/
Chapter 1346: Chou Clan’s Supreme Skill
“Mount Wu’s Goddess?” Zu An almost spat out the water he was sipping on. After all, in the world he had transmigrated from, there was a famous area known as ‘Mount Wu’s Goddess Peaks’ that was related to an alluring legend. The term ‘rainclouds over Mount Wu’ had even become synonymous with a certain intimate form of exercise.
The Second Imperial Prince became interested as well, saying, “This name is quite interesting.”
The butler continued to explain, “Apart from the rock at the very peak resembling a beautiful woman, there is another phenomenon, in the form of the surrounding clouds and mist. In the morning, they are like clouds, while in the evening, they are like rain. They can transform on their own.”
Those present stared at the rings of mist. All of them marveled at the miraculous nature of the stone. It was actually able to affect the climate around it within a small range!
“What kind of place is the 'Mount Wu' in its name?” Princess Suolun asked curiously.
The butler shook his head and said, “That, I do not know. This unpolished stone has already existed for a very long time. When we obtained it, this name had already followed it into our possession. As for who gave it this name and what kind of a place Mount Wu is, no one knows.”
The Little Golden Peng King said, “I have actually heard of a mountain range in the fiend races’ territory called Mount Wu, and there is a place on the southern border of the human race’s territory that is also called Mount Wu. However, I do not know which of these mountains this name is referring to.”
The Little Golden Peng King was one of the fiend races’ Four Great Generals. His army had fought on the southern front, so he was naturally more familiar with that place. No one doubted his explanation.
Zu An was a bit surprised. He definitely had to go to those places and take a look once he got the chance, to see whether they were the same as the Mount Wu he knew. After everything he had experienced, he couldn't help but feel that the two worlds had some kind of vague connection.
“How much is this stone?” Shi Rong quickly asked. It was so mysterious, there was definitely something great inside.
The butler smiled and said, “A hundred and fifty thousand heaven-grade ki stones.”
Shi Gong was speechless.
The others all suddenly felt a sense of absurdity. After all, they were already the most important figures of the fiend race and were as far away from poverty as could be. And yet, when they came to the immortal floor, they felt that they were poor for the first time.
Shi Min also had a regretful expression, but he was clearly a bit reluctant to leave. He moved around the  ‘Mount Wu’s Goddess’ and examined it. He even had the thought that if there really was something incredible inside, even if he were to lose his entire family fortune, he had to purchase the stone. Even though a hundred and fifty thousand heaven-grade ki stones was a big deal, with the Lion race’s power, it wasn’t something they couldn’t purchase.
Unfortunately, even after he studied it for a long time, he couldn’t get a clear impression. At times, he felt that there was a mysterious sensation coming from the stone that called out to him, while at other times, he felt that there was absolutely nothing inside, almost as if it were misleading him on purpose.
All kinds of emotions appeared on his face. In the end, he still gave up out of helplessness. The price was just too great. He didn’t dare to take the risk.
Then, the group of people began to walk around the garden. They saw some other unpolished rocks that seemed special; none of them were inferior to the prior ‘Northern Palace Black Tortoise’ or ‘Mount Wu’s Goddess’. Unfortunately, their prices were similarly ridiculous. Both sides gave up on the thought of touching the greatest treasures of the store.
Yun Jianyue was already starting to drool. She quietly nudged Yan Xuehen and said, “Stone cold woman, this Jade Garden is a freaking fat sheep… Should we find a chance to give it a go…?”
Yan Xuehen’s expression remained indifferent as she replied, “You are still injured. Something like that would just be courting death.”
“That’s why I’m asking you to help me out! If I were at my strongest, then I could do whatever I wanted! Would I still need your help?” Yun Jianyue harrumphed.
“A witch is a witch after all. Your first reaction is to steal other people’s things,” Yan Xuehen said with a frown. “Why would I follow your bad example?”
“Scaredy-cat!” Yun Jianyue harrumphed. “Then if I did steal them, would you really not be curious at all about what’s inside?”
“Do not be reckless. I do not care if you die, but if you drag down Zu An with you… Ahem, and Yu Yanluo, as well as the others, I cannot forgive you,” Yan Xuehen said, jumping in fright.
“I know that even though you’re saying ‘Zu An and Yu Yanluo’, you’re actually worried that something might happen to me, right? It’s just that you’re too embarrassed to admit it,” Yun Jianyue replied, resting her arm on Yan Xuehen’s shoulder with a giggle. This stone cold woman was now becoming more and more like a normal human.
Yan Xuehen was speechless. She uncomfortably pried off Yun Jianyue’s arm. When did this witch start becoming so nosy and affectionate?
Yun Jianyue didn’t mind it at all, saying, “Well, if you don’t want it, then forget it. Sooner or later, I’ll clean out this entire shop. Just let me know if you’re going to come and check out what’s inside.”
