The city was truly enormous, so vast that it was almost impossible to walk through it all. An ordinary person might spend a lifetime walking and still never reach its end.
The three wandered at leisure, encountering outstanding talents from all quarters and all manner of novel sights along the way. Their spirits rose ever higher.
"Hahaha! This old man has counted on his fingers and divined that you young friends share a destined connection with me."
A voice came from behind them, and all three instinctively turned.
An old man in coarse hemp robes approached, a hint of a crafty grin on his face.
"I have all sorts of divine treasures and rare marvels here, all from the uninhabited regions. Among them are ancient treasure weapons and supreme divine arts."
The old man had a ruddy complexion and an upturned mouth. With his hands clasped behind his back, he really did look somewhat like a lofty expert beyond worldly affairs.
"That face doesn't look like it belongs to a good person." Before he could even reach them, Xi Yue's abrupt remark darkened his expression.
The old man put on a stern face and pointed at himself, declaring solemnly, "You are mistaken, young friend. With bearing like mine, I am clearly a mighty expert of the righteous path."
Xi Yue looked him over, then nodded. "Indeed, you don't look like one."
The old man immediately beamed. "Haha, I knew this young friend had-"
"You look more like a charlatan." Before he could finish, Xi Yue cut him off.
His face darkened again. Then his eyes shifted, and he put on another faint smile, unwilling to dwell on the subject.
"Take a look, young friend. This magical sword was forged from dark immortal gold. It was the weapon of a Supreme in ancient times. Who knows how much enemy blood it has drunk? Its might could shake the heavens."
He produced a Black Long Sword with a broken tip. It was dull and dusty, with several runes engraved on its blade, though most were shattered and incomplete.
"Hey, it's that old swindler again! He's actually shown up again, and now he's cornered a few fairies."
"Pah! An ancient Supreme's weapon? That broken sword would struggle to pass for a Venerable's weapon."
"How disgraceful. He couldn't fool us, so now he's trying to swindle these fairies. An old man with no dignity and not a shred of shame."
Several people approached from a distance, pointing at the old man and commenting.
But what storms and towering waves had the old man not weathered? This little scene was nothing to him. It could not stir even the slightest ripple in his emotions.
Seeing that Xi Yue and the others remained unmoved, he hurriedly added, "You young friends are all fairies of the Nine Heavens, destined to become Supremes. With a divine weapon like this to aid you, dominating an entire era and suppressing the Nine Heavens will be no trouble at all!"
"Oh? An ancient Supreme's weapon? What evidence do you have?" Yao Yue grew a little interested, the corners of her lips lifting into a smile.
"Well... haha, look here, young friend. This broken... magical sword keeps its divine radiance concealed, its aura deep and steady. How formidable is that? This is clearly the bearing that only a legendary Supreme artifact could display."
At those words, the surroundings erupted.
"Hey, old swindler, how can you spin such wild tales? You're holding a piece of scrap metal and calling it a Supreme's divine weapon!"
"Exactly. By your reasoning, my wine flask is an immortal artifact too. It's merely gathered dust and fallen into the mortal realm."
Everyone chimed in, filling the area with a noisy clamor.
Even Lan Xian could no longer keep a straight face. She burst into laughter, like a spring breeze sweeping past and melting everything in its path.
That smile, like one belonging to a fairy banished from heaven, instantly drew countless gazes filled with enchantment.
"Hmph! What do you little brats know? You have eyes but cannot see, sitting atop a mountain of treasure without knowing it. You'll regret it someday."
As more and more spectators gathered, even the old man began to panic a little. He immediately bared his teeth and scolded them.
He produced several more items, all pitch-black and covered in rust, then launched into another dazzling torrent of extravagant descriptions.
Black Tortoise Armor Scales, Primordial Treasure Bones, chaos stone, and more spilled from his mouth. He had truly cast aside every scrap of shame.
The onlookers were both annoyed and amused, but none intervened. They simply watched him as a joke.
Suddenly, Xi Yue's sea of consciousness trembled. The Bronze Ancient Pagoda stirred, seeming somewhat excited.
"There really is something extraordinary here." She gave a soft exclamation, her interest piqued.
The last time the pagoda had stirred was during her journey to the Phoenix Nest. That time, it had brought her a whole pool of phoenix blood and a Phoenix Feather.
To this day, she still did not know the pagoda's true purpose.
Aside from nourishing her body, it would react whenever it encountered divine objects.
Could this be the proper way to use it? How is this any different from a treasure-seeking mouse? Doubt crept into her mind.
Stop just trembling! Give me a hint!
Xi Yue was rather speechless. The thing kept trembling in her sea of consciousness, yet it did not awaken on its own as it had last time.
Unexpectedly, the little pagoda seemed to hear her. It abandoned its aloofness and offered a faint thread of guidance.
She looked toward a hammer-shaped treasure weapon. Pitch-black all over, it exuded a faint air of antiquity. Cracks covered its surface, half its handle had broken off, and a corner of its head was missing.
"You have a keen eye, young friend. This Warhammer was the weapon of a great lightning cultivator from the Immortal Ancient era. It might contain the supreme inheritance of the Thunder Emperor Precious Technique!"
The old man's eyes gleamed. Seeing her interest in the hammer, he immediately spoke up.
"Pfft." At the sight of his emphatic, self-assured manner, someone could not help snickering.
"I say, old swindler, at least make up a convincing story! How could a broken hammer possibly have anything to do with the Thunder Emperor?"
"Exactly! The Thunder Emperor ranked among the Ten Fiends and was said to patrol and administer judgment on heaven's behalf. He was an immortal being of his era, unrivaled in the world. How could his precious technique be so easy to obtain?"
The old man ignored them, smiling at Xi Yue, though his expression looked rather sleazy.
"Look, look! That old swindler's lecherous gaze! I bet he has wicked designs on this fairy. Not content with coveting wealth, he's lusting after beauty too. What a shameless old thing!"
Someone who witnessed the scene immediately called out, darkening the old man's face once more.
They could call him greedy, but lustful? That was utterly unfounded, and he would never admit to it.
He glanced at the girl before him. She was indeed an exceptional beauty. Although she still looked somewhat young, that could not conceal her grace.
But he withdrew his gaze after that single glance. If he kept staring, he really might cement the accusation. He had no desire to shoulder a fabricated charge.
"You're quite an interesting old fellow. Fine, I'll take this hammer. Bringing it home as a decoration wouldn't be bad." Xi Yue smiled as she spoke.
Shrewd as the old man was, he immediately sensed something unusual.
The hammer really had come from the uninhabited regions; that much was no lie.
But he had no idea what it was actually used for.
Now it seemed that the hammer truly had some extraordinary origin or quality. Otherwise, the girl before him would not have taken a fancy to it.
As for Xi Yue's claim that she was buying it as a decoration, he did not believe a single word. Who was she trying to fool?
"Haha, certainly, certainly." He stroked his beard and spoke slowly.
"As it happens, we do share a destined connection, young friend. How about this? One Half-Saint Medicine. Consider it a way to forge a favorable bond between us. I'll take a little loss. What do you say?" As he spoke, he deliberately rubbed his chest, putting on a heartbroken expression.
A Half-Saint Medicine was certainly valuable, but it probably amounted to little for the girl before him.
He had his own calculations as well. He had not named an outrageous price, so if the hammer truly had an extraordinary origin, he could at least earn some goodwill.
Xi Yue inwardly cursed the old fox, but ultimately nodded in agreement.
With his goal achieved, the old man vanished in a flash, concealing both his deeds and his name.