Chapter 25: The Manifestation of the Central Heaven Cauldron

Han Tianyue and the others waited like this until nightfall, yet until the darkness fully descended, they still did not see a single person standing in the square. What puzzled them the most was that despite the absence of people, numerous halos of light had appeared in the square. Slowly, these halos multiplied until the entire square was filled with them, resembling the stars in the night sky.

"Let's go over and take a look!" Han Tianyue and his companions headed toward the square.

As they walked up to the shop selling ancient zithers, they saw the seven female proprietors emerge carrying seven ancient zithers. Catching sight of Han Tianyue, the women immediately walked over and said, "Little one, what a coincidence! Are you heading to the square too?"

Han Tianyue nodded.

The seven female proprietors pointed at Mao Xuanzi and the others, saying, "You mortals are truly something else, bringing a child to such a dangerous place. I suggest you leave immediately!"

Fang Zhe stepped forward with a smile and said, "We just want to buy a Sound-Qian pouch and then we'll leave!"

The seven female proprietors looked them over and said, "In that case, follow us. We will take you to find the person who sells Sound-Qian pouches!"

With that, the seven female proprietors stepped forward and scooped Han Tianyue up into their arms. Had it not been for Han Tianyue, they surely would not have bothered to guide Mao Xuanzi and the others.

The seven women took turns holding Han Tianyue, a scene that filled Feng Shang with overwhelming envy as he muttered inwardly, "How wonderful would it be if I could turn into a child?"

Thus, the seven female proprietors led Han Tianyue into the square, where only the glowing halos still filled the space.

"Where are the vendors?" Fang Zhe asked curiously.

The seven female proprietors smiled and replied, "They are right before your eyes, but you simply cannot see them. Follow me, and I will lead you to the seller of the Sound-Qian pouch!"

At that moment, the seven female proprietors led them into one of the halos, where they abruptly discovered a person sitting beneath the glowing circle, with numerous items spread out on the ground. "So these halos are actually the vendors! Under the protection of these lights, no one can recognize anyone else!" The seven female proprietors set Han Tianyue down and stepped forward, their own appearances shifting as they asked, "How much for your Sound-Qian pouch?"

"Three silver coins!" the vendor replied bluntly.

"Three silver coins!" Hearing this, Han Tianyue and the others were shocked, never expecting a Sound-Qian pouch to be so expensive. The currency in this world consisted of gold ingots, silver coins, qian coins, and copper cash. One hundred copper cash could be exchanged for one qian coin, one hundred qian coins for one silver coin, and one hundred silver coins for one gold ingot. Three silver coins amounted to thirty thousand copper cash, which was by no means a small sum.

Sensing that Han Tianyue and his companions were extremely eager to buy it, the seven female proprietors chimed in, "Brother, can't you make it a bit cheaper? We genuinely want to buy it!"

"Very well, two silver coins! That is my absolute lowest price!" the vendor had no choice but to concede.

To their surprise, the seven female proprietors refused to back down, pressing on, "One silver coin! One silver coin and we will buy it right now!"

"You drive a terribly hard bargain! How could I possibly sell it for just one silver coin?"

"Surely you deal in Sound-Qian pouches, so you must know that very few people are looking to buy them right now, while there are plenty of sellers. At one silver coin, you are still making a profit. Final offer, just one silver coin. If not, we won't buy it!"

Hearing this, and realizing the other party knew the market well, the vendor finally relented. "Very well, one silver coin it is!"

However, even a single silver coin was difficult for Han Tianyue and the others to spare. At that moment, Lei Cong stepped forward and said, "Here is your silver coin!"

***

After receiving the silver coin, the vendor handed the Sound-Qian pouch to Han Tianyue and the others, asking, "Are all of you going to share a single one?"

"Not us, it's for the few people behind us!" Seeing that Han Tianyue and his group had successfully acquired the Sound-Qian pouch, the seven female proprietors prepared to leave to attend to other matters. They walked over to Han Tianyue, each planted a kiss on his cheek, and said, "Little one, until we meet again!"

Watching Han Tianyue being kissed by these women made Feng Shang burn with even more intense envy.

