Although Xiao Yan's appearance seemed gentle, Su Qian wasn't naive enough to believe that someone who had made such a bloody name for himself in the Black-Corner Region in just a year could be a harmless person. For a figure like this to suddenly show up at Jia Nan Academy, it was obvious he had an agenda—perhaps even for the Academy's Heavenly Flame.
"Hehe, I've come to Jia Nan Academy mainly to make a deal with Elder Su Qian," Xiao Yan said with a soft smile.
"What kind of deal?" Su Qian kept a calm expression, but his wariness heightened. Behind his back, Dou Qi surged rapidly into his palm. The moment Xiao Yan showed even the slightest hostility, Su Qian was ready to strike. With his Dou Zong strength and the many Elders in the Inner Academy, catching Xiao Yan by surprise would not be too difficult—at least, that's what he believed.
"Elder Su Qian likely knows I'm a high-tier alchemist. I've heard your academy stores many rare medicinal ingredients, so I came to see whether I could trade for some. I'll offer pills of equal value or Dou Techniques in exchange," said Xiao Yan, cupping his fists politely.
"Eh?" Su Qian was momentarily taken aback. Not just him, even the nearby Elders looked at Xiao Yan with strange expressions. This newly risen overlord of the Black-Corner Region came all the way here… just to trade for some herbs? That was a little too far-fetched.
"What's wrong? Elder Su Qian, are you unwilling to trade?" Xiao Yan continued smiling as if nothing were amiss.
"What ingredients are you looking for?" Su Qian furrowed his brows slightly. The more polite Xiao Yan appeared, the more cautious he became. Anyone who could rise to power in the Black-Corner Region had to be vicious and cunning. Dealing with them meant always staying on guard.
As for the excuse about herbs—it wasn't entirely unreasonable. Still, Su Qian didn't believe Xiao Yan would travel all this way just for such a minor matter. With his status and resources, collecting herbs shouldn't be that difficult. In truth, Xiao Yan did have other motives.
"The list is too long. Just explaining it would take an hour," Xiao Yan shook his head. He wasn't lying this time. To continue refining seventh-tier pills, the herbs he needed were practically innumerable.
"Old man, are you going to agree or not? We're waiting here!" Zi Yan, seeing Su Qian still deep in thought, urged impatiently. Then she leaned over to Xiao Yan and whispered, "Don't worry. If he says no, I'll sneak you in later. Take however much you want."
"You little ingrate. You've barely left and already turned against me." Though Zi Yan's voice was quiet, Su Qian heard it loud and clear. Her blatant betrayal made his mustache twitch with frustration, but in the end, he could only shake his head and sigh. "Fine. Those herbs aren't critical to the Inner Academy. If you're really willing to exchange equivalent items, then it's not a problem."
Jia Nan Academy had been around for a long time, and their collection was extensive. The mountain range they were situated in rivaled even the Magic Beast Mountain Range in scale. The spiritual herbs and rare plants within were countless. Zi Yan had often snuck into those mountains to find snacks.
However, the number of high-tier magic beasts in the mountains wasn't small either, and even Zi Yan often had to flee for her life. She didn't like staying in the mountains for long, which was why she often raided the Academy's herb stores instead.
"Xiao Yan, once we finish at the herb warehouse, let's go into the deep mountains. There's tons of good stuff in there. Like that giant monkey—last time it beat me up bad. I want revenge. I'll peel its skin and make shoes out of it!" Zi Yan said excitedly, leaning in beside him.
"Monkey-skin shoes? Aren't you worried about monkey hair poking your feet?" Xiao Yan rolled his eyes. "And besides, you're a girl. Don't be so violent. It may be a magic beast, but it's still a living creature. Peeling its skin is way too savage. Let's be merciful—just catch it and eat its brain."
"Alright, I'll listen to you," Zi Yan replied sweetly.
Su Qian, leading the way ahead of them, felt as if a herd of alpacas had just stampeded through his mind. 'What the hell… the first part sounded like a decent human being, but the second part just went completely off track! She's only been following him for a year and already turned into a little demon. Another year or two and she'll be eating people alive…'
The herb warehouse at Jia Nan Academy was vastly larger than the Xiao Sect's humble vault. Of course, that was understandable. The Xiao Sect's vault was mostly Hai Bodong's private stash. Xiao Yan never had the habit of hoarding herbs—he usually kept everything with him in his ring.
"Elder Su Qian, do you have an inventory list?" Xiao Yan asked, looking at the countless counters crafted from jade. He really didn't want to browse them one by one—too much trouble.
Su Qian chuckled. It looked like the amount Xiao Yan wanted wasn't small. He quickly ordered someone to fetch a scroll and handed it to Xiao Yan. "Please take your time."
"Thanks." Xiao Yan nodded, unrolling the scroll. He scanned it quickly, circled a few items, and handed it back. "Elder Su Qian, I've made my selection."
"Already?" Su Qian blinked in surprise. He looked at the circles Xiao Yan had drawn and frowned. These weren't even particularly rare herbs—most could be found in the Black-Corner Region. Did Xiao Yan really come here just for this? Or was he using it as an excuse to infiltrate the academy?
"You only want these?"
"I want all the others too," Xiao Yan said calmly. Then, with a light flick of his finger against his spatial ring, hundreds upon hundreds of jade bottles appeared, completely filling the room.
Even Su Qian was stunned by the sight. He took a sharp breath.
"There are over twelve hundred pills here—around a thousand of them are Tier-4, more than two hundred are Tier-5, and several dozen are Tier-6. Would that be enough to trade for everything I circled?" Xiao Yan asked, his tone casual.
(End of Chapter)
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