Hearing Xiao Ming's words, Xiao Yan and Xiao Siyu exchanged glances, then followed him without hesitation, heading straight into the depths of the hall.
As they approached the last closed gate, a voluptuous woman in a red dress appeared out of nowhere. Upon seeing Xiao Ming, who was at the head of the group, she immediately bowed respectfully and said:
"So you're Senior Xiao. May I ask if you're here for the exchange meeting?"
As the woman's seductive voice rang out, her alluring gaze swept over Xiao Yan and his companion behind them. When it passed over Xiao Yan, her eyes flickered slightly, sending a shiver down his spine.
Ignoring the beautiful woman's subtle movements, Xiao Ming flicked his sleeve, casually tossing out three pills, and coldly said:
"Open the door."
The beautiful woman quickly caught the three pills in her hand, glanced at them briefly, and then waved her hand to put them into her Storage Ring. Then, with a giggle, she swayed her alluring body and stepped forward, gently pressing her jade hand against the door. After a burst of white light, a passage emitting a faint glow appeared out of thin air.
"Senior Xiao, please come in!"
The beautiful woman respectfully invited him in, and Xiao Ming, without saying a word, stepped inside. Xiao Yan, following behind, gave the beautiful woman a deep look before whispering to Xiao Siyu beside him after entering the passage:
"Three seventh-grade pills! This place is definitely not one that ordinary people are qualified to enter!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Siyu nodded awkwardly. Even though she was from a prominent family, she was still surprised by the price of the ticket. No wonder Xiao Ming, with his strength, couldn't bring Mu Leng and the other person in.
After passing through the dimly lit passage, the three found themselves in a circular hall surrounded by large, raised seats with a few people scattered around. On a slightly lower platform in the center, many items were displayed.
As the people at the seats began exchanging items, Xiao Yan and his two companions looked around. They were now standing at their seats, and the surroundings were relatively spacious. They exchanged glances and then decisively sat down on the armchairs next to them. As Xiao Ming sat down, he flicked his finger, and a wisp of light quickly spread around the three of them, transforming into a soundproof barrier.
Immediately, the three looked in the direction of the movement. A wooden box and a scroll on either side of the stone platform were flying in opposite directions. They were then collected by two figures. One of them seemed quite satisfied and let out a laugh. Then he slammed his palm down and smashed the chair beneath him. As the chair shattered, his figure quietly disappeared from the hall.
No one present made a sound at the sudden appearance of Xiao Yan and his group, as if they were already used to it. They simply stared at the many ornaments on the platform, their eyes filled with fervent desire.
"A piece of skin from Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad Beast!"
As Xiao Yan was curiously observing, a stream of green light suddenly shot out from the opposite seat, landing on the platform and transforming into a large, uneven, and rather ugly animal hide, about ten feet wide.
"Wow... it's actually the hide of Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad!"
"This thing is extremely rare. The Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad hides beneath the earth's veins, and even an ordinary Yuan Zun would have to go to great lengths to capture it."
"Hehe, if I obtain this item, I'll surely have a fighting chance at the Pill Gathering..."
Upon seeing the animal hide, a chorus of surprised exclamations arose from the crowd. The alchemists present were particularly delighted, their eyes lighting up as they stared intently at the hide, their expressions filled with joy. This included Xiao Yan and Xiao Siyu, of course.
It is clear that this item is indeed extremely precious.
"The entire Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad is a treasure used to refine high-grade pills. Now that the Pill Gathering approaching, someone is actually willing to exchange this item!"
With his gaze constantly scrutinizing the animal hides on the platform, Xiao Yan couldn't help but speak with a fanatical expression.
Although the Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad is not one of the essential ingredients for the Creation Pill, it can be used to neutralize the medicinal power of any kind of pill, providing considerable auxiliary effects. Even for eighth-grade pills, the addition of this animal hide should increase the success rate by nearly 10%!
Don't underestimate this 10% chance. Countless brilliant alchemy masters have ultimately failed because of this seemingly small success rate.
If this substance could be used at the Pill Gathering, when all the cauldrons were opened simultaneously, it would give it an edge over others when used in medicine. Wouldn't that be an incredible opportunity?
Although Xiao Yan was interested, and Xiao Siyu was equally fond of the item, in the end, the Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad Beast was exchanged for by a tall, thin middle-aged man.
