The Aloof Immortal Venerable is Pregnant with My Fox Cub - Chapter 84

Chapter 84

Cang Ran and her group split into two paths: one heading to the largest auction in the central cultivation world, and the other returning to the Grand Mystic Sect.

By the time they arrived at the auction, Yun Muyu and Lin Mingyue, having used a teleportation array, were a step quicker than them. They had already delivered the medicine to Song Zhen. The Gate Master of the Ten Thousand Medicine Gate had refined the pill and given it to Song Zhen, whose condition had significantly improved.

Upon receiving the message, Tan Qingxuan felt relieved. All that remained was to obtain the Ice Toad Venom Eye at the auction. By using it to counteract the venom already in Song Zhen’s body, they could successfully detoxify her.

Cang Ran had heard Huazhao mention the Ice Toad Venom Eye before. The Great Demon King had sent her to steal an Ice Toad. There shouldn’t be only one Ice Toad in the world, right? The Gate Master of the Ten Thousand Medicine Gate had said there was a chance to acquire it at the auction, so he probably wasn’t lying.

They arrived in the morning, but the auction was scheduled to start in the evening. Since the Grand Mystic Sect was one of the foremost major sects in the cultivation world, the Phoenix Perch Pavilion, the organization behind the auction, had delivered a pass early on and arranged for them to stay at a nearby residence, even hiring specialized cultivators to ensure their safety.

The Phoenix Perch Pavilion only serves as a guarantee for the auction. Therefore, they do not easily disclose the items that will appear at the auction, nor do they allow sellers and buyers to meet each other, preventing the possibility of bypassing the Phoenix Perch Pavilion for individual transactions. This is how the Pavilion is able to charge a one percent commission.

Because this auction only happens once a year, the probability of rare treasures appearing is very high. It is expected to last for about three days.

Before the items for auction enter the magnificent Phoenix Perch Pavilion, the Pavilion Master inspects them first. Some rogue cultivators take advantage of the high concentration of cultivators due to the Phoenix Perch Pavilion, setting up stalls to sell treasures that are not quite as priceless.

These small stalls are the most likely places to find fake goods, but also great bargains. Cang Ran considered her luck and decided against looking for bargains. Instead, she set up a stall with Shen Yunyan and Shui Shaoyi, displaying the processed Divine Wood they had collected to sell.

Cang Ran kept a portion of the Divine Wood and spiritual plants for Tan Qingxuan to take back to the Grand Mystic Sect for standby use. Shui Shaoyi also purchased some in the name of the Ten Thousand Medicine Gate. Tan Qingxuan and Elder Qu, finding it inconvenient to show their faces, rested at the residence, leaving the rest for the three of them to sell outside.

Business did not start smoothly. Because the Divine Wood looked like raw material and had not been processed into talisman brushes or array disks, only a faint layer of golden light gathered on them, which was not obvious. Very few people came to their stall to inquire.

None of the three had any experience with running a stall. They weren’t like the rogue cultivators who frequently sold goods and knew how to actively hawk and exaggerate the quality of their items.

Before leaving the house, Tan Qingxuan had Cang Ran wear a veil hat, with a white gauze concealing her face. Shui Shaoyi and Shen Yunyan stood beside her like two bodyguards. The Heavenly Mulberry Divine Wood on the stall was piled up as if it were worthless, looking a little out of place in the surroundings.

Not long after, a group of about ten black-clad figures, equally heavily concealed with only their eyes visible, approached. They asked if the Divine Wood was genuine and how much it cost.

The voices of these black-clad individuals sounded extremely hoarse, as if they hadn’t spoken for many years.

Cang Ran couldn’t clearly see their faces, nor did she hold much hope, “The ones that are one finger wide on the left are five hundred top-grade spirit stones each. The ones that are as thick as a bowl on the right are one thousand top-grade spirit stones each. They are all one arm’s length. Pick what you like.”

The black-clad figures looked at them for a while. After discussing among themselves, they pointed to all the Heavenly Mulberry Divine Wood, “We’ll take all of these. Do you have any more? We’ll buy everything you have.”

Good heavens, are they taking these back to burn as firewood? They shouldn’t be burning these!

Cang Ran couldn’t help but remind them, “Yes, but this Divine Wood is used to refine artifacts.”

The leader of the black-clad figures nodded twice. He took out ten bundles of wrapped purple spirit stone notes from his storage bag. Each bundle was as thick as a brick. He neatly stacked them on Cang Ran’s stall.

He said concisely, “I know. Just pack them up for me. Use these spirit stones to bundle up one portion for each person.”

As long as the payment was settled, nothing was a problem.

Cang Ran handed the spirit stone notes to Shen Yunyan and Shui Shaoyi, asking them to count and confirm the authenticity. After confirming the quantity was correct, they began packaging the goods for the black-clad figures.

