Chapter 164: The Mysterious Cultivator

Everyone was guessing just who Chen Mu could possibly be. They felt the most likely candidates were figures from the Minghuan Chamber of Commerce or the Alchemist Association. Yet, how could someone with the authority to mobilize such reserves of medicinal herbs possibly come to attend a trading assembly meant for the Nascent Soul realm? Could it truly be that some ancient monster surpassing the Divine Transformation realm had snuck in among them?

Among all the cultivators present, the one most anxious and sitting on pins and needles was none other than Mo Shuchen. This was because he knew the cultivator who had produced the two fourth-tier blood-essence herbs was Chen Mu. After all, the robe and mask Chen Mu wore belonged to him.

Even though those garments had their appearance altered through their intrinsic magical functions, the spiritual resonance between them and Mo Shuchen had never faded, seeing as they were his own magical artifacts.

He had not expected Chen Mu to be so staggeringly wealthy. First, he had brought out a fifth-tier Soul-Dream Luohua flower, and now, for a second time, he had produced two fourth-tier blood-essence herbs. If the Minghuan Chamber of Commerce itself did not lack these three herbs, Mo Shuchen would have even begun to suspect that Chen Mu had secretly pilfered them from the chamber's stores.

Although the herbs produced this second time were one grade lower than the first, such successive displays of valuable herbs had already caused many people to set their sights on Chen Mu. It was evident that Chen Mu had far more than just these herbs and certainly possessed even greater reserves.

Possessing such a vast stockpile of medicinal herbs convinced Mo Shuchen of Chen Mu's identity: he was undoubtedly a scion of a secluded family. Not even the four supreme powers possessed such lavish wealth at the Core Formation realm; how could anyone casually produce three fourth-tier or even fifth-tier herbs?

Chen Mu was entirely unaware of Mo Shuchen's increasingly profound misunderstandings. The medicinal herbs he used had simply been obtained by scavenging a portion of the spirit herb garden within Daoist Fuchen's grotto-heaven. Prior to this, Chen Mu had truly been impoverished—his liquid assets reduced to nothing but medicinal herbs and those Core Formation and Nascent Soul realm magical artifacts he had put up for sale, all of which were items that could not be openly displayed.

Chen Mu's magnificent display of wealth had given Jiang Ying a completely new perspective on him. Originally, he had felt that he could no longer make any headway in researching that talisman. In fact, he had once spoken of the matter to his father, Jiang Weiming, but Jiang Weiming had been unable to discover anything unusual about it. Instead, Jiang Weiming had suspected that it was merely a little trick Jiang Ying had conjured up simply to get his busy father to spend more time with him.

Jiang Ying had felt helpless; after all, Jiang Weiming was constantly occupied with family affairs and rarely accompanied his son. Knowing his father felt a sense of guilt, Jiang Ying understood why he had been viewed in that light.

Yet, Jiang Ying was far more resilient than Jiang Weiming imagined. He possessed his own ambitions and was not attached to such familial affection or paternal bonds. His goal, much like the dreams of most cultivators, was to become a supreme powerhouse and an absolute existence between heaven and earth. Thus, his arduous cultivation was not for the sake of his father's praise or commendation, but so that he would one day possess the strength to dictate everything.

Nevertheless, although Jiang Weiming believed that his son Jiang Ying was only acting out to demand more companionship, he did not expose the matter. Instead, he genuinely carved out time to spend several days bonding as father and son with Jiang Ying.

The intelligent Jiang Ying had easily perceived his father's inner thoughts. He smiled wryly to himself, realizing that while his father treated him well, it betrayed a fundamental lack of trust. Yet this could hardly be blamed on Jiang Weiming. After all, that talisman looked utterly ordinary and bore no resemblance to a treasure of miraculous power. Had he not witnessed with his own eyes how that stone statue treated the talisman with dread, even he might not have believed it himself.

Regrettably, the talisman was simply too plain and ordinary, and he had been unable to fathom its secrets. Having spent two years failing to comprehend its mysteries, he had grown disheartened, which was why he had finally decided to bring it out in exchange for blood-essence herbs capable of healing his internal injuries.

However, the fact that Chen Mu was willing to offer two blood-essence herbs in exchange left Jiang Ying feeling uncertain and suspicious. Could it be that this Chen Mu knew the origins of the talisman? At this thought, Jiang Ying's mind raced, though he kept his expression completely calm on the surface.

Meanwhile, that other mysterious cultivator competing with Chen Mu also furrowed his brows. Clearly, he had not expected someone to beat him to the punch in offering blood-essence herbs for the trade, and to make matters worse, two of them at once.

With a cold snort, this mysterious cultivator brushed his storage ring and produced three fourth-tier blood-essence herbs, handing them over to Jiang Ying.

At this sight, the crowd fell silent for a moment before erupting into dozens of staggered gasps of astonishment. No one had expected the other mysterious cultivator to be equally lavish, directly placing three blood-essence herbs before them and instantly drawing all the gazes previously fixed on Chen Mu onto himself.

Jiang Ying was utterly shocked. He had never imagined that this other person would have the capability to compete with Chen Mu. Such an action could only signify one thing: this person definitely knew the origins and utility of the talisman. It was highly likely that both of them knew, which was why one sought to suppress the other with a higher price, while the other countered with an even heftier offer.

Jiang Ying, who had previously given up hope on the talisman, felt his interest reignited once more. However, those blood-essence herbs had to be acquired, and this nameless talisman could not be let go either. Therefore, maintaining a placid expression, Jiang Ying prepared to complete the transaction first, after which he would mobilize the Jiang family to investigate and track both of these individuals. Whether through polite acquisition or forceful seizure, he was determined to uncover the identities of these two men and take back the talisman.

