Chapter 232

Chapter 232: Secret Realm Ranking

"Master, are… are you alright?" Yang Xuanzhan inquired.

Formerly, Ye Xu had sat high above on the divine seat, seeming to hold all things within his grasp—nothing in the world could daunt him. Yet now, his brows were knotted with worry, as if confronted by a troubling problem.

"I’m contemplating how to increase Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s business volume," Ye Xu answered wearily.

Business volume?

Yang Xuanzhan and Ye Xian’er exchanged blank glances, utterly failing to grasp his words.

"Are you troubled about Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s lackluster sales lately, Senior?" Ye Xian’er suggested cleverly, having swiftly caught his meaning upon a moment’s thought.

Recently, the most significant transaction had been the deal concerning the Seven-Treasure Mystic Forest.

Beyond that, only Great Emperor Ziwei had contributed a meager sum.

Having cultivated to the peak of True Immortal Realm, Ye Xu had exhausted all fourteen million heavenly secrets points, leaving him utterly penniless.

"Ye Xian’er truly is clever," Ye Xu replied with a bitter laugh.

After pondering, Ye Xian’er proposed, "I’ve visited markets run by rogue cultivators before. They frequently hold auctions. Senior possesses numerous treasures—why not use them for auction?"

Ye Xu sank slowly into his grand armchair, deep in thought.

An auction was indeed a potential solution. However, destitute as he presently was, how could he conduct one?

He could act as a middleman instead, demanding commissions. Given Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s reputation and trustworthiness, cultivators would likely flock to request auction services.

"Yang Xuanzhan, you shall coordinate the auction matter with the City Lord of Linglong. Accomplish this, and substantial rewards await you," Ye Xu commanded.

Even mere morsels held value—Ye Xu wouldn’t let any slip away.

"As you command."

Receiving the instruction, Yang Xuanzhan departed at once for the City Lord’s residence.

"The power rankings generated negligible income. Continuing them is unwarranted for now," Ye Xu reflected, his expression contemplative. "Though rankings for weapons and techniques could succeed."

"Perhaps even a listing for naturally formed treasures and rare materials."

This thought instantly enlightened him.

What was Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s most valuable asset?

Information, without a doubt!

So long as sufficient treasures flowed in, the Pavilion could unveil every secret under heaven. Ye Xu intended to leverage this foundation, spawning supplementary lists.

Consider crafting a Talented Individuals and Rare Treasures List—an inventory of the world’s scarcest valuables would surely lure cultivators to their doorstep.

"Perhaps even publishing a Secret Realm Ranking."

Ye Xu’s eyes gradually brightened.

Within all realms existed countless secret domains. The Seven-Treasure Mystic Forest itself was the heritage of the human ancestor—a priceless legacy.

Cataloging these realms by value into a Secret Realm Ranking stood to yield an astronomical sum of heavenly secrets points.

Consider: merely one Seven-Treasure Mystic Forest had earned Ye Xu over a hundred million points.

Moreover, equipped with his Second Primordial Spirit Avatar, he could dispatch this very avatar to verify and exploit the intelligence of any reported secret realm—securing essentially free pickings.

This deal was all about gaining something for nothing.

Ye Xu grew increasingly excited the more he thought about it.

Ye Xian’er couldn’t understand why Ye Xu, a reclusive great master, was so fixated on mundane things.

"Is doing business really that interesting?" Ye Xian’er murmured.

"Ahem…" Ye Xu coughed and lectured, "Little girl, you’re still young and don’t grasp my thoughts."

"This isn’t just about doing business? I’m realizing my personal and social worth, helping more people fulfill their wishes."

"???"

Ye Xian’er was riddled with confusion, tilting her head to look at Ye Xu with a naive, adorable expression.

"System, to list the Secret Realms from all realms, does it cost heavenly secrets points?" Ye Xu inquired the system.

"If no information is obtained, it doesn’t require spending heavenly secrets points."

Ye Xu smiled contentedly.

"List them immediately."

The next second, a flood of information surged into Ye Xu’s mind.

It was a collection of Secret Realm names.

Before long, he organized them into a ranking list.

He activated his magic power, and the Great Dao of creation manifested a bronze divine tablet, with lines of text arranged neatly upon it, one after another, filling over a hundred rows.

Ye Xian’er leaned in for a closer look, and the first row of text had only four characters.

Pangu’s Daoist Temple!

"Elder, who is Pangu?" Ye Xian’er asked, frowning. She knew her universe had been created but didn’t know the divine being’s name from the creation of the heavens.

