Pursuit of the Truth 450 The Arrival of God Seal!

"Still 3,000,000."
The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple glared at Su Ming coldly. To him, while this person had been a little smart just now, but clearly, he was not tactful. Even if he could fight against a Latter Shaman, under the Grand Elder's immense power, this person would only be able to crumble like a leaf torn apart by furious wind, and he would not be able to resist.
To him, this price was already enough. In the past, the highest price that had been offered by the God of Shamans Temple ever had been 5,000,000. With that price in comparison, if this person did not agree to 3,000,000, then there was no longer any need for the Grand Elder to seek his approval for the price.
Su Ming cast the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple a glance. If he had not made precise preparations beforehand, then as of now, his only way would be to sell the stone.
However, since Su Ming had the courage to stand there and had even dared to say such words to the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, then naturally, he already knew what was going to happen next.
At that moment, he chose not to speak any longer. Instead, he lifted his right hand, and with a flash of green, he cut down on the Crimson Stone. As rumbling sounds reverberated in the air, Su Ming continued cutting the stone while referring to the picture on the center of the small, black humanoid's brows.
After some time, right under numerous pairs of eyes, the Crimson Stone shattered with a bang, and as a large amount of stone chips fell off and scattered away, a transparent mountain rock about the size of a head appeared in Su Ming's palm!
The mountain rock was translucent and glittered with crystalline sparkles, making it seem as if it contained light. There was a black flower sealed within. Two of its petals had fossilized, but there was one petal that was still overflowing with life. The face of the malicious ghost on the black petal looked as if it was smiling savagely.
The instant the Ghost Spirit Flower was excavated and revealed before the people's gazes, a shocking uproar broke out along with it. Some of the pairs of eyes that were focused on the flower were filled with jealousy, some with envy, some with madness, some with complicated feelings, along with all sorts of other emotions. All of human expressions could be found in the crowd on the ground.
"It's truly the Ghost Spirit Flower, and… one of the petals is still very much alive!"
"That petal is already fully grown and has lived for many years. As long as the method is correct, this person can produce his very first Ghost!"
"Damn it, I placed a bid for this stone in the start, but… but why didn't I continue fighting for it?!"
As the people's voices around the area turned into buzzing, Nan Gong Hen widened his eyes and his breathing quickened. He stared at Su Ming, and a brilliant shine gradually appeared in his eyes.
'Brother Mo's luck is seriously insane. He just offhandedly bought a Crimson Stone and managed to get a Ghost Spirit Flower. The fossilization of the whole flower is over a six-tenths, but if we look at just that one petal… then this is a complete flower that is not at all affected by the fossilization!
'The value of that flower is at least 7,000,000!'
Su Ming looked at the mountain rock floating above his palm, and with a flip of his hand, it immediately disappeared. Then, without even looking at the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, he turned around and walked towards the crowd underneath.
The people who had walked out of the eight halls just now simply cast their gazes at Su Ming but did not stop him. After all, the price given by the God of Shamans Temple was simply too low, and if any of them were in Su Ming's place, they would not accept it either.
The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple was also looking at Su Ming's back as he walked to the ground. His expression was still as sullen as ever, but he did not speak. In his mind, while the Ghost Spirit Flower was a good item, it was still not valuable enough for him to snatch it right before the people. As long as Su Ming was in the World of Nine Yin, then everything was possible. He did not need to rush into things for now.
As for the man who was beside Su Ming and had managed to obtain the dual-colored light, when he saw the strange atmosphere around him, he hesitated for a moment before he decided to simply grit his teeth and continue cutting into his stone. As he continued and as the dual-colored light shone, the people's gazes gradually gathered on him.
Su Ming returned to the ground and back to his seat. The three youths immediately gathered around him excitedly, and the Shamans around the area too wrapped their fists in their palms to greet him. They originally wanted to approach him, but Nan Gong Hen glared at all of them and pushed them all away with a cold harrumph, completely not bothering with the boisterous and friendly personality he displayed before the people previously.
