As soon as they entered, Ye Chen and the others keenly sensed that although the Wanbao Pavilion was resplendent and luxurious beyond measure, with numerous powerful experts from various races streaming through in a lively bustle, hidden within the void were faintly discernible powerful auras, making it a veritable dragon's den and tiger's lair.
Even Ye Chen was slightly moved.
Soon, a slender and graceful beauty approached—a maid of the Wanbao Pavilion. She gave a slight bow to Ye Chen and his companions. Her garments were revealing, her ample bosom trembling and barely contained, a soft expanse of snowy white seemingly on the verge of spilling forth, causing the Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor beside them to stare with eyes wide, nearly drooling.
Behind them, the Old Divine King watched all this and sighed slightly, "After all these years, the Wanbao Pavilion hasn't changed much."
Ye Chen and the others glanced at the Old Divine King with some surprise but didn't inquire. After all, he was a veteran Divine King of his generation, having lived for over a hundred thousand years—an enduringly abnormal existence. His visiting the Wanbao Pavilion was normal. However, judging by his words, he seemed to have had an extraordinary encounter with the pavilion.
"Please lead the way," Ye Chen said.
The maid nodded gently and led the group into the Wanbao Pavilion, explaining as they walked, "Honored guests, the Wanbao Pavilion is currently one of the top treasure pavilions in the Ten Heavenly Realms Ancient Domain. It houses countless treasures, all truly precious."
"The first floor contains treasures from the Half-God to Saint Repository levels."
"The second floor is for the Heavenly King level."
"The third floor is for the Great Power level."
"The fourth floor holds treasures above the Great Power level—"
The Wanbao Pavilion maid's voice was pleasant as she patiently explained to Ye Chen and the others. The Wanbao Pavilion had four floors, each corresponding to a different level. Moreover, each floor was vast, with numerous categories such as Dao Weapons, pills, medicinal herbs, divine materials, formation arrays, and more—a wide variety. But overall, they corresponded to the four major levels.
"May I ask what treasures our honored guests wish to purchase?" the Wanbao Pavilion maid inquired softly with another slight bow, her etiquette impeccable.
"Third floor, medicinal herbs category," Ye Chen said.
"As you wish!"
Upon ascending to the third floor, under the maid's guidance, Ye Chen and the others arrived at a vast, open area—the medicinal herbs section, partitioned into an independent hall.
Within the hall floated numerous Divine Light Spheres, each enveloping a medicinal herb of quite an extraordinary grade, at the very least ten-thousand-year medicinal treasures. Naturally, there were also many tens-of-thousands-year medicinal spirits, and even if not, they were rare, peerless precious herbs seldom seen in the world.
The various herbs, diverse and numerous, numbered at least in the hundreds, a dazzling array that was truly astonishing.
Naturally, Ye Chen and the others could also sense that these Divine Light Spheres enveloping the herbs were inscribed with powerful restrictions; even an ordinary Great Power would find it difficult to break through the spheres' protection in a short time.
After bringing the group here, the maid gave a slight bow and withdrew. She was only responsible for guiding people; the true person in charge was the elder overseeing the third-floor medicine hall.
Though called an elder, the one who arrived was a woman who appeared to be in her early thirties, with a full, slender figure—curvaceous in front and behind. Her thin garments seemed barely able to contain her voluptuous jade-like body, her chest seemingly on the verge of bursting free at any moment.
The woman was exceedingly beautiful. Though not on par with the peerless, world-toppling beauty of Abenue or the Goddess, she was stunning enough. Every gesture and movement seemed to exude a bewitching charm that captivated the soul.
Gulp—
The Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor beside them swallowed hard. Such a woman was truly enchanting, possessing a unique allure.
The mature, beautiful female elder walked forward gracefully, offering Ye Chen and the others a faint smile with a distinctive charm. "Greetings, honored guests. I am Ruo Ya, the responsible elder in charge of the medicinal herbs on the fourth floor."
The female elder was named Ruo Ya.
After some pleasantries, Ye Chen took the initiative. "Elder Ruo Ya, I wish to purchase some medicinal herbs. Here is the list."
Divine radiance flashed, and a sheet of paper appeared in his hand, densely filled with various herb names.
Ruo Ya's delicate hand took the paper. Upon looking, she saw it was crammed with the names of numerous medicinal herbs. Although most were quite precious and unusually priced, they still belonged to relatively common types. However, the further down the list, the herbs became increasingly extraordinary, some even being tens-of-thousands-year medicinal spirits that were extremely rare.
Surprise flickered in Ruo Ya's eyes. She raised her head to look at this young, handsome man before her, her red lips parting slightly. "Guest, are you certain you want all the herbs on this list?"
Because the total sum for the herbs on the list was simply too vast, even Ruo Ya felt a shock in her heart. The overall value approached eight hundred million spirit stones—a colossal transaction, arguably the largest herb trade in nearly a century. Once successfully completed, it could even affect her promotion path within her clan, so no mistakes could be allowed.
Ye Chen smiled faintly. "Elder Ruo Ya, you heard correctly. I am also aware the amount is large. I can pay half the spirit stones in advance and trust that the Wanbao Pavilion's reputation won't cheat us of our stones."
Ruo Ya could tell Ye Chen was serious, without a hint of falsehood. Yet she found it somewhat hard to believe that a young junior could possess such an enormous quantity of spirit stones. Even many Heaven's Pride prodigies from imperial clans might not have it, nor could they produce it on short notice. Just who was this person? Could he be some Imperial Son, Imperial Daughter, or offspring of an Immortal Dao lineage?
