Lu Yin's eyes flashed. Things could only move in the opposite direction when pushed to the extreme. Indeed, it was not that easy to die, but he had also wondered if Ku Zu was still alive.
Lu Yin could not imagine how the Withered Ancestor had died, especially since he had broken through the Heaven and Earth Furnace and defeated the fusion of Progenitor Chen's eight avatars. He was one of the Nine Mountains and Eight Seas, so it was hard to imagine what kind of power he had inherited.
The next day, Lu Yin met with Hui Zhi alone.
Although Hui Kong was an elder of the Hui family, there were some things that Lu Yin did not want to talk to him about. An elder was different from the family head, and not every family was like the Xia family. Xia Ji was too overbearing, and Hui Kong was clearly not that kind of person.
"Alliance Head Lu, if you have anything to say to the Hui family, you can bring it up to Elder Hui Kong. He has full authority to decide," Hui Zhi said politely as he poured Lu Yin a cup of tea.
Lu Yin shook his head. "I'm clear about my personal matters. My relationship with my brother is private, and it has nothing to do with the Hui family."
Hui Zhi smiled. "Then, what does Alliance Head Lu want to say to the Hui family?"
Lu Yin picked up his teacup. "The taste of a fake root of wisdom is indeed different from a real root of wisdom."
Hui Zhi was helpless. "I'm sorry, Alliance Head Lu, but I can't bring out a real root of wisdom to entertain you. If I did, Elder Hui Kong would not have been stingy."
"I know." Lu Yin put down his teacup. "But does the Hui family really not have a root of wisdom?"
Hui Zhi paused in the middle of picking up his teacup, but then he casually took a sip. "No."
"I've heard Brother Hui Kong mention it before. When he left the Hui family, the Hui family still had the Root of Wisdom. Many years ago, when I first heard of the Root of Wisdom, someone told me that the Hui family should have preserved the true Root of Wisdom. How could the dignified Hui family, the successor of Ancestor Hui, not have the Root of Wisdom?"
Hui Zhi laughed and looked at Lu Yin. "Alliance Head Lu, are you suspecting me or Elder Hui Kong?"
"My brother definitely doesn't know, or he would have given it to me immediately."
Hui Zhi's face twitched. "So my family doesn't have a root of wisdom."
Lu Yin sighed. "I'm relieved to hear that. You're worried that Brother Hui Kong would give it to me directly, so the real root of wisdom doesn't exist."
Hui Zhi did not say anything, but he did not deny it either.
No one could blame him. Hui Kong was a generous person, and he really could have just given it to Lu Yin. To the Hui family, this would be a huge loss, but he could not openly object, so he could only do this.
"Have you ever drunk the real Wisdom Root Tea?" Lu Yin asked.
Hui Zhi's eyes flashed with longing, but he shook his head and sighed. "Of course not."
"I'll make a deal with the clan head. I've heard that planting a true Wisdom Root requires Teardrop Dust, and I just happen to have it," Lu Yin said indifferently as he rubbed his teacup.
Hui Zhi was shocked and looked at Lu Yin in disbelief, "What did you say?
Do you have Teardrop Dust? "
Lu Yin took out the upgraded Teardust from his cosmic ring.
He did not know whether the upgraded Tear Dust was the Mother Tear Dust or not, but it was definitely not an ordinary Tear Dust.
Hui Zhi's eyes widened when he saw the Tear Dust that looked like jewels that Lu Yin had taken out. Every grain seemed to be exquisitely crafted, and they were all perfectly round. Piled together, they looked beautiful and dazzling. "That's right, this is Tear Dust, but …"
Lu Yin raised an eyebrow.
Was there a problem?
"But, how can there be so many?" Hui Zhi was in disbelief, as if he had seen a ghost. He stared at Lu Yin in a daze.
"Ancestor Hui, I don't know how little Teardrop Dust there is, but regardless of whether it's records or species analysis, it's impossible to produce so many Teardrop Dust at once."
