Heavenly Treasure Descends, Full of Traps; Immortal Fate is Elusive, Do Not Force It

After studying for a long time, Heng Hua finally reached out and pulled away the water weeds wrapped around the outside, scraping a bit of powder from the surface of the black substance.

The burly man almost made a move, but he suppressed the impulse and stared intently at Heng Hua's actions.

Money, this black powder might be money! No, I have to collect all these things later, I can't let him hide them.

Heng Hua studied it carefully for a while, then sniffed it under his nose, and his expression changed immediately.

"Hmph—what did I think it was!

"Isn't it just a piece of cuttlefish bone? It was wrapped around by water weeds and soaked in the thick ink accumulated inside for a hundred years. So, you can't see its origin at all.

"Take it to soak in clean water and refine it with True Essence under the moonlight for seven days, and its true form will be revealed. This thing is the bone of a Foundation Establishment Realm Water Demon, about three to five hundred years old. At most, because cuttlefish bone is rare, it can be sold for some money, around twenty Bright Moon Pearls.

"Of course, if you sell it as medicinal material. Processed cuttlefish bone might be more expensive. This thing should have drifted over from the East Sea Waters."

Cuttlefish bone, stops bleeding and astringes essence, can relieve pain. In the field of pills, it is often used to make secret medicines such as "Bone-Setting Powder," "Pain-Relief Powder," and "Essence-Restoring Pill."

Looking at his hands covered in black, Heng Hua looked disgusted and quickly got clean water to wash his hands.

"Cut—cuttlefish bone?" The burly man rushed over, roaring, "Are you mistaken?"

How, how could this be a cuttlefish bone?

"If you don't believe me, find someone else to appraise it."

Heng Hua was full of disgust. He thought he had just left the Spirit Island, with the luck of heaven on his side, and on the first day he would encounter some immortal destiny. In the end, it was just a piece of cuttlefish bone stained with ink.

"As for your third item, Fellow Daoist, you don't need to look carefully. It's just a Broken Jade Seal, nothing special."

In Heng Hua's judgment, this jade seal was shattered and fell into the water decades ago. It was only picked up by the burly man a few days ago.

It's also a useless thing.

"If you doubt my appraisal and think this thing has other mysteries, you might as well ask another expert to take a look."

The burly man refused to believe it, put away his three treasures, and turned to leave. He didn't continue to set up his stall and packed up all his things and left.

Hmph—

What kind of look is this? The Fu Family is nothing but hypocrites, trying to suppress my treasures to lower the price.

Seeing him leave in a huff, Heng Hua shook his head and recorded the matter.

Nie Xing, seeing the young man's demeanor, kindly advised, "Fellow Daoist, there's no need to worry. People like this are common. They always think they've found some rare and strange things, which must be thousand-year-old spirit treasures or ten-thousand-year-old divine artifacts. Don't mind it, they'll understand after hitting a few more walls."

Encountering immortal destiny is legendary in cultivator transactions. Even with thousands or tens of thousands of transactions, one might not encounter a single immortal destiny treasure.

"Thank you for your kindness, Fellow Daoist, I understand. It's just that... I'm worried he'll foolishly run to other places and run into the Wei Family or the Cheng Family. If they encounter him, and this Fellow Daoist puts on a 'I have a treasure' act. He might be beaten to death, and his useless items would be snatched away by the Wei Family or the Cheng Family as treasures."

Nie Xing was stunned and lowered his head to ponder.

To be honest, this could really happen.

At this moment, Heng Hua and Nie Xing looked up.

Xiang Feng sent out a spiritual wind, secretly warning the burly man to be careful of the Wei Family and the Cheng Family, and it would be best to go to Fengmen Island to have someone appraise it.

Fengmen Island is one of the largest islands in the east, and its Spirit Market is the largest in the east. At the same time, there are several Golden Core Cultivators stationed on the island.

"Fellow Daoist, you have a good temper, not minding this brute's rudeness."

Nie Xing saw this and sighed even more at the Fu Family's upbringing. As his master said, the descendants of Old Master Fu Danwei's lineage on Panlong Island are indeed kind and upright gentlemen.