Then, the vendor continued, "I will explain how to operate it. From now on, this is your Sound-Qian pouch!" The vendor instructed Han Tianyue and the others that to gain ownership rights to the Sound-Qian pouch, every single person must perform a Blood-Oath Bond. The ritual was simple: each person had to drip their blood onto the pouch and then set their own personal activation chant. Through this, the pouch would bind to each individual. To add someone else later, everyone who had previously completed the Blood-Oath Bond must open the pouch together, after which the new person would perform the Blood-Oath Bond and set their own chant. When adding another member, it was mandatory for all existing members to open the pouch simultaneously; if even a single person failed to open it, the Blood-Oath Bond could not be completed. The only way to break a person's bond was to kill them.

Since Han Tianyue and his companions were a team, they would never need to break the bond. Consequently, they began performing the Blood-Oath Bond with the Sound-Qian pouch according to the vendor's instructions. Guan Tian stepped in front of them and said, "I have no need for this at the moment. You all can proceed with the Blood-Oath Bond yourselves!"

Truth be told, Guan Tian had never agreed to join Han Tianyue's team. Her presence alongside them was solely because Venerable Mother Yi Dai had prophesied that Han Tianyue and the others would encounter the figure in white. Aside from Guan Tian, Han Tianyue, Mao Xuanzi, Fang Zhe, Feng Shang, and Lei Cong each dropped their blood onto the Sound-Qian pouch, set their respective activation chants, and watched as the pouch vanished into thin air.

"Where is the Sound-Qian pouch?" everyone panicked and asked.

The vendor smiled and said, "It has already fused with your bodies. Now, as long as you silently recite your chant, you will enter the space within the Sound-Qian pouch!"

Sure enough, when Han Tianyue, Mao Xuanzi, Fang Zhe, Feng Shang, and Lei Cong silently recited their respective chants, they instantly entered the interior of the Sound-Qian pouch. "Wah, it's so vast in here!" The inside of the Sound-Qian pouch was a boundless void, stretching as far as the eye could see, with rooms bearing their respective names lined up before each of them.

Han Tianyue walked up to the room bearing his name and silently recited his chant. The heavy door instantly swung open, revealing a large warehouse inside, likely meant for storing personal belongings! Han Tianyue currently possessed a wooden box, two pieces of candy, and the ring that the young maiden of Gusu had asked him to deliver to her man. With such a secure place to store them, Han Tianyue finally felt at ease.

As for Mao Xuanzi, he had nothing of particular value, so he simply took a glance inside and closed the door.

Fang Zhe placed his zither inside his room.

Feng Shang stored the sole remaining Tear of the Elves in his room, alongside the three pet rings he had just purchased and some spirit beast rations.

As for Lei Cong, he had originally possessed a Qiankun pouch of his own. He took it out and fused it with the Sound-Qian pouch, creating an expanded space within his assigned room. Han Tianyue, Mao Xuanzi, Fang Zhe, and Feng Shang gathered outside Lei Cong's room and stepped inside. To their surprise, an extra compartment existed within, filled with massive amounts of money and food. Everyone could not help exclaiming, "Lei Cong, how on earth do you have so many things?"

Lei Cong laughed and said, "I wanted to leave this place for a long time, so I've been pulling out all the stops to save these supplies. Even if we end up trapped in a space devoid of food, the provisions I've stored are enough to sustain the five of us for an entire year. As for this money, there are a full three thousand gold ingots here, though much of it is in smaller denominations, which makes it look like a lot!"

They never imagined that Lei Cong would have put in so much thought and effort just to leave. Compared to the four of them—Han Tianyue, Mao Xuanzi, Fang Zhe, and Feng Shang—the difference was as vast as heaven and earth.

Choosing not to linger inside the Sound-Qian pouch, Lei Cong recited his chant to close the door, and everyone returned to the exact spot in the physical world where they had entered. Meanwhile, Guan Tian stood peering anxiously into the distance.

Following Guan Tian's gaze, the others looked far off into the horizon and saw cascading layers of pink flower petals drifting through the night sky. The seven female proprietors hovered motionlessly in mid-air, their fingers resting on their zither strings. "Remaining Flower Formation!" The entire area seemed enveloped by these breathtaking petals, yet under the haunting notes of the seven women's zithers, the petals instantly shattered into fine, powdery debris.

"Enough, Seven Fairies! This isn't even the true Zhongtian Tripod, one of the Nine Heavenly Tripods!" It was the group of three they had encountered earlier that day—the one wearing a cloak, followed by two whose faces remained obscured. They stepped forward, hoisted a wooden box, and slammed it fiercely against the ground, shattering it to splinters in an instant.