Chen Mu was also somewhat surprised. Even after he had produced two fourth-tier blood-essence herbs, that mysterious cultivator still possessed the confidence and willingness to continue bidding? This indicated that unless the fellow had lost his mind, he most likely also knew the true origin of the talisman.

Chen Mu felt deeply vexed. According to Rou'er's descriptions, across the entire Azure Firmament Continent, there were likely very few who could recognize this Five Elements Seal-Breaking Talisman, yet he just happened to run into one. What was even more bizarre was that this person was a Nascent Soul realm cultivator under sixty years of age.

Therefore, Chen Mu could be certain that this man was either a direct descendant of the four supreme powers or a core scion of a secluded family.

Just as Jiang Ying was about to take the three herbs from the mysterious person's hands, Chen Mu interrupted his outstretched hand with a decisive action. Chen Mu added two more herbs to his stack, bringing the total to four fourth-tier spiritual blood-essence herbs.

The crowd had grown entirely numb. Just how many spiritual herbs of heaven and earth did these two men possess? Were their families running a herb garden? Those cultivators who had previously suspected Chen Mu of belonging to the Minghuan Chamber of Commerce instantly discarded the notion. Even the elders of the chamber would not dare to squander resources in such a heaven-defying manner, let alone someone at the Nascent Soul realm.

They could now be certain that these two individuals undoubtedly hailed from supreme powers or secluded families; otherwise, it would be impossible for mere Nascent Soul realm cultivators to possess such terrifying financial backing.

Jiang Ying was dumbfounded. These two men were truly extravagant! Bidding by the pairs of herbs as though these fourth-tier herbs were worthless cabbages? Regaining his composure, Jiang Ying felt an endless surge of greed and jealousy. As the young master of a major influential family, even he did not possess such resources—by what right did these two?

Jiang Ying had grown frantic, completely overlooking the root of the problem: namely, that these two might well originate from factions far greater than his own.

Whether that mysterious person belonged to a secluded family, he did not know, but he was well aware of Chen Mu's background. Chen Mu was simply a poor kid from a backward continent, and all his wealth had been earned through risking his own life. How could he possibly be the descendant of some great power?

Meanwhile, upon realizing that his competitor was likely from a secluded family, Chen Mu's heart grew uneasy, and he began to doubt whether his own chips were sufficient to continue the contest.

The mysterious cultivator was clearly angered by Chen Mu's counter-offer. Using a voice altered by a secret technique that rendered his gender indistinguishable, he spoke up: "May I ask which family the Daoist friend belongs to? Since we both hail from the same background, let us lay our cards on the table. What will it take for Daoist friend to yield this talisman to me?"

The same background? Clearly, this mysterious cultivator had also mistaken Chen Mu for someone of equal status and standing. The mention of a "family" spoke volumes. Although there were countless large and small influential families, the only ones capable of enabling a Nascent Soul realm cultivator—a cultivation realm not particularly high in the grand scheme of the Azure Firmament Continent—to casually produce such immense wealth were the secluded families.

Thus, Chen Mu could be entirely certain that this person definitely belonged to a secluded family. His heart grew intensely solemn; he had to handle this person from a secluded family with the utmost care. After all, these were the pinnacle-tier powers of the Azure Firmament Continent, and a single misstep could plunge him into eternal damnation.

Nonetheless, Chen Mu did not show any panic on the surface, maintaining his detached and indifferent demeanor. He replied in a similarly hoarse voice: "Since we both know we come from the same background, what is the point of asking about origins? Since you are competing with me, you must have learned of this talisman's information from within your own family. Do you really expect me to just hand it over to you? If you want it, let our financial strength speak and see the true measure of our capabilities."

The mysterious cultivator furrowed his brow. Indeed, what Chen Mu said made sense. Since both parties knew the origin and value of the talisman, why should one side back down? Thus, the cultivator said no more and continued rummaging through his storage ring.

Chen Mu broke out in a cold sweat. He had only been bluffing, but he had never expected to actually flush something out. This fellow truly hailed from a secluded family and undoubtedly knew the origin of the Five Elements Seal-Breaking Talisman, for the moment Chen Mu spoke, the man did not refute it.

Hearing the exchange between the two, the crowd finally grasped the situation. It was now certain that both individuals hailed from secluded families. Everyone present was filled with apprehension and dread toward Chen Mu and the mysterious man. The fact that such legendary existences had appeared right before their eyes was deeply terrifying.

After all, members of secluded families almost never walked the mortal world. When they did interact with cultivators of the surface-level powers of the Azure Firmament Continent, they always concealed their true identities.

Apart from the outer-tier personnel sent to procure supplies and intelligence agents scouting the continent, the only scions of these secluded families who ventured into the mortal realm were young disciples undergoing training to experience the deceit and malice of worldly human hearts.

Clearly, this mysterious cultivator lacked worldly experience and had inadvertently exposed his identity, letting everyone know he was a scion of a secluded family.

No matter how foolish Jiang Ying was, and no matter how blinded he had been by greed, he now understood the mysterious cultivator's identity, and factored Chen Mu into the same category.

Internal conflict raged within him. He, a scion of a second-tier family, could not afford to provoke someone from a secluded family. Even figures of first-tier strength like Wanshen were no match for secluded families.

Panic overwhelmed him. Did he really have no choice but to give up this nameless talisman? There was no way he could take it back now; once it was targeted by someone from a secluded family, how could he possibly reclaim it?

Furthermore, both of these men clearly possessed knowledge concerning the talisman, meaning they were both locked in a fierce competition with a determination to secure it at all costs.