Towards Su Ming, Nan Gong Hen was filled with non-malicious envy that could not be concealed. He looked at Su Ming, then thought about himself, and as he laughed wryly, he wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming.
"Brother Mo… I'm impressed, I'm absolutely impressed!"
In Nan Gong Hen's eyes, Su Ming was a man filled with astonishing wonders. He could bring Nan Gong Hen through a foreign world filled with threats and arrive at Shaman City safely while avoiding all dangers. He could fight against Tie Mu with just his power as a Medial Shaman. More importantly, after that fight, his relationship with Tie Mu had turned into one as if they had never tried to kill each other. From Tie Mu's words, he seemed to have somewhat acknowledged Su Ming.
When they were in the land of the Spirits of Nine Yin, Su Ming had also shocked Nan Gong Hen because he had absolutely not expected that Su Ming would rent that shameless guardian Spirit of Nine Yin, and just when he had thought Su Ming had to be a pitiful man, he found out that he himself was the pitiful one.
It was as if there was a mysterious layer of fog surrounding Su Ming. The more you wanted to see through him and the more you wanted to get into his mind, the more you would be lost trying to figure him out.
Now, when Nan Gong Hen witnessed Su Ming buying that Crimson Stone offhandedly and causing such a huge stir when he extracted that Ghost Spirit Flower, he came to a sudden realization.
'There must be some mysterious power in Mo Su. That power is invisible and doesn't have form. It cannot be seen, cannot be touched, but its existence will cause others to be unable to figure him out… Yup, if I stay beside a person with this sort of power, then perhaps I will also get some of that power…'
Nan Gong Hen's eyes shone brilliantly. He giggled as he looked at Su Ming, but soon changed his expression and whispered softly.
"Brother Mo, we have to be careful of the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple. That person's power is incredibly great and he's brutal… My father is also in a constant state of isolation as well, so he's not as intimidating as before, I might not be able to use his name to keep this person down…" With a face as if Su Ming was an accomplice of his, Nan Gong Hen talked to him with a frown.
At that moment, the Crimson Stones numbered 701 to 800 were in auction. Perhaps it was because Su Ming had managed to find the Ghost Spirit Flower, as of then, the subsequent Crimson Stones that were being auctioned had reached a rather heated state.
"Brother Mo, you also have to pay attention. If we take a fancy to any other Crimson Stone and enter the bidding, the people around us will also begin bidding for it in a mad craze…" As Nan Gong Hen spoke, the intention to work with Su Ming truly rose within him, and he begun addressing Su Ming and himself as 'we'.
"Er… brother Nan Gong, you don't have to worry about that. While I do have some Crimson Stones I like, I'm lacking in Shaman Crystals. I won't place any more bids." Su Ming shook his head.
"I have! Brother Mo, don't worry. You just have to place your bids. We're definitely going to make a huge profit this time. I prepared a lot of Shaman Crystals for the treasure gambling event this time! By that time, we brothers can… Heh heh, we can talk about how we'll split up our profits later." Nan Gong Hen's whole entire face was lit up with a smile, and there was an eager look in his eyes.
He had come to a great revelation - He must follow Su Ming closely and fight together with him. If he did that, then no matter how bad it would be, he would still not be... as pitiful as he was when he was conned to use several millions of Shaman Crystals to rent a Spirit of Nine Yin, or when all 500,000 of his Shaman Crystals went flying out of his hands in an instant, or when all his other misfortunes happened to him.
"Is that so..?" Su Ming cast Nan Gong Hen a glance.
"Brother Mo, you don't have to hesitate anymore. It's fine. We managed to hit it off right from the start, these materialistic things are nothing compared to our friendship. If you need them, then take it. I will not even frown!" Nan Gong Hen patted his chest.
"All right." Su Ming had no reason to decline. Once he finished speaking, he immediately shouted his bid towards the Crimson Stone in auction at the moment - Crimson Stone No.836.
"500,000!"
