Steady Cultivation: Starting With the Perk “Work Hard, Rest Hard” Chapter 535: The Allure of Chaos Jade

The Blood Moon Dao Lord was keenly aware of the various eyes fixed upon him from the surrounding crowd.

He remained unbothered, however. This was a calculated move, a deliberate setting of a precedent. As long as this standard was established without any significant errors, Miluo—or rather, the Seven Stars Dao Court—would find no reason to target the Blood Moon Dao Court. It was a matter of aligning oneself; offending a few others was a small price to pay.

Su Yuan wore a gentle smile on his face. "The Blood Moon Dao Lord is far too courteous. I am truly delighted by such a magnificent gift."

He then paused, adopting a contemplative expression as he muttered, "Since that is the case, this Sovereign shouldn't be overly miserly in return."

With a effortless flick of his wrist, a jade box materialized out of thin air within the great hall, hovering gracefully.

The box was as white as freshly fallen snow, its exterior inscribed with intricate Dao Patterns that formed an insulation field, sealing the precious contents within. It also featured several Dao Patterns dedicated to temporal stasis and spatial containment to ensure the item remained perfectly preserved.

The vessel drifted slowly toward the Blood Moon Dao Venerable, who looked on with visible surprise.

"This is..."

He could not resist glancing at Su Yuan for confirmation.

"Go ahead and open it," Su Yuan instructed calmly.

Everyone in the hall watched the jade box with bated breath, curiosity getting the better of them. Any gift bestowed by Su Yuan, a cultivator at the quasi-Dominator level, was bound to be extraordinary.

The Blood Moon Dao Lord steadying his racing heart, opened the lid under the scrutiny of the entire assembly.

A mere crack in the seal was enough to make his hand tremble.

Cultivators with a high affinity for auras, and those who recognized the contents, visibly lost their composure as their expressions shifted dramatically.

This reaction only served to heighten the intrigue of the onlookers.

The lid was fully removed, revealing one hundred and fifty jade slivers perfectly aligned inside.

To the untrained eye, these slivers looked unremarkable. However, when the Dao Venerable-level powerhouses caught sight of them, they were gripped by an intense craving, as if presented with the most exquisite delicacy in the world.

"Chaos Jade Marrow!"

Someone shouted the name before quickly clamping their hands over their mouth, terrified of having committed a faux pas before the Seven Stars Dao Lord.

Even so, the revelation caused the realization to wash over the rest of the hall.

Gu Qingzhu felt a wave of curiosity as he pondered, "So this is the Chaos Jade Marrow? The fabled, fundamental essence of Chaos, rumored to have incredible utility. A single piece can give a typical Dao Yan Realm cultivator a ninety percent chance of ascending to the Dao Venerable level! Even those at the Dao Venerable stage can use it to overcome cultivation bottlenecks or unleash a hundredfold increase in power during combat. Its potential is simply too vast to quantify!"

The Blood Moon Dao Lord was overcome with excitement. Having utilized Chaos Jade Marrow in the past, he understood its scarcity all too well. Throughout his entire life, he had only ever managed to scrape together twelve pieces.

And here, in this single box, were one hundred and fifty pieces. The sheer scale of this gain was incomprehensible.

He immediately offered a deep, respectful bow toward Su Yuan. "Thank you for your immense generosity, Seven Stars Dao Lord!"

Su Yuan watched him with a composed gaze before replying, "I intend to incorporate the Blood Moon Dao Court as a subsidiary entity, which grants you the official right to exchange for more Chaos Jade Marrow. You may acquire one piece for the price of one hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals!"

The Blood Moon Dao Lord's eyes shone with intensity. A subsidiary court? He cared little for the status. It was the exclusive right to purchase Chaos Jade Marrow that truly swayed him.

In the past, he had spent lifetimes wandering hazardous ruins and forbidden lands, barely managing to secure his measly hoard of twelve. To be able to acquire them steadily for a fixed price of one hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals was a bargain beyond his wildest dreams.

"I accept!" the Blood Moon Dao Lord declared without a moment's hesitation. "The Blood Moon Dao Court is honored to become a subsidiary of the Seven Stars Dao Court!"

Su Li immediately looked toward the heavens, watching as the Fortune of the Seven Stars Dao Court surged and expanded with sudden, explosive growth.

Under the influence of the Fortune Dao Principle, this change became visible to all. Strands of Fortune Power cascaded down to bless every member of the Seven Stars Dao Court. Those present felt an immediate shift; their grasp on Dao Principles had become noticeably more fluid.

The feedback was most potent for Su Yuan himself. Massive streams of Fortune Power poured into him, where he refined them into Source Power, ultimately forging them into more Chaos Jade Marrow.

This initial feedback provided a massive return. As the Sovereign of the Dao Court, he stood to benefit the most.

Following this first round of processing, fifty thousand pieces of Chaos Jade Marrow were successfully condensed.

And this was merely the result of the first cycle; in the future, he would continuously siphon Fortune from the Blood Moon Dao Court to fuel further production. The one hundred and fifty pieces he had given away had already been recouped many times over.

Moreover, the exchange rate he set was quite steep. It took one hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals to produce ten thousand pieces of Chaos Jade Marrow, yet he only sold them one at a time. If anyone discovered his massive profit margins, he would surely be labeled a profiteer.

The Blood Moon Dao Lord felt a significant portion of his own Fortune flowing away, but to his surprise, he soon felt Fortune flowing back from the Seven Stars Dao Court. His total Fortune had not diminished; it had actually grown, reaching a level higher than his previous peak.

The arrangement was proving to be mutually beneficial. Aside from changing his formal title, there were no real drawbacks.

As the saying goes, it is best to shelter under a sturdy tree, and Su Yuan was undoubtedly the sturdiest tree around.

With the Blood Moon Dao Lord having set the standard, Su Yuan shifted his gaze to the second envoy.

The visitor was an Elder representing the True Knowledge Dao Court. While he possessed the strength of sixteenth-order fused Dao Principles, he lacked the status of a Dao Lord.

"Please offer your forgiveness, Seven Stars Dao Lord. Our True Knowledge Dao Lord is currently in deep seclusion and could not attend in person. I have been sent to convey our sincere congratulations."

Su Yuan scrutinized him coolly.

The Elder grew visibly nervous, his heart fluttering with mounting dread.

Mustering his courage, he presented his list of offerings.

Nangong Xianweng took the list and declared, "The True Knowledge Dao Court presents three gifts: one sixteenth-order fused Dao Treasure, a large Mineral Vein containing seven hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals, and an additional sum of one hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals!"

The discrepancy in value was immediately apparent.

The total value amounted to roughly nine hundred trillion trillion Dao Yan Crystals. While this was a respectable sum, it was drastically less than what the Blood Moon Dao Court had provided.

Su Yuan gave an indifferent nod before waving his hand.

A jade box floated into the Elder's waiting hands.

"The True Knowledge Dao Court is quite thoughtful. Please accept this return gift."

The box snapped open to reveal ten pieces of Chaos Jade Marrow.

The Elder's hands shook as he took the box. This was enough to satisfy his own Dao Lord, but Su Yuan remained silent on the prospect of making them a subsidiary court. It was at this moment that the Elder realized just how precarious their position had become.

His manifestation had already reached out to the True Knowledge Dao Lord, begging him to arrive without delay.