The Peculiar Qingyuan Stone Tablet

The profound impact of the Scarlet Dragon Halberd had left the auction house in a state of stunned silence. Everyone seemed still immersed in its aftereffects, unable to fully extricate themselves.

Consequently, when the Qingyuan Stone Carving—a relic said to aid in Dao comprehension—was presented on stage, it failed to elicit a significant reaction from the assembled cultivators.

“Twenty thousand Spirit Pills.”

After several breaths of silence in the auction hall, a hand finally rose with a bid.

Su Hanxing and Chi Qiu were not in a hurry to bid. They surveyed the entire auction hall, attempting to discern any peculiarities about the item by observing the demeanor and actions of the many cultivators present.

“Judging by their reactions, they don’t seem particularly interested in this item,” Chi Qiu murmured, turning her head to Su Hanxing after a period of observation.

“It is rather peculiar,” Su Hanxing agreed, nodding. “More than ninety percent of those attending this auction are God Concealing stage cultivators, and they should be immensely interested in anything related to the ‘Dao’.” He rubbed his chin, contemplating for a moment before suddenly raising his voice to declare:

“Fifty thousand Spirit Pills.”

“Ah, it’s this lord again.”

“I suggest we all stop trying to outbid him for this Qingyuan Stone Carving. Let’s just wait for the next auction.”

“Another few months of waiting, sigh…”

“What are a mere few months to cultivators like us? Besides, this Qingyuan Stone Carving isn’t a rare treasure. There’s no point in squandering so many Spirit Pills just to compete for a single piece.”

The moment Su Hanxing’s new bid rang out, the silence in the auction hall dissolved instantly. Numerous cultivators erupted into discussion, making the hall exceptionally noisy for a time. Everyone voiced their opinions and critiques, yet not a single person made another offer.

The attendant on stage found himself in a rather helpless situation, caught between laughter and tears at the scene. To him, this Qingyuan Stone Carving was merely a transitional side dish, following the grand main course of the Scarlet Dragon Halberd. Thus, he cared little if it failed to fetch a high price in Spirit Pills.

“Fifty thousand Spirit Pills! Are there any other fellow Daoists willing to offer a higher price?” The attendant paused, then lightly tapped his staff against the ground, officially confirming the item’s ownership. “Then this Qingyuan Stone Carving now belongs to the fellow Daoist in the private room.”

Su Hanxing and Chi Qiu watched the scene of cultivators discussing in the auction hall, their faces revealing little emotion. Although acquiring the Qingyuan Stone Carving had been smoother than imagined, they knew a larger challenge still lay ahead.

Mere moments after Fansheng announced the Qingyuan Stone Carving now belonged to Su Hanxing and Chi Qiu, a knock echoed at their private room door. The visitor was, once again, the middle-aged man clad in black Daoist robes.

“Esteemed guests, the Qingyuan Stone Carving you successfully bid on has arrived. Please take a look.” With a wave of his hand, the black-robed middle-aged man conjured an irregular stone slab. It stood upright before them, approximately twenty chi long, ten chi wide, and one chi thick.

The instant the stone slab materialized, Chi Qiu keenly sensed an exceptionally rich aura of the ‘Dao’ emanating from it.

Upon seeing the Qingyuan Stone Carving, Su Hanxing nodded slightly. Then, with a casual flick of his wrist, a jade bottle flew towards the black-robed middle-aged man. The middle-aged man took the jade bottle, not even bothering with a perfunctory check of the Spirit Pills within. Instead, he simply bowed and prepared to depart.

“Wait, fellow Daoist,” Chi Qiu interjected, unable to contain herself as she saw the black-robed middle-aged man preparing to leave. “Does your esteemed association happen to have any other Qingyuan Stone Carvings?”

She had just overheard the discussions among the cultivators in the auction hall, and it seemed this Qingyuan Stone Carving was not the first of its kind to appear there, prompting her question.

