Chapter 157: Acquiring Materials II
The interior was unlike any establishment Su Tianhao had ever stepped into.
The Oakwood branch had held a certain elegant grandeur—luxurious, spacious, well-organised. But this was on an entirely different level.
The hall stretched vast and immaculate, every surface polished to a quiet sheen. Rows of spirit beast materials—some bottled in jade containers, others encased in crystal—lined the walls like sacred relics from forgotten eras. The air thrummed with restrained power, laced with the faint scent of incense and rare herbs, casting an atmosphere that felt both luxurious and faintly mystical.
Every step echoed with intent. Attendants in refined robes moved with quiet precision, and not a single voice was raised. No chaos, no clutter—only wealth, discipline, and a power that didn't need to announce itself.
As Su Tianhao scanned the hall with quiet interest, a male attendant in light blue robes approached with a polite smile.
"Is there anything you would like to purchase or inquire about, Young Master?" His voice was measured and careful—as if he were afraid of giving offence.
The caution was not unfounded. Su Tianhao's presence radiated a natural aura of authority and quiet intimidation—the product of his Supreme Dragon bloodline, Heavenly Devouring Dragon Physique, Untainted Body, and the countless other remarkable qualities layered within him. With his cultivation masked behind the Silent Pulse, his actual strength remained unknown, making others genuinely wary. Although he appeared young—in the cultivation world, appearances meant nothing.
As the saying goes—in a world where power runs deep, the shallow river may hide a dragon. Never judge a youth by his age.
Su Tianhao glanced at the attendant, slightly amused. The man before him was actually a Martial Core Realm expert—someone he would ordinarily have to be cautious of.
'The Shrouded Dragon Veil truly lives up to its reputation,' he thought with quiet satisfaction.
"Uh... Young Master?" The attendant called out nervously, seeing Su Tianhao go still.
"Oh—right." Su Tianhao snapped back to the present.
With a flicker of his wrist, he retrieved the Token of Honor from his spatial ring and held it out. The silver token gleamed faintly under the light.
The attendant looked puzzled at first—but the instant his eyes landed on the emblem engraved into the token, they went wide, as if he'd been struck without warning.
A coiling serpent wrapped around a crouching tiger. The Thousand Beast Pavilion's unique symbol.
"Token of Honor!"
The shift in his bearing was immediate and complete. If before he had been wary out of uncertainty, now he was struck by something closer to reverence. An ordinary person couldn't obtain the Pavilion's Token of Honor. Not a chance.
"Please come with me, Honoured Sir. My master will need to verify the token's authenticity," he said, cupping his fists with a subtle bow.
Su Tianhao's brow furrowed slightly. "You think I'm using a fake?"
"No—I wouldn't dare suggest that," the attendant said, his expression grave, lips curling into a self-deprecating smile. "It's a formality. Rare as it is, there have been those who attempted to counterfeit the token for special privileges. We're required to confirm."
Su Tianhao nodded. The cultivation world was as vast as the heavens, and there were people of all kinds within it. That desperate individuals would resort to such deception—despite the deadly risks—wasn't difficult to understand.
"All right. Take me to your master," he said calmly.
The attendant's expression lightened with visible relief. The other party hadn't made things difficult—something he was quietly grateful for. He turned with a slight bow. "This way, please."
Su Tianhao followed him deeper into the pavilion.
The further he went, the more impressed he became. Everything was meticulously arranged, and if one looked closely, formation arrays had been woven throughout the halls—subtle, efficient, maintaining a standard of experience that most establishments couldn't match.
They arrived before a wooden door, firmly shut.
The attendant stepped forward and knocked twice.
*Knock. Knock.*
A few breaths passed before an old, warm voice carried through from inside. "Come in, Little Ming. And you as well, mysterious young man."
The attendant—Lin Ming—glanced at Su Tianhao. "Let's go in."
Su Tianhao nodded, though the words had quietly unsettled him.