Nan Gong Hen was momentarily stunned. He had originally thought that Su Ming would still remain reserved, and then he would persuade him a little more, and eventually, both of them would reach a consensus while beating around the bush due to their own needs. However, Su Ming had stopped being courteous and immediately jumped right into the auction.
In all honesty, Nan Gong Hen was still a little worried in his heart. After all, his Shaman Crystals did not fall from the sky into his hands. He had in fact obtained them through much effort. When Su Ming offhandedly placed a bid of 500,000, his heart immediately clenched in pain, but he had to look completely not bothered. In fact, he had to even smile and nod towards Su Ming to show that he was being generous.
"Brother Mo, how is the quality of that Crimson Stone?" Nan Gong Hen stared at the Crimson Stone in the sky. No matter what, it did not seem any different from the other stones.
The previous highest bid for this stone was 430,000, but when Su Ming placed his bid of 500,000, it was as if a stone had been thrown at the surface of the water that was the crowd around them, and it immediately caught an immense amount of attention from all the people.
It was just as Nan Gong Hen had expected. In truth, many people were paying attention to Su Ming's side and were already prepared to follow his footsteps the moment he placed a bid to buy another Crimson Stone.
When they heard Su Ming calling out his bid of 500,000, many people instantly felt fired up and started shouting their bids.
"550,000!"
"600,000!"
"640,000!"
"660,000!"
When Su Ming saw that the price for the Crimson Stone was getting higher, he turned his head around to cast Nan Gong Hen a glance, who was carefully hiding his anxiety underneath his calm attitude.
"Brother Nan Gong, how many Shaman Crystals do you have?"
"Er… I still have 2,000,000 something, I think…" Nan Gong Hen's heart lurched into his throat.
"750,000!" Once Su Ming heard his answer, he yelled out his bid once again. When his voice fell into Nan Gong Hen's ears, it made his heart constrict, and he felt conflicted, but he still had to force out a smile, all while looking approving of Su Ming's actions.
"Brother Mo, how is the quality of the stone?" Nan Gong Hen's heart was already racing in his chest as he instinctively asked.
"I don't know." Su Ming's words almost made Nan Gong Hen's vision turn completely black.
"800,000!" Once Su Ming shouted his bid, someone else immediately placed another bid. Clearly, he was fully intent on snatching away the Crimson Stone Su Ming had taken an interest to.
There was already red in Nan Gong Hen's eyes. He glared at the spot where the voice that placed that bid came from and whispered to Su Ming, "Should we add?"
"Forget it, we'll place our bids for our next stone." Su Ming shook his head. That Crimson Stone was eventually bought by someone with the high price of 800,000 Shaman Crystals.
Chapter 452
Nan Gong Hen's heart was convulsing wildly in his heart when he heard Su Ming's words. If Nan Gong Hen himself was using his own Shaman Crystals to buy that Crimson Stone, he would not feel this way, but when he was looking at someone else using his Shaman Crystals to place bids, the feeling was completely different.
He had been completely willing to do so and had even made this proposal to Su Ming, but even so, when he truly came face to face with this reality he still could not help but feel his heart clench in pain.
When Crimson Stone No.837 was to be auctioned off, Su Ming placed a bid once again, and with each subsequent stone, he would do the same thing. With each bid he placed, Nan Gong Hen's heart would surge intensely, and he was already a mess of nerves from hearing Su Ming continuously placing those bids.
In fact, there were some times when Su Ming would place his bid in such a resolute manner that he gave the others a feeling that he absolutely wanted to get it. Based on this, the crowd started competing for that particular stone even more intensely.
However, there were still many people who had seen that there was something off with Su Ming's actions, but since this was a gamble in the first place, they could not say anything about it.
Gradually, Nan Gong Hen also saw the meaning behind Su Ming's actions as he placed those bids, but just as he was feeling delighted about it, Su Ming started bidding at a pace that made Nan Gong Hen's heart lurch in fear.
"800,000!"
"900,000!"
"1,000,000!!"
"Brother… Brother Mo, this…" Nan Gong Hen was just about to speak when Su Ming stood up.
"1,500,000!"