Heng Hua was speechless when he saw it. Is his third brother's temper really that good? He even rushed to warn him? He had been traveling outside for so many years, and he hadn't been tricked?

Lu Xin saw the commotion from the shadows and ordered, "Go and see what the origin of those things in the burly man's hand is."

Qing Xi went to make arrangements and soon brought back the results.

"A piece of cuttlefish bone, a Ghost Snake Egg, and a piece of Scrap Treasure Tool."

"So, as the Fu Family disciple said?"

Qing Xi: "Not a bit off. Young Master, the Fu Family has always been fair in their prices and would never falsify these matters."

"Fair prices? The Fu Family is also a cultivation family. I don't believe they would really do something that disadvantages themselves. It's just that they haven't encountered a real treasure.

"If they encounter a treasure, they'll belittle it under the guise of appraising it, and then buy things that others don't recognize at a low price. Uncle, doesn't he often do that?"

Lu Xin shook the folding fan in his hand. The originally radiant folding fan was covered with a layer of dust, its brilliance dimmed.

With a gentle blow, the folding fan showed several notches, as if it were broken.

"Qing Xi, take this fan and have the Fu Family appraise it. See how much they are willing to pay for it."

"..."

Qing Xi's expression was hesitant, but unable to resist Lu Xin's urging, he had to take the "broken fan" to find Heng Hua for appraisal.

He left Lu Xin's side, and his hidden tracks were immediately exposed.

A gentle breeze carried his whereabouts to Xiang Feng and Heng Hua.

There are others on the island?

Xiang Feng stared at the approaching Qing Xi, secretly raising his guard.

Could it be that he was the mysterious person who dealt with the Fu Family just now?

Heng Hua looked at Qing Xi, then followed his gaze toward where Lu Xin and the others were.

But Lu Xin was carrying a secret treasure, and the two of them were hidden. Heng Hua looked from afar and only saw a patch of empty reef.

Seeing the young man staring at him at times, and then looking behind him at others, Qing Xi felt a knot in his stomach.

"Young master, I have a treasure here. Could you help me appraise it?"

As he spoke, he handed the dusty, trash-like folding fan to Heng Hua.

"Senior Brother, this thing just looks like a broken fan, doesn't it?"

Liu Xu packed up his stall and walked over to Nie Xing.

Nie Xing scanned it with his Divine Sense and nodded, "Indeed, I can't make out anything. It's probably just the remains of a Magic Treasure? But—"

Nie Xing had a faint feeling that something was off.

This broken folding fan was somewhat different from ordinary Treasure Tool remains. Could it be... could it be a fragment of a Spirit Tool?

The others had finished their transactions and, bored, gathered around Heng Hua.

Heng Hua was completely focused, staring at the broken folding fan for a long time, looking at Qing Xi, and then in the direction where Lu Xin and the other two were hidden.

Lu Xin smiled faintly. He raised his hand, about to shake the folding fan, when he suddenly remembered the fan was gone.

He clenched his right fist and placed it silently by his side, then coughed lightly, "Master Nangguo, what do you think?"

Nangguo Yannian said, "You've concealed the Spiritual Light of the Lingyun Fan, making the Spiritual Object hide itself. Normally, ordinary people wouldn't be able to detect it. But this young man has good eyesight and a superior appraisal technique, so he'll definitely notice something. I just don't know if he'll call it out."

After all, this was an undamaged Spirit Tool.

Let alone the Fu Family, even in the entire Yanlong Waters, Spirit Tools were mostly in the hands of Golden Core Cultivators.

Lu Xin nodded silently. He believed that with Fu Henghua's eyesight, he would absolutely see its true nature.

In the end, would he falsely claim it was the remains of a Magic Treasure and then buy it at a low price?

Heng Hua stared at the Lingyun Fan before him.

With his eyesight, he could naturally see the true nature hidden within the fan.

Seeing Qing Xi holding a Spirit Tool folding fan, Heng Hua muttered to himself.

He drove his Mind Monkey back to his room and cast a divination.

"Little brother, have you figured it out yet?" Qing Xi urged, seeing Heng Hua's long silence.

Heng Hua glanced in the direction of Lu Xin and the others in the distance.

Although he couldn't see through their traces, under the Heavenly Mystery Deduction, he vaguely guessed that someone was trying to make things difficult for him.

