right hand to seize the Crimson Stone in the air. The Crimson Stone immediately floated towards him slowly, and when it got closer to the light ring, the Enchanted Vessel immediately let out a buzzing noise and grew larger in an instant. Once it enveloped the Crimson Stone within, it started spinning about rapidly.

As it spun, a large amount of chips fell from midair. Su Ming���s eyes sparkled as he stared at those Enchanted Vessels. This Enchanted Vessel was spinning incredibly quickly, which was how it could make that Crimson Stone become smaller slowly.

'These Enchanted Vessels are used specifically to cut Crimson Stones…'

As Su Ming watched, he saw Nan Gong Hen lifting his right hand rapidly and pointing towards the Enchanted Vessel. At that instant, sizzling sounds spread out, and the Enchanted Vessel that was spinning at high speed slowly stopped. Most of the Crimson Stone was already chipped away by then. Nan Gong Hen walked over in his anxiety and looked at it for a long moment before pointing at the Enchanted Vessel again.

Immediately, as the Enchanted Vessel shone, a sharp needle appeared. That needle charged towards the Crimson Stone, and as it hummed in the air, it shot straight through the stone!

This repeated many times, and eventually, Nan Gong Hen sighed. As the people saw this, sounds of discussions rose into the air once again.

"He bought it for 500,000, but it looks like there's nothing in there…"

"That's right. There wasn't any unusual light shining just now when he was chipping it away, so it's clear that this Crimson Stone isn't pure…"

"Even if there's any unusual light, it's still useless. There has been plenty of stones that shone with those lights before, but all of them only contained fossilized objects. The ones that are truly useful are rare and in-between."

"Oh well, just break it! It's just a worthless stone!"

Nan Gong Hen was rather unwilling to give up. He glared at the stone, then with gritted teeth, he lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted Vessel once again. Immediately, that Enchanted Vessel shot through the Crimson Stone in multiple places in succession. Suddenly, when the needle shot through the Crimson Stone one final time, a powerful red light shone through a small hole violently. When that light appeared, cries of surprise immediately erupted from the people underneath.

Su Ming, too, immediately focused his attention on that light. Cries of surprise and shock rose all around him and rang in his ears.

"It's the unusual light! That light has appeared!"

"This is the light that will only appear when there is indeed something contained within a Crimson Stone!"

Nan Gong Hen's face was filled with excitement. Just as he was about to continue, a voice suddenly came from one of the eight halls around him.

"Nan Gong Hen, sell that stone to me! I'll buy it for 800,000 Shaman Crystals!"

Nan Gong Hen hesitated for a moment. His eyes were a little bloodshot as he stared at the unusual light coming from the Crimson Stone. Without another word, he lifted his right hand once again and pointed forward. Immediately, the light ring started spinning rapidly. The Crimson Stone grew smaller, and eventually, when the light ring stopped, what appeared before Nan Gong Hen was a transparent stone that was the size of a fist!

There was nothing in the stone… However, one of its corners was cracked, and there was a sign that it had been pierced through.

Nan Gong Hen was momentarily stunned, then his expression started changing, eventually settling on a bitter smile.

"There was indeed an item contained within the stone, but as time passed by, and because you did not cut through the stone correctly, the item has dissolved into wind. It's a pity, a true pity!" the old man sitting cross-legged on the hall remarked slowly.