After several rounds, the items that were originally on the platform had been changed several times. Xiao Yan and his group could roughly understand that if they took a fancy to an item on the platform, they could simply offer something of equal value or exchange it for a high-grade pill. Once someone took a fancy to an item, unless they voluntarily gave it up or the owner refused, no one else was allowed to interfere.
This, however, gave everyone a chance to leave with a full load.
In the past hour or two, Xiao Yan had managed to acquire several pill formulas, but he had not encountered any rare items like the Spiny-Scaled Poison Toad Beast.
As the items on the platform emptied once more, an elderly man dressed in white slowly appeared in the center of the platform. He directed the newlyweds to take out the items they wished to exchange. Immediately afterward, several streams of light shot from all the seats, hovered briefly above the platform, and then transformed into several ornaments, which landed on it.
"That... that... could that be... Rebirth Pill? An eighth-grade pill!"
" Vein-Expanding Stone!"
Upon seeing a gray-black gemstone with multiple facets on the platform, all the Yuan Zun experts present narrowed their eyes and exclaimed in surprise.
Exclamations of surprise echoed continuously, indicating that the items appearing on the platform this time had truly stirred the emotions of many.
"Hehe, I didn't expect Grandmaster Xuankong to be so generous, actually offering the Magic Core of Eighth-Rank Magical Beast. I'm quite tempted myself."
Above the platform, the elderly man presiding over the event glanced at a jet-black Magic Core on the platform, then looked at an elderly man sitting cross-legged in mid-air in the seats, and said as if jokingly.
Upon hearing this, everyone in the room was startled, followed by an uncontrollable commotion.
This item is arguably the most valuable thing that appeared on the field!
Eighth-Rank Magical Beast are terrifying beings, equivalent to human Yuan Zun level experts. This Magic Core is an extremely rare treasure for both alchemists and the Yuan Zun present.
However, Xiao Yan's gaze swept across the platform once more, and none of the items on it truly captured his heart. Even the eighth-order Magic Core was far less rare than that of the Giant Rock Horned Rhino Beast.
Once all the items on the platform were in place, Xiao Yan pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the decorations once more. At such a gathering, it would be difficult to obtain what he desired from ordinary items...
Just as the white-robed elder was about to command the exchange to begin, Xiao Yan flicked his finger, and a stream of light shot out. A Storage Ring flashed above the platform, followed by a torrential downpour of fiery red light that poured down on the platform. A dozen seconds later, the contents of the ring piled up into a small mountain, leaving everyone present astonished.
The pile of fiery red ornaments that formed a small mountain was actually made up of sections of Fire Banyan Branch. Judging from the size of this small mountain, it probably didn't even amount to half the size of all the other items piled up together!
Putting his Storage Ring back in, Xiao Yan straightened up slightly in his chair, then said calmly:
"I only wish to exchange these Fire Banyan Branch for one medicinal herb. If any of you can satisfy me, I will offer all of these Fire Banyan Branch."
"Medicinal herbs!"
"Choose only one?"
Xiao Yan's words surprised everyone present. However, they were not ordinary people, so although they were surprised, they were not too surprised. Instead, they were all aroused with curiosity. What kind of medicinal material was worth exchanging such a large pile of Fire Banyan Branch for?
"If any of my friends have any Rock Rhino Horn Marrow, regardless of its quality, I will exchange it with them."
" Rock Rhino Horn Marrow!"
Upon hearing this, everyone present gasped in shock, their expressions changing drastically. After all, finding even one of those nearly extinct high-grade medicinal herbs on the continent today was simply a pipe dream!
After the initial shock, a deathly silence followed. Seeing this, Xiao Yan frowned and looked at the white-robed elder presiding over the exchange. Since the elder was presiding over the meeting, he must know far more information than others. However, the elder shook his head slightly with regret at Xiao Yan's hopeful gaze.
Upon seeing this scene, Xiao Yan did not hide the disappointment on his face and let out a deep sigh.
But just then, from a corner of the field, a slightly hesitant voice suddenly rang out.
"We don't have Rock Rhino Horn Marrow, but we wonder if we could exchange it for the corpse of Giant Rock Horned Rhino Beast?"
"A corpse?"
The words struck the silent room like a thunderclap, causing Xiao Yan had just lowered his head, to suddenly raise it, and a glimmer of hope instantly returned to his eyes.