Chapter 58: Cave Heaven Trial

"Thirty thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, or the equivalent in Mid-Grade Spirit Stones," He Fangwei stated the price.

Han Yi frowned. A typical Mid-Grade Magic Artifact ranged from one thousand to ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, yet this set cost thirty thousand.

He quickly reasoned that since the set consisted of seven daggers, each of which could be considered a Mid-Grade Magic Artifact if sold separately, the price wasn't entirely unreasonable. At roughly four thousand Spirit Stones per dagger, they were certainly expensive.

But the more Han Yi examined the set, the more he liked it. It was perfectly suited to his needs. With these seven daggers complementing his Shadowless Sword, his combat prowess would undoubtedly soar.

Still, the price...

Han Yi glanced helplessly at He Fangwei's impassive face and said wryly, "Shopkeeper He, you truly are a shrewd businessman. I just sold you a High-Grade Magic Artifact and made a tidy sum of Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, and now you're trying to recoup three hundred of them in one fell swoop. Your business acumen is truly remarkable."

Hearing Han Yi's words, He Fangwei replied earnestly,

"Fellow Daoist, you misunderstand me," He Fangwei said earnestly. "This time, the Nine Dragons Merchant Guild truly hasn't profited from you. This old man has always conducted business with utmost honesty, saying exactly what's true and never deceiving anyone."

"I swear on the reputation of the Nine Dragons Merchant Guild that there were absolutely no markups on this transaction. You can rest assured, Fellow Daoist."

Han Yi wasn't entirely convinced, but he refrained from haggling. Since He Fangwei had explicitly stated that the guild hadn't made any profit, demanding a discount would imply a lack of trust. Han Yi wouldn't stoop to such a discourteous act.

"Alright, I'll take this set of magic artifacts," Han Yi said through gritted teeth.

He Fangwei had anticipated this. He slid the jade box containing the artifacts toward Han Yi, who waved his hand and stored it in his storage pouch.

"By the way, Shopkeeper He," Han Yi continued, "I heard that hostilities between our sect and the Blood God Sect have ceased."

"However, the mines seized by the Blood God Sect haven't been returned. Is there more to this situation than meets the eye?" Han Yi asked in a low voice.

He couldn't shake his lingering doubts and sought more information about the internal and external affairs of his sect. Such knowledge would prove invaluable in future judgments should similar circumstances arise.

In any world, intelligence is a resource—an intangible yet vital asset.

He Fangwei sighed. "What other secrets could there be? The Grand Void Sect refused to intervene, leaving our Sect Leader no choice but to seek assistance from Great Qian."

"You might not know this, but in addition to the mines seized by the Blood God Sect, our sect also paid a massive tribute of resources to the Great Qian Immortal Kingdom. That's what compelled them to mediate and halt the Blood God Sect's advance."

"Otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

He Fangwei's final remark filled in the last piece of Han Yi's puzzle.

A moment later, Han Yi emerged from the Nine Dragons Merchant Guild, his Storage Pouch now lighter by 250 Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and 5,000 Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

"One visit nearly drained my entire fortune," he lamented, "but this set of Magic Artifacts is undoubtedly worth every stone."

Han Yi felt a bittersweet mixture of pain and satisfaction.

He still possessed nearly 150 Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, but his stock of Low-Grade Spirit Stones had dwindled to just a few hundred.

"According to my calculations, these 150-odd Mid-Grade Spirit Stones should be sufficient to fuel my cultivation until the Qi Refining Seventh Layer."

If used sparingly, those stones could even enable a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator to break through a cultivation realm.

However, Han Yi was exchanging Spirit Stones for time, recklessly extracting their Spirit Qi and inevitably wasting a significant portion of it.

If others witnessed his extravagance, they would surely condemn him as a prodigal fool.

He didn't care.

This time, instead of returning directly to Little Spirit Void Peak, he went to Little Sea-Viewing Peak to inform Chen Yujin that he would be entering seclusion and unable to supply her with Medicinal Pills for some time.