He wasn't surprised that someone on the other side could perceive him through a closed door—any cultivator at the Martial Soul Realm could extend their spiritual sense well beyond what the naked eye could reach. What surprised him was that he hadn't felt a thing. No probing. No ripple. Not even a whisper of spiritual pressure. Only one conclusion fit: whoever waited on the other side possessed either extraordinary cultivation or an exceptionally refined spiritual force.
Creak.
The door swung open, and the two stepped inside.
Seated behind a large desk in a well-fashioned wooden chair was an elder who appeared to be around sixty-five or seventy years old. Silver-haired, with a calm and weathered face. A pair of sharp amber eyes that flickered like furnace embers. A simple midnight-blue robe bearing faint alchemical embroidery, and a jade dragon pendant resting against his chest. Though seated, his presence radiated the quiet, unmistakable weight of a Martial Grandmaster.
Su Tianhao's eyes flashed with genuine shock—and something close to respect. Not solely because of his cultivation. There was something more.
Lin Ming's voice broke through before he could place it.
"Honoured Sir, this is my master—Wei Chang, a grade four alchemist and the current Pavilion Master of the Cloudrise City branch."
The words landed like a thunderclap.
'Grade four alchemist.'
He had heard of such figures, but this was his first time standing before one. And from the aura surrounding Wei Chang, Su Tianhao could tell he was no ordinary grade four alchemist.
"A branch pavilion already has a grade four alchemist..." he murmured, the thought escaping before he could catch it. "I wonder how many esteemed alchemists must be present at the headquarters."
"Hahaha!" Wei Chang's laughter filled the room like rolling thunder. "The Cloudrise City branch is one of our most successful across the country. It's only natural they would send someone of my standing to manage it."
"I see," Su Tianhao said, clarity settling over him.
With a branch this prestigious, it would have been stranger if the Pavilion hadn't assigned someone equally outstanding to oversee it.
"So, young friend—what brings you to our humble establishment?" Wei Chang said with a warm smile, though the quiet flicker of pride in his eyes completely undermined the word humble.
Before Su Tianhao could respond, Lin Ming stepped forward. "Master, he came on business—but he carries a Token of Honor. That's why I brought him to you first."
"Token of Honor?" Wei Chang's brow lifted with mild interest. "May I see it?"
Su Tianhao handed it over without hesitation.
The moment the token settled into Wei Chang's palm, his eyes sharpened—probing, assessing, confirming. A beat of silence followed.
"It's genuine," he said at last, his demeanour shifting with quiet subtlety. "The distinctive aura is unmistakable."
Su Tianhao exhaled inwardly. He accepted the token back with a calm smile, quietly relieved. Without the Token of Honor checking out, he had no idea what complications might have followed.
Wei Chang tapped rhythmically on his desk. "I won't ask how you came to possess that token. That's your business."
"There's nothing worth discussing," Su Tianhao said, shaking his head. "Let's get to it."
"Good." Wei Chang smiled. "What can we do for you today?"
Su Tianhao didn't answer immediately. He retrieved the folded list from his robes and placed it on the desk. "I'm looking for the resources listed here."
Wei Chang accepted it with mild interest, eyes narrowing as they swept down the page.
"Dragonroot Ginseng... Soulvein Lotus... Verdant Marrowleaf... Crimson Origin Grass... Heavenpiercer Flower..." He recited each name with practiced precision.
"These five are manageable—but they're key ingredients for grade 5 pills. Each will cost five thousand gold coins. Twenty-five thousand total."
His voice carried the quiet authority of someone for whom such figures were mere trivialities.
Su Tianhao's lips twitched slightly. 'As expected of a grade four alchemist. He throws out numbers like that without blinking.'
Wei Chang's gaze dropped to the remainder of the list. "Spirit stones can be obtained anywhere. As for the Bloodroot Vitality Pill and Raging Viscera Tonic—I'm afraid we don't carry those here."
Su Tianhao's brow furrowed. Disappointing, though not entirely surprising. He had hoped, but hadn't banked on it. "Do you know where I might find them?"
Wei Chang studied him for a moment before answering with a faint, rueful smile. "To acquire grade 5 medicines of that caliber, you'd have to visit our headquarters in the capital."