Ruo Ya harbored guesses but was no ordinary person herself. With a charming, shallow smile that radiated allure, she said, "Sir, you flatter us. Since you place such trust in our Wanbao Pavilion, we naturally trust your character as well. Please wait a moment; Ruo Ya will go down and instruct people to gather the herbs."
"Good!" Ye Chen nodded.
Ruo Ya walked down gracefully, summoning attendants, handing over the list, and having them help gather the herbs. Upon seeing the numerous herbs on the list, the other managers of the Wanbao Pavilion were greatly astonished, not daring to slacken in the slightest. They issued orders repeatedly, and many attendants sprang into action, beginning to collect the herbs.
Ye Chen and the others were in no hurry. Ruo Ya had a banquet table brought, poured Dao Tea, and had people present various precious pastries and delicacies, accompanied by fine wine and excellent brew, allowing Ye Chen's group to enjoy themselves while waiting.
"Honored guests, some herbs on the list are medicinal spirits, extremely precious and stored elsewhere. Gathering them all will require some time. I hope you can wait patiently," Ruo Ya said with a slight bow, a hint of apology in her tone. She gently tucked a strand of black hair behind her ear, appearing exceptionally charming and moving.
The Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor on the side stared dumbfounded, wearing a lecherous expression.
"Elder Ruo Ya, you are too kind," Ye Chen shook his head.
After some more words, Ruo Ya withdrew. She personally took charge to shorten the herb-gathering time.
"That young lady is not bad," the Old Divine King at the table said softly, watching Ruo Ya's alluring back. "Much better than those from back in the day. It seems the Wanbao Pavilion has been doing quite well these years."
The Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor looked suspiciously at the Old Divine King. "Old man, it seems you had quite a deep connection with the Wanbao Pavilion back then. If you hadn't said that last part, I'd have thought you fancied that beauty."
The Old Divine King glared at the Corpse Devouring Insect Emperor. "This old one has lived for so many tens of thousands of years; I lost interest in feminine charms long ago. Now I only hope to break through my shackles early and achieve the Ancient Monarch realm."
The third-floor medicine hall was large but also spacious, as herbs at this level were not something just anyone could afford. And at the Great Power level, unless one was an alchemist, few would purchase medicinal herbs.
Just as everyone was waiting for the herbs to be gathered, a group of people entered the medicine hall—all young prodigies, male and female, eight in total. Their leader was exceptionally distinguished, impeccably dressed in luxurious robes embroidered with several extraordinary cauldron patterns, accompanied by a special, pleasant alchemical fragrance. His handsome, extraordinary features made Ye Chen start slightly—they were so familiar.
Dan Xian!
The number one talent of the Dan Emperor Clan's current young generation. Despite his youth, his alchemy skills were divine and miraculous, not inferior to many of the Dan Emperor Clan's older generation. His attainments among his peers were second only to the Imperial Daughter.
Ye Chen hadn't expected the Dan Emperor Clan to also appear in the Ascension Ancient Capital, and even Dan Xian and these Dan Emperor Clan Heaven's Pride had come. Clearly, the Dan Emperor Clan also possessed a method to enter the Ten Heavenly Realms Ancient Domain.
Dan Xian and the others naturally saw Ye Chen's group. Unfortunately, Ye Chen and his companions were disguised and altered in appearance, so they weren't recognized. Moreover, the many Dan Emperor Clan Heaven's Pride were captivated by Abenue's stunning presence, somewhat overlooking others.
Although Abenue still wore a light veil over her face, her peerless beauty could not be concealed, causing the eyes of many young Dan Emperor Clan Heaven's Pride to light up. Even Dan Xian was no exception.
However, Abenue's gaze was icy cold. Because back when Ye Chen had obtained one-seventh of the Great Emperor's body and was pursued across the cosmos by even Ancient Monarchs, they had passed by the Dan Emperor Clan. Though they hadn't intended to enter, the Dan Emperor Clan had proactively severed ties, closed their gates, and even disregarded his status as the clan's number one guest elder, shutting him out.
As Ye Chen's wife, Abenue naturally shared his enmity, harboring particular hostility toward Dan Xian and the others.
Dan Xian and the others naturally sensed this, somewhat puzzled. Yet they didn't understand why Abenue was so hostile toward them, as if bearing some deep-seated hatred.
Behind them, the Seven Supreme Geniuses, who also knew of some events from Ye Chen's journey on the Ultimate Ancient Path, were similarly hostile.
This made Dan Xian and the other Dan Emperor Clan Heaven's Pride frown. They hadn't offended these people, so why such hostility?
Behind them, several Imperial Clan Heaven's Pride wanted to step forward and demand an explanation, but Dan Xian stopped them, shaking his head with a slightly somber expression. Because the current Ascension Ancient Capital was too extraordinary. With the arrival of the Imperial Son Feast, too many imperial clans and immortal clans had gathered. Even as Heaven's Pride prodigies of the Dan Emperor Clan, they dared not casually stir trouble. Who knew if the people they randomly encountered on the street might also be from imperial or immortal clans? Though the Dan Emperor Clan feared none, they were unwilling to provoke trouble lightly.
The group of Imperial Clan Heaven's Pride walked past and were seated elsewhere.