"He is the one who created this universe," Ye Xu said solemnly.

"So, his Daoist Temple would be the source of all laws?" Ye Xian’er’s eyes lit up.

Ye Xu gave her a light knock on the head and said, "With your current strength, even if I let you enter Pangu’s Daoist Temple, you couldn’t withstand a single trace of its aura."

Ye Xian’er stuck out her tongue and put away such thoughts.

"System, to obtain all information about Pangu’s Daoist Temple, how many heavenly secrets points are needed?" Ye Xu asked.

"One hundred billion heavenly secrets points."

"Puh!"

Ye Xu, who was sipping tea, spat out a mouthful, his expression turning intensely animated.

One hundred billion heavenly secrets points—that was truly too demanding for him.

The world was vast, but probably no one owned treasures worth one hundred billion heavenly secrets points.

His gaze fell on the last row, the one hundredth-ranked Ancient City of a Thousand Stars, and he asked, "To get all information about the Ancient City of a Thousand Stars, how many heavenly secrets points are needed?"

"One million."

Ye Xu breathed a sigh of relief. The Ancient City of a Thousand Stars should be an ordinary ruin, of Emperor Venerable level. Even at this level, it shouldn’t pose a problem for Emperor Venerables from the lower realms.

On this list, for example, Pangu’s Daoist Temple was a Secret Realm that existed before the creation of the heavens, with extraordinary significance.

Ranked second was Haotian Realm. Ye Xu didn’t know its origin, but it also had an immense background.

These Secret Realms either involved secrets of the creation of the heavens or concerned Innate Divine Beings. They existed before the formation of the Immortal Realm, so they were extremely expensive.

"Even one million heavenly secrets points is a huge fortune for an ordinary Emperor Venerable." Ye Xu frowned slightly.

An Emperor Venerable’s treasure cost around five hundred thousand heavenly secrets points.

One million heavenly secrets points was the price of two Emperor Venerable’s treasures.

For an ordinary Emperor Venerable, possessing one Emperor Venerable’s treasure was already a great achievement.

Two Emperor Venerable’s treasures would require all their family assets; few were willing to offer it.

"The prices of these Secret Realms are too high. A single Emperor Venerable or even a true immortal might not be able to afford it."

Ye Xu’s mind raced quickly.

"Got it!"

Ye Xu’s eyes lit up.

Since a single Emperor Venerable or true immortal couldn’t handle it, then two, three… ten could!

They could use the method of crowdfunding!

Ye Xu couldn’t help but feel a bit smug.

"Starting today, with the release of the Secret Realm Ranking, my purse will begin to swell." Ye Xu had already pictured the scene in the future when his place would be bustling with business.

"Is Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land also on it?"

As Ye Xu scanned down, he suddenly spotted the four characters: Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land.

This was the place where Great Emperor Ziwei’s master, Gu Daojin, was trapped, and it was the Innate Divine Dao venue.

"Brother Gu, this time, I’ll have to rely on you."

Ye Xu already had an idea.

"Go!"

With a thought, the bronze divine tablet flew out of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion and landed on the central square of Linglong City. The bronze divine tablet quickly grew, with immortal light enveloping the heavens and earth, and the sound of the Dao faintly resounding.

In an instant, the bronze divine tablet grew into a colossal pillar reaching the sky, attracting countless gazes.

"What is that thing?"

Countless cultivators watched in shock the suddenly appeared bronze divine tablet, each showing bewildered expressions.

"Pangu’s Daoist Temple?"

"Haotian Realm?"

"Heaven Deficiency Forbidden Land?"

"These names, how come they sound like the names of Secret Realms?"

An Emperor Venerable exclaimed in amazement.

"This is most likely another move by Heaven’s Secret Pavilion." Someone guessed the origin of the bronze divine tablet.

Boom!

At this moment, a voice came from Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, saying, "This is the Secret Realm Ranking, recording various Secret Realms in all realms. As long as one meets the requirements of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, they can exchange for information about these Secret Realms."

"Produced by Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, fair and honest."

Wow!

Everyone was boiling with excitement.

"Secret Realm Ranking?"

"The Secret Realms that can make it onto this list must be extraordinary."

"I’ve seen that Ancient City of a Thousand Stars in a historical record. It seems to have existed in the ancient Human Emperor Era, yet it’s only ranked one hundredth. One can imagine the immense fortune hidden in these Secret Realms."

Countless cultivators were deeply shocked.

This list moved hearts far more than the Hidden Dragon List or the Great Emperor Golden List.

Treasure is the one eternal topic that all cultivators pursue.