Upon seeing the middle-aged man, Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows shot up slightly.
The middle-aged man was actually a Sempiternal realm consummation cultivator just like him.
“It’s finally time for a rest…”
“I really should take this resting time to brush up on my knowledge in preparation for tomorrow!”
“These artifacts are simply too difficult to appraise…”
…
Hearing that it was finally rest time, the crowd subconsciously heaved a sigh of relief. Gradually, silent mutterings began sounding here and there.
The artifacts on display in the room were progressively getting more and more difficult to appraise. Even though the crowd that had gathered were all the top-notch appraisers of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, they were already starting to feel the limits of their knowledge.
This rest time had really come at a timely moment. Even though it was called ‘rest time’, chances were that most of the appraiser would take the opportunity to read some reference books to ensure greater accuracy in their appraisals. Otherwise, they might just lose their heads after appraising one of the artifacts inaccurately.
“Everyone, this way please!”
Following which, dozens of guards dressed in monotonous black armor stepped forward. Each of them was assigned an appraiser to escort back to their living quarters, including Zhang Xuan.
Even though Zhang Xuan had many doubts in his mind at the moment, he knew that posing his questions would draw unnecessary attention to himself, so he chose to keep silent. Following quietly behind the guard, he maneuvered through corridor after corridor.
Soon, he arrived before a room. It seemed like each of the appraisers was assigned a room.
“You aren’t allowed to visit or interact with one another. If you wish to access any reading material, you can make a request through me. If the palace has the reading material that you require, I’ll bring it over to your room. Similarly, if you wish to cultivate or recuperate from your fatigue, you can request medicinal herbs or pills from me as well,” the guard instructed as he opened the door to the room for Zhang Xuan.
“I understand!” Zhang Xuan nodded as he entered the room.
There was an isolation formation within the room that prevented him from using any Communication Jade Token. It seemed like they were really determined to stop any possible communication among the appraisers.
The moment that they started to exchange insights, the prices determined by each of the appraisers would become more similar to one another. If so, it would be hard to accurately gauge the true price of the artifacts.
Jiya!
The door creaked to a close as Zhang Xuan took a seat.
The silent chamber was not too big, spanning roughly forty square meters. Nevertheless, whatever one would typically require could all be found in the room, be it water, a table, chairs, or a bed. There were Spirit Gathering Formations fueled by pinnacle spirit stones set up within the room, supplying ample spiritual energy to those residing within. No matter how exhausted a person was, they would be able to recover to their full strength just by spending a short period of time within the room.
This is a good opportunity for me to look into the whereabouts of the dragon blood! Zhang Xuan thought as he took a seat on the floor.
Taking a deep breath, his Primordial Spirit slipped out of his body from his glabella.
The reason that he had gone to the trouble of getting there was not to serve as an appraiser for Sovereign Chen Ling but to find dragon blood in order to undo the seal on the Dragonbone Divine Spear. Since he had some free time to kill, it went without saying that it was an ideal chance for him to do some scouting.
His Primordial Spirit floated quietly in the room for a moment before discreetly heading out. As he tried to pass through the door, he suddenly felt a force pushing him back.
This formation actually hinders the passageway of souls! Zhang Xuan widened his eyes in astonishment.
Soul oracles had long vanished from the face of the Master Teacher Continent, resulting in the Master Teacher Pavilion and many other major powers neglecting to set up defenses against souls. However, the soul oracle occupation was still very much existent among the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe,
As a result, most major powers in the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would still erect anti-soul oracle barriers to prevent them from snooping into their affairs.
If he attempted to forcefully barge through the barrier, it might bring him greater trouble.
Eye of Insight!
Through his sharp gaze, Zhang Xuan swiftly found openings in the formation that he could slip through with ease.
Hu!
A slight crack opened between the doors as he slipped out silently.
“This is where you’ll stay for the night…”
Along the corridor, the black-armored guards were still settling the appraisers into their accommodations.
Zhang Xuan stuck close to the wall as he swiftly flitted away from the area.
As his Primordial Spirit had reached Sempiternal realm consummation as well, it was simply too easy for him to hide himself from those guards.
Leaving the accommodation, Zhang Xuan began to wander around the area. Considering that he was in Sovereign Chen Ling’s palace, he dared not fly too high. It was not that he was afraid of the defensive formations that were around the area, but he knew that it was likely that there would be Ancient Sages lurking within the perimeter. If he was noticed by one of them, he would be in deep trouble.
