A faint light barrier enveloped the bookshelf, appearing delicate yet radiating a surprisingly strong energy. "Hm?" With careful scrutiny beneath the glow, Xiao Yan suddenly murmured softly. He noticed that the barrier itself seemed to subtly shimmer with traces of spatial imprints, barely perceptible. "This barrier must have been set by the Elder Demon, imbued with some spatial power. Though not particularly strong, if forcibly destroyed, it might cause damage to the items within." Su Qian, observing the same subtle qualities, furrowed his brow and remarked. Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then lightly flicked his finger, sending a strand of emerald flame to gently touch the light barrier. "Shh…shh…" As the flame made contact, the luminous barrier immediately began to ripple, waves spreading out from the point of contact. Suddenly, the space at the barrier's surface started to warp and distort. Seeing this, Xiao Yan furrowed his brow, and the flame on his fingers gradually faded. Though the barrier appeared relatively weak, if it were truly to be forcibly shattered, the energy contained within would suddenly surge and explode—though the force might not be overwhelming, it would certainly destroy any scrolls within. Upon observing Xiao Yan's decision to withdraw, Su Qian and the other two realized that the barrier was far more resilient than they had anticipated, and thus all of them fell into thoughtful silence. "Indeed, the Earth Demon Elder is no ordinary Seven-Star Dao Sect Master. Even the seal energy he left behind proves to be quite formidable," Su Qian sighed. "There's nothing quite as frustrating as being able to see a treasure but being unable to grasp it." Xiao Yan furrowed his brow, his gaze suddenly shifting to Zǐ Yán, who had just returned, hopping and lively, after successfully handling the beast. A gleam of delight crossed his face—he had almost forgotten that Zǐ Yán seemed naturally immune to these energy seals. Even under the tightly sealed energy barriers of the inner courtyard, she had effortlessly penetrated them. "Hmph. What do you want now?" Zǐ Yán immediately grew alert upon seeing Xiao Yan's cheerful expression, and scoffed. "Take out whatever's inside. I'll return all the herbs you left with me last time, and I'll refine them all into the flavors you like..." Xiao Yan smiled gently. At this, the luminous, sapphire-like eyes of Zǐ Yán sparkled. She composed herself, then walked over to the bookshelf, glanced at the energy shield outside, and added with a touch of hesitation, "Don't make me regret it—don't be a stickler!" Xiao Yan nodded, smiling. Seeing this, Zi Yan finally turned around, extending her small hand straight toward the light shield. Amidst the astonished gazes of Xiao Yan and the others, she effortlessly reached into the bookshelf and retrieved four wooden boxes one after another. "Indeed impressive—this girl possesses not only innate strength but also a special sensitivity to rare herbs and medicinal materials of the natural world. Now, she's also immune to these energy seals..." Observing the four wooden boxes effortlessly extracted by Zi Yan, Su Qian couldn't help but shake his head, his tone filled with wonder. Xiao Yan nodded in deep agreement, then took the four slightly ancient wooden boxes from Zi Yan's proud hands and opened them one by one. Inside the first box were two silver scrolls. The material of these scrolls was quite unusual, resembling an exotic crystalline substance. Fine streaks of electric light, like silver serpents, glided smoothly across their surfaces. Seeing the scroll's impressive appearance, Xiao Yan's eyes flashed with surprise as he carefully extracted and slowly unfurled it. "Burning Thunder Technique, Mid-Intermediate Earth Rank, Lightning Attribute cultivation method..." As he read the description on the scroll, the astonishment in his eyes deepened even further. Lightning Attribute cultivation methods were already relatively rare, especially at this high level—something quite hard to find. Yet here, he had managed to encounter one. "Brother, this is truly a valuable find!" He smiled at Xiao Li and casually tossed the scroll to him. As a Fire Attribute cultivator, this Lightning Attribute method offered him little benefit. Upon receiving the scroll, Xiao Li immediately unfurled it and his face lit up with excitement, his voice filled with enthusiasm. "It's a Mid-Intermediate Earth Rank Lightning Attribute technique! Hah, looks like we haven't come all this way in vain." After all these years of residing in the Black Corner Region, he naturally knew that a cultivation technique of this caliber, especially one with Thunder属性, would generate significant excitement if presented for auction. Of course, he wouldn't be foolish enough to auction off the "Rushing Thunder Technique"—he himself already possessed Thunder属性. With this technique, he could very likely reach the Battle Emperor level within a short span. Observing the excited expression of Xiao Li, Xiao