After receiving their goods, the black-clad figures still picked and chose, each selecting for themselves. They compared to see who had more of the thicker Divine Wood before putting them into their storage artifacts and leaving.

Cang Ran couldn’t help but ask Shui Shaoyi and Shen Yunyan, “Can you tell which sect they belong to?”

Shen Yunyan shook her head slightly. Shui Shaoyi mused, “During the demon invasion some time ago, the demonic forces also took advantage of the weakness. While the major sects were preoccupied, some smaller sects were tormented by demonic energy. Perhaps their throats and bodies were burned by demonic energy, and they need the Divine Wood as material for a Spirit Nurturing Array.”

Cang Ran nodded, “So that’s it.”

In just one morning, the Divine Wood they had collected quickly sold out. Cang Ran tallied the accounts. After subtracting the shares she had to give to the others, she had earned a total of five million top-grade spirit stones.

Huge profit! Earning unexpected wealth is so satisfying!

She wanted to go back to that moving secret realm on Quicksand Island again. Some talisman cultivators who hadn’t managed to buy any rushed over, asking if they had any more, and offering to pay a higher price to purchase them.

Cang Ran told them they had none. They couldn’t keep exploiting the same secret realm repeatedly.

Shen Yunyan and Shui Shaoyi wanted to wander around. When Cang Ran returned to the temporary residence alone, Tan Qingxuan was hosting a visitor.

The person was wearing a dark robe embroidered with cloud patterns, and her long black hair was tied up with a golden hairpin, making her look quite young and competent. As she came in, Tan Qingxuan had just finished their discussion and was seeing her out.

Cang Ran passed her, brushing shoulders. She slightly inhaled and frowned. The person was wearing an extremely heavy perfume. After smelling it for a long time, there seemed to be a bitter taste lingering on the tip of her tongue.

She looked at the two cups of tea on the table. The water still had residual warmth, and light steam drifted upwards, indicating that the conversation hadn’t lasted too long.

Cang Ran walked over and sat down next to Tan Qingxuan. She picked up the unfinished teacup of Tan Qingxuan and took a sip to quench her thirst, casually asking, “Who was that person who just visited?”

Seeing Cang Ran covered in sweat again, Tan Qingxuan cast a Dust Cleansing Art on her, “The Pavilion Master of the Phoenix Perch Pavilion, Shi Qi. She came to ask me what the Grand Mystic Sect intends to bid on at the auction.”

Surprise flashed in Cang Ran’s eyes, “Didn’t the Phoenix Perch Pavilion say they wouldn’t easily disclose auction items?”

Tan Qingxuan picked up the jade teapot and poured her a fresh cup of tea, “Although that is the case, the Five Great Immortal Sects are different from the smaller sects. The Phoenix Perch Pavilion is located in Zhongzhou and has deep ties with the major Immortal Sects. They must give us this much courtesy. She currently has two Heart Condensing Immortal Grasses in hand. Based on past prices, we should be able to win the bid. However, the Ice Toad Venom Eye and the Red Moon Sacred Orchid have yet to appear.”

Cang Ran couldn’t help but frown, “Do we have to search other places again?”

Tan Qingxuan shook her head slightly, “Some items are not sent to the Phoenix Perch Pavilion in advance for auction. Every day for these three days, people might travel thousands of miles to attend the auction, and they might arrive a bit late. We’ll see at the auction.”

Worry colored Cang Ran’s eyes, “But what if she discloses the information, and someone who knows what we are looking for intentionally uses inferior goods to pass off as the real thing?”

Tan Qingxuan said gently, “The Phoenix Perch Pavilion employs more than one master artifact appraiser. They have invited ten for this auction. If something goes wrong, the entire reputation of the Phoenix Perch Pavilion will plummet in the cultivation world. They definitely wouldn’t falsify things like this. Releasing the information is also a way for them to receive the items early.”

Cang Ran finally felt at ease. As long as the spiritual medicine wasn’t faulty, the auction would have fixed prices. With so many spirit stones in her hands now, she could just bid for it.

She stacked the money she earned today on the table and pushed it all towards Tan Qingxuan. She had also tallied the spirit stones in her necklace while on the ship and told Tan Qingxuan,

“These top-grade spirit stone notes were earned today, about five million. The spirit stones in my necklace, when converted, are also about five million top-grade spirit stones. That makes a total of ten million top-grade spirit stones. I also have one million top-grade spirit stones. They are all for you to use.”

Tan Qingxuan knew the fox originally had two mountains of spirit stones, and she had added one more. She hadn’t counted them, so she was surprised the fox had privately counted all the money. The silly thing must have spent a long time counting them.

