Chapter 1800 — Snow Valley, Part Two
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
"Oh? Then take them to the reception hall to see me." Snow Valley never turned away buyers of heavenly treasures; this was, after all, the valley's source of income.
Because of its location, Snow Valley was unlike the Ice Palace. Apart from a single naturally formed hollow nearby, there was nothing else here—no dangerous spirit beasts, no sheer cliffs—so it could never serve as a trial ground. Snow Valley could not host trials; it could only rely on its peculiar climate to cultivate heavenly treasures and trade them for money.
Tang Zhi, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu had never expected the elders of Snow Valley to be so agreeable, actually consenting to receive them in the reception hall. This was quite beyond Gu Mengyao's expectations. After all, an ancient sect was a lofty existence beyond reach—and yet they had sent out an elder of the sect to receive them, which was rather high treatment indeed.
What they did not know was that Snow Valley had always done things this way; it was simply how the valley survived. And the reason an elder had to receive them was that only the elders had the authority to set the value of heavenly treasures—no other disciple of Snow Valley could presume to decide such matters.
So it was better to have the elder appear in person than to leave the reception to anyone else.
"This is Elder Zhang, our valley's elder on duty. Whatever heavenly treasures you require, you may discuss with him in detail." The patrolling disciple bowed politely to Elder Zhang in the reception hall, then withdrew to continue his patrol.
"Greetings, Elder Zhang!" Tang Zhi, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu all saluted with cupped fists in the manner of martial folk—though Shen Yushu, carrying Wei Zhao on her back, looked rather strained doing so.
Elder Zhang's gaze swept over Tang Zhi, Gu Mengyao, and Shen Yushu, and a trace of puzzlement surfaced in his eyes. Even a Heavenly Tier expert could not directly see through a cultivator's strength, but whether the people before him were cultivators at all—that much a Heavenly Tier expert could generally sense.
Yet in all three of them, Elder Zhang sensed no true qi whatsoever, and that was what puzzled him.
Those who came here to buy heavenly treasures were cultivators from the various sects and clans; ordinary people could not even know that Snow Valley existed. But these three before him left him unable to judge their identity with any certainty. "I hear you want heavenly treasures? But you do not seem to be cultivators."
"That is right, we are not cultivators," Gu Mengyao admitted readily. She understood well enough that before true cultivators, disguise was useless; better to admit it outright than invite misunderstanding and complications. "But the person she carries on her back is a cultivator..."
Elder Zhang had not noticed Wei Zhao before. Shen Yushu was indeed carrying someone, but he had assumed it was merely a sick person.