He placed that bid without any hesitation and swept his gaze across the crowd, putting on a look that he was definitely going to get that stone. When Nan Gong Hen saw Su Ming's look, he became slightly excited in the midst of his anxiety. With bloodshot eyes, he also glared at the people around them, making it seem like if there was anyone else who placed another bid, then he would become his mortal enemy!
"1,600,000!" A low voice suddenly shot out from among the crowd, and the person who placed that bid was the man who had obtained the dual-colored light beside Su Ming. The man gritted his teeth, and his eyes were similarly bloodshot.
Su Ming remained silent for a moment, and when he gritted his teeth and shouted, "1,800,000!" Nan Gong Hen's anxiety had reached its peak, and his breathing had even began to quicken.
"1,900,000!"
The man lifted his head and stared at Crimson Stone No. 897, and the more he looked at it, the more he felt that it was similar to Crimson Stone No.697. Besides, he had been continuously observing Su Ming, and Su Ming had been the most persistent when he placed his bids for this stone, that was why he had gritted his teeth to place such a gamble.
"2,000,000!" Yet after the man placed his bid, another voice immediately roared, but this time, it was not Su Ming who had shouted, it was Nan Gong Hen, who screamed at the top of his voice.
Su Ming was momentarily stunned.
"2,100,000!!" The man was already close to the brink of asphyxiation as he shouted madly.
Nan Gong Hen widened his eyes, and just as he was about to continue, Su Ming let out a fake cough and pulled Nan Gong Hen's arm.
"We're giving up."
"Okay... Huh?"
Nan Gong Hen instinctively nodded, then was immediately stunned, though realization dawned on him soon after. He looked at Su Ming with a wry smile as he mumbled in his heart that he was not a dumb idiot, he was just influenced by the atmosphere in the area. Once he understood the meaning behind Su Ming's actions, he could do nothing but laugh wryly.
'Damn it, it's only because these aren't his Shaman Crystals. If I was in his place, I would also have the guts to do the same thing…' Nan Gong Hen grumbled in his heart, but still had to force a smile on his face while looking generous.
"These Shaman Crystals are nothing. If you like this Crimson Stone, then we'll fight for it!" Nan Gong Hen said in a rather bold tone.
As he looked at Nan Gong Hen, Su Ming blinked. In truth, when the man shouted that bid of 1,800,000, he had already given up. After all, he was placing his bids at random so that no one would be able to tell what he wanted to truly buy, that was why Nan Gong Hen's shout had made even Su Ming nervous.
Each time he placed a bid for Crimson Stones numbered 830 to 900, he would leave some space for himself to retreat by doing so cautiously. Besides, this batch of Crimson Stones had to be cracked open at the same time, and there were always other lucky people around. By doing so, he had dug a hole for many people to fall into.
When these one hundred Crimson Stones were cracked open, the atmosphere grew so intense that it had become even more heated up than before. After all, most of these buyers had spent a much larger amount of money, and had even snatched them away from Su Ming's hands, especially that Crimson Stone sold for 2,100,000. That was the stone that was sold for the highest price in this auction.
However, as the Crimson Stones were cracked open and as they rumbled in the air before they shattered, the shouts from the crowd became even stronger, but all those voices were filled with disappointment.
Nan Gong Hen looked at the one hundred people in the sky returning with pale and dejected faces, and a smug look appeared on his face.
It was especially so for person with the Crimson Stone that was bought for 2,100,000. When it completely shattered under the crowd's nervous gazes, the man stood stunned in the air for a moment before coughing out a mouthful of blood and staggering back. The cutting of this batch was then over.
It was strange as well. Among the one hundred Crimson Stone, only one of them shone with a faint ray of unusual light, but it was no different from others; it was empty.
Once the cracking was over and the last batch of Crimson Stones to be auctioned off from the one thousand stones arrived, the crowd had obviously become wary of Su Ming. The thought of following in his footsteps had become much weaker.
