Ye Qin sat in a corner of the main hall, listening for a good while, his brow furrowed. The Young Master of the Medicine King Sect hadn't mentioned the Medicine Convention at all; instead, he seemed oddly fascinated by the anomalies on the trading platform. He repeatedly bid enthusiastically, competing with others in the hall to acquire treasures, securing quite a few items like rare blades and secret manuals at exorbitant prices. Of course, while these treasures were fine for secular folk, they held little utility for cultivators.

Elder Huang emerged hurriedly from a side compartment, anxiously scanning the assembled guests in the main hall. Soon, guided by a gesture from a burly, uniformed man, his gaze landed on Ye Qin, seated in a secluded spot in the corner.

He was keen to approach immediately but suddenly paused, restraining himself. At this moment, the hall was filled with high-ranking elders and hall masters from major factions. As the Chief Grand Elder of the Treasure Sect, every minute movement he made was scrutinized. He absolutely did not wish for the leadership of other factions to witness any close dealings between him and the man in black.

The small treasure auction concluded about an hour later, with just over thirty rare items sold. The day had waned, the excitement had passed, and the guests gradually dispersed, leaving the third floor of the Yongfu Inn quiet once more. Only the dozens of muscular guards from the Treasure Sect remained, maintaining vigilance and security upstairs.

Elder Huang, having waited with mounting impatience, finally approached personally to respectfully invite Ye Qin, who had yet to depart, to his private chamber for a discussion.

Ye Qin considered it for a moment and agreed. The previous batch of Azure Jade Pendants and the remaining Azure Rock Fragments were nearly depleted. He had been contemplating finding one or two new Spirit Stones to nurture his Dew-Gathering Grass. Elder Huang of the Treasure Sect undoubtedly possessed an abundance of rare stones and treasures, making his location the most convenient and swift avenue for acquiring what he needed.

Deep within Elder Huang’s eyes, a flicker of smug satisfaction was hidden. If he could establish a long-term connection with this mysterious man in black and provide him with the required Spirit Stones, satisfying him in the process, his prospects of becoming the family’s agent would grow significantly, bringing him ever closer to the power held by the top ten factions of the Pingzhou martial world.

Elder Huang instructed his men to keep clear of the side compartments near the auction hall, to watch the surroundings vigilantly, and then enthusiastically ushered Ye Qin into his luxurious private room. Inside the chamber stood several heavy iron chests of varying sizes. Elder Huang placed one of the slightly smaller chests onto the table and opened it using three distinctly different iron keys he carried on his person.

Inside, a dazzling array greeted the eye: emeralds, pearls, agates, mutton-fat jade, cyan-white jade, green jade, yellow jade, ink jade, warm jade, cold jade—a spectacular array of at least two to three hundred different items. The value of a single chest of such jade alone was likely no less than a thousand Gold Leaves.

“Brother, ever since you mentioned needing more Spirit Stones and spirit herbs, I have been mindful. I specifically ordered my Treasure Sect disciples to collect them. The jades in this chest are all the rare stones my disciples have gathered from the sect over the last month or two. However, most of the spirit herbs are controlled by the Medicine King Sect; it’s difficult for our disciples to acquire them.

No one in the entire Zhuqi County can possess more rare and precious jades than I, Huang Jin-Hu. Please examine them and see if there is anything you require. Whatever meets your approval, feel free to select at will.”

Elder Huang gestured toward the jade within the chest, his face alight with proud assurance. Yet, beneath the pride, there was an almost imperceptible humility, and beneath the surface of his eyes lay a fierce ambition to unify the martial factions of Pingzhou. If he could realize this desire, he would gladly bow at Ye Qin’s feet and acknowledge him as a foster father.

Ye Qin nodded noncommittally, taking out the jade pieces from the box one by one to examine them closely.

Elder Huang grew slightly tense, watching Ye Qin’s expression, secretly hoping that Ye Qin would pick out one or two Spirit Stones. That would give him the opening to present certain requests, to see if he could serve Ye Qin ‘long-term.’ If not a single piece in the entire chest met the criteria, articulating his proposal would become exceedingly awkward.

In less than half an hour, Ye Qin had utilized his Spirit Sight technique to review all two to three hundred rare jades in the box. Finally, his gaze rested with surprise on a piece of uncarved white jade. He picked it up to scrutinize it.

