Immortality begins with Becoming an Alchemy Grandmaster

Chapter 1684: Chapter 619: Honored Guest Arrives, Daoist Feeds the Dragon

”How dare he!”

Inside a Spirit Qi-filled cave mansion, Huangfu Song smashed the teacup in his hand, his face full of fury.

A mere lower-grade defense magic item, how could it dare to be priced at fifty thousand Spirit Stones? Do they truly think the cultivators in the Immortal Cultivation World are fools?

Minister Gui, who was reporting the news beside him, showed a helpless expression.

He could roughly understand what had enraged Huangfu Song.

Back then, losing his nerve in front of Demon King Qingyang had been Huangfu Song’s greatest humiliation. Even though he often comforted himself with the notion that ”true men can endure humiliation for success,” his constant attention to Qingyang Demon King’s movements revealed that he had not truly let the matter go.

Now that Demon King Qingyang had reforged a second defense magic item, it meant that his success was no mere accident.

Such treasures had a substantial market value, and their prices consistently remained high.

With this, the financial resources of Demon King Qingyang would become vast and continuous, making Huangfu Song’s plan to wait for Qingyang’s funds to deplete and force him to relinquish the Penghu lease completely pointless.

This combination of factors triggered Huangfu Song’s current outburst.

Minister Gui spoke in a shrill tone: ”Master, some matters must be let go if we are not to delay our own larger goals.”

Huangfu Song glared at him sideways, ”And why should I let it go? Truly think I’m inferior to him? That time, we were in his field of operation where he had spent years setting up his formation, which gave him an advantage, while we were constrained on all fronts. In a different setting, who knows who would prevail!”

”A wise man stays out of treacherous circumstances. There’s no need to risk everything.”

”Hmph, don’t I still have you all? Besides, Zi Hou herself promised me once, during my utmost pleading, that she would intervene for me one time.”

”Ahem, Master, I’ve heard that Zi Hou recently sent a visitation letter to Penghu.”

Huangfu Song froze.

The act of sending a visitation letter without preemptive conflict meant only one thing: a deliberate attempt to build camaraderie with Qingyang Demon King.

Upon realizing this, Huangfu Song’s face grew increasingly distorted.

”That shameless woman...”

It’s merely about crafting defense magic items—does there need to be such disgraceful pandering?

...

In Longyuan Immortal City.

Outside Qingyang Store.

Moyun Cave Lord paced about for a long time before finally making up his mind.

”This old man must see for himself the quality of the magic item you’ve crafted. Even if it costs fifty thousand Spirit Stones, I’ll pay the price.”

A subordinate, puzzled, asked why Qingyang Zi had set such an exorbitant price.

In response, Moyun Cave Lord sneered.

”He’s displaying it as the store’s flagship treasure. Naturally, the price must be set high. Fifty thousand—Foundation Establishment cultivators can’t afford it, and even some newly advanced Golden Core beings would find their resources tight. Only seasoned Golden Core cultivators with years of experience can shell out that kind of Spirit Stone, but such individuals have long acquired suitable protective treasures over the course of their cultivation. Why would they abandon close-at-hand options to seek distant offerings?”

The subordinate suddenly understood.

No wonder a lower-grade defense magic item was priced so high yet not excessively so.

The price hit a precise sweet spot, both discouraging impulse buyers and avoiding outright insulting their intelligence.

But now, with their Cave Lord purchasing the treasure for inspection, the so-called flagship treasure wasn’t going to remain in place for long before being taken away.

Moyun Cave Lord strode forward, shoving aside the bustling crowd, and entered Qingyang Store.

Behind him, people who had come out of curiosity recognized him immediately, calling out his identity on the spot.

In an instant, the crowd buzzed with chatter.

Even the famed Tool Casting Master of the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering, Moyun Cave Lord, had come in person—was this a tacit acknowledgment of Master Qingyang Zi’s tool-crafting skill?

Could it be that Master Qingyang Zi had reached a level comparable to Moyun Cave Lord?

Unbothered by the flurry of conversation behind him, Moyun Cave Lord walked straight up to the counter.

Turning to the elegant woman behind it, he asked, ”Where is that Minghuang Rock Armor?”

Wen Xiu recognized his status, feeling slightly nervous internally while trying her best to maintain a demeanor of composure and humility.

”Ascendant Master, I’m afraid the treasure cannot yet be shown to you.”

”Hm?” Moyun Cave Lord furrowed his brow.

Before he could get angry, Wen Xiu hurriedly explained, ”A buyer is currently upstairs in discussions with my husband, so we’ll need...”

”Hmph, I’d like to see who dares compete with me for this treasure!”

Moyun Cave Lord flung his sleeves and ascended the stairs in great strides.

Wen Xiu followed closely behind.

Thud, thud, thud...

As Moyun Cave Lord stepped into the VIP room, a light chuckle greeted him.

”Daoist Mo Yun, it’s just a lower-grade magic item—why the grand display? Would you consider letting it go for Huo this time?”

”Huo Fang!”

Seeing the calm and smiling middle-aged Daoist, Moyun Cave Lord called out in shock.

It was none other than Huo Fang, the deputy city lord of Longyuan Immortal City.

”Don’t you already possess a medium-grade defense magic item, the Yutian Ring? Why would you...”

Before finishing his sentence, he realized something.

”You’re purchasing this for Wu Zhong Valley, aren’t you?”

Huo Fang nodded with a serene smile, exuding composure, as if unafraid that anyone might bid against him.

Moyun Cave Lord’s thoughts grew conflicted.

Huo Fang, though deputy city lord of Longyuan Immortal City, wasn’t an attached subordinate under True Master Longyuan, nor ranked among independent cultivators like Fishing Elder or Zi Hou from the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering.

He hailed from Wu Zhong Valley!

It was widely known that while the Ten Thousand Immortals Gathering claimed to be a holy land for independent cultivators, it wasn’t entirely pure in its composition.

Apart from the Three Great Independent Cultivators and Nine-Star Demon Hunters under True Master Longyuan’s ascension, there were also three other Nascent Soul True Masters.

Those individuals had their own forces behind them.

The Tianqu Chen Family, Coral Sea Zhou Family, and a sect by the name of Wu Zhong Valley.

This Huo Fang was from Wu Zhong Valley, not only holding the position of deputy city master in Longyuan but also serving as the third disciple of Wu Zhong Valley’s Master Yu Ling and doubling as its transmitting elder.