Other than the imperial clans of the nine majors, which had special heritages that ensured their members would safely overcome the tribulation, very few could make the ascension. That was why all the ancestors of the top clans were arcane dao immortals, rather than origin dao immortals. Almost no arcane dao immortal could emerge victorious over the guardians to pluck their dao fruit.

Other than the nine celestial emperors, anyone who’d tried had damaged their foundation during the process and become incredibly vulnerable. They then went into hiding.

The head of the Panorama Pavilion might be powerful, but he knew he was much weaker than the arcane dao immortals who’d been killed or severely injured by the monsters throughout history. If he attempted to pluck the fruit, he’d be killed even if the fruit came to him of its own volition.

That was why the pavilion had sought Lu Yun out—to borrow a treasure. They wanted to borrow the black axe Lu Yun had gleaned to deter the monsters guarding the fruit.

……

Lu Yun’s lips pressed tightly together. So it would seem that similar long-haired monsters guarded the veil between the arcane and origin dao immortal realms. No wonder there were so few origin dao immortals in the world. Only the nine celestial emperors touched upon that level, while the leaders of the ten lands and four seas were all arcane dao immortals.

“Contemporary immortals haven’t experienced the void realm to understand heaven and earth. Neither have they had the chance to refine the power of the land into themselves. That’s why they face such great dangers when picking their dao fruit and can’t deal with the hairy monsters!” Lu Yun continued to mutter, “the only thing that makes the monsters special is the strange dao weapons they wield, but immortals also aren’t their match when plucking the fruit.”

Of course, that was simply Lu Yun’s perspective. In the eyes of other cultivators, they still wouldn’t be able to deal with the monsters even if the latter weren’t armed with dao weapons.

“Alright.” He nodded and transmitted, “I can lend your master the dao weapon. However, the axe is unique due to the great dao it contains. No matter what cultivation realm you are, you can only make one swing before you’re drained of all inner energy!

“I was able to make several swings back in Dusk City only because I prepared a great amount of pills beforehand,” Lu Yun reminded her. “Your master must stock up on energy replenishing pills before attempting his ascension. No cost is too great when it comes to preparation!”

He then threw Qing Xun a storage ring and said out loud, “Here’s the last of my wealth: five million premium immortal crystals. Please prepare fifty thousand supreme formation stones for me!”

Crush the ring when you need the weapon.

Our thanks for Sir Lu’s generosity and integrity! Qing Xun carefully schooled her expression into calm. “Not to worry, Sir Lu Yun. The Panorama Pavilion will deliver fifty thousand stones.”

“Five million premium crystals for fifty thousand supreme formation stones?” muttered the little fox. “Nice bargain he just got. The Panorama Pavilion is more wasteful than the Deaf Prince!”

Xing Mou bobbed her head rapidly. A supreme formation stone was worth at least ten thousand premium crystals. Exchanging five million crystals for five thousand supreme formation stones was simply highway robbery. Qing Han was sharp enough to figure out that Lu Yun was making a different deal with the pavilion, but refrained from exposing the double play.

“Also,” Lu Yun transmitted again, “I’m very interested in the ancient pill recipe you’re restoring. I’m not lending you the weapon for free. I’d like to take a look at the recipe.”

“We couldn’t hide it from you after all.” Qing Xun opted to speak rather than silently transmit this time. “We might’ve been able to keep the truth from the other pill masters last time, but not you. Indeed, the thousand and eighty herbs, as well as a few additional herbs, can be refined into a long lost pill. We can’t restore the recipe on our own, which is why we resorted to holding an auction.

“With your help, however, we’re very likely to be able to restore the ancient recipe.”

That caught the attention of the others in the carriage. They’d been in the dark regarding what deal Qing Xun and Lu Yun were making, but now they knew. It had something to do with the Panorama Pavilion’s secrets, which explained the discretion being employed. Hongxiu had been especially curious, but now abruptly lost interest in the conversation.

The Panorama senior council around Qing Xun feigned nonchalance and remained silent as well. No wonder Qing Xun would take the deal; Lu Yun was striking while the iron was hot and making out like a bandit!

Qing Xun inwardly sighed with relief. Compared to the ancient recipe, the pavilion head’s tribulation was the true matter at hand. It was better to reveal the pill recipe than to let others know that they’d borrowed a treasure from Lu Yun!

From Lu Yun’s perspective, he was willing to make this deal, since, when he’d gone missing, the Panorama Pavilion had provided sanctuary for the Lu and Chen Clans, minimizing damage to the two. They’d also terminated their business deals with the Qing and Feng Clans, and the Exalted Immortal Sect, dancing dangerously close to open warfare in a bid to protect Aoxue.

Though Qing Ruyan was a large driving force behind these actions, the fact that the merchant guild hadn’t kicked him when he was down made them a worthy ally. Moreover, he really was curious about the pill recipe.

……

“Oh?” Lu Yun shot to his feet and looked out the window with a startled look. “Stop the carriage!” He transmitted to the Deaf Prince.

“Hm? What’s wrong?” With a wave of his hand, the Deaf Prince halted the nine dragon-horses and stopped flinging around crystals.

Lu Yun jumped out of the carriage without a word and walked up to a little stand, picking up a gray, oval stone the size of a fist.

“How much for this stone?” He turned to the golden immortal manning the stand.

The seller’s skin was rough and weathered, and there was a strong smell of brine about him. It was obvious that he often traversed the ocean. He perked up when he saw Lu Yun jump out of the Deaf Prince’s carriage and his eyes shifted cannily. “A million premium crystals!”

“May I borrow a million crystals from you, Your Royal Highness?” Lu Yun transmitted.

“Sure!” The prince beamed from ear to ear at the prospect of spending money.

Thud!

He threw a silver box onto the stand with dramatic flair.

“A million crystals!” shouted the Deaf Prince. The golden immortal smiled obsequiously and hurriedly took the box.

“Hold!” came another voice. “I’ll pay two million for the stone. It’s mine now.”