Hmm. He recognized this white jade blank. It seemed to be the prized possession of the Chunyu Shop in Zhuqi County—a true Spirit Jade. How had it ended up in Elder Huang’s possession?

“My Treasure Sect disciples only found this white jade blank in the county seat a few days ago,” Elder Huang quickly explained. Seeing that Ye Qin had singled out one piece, he felt a huge wave of relief. This gave him a natural opportunity to push forward with some requests of his own.

Ye Qin tucked it away immediately. Regardless of how the Treasure Sect disciples acquired it, once a jade entered his possession, it would never be returned. “This one will do. How much? Or I can exchange it for a Heart-Clearing Pill.”

“Brother, I will not charge you a single coin for this piece. I have a small proposal: why don’t I, Huang Jin-Hu, dedicate myself in the future solely to collecting this type of spirit-infused jade for you and your family within the expanse of Pingzhou’s one prefecture and eight counties? If I mobilize the full power of the Treasure Sect to search, I am certain I can find an abundance of Spirit Stones for you, and you won't have to worry about shortages. What do you think of my suggestion?”

Elder Huang watched Ye Qin’s expression cautiously as he presented his proposal.

Ye Qin was mildly astonished.

What exactly was Elder Huang proposing?

Elder Huang’s tone was excessively deferential, almost sounding like a subordinate or a humble servant making a plea. Such a drastic shift in demeanor seemed too great a change.

Moreover, his phrase, ‘solely to collect this type of spirit-infused jade for him, and for his family’—what did that mean? Did Elder Huang assume he was a member of some Pingzhou family?

Thoughts raced through Ye Qin’s mind, and his gaze toward Elder Huang gradually turned icy.

Had this Elder Huang truly known other cultivators before? Old Ghost Nan Tianba once claimed that his family was the only cultivation lineage in all of Pingzhou. Of course, that was twenty years ago; the Nan Clan was likely wiped out by now. Determining which cultivation family currently controlled Pingzhou was difficult. Did Elder Huang know someone from the Nan Clan twenty years prior, or perhaps another cultivator who had appeared in Pingzhou over the last two decades?

Ye Qin fell silent.

The cold atmosphere carried a subtle undercurrent of killing intent.

“Elder Huang, what is the meaning of this? Not charging me a single coin—do you think I would just absorb your jade without compensation?”

Hearing this, Elder Huang panicked and quickly clarified: “No, no, this is merely a small token of my regard. I certainly do not assume you would take a Spirit Stone without exchange. I know your family’s customs; you would not accept Spirit Stones freely. We exchange; I will trade Spirit Stones with you.”

Elder Huang now felt almost certain that the man in black before him was a member of the mysterious family he had encountered twenty years ago. He absolutely refused to let this golden opportunity—to become that person’s agent—slip through his fingers, much less offend him.

Ye Qin waved a hand, interrupting him. “Those matters are irrelevant. I only ask you this: where did you learn about me and my family? Tell me everything you know, or else—harrumph—you will know the consequences!”

Ye Qin’s expression was grim as he spoke. This was no idle threat; he was genuinely contemplating silencing the elder.

The cultivation world outside of Zhuqi County was a complete mystery to Ye Qin, shrouded in fog. Furthermore, whether any other cultivators survived within the Nan Clan of Pingzhou remained uncertain. The existence of either the Nan Clan or any other cultivation family posed a potential threat to him.

If Elder Huang were to leak information, exposing the existence of a Qi Condensation Layer Three cultivator, and attract stronger experts—Qi Condensation Layers Four or Five—it could bring about his complete annihilation.

The brutality of the cultivation world, where the strong preyed on the weak, was evident even in Nan Tianba’s case. Nan Tianba, at Qi Condensation Layer Five, was killed by a stronger cultivator from the Feng family, causing his realm to drop to Layer Four, and then Nan Tianba had engaged in a fierce battle with him within the Purple Mansion.

All of this kept Ye Qin’s mind in a state of high alert, compelling him to proceed with extreme caution.

Therefore, if Elder Huang could not provide a satisfactory answer, Ye Qin would have no choice but to eliminate this potential threat. Killing Elder Huang, at his current level, would be as simple as lifting a hand—a single Wind Binding Spell would suffice.