“This Qingyuan Stone Carving is not an item belonging to my Qibao Hall,” the middle-aged man clarified. “Rather, someone is using our auction to sell it. Our Qibao Hall in Hongshan City holds an auction every three months, and a Qingyuan Stone Carving is typically put up for sale at each event. If esteemed guests desire more, you may await the next auction.”

The black-robed middle-aged man was startled for a moment upon hearing Chi Qiu’s voice. He then quickly bent at the waist, answering with utmost respect.

“So that’s how it is. Thank you for the information.” A wave of joy instantly bloomed in Chi Qiu’s heart upon hearing the black-robed man’s words. Yet, she maintained an unperturbed expression, offering a cool thank you before falling silent.

“This is merely my duty,” the middle-aged man replied. “It is my pleasure to be of assistance to esteemed guests.” After bowing with cupped hands, the black-robed middle-aged man departed the private room.

It seems I was overthinking things, Su Hanxing mused. Thinking about it, it makes sense. It was merely a flying skiff passing by Qingyuan Ravine; there’s no need to go to such lengths just to probe us over a trivial matter. If they truly intended to act, the Dharma Manifestation Realm cultivators would have pursued us immediately. Why expend all this effort? I simply scared myself.

After the black-robed middle-aged man left, Su Hanxing visibly relaxed. He didn’t spare another glance for the Qingyuan Stone Carving, instead slumping onto the long chair and speaking with a touch of self-mockery.

“That’s certainly for the best,” Chi Qiu replied. “Since the Heart God Sect hasn’t discovered our intentions, our investigation will be much smoother.”

Chi Qiu offered a faint smile as she looked at Su Hanxing, slumped on the long chair. She then quickly moved to the Qingyuan Stone Carving, reaching out to gently touch its intricate patterns.

The person who carved this mural… their comprehension of the “Dao” is truly terrifying.

The moment Chi Qiu’s hand lightly rested on the Qingyuan Stone Carving, dozens of exceptionally profound Heaven and Earth Daos burst forth in unison, as if drawing her directly into the stone’s depiction.

“Oh? Why do you say that?” Su Hanxing, naturally unable to perceive the infinitely profound Daos embedded within, looked at Chi Qiu, who was utterly engrossed, and asked with a hint of confusion.

“The sheer number and variety of Daos contained within this stone carving are truly astonishing,” Chi Qiu explained. “Take, for instance, the section I just touched.” She beckoned Su Hanxing closer, inviting him to examine the Qingyuan Stone Carving with her.

Su Hanxing rose and approached the carving. Chi Qiu was currently pointing to a small clump of green grass on the stone, adorned with a few carved raindrops.

“Just within this single clump of green grass,” Chi Qiu elaborated, observing Su Hanxing’s bewildered expression, “I can discern several profound Daos, such as Earth and Rainwater. They are depicted with such exquisite subtlety, clearly indicating the artist’s exceptionally deep understanding of these principles.”

“And this is merely a single clump of grass. The mountains, great rivers, flowers, insects, birds, and beasts depicted on it contain even more Daos, not fewer. However, there is one rather peculiar detail…”

Chi Qiu gently ran her hand over the entire stone carving, her fingers finally coming to rest at the very top, where a Solar Star hung high in the depicted sky.

“What’s so peculiar about this Solar Star?” Su Hanxing asked, completely bewildered, his questions coming in quick succession.

“On this Solar Star, there isn’t a single trace of the Dao remaining, which is precisely why I called it peculiar,” Chi Qiu explained, seeing that Su Hanxing hadn’t noticed the distinction between the Solar Star and the rest of the carving.

“I truly can’t discern it,” Su Hanxing said with a helpless smile, reaching out to gently pat Chi Qiu’s head. “I’ll leave this carving to you, Little Chi, to study at your leisure.”

Chi Qiu didn’t refuse. She nodded gently before storing the Qingyuan Stone Carving in her storage artifact. Then, she settled back onto the long chair, turning her head to ask Su Hanxing:

“Hanxing, you’ve spent almost all your Spirit Pills. Should we continue to participate in this auction?”