Pill Pendant

"They're all just little trifles, unfit for the grand stage. Please excuse the embarrassment."

Dugu Ye said.

Afterward, he brought the two of them to the Dugu Family Treasury.

Dugu Ye knew that the small Auction his family ran might hold some appeal for Rogue Cultivators in the later stages of Qi Cultivation, but it would never catch the eye of disciples from great sects. Fortunately, he had only brought out the three most precious items.

The first was an enormous ganoderma.

"This is three-hundred-year-old Wood Ganoderma. Brother Xu can take it back and use it in medicine."

Dugu Ye introduced it.

This treasure could still be of some help even to Xu Chang, who had already reached Foundation Establishment.

"Brother Dugu, there is no need. I do not follow a path focused on Qi Cultivation through Pills."

Xu Chang waved his hand.

Qi Cultivation through Pills was a method of cultivation that relied on consuming medicinal pills.

Although Xu Chang was not the purest kind of Sword Cultivator and did not abstain from pills entirely, he would not excessively pursue breakthroughs through medicinal pills.

Besides, it was exceedingly difficult for Dugu Ye to obtain such great medicine, while Shu Mountain had its own channels for acquiring Spiritual Medicine.

The cost for Xu Chang to purchase Premium Pills already refined by his martial uncles in Shu Mountain might well be lower than what Dugu Ye had spent to acquire this Spiritual Medicine.

It was a lose-lose situation. If anything, Xu Chang would even owe an additional favor because of it.

Dugu Ye looked toward Lin Chan again. Before he could speak, Lin Chan's voice rang out.

"Senior Dugu, I lack the fortune to enjoy this Spiritual Medicine!"

"Very well!"

Dugu Ye helplessly closed the box, then took out the second item.

It was a pair of Cloud-Treading Boots, a rare auxiliary Magic Tool that had reached the level of a Mid-grade Magic Tool. They could double one's speed and were quite useful, whether in battle or when fleeing for one's life.

However, a Mid-grade Magic Tool was still somewhat too chicken-rib for a Foundation Establishment cultivator—better than nothing, but not worth spending Talisman Coins on. Xu Chang merely commented,

"This item is worth at least two Spirit Talisman Coins."

Spirit Talisman Coins were second-rank Spirit Pivot Talisman Coins. Two Spirit Talisman Coins equaled two hundred Mortal Talisman Coins.

"Brother Xu has a keen eye."

Dugu Ye smiled in agreement.

"However, I already have a Flying Magic Tool. This would be rather wasteful for me."

Xu Chang said with an awkward laugh.

Lin Chan said nothing, but he did want them somewhat. He simply did not have enough Talisman Coins on hand.

He had not brought many Talisman Coins with him when he left.

"Little Brother Lin, if you like them, just wear them away."

Seeing Lin Chan hesitate, Dugu Ye spoke generously.

Of course, it was not that he would not take payment. Lin Chan could simply write an IOU.

After all, both the Dao Alliance and Shu Mountain were respectable organizations. They would not stoop to owing money and refusing to repay it.

"Senior Dugu, do you have anything else?"

Lin Chan noticed that Dugu Ye still had one item reserved to anchor the display. That was the true main attraction.

"Little Brother Lin, I never expected you to understand my intentions so well."

Dugu Ye returned the item in his hand to its original stand, leaving the box open as though he truly meant to reserve it for Lin Chan. Then he went to retrieve the final treasure.

Though the box holding this item was very small, it was the most exquisite one. Not only was its wood extraordinary, but the jewels adorning it were also particularly refined.

Holding the item, Dugu Ye came before the two of them and slowly opened the box. Inside lay a Talisman of Peace about an inch long.

The carving on the Talisman of Peace was equally ordinary: the most common drifting clouds.

"Why don't you two guess what this is, and what it does?"

Dugu Ye said with a smile.

This was the supreme treasure he wanted to offer the two men from Shu Mountain, using it to befriend them or deepen their friendship.

Lin Chan's spiritual sense could not yet leave his body, and [Karma Eye] could not examine dead objects, so he had no way to discern the item's use.

"Brother Dugu, may I take it out for a look? And scan it with my spiritual sense?"

Xu Chang asked very politely, not acting rashly.

