Chapter 595

Chapter 595: Witch Master

Following Tianxia’s establishment, Canglan Divine City was also renamed Eternal Emperor City under Yi Tianxing’s decree.

The national founding ceremony lasted a full fortnight. After hosts and guests toasted in celebration, the Celestial Lords departed one after another.

"Master, I shall go into seclusion."

Li Ruoyu stated solemnly.

"How long will you seclude yourself this time?" Ye Xu chuckled. The former Heavenly Emperor committed himself so fervently over an Emotional thread—love truly fuels motivation.

Li Ruoyu produced a damaged Celestial Lord treasure.

"System, exchange."

【Congratulations, Host. You have acquired 1.8 trillion Hongmeng points.】

Ye Xu’s eyes flickered meaningfully. "Though you once betrayed Old Yi, you’ve since cleared the air between you and him. For his sake, I’ll grant you a discount."

"Five million divine stones buys one year."

"I shall employ my Time and Space domain, where one day outside equals five years within. Your cultivation will span one year."

He’d have preferred Li Ruoyu perfected his cultivation in days.

Alas, the Time and Space domain allowed no such hastening.

Higher cultivation realms rendered temporal manipulation increasingly arduous.

"My gratitude, Master."

Ye Xu nodded. "Heaven’s Secret Pavilion holds profound mysteries. Whether you comprehend them and ascend further depends solely upon your insight."

Li Ruoyu stirred internally.

Ye Xu spoke truly.

Greater power unveiled deeper vistas of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s sublimity.

The jade steps, the Palace buildings—all pulsed with secrets of the Easy Dao.

"Proceed!"

Ye Xu swept his sleeve, instantly transporting Li Ruoyu into an isolated pocket dimension.

"Master."

Mu Fanyin strode into Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

"Gifts presented by the major sects."

Channeling her magic, she materialized one Celestial Lord treasure after another and immortal plants before Ye Xu’s eyes.

Joy radiated across Ye Xu’s face.

"Exchange."

Ding!

【Congratulations, Host. You have obtained 180 trillion Hongmeng points!】

"Still not enough…" Disappointment shadowed Ye Xu’s thoughts. Tianxia’s founding demanded vast expenditures—he couldn’t exhaustively drain its nascent treasury.

180,000 billion was by no means a small sum.

"But it doesn’t matter," Ye Xu thought. "Qin Huangluo and the Witch Clan haven’t shown up yet. I can still make another fortune from them."

"Wu Tianyue from the Witch Clan requests an audience with the Pavilion Master."

The voice arrived.

Ye Xu’s face brightened—speak of the devil.

"Please come in, Daoist friend."

The three walked slowly into Heaven’s Secret Pavilion—Wu Tianyue, Lin Qianmo, and a man at Great Celestial Sovereign level.

"Daoist Friend Lin, it’s been a long time. Congratulations on finding yourself an excellent master," Ye Xu said. "Xixi, serve tea quickly."

The little girl moved with practiced efficiency.

"Master, please no longer address me as Daoist friend. This junior dares not accept such familiarity," Lin Qianmo said nervously. Ye Xu’s reputation now thoroughly shook the yang realm; who hadn’t heard of his achievements? What qualifications did she possess to be called "Daoist friend" by an invincible being?

"You and I are old friends; there’s no need for such formality," Ye Xu chuckled. In terms of actual age? He still hadn’t reached thirty. In the cultivation world, thirty years old was no different from an infant.

Wu Tianyue looked on with surprise; the relationship between Ye Xu and Lin Qianmo was clearly unusual. She could hear genuine warmth, not mere politeness, in Ye Xu’s tone.

"Master, this is the Seven Ancestors of my clan," Wu Tianyue introduced him.

"I know," Ye Xu smiled, for he could see through their minds.

"Wu Qinyun of the Witch Clan pays his respects to the Pavilion Master," Wu Qinyun said with a bow.

"All three of you, please be seated." They sat down.

"Master, our purpose in coming is, I presume, quite clear to you," Wu Tianyue said solemnly. "The Dao Clan has excavated their ancestral land to help Luo Qianchen achieve Celestial Sovereignty. As one of the Three Ancient Clans, the Witch Clan cannot fall behind the Dao Clan."

A slow smile spread across Ye Xu’s lips. This was precisely the sentence he’d been waiting for.

Last time, the Dao Clan’s ancestral land only brought me 10,000 billion. This price can’t be any lower, Ye Xu thought. After the Dao Clan’s ancestral land incident and the founding of Tianxia, he realized he had severely underestimated the resources of these major powers. After all, any faction that survived through eight epochs had undoubtedly amassed colossal wealth—let alone the Three Ancient Clans?

"Master, Qin Huangluo requests an audience!"

At this very moment…

Another voice sounded.

Qin Huangluo strode into Heaven’s Secret Pavilion. Upon seeing Wu Tianyue and a few others, his expression froze momentarily but immediately became natural as he saluted Ye Xu by clasping his fists.

