Nine Astra Skies

"What's wrong?" Master Apothecary Xuanyi turned around.

"Master, I also have a nameplate. Let's switch to a bigger private room." Ye Chen took out the dark-gold nameplate from the armguard space. The dark-gold nameplate was made from an unknown metal and glittered lustrously.

It was a dark-gold nameplate!

Great Emperor Mingwu and Master Apothecary Xuanyi were shocked. They knew what this dark-gold nameplate meant. A dark-gold nameplate meant that the sum of transactions with the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce had reached more than ten million Chi-amassing Pills. Of course, even if the transaction volume had reached ten million, it was not easy to apply for the dark-gold nameplate. It would only be issued if the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce had acknowledged that person had strong potential to become their important trading partner in the future!

The Ye Clan had only had one transaction with the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce, but the turnover had already reached more than ten million, more than the sum of some super martial arts families even after several years. Furthermore, the Ye Clan had signed a fixed supply agreement with the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce where the sum of transactions per year would reach at least fifty million Chi-amassing Pills!

As a result, the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce had issued three dark-gold nameplates at once!

The Tiandu Chamber of Commerce had only issued fifty or so dark-gold nameplates throughout the Great Eastern Continent. Every party who possessed a dark-gold nameplate was super existence that could shake the entire Great Eastern Continent!

This dark-gold nameplate was a symbol of honor and glory!

It was not surprising that Great Emperor Mingwu and Master Apothecary Xuanyi were so shocked. Ye Chen's identity grew even more mysterious in their hearts. Master Apothecary Xuanyi did not expect his disciple to have such a complicated history. Now he understood why Ye Chen possessed extraordinary talent. He was a little confused. With Ye Chen's family background, it would be simple to find a better teacher than him, but why did Ye Chen enter his tutelage? Master Apothecary Xuanyi did not understand, but on second thought, he decided to drop it. For a person like him who already had a foot in the grave, he no longer cared about matters such as status and identity. Besides, he did not seek anything from Ye Chen.

When the guard saw that Ye Chen had taken out a dark-gold nameplate, he immediately became more respectful and humble. He bent down deeply and said in an extremely modest voice, "Esteemed guests, please follow me. We'll serve you wholeheartedly. If you have any requests, we shall do our best to accommodate you."

The guard's attitude changed as soon as Ye Chen took out the dark-gold nameplate.

Just as the guard had finished speaking, a dozen girls with graceful figures donning sheer silk dresses came out and lined up on both sides, and lay a red carpet on the ground in front of the VIP exclusive passage.

What was the treatment of an honorable one?

The line of people walked forward and the girls bowed as they passed. If Ye Chen and the others had any special needs and called for them, they would definitely not refuse.

After a moment of shock, Great Emperor Mingwu also calmed down and laughed in a clear voice. "We're benefiting off Ye Chen's fortune today." Although in his heart, Ye Chen's position had improved slightly, he was still an emperor. He would not curry favor with Ye Chen over this because real friends could not be bought over with favor.

Both Master Apothecary Xuanyi and Great Emperor Mingwu did not ask where Ye Chen's dark-gold nameplate came from.

Walking through a long passage filled with precious stones and through another corridor, Ye Chen and the others entered a private room. The room was hundreds of square meters long and spacious enough to accommodate dozens of people. It was furnished with luxurious and comfortable tables and chairs, and there were also exquisite decorations hung on the walls. In front of them was a large transparent crystal where one could clearly see the hall outside. The crystal had undergone special treatment. From inside, they could see the outside, but those on the outside could not see inside. They could also clearly hear the auctioneer's voice through a small sound gathering array.

Soon, the waiter placed all kinds of food on the table as well as a collection of atlases drawn by artists.

"Esteemed guests, if you need anything or if you wish to sell any treasures you possess, please feel free to call us. We'll let the auctioneer of this auction house discuss with you."

Little Wingsy held Little Squido and jumped up and down in the spacious room while peering around. Ye Chen, Master Apothecary Xuanyi, Great Emperor Mingwu, and Little Tanuki flipped over the atlases.

Among these books, one detailed the items that would be auctioned today, and several others showed the items to be auctioned when the large-scale auction opened tomorrow. All kinds of treasures were listed one by one. There was no lack of Tier Six and above medicinal pills, five or six Tier Four spirit artifacts, and numerous rare materials of all kinds. The final dozen or so items to be auctioned were not described in detail. Even the picture was blank, arousing the curiosity of others.

The Tiandu Chamber of Commerce was able to grasp the psychology of their customers. It was not surprising that they could spread their business all over the Great Eastern Continent.

Ye Chen looked at the items to be auctioned tomorrow. The lowest starting price for a Tier Three spirit artifact could reach thousands of Chi Deposition Pills, and if there was a competition, it was normal for it to rise to tens of thousands of Chi Deposition Pills. Ten thousand Chi Deposition Pills were worth millions of Chi-amassing Pills! As for Tier Five spirit artifacts, its price may reach a horrifyingly astronomical figure!