Which was why Su Ming only needed to spend 400,000 to buy Crimson Stone No.901…
Once that short auction was over, Su Ming had bought four Crimson Stones. Besides numbers 901 and 949, there were another two which had fallen into Su Ming's hands because there was no one else who was willing to continue placing bids.
Nan Gong Hen had spent nearly 2,000,000 Shaman Crystals when the final sum came out. It made his heart clench in pain, but he was most anxious that he might be just wasting all his money. He had looked over at Su Ming multiple times, but since the other's expression could not be seen due to his mask, it made Nan Gong Hen even more anxious.
When the time came for these stones to be cut open, Su Ming flew into the midair. His appearance immediately attracted numerous pairs of gazes, especially Nan Gong Hen's, who was incessantly longing for a miracle to happen.
'It'll definitely work! It'll absolutely work!' Nan Gong Hen gulped. As of then, Su Ming was the only thing that existed in his world.
When Su Ming stood beside the Enchanted light rings, not only was the crowd on the ground looking at him, the people from the eight halls around also looked over, including that Grand Elder from the God of Shamans Temple.
With a calm expression, Su Ming lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted Vessel. Immediately, that Enchanted Vessel expanded and enveloped Crimson Stone No.901 within. Sizzling reverberated in the air, and even the other people who were supposed to be cracking open their stones decided to first look at Su Ming.
Su Ming closed his eyes and focused his divine sense on the small black humanoid in his storage bag. Gradually, as the small humanoid shuddered, a picture slowly appeared at the center of his brows. Within that picture was a four-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass!
Su Ming had known about the existence of that Dragon Leaf Grass beforehand. Two of its leaves had already fossilized and withered away. While there were still two that were alive, they did not have enough life force within them and looked rather wilted. It could not compare to the seven-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass Su Ming had. In fact, it was rather similar to the one the white-robed man from Nine Shaman Pavilion had brought out.
With skillful movements, Su Ming opened his eyes right under the people's gazes, and the light ring he controlled started spinning rapidly. With a boom, it split that Crimson Stone in half, and once it was split apart, a dual-colored light immediately appeared.
But that was not all, as Su Ming turned the Crimson Stone around and cut down once again, a golden light was added to that dual-colored light!
Red, blue, and gold intertwined with each other and immediately began shining in the crow's sight. This time, even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple could not keep his cool. His expression visibly changed, and he was filled with shock.
If even he was reacting this way, then it was much more so for the other people. After a short period of silence, the crowd immediately burst into an uproar that caused such a powerful wave of sound that it surged into the sky.
Nan Gong Hen was the most worked up and excited among them. He stood there and laughed heartily towards the sky. That excited look was akin to the sort of uncontrollable excitement that would only be experienced by gamblers who saw the light of victory during the instant that determined their win or loss after placing most of their money as a gambling chip.
"Three-colored light…"
"Just where did this Mo Su come from? How… How could he have such insane luck? He was the one who found that Ghost Spirit Flower previously, and now, he got himself a three-colored light for his second stone!"
"My boy Mo, why don't you sell that Crimson Stone to me? I'll give you 1,500,000 for it!" Tie Mu immediately rushed to speak.
Su Ming turned around and wrapped his fist in his palm towards Tie Mu, then lifted his right hand and pointed at the Enchanted Vessel again. With one slash, a large part of the Crimson Stone was cut off once again. At the same time, the light ring spun rapidly, and as dust scattered into the air, the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple stared ahead with a grim face. He was not looking at that Crimson Stone, but at Su Ming!
He refused to believe that there would be such a lucky person in the world!
"Sir, why don't you sell that stone to our tribe? We're willing to pay 1,800,000 for it!" As the light ring spun, another person quickly shouted his price.
Su Ming did not bother himself with the person. He continued controlling the light ring to cut into the stone, and after some time, a glint appeared in his eyes and he lifted his right hand swiftly to tap the wrecked stone. With that one tap, the stone crumbled with a bang, and what appeared in Su Ming's palm was a small transparent mountain rock. The Dragon Leaf Grass could be seen clearly.