Chen Yujin didn't press the issue. After all, the war between the two sects had concluded, and the price of Medicinal Pills within the Sect had already begun to fall over the past few days. The female cultivators on Little Sea-Viewing Peak no longer needed them as urgently.

"Oh, by the way, Senior Brother Han, have you heard that the Sect will soon be opening the Cave Heaven Trial?"

"It's the Cave Heaven Trial! Such an opportunity is incredibly rare. If you can enter a Cave Heaven, the rewards will be immense!"

Chen Yujin stopped Han Yi and asked a question that left him somewhat bewildered.

"Cave Heaven Trial?"

Seeing Han Yi's expression, Chen Yujin seemed discouraged.

"Oh, it seems you're unaware. Well, never mind. I was the one who told you about the recent conflict between our Sect and the Blood God Sect anyway, so let's forget it."

This time, Han Yi stopped Chen Yujin.

"Junior Sister Chen, why keep me in suspense? Tell me, what exactly is this Cave Heaven Trial?"

Reluctantly, Chen Yujin shared the rumors she had heard.

Moments later, Han Yi returned to Little Spirit Void Peak, his face thoughtful.

"Cave Heaven Trial."

"It seems the Profound Pill Sect is aware of its combat deficiencies and is trying to remedy them."

Through Chen Yujin, Han Yi learned about the Cave Heaven Trial.

She had heard that the Profound Pill Sect's leadership, after dipping into the sect's secret vault and paying an exorbitant price, had leased partial usage rights to a Cave Heaven from the Jade Capital Mountain Holy Land.

They planned to select several disciples from within the sect to enter the Cave Heaven for cultivation.

Rumor had it that the rules within the Cave Heaven differed from those of the Cultivation World. In particular, the leased Cave Heaven allowed disciples to be resurrected repeatedly.

This meant they could relentlessly battle within the Cave Heaven to hone their combat skills.

Moreover, to enhance the effectiveness of these battles, the Profound Pill Sect had only leased partial rights. The Jade Capital Mountain Holy Land's original disciples remained in the Cave Heaven.

In essence, this arrangement allowed the Holy Land's disciples to guide the Profound Pill Sect disciples in their cultivation.

After all, this was the Jade Capital Mountain Holy Land—one of Great Qian's Two Great Holy Lands, a supreme power of the Immortal Path guarded by Transformation God Great Powers, and a peer to the Great Qian Immortal Kingdom itself.

Every disciple from this Holy Land could be considered a chosen one of the Immortal Path in any other sect.

The price the Profound Pill Sect must have paid for such elite sparring partners couldn't have been small.

To be honest, Han Yi found the prospect rather tempting.

His combat skills were far from exceptional.

During the fierce battles in Heavenfall City, Han Yi had relied solely on his skills to forcibly boost his combat power.

Simply put, while his skills possessed the potential for ten units of power, his lack of combat technique meant he could only effectively wield five, barely scraping by.

If he could refine his combat skills and unleash the full ten units of power from his skills, his combat strength would double—a terrifying prospect.

This realization ignited his ambition.

"Why not give it a try? I'll head to Inner Peak tomorrow to gather more information," Han Yi resolved. With his plan settled, he resumed cultivating with a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

Cultivation demanded unwavering persistence.

The next day, upon returning to Inner Peak, Han Yi heard a Sect announcement widely circulating: the Cave Heaven Trial was no longer just a rumor—it was officially confirmed.

Alas, the announcement specified that only one hundred disciples would be selected to journey to the Jade Capital Mountain Holy Land. Though the detailed list hadn't been released yet, the announcement stated that all chosen candidates were at least at the Eighth Layer of Inner Peak, with the majority being at the Ninth Layer.

Despite his disappointment, Han Yi noticed a crucial phrase: this was the inaugural Cave Heaven Trial.

"If there's a first, there's likely to be a second," he mused. "The Profound Pill Sect clearly intends to invest continuously. That's bold."

The Sect's official announcement deepened Han Yi's understanding of the Cave Heaven Trial.