During Xiao Fei's secluded days on the small island, the cultivation world, after decades of turmoil, finally returned to peace.
The three treasures from the small world had all found new owners.
The short sword spiritual treasure was obtained by a Nascent Soul expert from Qin. The crystal ball fell into the hands of a powerful demon from the East Sea.
Only the jade slip was suspected by the entire cultivation world to have been seized by Qi, but Qi adamantly denied it.
As one of the three major powers on the East Continent, even if they had obtained it, ordinary cultivators could do nothing to them.
This time, the Qin state benefited the most from the emergence of treasures in the human cultivation world.
The East Continent originally possessed two spiritual treasures, one in Chu and one in Qin.
This time, Qin obtained another spiritual treasure, giving them two in total. This made Qin's strength sufficient to suppress other states, causing an imbalance in power and making many countries feel uneasy.
Xiao Fei's hidden island remained as peaceful as ever.
One day, a small fish, three feet long, flew onto the island and headed straight for the cave where Xiao Fei resided.
"Master, I'm back!"
The flying fish returned to Xiao Fei's cave dwelling, naturally picked up a wine jar from the corner, removed the seal, sniffed it, and then poured the entire jar into its mouth.
"Master is so stingy, unwilling to bring out good wine and only fooling me with spirit wine that's only twenty to thirty years old."
Ever since drinking a large amount of spirit wine while escaping with Xiao Fei last time, the flying fish had developed a drinking habit. Every time it returned from the ocean, it would drink several jars.
If Xiao Fei didn't have the spatial artifact, he would likely have been bankrupted by the flying fish.
"It's good enough that you have something to drink, don't be so picky."
At this moment, Xiao Fei emerged from the reception room in the inner chamber, with Huang Feifei following behind him. The two had just been discussing their experiences with formations.
Xiao Fei had recently been researching the arrangement of the jade altar formation. This formation was extremely complex, and when he encountered parts he didn't quite understand, he would bring Huang Feifei over.
The two of them delved into the intricacies of formation knowledge, discussing their insights. One person's ideas are limited, but two people's wisdom is greater. Their exchanges often sparked flashes of wisdom, and both gained something.
"Young Master, the Black Flood Dragon clan is about to hold a trade fair. Is Master interested in participating?"
"Of course!"
Xiao Fei replied without hesitation.
He was currently planning to build a jade altar and wanted to see if he could exchange for some good items through sacrifices.
After all, the spiritual treasure and crystal ball on the altar previously were likely exchanged from the immortal realm through sacrifices.
Rebuilding the altar required a large amount of rare refining materials, which were not easy to find on the East Continent.
The East Sea, on the other hand, was vast and rich in resources. Especially since the demon races of the East Sea were not skilled in alchemy or artifact refining, many raw materials were very cheap.
Ten days later, Xiao Fei and Huang Feifei disguised themselves as two white water apes using the art of transformation.
Human cultivators were almost never seen at the East Sea demon race's trade fair. If the two appeared in human form, they would likely attract a lot of trouble.
This was akin to a demon suddenly appearing in a human city; that demon would soon be disassembled, its meat made into delicious dishes, and its demonic cores and hides would be processed separately.
Similarly, in the eyes of the demon race, humans held the same value.
The Black Flood Dragon clan was considered one of the top five major clans among the various races in the East Sea. The clan possessed numerous Nascent Soul experts and even a Divine Transformation realm expert, it was rumored.
The flying fish led the two white apes all the way to the depths of the East Sea. Thousands of feet below the sea, there was a large city.
The underwater city was constructed from massive stones and the skeletons of sea beasts, adorned with various shells, pearls, and gemstones, giving it a unique charm.
Two large crabs guarded the city entrance, brandishing their large claws to inspect the passes of those entering and exiting.
Xiao Fei walked to the city gate and presented a pass that the flying fish had obtained beforehand. The large crabs checked it, confirmed its authenticity, and then allowed them to enter the city.
Entering a demon race city for the first time, everything inside and out was filled with novelty. Fat sea creatures walked along the streets, making one's appetite surge at the sight.
As the Black Flood Dragon clan's trade fair was renowned throughout the East Sea, many demon races had flocked to Black Flood Dragon City during this period.
The main venue for this trade fair was held in the central plaza of Black Flood Dragon City.
Many demon races had brought their clan's specialties and set up stalls early in the venue, showcasing their goods to people.
When Xiao Fei entered the venue, he saw a large lobster holding a lobster shell and loudly hawking.
"Ancestor's shrimp shell, shed from our clan's Nascent Soul ancestor. Its texture is firm and reliable, making it an excellent choice for refining armor."
"Clang, clang, clang..."
The large lobster vigorously tapped the shell in its hand to attract the attention of passersby.
Unfortunately, this kind of material was not very popular in the demon world, and few people paid attention to it.
Many demon races themselves had hard scales or shells, so who would covet this shrimp shell?
However, as Xiao Fei, disguised as a white ape, passed by, he squatted down and tapped the shell a few times. The material seemed decent.
This kind of material was rarely seen on the East Continent, especially in the inland areas far from the ocean.
If a set of armor were refined using this material, it would likely be very popular among human cultivators.
"How many spirit stones do you want for this shell?" Xiao Fei intended to buy it, as he still owned a trading company and could hand it over for management.
"This item is not sold for spirit stones, only exchanged for third-tier or higher pills.
This is our clan's ancestral treasure, only exchanged for pills that aid cultivation."
The large lobster firmly refused. Although business was not good, spirit stones were of little use to it at the moment.
Among the demon races of the East Sea, resources were abundant, but high-tier alchemists were severely lacking. They usually swallowed spirit herbs directly, making high-tier pills a rare commodity.
"Friend, how many third-tier pills would it take to make a deal?"
The other party's desire to trade for pills was exactly what Xiao Fei wanted.
He indeed didn't have many spirit stones, but he had a lot of pills. He would refine a few batches of pills when he had nothing else to do, which had become his relaxation activity outside of cultivation.
After years of secluded cultivation, a large number of pills had accumulated in his spatial artifact.
"At least twenty third-tier pills."
"Ah?"
Xiao Fei hadn't expected it to be so cheap, but his exclamation of surprise greatly discouraged the large lobster.
"Friend, this price is not expensive at all. This is a treasure shed from a Nascent Soul expert..."
The large lobster's defensive voice grew weaker, and it lacked confidence itself.
"If you like it, eighteen third-tier pills will do."
Just as Xiao Fei was about to take out the pills, two fewer were requested.
"Good! Deal!"
Immediately, they exchanged money for goods, completing the transaction.
Afterward, Xiao Fei continued to purchase a considerable amount of materials for alchemy and artifact refining from other stalls, including some materials needed for refining the jade altar.
Through these few transactions, he discovered that pills had a good market among the demon race and were highly sought after. Using pills to purchase various materials seemed very cheap.
When purchasing items with spirit stones, the prices were significantly higher.