On his shoulder, the white swan’s eyes sparkled playfully, and it casually preened its feathers with its beak.

"Daoist friend Qin," Wu Qinyun said with a smile, saluting by clasping his hands. "It’s been many years, yet we reunite in Heaven’s Secret Pavilion."

"Daoist brother," Qin Huangluo returned the salute.

Ye Xu showed a faint smile.

Indeed, top cultivators were all old acquaintances.

Strength determined the circles.

"Are you all here to seek guidance from the Master?" Qin Huangluo asked.

Wu Qinyun nodded, his gaze shifting to the white swan. "After all these years, Daoist friend Qin, you still can’t let go of that obsession. Isn’t your visit to Heaven’s Secret Pavilion because of this?"

"Mmm," Qin Huangluo chuckled. "Since you came first, I’ll step aside for now."

Naturally, no one objected.

The matter concerning the Witch Clan’s ancestral land was weighty, and no one wanted to leak any news.

"Daoist friend, rest briefly in the back hall. After I complete this transaction, I’ll discuss it with you in detail," Ye Xu announced. As his words left his mouth, Qin Huangluo was delivered to the back hall of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

Once Qin Huangluo departed, Wu Qinyun cut to the chase.

"Master, I wonder how many divine stones are required for you to divine the whereabouts of the Witch Clan’s ancestral land?" Wu Qinyun inquired.

"System, check how many Hongmeng points are needed to discover the whereabouts of the Witch Clan’s ancestral land?" [Sixty trillion.]

The cost was identical to that for the Dao Clan’s ancestral land.

After thinking for a moment, Ye Xu stated, "Two hundred trillion divine stones."

"Deal!" Wu Qinyun declared without hesitation.

This time, they had come prepared.

Lin Qianmo appeared horrified.

"The Master made at least half a profit from this deal," Lin Qianmo mused internally.

Ye Xu sensed Lin Qianmo’s thought and felt rather sheepish.

A quarter of an hour later, Wu Qinyun presented a treasure.

"Exchange," Ye Xu commanded. [Congratulations, master, you have obtained two hundred trillion Hongmeng points.]

"Immediately inquire about the whereabouts of the Witch Clan’s ancestral land."

Ding!

Moments later.

A stream of information flooded into Ye Xu’s mind.

[The Xuanming Demon Region, the land of the Heaven’s Gap. The power of essence, the Witch Clan’s ancestral land.]

It was still sixteen characters.

However, for Witch Clan cultivators, as long as they could locate the land of the Heaven’s Gap, they could instinctively sense the ancestral land and thus open it. "This is the answer you seek."

Ye Xu flicked a finger, and a jade slip flew towards Wu Qinyun.

Wu Qinyun’s Divine Sense poured into it, absorbing the information. Profound joy surfaced at the corners of his eyes. "I, on behalf of the Witch Clan, kowtow to the Master in gratitude."

Wu Qinyun bowed deeply, his body nearly touching the ground.

After several epochs, the Witch Clan could finally discover the whereabouts of its ancestral land.

"You are too courteous, Daoist friend."

Ye Xu raised a hand lightly, an invisible force helping Wu Qinyun straighten up. He said mildly, "As long as you can afford the price, Heaven’s Secret Pavilion yields the information you desire."

"Daoist friends, don’t you still have one more question?"

Ye Xu asked with a light smile.

Wu Tianyue’s gaze turned sharp.

The smile on Wu Qinyun’s face gradually hardened, becoming grave.

"Master," Wu Qinyun spoke gravely, "could you perhaps invite the others to withdraw? This matter is of utmost importance to the Witch Clan; outsiders absolutely must not be privy to it."

"Xixi, Fanyin, please step aside for now." Ye Xu said.

A flicker passed through Mu Fanyin’s eyes; she faintly guessed the question the Witch Clan intended to ask. Xixi felt a slight disappointment.

Both turned and walked into the rear hall of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

"Daoist friend, speak now." Ye Xu prompted.

Wu Qinyun exhaled a mouthful of Turbid Energy, his expression serious. "As the world knows, the Three Ancient Clans each originated from the evolution of essence, energy, and spirit. Yet, since the first epoch, we have never laid eyes on the Witch Master."

"Therefore, our clan dispatched me to inquire after the Witch Master’s whereabouts. Please state your price, Master!"

The importance of this query surpassed even learning the ancestral land’s location.

It must be known: the Witch Master is the source of the Witch Clan. All Witch clansmen are derived from the Witch Master.

"System," Ye Xu solemnly inquired mentally, "how many Hongmeng points are required to query the Witch Master’s specific whereabouts?"

[Three hundred trillion Hongmeng points.]

"Three hundred trillion?"

Ye Xu startled inwardly.

It wasn’t due to the high cost, but precisely because the price seemed astonishingly cheap.

In his understanding, the masters of the Three Ancient Clans were among the mightiest existences prior to the creation of the heavens, undoubtedly top-tier experts of the Dao One realm.

Could the specific whereabouts of a Dao One powerhouse be worth only three hundred trillion Hongmeng points?