Chapter 398: Tribute

Translator: Myriea_ActiasLuna  Editor: Nou

In all honesty, Fang Xing would normally have to hand over seventy percent of his own resources since he was only in Foundation Stage, but the Hentian clan was trying to rope him in as much as possible due to the red dragon and gave him preferential treatment. The clan master had also heard from the Head Exalt that his daughter had offended Fang Xing earlier, and he’d intended to waive the requirement to give resources as a means to offset her offense.

Regardless, such special treatment couldn’t be said out loud in public, especially with so many Exalts watching. Even the Head Exalt who’d entered the Guixu Ruins three hundred years as a mid-stage Golden Core had to offer thirty percent of his resources to the clan. The issue would be settled if he said Fang Xing’s offerings were to be waived, but the other Exalts might see it as being unfair if it was so blatant. A clan’s power relied on both its elders and its Exalts; if the Exalts were dissatisfied, there would be a great hidden danger.

Amidst the slightly awkward atmosphere, Fang Xing suddenly started laughing and raised his wine glass while strolling towards the center of the hall. “It is I who hadn’t followed the rules. One would first greet the bandits if they enter a mountain, one would first bow to the gods if they enter a temple. For me to have entered your Hentian clan, an offering is only a matter of course. Although I had been in a rush when I fled into the Guixu ruins, I did still bring some stuff inside, and I shall take them out today as a display of my good intentions!” With that, he took out a storage sack, moved to the center of the room, and asked someone to bring out a large table.

The clan master and the others were all somewhat surprised when they saw him volunteer to offer tribute, and they looked on without blinking as he opened the storage sack and pulled out something like a miniature mountain to place on the table.

“It looks like a small mountain, but what is it?” All the Exalts craned their heads closer with some surprise at what they saw, but when the Head Exalt took a few closer looks, his pupils dilated and he let out a long breath. Seeing this, the clan master immediately knew this was no ordinary treasure, so he looked to the Head Exalt who lightly sighed and said, “How extraordinary. Little Friend Xing, you have actually taken out a Shanbao Mountain Treasure….”

“Shanbao Mountain?”

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Sharp breaths could be heard in the hall. Even cultivators who weren’t rich would still have some knowledge, and the name “Shanbao Mountain” had naturally been heard before. It was a spirit treasure crafted from an entire mountain, mighty enough to lord over others once it was mastered. No one had imagined Fang Xing would be able to take something like this out straight away.

Fang Xing bitterly sighed and replied, “I took this from the Colored Glass Palace when the palace was destroyed. I was in a rush and did not check its value, but after I took it, I realized this Shanbao Mountain is too difficult for me to activate with my powers. It is not very useful in my hands!” His words explained how the Shanbao Mountain had fallen into his heads and also clarified some questions the clan master and Exalts had. Fang Xing was only in Foundation Stage, so how could he get his hands on such a precious thing? The only explanation was it had been stolen during the chaos at the Colored Glass Palace, which would also help pave the way for excuses in the future.

Even after taking out the Shanbao Mountain, Fang Xing put his hands into his storage sack once more, and this time he pulled out a handsome red horse half the size of a man. Its body was covered in the gleam of jewels and an eye-blinding shine, and a peculiar feeling extended out into the hall once it was revealed. All the cultivators would take a sniff and feel instantly refreshed with all of their senses cleared. Everyone was dumbstruck and looked on in shock, but they didn’t dare to verify their thoughts. “That’s….”

“It’s Spirit Essence!” The clan master and Head Exalt both rushed to the table at the same time, their eyes filled with excitement as they looked at the handsome horse.

“Spirit Essence?” All of the other cultivators within the hall were a bit dazed, and some were still confused.Eeven the Exalts who’d come from the outside realm hadn’t heard this term in a very long time.

Spirit Essence wasn’t something that existed in the natural world, and instead had to be refined from supreme-quality Spirit Stones. The amount of Qi contained within was over a hundred times greater than a supreme-quality Spirit Stone of the same size, although a large amount of Qi would be wasted during the refinement process; if it weren’t for the fact supreme-quality Spirit Stones were troublesome for Golden Cores to use, no one would waste so much Qi to create such a thing.

Even Spirit Stones were a rare sight within the Guixu Ruins, so who would actually be willing to refine the highest-quality Spirit Stones into Spirit Essence? Simply put, Spirit Essence was something no one within the Guixu Ruins had heard of.

Such a large piece of Spirit Essence was completely beyond value. If this was changed into Spirit Stones, just how many would there be? Tens of thousands? Hundreds of thousands? Not even the clan master or Head Exalt could quickly calculate the number, but they were still absolutely certain this piece of Spirit Essence was an invaluable treasure. At least within the Guixu Ruins, its value had perhaps surpassed even that of the Shanbao Mountain Fang Xing had revealed earlier.

Under all of the cultivators’ excited gazes, Fang Xing continued to pull things out of his storage sack.

