Chapter 2766 — It Cannot Be Traded!

"Hmm..." Wei Zhao nodded, and did not haggle any further. The Supreme Elder had spoken truly: though it looked as if Snow Valley had come out ahead, trading back a Heaven-rank divine weapon suited to their own attributes, when all was said and done it was Wei Zhao who had gained the better of it. Heaven-rank divine weapon for Heaven-rank divine weapon, plus a spirit herb besides—by any reckoning, Wei Zhao had walked away with a spirit herb for free.

Feng Xiaoxiao was only a pretext; Wei Zhao did not dare press Snow Valley too hard, and he was already well satisfied with how matters stood. So he nodded and said, "The orchid-mustard jade-bell grass—you have some here, don't you?"

"We do!" The Supreme Elder nodded. "Since I have given you my word, I can trade it to you. But I should tell you this: the orchid-mustard jade-bell grass may not be worth as much as a Heaven-rank divine weapon, but it is a treasure nonetheless. However grave the wound, so long as a breath of life remains, it can be used to sustain that life."

"Oh?" Wei Zhao had not expected the orchid-mustard jade-bell grass to possess such wondrous effects. Old Man Wei had only said that Wang Xinyan needed this spirit herb, and had never told him what it did. Hearing it now, Wei Zhao suddenly thought: if Han Jingyi had possessed such a thing back then, she could have taken one after being wounded, and her condition would never have grown so dire. It truly was a fine thing!

Especially when he himself was away from home—if enemies came calling, having such a spirit herb laid by in the house would buy precious time...

"How long can it sustain a life?" Wei Zhao asked.

"You come seeking the orchid-mustard jade-bell grass, yet you do not know its effects?" The Supreme Elder found this odd, but she answered nonetheless. "It varies with the grade and the severity of the wound—anywhere from a few days to a few months."

"I see..." Wei Zhao nodded. This no longer had much to do with him, though. Once he took the herb home, it would in the end be given to Wang Xinyan to take; even if it could sustain life, it would be of no further use to him.

"Shall we make the exchange now? One stalk of orchid-mustard jade-bell grass and a water-attribute Heaven-rank divine weapon, in return for your mist-attribute Heaven-rank divine weapon?" the Supreme Elder asked.

Wei Zhao was just about to open his mouth and agree when a lion's roar rang out from the door of the reception hall: "It cannot be traded!"

Right on its heels a middle-aged woman burst into the reception hall, planted herself squarely in front of Wei Zhao, and cried aloud, "It cannot be traded! Absolutely it cannot be traded!"

"You... are...?" Wei Zhao stared at the middle-aged woman who had rushed in, utterly baffled. Who on earth was this? How had she come to be here?

The newcomer was, of course, Tang's mother. The Supreme Elder stared at her in astonishment too, thinking: who told her? I received him in person today, without going through any of the valley's elders—there could be no spy of Tang's mother among them, nor could anyone have tipped her off!

Of course, no one had tipped Tang's mother off. She had spoken with Gu Mengyao on the phone earlier and learned that Wei Zhao might reach Snow Valley within a few days, so every day she drifted in and out of Snow Valley's reception hall from time to time, to see whether Wei Zhao had arrived.

Sure enough, Tang's mother had come drifting by again today, and happened to hear the Supreme Elder about to exchange goods with Wei Zhao. So, giving no thought to anything else, she let out a mighty roar and put a stop to their transaction.

"Oh—I am an inspection and surveillance officer of Snow Valley, whose particular duty is to look into unfair dealings that occur within the valley..." Tang's mother was taken aback for a moment, but quickly realized that Wei Zhao surely did not know her. Ever since he had taken the potion brewed from the herb of forgetfulness, anything and anyone that appeared together with Tang Zhi was erased from his memory. Apart from through Tang Zhi, Tang's mother had no dealings with Wei Zhao whatsoever, and so naturally he did not recognize her. She promptly made up a title on the spot.

"Inspection and surveillance officer?" Wei Zhao was startled, wondering what sort of post that was—it sounded like a spy. Still, there was no need for him to study Snow Valley's personnel arrangements, so he merely said, "Er... then do you think this transaction is unfair?"

"Of course it's unfair—unfair in the extreme!" Tang's mother declared, quivering with righteous indignation.

"Er... how is it unfair...?" Wei Zhao was somewhat at a loss for words. He had gone to no small trouble to settle the terms of trade with the Supreme Elder, and now out had popped some inspection and surveillance officer. Was he fated to trade a Heaven-rank divine weapon for a single spirit herb and nothing more?

"Young man, you're losing out terribly!" Tang's mother picked up the mist-attribute Heaven-rank divine weapon from the tea table and said, "This is a treasure! To trade it for nothing but a single stalk of orchid-mustard jade-bell grass and a water-attribute Heaven-rank divine weapon—why, you're being fleeced!"

"Ah?" Wei Zhao was dumbfounded. He had assumed Tang's mother thought Snow Valley was the one losing out and meant to put a stop to the deal, but to his surprise she declared that he was the loser! This left Wei Zhao thoroughly confused. Was the woman speaking in earnest, or making a joke at his expense?

"A single stalk of common herb, and that's the trade? Far too little!" Tang's mother shook her head. "From what I know, the orchid-mustard jade-bell grass ripened a batch not long ago—four stalks in all. To trade for only one, how can that be right? In my view, if you are to make the exchange at all, it should be four stalks of orchid-mustard jade-bell grass at the very least, plus a water-attribute Heaven-rank divine weapon—only then is it a fair trade!"

"Er..." Wei Zhao was somewhat stupefied, and turned to look at the Supreme Elder.

The Supreme Elder was furious to hear this. Did the woman think orchid-mustard jade-bell grass was cheap goods off a street stall? The stuff took decades to ripen a batch, and this time only four stalks had ripened. There were older stocks still in reserve, to be sure, but to hand over four stalks at once—she was most unwilling!

"Supreme Elder, am I not right? Is this not the bare minimum for a fair trade?" Tang's mother turned to the Supreme Elder as well, asking with a smile.

"The bare minimum for fairness, yes, naturally the bare minimum for fairness..." The Supreme Elder was so angry that smoke all but rose from the top of her head. She dearly wanted to kick Tang's mother out the door, but that was only a fantasy—she did not dare do a thing to her!

Should any harm come to Tang's mother, Tang Zhi might well give up cultivating altogether, and that little冰糖 girl might come storming into Snow Valley. So everyone in Snow Valley, from top to bottom, must not only refrain from touching Tang's mother but must protect her besides!

If she were to trip and break her leg through some carelessness of her own, then Snow Valley would be like mud dropped into a pair of trousers—call it dung or not, it would be dung all the same! Snow Valley would have no way to clear its name! So the Supreme Elder, for all her helplessness, could only say "fair" against her own conscience.

Wei Zhao was aghast. He truly could not make out what sort of figure Tang's mother was. She looked to be nothing more than an ordinary Earth-rank cultivator—one whose strength was none too steady, with little offensive power besides—so how was it that the Supreme Elder would listen to her?