Douluo: Emerald Poison Emperor

Before long, the staff of the auction knocked on Chen Ming's door and began discussing the auction items. Chen Ming had successfully bid on three items: a Dragon Blood Stone and a Dragon Scale Stone worth 430,000 gold soul coins, and a Geothermal Flame Crystal worth 550,000 gold soul coins. Together, the total amounted to 980,000 gold soul coins, which was still far less than the leading bids for the final three auction items.

This amount of money was no issue for Chen Ming. Casually tossing out a gold card, the staff bowed respectfully and went off to confirm the payment. Shortly after, they returned with the three auctioned items and the remaining gold soul coins.

The gold soul coins were stored in the form of gold cards. After a glance, Chen Ming casually placed them into his storage pouch. As for the Dragon Scale Stone, Dragon Blood Stone, and Geothermal Flame Crystal, he placed them on the table in his room.

At this moment, although the auction had ended, the venue had not yet cleared out. As the Heaven Dou Royal Auction House, it traditionally hosted a banquet for all guests after the auction, serving both as a courtesy and as a social platform for the nobles and spirit masters who participated.

Some attended the banquet, while others left in a hurry. Chen Ming, however, chose to stay in his room to study his newly acquired auction items.

"Rich in soul power, though much of its life force has dissipated over time, the remaining portion has condensed into another form. The quality is decent."

After inspecting the Dragon Scale Stone and Dragon Blood Stone and finding them less remarkable than he had imagined, Chen Ming shifted his attention to the Geothermal Flame Crystal. At this time, Lou Gao, who had been standing nearby, carefully ran his hands over every corner of the crystal, using all his sensory abilities to feel the warmth emanating from it.

Chen Ming placed his hand on the crystal, channeling his spiritual power and sensory perception. Within the half-human-sized Geothermal Flame Crystal, he could sense the power of the earth accumulated over tens of thousands of years, as well as almost tangible fire energy.

Under the influence of the earth's power, this immense fire energy had become extremely stable and crystallized into its current form. However, if activated correctly, the energy released would surpass the ninth spirit ability of most Title Douluos—akin to a natural-grade Rank 9 Soul Guidance Cannon shell.

Of course, this was only achievable if the Geothermal Flame Crystal's energy was fully and correctly unleashed in one go. If mishandled, the energy would simply dissipate.

In the current state of the Douluo Continent, there was no technology capable of properly activating it. Otherwise, the price of this Geothermal Flame Crystal would have been at least ten times higher.

Chen Ming thought about the future Sun and Moon Continent and decided that, if given the chance, he would gather knowledge on Soul Guidance device manufacturing. Such unique techniques might prove useful to him someday.

The Geothermal Flame Crystal itself carried immense spirituality and was a natural medium for laws. Within the crystal, Chen Ming could sense intricate fragments of laws accumulated over millennia. Some might have originated from fire-type soul beasts, others from the forces of the earth's veins, and still others from magma.

From any perspective, it was a top-tier natural material. If the law fragments could be carefully sorted and the crystal's power refined, it might even serve as raw material for crafting a divine weapon.

After considering this, Chen Ming glanced at Lou Gao and pushed the half-human-sized Geothermal Flame Crystal toward him.

"Master Lou, I lack expertise in forging. While I know a bit about spirituality, I'm a complete amateur when it comes to crafting techniques. Could I entrust you to use this Geothermal Flame Crystal as raw material to forge a weapon for me?"

"Your Excellency, what are you saying? It would be my greatest honor to craft a weapon for you!" Lou Gao patted his chest and assured Chen Ming.

Why had he left Gengxin City? To gather spiritual materials for research in hopes of breaking through to the advanced level of Divine Craftsman status! Now, not only was Chen Ming providing him guidance, but he was also giving him high-quality materials. For Lou Gao, this was like a pie falling from the sky. Any hesitation on his part would mean he had been hit on the head one too many times with a hammer while forging.

Chen Ming instructed Lou Gao to carefully store the Geothermal Flame Crystal, arranged a meeting location, and left the auction house with the Dragon Scale Stone and Dragon Blood Stone, returning to Dugu Bo's residence.

...

At that moment, Dugu Bo was busy preparing for a banquet scheduled for a few days later. Seeing Chen Ming return, he was beyond delighted.

When Chen Ming mentioned encountering Ning Fengzhi at the auction and their conversation, Dugu Bo's expression grew serious.

Chen Ming expressed his desire for Dugu Bo to accompany him to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan the next day. Without hesitation, Dugu Bo agreed. After all, just the fact that Chen Ming met with Ning Fengzhi, the old fox, was enough to unsettle him. If Chen Ming were to visit the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan alone, Dugu Bo worried he might return as Ning Fengzhi's son-in-law, rather than his future grandson-in-law.

Chen Ming first returned to Heaven Dou Royal Academy to inform Dugu Yan that he would be away for a while. Then he returned to Dugu Bo's residence. After resting for the night, the two headed for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan outside Heaven Dou City.

Although the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan was not far from Heaven Dou City, it wasn't exactly close either. After all, no emperor would tolerate a sword hanging over their neck, even if that sword theoretically posed no harm.

For an average traveler, the journey between the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan and Heaven Dou City would take about two days. However, Dugu Bo and Chen Ming reached the clan's gates in less than two hours.

Unlike other sects, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, while located in the mountains, was not situated in a natural fortress like the Clear Sky Clan or the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan. Additionally, the area below the mountains was not an uninhabited wasteland.

At the foot of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's mountain lay a prosperous town. Goods and supplies were traded in abundance, and soul masters wearing the clan's insignia could occasionally be seen moving about.

This town served as the clan's primary trade hub with the outside world, catering primarily to low-level soul masters and common merchants. The goods sold here were mostly ordinary gemstones and minerals.

Occasionally, lucky individuals would bring rare treasures to exchange for something they needed at the clan's trade window. Regardless of whether the items were acquired through luck or dubious means, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan rarely turned anything away. Thanks to the treasure appraisal abilities of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, the clan managed to acquire many valuable items each year.

The bustling town was filled with people, and patrols of heavily armed soldiers could be seen regularly. Hidden among the town's corners were soul masters disguised as ordinary merchants, clearly acting as sentries and scouts for the clan.

When Chen Ming and Dugu Bo arrived at the gates of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan, they handed over a letter of introduction. Upon confirming their identities, the gatekeepers immediately adopted a respectful demeanor and dispatched a team to escort them into the sect.

Shortly after entering, an older, slightly overweight man approached and greeted Dugu Bo warmly.

"Elder Wang, long time no see."

Dugu Bo recognized the portly elder as one of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan's representatives in Heaven Dou City. He was an 83rd-level defense-type Soul Douluo with the high-grade martial soul, Rock Tortoise.

Though his strength was not particularly outstanding among Soul Douluos, his long-standing role as Ning Fengzhi's proxy for external affairs made him a well-known figure.

Elder Wang bowed slightly to Dugu Bo and explained with a warm smile:

"Your Excellency Dugu, it has been a long time. Upon hearing that you were visiting with your disciple, the Clan Leader immediately appointed me to receive you. At this moment, the Clan Leader and the two guardian Douluos are waiting for you in the main hall."