Yan smiled and, from the wooden box, extracted another silver scroll. He glanced at it briefly, then chuckled lightly. "The 'Surprise Awakening Thunder Technique,' a mid-tier Earth-level combat skill, perfectly complements the 'Rushing Thunder Technique.' Hah! It seems Brother Er has a solid haul today..." Saying this, Xiao Yan tossed the scroll toward Xiao Li, who quickly and carefully caught it, then couldn't help but laugh out loud again. "It seems this Earth Demon elder has also been reluctant to put this technique up for auction, hence why it's been kept here..." Su Qian glanced at Xiao Li, who was laughing heartily, and smiled in return. Xiao Li nodded with a smile, then opened another wooden box, revealing a crimson scroll that looked somewhat familiar. "The Flame-Refining Technique?" At sight of the scroll, Xiao Li was momentarily stunned, exclaiming aloud, then his expression turned to mild frustration—since he had already received the Flame-Refining Technique from the three Fangyan disciples years ago, though he had yet to begin practicing it. Now, here it was again, appearing once more. He picked up the scroll and carefully unfurled it. The three bold red characters—Flame-Refining Technique—were clearly visible, which only deepened his sense of resignation. It seemed this technique simply wasn't of much use after all. "Hmm?" As Xuanyin was about to casually take it, the hand slowly unrolling the scroll suddenly stopped, and his gaze paused at the three characters "Nong Yan Ju," where a particularly vivid red character stood out. "True!" "True? Nong Yan Ju, true?" Staring at that character, Xuanyin was momentarily stunned, his brows gradually furrowing. Could it be that the Nong Yan Ju he had received from the three dialect speakers was, after all, a fake? With his brows still furrowed, Xuanyin quickly unfolded the scroll completely and began to read the text carefully. "This refined version of the Flame Technique, which I've painstakingly perfected over many years, represents a significant advancement. While the earlier technique was strong, it required at least three practitioners to coalesce a 'pseudo-unique flame,' and each such achievement came at a considerable cost. This refined version, however, allows a single practitioner to successfully form a 'pseudo-unique flame' with far greater power than before, and the post-achievement complications have been greatly reduced. Although the refinement process has become more intricate, these nuances are now largely negligible compared to the benefits gained." If that's the case...then the destruction of the Flame Lotus will no longer be bound by that single limitation—this will be of great assistance to me as I journey through Zhongzhou. Indeed, this Earth Demon old man has truly been of immense help to me." At this thought, a faint smile of satisfaction spread across Xiao Yan's face. Today's visit, after all, had certainly not been in vain. Seeing Xiao Yan's pleased expression, Su Qian and the others smiled in return, then turned their gaze toward the final two ancient wooden boxes. Noticing their attention, Xiao Yan chuckled and opened both boxes simultaneously. Upon opening them, two items were revealed: first, a round, fist-sized crimson orb, and second, a plain bamboo scroll of gray-brown hue. The group's eyes immediately converged on the crimson orb, as they could clearly sense a powerful and turbulent flow of fiery energy contained within. "This...is a Magmatic Core?" Xiao Yan stared intently at this crimson orb, somewhat uncertain, saying, "Such a high-grade magical core—I've never seen one before." Su Qian gently stroked his beard, his eyes flashing with surprise, remarking, "Indeed, it's a magical core—quite high in rank, and I suspect it's even one that has taken on a humanoid form, a high-tier beast. Otherwise, it wouldn't possess such refined quality and energy." "Based on my estimation, this should be a seventh-stage fire-type magical core. I didn't expect the Earth Dragon Elder to have such a collection." Seventh-stage beasts are equivalent to the Dao Sect level. Beasts of this caliber possess magical cores of immense value, and their intelligence is no longer inferior to that of humans. Should they be cornered to the point of absolute desperation, even at the cost of self-sacrifice by exploding their core, they would still ensure the enemy's failure. For this reason, such high-grade magical cores are rarely obtained. Xiao Yan also nodded, his eyes filled with admiration lingering on the crimson orb for a moment before shifting to another seemingly ordinary bamboo scroll. The scroll appeared gray-brown, its material looking quite ordinary at first glance. Yet Xiao Yan knew well that anything collected by the Earth Demon Old Ghost could never be ordinary. Gently untying the fine thread securing the scroll, he carefully unfolded it. As his eyes swept across it, a bold, blood-streaked inscription radiated a sense of fierce intensity, causing his heart to leap with surprise.