What happened next was entirely predictable.
Amid the chaos caused by cultivators desperately fleeing for their lives, the price of Samantabhadra True Leaf leaves plummeted rapidly.
After just surpassing the thousand-point mark, the price dropped like a waterfall.
This spectacular sight left Jiao Xiuyuan in awe.
“Your prediction skills are truly remarkable, fellow Daoist!”
“If it weren’t for your warning, I might have ended up just like them.”
“I can already imagine the countless cultivators whose Dao hearts have been shattered!”
Jiao Xiuyuan said with a tone of schadenfreude.
Meanwhile, in Tianshu Prefecture.
He watched helplessly as the price of the Samantabhadra True Leaf he had just bought for the astronomical sum of 1,300 points crashed.
Many couldn’t bear the shock, spitting blood and fainting on the spot.
“Fellow Daoist Tantai!”
The remaining conscious cultivators looked at Tantai Can with resentment, hoping the leader of the Tantai family could come up with a solution.
Tantai Can’s face turned ashen.
From the very beginning, it felt as though an invisible hand had been manipulating the situation from behind the scenes, leaving him no time to react.
He even began to suspect that this whole event might be a conspiracy targeting the Tantai family.
Perhaps Jiao Xiuyuan and that Heavenly Mechanism Sect cultivator Li Fan were nothing more than distractions orchestrated by the enemy.
As various possible targets flashed through his mind, Tantai Can started to actively think of ways to salvage the situation.
The loss this time was too great.
Even though his position in the family had become increasingly stable over the years, he might still face punishment.
His brothers might even use this as an excuse to attack him.
“No, I must recover some of the losses.”
Gritting his teeth, an idea formed in Tantai Can’s mind.
“Spread the word about our recent discovery!”
He said in a deep voice.
“What?”
“No! Tantai, stay calm!”
“We haven’t reported this to the Immortal Alliance yet…”
The others were shocked and quickly tried to dissuade him.
But Tantai Can’s mind was made up, and since he was responsible for most of this secret discovery, they had no choice but to comply.
Using their own methods, they spread the news into the market.
Meanwhile, on Ten Thousand Immortal Island, where Li Fan and Jiao Xiuyuan were tallying their recent gains, they noticed that the decline in Samantabhadra True Leaf had begun to slow.
Although the price was still gradually decreasing, the collapse had started to stabilize.
“Hmm? What’s going on? The price of Samantabhadra True Leaf is more resilient than I expected,” Li Fan said, glancing at Jiao Xiuyuan.
Jiao Xiuyuan paused for a moment, then replied with a strange expression, “Word is spreading that crafting artifacts from large quantities of Samantabhadra True Leaf can reduce the lifespan absorbed by the “Devouring White Mist…”
“Moreover, it can also guide one through the maze of white mist.”
Jiao Xiuyuan narrowed his eyes, clearly surprised by this revelation.
Li Fan was taken aback, “Is it true?”
“Judging by the market’s reaction, it doesn’t seem to be a baseless rumor,” Jiao Xiuyuan said solemnly.
“It seems Tantai Can leaked this secret to minimize his losses. Who would’ve thought Samantabhadra True Leaf had such a use? If they can resist the Devouring White Mist, this could change the landscape of the Xuanhuang Realm,” he muttered, seemingly planning to quietly buy back the leaves.
“So that’s why its price steadily increased in the previous life,” Li Fan realized.
Having spent years in the Abyss, Li Fan was all too familiar with the terror of the Devouring White Mist.
If he had known about the power of the Samantabhadra True Leaf back then, the Tianxuan Spirit-Locking Formation within the mist wouldn’t have been so painstaking to build.
“With these leaves, it’s even possible to explore deeper into the maze…”
“And in the previous life, until I turned into an object and completed the Tianxuan Spirit-Locking Formation, Tantai Can never disclosed anything about this…”
The news was shocking.
Both Li Fan and Jiao Xiuyuan fell into deep thought, and the hall was silent.
“The Tantai family is interesting—discovering such important information and not reporting it in time,” Jiao Xiuyuan eventually broke the silence.
“What kind of background does the Tantai family have?” Li Fan asked, continuing the conversation.
“The head of the Tantai family, Tantai Liruo, is a Dao Integration Immortal Sage and one of the three leaders of the Bureau Hall headquarters of the Immortal Alliance.”
“Because of their low-key conduct, the Tantai family has remained relatively unknown to outsiders.”
“Only when you reach a certain level do you realize how terrifying the Tantai family truly is.”
Jiao Xiuyuan explained to Li Fan.
“However, the Bureau Hall isn’t solely under the control of the Tantai family. Given the scale of this mistake, Tantai Liruo will have to provide some explanation.”
Jiao Xiuyuan’s tone suddenly turned curious, “I don’t think Tantai Can is a fool, so why did he make such poor decisions this time?”
“Logically, this kind of critical information could have helped the Tantai family secure an even stronger position.”
“But he threw it away for a little profit.”
Li Fan pondered for a moment before analyzing, “Perhaps, this person isn’t really that foolish.”
“After all, the Tantai family is the Tantai family, and Tantai Can is Tantai Can.”
Though it sounded convoluted, Jiao Xiuyuan seemed to grasp the meaning behind Li Fan’s words.
Afterward, the two chatted casually for a while before agreeing to collaborate again if the opportunity arose.
Li Fan then used a secret passage within the hall to quietly return to the Tianxuan Mirror, avoiding the angry crowd of cultivators outside.
Calming his thoughts, Li Fan began to assess his gains.
He had acquired the Samantabhadra True Leaf at around 300 or 400 points each and sold most of them to Dantai Can for 1,300 points.
Even after accounting for a small portion sold in between, his overall profit had quadrupled.
Subtracting the unexpected losses from purchasing Spirit Mist Grass, Li Fan’s wealth had grown from just over 5 million contributions to a staggering 18.6 million.
However, Li Fan was no longer a naive newcomer to the cultivation world.
Facing such enormous wealth, he remained calm and composed.
He skillfully opened the Tianxuan Mirror’s shopping list, continuing to purchase items needed for trading with the empire and selecting objects that might be useful for future cultivation.
Unfortunately, his current access level was still limited, leaving him lamenting over the treasures he couldn’t yet obtain.
The days of lavish spending didn’t last long.
As expected, a voice soon echoed from the Tianxuan Mirror, summoning him to the Martial Arts Hall for an investigation.
They wanted to determine whether he had maliciously manipulated the market, potentially destabilizing the Ten Thousand Immortal Alliance.