Martial Arts Overlord - Chapter 53

Chapter 53: Scary Rumors

Yu Qianqian and Ning Xiaochuan walked out of the Heart-nourishing Tower with their frost jade boxes.

Ning Xiaochuan comforted, “In terms of value, the Frost Silkworm Pill is definitely superior to the Blood-toad Pill, which means it’ll definitely be sold for a higher price than the Blood-toad Pill at the auction house.”

Yu Qianqian’s mood lifted slightly and she asked, “Why?”

Ning Xiaochuan replied, “Because I’m going to be refining a large amount of Blood-toad Pills so once the amount of the pills increases, the price will definitely fall. Since there aren’t going to be as many Frost Silkworm Pills, they’ll sell for a higher price.”

Yu Qianqian exclaimed in surprise, “Are you going to be refining a large amount of Blood-toad Pills because you’re in desperate need of money?”

“Yes! It’s really, really urgent.” Ning Xiaochuan thought back to the promise he made to Yu Ningsheng; he was only ten days away from his imminent deadline of three months.

Yu Qianqian could picture the situation in the auction house once the large amount of Blood-toad Pills went up for auction. There would definitely be an uproar, especially since the Heavenly Emperor Academy was about to start recruiting new students. All the geniuses and intellectuals that were vying to enter the Heavenly Emperor Academy would definitely rush to buy the Blood-toad Pills.

Perhaps the price of the Blood-toad Pills might not be as low as Ning Xiaochuan predicted. In fact, it might even be sold at a higher price because of the special situation currently.

Besides, only Ning Xiaochuan could produce a large amount of Blood-toad Pills so he would definitely disrupt the market of mid-grade Pills.

Yu Qianqian sighed and said, “Even if the Frost Silkworm Pills sell at a higher price than the Blood-toad Pills, these Frost Silkworm Pills are still at a lower grade than the Blood-toad Pills. This time…I’ve lost, so this Frost Silkworm Pill is yours.”

Ning Xiaochuan did not bother acting humble and accepted the frost jade box. With a smile, he said, “Thank you for giving me the pill, Your Highness.”

With two frost jade boxes in his hands, Ning Xiaochuan walked out of the Heart-nourishing Tower with a broad smile on his face.

Yu Qianqian angrily clenched her fists and stomped her foot as she said, “Remember to inform me when you’re about to sell the Blood-toad Pills and I’ll go to Jinpeng Auction House in advance to give you some publicity.”

Ning Xiaochuan only had the thought of refining more Blood-toad Pills on his mind so without turning his head, he replied, “Thank you for your help, Your Highness. I’ll definitely inform Your Highness before then.”

“That man is too rude!” Yu Qianqian had no choice but to sigh and grumble indistinctly.

Although she lost a single Frost Silkworm Pill to Ning Xiaochuan, she was not angry about that matter at all. After all, a single Frost Silkworm Pill was not a valuable treasure to her. Instead, she felt an inexplicable sense of delight in her heart.

Yes, delight.

An inexplicable delight.

…

At the same time.

The sixth Attendant was meeting Consort Xi Mu in Great King Jinpeng’s Residence.

Consort Xi Mu was one of Great King Jinpeng’s most beloved consorts and also Yu Qianqian’s birth mother. She looked like a young, beautiful woman and her disposition was even more noble and elegant than Yu Qianqian.

She was sitting by the pond and listening to the sixth Attendant’s report. Her expression shifted between joy and anger as she pondered something.

The sixth Attendant knelt on the ground, not daring to raise his head out of respect for Consort Xi Mu.

Not only was this consort of extremely high status, but her Martial Art Cultivation was also above the sixth Attendant, which made her one of the powerhouses in Great King Jinpeng’s Residence.

Consort Xi Mu stretched out two slender and jade-like fingers to scatter fish bait upon the pond. With a slightly cold gaze, she said, “Hua Sheng, you’ve managed Jinpeng Heart-nourishing Hall for more than thirty years now! It’s impossible that you don’t know what you should and shouldn’t say, right?”

The sixth Attendant was drenched in cold sweat as he replied, “Mid-level Heart-nourishing Master Wang Shisong was the one that talked about it. This subordinate of yours realized the gravity of the situation so I immediately came to report to Empress Consort.”

Consort Xi Mu lightly furrowed her eyebrows. “Qianqian has always been very clever. Why is she so confused this time that she actually decided on getting married without her parents’ approval? Does she not care about her own reputation?”

The sixth Attendant knelt on the ground, sweat beading constantly on his forehead, and did not dare to answer.

Consort Xi Mu’s rage dissipated slightly and she said, “Who is this young man? Qianqian has always been proud and arrogant so how could she fall for him?”

The sixth Attendant said, “The young man’s name is Ning Xiaochuan. He’s a genius Heart-nourishing Master who is the same age as Princess Qianqian. He just became Jinpeng Heart-nourishing Hall’s Mid-level Heart-nourishing Master. Since he always attends the Hallmaster’s classes with Princess Qianqian and they’re both geniuses, they must’ve grown feelings for each other!”