Since that was the case, he would teach them a lesson.

"Fellow Daoist, have you ever heard of 'Black Artifacts'?"

Qing Xi shook his head, "Never."

"Black Artifacts?" Mei Zhongtian asked curiously, "I know that Magic Treasures are divided into Magic Tools, Treasure Tools, Spirit Tools, and Immortal Tools. What are Black Artifacts?"

The other cultivators around them shook their heads.

They only knew of these four types of Magic Treasures. A Magic Tool condenses twelve Dao restrictions. When the thirteenth restriction is formed, it automatically upgrades to a Treasure Tool. When the twenty-fifth restriction is formed, a Treasure Tool automatically upgrades to a Spirit Tool. When the thirty-seventh restriction is formed, it becomes an Immortal Tool.

The path of advancement for the four grades of Magic Treasures was clear. What were Black Artifacts?

"Black Artifacts are not a grade of Magic Treasure, but a general term for a type of sinister Magic Treasure. I saw it in an ancient book.

"Legend has it that when the East Lai Ten Thousand Islands were still the Divine Land. A 'Evil Soul Cult' appeared in the cultivation world. Its leader controlled cultivators from major Immortal Sects and families with evil arts, stirring up a bloodbath. And their reliance was a Magic Treasure called the 'Amohei Mother-Child Yin-Yang Divine Stele.'

"The origin of the Divine Stele is unknown, as if it were a naturally formed object. The Evil Soul Daoist cut the stele stone and refined it into countless small black seals. Then, these small seals were disguised as Magic Treasures left behind by predecessors and scattered in cultivators' caves.

"When cultivators explored the caves and refined these small seals, a trace of their Divine Sense would follow the induction and automatically imprint their true name onto the stele."

As Heng Hua spoke, Nie Xing and the others were shocked.

Although they hadn't heard of "Black Artifacts," they understood basic cultivation common sense.

If their true name was imprinted on someone else's Magic Treasure, wouldn't their life and death be controlled by others?

Lu Xin looked at Nangguo Yannian, "Master, have you heard of such evil items?"

Nangguo Yannian said, "It is true. In the Divine Land Era, the scriptures of various sects warned of this. But after the continent sank, the heritage was scattered, and not many people know of this ancient event. I didn't expect..."

Heng Hua continued, "The book records that the Evil Soul Daoist used this evil art to trick many cultivators, treating them as slave puppets, and attacking one cultivator's mountain gate after another. In the end, he was jointly besieged by the great powers of the East Lai Divine Continent."

Qing Xi retorted, "Fellow Daoist, you think this is a Black Artifact? But this is not a stone seal, and its material has nothing to do with stone."

"Black Artifact is just a general term. Besides the original Black Artifact, the 'Mother-Child Yin-Yang Divine Stele,' there are also the Heavenly Devil Six Desires Beads, the Great Formless Divine Banner, and—

"The Evil Heart Demon Soul Banner."

Liu Xu suddenly interjected.

"Correct. The Blissful Elder's Evil Heart Demon Soul Banner is also one of them."

Everyone present was a cultivator from the Yanlong Waters. Except for Mei Zhongtian, who was new to the world, everyone, including Qing Xi, wore solemn expressions, and the atmosphere suddenly changed.

Qing Xi: "Fellow Daoist, do you mean my Magic Treasure is a 'Black Artifact' and needs to be destroyed as soon as possible?"

He felt a bit anxious and a little disappointed.

Have the Fu Family members also stooped to tricking others out of their Magic Treasures? I refuse to believe you can't tell this is a legitimate Magic Treasure.

Heng Hua nodded, then shook his head. "Fellow Daoist, do you know that besides 'Black Artifacts,' there is another category in the cultivation world called 'White Artifacts'?"

"What is that?" Mei Zhongtian spoke again.

Magic Treasure is a Magic Treasure, why so many messy names?

"Black Artifacts use Magic Treasures as traps to lure cultivators into handing over their True Names and souls. White Artifacts, on the other hand, hide the souls of previous cultivators within the Magic Treasure, waiting to perform Body Seizure when a junior cultivator refines it."

