Tao Qian was craftily masquerading behind the image of the Ancestor Spirit.
From appearances alone, he was indeed quite persuasive.
Moreover, in the Cultivation World, the rarer treasures often came with ineludible costs, the more powerful they were, the more this held true.
Hence, when he spoke in such a manner, most cultivators believed him.
Even some benevolent heroes who were disgruntled by his earlier besiegement now opened their mouths to console him:
"Mr. Lin Daoist should not mind, those four daoists might also be happy to see this, as it's said, 'stop at just enough to keep things harmonious.'"
"Exactly, exactly, all four were unharmed, merely unconscious on the ground, nothing could be more appropriate."
"This treasure of yours is indeed rare and formidable, by its name, could it possibly be an Exotic Treasure from the secret vault of the Nine Toad Sect?"
"Most certainly, you see, my Sect has some relations with the Toad Sect, and I heard that the Nine Toad Sect has many Supreme Elders who choose to secretly nurture disciples externally, not vying for the position of True Inheritor within the Sect itself—so it seems, Daoist friend, you must be one of those Toad Sect Elders' disciples."
"With such skills and demeanor, Mr. Lin Daoist, you seem even more powerful than Liu Chengyan, the foremost True Inheritor of the contemporary Toad Sect."
While the gathering was consoling Tao Qian,
he courteously reciprocated while slipping into his own quandary.
At that moment, he was still holding the Toad God Tile, which trembling slightly, conveyed a premonition to him.
"What? Just by striking myself, I could be granted the powerful divine powers of the Toad Sect?"
Tao Qian instantly understood the premonition, then fell silent.
He clenched the tile, itching to act.
In a haze, he seemed to see a mysterious gaze from somewhere in the Outer Realm, encouraging him, tempting him to strike himself.
"Strike! Just once, and instantly reap great benefits, an uncommon return on investment."
"Though there will be pain, there will be no injuries, you can gain divine powers and exotic treasures."
"It's too good a deal."
"Ptui, who do they think I, Master Tao, am? I won't strike."
After cursing sotto voce, Tao Qian exerted an immense amount of willpower, and his distinctive soul, to very difficultly turn down the request.
Almost at that very moment, the tile ceased trembling, and that indescribable gaze was withdrawn.
But what shocked everyone present at Hidden Dragon Mountain, overturning their prior views, was a miraculous spectacle which suddenly occurred:
Everyone saw over Lin Runiu's head a void suddenly and violently rip open.
From within it came incessant "quack quack quack" sounds, immediately followed by an incredibly dense surge of auspicious golden light.
Once this golden light entered the world, it instantly transformed into numerous Pure Gold Ingots, each engraved with a three-legged Golden Toad, and several pearls imbued with a faint aura of blessings.
With a massive clattering sound, like a waterfall, like a small mountain, they buried Lin Runiu.
Including strong characters like the Green Emperor, Ziyang, and Chen Xiyi.
Were stunned by this abrupt scene for a moment.
As the crowd was filled withboth shock and doubt, many cultivators who were quite knowledgeable about the Nine Toad Sect began to exclaim and solve the puzzle.
"There's a rumor that if a disciple of the Toad Sect gains favor with the Outer Realm Toad God, they might occasionally be granted divine powers or Golden Ingots."
"I thought it was merely a fictitious tale, but now, it clearly appears to be true."
"There's no doubt about Mr. Lin Daoist's identity now, he must be a secret disciple of an elder of the Nine Toad Sect, and moreover, he has caught the eye of the Outer Realm Toad God, truly envy-worthy."
"These treasures and money beads might seem useless to a high-level cultivator like Mr. Lin Daoist, but little by little, they add up to a considerable stash of cultivation resources."
"No wonder it's said in the Cultivation World that disciples of the Toad Sect are never short of money, today's event proves it so."
"Indeed, but don't be mistaken, I know that there are not many in the Toad Sect as wealthy as Daoist Lin."
The discussions in front of Ancestor Dragon Hall grew several degrees more intense than earlier.
It was easy to understand, Tao Qian's use of the Wa Dang to conclude the battle earlier was hardly spectacular.
Unlike now, where everyone present, floored by the brilliance of the Pure Gold Ingots and Blessing Pearls, nearly had their eyes dazzled.
Because of the iron principle that "every aspect of cultivation carries a price," the many cultivators in the cultivation realm, who belong to numerous factions, have a common trait—most have some peculiar habits, or put another way, deficits.
The most frequent among these is being poor.
Now, seeing Tao Qian suddenly gifted with a mountainous, waterfall-like array of Gold Ingots, their eyes became slightly red. Simultaneously, no one doubted Lin Runiu's background any longer.
Although the Toad Sect is considered part of heresy and heterodoxy, its reputation is better than some of the Righteous Sects, and moreover, he had also gained the favor of the Outer Realm Toad God and recognition from the Ancestor God Treasure. No one thought him to be a spy from the Demon Sect or Alchemist anymore.
But Tao Qian who was nearly buried by the Golden Ingot Pearls was now sinking into regret.
Within Treasure Mountain, right in front of him, he could see only the phantasmagoria visible to him, slowly dissipating.
They were either Divine Passage Skills or exotic treasures from the Outer Realm.
Tao Qian did not have time to take a closer look, for just the first item alone made his eyes turn red.
That item seemed to be a copper coin with wings on either side, and its surface engraved with mysterious inscriptions, clearly a rarer treasure than the Toad God Tile.
With all the phantoms gone, Tao Qian reluctantly perceived some information about that treasure.
He regretted even more.
Holding the Toad God Tile, he muttered silently:
"If I strike myself now, could I get the treasure?"
Having said that, the tile did not move.
Undoubtedly, the answer was no.
Tao Qian realized, he had inadvertently missed an opportunity.