Su Tianhao's expression darkened. Time was already pressing. The Qingyun Sect examination was drawing near, and regardless of the distance between Cloudrise City and the capital, such a journey would consume more of it than he could afford.
"Is there no other way?" A trace of urgency slipped into his voice before he could contain it.
Wei Chang stroked his beard, tapping his chin in slow, rhythmic contemplation. "There's a grand auction being held here in Cloudrise City in three days—organised by the Drifting Cloud Auction House. You could try your luck there."
Su Tianhao's expression brightened. At least there was still a chance.
He steadied himself quickly. "What about the Ethereal Mind Crystal? Any idea where I might find one?"
Wei Chang shook his head with a rueful smile, leaning back in his chair. "That, I cannot help you with. You could try the auction—but honestly, the likelihood of such a treasure appearing is close to none."
"I see." Su Tianhao didn't press further. Wei Chang's patience had been extended because of the Token of Honor, and he understood that well enough to know where to stop.
His decision was already made. 'If the Ethereal Mind Crystal doesn't surface within three days, I'll substitute with soul crystals.'
"Tell me," Wei Chang said, pulling him from his thoughts, "are you interested in purchasing the five herbs we have available?"
"Yes," Su Tianhao replied without hesitation.
"Good." Wei Chang nodded, pleased. "As an honoured customer, you'll receive your twenty percent discount. The total comes to twenty thousand gold coins rather than twenty-five."
"Can I pay with spirit stones?"
"Hahaha! Even better!" Wei Chang laughed—full and unhurried, his entire frame brimming with the vitality of someone whose cultivation had long since extended his years far beyond the ordinary.
Su Tianhao directed his thoughts to the golden spatial ring on his finger—the one Su Huiqing had given him, containing about five thousand spirit stones.
With a single thought, two hundred spirit stones flew from the ring and settled onto the desk in a small, glistening pile, each crystal humming faintly with contained spiritual energy.
"I like your straightforwardness," Wei Chang said with a broad smile. He turned to Lin Ming, who had been standing quietly to the side throughout. "Take the young master and ensure he receives the five materials."
He passed the list to Lin Ming, who accepted it with a serious expression—reading through each item with the focus of someone who had just received a battlefield order.
"I will complete this without error," Lin Ming said firmly.
"Good." Wei Chang gave a satisfied nod.
Lin Ming turned to Su Tianhao. "This way, Young Master."
"Let's go." Su Tianhao's golden eyes gleamed as he turned toward the door.
"It's been a pleasure doing business with you, young friend," Wei Chang called after him.
Su Tianhao paused mid-step, back still to the room. "Likewise, Senior."
He didn't look back. Lin Ming fell into step beside him and they walked out together, the door swinging shut with a quiet creak behind them.
The moment it closed, Wei Chang's expression settled into something more deliberate.
"So that's the boy you gave your token to, Ghost Eye..." The words left him slowly, low and unhurried, drifting through the empty room. His amber eyes fixed on the shut door—steady, penetrating, as though he could see straight through it.
"Very interesting."
---
Su Tianhao was naturally oblivious to any of it—that Wei Chang had connected him to the Ghost-Eyed Appraiser, Lu Qingran, and that he had once again drawn the attention of yet another powerful figure. His focus was entirely elsewhere.
With Lin Ming's guidance, the process moved swiftly. Within minutes, all five materials were secured in his spatial ring.
As he stepped out of the pavilion into the morning air, a quiet smile crossed his face.
He hadn't found everything—but there was progress. That was enough for now.
'Three days,' he thought, his gaze drifting forward. 'Three more days, and I can begin cultivating the Supreme Dragon Vein Awakening Art.'
'During those three days, I must fully integrate my alchemy knowledge. Everything must be in order before cultivation begins.'
He turned back toward the Cloudveil Resthouse, steps unhurried but purposeful. The auction loomed ahead. The Qingyun Sect examination loomed beyond that. The weight of both pressed against him—but his resolve didn't waver.
Every step forward was a step closer.