"Besides these two, there is another category called 'Gray Artifacts.' When a cultivator refines a Magic Treasure, the True Essence left by the previous owner contaminates their own Magical Power, leading to Qi Deviation or mutations. I once heard an example. A cultivator obtained a Flying Sword left by a predecessor. After refining it, the strange Magical Power within the Flying Sword eroded his entire body, causing octopus tentacles to grow on his skin."

Apart from 'Black Artifacts,' the other two categories were names Heng Hua made up on the spot. But those examples were not fabricated.

Indeed, some Magic Treasures harbored the Primordial Spirits of previous owners, specifically for Body Seizure of their successors. Some Magic Treasures also had flaws during their creation, which could affect their owners.

He deliberately mentioned the Eight-Treasure Chapter Divine Sword as well.

Upon hearing the name, Qing Xi's expression flickered.

"Eight-Treasure Chapter Divine Sword?" Nie Xing raised an eyebrow. "Fellow Daoist, are you referring to that widely publicized joke from three hundred years ago?"

The Eight-Treasure Chapter Divine Sword was forged by a Sword Immortal a thousand years ago.

Three hundred years ago, a cultivator found this set of Flying Swords in a predecessor's cave dwelling. In his delight, he did not inspect it and directly refined it with his heart's blood. Only later did he discover that the Chapter Divine Sword contained a demon seed.

The essence of this set of Flying Swords was to allow octopus tentacles to take root within one's body, thereby controlling the eight Flying Swords to fight enemies.

Although its power was immense, it would gradually transform the user into a half-human, half-demon monster over time.

However, it was too late. The cultivator could no longer undo the refinement of the Flying Swords. He had become a slave to the Flying Swords, with eight octopus tentacles growing on his back, and even his sanity began to blur.

"Yes, it is precisely the Eight-Treasure Chapter Divine Sword. That set of Spirit Tool Flying Swords is still kept at my home."

Heng Hua smiled. "Three hundred years ago, that cultivator was controlled by the octopus tentacles and went mad, becoming a demon. It was my family who subdued him, collected the Flying Swords, and allowed that person to recover."

"Fellow Daoist, why are you bringing up those old stories when discussing my Magic Treasure?" Qing Xi said impatiently. "You've said so much, but what does it have to do with my Folding Fan? Just tell me, what level is this fan, and can it be used?"

"I am warning you, Fellow Daoist, that a fortuitous encounter with an Immortal Tool might not be a good thing, but a fatal disaster. Your Magic Treasure's spiritual energy is restrained, and it appears dilapidated, but it is actually an undamaged Spirit Tool."

"But this Spirit Tool emits a special Divine Sense, clearly indicating it already has an owner."

"If you foolishly refine it, you might have your soul seized and become someone else's Puppet. You might also be taken over by the remnant soul of a powerful senior. Even more likely, the strange True Essence contained within the Folding Fan could contaminate your own Magical Power."

Growing octopus tentacles was considered a good outcome.

Heng Hua had read of a case in ancient books. A male cultivator obtained the Purple Cloud Heavenly Robe in an ancient immortal's cave dwelling. In his joy, he put it on. Although it possessed the defense of an Immortal Tool, the Yin-attribute Immortal True Essence contained within the Heavenly Robe directly reversed his gender, turning him into a female cultivator.

"Black Artifacts, White Artifacts, Gray Artifacts. The methods of setting traps in Magic Treasures to harm fellow cultivators are endless. If you have the means, try to avoid using Magic Treasures made by others, especially those of unknown origin."

No one wanted to refine a predecessor's Magic Treasure, only to end up becoming someone else's Puppet, a mere treasure slave.

"Of course, it's not to say that all predecessor Magic Treasures are unusable. Black Artifacts and White Artifacts can still be used if they are carefully inspected and properly purified."

At some point, Heng Hua produced a feather fan, and the surrounding temperature began to rise.

"Your Magic Treasure should be a Spirit Tool refined by someone, specifically sent to you as a trap. Since that is the case, I will do you a favor and purify the Divine Sense within it for free."

As flames ignited, Heng Hua activated the "Mysterious Fire Sparrow Feather Fan."

The Southern Bright Li Fire ignited the air, surrounding the Lingyun Fan.