"Dragon Leaf Grass! That's a four-leaved Dragon Leaf Grass!!"
"Two of them are still alive. That herb might not be as valuable as Ghost Spirit Flower, but it's still a rare item. I heard that it can cure all the poison in the world, and this is an effect that is unique to this herb!"
"We of Wave Gatherer Tribe are willing to pay 2,700,000 Shaman Crystals for Dragon Leaf Grass!"
"You want to buy that Dragon Leaf Grass with just 2,700,000? We of Nine Shaman Pavilion are willing to pay 3,200,000 for it!"
Nan Gong Hen's heart thundered against his chest. He had never felt this sort of excitement ever since he entered the World of Nine Yin. As he listened to the voices making those offerings, his breathing became increasingly quicker.
Su Ming's expression remained as calm as ever. The herb he had was obviously of a much higher quality than the one in his hand. He dipped his head down and cast a glance at Nan Gong Hen, then threw the transparent mountain rock in his hand to him.
"Brother Nan Gong, you should decide on how you will deal with this stone."
Nan Gong Hen laughed heartily towards the sky, then charged into midair with one leap. Once he caught that transparent mountain rock, he grinned at the people around him. The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple frowned.
Chapter 453
The Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple did not bother himself with how Nan Gong Hen would deal with that Dragon Leaf Grass. Su Ming lifted his right hand and seized the air, then the second stone flew towards him. Once he placed that mountain rock into the Enchanted Vessel, Su Ming immediately pointed at the ring, and buzzing sounds reverberated in the air. He had bought this Crimson Stone at random and had absolutely no idea what was in there.
At that moment, as the Enchanted Vessel started spinning around rapidly, the Crimson Stone became smaller, and eventually, it crumbled, and there was nothing inside.
When the onlookers saw Su Ming's failure, they felt a little bit better about themselves. If Su Ming had found another item, then it would be difficult for them to believe that this was still luck…
Su Ming's expression remained as calm as ever; he did not feel too much pain at his loss. He seized the third Crimson Stone through the air, and once he placed it in the Enchanted Vessel, he cut down into it without any hesitation.
Su Ming had originally not thought about managing to find anything, but right after he cut into that stone, suddenly, a ray of unusual light shone from the cut.
The appearance of that light immediately caught the attention of numerous pairs of gazes.
Su Ming was momentarily stunned, and while there was not much change on his face, his heart begun racing. This was different from when he cut open those Crimson Stones when he was confident that there was something inside. This sort of feeling towards the unknown, this sort of feeling where his heart shook with excitement, this sort of feeling where he did not know what was contained inside the Crimson Stone made Su Ming understand for the first time why these people were so enthusiastic about the treasure gambling event.
Su Ming's heartbeat quickened slightly. With his eyes fixed on the Crimson Stone, he controlled the light ring and started scraping its surface rapidly. As he did so, the Crimson Stone became smaller. After a moment, a glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. A sharp needle immediately appeared from the light ring and pierced through the Crimson Stone. After repeating the same action several times, he had the light ring cut the stone once again, and immediately, only a small part of the Crimson Stone was left.
However, there was only one ray of unusual light on that small half of the Crimson Stone, but even though there was only one ray, that light was incredibly eye-catching!
Su Ming's heart raced even quicker. This was something he had never felt before. Just as he was hesitating on how he should cut into the stone once again, the people who had finished trading with Nan Gong Hen looked towards him.
"Ahem, my boy Mo, since the Dragon Leaf Grass has been sold to Nine Shaman Pavilion, why don't you sell that stone to me? I'll pay you 1,500,000 for it."
"I'll pay 1,700,000 for it!" Wan Qiu said calmly at that moment. Right up to that moment, she had her eyes fixed on Su Ming to continue observing him.
Once she spoke, the Celestial Maiden in white also named her price, and Tian Lan Meng followed suit.
When he saw Tian Lan Meng, Su Ming's heart surged, but this was not the moment for them to get acquainted with each other. Besides, Su Ming, who had left the land of the Berserkers, also felt a little complicated towards Tian Lan Meng.
