~Woosh

Waving his hand, the shopkeeper formed a thin barrier around his entire stand. With this barrier, any actions that occurred inside would be hard to detect unless one was focusing specifically on them like Yu Zhuwa. The barrier also muffled the sound outside as well, so much that Yin Hui felt like they were the only two on the street.

"For the appraisal to begin I need complete concentration. Now that all the distractions have been taken care of we can start."

Yin Hui gave a short nod. At this point, he firmly believed that the old man was no con. Using his spiritual sense, he discovered that the barrier was composed entirely of true qi. True qi was the core of the Spirit Manifestation realm and every cultivator in it treated each strand as if it were a priceless treasure. Seeing the old man use some so casually without hesitation could only mean that the old man was at least in the Virtue Seeking realm.

The various antiques on display started to glow white with different degrees of intensity.

"If you are fated with one of these treasures, the glow will change from white to red. However, if none of them turn red in the next ten minutes then it means you are not fated for any of them."

Immediately the old man said this, one of the antiques turned red. It was a cracked helmet with a ruby imbedded at the forehead.

The power emanating from the helmet shocked Yin Hui. He felt that if he put it on, even an attack backed up with Tao Kai's full cultivation would not be enough to faze him.

"The appraisal has just started so don't be hasty. There may be a better treasure that has yet to reveal itself."

Just like the shopkeeper said, another treasured turned red shortly after. This time it was a dusty sword that seemed to be made entirely of jade.

"Interesting. You may have some potential after all. The Emerald Saber is one of the higher level treasures here. It's full destructive power is so great that it has tasted the blood of an Immortal Treading cultivator."

~Crack

Suddenly, the table cracked and two more treasures emitted a bright crimson glow. This time the items were an ordinary looking wine gourd and a pendant with a tiger on it.

The old man's eyes widened when he saw the two newest options.

"Earthen Dew Gourd and the Tiger Pendant! Kid! Forget slaying an Immortal Treading cultivator! You have the potential to become one!"

~Bzzt

As the appraisal continued more and more of the old man's antiques would begin to glow red.

"Hmm odd, why are these lower level treasures reacting to you now? It doesn't make sense for them to acknowledge you after the higher ones. Wait what?!"

As the ten minutes neared it's end, the number of treasures which converted increased exponentially. Soon, every single item the old man had in his stall was shining with a luminous bloody red.

The old man collapsed in his chair after the appraisal ended. Sweat dripped down his neck as he stared at the young man before him.

"Y-your..."

Yin Hui stared at the various antiques that had supposedly chosen him. Strangely, despite what the old man said, he personally did not feel a connection to any of them.

"Senior, I don't mean to be rude, but I feel like none of these treasures suit me."

"Don't act smart with me! None of these treasures suit you? Preposterous! Some of these treasures have the potential to turn you into an Earth Immortal!" The old man shouted. His expression was a mix of anger and shock.

Yin Hui clasped his hands and lowered his head.

"I apologise for offending you senior, but that's not what I meant. While I do not feel any particular connection to these treasures, I do sense that there is something here that is fated with me."

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

During the appraisal, Yin Hui noticed that the items with the strongest connection to him were items that had traces of demonic qi. Spreading his sense around the shop, he found one item that was particularly high with demonic qi moreso than all the others.

"Senior, may I have that treasure?"

Yin Hui pointed to a round red jade that was displayed in an obscure position on the top shelf of the stall.

~Click

Almost as if it had been called, the red jade broke through it's container and flew towards Yin Hui. It penetrated through his body as if it were incorporeal and his body began to glow bright red.

Yin Hui felt a rush of warmth as the energies within the jade coursed through him. He felt it overlap with the demonic qi composing his fiend body, masking it in a way that even spiritual sense would not be able to see through it.

[This jade... It has completely masked all traces of demonic energy within me. I feel like even if Su Jia's grandfather used his spiritual sense on me right now, he wouldn't detect anything. How does this old man have a treasure like this?]