In the past, two to three thousand Chi-amassing Pills would be enough to reduce the Ye Clan to poverty and ruin, and one Chi Deposition Pill would be regarded as a treasure. However, it was only after reaching this level that Ye Chen realized that these things were not that remarkable. Large martial arts families and the Chamber of Commerces dealt with Chi-amassing Pills by the millions!

Thinking about it, the Xiwu Empire was not even considered a second-class country in the Great Eastern Continent. Donglin County was just a very small remote county and the Ye Clan was just a small third-class martial arts family. Before, Ye Chen was just a frog in a well!

Most likely, only those super existences with dark-gold nameplates could compete for treasures of this level.

Ye Chen took a look at his armguard space. There were only over fifty thousand Chi Deposition Pills and eight hundred thousand Chi-amassing Pills. After a few calculations, it was estimated that Ye Chen could auction for a few Tier Two or Three spirit artifacts before being outbid. Of course, Ye Chen did not want to bid on those spirit artifacts since the items in his armguard space were much better. However, he felt that he was still lacking in money. A Tier Four spirit artifact could sell for tens of thousands of Chi Deposition Pills. If a good item appeared, he would have no chance to compete!

If Great Emperor Mingwu knew of Ye Chen's thoughts, he might have bashed his head against the wall. He had sold most of the items in the Xiwu Empire royal treasury as well as many industries, but he had only collected around ten thousand Chi Deposition Pills. Looking at these atlases, Great Emperor Mingwu should not even expect to be able to buy a Tier Three spirit artifact. Instead, he focused on Tier Two and above spirit artifacts with better defensive properties. He even thought about whether to sell some Purple-gold Divine Pills through the auction house in exchange for Spirit Artifact Rank items, but he was slightly reluctant to part with the pills.

As for Master Apothecary Xuanyi, he only looked at rare alchemy materials.

'I wonder what tier my Hell Rupture Sword is. There's also that mysterious Black Pearl, the Heavenly Astra Seal, the Skyfire Armguard, the mysterious tiny cauldron, and more.' There were many treasures he did not know the purpose of. With so many treasures, Ye Chen also grew a little picky about them. He would not even glance twice at ordinary treasures. He would only buy something he needed or a special treasure.

Ye Chen looked down at the auction hall where the auctioneer dropped his hammer again and again. Item after item was auctioned away.

"Next up, a black jadeite rough stone!" the auctioneer said loudly. Beside him, a tall and sexy lady held a tray in her hands. The auctioneer pulled away the red cloth covering it and revealed a black stone. "This is a high-quality black jadeite rough stone which was collected from a black jadeite mine ten miles away from here. It has medium fineness, medium hardness, and can be considered to be high in quality. Is there anyone who wishes to take a chance?"

"Black Jadeite is of great help to the cultivation of Celestial Chi and can be divided into many categories such as those easy to be unearthed, metal-type, thunder-type, and so on. The probability of this rough stone unearthing black jadeite is very high. In terms of quality, black jadeite can be divided into ten categories. If it opens up to an earth-type jadeite, it would not be a dream to become rich overnight."

"Please look here, here, and here. The jade appraisal master of our auction house estimates that this rough stone is worth at least five thousand Chi-amassing Pills."

Hiss. Five thousand Chi-amassing Pills. Many people in the auction hall below sucked in a cold breath.

Ye Chen was also curious about the black jadeite rough stone. It was said that the Tiandu Chamber of Commerce made its fortune from black jadeite. Ye Chen wondered what kind of great auxiliary effect the black jadeite had on a cultivator's Celestial Chi cultivation. His Astral Body extended toward the black jadeite rough stone.

Before Ye Chen's Astral Body touched the black jadeite rough stone, he heard some people talking in the auction hall.

"I wonder if the person in Honored Room Three will bid this round."

"No one knows where the person in Honored Room 3 is from. Since the auction began, he has already bid on dozens of items."

"It's not easy to enter Honored Rooms. They're extremely rich. If the price exceeds seven thousand Chi-amassing Pills, we won't compete."

Ye Chen was also a little surprised to hear their conversation. Just who was inside Honored Room Three? His Astral Body touched the black jadeite rough stone and a familiar feeling shocked Ye Chen.

This was black jadeite? Why did it feel exactly the same as soul jade?

Was black jadeite a soul jade?

However, if black jadeite really was soul jade, then it would be worth much more than a few thousand Chi-amassing Pills. According to what Little Tanuki had said, all soul jades were mined out in ancient times, but black jadeite mines still existed in many places now.

Ye Chen thought for a moment and pushed his Astral Body deep into the black jadeite. In the beginning, he found that it was only a jadeite but the energy disappeared as he went further. If someone bought this jadeite rough stone, that person might not be able to obtain a black jadeite.

Ye Chen's Astral Body continued onward until it reached the core of the rough stone. It immediately felt the energy of a soul jade the size of a pigeon egg. This soul jade was not as large as the bracelet on Ye Chen's body, but it was more than enough to make a pendant.

Just this small piece of soul jade was invaluable!

It would be such a shame if it was sold off as something like black jadeite!