In front of the City Lord's Mansion in Xiling City.

Two middle-aged men, who looked almost identical, stood tall and imposing like pine trees.

Li Mu was led by Yue Lei to the main hall of the Xiling City Lord, whereupon Yue Lei introduced him:

"Fellow Daoist Li, this is my father, Yue Qingyan, the Lord of Xiling City, and this is my fifth uncle, Yue Qingsong."

Li Mu looked at the two people in front of him who were smiling at him, and clasped his hands in greeting:

"Fellow Daoists, it's a pleasure to meet you! I've come uninvited and apologize for any inconvenience."

Yue Qingyan and Yue Qingsong returned the greeting with clasped hands. Yue Qingyan then spoke:

"Fellow Daoist Li has come from afar, we are very pleased to welcome you. Please come into the hall for a chat."

After exchanging pleasantries, the group entered the hall and took their seats.

Just as they sat down, a warrior dressed as a servant entered the hall carrying a tray with a storage bag on it.

Li Mu's divine sense had already seen the contents of the storage bag: a few dozen spirit stones, and nothing else.

Yue Qingyan smiled and said:

"Fellow Daoist Li has come from afar. This is a small gift prepared by Xiling to greet you. Please accept it with a smile."

Li Mu casually waved his hand at the servant who was about to approach, stopping him from getting closer, and said:

"Lord Yue, you are too kind. I, Li, have not prepared any gifts for you. I have not done anything to deserve such a reward. Please rescind your order."

However, Li's purpose in coming here is indeed to make some deals with City Lord Yue.

Seeing Li Mu's actions, Yue Qingyan waved to the servant, who then stood aside with the tray in his hand.

Then he spoke:

"Fellow Daoist Li, you are too kind. I wonder what my Xiling has that is worth trading with you?"

After hearing what Yue Qingyan said, Li Mu had given up hope on the deal.

From the moment Yue Lei found the inn, he knew that his every move was under their watchful eye.

Yue Qingyan offered him dozens of spirit stones as a test, a way of getting him to leave quickly.

At that moment, upon hearing that he wanted to make a deal, I specifically pointed out the word "worth it".

It seems that he is saying that Xiling has nothing worth trading, but he is actually saying that Li Mu has nothing worth trading.

.

Thinking about it, this Xiling City really doesn't welcome Li Mu very much.

Regardless of whether he's popular or not, he's already here, so he has to try his best.

So he took out three bottles of pills and said:

"This is the Qi-Nourishing Pill, a pill used for cultivation. Low-level martial artists have a high chance of advancing in rank if they take it, and high-level martial artists may also improve if they take multiple pills."

"This is the Qinglin Pill. If a cultivator has taken too many pills, this pill can be used to clear away the pill toxins. The effect is remarkable."

"This is a blood-clotting pill. If a cultivator is injured, taking this pill can quickly stop the bleeding and heal the wound."

"Lord Yue, I wonder if these kinds of pills can be traded?"

Li Mu explained the elixir while observing the group of people.

Seeing the hope mixed with a hint of greed in the eyes of the people who heard the introduction of his pills, he realized that they were quite excited.

Li Muxin said that as long as you want it, the deal can be made.

Yue Qingsong spoke first and asked:

"Fellow Daoist Li, what kind of treasure do you wish to exchange these pills for?"

"Spirit Stones!"

Li Mu cupped his hands and said:

"As you all know, I come from outside the country and have been stuck in this land for too long. I want to get out as soon as possible, which is why this deal is made."

"Oh! I wonder how many spirit stones Fellow Daoist Li desires?"

"Because I missed the teleportation opportunity, I need 10,000 spirit stones to activate the formation!"

After Li Mu finished speaking, he looked at the group. Yue Lei and Yue Qingsong remained calm, but Yue Qingyan's expression changed drastically.

Yue Qingyan spoke up:

"Tens of thousands of spirit stones? Fellow Daoist Li, are you joking? Although Xiling produces spirit stones, it is not an endless supply."

Each year, besides our own expenses, we also need to provide teleportation arrays for other sects to enter and exit, so it's really difficult to come up with so much."

Li Muxin understood; Xiling wasn't unable to produce anything, but rather felt that what they could offer wasn't enough.

Since Yue Qingyan wants to conduct business in this way, and I want a large amount of spirit stones, I must increase my offer.

He then took out a jade box and a bottle of pills, and said:

"This is a Heavenly Spirit Fruit, which I, Li, obtained by chance in the Endless Forest."