The palaces of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe are unlike those of the Master Teacher Pavilions. Perhaps landscaping isn’t an occupation here, so they pay little heed to geography, fortune, and the sort. Nevertheless, through their runic inscriptions and formations, their palaces are practically no different from impregnable fortresses. Even with the severe injuries that Sovereign Chen Ling has sustained, as long he chooses to hole himself up in his palace, it would be nigh impossible for Sovereign Chen Yong and the others to corner him and take his life! Zhang Xuan thought as he swiftly mapped out the palace in his mind.
On the Master Teacher Pavilion, it was convention to look for a land that was blessed by natural forces. This way, one would be able to make use of the surrounding geography to gather spiritual energy in the area.
Such a convention was not shared by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. What they did instead was inscribe their runes on the walls and floors. Despite not tapping into the geographical advantages of the land, they were still able to fill their living areas with spiritual energy, thus creating an environment suitable for cultivation.
Despite the striking similarities between the two, there was a vast difference in the outcome. The former gathered spiritual energy without harming the environment, thus laying the foundation for sustainable, long-term development. On the other hand, the latter devoured spiritual energy from the land, caring little about the life and death of others sharing the environment.
Perhaps, this could also be a mark of the differences between Otherworldly Demons and mankind.
“I don’t sense dragon blood anywhere…”
By now, Zhang Xuan had already roamed around the palace for hours, having been to nearly every nook and cranny of Sovereign Chen Ling’s palace. Yet, he could not find any trace of dragon blood. In fact, even the Dragonscale Grass that Ancient Sage Hao Xun had mentioned previously was nowhere to be seen.
Thinking back, the news that Ancient Sage Hao Xun knew of was three thousand years old, so was it possible that… the Blood Lake containing the dragon blood had already ceased to exist?
All that’s left is that building…
After flying for a moment longer, Zhang Xuan set his sights on the final location—Sovereign Chen Ling’s sleeping chambers.
Due to the aura of Ancient Sages lingering in the area, he had not dared enter the premises.
Since he had not sensed the presence of dragon blood anywhere else, if the Blood Lake was truly still existent, that was the only place left where it could be.
Regardless of whether there are Ancient Sages there or not, I’ll have to drop by and take a look… Zhang Xuan took a deep breath and resolved himself.
From the moment that he chose to infiltrate Sovereign Chen Ling’s palace, he had already known that he would face great danger in his undertaking. Without a doubt, sneaking into Sovereign Chen Ling’s sleeping chambers was an extremely risky action, but he could not give up without at least giving it a try.
Thus, he reduced his presence to the bare minimum before activating his Eye of Insight to take a closer look at the sleeping chambers not too far away.
The entire building was shrouded by a unique seal that would swiftly detect any intruders attempting to snoop in, including soul oracles.
Knowing the dangers involved, Zhang Xuan did not rush to make any reckless moves. Instead, he bided his time for an opportune moment to strike. He hid himself in the midst of a massive tree and reined in his aura.
With his Soul Depth reaching a level comparable to Ancient Sages, he was already able to remain impervious regardless of the happenings around him. Since there was a good chance that he would be noticed if he tried to breach the seal, he chose to hold back his anxiety and forced himself to patiently wait.
As long as someone resided in the living chamber, there were bound to be people entering and leaving it. That would create the opportunity required for him to move in and out.
After waiting for nearly an hour, a voice finally sounded behind him. “How are the appraisers we have recruited this time around?”
Slowly turning his gaze over, Zhang Xuan saw the Sempiternal realm consummation middle-aged man whom he had met at the hall earlier walking behind an elder. The two of them were heading in the direction of the sleeping chamber.
The elder had reined his aura into his body, making it difficult to gauge the depth of his strength. However, the tremendous pressure that he exerted through his eyes felt as if he could see through any disguise and concealment with a glance.
“An Ancient Sage?” Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes.
There was no doubt about it. The elder had to be an Ancient Sage cultivator.
As expected of Sovereign Chen Ling’s sleeping chamber, it was indeed guarded by the cream of the crop.
Knowing the prowess of the elder before him, Zhang Xuan dared not move. Hiding amid the massive tree, he held his breath tightly and forced himself to remain completely stationary. He was afraid that he would unintentionally give away a clue that would reveal his presence.
“There are some appraisers who are nearly done appraising all of the artifacts, but they are still uncertain about the values of some of the artifacts.” The middle-aged man sighed. “It’s regrettable, but the appraisers of our Spirit Tribe are simply too lacking in comparison to those of the Master Teacher Continent!”
