Chapter 627: I Wanted to Get Along with You as an Ordinary Spirit Herbalist
Chapter 627: I Wanted to Get Along with You as an Ordinary Spirit Herbalist
With the deliberate obfuscation by the Little Pagoda Being, the storm caused by Lu Chen obtaining the Ghost Devouring Evil Vine spirit seed slowly subsided.
The remaining cultivators focused their attention on the other two treasures. After some time, a Nascent Soul True Lord claimed the ore that resembled the changing seasons.
The mysterious beast hide was also kept, and the cultivator who guessed the most identities was rewarded with another treasure by the Little Pagoda Being.
The crowd gazed at the Nascent Soul True Lord who had obtained the ore, their eyes filled with envy.
For such a high-level treasure to be used by the artifact spirit to test them, it was naturally no ordinary item. More importantly, obtaining it had not cost even a single low-grade spirit stone.
The joy of a freebie was something that both the Nascent Soul True Lord and the Qi Refining cultivators yearned for.
The auction came to an end, and cultivators began to leave the vast starry space, returning to the various Sea Pavilion Merchant Association branches.
As Lu Chen followed the crowd, about to step into the teleportation formation, a gentle voice suddenly sounded beside him.
"Young friend, please wait."
He turned towards the direction of the voice and saw the gentle-looking middle-aged man who had presided over the auction, smiling at him.
"Senior, is there something you need from me?" Lu Chen asked, puzzled.
"Congratulations, young friend, on obtaining the artifact spirit senior's collection," the gentle-looking middle-aged man transmitted his voice to Lu Chen.
"Thank you," Lu Chen replied with cupped fists, his expression unchanged.
"Rest assured, young friend. Only a handful of people in the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association know about this matter, and the cultivators who attended the auction will not be aware of it," the middle-aged man explained with a smile.
"The few of us only knew because we have a deep connection with the artifact spirit senior, and we are familiar with some of its abilities, so we realized that you had taken that spirit seed."
"The association can promise you that we will not leak this matter out and cause you any trouble."
Lu Chen nodded slightly. It was reasonable for the people of the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association to know about him obtaining that mysterious spirit seed, and he wasn't overly concerned about his situation because of it.
After all, in the eyes of the association's cultivators, he was merely a spirit herbalist skilled in the way of spirit plants, who had been extremely lucky to recognize that spirit seed.
Perhaps he also possessed some kind of eye technique or other exotic art, but they would never guess that he had a special ability to identify all spirit plants in the world.
He stood quietly, waiting for the middle-aged man to continue.
There had to be a reason why this person had stopped him, and it certainly wasn't just to offer congratulations.
Sure enough, after a brief pause, the middle-aged man spoke:
"The artifact spirit senior was full of praise for your spirit plant expertise. Therefore, the association's managers have discussed and decided to invite you to become a guest advisor for the association."
"Me?" Lu Chen pointed to himself, a hint of surprise in his eyes.
"As far as I know, the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association is one of the top powers in the Liyang Realm, and even has a great reputation in foreign realms. Why would they invite a loose cultivator who hasn't even formed a Golden Core yet?"
"The invitation is based on your spirit plant expertise, not your strength. Among the cultivators who attended the auction, there were certainly hundreds stronger than you."
"The association only values your knowledge of spirit plants, and may require your assistance in matters related to them."
"If I were to become a guest advisor for the association, what would be expected of me, and what could I gain in return?" Lu Chen asked, his tone calm and respectful, not refuting the number of cultivators stronger than him as mentioned by the middle-aged man.
"Mainly, you would need to identify spirit plants obtained from various realm worlds and blessed lands, determining their species if possible, or at least researching their general effects."
"Additionally, the association has a presence throughout the cultivation world, even spreading across the myriad realm worlds. We require a large number of high-level spirit plants, and if you are skilled in cultivating them, we may also commission you to cultivate certain high-level spirit plants for us."
"As for what you can gain, rest assured that we will not disappoint you."
A hint of pride appeared on the middle-aged man's face.
"Once you become a guest advisor, we will provide you with a large amount of spirit stones every year. If you help the association complete any tasks, there will also be generous rewards."
"If you enjoy cultivating spirit plants, I assume you would appreciate a good spiritual energy environment. As long as your contributions to the association are significant enough, you may even choose one of our many secret realms or blessed lands to possess as your own."
Lu Chen's heart stirred at the offer.
"If I truly become a guest advisor for the association, do I need to stay by the association's side at all times?"
"There is no hard requirement for that. It depends on the specific tasks assigned. You only need to come by the association from time to time, and it would be best to come promptly when there are specific tasks."
The middle-aged cultivator spoke in a low voice.
"This seems even more comfortable than being in Celestial Sword Sect," Lu Chen thought to himself.
"The Sea Pavilion Merchant Association might not be the strongest in the Liyang Realm when it comes to spirit stones, but they're definitely the best at making money!"
"The benefits are good, with the highest-level benefits even including the qualification to own a blessed land or secret realm."
"Their resources must be incredibly rare and abundant, considering the association's reach throughout the Liyang Realm and the myriad realm worlds."
"It's also flexible, with no restrictions on time or location for completing tasks. Where else could I find such a great job?"
"Hahaha, welcome, Fellow Daoist Lu!"
The gentle-looking middle-aged man was delighted that Lu Chen had agreed to join the merchant association as a guest advisor.