"Brother Xu, please."

Dugu Ye presented the wooden box before Xu Chang.

Xu Chang took out the Talisman of Peace and rubbed it between his fingers. He discovered that it contained a world within—a Spatial Magic Treasure.

Unfortunately, it could only hold five pills the size of broad beans.

"Brother Dugu, is this a Magic Tool for storing pills?"

Xu Chang asked probingly.

"Precisely."

Dugu Ye took back the Talisman of Peace. With a slide of his thumb, a hidden space appeared within it.

Then he took five pills from his Storage Bag and dropped them into that concealed space.

"It is quite a delicate and interesting little trinket."

Xu Chang had initially wanted to laugh. A storage jade tablet capable of holding only five pills truly was making a mountain out of a molehill.

What could such a tiny space possibly do?

Then he saw the Pill Pendant begin to slowly emit faint spiritual power.

Xu Chang was somewhat stunned.

"Brother Xu, this Pill Pendant can separate impurities and release medicinal power. Simply place your skin against it, and you can absorb that medicinal power. The efficiency is not high, though—it takes several days to consume all the medicinal power of a first-rank pill. Its effect on higher-rank pills is much poorer, so it is merely better than nothing."

Dugu Ye handed the Pill Pendant to Xu Chang for him to feel it.

Xu Chang sensed the faint medicinal power emanating from the Pill Pendant and stood there in a daze for a long while.

Afterward, he handed the Pill Pendant to Lin Chan.

"This Pill Pendant can isolate Pill Toxin and leave behind only pure medicinal power."

Xu Chang said with a smile.

This treasure was indeed interesting. Even if that medicinal power was not of much use to him now, it held considerable research value.

"Senior Dugu, how much is this Pill Pendant worth?"

A treasure that could completely isolate Pill Toxin was something Lin Chan greatly desired, even if its effects were not particularly strong.

It was a treasure that could increase cultivation speed without any negative effects whatsoever.

Its effect was especially far from poor for disciples in Qi Cultivation.

After all, with this, one could consume roughly ten extra first-rank pills each month and increase cultivation speed by at least ten to twenty percent.

Seeing the intense interest the two showed, Dugu Ye's smile deepened.

He had originally intended to keep this item as a family heirloom. Its value was self-evident.

If he had not wanted to win the two of them over, he would never have brought out this treasure.

"Though this treasure's rank is not high, its effect is wondrous. I truly am reluctant to part with it. But since you two friends want it, I will grit my teeth and part with what I love, selling it to you at cost. Just three Spirit Talisman Coins."

Dugu Ye said with a conflicted expression.

Three hundred Mortal Talisman Coins?

Lin Chan knew at once that he could not afford it.

Martial Brother Xu surely had enough Talisman Coins, but Lin Chan himself had no hope.

"Junior Brother, if you want it, I will yield this item to you. When the time comes, just lend it to me for a few days of research, and I will be satisfied."

Xu Chang truly had no need for it, so he simply chose not to compete with Lin Chan.

Joy appeared on Lin Chan's face, but how he was supposed to produce the money became another difficult matter.

"Senior Dugu, I do not have that many Talisman Coins at present."

Lin Chan said somewhat embarrassedly.

"Little Brother Lin, there is no need to hurry. Leave an IOU. It will be fine whether you repay it ten years from now or twenty years from now."

What Dugu Ye valued was never this small amount of Talisman Coins, but fate.

An opportunity to forge a connection with a future Foundation Establishment cultivator.

When he had acquired this Pill Pendant, it had already cost two hundred ninety Mortal Talisman Coins. He had only added ten more, so this was practically a losing deal.

If he took something like this to Auction, even five hundred Mortal Talisman Coins would likely find a buyer.

His family's Foundation Establishment Ancestor was already old. His body had begun to stink, and every time Dugu Ye went to see him, he could smell the faint scent of death.

The ancestor did not have many years left to live, while juniors like Dugu Ye could not succeed him in time.

Once the family ancestor passed away, their Dugu Family might cease to exist.

Now, making the acquaintance of more great cultivators of the righteous path was also a way to prolong the Lineage's life.

When the ancestor truly died, these ties of incense and fire could still ensure that someone protected their Lineage for several decades.