Lu Yin answered, "A predecessor collected it, and I just happened to obtain it."
This was the only explanation.
Hui Zhi looked at Lu Yin deeply as he recalled everything that had happened to him.
It was rumored that when the Innerverse and Outerverse had been separated, Lu Yin had faced the pressure of an Enlighter, but he had taken out one external item after another to turn the tables. Whether it was external items, power vessels, or natural treasures that could help one avoid danger, he had been able to obtain an endless supply of them. Many people had guessed that he had obtained a complete inheritance from some powerful ancient power.
However, that was the Outerverse, so what kind of powerful ancient inheritance could there be in that place?
Because of this, the various powers of the universe had sent people into the Great Eastern Alliance to investigate the truth, but their efforts had all been in vain. However, according to Hui Zhi's analysis, it was unlikely that there was an ancient inheritance hidden in the Outerverse. Instead, it was more likely that there was a great world.
No matter where Lu Yin went, he would have external items that could help him deal with powerful enemies. All sorts of rare treasures had appeared, and he had even been able to escape from Xia Ji's attack. Escaping from a Half-Progenitor was extremely difficult and close to impossible, but Lu Yin had still managed to do it. There was only one explanation for this, and that was that he could carry everything that he had obtained with him.
It was impossible for him to have a cosmic ring, and he had only obtained Mount Supreme after the Sovereign Tournament, which was also impossible. The only possibility was that he had obtained a complete inheritance from an incomparably powerful great world. If he wanted to obtain benefits from that great world, then it was very likely that it had something to do with star essence.
It did not make sense for such a talented cultivator to view wealth as his life.
This was the Hui family's guess about Lu Yin.
However, the Hui family had never publicly announced this guess.
Of course, it might not be just the Hui family, as other powers had their own guesses as well. However, they were unable to verify them, as they no longer had the opportunity to do so.
Lu Yin had climbed too quickly and too high, to the point where even a Half-Progenitor would find it difficult to deal with him.
"Alliance Master Lu, how do you wish to trade?" Hui Zhi asked Lu Yin, suppressing his desire for the Teardrop Dust.
No matter how calm Hui Zhi appeared, Lu Yin could sense his desire. To the Hui family, the value of the Teardrop Dust was comparable to a secret technique. No, it was even more precious than a secret technique. With the Teardrop Dust, they would have the possibility of planting a true root of wisdom, which would be a blessing for generations to come. With a true root of wisdom, the Hui family's status would be upended, and the entire universe would have to curry favor with them.
A little bit of Teardrop Dust would have limitless possibilities for the Hui family.
Lu Yin's lips curled up. "I want to know what the Hui family can give me."
Hui Zhi and Lu Yin exchanged glances. This young man was not just a cultivator, but also someone who stood at the peak of the universe. The Hui family might not be able to give him what he wanted.
"Alliance Master Lu, what exactly do you want?
A true root of wisdom? "Hui Zhi asked.
Lu Yin replied, "This is a necessary condition. Three roots of wisdom can be exchanged for half of the Teardrop Dust here."
"Three roots?
Alliance Master Lu, you're overthinking things. If the Hui family had three roots of wisdom, why would we hide it?
Based on the relationship between Elder Hui Kong and you, what's the big deal about giving you one root? "Hui Zhi exaggerated.
Lu Yin pursed his lips and began to play the emotional card. "There's no need for that, Patriarch. I'll explain things to Brother Hui Kong. If your family truly respects him, then you won't hide the fact that you have a root of wisdom. You can lie to him, but I won't. Once our trade is over, I'll explain everything to him. But I can't say anything right now, as I won't make things difficult for my brother."
Hui Zhi raised his brows. "No matter what, three roots is too much. Alliance Master Lu, let me tell you clearly.
The Hui family doesn't have three roots of wisdom, and even if they did, it would only be enough to exchange for half of the Teardrop Dust?