When he saw the three women speaking altogether again, he fell into pensive silence for a moment. He was a little reluctant to sell the stone just like this, which was why he decided that he might as well cut into it once again.
As he cut into the stone and as those rumbling sounds echoed in the air, when the Crimson Stone was fully cracked open, the ray of unusual light disappeared. When Su Ming saw that the stone was empty, a bitter smile appeared on his lips.
He had finally come to understand this heart pounding feeling, and had also come to understand how exactly Nan Gong Hen felt when he smiled this way.
'I could have sold it for 1,000,000 something Shaman Crystals, but now…' Su Ming sighed deeply. This sort of feeling that came from treasure gambling could indeed stir up a person's desires.
The two consecutive failures made the gazes gathered on Su Ming become much more normal. In most people's eyes, Su Ming perhaps really possessed a certain amount of luck.
Even the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Tribe had shifted his gaze away from Su Ming.
Su Ming sucked in a deep breath. Once he had experienced the excitement that came from gambling, he still felt that being completely certain that he would gain something was what he preferred the most. He lifted his right hand and seized the air. Immediately, Crimson Stone No.949 floated slowly towards him.
As he stared at this Crimson Stone, Su Ming hesitated.
He was pretty certain that the item contained within this Crimson Stone would perhaps cause an even greater stir than when he extracted that Ghost Spirit Flower. Even though the herb in there had withered, but at its roots, which also did not have a lot of life force left, there was a venomous wasp sleeping inside!
That wasp was clearly an ancient being that came from ages ago. It was difficult to predict whether it was strong or weak, but based on what Su Ming had heard from Wu Duo and Nan Gong Hen about these Crimson Stones people had been extracting medicinal herbs, Enchanted treasures, and all sorts of other things… just not living beings!
It was just like the small black humanoid. While it could be considered as a living being, compared to the venomous wasp in the Crimson Stone before him, the wasp was truly alive!
'Living beings are even rarer than every other type of objects… Once I crack this stone open, then I will definitely cause a stir in this place…' Su Ming swept his gaze past the crowd underneath, then the people in the eight halls, and even the sullen Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple before he averted his gaze and looked at his Crimson Stone.
'Well, I'd like to see just how you would dare to steal my things!'
A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. He, who had come to an agreement with the old Spirit of Nine Yin that could fight against an End Shaman, now had the right to say these words.
He calmed his breathing and started getting prepared for the madness that might come from the item he was going to extract. Once he spent a moment to get ready, he slowly lifted his hand and pressed it on the Enchanted light ring. Immediately, the lights from the light ring criss-crossed each other and started scraping at the stone.
Su Ming's stern look gradually made the people who were watching him from underneath to become serious as well. At that moment, Su Ming had his eyes closed. The small, black humanoid did not tremble too harshly under his divine sense, and it proved Su Ming's assumptions regarding him true. It would only react strongly towards medicinal herbs.
Right now, most of the medicinal herb in the Crimson Stone had withered, and only the roots had any form of life remaining. That was why its stimulation towards the small humanoid was much weaker.
Just as Su Ming was about to start cutting into the stone according to the picture at the center of the small humanoid's brows which he saw through his divine sense, he was suddenly stunned, because he saw the small black humanoid in his storage bag shrinking slightly.
This shrinking meant that it was flinching back. It was not trembling. Su Ming was certain that it was not a figment of his imagination. Uncertainty appeared in his heart. However, his expression remained as usual as he controlled the light ring to continue scraping at the stone. As the speed with which the ring scraped away at the stone increased and as more of the stone dissipated into dust, Su Ming discovered to his shock that the small black humanoid in his storage bag flinched away once again!
It was flinching away, in a manner that was filled with fear. There was even an expression of pain and fear on his face at the moment. Su Ming looked at the change, and bewilderment rose in his heart.
Before the Crimson Stone was scraped away, the small, black humanoid still looked normal, but as it shrank and the thing inside was gradually revealed, the small, black humanoid started showing obvious changes in his expression.
