The silk they spat out was not only incredibly tough, but impervious to fire and water. Yao Lao could do nothing but watch Xiao Yan get bound up tight.
With Yao Lao's discerning eye, he could naturally tell that these two spiders had been raised by someone. In all likelihood, that someone was Han Chen.
So Yao Lao had not killed them. He simply left Xiao Yan tied up and waited for Han Chen to return.
That was how the present scene had come about.
Yao Lao and Xiao Yan had naturally also seen the millennium spirit herbs inside. Only then did they understand what Han Chen had meant by things they should not see.
Seeing Xiao Yan fall silent, Han Chen raised a hand and lowered him to the ground. He knew Xiao Yan was not a bad person, so he was not too worried about him discovering the millennium spirit herbs.
Xiao Yan could judge for himself what he should and should not say. Of course, the main reason was that Xiao Yan did not know about the Little Green Bottle. As long as Han Chen's greatest secret remained undiscovered, everything else could be explained away.
Xiao Yan landed on the ground. Watching Han Chen's retreating back, he pulled all the spider silk off himself, then hurried after him.
"Brother Han, don't be angry. I really didn't mean to."
"It's fine. All of these things belong to my master. If anything goes wrong, you can explain it to him."
"Your master? Could that Foundation Establishment Pill at the Mittel Auction House have been refined by your master?"
The moment Xiao Yan heard him mention a master, he thought of the Foundation Establishment Pill that had suddenly appeared at the auction house.
Han Chen sat down in the front courtyard and righted the stone table. Looking at Xiao Yan, he gave a casual hum of acknowledgment.
"Yes. Speaking of which... I still need to thank you for that one million two hundred thousand."
"Ah! You knew?"
Hearing Han Chen say that, Xiao Yan was taken aback. He kept feeling as though he had no secrets at all in front of him.
"Enough of this nonsense. Did you come for that Iron Fragment?"
Han Chen was in no mood to explain things to Xiao Yan. He could hardly say he had the script, could he? The pressing matter was to exchange Dou Techniques with Xiao Yan. He had more or less mastered Suction Palm; all he lacked now was Fire-Blowing Palm.
At that, Xiao Yan nodded and sat down opposite Han Chen, his expression growing considerably more serious.
"Brother Han, I'm quite interested in that Iron Fragment. Would you be willing to sell it to me? We can negotiate the price."
"The price?"
Watching Xiao Yan spout nonsense with a straight face, Han Chen's lips curved into a smile.
"We're both thousand-year-old foxes, so why try spinning ghost tales for me? Let the person behind you come out. You don't have enough bargaining chips."
"Brother Han, what do you mean by that?"
Seeing Han Chen bring up Yao Lao, Xiao Yan's expression abruptly changed. He still wanted to try salvaging the situation.
"That's enough, Little Yanzi. There's no need to keep hiding it. He discovered us long ago."
Before Xiao Yan could finish speaking, another voice sounded behind him. Yao Lao's figure slowly emerged, his hands clasped behind his back as he looked at Han Chen with solemn eyes.
"Young friend, I'm very curious. How exactly did you discover me? Was it because I saved Little Yanzi?"
Indeed, although Yao Lao knew Han Chen had discovered him, he did not know when it had happened.
After all, he had been extremely discreet whenever he appeared. No one besides Xiao Yan had ever seen him. How could Han Chen have discovered him through guesswork alone?
The only possible opportunity was this time, when he had saved Xiao Yan and left an opening for Han Chen to spot.
After all, though these two spiders looked tiny, they were genuine First-Rank Magical Beasts. With Xiao Yan's strength, he could not possibly have survived. Han Chen could then have used that detail to deduce Yao Lao's presence behind Xiao Yan.
But to Yao Lao's surprise, Han Chen leisurely shook his head.
"Actually, I discovered you on the second day."
"What?"
"What!"
Upon hearing Han Chen's words, Yao Lao tugged out several strands of his beard. Xiao Yan was even more stunned, unable to understand how he had exposed himself.
"It's simple. A man who had inexplicably been crippled for three years suddenly brimmed with confidence the day after his engagement was broken off. Not only did he shake off his dejection, he even went shopping with his girlfriend.
"On top of that, his strength advanced by leaps and bounds. In just two months, he returned to the Ninth Stage of Dou Qi. I think anyone who isn't an idiot could tell something fishy was going on."
Hearing that, Yao Lao still could not quite accept it.
"Just from that? Couldn't Xiao Yan's talent simply have returned all of a sudden? What if you'd guessed wrong?"
Han Chen shrugged indifferently at those words.
"An answer only has meaning when you make a choice. Rather than sitting around letting your thoughts run wild, you might as well act. If you're wrong, you're wrong. Just start over."
"Heh, heh, heh. A lesson well taken. After living all these years, I've actually been lectured by a child with milk still on his breath."
As he spoke, Yao Lao stroked his beard and looked at Han Chen with a hint of appreciation in his eyes.
"You're right. We did come for that Iron Fragment. That day, I probed it with my powerful soul power and discovered that something seemed to be hidden inside.
"We came today to buy that Iron Fragment. What would you like in exchange, young friend Han?"
Han Chen wasted no words either. He brushed a hand over his Storage Ring, and an Iron Fragment appeared in his hand. Without hesitation, he passed it to Yao Lao.
"This is the Iron Fragment. It contains a Mystic Tier Dou Technique called Suction Palm, a close-combat Dou Technique.
"By channeling energy through specific meridians, it generates a powerful suction in the palm, pulling an enemy right in front of you. Once mastered, it can even draw the blood out of someone's body from a distance."
Yao Lao took the Iron Fragment and examined it with his senses while holding it in his palm. Finding that it was indeed as Han Chen had described, he nodded to Xiao Yan.
"Wonderful! To think it's such a powerful Dou Technique. We've really struck gold this time.
"Right, Brother Han, what would you like in exchange?"
After receiving Yao Lao's confirmation, Xiao Yan clenched his fists in excitement.
"I don't need any payment. If you want it, I can simply give it to you. I just have one small proposal."
"Go ahead."
"You've just learned what Suction Palm does. Although its effect is good, its capabilities are limited. If it were paired with a Dou Technique that releases force outward, the pull and push together would more than double its power.
"But you both know my circumstances. When it comes to Dou Techniques, neither my access to them nor my collection can compare with yours.
"So, if you want to take Suction Palm, remember to let me have a look if you obtain a Dou Technique with the opposite effect in the future. How does that sound?"
Hearing Han Chen's request, Xiao Yan and Yao Lao exchanged a glance, both considering whether to agree. There did not seem to be anything wrong with this condition.
Han Chen had only said they could do it if they found one in the future. He had not insisted that they must find one.
After thinking it over, Yao Lao finally decided to agree. At worst, if they could not find one later, he could compensate Han Chen with another Dou Technique.
He considered himself to have a few things put away. When the time came, he could simply pick a few Earth-Tier Dou Techniques from his collection and let Han Chen choose one.
"All right. Rest assured, we'll start looking once we return. Even if we can't find one, we'll compensate you with another Dou Technique."
Seeing the matter settled, Han Chen immediately rubbed his hands together and looked at Yao Lao, a crafty merchant's smile on his face.
"Now that we've settled that, then..."
Before you continue