Chapter 1315: Chapter 1315. Deal with The Thousand Pills Verdant Pavilion.
Yasenia and the group of six cultivators from the [Thousand Pills Verdant Pavilion] moved to a safer place. Yasenia didn’t stop her transformed state, maintaining her dragon form. This form had greater defense than her humanoid form, which made her feel more secure against sneak attacks.
"Before we start, let me introduce myself." The middle-aged man spoke calmly, neither servile nor overbearing. "I am Lan Shuyuan, Lan Qingsu’s granduncle. My cultivation outside of the Secret Realm is the eighth Level of the Transcendence Realm, and my position is an elder of the seventh pavilion."
Yasenia nodded faintly. "I am Yasenia Dravory. Currently, I am staying as a guest elder in a weak sect, so I won’t get involved in naming it. You can consider me a rogue cultivator."
Her words came as a surprise. After all, even if someone didn’t have any background, they wouldn’t say it aloud. This gave the people with more strength the ability to just silence the weaker party.
In short, Yasenia had placed herself in a disadvantageous position on purpose. ’What is her objective?’ Lan Shuyuan asked himself, unaware of what the dragon wanted to achieve with those words.
Nevertheless, he didn’t falter. "What you want is the Profound Blazeflower. It is a plant that will help one of our elders by creating the Purification Blazepower."
Yasenia spoke up. "Nevertheless, this is not a permanent fix. Only a temporary patch on a broken jar. The cracks will eventually reopen without proper fixing."
"You are correct." The man didn’t feel flustered. "However, that time is something we need if we want to find a perfect fix. At the rate things are developing, the elder we want to protect doesn’t have much lifespan left."
Yasenia asked. "I understand that, since you are a sect that focuses on alchemy, your medical experts are superb. Therefore, I won’t doubt your words and will take them at face value. Nevertheless, that doesn’t take away from your grandniece stealing from me."
Her words were true. While the other side might’ve found the treasure first, she didn’t stay in place and guard it. That was Lan Qingsu’s mistake, and no one could deny it. Then, Lan Qingsu stealing the flower from her very hands was not only a lack of respect and a show of arrogance, but it also reflected poorly on the overall reputation of the [Thousand Pills Verdant Pavilion].
Lan Qingsu spoke up, somewhat flustered and not wanting to take her words lying down. "I didn’t steal it! I needed the tools to take it out of the ground without damaging it. You just came in the time I took to get those tools."
Yasenia’s golden eyes shifted slightly to look straight at her. "If I were you, I would’ve called for someone to guard the flower. At least, if someone came with the intention of getting it by force, you would have the qualifications to defend your treasure. But you didn’t. If I were flying around and acting like you, I could claim that all the treasures that enter my sight are mine and no one else’s. And, if anyone dares to take them, I’ll snatch them back."
The comparison was a bit of an exaggerated statement, but it worked to illustrate the problem at hand. Lan Shuyuan wanted to speak, but Yasenia stepped up before him. "I am not asking for the flower. I’ve already come to terms with the fact that I am not fated to have that treasure. Still, what your grandniece did is wrong, so I want compensation. I will not ask for a flower of the same value because I want to give your sect face. However, I want something that will not shame your sect’s reputation."
With those words, Yasenia effectively blocked all paths. She first laid out her willingness to give up the treasure, and then involved the entire sect in her trade. If the aftermath of the exchange results in a low-level and useless treasure being used to exchange for the Profound Blazeflower, then it would be a stain and a shameful event for them. It would show that the people of the sect don’t really care about fairness, making future trades slightly more difficult.
Yasenia could play many cards this way, even if she had no background.
Lan Shuyuan’s eyes flashed, understanding the implications of Yasenia’s words. "... Alright. I understand. Still, I have another proposal for you."
Yasenia got thoughtful. She knew that he was about to bring up her previous willingness to try to treat that person in exchange for the Blazeflower. However, Yasenia wouldn’t just accept that condition; it was too unfavorable for her. "I’ll listen, Lord Lan."
"I can guess that you have some knowledge in the art of medicine since you previously spoke about helping us with the illness. However, I have never heard your name, and I also can’t smell the scent of herbs on your body. This means that you are not an avid alchemist."
Words like that were to bring down Yasenia’s self-evaluation a peg. Then, he struck again. "Therefore, we can’t accept your claims at face value. Not to speak, with your lack of background, the fact that I am giving you enough face and discussing matters should be taken into account." He squinted. "Remember that, worst-case scenario, we can just get rid of you."