Yan Xuehen was a bit hesitant as she said, “I really am curious as to what is inside, but what you want to do is wrong…”
“Hmph, just false righteousness,” Yun Jianyue said, turning up her nose.
…
Meanwhile, Shi Min and Yu Yanluo had already continued to look for unpolished stones. Once they gave up on the greatest treasures, they became much faster. They quickly moved through the garden for fear of the other side finding some treasure first. After all, all of the stones in the garden were expensive. They had to find a treasure with sufficiently great value, but its price had to also be within a controllable degree. That really wasn’t easy.
The other princes and princesses were getting excited too. They followed along and looked around. They all wondered whether they should try their luck to see if they could find some treasure in the stones. Unfortunately, all of the unpolished stones cut off their divine sense. Their investigations proved futile. As such, they focused their attention on the players of the bet, to see if they had any special methods.
They saw that Shi Min’s rough-looking hand had suddenly become extremely gentle. He gently tapped against the unpolished stones. With each tap, the stones seemed to become like musical instruments, producing all kinds of sounds. Some were dull, while some were sharp and clear. Some even left sounds lingering in the air.
“This technique…” The Little Golden Peng King voiced his surprise. He seemed to have seen it before somewhere.
When he saw the others’ shocked expressions, Shi Rong proudly said, “My third brother was a guest of the Chou clan. His talent received the appreciation of their elder, who gave him a few pointers.”
Hu Yong was shocked, asking, “You’re talking about the Armadillo race ki stone family’s Chou clan?”
Shi Rong gave him a look of contempt and replied, “Who else could it be but them? If the Chou clan dared to claim to be number two in their ki stone techniques, no one else among all the fiend races would dare to claim to be number one.”
Perhaps because he couldn't stand the other prince’s provocations, Hu Yong harrumphed and said, “In the past, the Pangolin Race was above the Chou clan.”
“Pangolin race?” Shi Rong sneered. “They kept digging up others’ ancestral tombs, becoming the target of hatred. Ever since their old ancestor Chuan Shan went missing a few centuries ago, that race has already vanished without a trace. I didn’t expect you to be so ignorant and ill-informed.”
Hu Yong was furious. He spat, “Damn brat, you’re looking for a fight, aren’t you?!”
Seeing that the two seemed to be about to fight again, the butler and the others present all stepped forward to stop them.
Zu An was startled. Ancestor Chuan Shan was probably the corpse they had encountered in Lord Sui’s Tomb, right? He had gotten ‘One Drop of Heaven’s Essence’ from the corpse, and judging from the circumstances, it seemed that the ancestor hadn’t been able to learn most of the contents.
The fat daoist Wu Liang seemed to be a descendant of the Pangolin race, too. His skills were quite mysterious.
The Little Golden Peng King said, “What he used earlier seems to be the Chou clan’s ‘Magic Tap’. I didn’t expect them to have even passed on that skill to Shi Min.”
Shi Min said with a smile, “The Little Golden Peng King’s insight is incredible, as expected. In the past, I was fortunate enough to receive the favor of the Chou clan’s elder, so he passed on some moves to me. Unfortunately, I was unable to learn their most important skills, as those are skills that the Chou clan only passes down to their descendants.”
Even though his words conveyed regret, there was a hint of pride in his voice. After all, he had learned everything other than the three most mysterious techniques. That already made him more formidable than most of the Chou clan’s disciples. If it weren’t for those skills, why would he dare to compete against Yu Yanluo in rock betting?
He spoke loudly on purpose so Yu Yanluo and the others would hear it too. His intention was to distract her and make it even harder for her to find anything good. After all, he didn’t have to worry about them backing down anymore, and as such, he didn’t have to keep up the act.
However, Yu Yanluo’s expression remained calm, as if she hadn’t been affected at all. Instead, she focused on a certain unpolished rock and stared at it. She did nothing, other than looking calmly at the rock.
Shi Gong roared with laughter. “Why are you suddenly forgetting how to choose? Should third brother help you choose a few stones?”
Zu An harrumphed. “You’re all becoming this cocky just because you learned a trick from the Chou clan? And you didn’t even learn everything. Then do, you know what our clan leader did in the human world?”
Shi Gong frowned and asked, “What did she do?”
Zu An smiled and replied, “She was the leader of the humans’ number one gemstone clan. Oh, right, if we think about it, her status was likely a few levels higher than even that Chou clan elder you’re talking about.”
“What?!” The lion princes were incredibly shaken. How could they have expected something like that to happen? They all looked at Yu Yanluo in shock.
Yu Yanluo was extremely focused and didn’t seem to have heard them. Suddenly, a flicker of golden light passed through her beautiful eyes.
“Medusa’s Eye!” The others’ expressions changed. They were from the fiend races as well, so they naturally knew the terror of the Medusa’s Eye. They all went on guard, for fear that they would be completely petrified as a result.