"Master Luo," Aunt Tang glanced at him, her eyes clearly asking: Has Ying Chen reached the Martial Dao Heavenly Rank?
Master Luo, in turn, queried Aunt Tang with the same look: Is Ying Chen a grandmaster of Xuanmen’s mystic arts?
Neither of them received an answer from the other.
This only deepened their apprehension.
Meaning, neither could discern Ying Chen's true depth!
"I'm asking you a question!" Ying Chen said, displeased, looking at the distracted Aunt Tang.
"Ah?" Aunt Tang jolted and quickly looked at the medicinal herb pattern on the ground.
Though only a few strokes, it clearly conveyed the characteristics of the herb.
Most crucially, the entire herb seemed to subtly sway, exuding fragrance.
This demonstrated the profound mastery of Ying Chen's calligraphy and painting skills!
Aunt Tang, despite her extensive knowledge, could guarantee that no living master painter in Dragon Country could achieve this level!
If those old masters saw this, they would probably immediately drop to their knees and kowtow to Ying Chen!
Returning her thoughts to the herb, Aunt Tang found it more and more familiar, yet for a moment, she couldn't recall where she had seen it.
She diligently searched the Divine Farmer Sect's catalog of precious herbs, but none matched.
"This herb is called 'Shanjun' (Mountain Monarch), named because its flower filaments resemble a roaring tiger sitting on a mountain. Shanjun has extremely harsh growth conditions, and even more stringent requirements for flowering, with a success rate of almost one in ten thousand."
"Therefore, a flowering Shanjun, even if withered, is priceless. It would be fiercely contested anywhere, and some would even kill for it."
"This is what you call a precious medicinal herb, not the common weeds you listed before."
Ying Chen explained proudly.
Even in his previous life, he had only obtained fewer than ten Shanjun plants.
This left a small regret in his cultivation journey.
Hearing Ying Chen's words, Master Luo, Min Ziqiong, and Min Ziqing blinked curiously: "It's that valuable?"
Only Aunt Tang frowned, seemingly deep in thought.
After a while, Aunt Tang's brow unfurrowed, but her eyes held a deep skepticism.
She looked at Ying Chen seriously: "Are you sure this thing is priceless?"
Ying Chen nodded: "Of course!"
"Are you sure people would risk their lives, kill and rob for it?"
"Of course!"
"Are you sure it's more precious than the herbs you listed?"
"Of course!"
Faced with Ying Chen's unquestionable triple nod, Aunt Tang finally couldn't hold back and burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha, you're trying to kill me! This wild grass that is everywhere in our Divine Farmer Valley is comparable to the herbs I mentioned?"
"And one in ten thousand, extremely difficult to flower, don't joke! Our Divine Farmer Valley has an entire mountain hollow filled with this wild grass! Almost every plant is flowering! I used to pick it to weave flower baskets when I was a child!"
"I knew it looked familiar, but I couldn't remember! It's a weed with no value, even livestock won't eat it, it would be strange if I remembered it!"
"..." Faced with Aunt Tang's mockery, Ying Chen froze.
At the same time, a stormy wave surged within him.
Was his way of opening this world wrong, or had time and environmental changes caused Shanjun to become a common weed in this era?
Clearly, during the Qin Dynasty, Shanjun was extremely rare and difficult to flower!
After a long while, Ying Chen finally calmed his emotions and asked nonchalantly: "Are you sure you're talking about the same thing?"
Aunt Tang nodded vigorously: "Certainly, absolutely, and undoubtedly!"
"If you are targeting our Divine Farmer Sect only for this thing, there's no need to inform the Sect Master, I can decide – I'll give it all to you!"
"Take as much as you want! I can even lease that entire mountain hollow to you!"
"But there's one condition: you cannot take that little girl. She must become a direct disciple of our Divine Farmer Sect!"
Aunt Tang gestured grandly, full of spirit.
Trading a bunch of weeds for a disciple with extraordinary talent, this deal was too good to be true!
Her Sect Master would probably commend her business acumen!
Aunt Tang expected Ying Chen to accept this deal.
However, Ying Chen let out a scoff and said: "Have you forgotten something?"
"Your life is still in my control. What right does a defeated general have to negotiate terms?"
"Furthermore, your Divine Farmer Sect offended me, injured my friends, and abducted my successor. Don't you owe any compensation?"
"Those Shanjun can at most compensate for ten percent of your Divine Farmer Sect's mistakes. I haven't decided what to do about the remaining ninety percent yet."
Aunt Tang was stunned.
At this moment, it felt like ten thousand spirit horses were stampeding through her heart.
She had seen shameless people, but never one this shamelessly audacious!
Hearing Ying Chen's tone, it seemed he wouldn't be satisfied unless the entire Divine Farmer Sect compensated him!
Aunt Tang was furious, almost unable to resist summoning the Mountain Moving Warriors to crush Ying Chen into meat paste!
Oh, she forgot that the Mountain Moving Warriors now obeyed Ying Chen, not her.
Aunt Tang's anger instantly subsided, replaced by utter helplessness and despair.
Outmatched, she didn't even have the right to lose her temper.
"What are you waiting for? Get up and let's go!"
Ying Chen glanced at Aunt Tang.
"Go? Go where?" Aunt Tang asked instinctively.
"You know perfectly well. To your Divine Farmer Sect, of course! If we don't go to your Divine Farmer Sect, how can I get your sect's medicinal herbs..."
"Bring back my successor...?"
Ying Chen misspoke in his haste, almost revealing his true intention.
In fact, purely for Min Ziqiong's daughter, he could have used Aunt Tang as a hostage to force the Divine Farmer Sect to return her.
But Ying Chen chose to confront them directly, his ulterior motive being something else entirely.
The medicinal herbs accumulated over four hundred years by the Divine Farmer Sect were likely in imminent danger.
Aunt Tang naturally saw Ying Chen's intention, but surprisingly, she cooperated.
"Alright. Our Divine Farmer Sect is located in the northern shade of Mount Yan Jue. It's not very close, nor very far. At full speed, it should take about three hours by car."
"I'll go too!" Unexpectedly, Min Ziqiong volunteered, wanting to accompany them.
Ying Chen looked deeply at Min Ziqiong.
He recalled the scene of the Divine Farmer Sect refusing to cooperate, resulting in a landscape of corpses and rivers of blood, and immediately shook his head with firm, unwavering resolve.
"No, you cannot go."
What a joke. The Ma family incident, a minor event, had terrified Min Ziqiong to the point of fainting and vomiting. If she went to the Divine Farmer Sect, wouldn't she develop a phobia?
Ying Chen didn't want to waste his power sealing Min Ziqiong's memories again!
What was once easily accomplished had become remarkably difficult in this era.
Min Ziqiong had no idea of the great price Ying Chen had paid for her!
If it were any grandmaster of mystic arts today, the price would likely start in the eight figures!
And that would be in US dollars!