A high-quality formation flag filled with precious jewels and an extremely flamboyant Flying Sword were just a few of the many rare items he revealed. All of these things had been taken from the dragon girl’s treasure vault, and although they would cause quite a stir outside, it seemed they didn’t hold as much value as that horse or the Shanbao Mountain within the ruins. Despite this, the clan master and Head Exalt were still extremely surprised to see such things, as they hadn’t expected such a young-looking boy to have such valuable treasures on him. It was truly fortunate he was willing to hand them out, or else wouldn’t the Hentian clan have missed a great opportunity for such treasure?

Once all the larger items were taken out, Fang Xing turned his storage sack over and poured numerous small items to pour out on the table. All of them were of decent quality, but they were nothing more than ordinary items such as medicinal herbs, pellets, Flying Swords, formation flags, talismans, and a hundred or so supreme-quality Spirit Stones. These were the types of items someone with Fang Xing’s cultivation level would be expected to have, which made it seem even more likely the earlier items had been stolen by him.

Once everything was taken out, Fang Xing patted his body and showed a bitter smile. “I came in such a rush I only brought these things with me—how embarrassing. Such a pity, though; if I had known earlier, I could have taken a bit more….”

Right now, Fang Xing truly did not have any more storage sacks on him. When he first saw the Head Exalt, he’d already realized the people within the Guixu Ruins weren’t easy enemies to deal with, so how would he dare keep such great treasures on him? Using the excuse of changing into his robes, he’d hid his other storage sacks while bringing only this one along with him to the Hentian clan. Although he hadn’t originally had any specific purpose in doing so, this had truly worked wonders and he’d be in a very difficult situation now if he hadn’t.

Fang Xing was someone who had so many kinds of treasures he needed seven or eight storage sacks just to hold them, on top of a storage ring for the most valuable ones. Most other cultivators would have no more than a single storage sack, however, so this much wasn’t suspicious at all and he actually appeared very genuine and honest after revealing everything. Even just these items on their own were surprising enough.

“Little Friend Xing is certainly extraordinary. Although Fellow Daoist Xing is in Foundation Stage, as a high-tier Exalt, you will only need to offer thirty percent of your resources to the clan. As for that…” the Head Exalt slowly began while looking towards the clan master who was wearing a grave expression. Truthfully speaking, both of them had been moved by such treasures and taking only thirty percent seemed like too little, but the rules were the rules—the Exalts were watching, and it wouldn’t be a good idea to say such things publicly. Furthermore, Fang Xing’s red dragon was extremely useful, and there was some concern Fang Xing would become cold towards them if they pushed too far.

Even then… so many treasures, they would only feel regret afterwards if they didn’t take them. Putting aside everything else, that large Spirit Essence was definitely excellent and utterly invaluable within this Guixu Ruins.

Fang Xing looked on with a cold gaze. He naturally understood their intentions, so he smiled and said, “I have only arrived here recently and do not know the rules very well. With my cultivation level where it is right now, there are many things I do not need, so I’d like to offer them to the clan master as a show of loyalty; there is no need to follow the thirty or fifty percent rule. However, I must be allowed to keep the spirit weapons and tools I am used to using on a daily basis. And…” he paused for a moment before taking out an extremely lavish and beautiful Flying Sword and holding it in his hand, “… the rest are fine, but this Flying Sword is one I cannot give for any reason.”

Everyone looked towards the Flying Sword in Fang Xing’s hands when they heard this. This boy was so generous as to willingly offer both the Shanbao Mountain and the Spirit Essence to the clan, so why was he placing so much importance on this Flying Sword? Perhaps there was something different about it? The more they thought about it, the harder they stared at the Flying Sword and felt it was abnormally ornate. Perhaps there was something special about it?

The Head Exalt was also surprised and carefully took a closer look at the Flying Sword. “If there is anything you wish to keep, Little Friend, you keeping it is certain. However, I’d like to ask; is there anything special about this Flying Sword?” His words were filled with genuine curiosity without any hint of wanting to take it for himself.

“About this….” Fang Xing’s face reddened a bit, as though embarrassed.

When everyone saw this, they only became more confused. The Head Exalt had merely asked him what was so special about the sword and hadn’t required him to hand it over, and in fact had said he could keep anything he wanted since he’d given the Spirit Essence. Why would he start blushing?

While everyone looked on in confusion, Fang Xing seemed to gather his courage with great effort and slowly moved in front of the female young master. “This… when I first appeared, I broke the longsword of the young master…” he began, his voice as small as a fly’s, “I felt… I felt uneasy… hence I kept this sword. Consider this my gift of apology to the young master….” He paused slightly and sent a surreptitious look towards the female young master. His face was flushed, and a subtle hint of desire flashed across his gaze.

Aha !

Everyone in the room suddenly understood, and their expressions became a bit peculiar with some openly showing ridicule.

No wonder this boy was so feeble-minded as to willingly take out all his treasure in such a seemingly selfless manner!

No wonder this boy had been tortured by the female young master, yet still seemed to bear no grudge!

No wonder this boy was willing to give up all these rare treasures and only wanted to keep a Flying Sword like this!

This boy had taken a liking to the female young master and wanted to become the Hentian clan’s son-in-law….