In Sincere Gold Firm, Baiguo City.
Shi Liangjin carefully put away the painting.
He was excited and agitated.
Householder Qing Lian's painting was definitely worth more than 6,666 taels of gold, and he was certain that he would be able to sell it for at least 10,000 taels of gold.
There would be no problem doubling the price.
Hardcore fans of Householder Qing Lian might even offer a higher price. In any case, he wouldn't be at a loss.
As for Daoist Tai Hua and Su Changyu, the two of them walked out of the shop in a trance with the banknotes in hand.
It was 6,666 taels of gold.
It was a massive amount of money for the Qingyun Dao Sect.
It would take the entire Qingyun Dao Sect several hundred years to earn that much money.
The sudden windfall put Daoist Tai Hua and Su Changyu at a loss for what to do.
They didn't even know what to do next.
"Sect Leader, what do we do next?"
Su Changyu was a little dumbfounded.
"We'll pay off the debts before going to Secret Yuan Pavilion."
Daoist Tai Hua snapped back to his senses and immediately sorted out his thoughts.
"Secret Yuan Pavilion?"
Su Changyu was a little surprised.
The Secret Yuan Pavilion was a renowned store in Baiguo City which specialized in selling some secret manuals and Dharma artifacts. Usually, even the third-grade sects rarely patronized the Secret Yuan Pavilion.
"Your little Junior Brother earned this money for the Qingyun Dao Sect. I plan to buy him some secret manuals and supplements to nourish his body. Since he's a genius, we will do our best to nurture and groom him. After all, he is the hope of the Qingyun Dao Sect now."
"We might have to rely on him to be promoted all the way to a first-grade sect in the future."
Daoist Tai Hua's words left Su Changyu in awe as he was amazed at his wisdom and wits.
Soon, Daoist Tai Hua made a trip to the Sect Administrative Bureau and heartbreakingly paid a sum of 100 taels of gold. He then took Su Changyu to Secret Yuan Pavilion.
After the time it took an for incense stick to burn out, Daoist Tai Hua and Su Changyu arrived outside the Secret Yuan Pavilion.
The Secret Yuan Pavilion had an opulent and luxurious decor. There were two jade-carved stone lions sitting outside the entrance, making the shop look affluent and ostentatious at all times.
"Exalted Immortals, please come in."
Inside the Secret Yuan Pavilion, a pretty waitress dressed in green took the initiative to greet Daoist Tai Hua and Su Changyu warmly. Her attitude was excellent as she didn't show any snobbery at all.
Daoist Tai Hua entered, followed by Su Changyu.
"Exalted Immortals, is this your first time here at the Secret Yuan Pavilion?"
The waitress in green asked with a faint smile as she served them some tea, following behind them.
"Yes, it's our first time here."
Daoist Tai Hua was experienced and had seen enough to remain composed at this moment. Although Su Changyu panicked a little deep down, he stayed calm on the surface.
"Exalted Immortals, would you like to buy a Dharma artifact or a secret manual?"
The waitress in green continued to ask.
"Secret manual."
Daoist Tai Hua instructed.
He didn't need any Dharma artifacts or weapons for the time being. At present, secret manuals were what he needed most.
After all, they would easily let the cat out of the bag if they let Su Changyu continue to fool Ye Ping.
"Sure, Exalted Immortals. Please follow me up to the second floor."
The waitress in green led them upstairs to the second floor.
"What type of secret manual do you need, Exalted Immortal?"
The lady in green asked.
"First-grade Sword Dao secret manual."
Daoist Tai Hua replied generously.
The beautiful eyes of the lady in green lit up when she heard that he wanted a first-grade secret manual.
The secret manuals of techniques had a detailed division and were divided into levels: ungraded, third-grade, second-grade, first-grade, and transcendent-grade. Those above the transcendent-grade would be secret manuals of another level which only Nascent Souls could cultivate.
A first-grade Sword Dao secret manual would be worth at least more than 100,000 inferior-grade Spirit Stones. It was a major deal.
"Please serve the Exalted Immortals with some superior-class tea."
The waitress in green shot a hinting glance at a few maids and instructed them to replace the tea.
However, Daoist Tai Hua continued, "I just want a rudimentary secret manual."
He definitely wouldn't be able to afford a complete first-grade Sword Dao secret manual, but he just needed the rudimentary edition. Since Ye Ping could comprehend the complete Four Thunder Sword Techniques from a sword mark, it proved that Ye Ping had extraordinary talent so why would he need a complete volume?
"No need for the replacement."
After being stunned, the waitress in green winked at the maids again and told them not to replace the tea.
