Daily life of a cultivation judge-Chapter 920: Deal made (2)
Choosing to ignore Yang Qing completely, Lin Guiren focused his attention on the two rogue cultivators who still couldn’t believe what they had heard.
A top-tier monarch-grade artifact in peak condition was usually around 30- 40,000 high-grade spirit stones. When Xiao Gun and his cohorts were looking to sell the cauldron, all they hoped for was at most 25,000 high-grade spirit stones, with their bare minimum being 22,000 high-grade spirit stones.
Their number was that low due to the damaged foundations of the treasure and also the fact that it was incomplete. Never in a million years would they have expected to receive 50,000 high-grade spirit stones for it. That was halfway through the mark for what a perfectly functional low-tier ascendant-grade artifact cost.
Low-tier ascendant grade artifacts usually went for 100,000 high-grade spirit stones, not that one would even be able to buy one of those even if they offered ten times that amount, but that was the price value listed on them.
The sum Lin Guiren had offered them, meant they could afford half an ascendant-grade treasure. The reasoning in that was skewed, but neither Xiao Gun nor Yao Chong had the presence of mind to reason normally. They were charting crazy waters now. 50,000 high-grade spirit stones was a sum they never thought they could get their hands on, let alone get the chance to cultivate in a ground that matched the blessed ground of a rank one organization.
Everything, all of it felt phantasmal to it. Coming here, the best they were hoping for was maybe getting their cauldron back, and if it was impossible they would have settled for the original 10,000 high-grade spirit stones they were offered, and if even that proved impossible, they would have settled for leaving with their lives intact, drawing comfort from the knowledge that they had done everything they could.
Just as Xiao Gun was mustering enough courage to speak and say yes, he was interrupted by the voice of someone.
" Daoist Xiao Gun, Daoist Yao Chong, before you decide, could you listen to my offer too?" Yang Qing softly said as he put on a genial smile.
Xiao Gun and Yao Chang still riding the shock of their lives somehow managed to exchange glances with one another before finally nodding to each other before finally nodding toward Yang Qing, as Xiao Gun gave his response.
"Y..yes, it’s okay," Xiao Gun said, his tongue dry and voice cracking.
"Thank you," Yang Qing said with a nod.
"For clarity, this deal is purely personal, and is not a reflection of the Order’s position on the matter.." Yang Qing said off the bat which elicited a sigh from Lei Weiyuan who had seen this coming but said nothing, while Hou Dehui smiled at the side.
"I am willing to offer 20,000 high-grade spirit stones..."
Xiao Gun and Yao Chang instantly became downcast at the offer.
"In addition, I will give you a low-tier monarch-grade artifact, two recommendations to train at the Institute of the Order for the entire phase which is three years and I will also help you unlock the features of that bamboo scroll, during that period.." Yang Qing said.
Without meaning to, the two rogue cultivators ended up answering simultaneously.
"We agree.."
The duo looked at each other in surprise, before smiling as they both sighed in relief.
For them, Yang Qing’s offer even though seemed slightly lower was preferable to them, and to them, it was even better than what Lin Guiren offered them. Yes, they didn’t get 50,000 high-grade spirit stones and were only receiving 20,000 high-grade spirit stones, but they were also receiving a monarch-grade artifact, they didn’t care that it was a low-tier one, or that they didn’t know what kind it would be.
But even if they didn’t know, they had faith that it would be something convenient for them otherwise Yang Qing would not have put it in the offer.
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But the greatest decider for them was the last offer in which they would get to study at the Institute for three years. The biggest hurdle for rogue cultivators which left them languishing at the bottom of society, other than low resources, and little to no backing was lack of guidance.
Sects, clans, and other long-standing organizations continued to thrive because they had a legacy and a clearly defined nurturing process in which the senior cultivators used their vast experience to guide their juniors. Such a clearly defined path prevents those just starting from going down erroneous paths, and it also speeds up their rate of growth.
Rogue cultivators didn’t have that. They had to trudge in the dark, experimenting and figuring things out on their own. The lack of guidance and structure ends up with some of them taking wrong paths that permanently harm their foundations, forever impairing their abilities to advance or for others, which is most, they walk in the dark for so long that by the time they find the right path, a lot of time has already passed by, and that path becomes of little value to them.
Xiao Gun and Yao Chong belonged to the former group. Those who ended up taking a wrong step and it has since hampered their path forward.
It was for this reason that rogue cultivators continuously delved into ruins and mysterious realms and scoured all sorts of places despite the dangers involved. All of it is in the hopes of finding a complete legacy that would help illuminate a path for them. But even then, finding a complete legacy didn’t always guarantee immediate success because of the foundational knowledge gap most rogue cultivators had.
In some cases, those legacies ended up being useless to them like what happened to Xiao Gun when they found the legacy of the Verdant water crane sect.
For them, Yang Qing’s last offer touched on what every rogue cultivator, especially those without outstanding talent desperately craved, guidance. To them that was more important than 50,000 high-grade spirit stones, or even the chance to cultivate at a rank one blessed ground.
In fact, if they were being perfectly honest, some part of them was apprehensive about cultivating at the treasured ground of the Golden Bamboo Pavilion. There was already bad blood between the two sides even if it was solely Yao De’s doing. Going there they would forever be nervous considering the history. They would not have the peace of mind to make full use of the place.
Yang Qing couldn’t help but smile in satisfaction at receiving their agreement. The reason he had gone that far, one was his curiosity about antique objects, the other was he was a petty person. If he could get one over the Golden Bamboo Pavilion he would not hesitate to do it. However, that reason was less of a reason and more of just an added bonus to him.
The true reason was the two rogue cultivators before him and what they had endured, and the time they had left. The offer was his way of giving them a chance at the dragon gate mentioned by Fu Yong.
It was his way of honoring what Fu Yong wanted for them, and what they had been chasing all their life, and from interacting with rogue cultivators all the time, he knew what would benefit them most.
Because of how loose the rogue cultivator community was, they never got allocations the way ranked organizations did, when it came to access to the Institute, the only way for them to gain access was by converting the merit points they acquired by doing jobs for the Order, and use the accumulated amount to enroll at the Order or another way was through recommendations from someone from the Order.
As a palace court judge, Yang Qing had twelve recommendations per year which was a double increase from what he had as a core formation court judge. Having interacted with several rogue cultivators over the years, it wasn’t his first time using it. This felt a good time as any to make use of them.
Lin Guiren didn’t show much reaction to having the deal stolen from him. To him, he made the deal purely for face. It wasn’t that he had any interest in the cauldron. Even if it was complete, he would not have been affected not when he had something much more valuable in the works, something that had the potential to catapult him and the other founders to stand shoulder to shoulder with the truly powerful in the continent.
When compared to that, a busted cauldron was nothing. The only thing that gave him cause for worry was Yang Qing’s open hostility toward them. He wasn’t sure what Yang Qing would pull when it came to his son, if he was this hostile.
As he was, even if he was to act unbridled toward his son, he would be too helpless to do anything about it. Even if he was willing to throw all pretense to the side, and risk his life, with Hou Dehui and Lei Weiyuan present, he would not be able to do much, and that wasn’t even without taking into account the dangerous presence he could feel lurking about in the courtroom.
While Lin Guiren was lost in his own calculations, Yang Qing quickly settled with the particulars with the two cultivators, before he had them ushered out the courtroom signalling the resolution of their affair, leaving only one person, the elderly man with the hateful glare.