This is the Snow Mulberry Pill, which can heal damage to a cultivator's dantian. One pill is enough to repair the injury to the dantian.

"With all the pills and Heavenly Spirit Fruits combined, I wonder if City Lord Yue thinks it's possible to exchange them for ten thousand spirit stones."

.

Li wanted to take out the Blood Jade Marrow Mushroom again, but seeing the even greater greed in Yue Qingsong's eyes, he stopped himself.

The pills he's taking out now, if placed in the cultivation world, could easily be exchanged for tens of thousands of low-grade spirit stones.

Now that the main ingredient of the Foundation Establishment Pill, the Heavenly Spirit Fruit, has been added, the other party is still hesitating. It's truly speechless.

Seeing the greedy faces of the group who wanted to make a deal but also wanted more, Li Mu no longer wanted to trade.

Just as Li Mu was beginning to hesitate, Yue Qingsong asked:

"Fellow Daoist Li, do you have any Foundation Establishment Pills available in exchange?"

"Foundation Pill!?"

Li Mu was even more speechless when he heard the other party's question.

He does have one Foundation Establishment Pill; can he exchange it for one?

Even if he gets tens of thousands of spirit stones, he might not be able to get out.

If the other party successfully establishes their foundation using the Foundation Establishment Pill they exchanged for, given their greed, would they still be alive?

"Foundation Building Pill? I am also collecting the ingredients for Foundation Building Pill. If Fellow Daoist Yue has the ingredients, I can help you refine it."

Li Mu put away all the pills and Heavenly Spirit Fruits, and said with a relaxed expression.

The other party is too greedy; even if I raise the price further, I still won't be able to satisfy them.

Since he couldn't exchange it for spirit stones, he decided to give up. He had tried his best but gained nothing, which actually made him feel more relaxed.

Seeing Li Mu put away the pills, Yue Qingsong was tempted again and said:

"Fellow Daoist Li, I, Yue, can exchange what you just presented for three thousand spirit stones. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Li Mu chuckled inwardly; they were really trying to drive the price down to the bone.

“Fellow Daoist Yue, three thousand spirit stones is not a small amount, but I need tens of thousands of spirit stones.”

The gap is too large, and without a sufficient amount of spirit stones, the teleportation array cannot be activated. I will seek another method.”

After finishing his speech, Li Mu cupped his hands in farewell and left the city lord's mansion under the complicated and serious gazes of the three men.

.

Five people were sitting in a secret room in the city lord's mansion: four men and one woman.

Yue Qingyan and Yue Qingsong were prominently listed, along with the patriarch Yue Boqun, Zhao Gucheng, and Leng Shuang.

Apart from Yue Qingyan, the other four are all cultivators, and their cultivation levels are all above the ninth level of Qi Refining.

Yue Boqun is the patriarch of the Yue family, who is over 100 years old. Zhao Gucheng is the uncle of the Yue family, and Leng Shuang is the aunt of Yue Qingyan.

They are all relatives of the wife's family, related by blood or marriage. Their hearts are united, and they can share life and death.

"Qingsong, you speak first."

"Old Ancestor Yue spoke up."

“Ancestor, I have seen that Li Mu. His cultivation level should be comparable to ours, and he is not particularly special.”

Previously, when inquiring about the Foundation Establishment Pill, his expression remained calm, so he probably does possess such a pill.

After hearing this, Old Master Yue nodded.

“This person was able to easily defeat Fellow Daoist Qingfeng, he should not be underestimated. Qingyan, tell me again about the battle that day.”

"Ancestor, that day, Li Mu fought against several people from the Tianxuan Sect, but he didn't use many immortal techniques."

Aside from Yu Lei being burned by the spiritual fire, I couldn't see anything else, which suggests that his mastery of immortal techniques isn't very refined.

After Yue Qingyan finished speaking, Old Master Yue nodded again.

Cold Frost interjected:

"Qingyan, can the Snow Mulberry Pill that man mentioned really heal dantian injuries? If so, Min'er can be saved."

Leng Shuang has a grandson named Yue Min, who was injured in his dantian during a gambling fight a few years ago.

Now that I've heard about the elixir that can treat the dantian, I feel a surge of excitement.

Whether or not Li Mu's pills are still offered for exchange is irrelevant.

They were plotting in a secret room, not to make a deal, but to leave Li Mu in Xiling.