Su Ming opened his eyes and frowned, but did not stop controlling that light ring. He only became even more cautious. Slowly but certainly, once most of the Crimson Stone was gone, that small black humanoid of his was already utterly horrified.
A glint appeared in Su Ming's gaze, and he decided to simply control the light ring and slice down at that Crimson Stone. That one cut immediately caused the mountain rock to lose another huge chunk of itself.
Right at that moment, distorted ripples appeared in the sky above the Crimson Stone. Soon after, an indistinct picture formed between the sky and earth!
That picture was that of an incredibly ordinary looking green plant. It had quite a lot of leaves and was entirely green. If someone absolutely had to mention something different about it, then they would mention that there was a golden line within each of its leaves!
Although the picture was indistinct, the golden lines were very clear.
The instant the shadow appeared, the crowd underneath burst into an uproar once again. However, the commotion this time only lasted for a moment before it fell into dead silence the next instant.
The reason for that dead silence was the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple, who had flown into the sky from the hall for the first time. His hair moved without wind, and there was an expression on his face, it was so stern, like nothing seen on his face before. In fact, the onlookers could even see his excitement faintly, one so great that he could not control!
To an old monster who had walked down the path of cultivation for many years and was already half way into becoming an End Shaman, there were very few things in the world that would cause him to be so excited. However, right at that moment, the old man could no longer control his own emotions!
All of this was due to the shadow that appeared in the sky!
"God String… That's the God String Leaf!!" Nan Gong Hen mumbled, then his expression changed and he cried out his last few words in surprise. As his voice reached others, Tie Mu also recognized the medicinal herb which he had once seen in an illustrated book!
"This is… Could this truly be the God String Leaf? One of the legendary nine mysterious treasures in the World of Nine Yin, the auxiliary leaf of the God Ascension Flower?!"
Wan Qiu was filled with disbelief. She stared at the indistinct medicinal herb in that illusionary picture, and her breathing quickened.
The Celestial Maiden in white shuddered. She looked at the illusionary picture, then at Su Ming, and her face turned pale.
Tian Lan Meng frowned, but before she had time to think, a hoarse voice spoke behind her. As it did, Sky Mist's ancestor walked out of the hall for the first time!
"The nine mysterious treasures of the World of Nine Yin were pictures carved into the back of the stone monument erected in this place in the past. One of them has the name of the God Ascension Flower. There is a unique characteristic to this flower, and when it blooms, its auxiliary leaf, the Golden String Leaf, would appear around it. They are also known as the God String Leaf.
"This God String Leaf has no use… but its appearance means that the nine mysterious treasures are not legends. They… are real!" The voice of Sky Mist's ancestor echoed in Tian Lan Meng's ears. She could hear just how worked up her ancestor was from his voice.
"God Ascension Flower… God Ascension Flower… Legend has it that the flower's nectar contains the power of the World Plane. Just drinking a sip of it… would cause your appearance to never change, for your power to instantly increase exponentially, and so quickly that it could turn a mortal into an Immortal!
"It can make us Cultivators surpass our current Realms and improve by leaps and bounds. It can also let us sense the power of the World Plane!
"This Crimson Stone, or perhaps even the Crimson Stones after this… will have that God Ascension Flower, or else the Golden String Leaf wouldn't have appeared out of nowhere!"
"My fellow tribesmen, Nan Gong Hen of the God of Shamans Temple was the one who bought this stone. If anyone dares to snatch the stone away from me, then don't blame me for turning against you and killing you. Guards of the God of Shamans, where are you?!"
Once the Grand Elder of the God of Shamans Temple saw that illusionary picture, he took a huge step forward and a monstrous presence surged out from his entire body as he walked towards Su Ming, though he absolutely paid no heed about Su Ming. He cared only about the other people from the big tribes. As for Su Ming, he was only an existence akin to an ant before him!
At the moment his words reached the crowd, several hundreds of presences instantly burst forth from within Shaman City. They turned into long arcs and charged forth towards this place from all over Shaman City.