Consort Xi Mu’s expression lightened up slightly and she nodded her head before saying, “He’s truly an outstanding individual since he became a Mid-level Heart-nourishing Master at sixteen. If he’s able to attend Great Master Guo’s class with Qianqian, he’s most probably Great Master Guo’s disciple.”

A thought suddenly occurred to the sixth Attendant and he quickly said, “I investigated Ning Xiaochuan. He’s Marquis Jiange’s grandson.”

Consort Xi Mu’s expression lit up even more. She suddenly stood up, her expression bright. “Marquis Jiange’s grandson, you say. That isn’t a bad family status, I could even say both our families are well-matched in social status. You may rise!”

The sixth Attendant stood up but his head remained bowed. He was slightly taken aback at the Empress Consort’s temperamental moods, which made it hard for him to fathom.

However, the sixth Attendant did not understand that marriage between the descendants of Nobles was no simple occasion. Factors like a well-matched social status and the integration of interests needed to be considered.

Consort Xi Mu was indeed angry after first hearing the sixth Attendant’s report because she had already picked a few outstanding marriage candidates for Yu Qianqian, who had reached the age of marriage. These candidates were either successors from Noble families, martial arts geniuses of extreme talent, or young masters of martial arts sects.

However, Yu Qianqian had actually sworn herself to some unknown young man without her parents’ approval, throwing Consort Xi Mu’s plans in disarray, which naturally upset Consort Xi Mu.

However, after Consort Xi Mu listened to what the sixth Attendant had said, she suddenly felt that Ning Xiaochuan was not too bad himself. He was talented and from a good family, and most importantly, her daughter liked him.

This naturally made Consort Xi Mu extremely happy!

It seemed that her daughter’s taste in men was not inferior to herself!

Consort Xi Mu furrowed her eyebrows slightly and said, “Since this Ning Xiaochuan is so outstanding, why haven’t I heard about him before? Even if such an outstanding Noble’s descendant isn’t part of the most prominent talents in the Imperial City, he should at least be a little famous in the city. This can’t be!”

The sixth Attendant replied, “Although Ning Xiaochuan is extremely talented, he’s actually been hiding his talent and strength all this while. Everyone thought he was a useless person who couldn’t cultivate Combat Qi so nobody knew he actually possessed such shocking talent.

“Her Highness the Princess and I analyzed this and we think Marquis Jiange hid him away to protect him. He probably planned to reveal Ning Xiaochuan in the most critical moment so that he would intimidate everyone.”

Consort Xi Mu laughed. “That Marquis Jiange is such an old fox. He actually hid such a talented person away. It seems I have to meet this Ning Xiaochuan and see for myself if he deserves to become Qianqian’s husband. Oh! I have to discuss this with the king. Marquis Jiange’s Residence has quite some influence in the military so being connected to Marquis Jiange’s Residence by marriage will benefit Great King Jinpeng’s Residence greatly.”

Consort Xi Mu only had one daughter, Yu Qianqian, so she was naturally quite invested in her marriage. In order to further clarify the situation of Ning Xiaochuan and Yu Qianqian, she hastily rushed over to Jinpeng Heart-nourishing Hall to visit its Hallmaster, Skilled Master Guo.

Skilled Master Guo was one of the few Great Heart-nourishing Masters in the Yulan Empire. He was on equal ground with the Nobles and even the Great King Jinpeng had to greet him as “Master Guo” when they meet.

Great Heart-nourishing Masters possessed certain skills that were even scarier than those wielded by Martial Supremes, which meant Martial Supremes respected them greatly.

Although Consort Xi Mu had Cultivation equal to that of a Martial Supreme, she still needed to personally visit Skilled Master Guo.

Consort Xi Mu removed the golden hood above her head, revealing a young and beautiful face. She bowed to Skilled Master Guo before explaining the reason behind her visit.

Skilled Master Guo sat atop a jade platform, his body unmoving and emitting white light. He had the air of an immortal and seemed like a thousand-year-old tree.

His thoughts came out from within his body and he said, “Qianqian and Xiaochuan are the most talented individuals I have ever seen. They’ll definitely achieve more than me in the future, especially in the way of being a Heart-nourishing Master.”

Consort Xi Mu’s heart was even more at ease once she heard these words, and she prepared to leave.

Skilled Master Guo spoke again, “Ning Xiaochuan possesses the Seven-orifices Devil Heart. He might achieve more as a martial artist than a Heart-nourishing Master in the future.”

“The legendary Seven-orifices Devil Heart!” Consort Xi Mu was even more elated, further sealing her decision in place.

She quickly returned to Great King Jinpeng’s Residence. She wanted to discuss this matter with Great King Jinpeng so that she could work everything out as soon as possible, before such a talented person was snatched away by somebody else.

The Seven-orifices Devil Heart was one of the best atriums in the world. A talent like this would only appear once every millennium so she could not afford to miss this.

However, the two people involved in this matter, Ning Xiaochuan and Yu Qianqian, were completely unaware of what was going on.