The fact that Lu Chen had only reached the perfection of foundation establishment didn't concern him. After all, for the merchant association, finding a Core Formation cultivator was much easier than finding a top-notch spirit herbalist.
There must be something extraordinary about Lu Chen for him to be praised by a high-level artifact spirit.
After reaching a preliminary agreement, Lu Chen stayed a while longer to iron out the details before returning to the Sea Pavilion branch within the Star-Plucking Tower.
"Fellow Daoist Lu, how were your gains from this auction?"
Before Lu Chen could fully recover his senses after exiting the teleportation formation, the tall and burly Wood Daoist approached him with a smile and asked.
"Not bad. I managed to obtain a few decent spirit seeds and broadened my horizons quite a bit."
Lu Chen replied with a mix of truth and exaggeration, not mentioning that he had not only acquired rare spirit seeds but had also managed to procure a rare sixth-grade spirit seed from the merchant association's high-level artifact.
"By the way, Fellow Daoist Mu, I've visited this branch numerous times but haven't had the chance to explore it thoroughly. Would you be willing to give me a tour, Fellow Daoist Mu?"
"What is it that you seek, Fellow Daoist Lu? I can help you find it."
The tall elder readily agreed and was about to lead Lu Chen downstairs, where an abundance of treasures was kept.
"Fellow Daoist Mu, could you take me upstairs instead?"
Lu Chen asked with a smile.
"I apologize, Fellow Daoist Lu, but the upper floors are private areas of the merchant association and are off-limits to other cultivators," the Wood Daoist replied as he stopped in his tracks.
"Can't I go up even with this?"
A mischievous smile appeared on Lu Chen's face as he gently shook the cyan token in his hand.
The token seemed to contain surging waves, and at the end of the waves, one could vaguely make out the silhouette of a treasure tower.
"Is that... the Sea Pavilion Token?"
Lu Chen nodded.
"I had wanted to get along with you as an ordinary spirit herbalist, but what I got in return was distance. I won't hide it anymore. I am a guest advisor of the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association, and I'm laying my cards on the table now."
"You became a guest advisor for the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association just by attending one auction?"
The tall elder found this rather bewildering. As a descendant of one of the merchant association's high-ranking members, he knew that the position of guest advisor was not something that an ordinary cultivator could attain. Countless Core Formation cultivators had tried and failed to secure such a position, so how had Lu Chen, a loose cultivator and spirit herbalist, managed to do so?
"Fellow Daoist Mu, you may verify the authenticity of the Sea Pavilion Token."
Lu Chen smiled.
"During the auction, my talent in spirit herbs was unexpectedly discovered by several of the merchant association's elders, and they invited me to become a guest advisor, responsible for some of the association's matters pertaining to spirit herbs."
Lu Chen concealed the part about being valued by the artifact spirit and explained to the Wood Daoist, who was examining the token.
"I see... The token is indeed genuine."
The tall elder returned the token to Lu Chen, still dazed from the surprising news.
"Then, from now on, we can address each other as martial brothers."
"Martial Brother Mu."
Lu Chen quickly addressed him with the appropriate title.
"Hahaha, greetings, Martial Brother Lu."
The Wood Daoist felt a strong affinity with Lu Chen, and now that they had this connection, he became even more amiable and enthusiastic as he led Lu Chen into the inner areas of the branch.
"Greetings, Martial Brother Lu."
Not long after, the charming female cultivator in charge of managing this branch arrived and greeted Lu Chen.
"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Wen."
"Please take care of me from now on."
Lu Chen cupped his hands and spoke respectfully. After confirming his status as a guest advisor, he chose this branch in the Star-Plucking Tower as his future point of contact. He would handle matters that didn't require him to travel from here.
Since he would naturally have more interactions with the female cultivator and the elders in the future, he took this opportunity to get to know them better.
After gaining some basic information about the branch, Lu Chen shared a drink with the Wood Daoist and the other branch cultivators, fostering a deeper impression of each other. Finally, amidst everyone's reluctance to part, he returned to the Thunderfire Planet Cave.
"This trip to the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association's auction can be considered quite fruitful."
"I obtained the fifth-grade spirit plant, the Demon Granny Tree, as well as two sixth-grade spirit seeds: the Sitting Buddha Lotus and the Ghost-Devouring Evil Vine. One of them was even obtained for free."
"There's also the fifth-grade Giant Spirit Elephant's skeleton, which will be enough to sustain the Bone Demon Palace's growth for a long time."
"I also unexpectedly met that adorably clueless little pagoda being and ended up becoming a guest advisor for the merchant association."
Back in his residence, Lu Chen took stock of his gains from the auction.
Obtaining the Ghost-Devouring Evil Vine spirit seed had been a significant and unexpected surprise, but he never imagined that there would be an even bigger surprise—being valued by the merchant association's artifact spirit and high-ranking members and successfully becoming a guest advisor for the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association.
This was an immense hidden fortune. After all, the Sea Pavilion Merchant Association far surpassed the Celestial Sword Sect in terms of both strength and wealth, not to mention the little pagoda being, an artifact spirit capable of traveling through myriad realms and worlds, which opened up many more channels for obtaining spirit seeds.
"Looks like I'll have to get back to my old profession of cultivating spirit plants."
"But I'm someone who can endure hardships, so bring on the high-level spirit plants with more intensity!"
Lu Chen thought to himself.
(End of Chapter)
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