When Yin Hui looked back at the old man, he saw that he was now kneeling at his feet.

"Senior? Why are you kneeling?"

"I am merely paying my respects to someone who will become a significant figure in the future someday." The shopkeeper said with deep respect.

"This treasure... It is exactly what I need at the moment. May I have your name? In the future, I will pay you back tenfold for it."

"You may address me as Hei Pu, young master. Please do not worry about payment, it is not my place to accept any from someone like you. The one who possesses the red jade is protected from the eyes of all. Even an Earth Immortal would not be able to see through you. It may not have any uses combat wise, but being untraceable has its uses."

Yin Hui gave a deep bow towards the old man.

"Thank you, sir. I'll try to live up to the expectations you have of me."

"Before you go, may you give me the honor of telling me your name young master?" Hei Pi asked respectfully.

"Yang Xiang!"

"I will remember it."

Smiling, the Hei Pu snapped his fingers and the barrier around them dissipated.

Yu Zhuwa, who saw everything, stood silently with shock on his face. While he did not hear what was said inside, the flashes of red and faint pressure that leaked from the barrier was enough to baffle him.

"Brother Yang Xiang! What happened in there?"

"Your senior brother has just received a massive fortune. We can now focus all our efforts on joining the Striking Thunder Sect."

Yin Hui gave one last respectful bow to Hei Pu before walking away with Yu Zhuwa.

As soon as they left, a wide grin appeared on Hei Pu's face. All the antiques around him blurred and turned into identical white spheres.

[One signifies potential. Five represents a trace. The more spheres that activate, the more pure the individual. This boy triggered all of them and was even selected by the the red jade!]

[Yang Xiang... To think I would find the one the lord was looking for during a mere scouting. However, he has yet to mature. Right now, he is far too weak to be off any use to his lordship. Regardless, I must report this to him as soon as possible!]

With all the commotion that was happening around the market district, no one noticed Hei Pu and his stall melding away into the shadows.

[Grow and become strong young master. Once you are ready, you shall be presented before the lord. The Striking Thunder Sect is not where your true destiny lies.]

"Interesting... So it seems I have a little mole in my city."

Just as Hei Pu was about to completely fade away, a telepathic message entered his mind. This message was sent using spiritual sense, and whoever was sending it was so powerful that their voice alone paralyzed his whole body.

"So I assume you witnessed everything then. Just so you know, I am indeed one of the Hei Pu. With your cultivation, surely you are someone who knows the consequences of killing one."

"Of course I am aware. However, who said I was going to kill you?"

"Gak..." Suddenly, Hei Pu felt his head begin to ache. The aching intensified quickly until it felt like a thousand swords were penetrating it. He then immediately set up the same barrier he used during the appraisal before shrieking in agony over the pain.

"While I may not be able to kill you, I can still reset your progress back by erasing all your recent memories." The voice said cooly.

"Heh heh heh... I know who you are now. Unfortunately, even you won't be able to touch a single memory contained within this head of mine. That is because I have the protection of my master!"

Both of Hei Pu's eyes turned red and a red cross appeared on his forehead. An enormous pressure erupted from his body that repelled and nearly dispersed the spiritual sense that was trying to erase his memory. Afterwards, his body dissolved into multiple black sprites that dove into nearest shadow, vanishing completely.

"He really is worthy of being the ruler of the strongest province. Even if I came here personally, I would need to spend some effort trying to release the spell protecting that Hei Pu's mind. Now that he is gone, what should I do with the boy they are so interested in?"

The strand of spiritual sense flew into the sky and focused on the strolling Yin Hui and Yu Zhuwa.

"Clearly this boy has some value to the Hei Pu and their lord, but in what way? Is there something in his body that they need? I didn't take the time to analyze the boy before that red jade entered his body so I can no longer find out. He wants to join the Striking Thunder Sect so I see no reason to interfere now. If he is capable and makes it pass the entrance exam, I will have plenty of time to question him then."

After watching the two for a few more minutes, the strand of spiritual sense faded away like a dying flame.