Tan Qingxuan’s eyes rippled. She couldn’t help but stroke her head, “Did you spend all your time counting spirit stones when you weren’t resting on the ship?”

Cang Ran hummed and lowered her head to take off the necklace, saying seriously, “It didn’t take too long. You were taking care of our cub all by yourself before. This time, let’s use my money. I will work hard to earn more spirit stones in the future. You use this first.”

No wonder people often said children were “four-legged gold-swallowing beasts.” Her little fox cub hadn’t even been born yet, and the fox mother, with her meager savings, had already gone nearly bankrupt buying supplements for her.

But that’s what raising a child is like, she thought. Fortunately, there’s only one. She hoped the little fox cub would be healthier when it was born, so all their hard work in finding all sorts of rare treasures for the child’s supplements wouldn’t be in vain.

Tan Qingxuan originally didn’t want to accept Cang Ran’s spirit stones, but then she thought about how responsible and obedient the fox looked. This was all a sincere gesture for their shared child. She accepted them for now, planning to give Cang Ran money through other excuses later when she needed to spend.

Tan Qingxuan collected all the spirit stones, “Alright, I’ll keep them here for now.”

Cang Ran nodded, “Mhm.”

Tan Qingxuan helped Cang Ran put the necklace back on. Seeing that Cang Ran had been wearing a veil hat the whole time, she reached out and untied the knot, “Didn’t Shui Shaoyi and Shen Yunyan come back with you?”

Cang Ran tilted her neck back slightly, “No. Shen Yunyan wanted to look around, and Shui Shaoyi went with her. I guess they’ll come over later when we go to the auction.”

Cang Ran’s skin was delicate and tender. Her chin, having been covered by the hat strap for a long time, had fine beads of sweat due to the stuffiness. It was hot and flushed red, looking rather pitiful.

Tan Qingxuan felt pity. Her long, slender fingers gently stroked the tender skin, “Why are you sweating so much? Next time, if you’re uncomfortable, don’t wear it.”

Cang Ran felt a tingling sensation where Tan Qingxuan touched her. She curved her long, narrow fox eyes, and her voice was soft, “Because I have so much fox fur! Didn’t you say the veil hat could prevent sunburn? I thought the weather today was indeed quite sunny, so the sun protection must be quite good.”

She only made her wear it because the fox was too beautiful. She was worried she would be tricked if she went out to run a stall. The place was full of mixed people. Some rogue cultivators used sneaky and sinister methods. If someone tried to snatch the fox, the loss would be immense.

Tan Qingxuan lowered her gaze and said softly, “Come closer. I’ll help you wipe it properly.”

Cang Ran stood up and walked over to Tan Qingxuan. She placed her hands on the sides of Tan Qingxuan’s chair, leaned over, and moved close to Tan Qingxuan’s ear, “It’s not hot. Just blow on me, Venerable.”

Tan Qingxuan was completely enveloped by Cang Ran. A faint, clean scent of peach blossoms lingered in her nostrils. The airflow from Cang Ran made her body tremble and feel slightly weak. The blush on her neck spread into a large patch of crimson.

Cang Ran pressed down on her from above, her clear eyes filled with amusement. The upward tilt of her eyes carried a hint of flirtatiousness, making her look quite dissolute.

Tan Qingxuan raised her slender, exquisite fingers and pushed her back, “Be proper.”

Cang Ran deliberately kissed the side of Tan Qingxuan’s face with a loud “pop” sound, curling her lips, “I choose not to be proper. I want to kiss you.”

Anyway, Tan Qingxuan was pregnant with the cub now and couldn’t do anything to her.

The next moment, her jaw was gripped. The slender fingers pinched quite tightly, sending a cold sensation. There was also a sense of pressure from Tan Qingxuan’s cold eyes. Their eyelashes were almost touching.

Cang Ran’s thick eyelashes fluttered continuously. She suddenly felt a bit cowardly. Just as she was about to retreat, Tan Qingxuan bit her rosy lips.

She hadn’t expected Tan Qingxuan to bite her. It didn’t hurt much, but the warning was very strong, leaving Cang Ran momentarily stunned.

Tan Qingxuan narrowed her eyes. Does the fox think she can bite people, but people can’t bite the fox?

Tan Qingxuan used two fingers to pinch her jaw, lifting it slightly. She slightly opened her red lips and blew on Cang Ran’s flushed skin.

The warm airflow made Cang Ran’s heart tingle with an urge. Before she could do anything, Tan Qingxuan pushed her away, “If you’re naughty again next time, I’ll bite you again.”

Tan Qingxuan will be the one getting bitten. Cang Ran immediately lunged onto Tan Qingxuan. All five of her fluffy tails wrapped around Tan Qingxuan simultaneously. She pressed a fervent kiss onto her, her breathing slightly ragged, “You better bite me to death, Venerable.”

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