Yasenia’s lips arched coyly. ’He fell for it. I did well reminding him about my lack of background.’
"Oh~? So the [Thousand Pills Verdant Pavilion] is one that refuses to make deals with rogue cultivators. I expected a sect that sells pills to have rogue cultivators as its main customer base. I guess... I was wrong."
Selling pills to sects was profitable, but comparing the number of people in sects with the number of unaffiliated cultivators was ridiculous. There were many more unaffiliated cultivators than normal ones. Not because they didn’t want to, but because sects had standards of taking "above average" people.
What did this mean? All people who were "average" and below were not even considered worthy of being enrolled. This left far more than half of the cultivation population free.
These rogue cultivators could then have some fortuitous encounter and become a powerhouse that was rejected by a sect. Creating neutral parties, mercenary groups, merchant caravans, and many more powers.
So, the customers that bought the most from alchemy sects were not other sects but rogue cultivators and the neutral powers that lacked strong connections.
To put it simply, sects were a cake where all sects ate from and had clear boundaries, while the rogue powers were a larger cake placed in a buffet.
Hearing Yasenia’s words was naturally unpleasant for Lan Shuyuan. If it was known that their sect didn’t treat rogue cultivators fairly, their sales would plummet.
"... I understand. However, your words have nothing to do with qualifications. It’s not that we aren’t willing because of your background, but that your lack of background makes you unreliable."
Yasenia naturally understood this as well. "That’s why I will offer you the following. When visiting this elder, I will be under the supervision of your medical practitioners. My strength is low, so if I dare do something strange, you can all kill me right away before I complete any scheme. Moreover, you should understand that I am not someone who treats my own life lightly. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have faced all of you like I have."
Everyone was silent. It was the truth, after all.
Yasenia added. "So, to decide on how to deal with the Blazeflower, I recommend that we postpone it until the Secret Realm ends. Once it ends, I will go as a guest to your esteemed sect, and I will try to treat the ailment that afflicts your sect elder. If I am unable to, I will receive normal compensation."
Lan Shuyuan asked, his eyes squinted. "And if you can?"
Yasenia’s reptilian mouth arched in a grin. "We can talk about that when it happens. I am sure that the elder I saved will be delighted to speak to me."
Our dragoness’s intentions were clearly laid out. She was saying that if she saved the elder, that person would feel indebted to her. Therefore, the rewards will become much more extravagant then. Speaking about them now would be like stupidly limiting her reward.
Lan Shuyuan sighed and looked at the dragon in silence for a few seconds. "Alright, we understand. Our discussion will end here, then. When you exit the Secret Realm, activate this talisman. I will contact you through it."
The dragoness used her energy to pick up the talisman and looked at it closely. She was not very proficient in talismans, but she knew some basics after reading some books. Of course, her knowledge was only enough to detect low-level tracking talismans and similar ones.
Sensing nothing, Yasenia placed it inside her spatial ring with a nod. "That’s great. I wish seniors a great hunt in the secret realm."
Extending her wings, Yasenia shot to the sky and became a streak of light, speeding into the distance. There was nothing else to speak of after that. Even if there were no oaths involved, and she was basing the conversation on trust, she was not worried. Worst-case scenario, she could always resort to Tatyana’s talisman.
Yasenia placed this on the back of her mind and continued flying through the enormous secret realms. Islands appeared one after another, but her treasure senses failed to trigger. Since she had been in the secret realm for over three years, Yasenia’s threshold for treasures had become slightly pickier.
After all, collecting a thousand low-level treasures couldn’t compare to a single top-tier treasure.
While searching the surroundings, she could observe conflict in different locations. Nevertheless, she never got involved in them. ’Whatever happens between other people is not my problem. I need to find the sects that I am searching for without losing chances to gain strength.’
It was eight months later that the opportunity appeared. In the distance, a bright pillar of light illuminated the night sky. This pillar of light clearly belonged to a powerful treasure. Yasenia pondered for a second before nodding. ’Let’s go check it out.’
This treasure was both a source of calamity and opportunity. Even if you got the opportunity, that didn’t mean that you could keep it. After all, if your strength was lacking, no matter what treasure you obtained, it would get snatched.
While flying in the direction of the pillar, Yasenia chose to return to her humanoid form. There might be Dragon Hunters, and the only thing she didn’t want was to give them a clear reason to bother her.