"Mm, it's rare to encounter your traveling merchant caravan, so of course I must take a good look. As long as there's something suitable, money is not an issue," Yi Tianxing said with a smile.
Just as he said, traveling merchants were difficult to come by. The fact that Great Yi had managed to encounter them several times in succession was already a stroke of luck. After all, the number of traveling merchants in the Eternal World was extremely small, and the world itself was vast and boundless. There were places one might visit once in a lifetime and never see again. Jia Chengxin being able to return to Yizhou, where the Great Yi Dynasty was located, was also a coincidence—an unexpected stroke of fate.
Next time, there might not be such good fortune.
Another meeting might only occur centuries or even millennia later.
"What's the price on these Village Establishment Tokens?"
Yi Tianxing's eyes immediately landed on the shelves lined with a large number of tokens, of various ranks. However, the majority were of the more common types.
"Black Iron grade: ten thousand Eternal Coins. Bronze grade: thirty thousand. Silver: one hundred thousand. Gold: five hundred thousand. I don't have any Platinum tokens," Jia Chengxin replied with a smile.
The prices were indeed not cheap.
That said, for a Black Iron-grade token, the price wasn't particularly high—it could even be considered dirt cheap. After all, a single Village Establishment Token could open the path to building a Fate Dynasty, something that was irreplaceable.
"Alright, I'll take all the Village Establishment Tokens you have, regardless of grade," Yi Tianxing said without hesitation.
The Great Yi Dynasty was destined to continue expanding. When constructing Immortal Cities, one couldn't build them arbitrarily—the foundation had to be based on Village Establishment Tokens. From there, they could expand using Xuanhuang Bricks, eventually transforming them into full-fledged Immortal Cities.
Every Immortal City began with one of these tokens.
Without one, the city couldn't even be built.
Thus, in Great Yi, the demand for these tokens was enormous. No matter how many they had, it would never be too much. Though they still had a large reserve, their stockpiling had never ceased. Officially, the dynasty had a standing policy to purchase Village Establishment Tokens with no limit.
"Black Iron: 1,000 tokens. Bronze: 600. Silver: 300. Gold: 50. That brings the total to 83 million Eternal Coins," Jia Chengxin calculated immediately. It was clearly a huge deal—close to a hundred million! His smile grew wide, his eyes narrowing into slits from sheer joy.
"Very well. I'll take them all."
Yi Tianxing didn't haggle. The prices were fair, not a rip-off. After Jia Chengxin brought out all the tokens, he quickly took out the Eternal Coins in return.
Over 80 million coins—stacked like a golden mountain, gleaming brilliantly. The sheer volume was enough to make one's heart pound with awe. Even someone as seasoned as Jia Chengxin couldn't help but feel a burst of joy. Doing business with Yi Tianxing was simply too satisfying.
A pleasure, through and through.
"These Eternal Coins really are remarkable—the finest currency in the entire Eternal World. And bearing the name 'Eternal', this currency naturally carries fate energy. I must say, Daoist Yi—you truly had foresight," Jia Chengxin praised sincerely.
It was for this reason that most transactions among traveling merchants were done in Eternal Coins.
Such a massive sum would last him quite a long while.
"Daoist Yi, would you be able to supply me with Eternal Coins regularly?" Jia Chengxin asked after a moment's thought.
If he could establish a reliable supply line with Great Yi, it would be immensely helpful to his trading ventures.
"You traveling merchants wander from place to place, with no fixed abode. It's hard to pinpoint your location. Even with teleportation arrays, if the distance is too great, it's still difficult to maintain contact. Without resolving that, there's no way to transfer coins effectively."
Yi Tianxing shook his head. If it were possible, he would have long established such a relationship with the merchants. It would help spread Eternal Coins even farther. But for now, it wasn't feasible. It would take time, slowly expanding the currency's reach. At least in the Hanhai region, the Eternal Coin had taken root thanks to a grand auction.
And as Great Yi's territory expanded, its influence would grow as well. Other currencies simply couldn't compete.
"Well, I'll have to visit your Great Yi more often in the future," Jia Chengxin chuckled.
Returning to Yizhou wasn't difficult for him. Traveling between realms was possible through domain gates, traversing inconceivable distances in an instant. That said, maintaining a connection with Great Yi was essential.
He had already made up his mind—he would visit Great Yi whenever he had the chance. After all, Yi Tianxing was a customer with staggering purchasing power—a dream client.
"By the way, what's this seed? It looks quite unusual."
Yi Tianxing glanced toward a shelf and spotted a very peculiar seed. It was about the size of a baby's fist, with a metallic sheen reminiscent of machinery, yet it radiated a strong life force. The cold mechanical luster and the vibrant energy formed a strangely perfect combination.
"This is a treasure seed—a very rare type. It's known as a Half-Mechanical Seed," Jia Chengxin explained, his eyes flashing with intrigue. "It's a seed born of heaven and earth, containing great uncertainty. It could grow into a heaven-defying half-mechanical spirit plant—producing wondrous treasures. Or it could be utterly worthless, sprouting nothing but an ordinary weed. So purchasing this carries a fair bit of risk. I must inform you clearly, Daoist Yi."
Now that he intended to foster a good relationship with Great Yi, his attitude naturally became more forthright.
"A half-mechanical treasure seed, eh? The world truly is full of wonders."
Yi Tianxing was astonished, but not to the point of disbelief.
In the Eternal World, nothing was impossible.
"That's right. In fact, the Eternal World even has mechanical lifeforms. They possess life, souls, and even emotions—joy, anger, sorrow, and love. They can form bonds and even reproduce. Their source of life is their Spark. They are incredibly powerful—often more so than typical races," Jia Chengxin added with admiration.
Life born of machinery was not such an unthinkable concept here.
"Mm. Even with uncertainty, this is still a rare treasure. Worth taking a gamble. What's the price? I'll take it," Yi Tianxing nodded.
Regardless of what it eventually grew into, if he managed to cultivate it into a valuable spirit plant, it would be a huge win.
"Ten thousand Eternal Coins," Jia Chengxin replied after some thought.
Given that it could potentially become an innate spiritual root, the price was already exceedingly low.
"Alright. I'll take it."
Yi Tianxing nodded and paid, storing the mechanical seed in his Life Aperture and instinctively planting it.
"By the way, this seed grows best when nourished with rare metals and spirit soil. Only then can its life force be awakened. Otherwise, its growth will be extremely slow—possibly never sprouting at all," Jia Chengxin added.
Clearly, that was crucial information.
Without the right cultivation materials, the seed could be ruined before it even started to grow.
"What's that?"
As they continued browsing, Cai Yan suddenly pointed at an object and asked.
Looking closer, it was a human skull, crystal clear like fine glass, exuding an ancient Daoist aura with shimmering halos of light.
It was obviously no ordinary item.
"This too is a treasure born of heaven and earth—known as the Crystal Skull. It is considered a sacred item. Some say it can summon ancient battle souls. Others say it grants prophetic powers, or even ascension energy that allows a cultivator to leap an entire realm without side effects. Some claim it bestows powerful battle bodies or divine physiques, or that it seals a magical weapon within. It's hard to say. But one thing is certain—it won't bring misfortune," Jia Chengxin explained.
Clearly, the Crystal Skull was even more mysterious than the mechanical seed, and far more valuable. Ultimately, it all came down to luck.
"Name your price," Yi Tianxing said without hesitation.
This was the kind of gamble that, if won, could change one's destiny. And for him, it was well within acceptable risk.