Don't you think that's too much? "
Lu Yin smiled. "Patriarch, you said that there's a lot here, and it's even comparable to the amount of Teardrop Dust that Ancestor Hui obtained. How many roots of wisdom did Ancestor Hui leave behind?
Ten? Twenty?
Or a hundred?
I can imagine that this amount of Teardrop Dust is enough to plant many roots of wisdom. "
"I'm saying that it's impossible to obtain so much Teardrop Dust in one go. That's not something that a cultivator can control. Based on Ancestor Hui's abilities, he could have obtained it twice, thrice, or even countless times. Ancestor Hui used countless Teardrop Dust to plant the roots of wisdom," Hui Zhi retorted. This brat was as cunning as a fox, and he had been able to find a flaw in his words.
Lu Yin sneered. "Patriarch, there's no need to tell me this. I'm certain of your reaction. There's quite a lot of Teardrop Dust, so it's up to you whether you want to trade or not. If you're unwilling, then forget it."
"Alliance Master Lu, Teardrop Dust is useless to you. Do you know how to plant a root of wisdom?" Hui Zhi asked in a low voice.
Lu Yin was pleased. "Brother Hui Kong will teach me."
Hui Zhi was speechless. That old man really knew how to teach, and he even treated this brat like his own son.
"Alliance Master Lu, three roots of wisdom is too much. My Hui family really doesn't have any. How about this, one root. I can tell you that aside from my family in the Fifth Mainland, no other place has this root of wisdom, including the Hall of Honor."
Lu Yin raised a brow. "Patriarch, are you trying to use this root of wisdom to threaten me?"
"Didn't Alliance Master Lu use Teardrop Dust to threaten me as well?" Hui Zhi countered.
The two fell silent for a moment.
Not long after, Lu Yin looked up and stared at Hui Zhi. "For Brother Hui Kong's sake, two roots of wisdom and twenty billion star essence."
Hui Zhi almost spat out a mouthful of tea in Lu Yin's face. Twenty billion star essence was a rather exaggerated number, and the Hui family could afford it. However, Lu Yin's current conditions were equivalent to using twenty billion star essence to buy a root of wisdom. Was it worth it?
No one could say for sure.
To an ordinary cultivator, it was not worth it at all. Forget twenty billion, even two hundred million star essence was not worth it. The root of wisdom was not a secret technique, and it could only be used to brew tea, and only three sips at that. What it could help a cultivator to comprehend would depend entirely on their own luck. However, to an absolute genius like the Shangqing, it might be worth it. The deeper one's foundation, the greater the value of a root of wisdom.
This was especially true for a Half-Ancestor who needed to comprehend an opportunity to become a Progenitor. Twenty billion star essence was definitely worth it.
But now, Lu Yin was not buying a root of wisdom directly. Instead, he was buying the Teardrop Dust along with two other roots of wisdom. Hui Zhi did not know how to proceed with this transaction.
He paused and looked at the Teardrop Dust. "Alliance Master Lu, Elder Hui Kong has a close relationship with you, so I won't beat around the bush." He paused and then looked at the Teardrop Dust. "There is indeed a lot of this Teardrop Dust. I don't know how you obtained it, but just the Teardrop Dust alone is not enough to plant a root of wisdom. You'll need many other precious materials, and even if you can plant a complete root of wisdom, you'll only be able to plant five baths of it at most. Don't even think about it. With your conditions and the benefits that the Teardrop Dust will bring to the Hui family, we're making a huge loss."
"If Alliance Master Lu insists on this transaction, then I can only see you out." He then took another sip of tea.
Lu Yin did not know whether Hui Zhi was telling the truth or not. The Hui family was smart, and Lu Yin could not see through Hui Zhi.
He did not know how much this Teardrop Dust was worth, but it was indeed useless to him. He urgently needed a root of wisdom to reverse time and use it to reach Progenitor Chen's realm, where he could reverse time and space. This was a huge temptation.