For rudimentary Sword Dao secret manuals, even a first-grade edition wouldn't be worth many Spirit Stones. The so-called rudimentary edition contained less than 20 sword moves.
However, since they were still guests after all, the waitress in green did not treat them poorly because of that.
Soon, the waitress in green led Daoist Tai Hua to the library where they began selecting some sword manuals.
First-grade sword manuals were few in number, and there were only three sets in the entire Secret Yuan Pavilion.
"Exalted Immortal, these three sets of sword manuals are namely the Three Element Golden Sun Swordsmanship, Chuanhe Swordsmanship, and Seven Star Swordsmanship. All three of them cost 500 Spirit Stones each."
The waitress in green explained.
"500 Spirit Stones?"
Daoist Tai Hua was a little stunned.
"Even the rudimentary edition of the Four Thunder Sword Techniques doesn't cost that much, does it?"
Daoist Tai Hua frowned. It was not that he couldn't bear to fork out that many Spirit Stones, but rather, he wanted to save money to buy some other things for Ye Ping as sword manuals alone definitely wouldn't be enough.
"Exalted Immortal, you're mistaken. The Four Thunder Sword Techniques are very widespread in Qingzhou, and while these secret manuals have been enhanced with secret techniques. Readers can rapidly comprehend the sword techniques, so 500 Spirit Stones each is not expensive at all."
The waitress chuckled and explained.
Daoist Tai Hua suddenly fell silent.
He thought that sword manuals would be very cheap as the Four Thunder Sword Techniques didn't cost much when he purchased them back then. To his surprise, each manual cost 500 inferior-grade Spirit Stones, which was equivalent to 5,000 taels of gold.
"Of course, we're running a promotion recently. There's a discount of 50 inferior-grade Spirit Stones."
She smiled.
However, Daoist Tai Hua remained silent.
He hesitated for a long time.
Finally, he clenched his jaw and said to the waitress in green, "Which is the best book?"
"Exalted Immortal, the most powerful of these three Sword Dao secret manuals is the Chuanhe Swordsmanship which contains impressive sword techniques. If your disciple has excellent aptitude, he might be able to comprehend a sword technique of a higher level known as the Spirit Sea Sword Technique."
The waitress in green explained.
"Can he also comprehend a more advanced Spirit Sea Sword Technique?"
Daoist Tai Hua was a little surprised.
"Yes, the Chuanhe Swordsmanship is a transcendent-grade sword manual in the first place. Those with excellent aptitude would probably be able to comprehend the Spirit Sea Sword Technique. This is one of the three greatest sword techniques in the Spirit Sword Sect of the Jin Nation."
She explained.
Daoist Tai Hua was suddenly taken aback.
"In that case, I'll take this one. By the way, do you have Qi Refinement Pills and Qi Nourishment Pills here?"
Daoist Tai Hua asked.
"Yes. Each superior-grade Qi Refinement Pill costs one Spirit Stone, and Qi Nourishment Pills are going at four for one Spirit Stone. One Spirit Stone can also get you two middle-grade Qi Refinement Pills or five inferior-grade Qi Refinement Pills. Exalted Immortal, which one would you like?"
The waitress in green continued to ask.
"50 superior-grade Qi Refinement Pills and 200 Qi Nourishment Pills."
Daoist Tai Hua did not think much about it. Since he had money now, he didn't want to give Ye Ping any inferior pills.
The better the quality of pills, the lower the toxicity. The effects of superior-grade pills would be able to help Ye Ping to enter the path of cultivation earlier.
Ye Ping was very talented in the Sword Dao, but his talent in cultivation was poor. Daoist Tai Hua understood that.
It was good to be talented in the Sword Dao, but his cultivation level had to be on par too. He ought to at least cultivate to the perfected realm, right?
Qi Refinement cultivators could at least put up a fight if they had good attainments in the Sword Dao, but powerhouses in the Foundation Establishment realm would only have to wait for their death. There would be no point in condensing the sword intent anyway.
"Alright. Please wait a moment, Exalted Immortal."
The waitress in green did not waste any time on saying useless things. In less than a moment, everything was prepared.
They cost 550 Spirit Stones in total, which amounted to 5,500 taels of gold worth of banknotes.
Before leaving, Daoist Tai Hua clenched his teeth and decided to buy two Cold Iron Swords which were not Dharma artifacts and were simply superior mortal weapons. They cost 500 taels of gold, but Daoist Tai Hua managed to bargain and lower the price to 466 taels of gold.
At this moment, Daoist Tai Hua only had 600 taels of gold left.
However, after leaving the Secret Yuan Pavilion, Daoist Tai Hua suddenly remembered something.