"It's a fake!" Countless voices echoed from all directions, revealing to Han Tianyue and his companions just how many people had been gathered here all along.

"It's fake!" exclaimed Zeng Cheng, the stroke-of-genius cultivator, as he stepped forward with five others in tow, his face contorted with rage. "We traveled thousands of miles to get here, only to find that the Zhongtian Tripod, one of the Nine Heavenly Tripods, is a fake!"

Fury erupted across the entire crowd.

***

Han Tianyue and the others held no interest in the Zhongtian Tripod, one of the Nine Heavenly Tripods. Having successfully acquired the Sound-Qian pouch, they hurried toward the exit of the underground trading center.

As they walked, Han Tianyue thought to himself, *Why does that wooden box look so remarkably like the one I bought from that shop? If the wooden box I have is actually the Zhongtian Tripod they keep talking about, then who was that proprietor, and why did he sell it to me? Could it be that he knew I wasn't just a child?* The realization sent a jolt through Han Tianyue, but regardless of the truth, they had finally managed to leave the underground trading center.

Upon returning to the grove where they had left the Spirit-Devouring Beast, the Thunder Winged Dragon, and the Swift Tiger, they saw the Swift Tiger rush forward, eagerly licking Feng Shang's hand as if welcoming his return with boundless joy. In reality, the Swift Tiger was thinking, *Now that I'm being watched by one gigantic beast and one flying beast, there's no way I can escape. I suppose I'd better play along with this demon for now and look for an opportunity to slip away later!* The Swift Tiger harbored its own secret plans, feeling quite pleased with its cleverness, though it lacked the ability to express it in beast language.

Seeing the Swift Tiger behave so obediently and sensibly, Feng Shang was overjoyed. With a silent chant, he transported the Swift Tiger directly into the space within the Sound-Qian pouch.

Taken aback, the Swift Tiger thought, *I was being so nice to this demon, yet what are you trying to do to me now?* Feng Shang chuckled darkly, walked into his room, retrieved an item, and approached the Swift Tiger with an air of profound mystery. The Swift Tiger instinctively retreated two steps. Abruptly pulling out the spirit beast rations from behind his back, Feng Shang offered them with a smile, "My little kitty cat, look what I brought for you!"

"Courtesy without a specific reason usually means a hidden agenda!" The Swift Tiger lifted its proud head and refused to eat.

"What, you don't like it?" Feng Shang stared at the Swift Tiger in confusion and muttered, "In that case, I'll just leave all of this for the Spirit-Devouring Beast and the Thunder Winged Dragon."

With that, Feng Shang tucked the spirit beast rations away.

Watching Feng Shang put the food away, the Swift Tiger quickly admonished itself, *Lord Swift Tiger, you must endure! Endure!*

"Little kitty cat, come here for a moment!" Although he had stashed the rations away, Feng Shang still addressed the Swift Tiger with utmost courtesy.

"Oh well, I suppose His Lordship will just have to reluctantly accept!" At the mere thought of those spirit beast rations, the Swift Tiger could not help drooling.

*Clank!* Just as the Swift Tiger was feeling most triumphant, an iron collar snapped around its neck. Sensing danger, the Swift Tiger tried to scramble backward.

Feng Shang looked down at the Swift Tiger and laughed, "There, now you really look like a little kitty cat!"

Meanwhile, Lei Cong had brought the Thunder Winged Dragon, Leilei, and Fang Zhe had brought the Spirit-Devouring Beast into the space of the Sound-Qian pouch. They too had been fitted with pet rings, though theirs were worn around their ankles, leaving the Swift Tiger as the only one wearing its ring around its neck.

"Goodbye, you all stay here and behave!" Feng Shang, Fang Zhe, and Lei Cong exited the Sound-Qian pouch.

Left behind in the space, the Swift Tiger looked at the Thunder Winged Dragon and the Spirit-Devouring Beast, its face instantly falling in utter despair. *Why do their pet rings go on their legs, while His Lordship has to wear his around his neck?! I can't go on living like this!*

Having safely settled the Spirit-Devouring Beast, the Thunder Winged Dragon, and the Swift Tiger, Han Tianyue and his companions took advantage of the night to quickly slip away from the grove near the underground trading center, heading eastward.

Seeking gold medals, collections, recommendations, clicks, comments, red envelopes, and gifts—anything and everything is welcome, so bring them all on!