A month later, the matter of Lu Hua and Jin Duo lining their own pockets finally reached a conclusion.

Both Lu Hua and Jin Duo were expelled from the Treasure Pavilion.

Obviously, dealing with Lu Hua and Jin Duo also involved some open and covert struggles.

For Mo Rong, this result was not a loss at all; both sides lost an ordinary Artifact Evaluator, but she gained the trust of the Pavilion Master.

Meanwhile, the news Li An had been quietly waiting for was finally announced—

Li An was officially appointed as an Artifact Evaluator, replacing Lu Hua's original position!

Everyone in the treasury was very surprised, and many congratulated Li An.

But he remained very calm.

Since he arrived at Celestial Yang City, decided to enter the Treasure Pavilion, to this day, it took a full twenty-two years!

He was already one hundred and twelve years old.

Spending twenty years laying the groundwork just for one position—it's something difficult to believe when said aloud.

But in Li An's view, for the Golden Core Dao, no amount of effort or hardship was in vain.

All of this was within his expectations.

Entering the bright and clean artifact evaluation room, sitting in a chair made of spiritual wool, a servant came over to brew tea for him, Li An felt slightly dazed, as Gao Feng's face from years ago seemed to appear before him.

"Finally, it can begin..."

Taking the seat of an Artifact Evaluator, the resources and power he controlled finally supported the possibility of realizing his dream.

...

Next, Li An began conducting the artifact evaluation business as usual.

His current level was unrivaled among the ordinary Artifact Evaluators in the entire Treasure Pavilion, yet he didn't show it and kept a modest demeanor.

Simultaneously, he also began to restrain his ambitions, trying not to participate or take sides in the struggle between Mo Rong and Xu Changkong, but not leading the charge.

For him, the stage of fighting was over.

Before, there were only so many positions for Artifact Evaluators, so competition was inevitable; thus, Li An had to be scheming, fighting like palace intrigues.

Struggle and endurance are two sides of the same coin; enduring is also a form of competing, and if endurance fails, then attack with full force.

After he left, indeed, by using his influence, he recommended Wang Zi to be the steward of the treasury, but soon, Wang Zi was also replaced. It was said that the Pavilion Master personally arranged someone, with Wang Zi taking on another steward position.

After all, through this incident, the higher-ups in the pavilion had become aware of the issues.

For Wang Zi, at the steward level, it's the same anywhere. Perhaps, being away from such a core position as the treasury means a slightly easier life.

...

In the blink of an eye, two years passed.

On this day,

"Master Zuo, Master Luo has sent over a Spirit Medicine for you to appraise!"

A servant led a guest inside.

Now within the Treasure Pavilion, the main people responsible for Spirit Medicine appraisal were just two: Li An and Luo Ming.

Over two years, Li An intentionally revealed his interest and expertise in poisons, so whenever there was a complex poisonous Spirit Medicine, Luo Ming simply handed it over to Li An without further inquiry.

This guest was a middle-aged man, somewhat nervous, handing over a box to Li An: "The Spiritual Qi of this Spirit Medicine is quite rich; in my view, it should not be less than a Second Grade Spirit Medicine, Master, you must have a good look..."

Li An glanced at the box, his heart stirring slightly.

This was a jade grass with intermingled black and white colors.

A large amount of Spiritual Qi intertwined with a large amount of poison…

What excited Li An was that this was exactly the "Poison of the Dao" he had been searching for.

This was the first he encountered since he became an Artifact Evaluator!

He showed no change in expression, stating: "In terms of spirituality and medicinal properties, this certainly counts as a Second Grade Spirit Medicine."

"But as you can see, this medicine contains a large amount of toxicity!"

"To utilize its medicinal properties, the poison must be removed first, but detoxification would cause the loss of medicinal properties, and the cost is too high…"

He shook his head: "If you want to sell it directly to us, we can only purchase it for three hundred Spirit Stones, as such things do not have the qualifications to enter the auction."

He was not making it sound worse than it was; indeed, there was no market for such things, and according to the rules of the Treasure Pavilion, it indeed did not qualify for auction.

In fact, the offer price of three hundred Spirit Stones was already exceptionally generous, within Treasure Pavilion's standards at the top of the scale.

"Ah?"

The guest's face was full of disappointment!

"However, I happen to know the owner of Yun Dao Inn, who really likes these things, and he might offer you a higher price…" Li An mentioned casually.

Upon hearing this, the guest was overjoyed, "Great, great, thank you, Master!"

He promptly stood up and left.

Li An then massaged his temple, saying, "Xiao Wu, make a proper record."

"I'm leaving now."

His servant Xiao Wu replied, "Got it!"

Over the years, Li An had been collecting poisons, which was not a secret within the Treasure Pavilion.

Everyone knew that he was likely cultivating some Poison Skill, hence his deep research into poisons.

——This was information Li An deliberately crafted and disclosed!

Moreover, he also had the owner of Yun Dao Tea House, Cai Chao, act as a middleman, introducing some poisons to find Cai Chao and ultimately pocketing them himself.

No issues had ever arisen because his actions were completely in accordance with regulations!

Every poison he handled was meticulously documented, with crystal illusions left, and valued strictly according to pavilion standards — only for the ones he was very interested in did he tell guests that Cai Chao could offer sky-high purchase prices.

Of course, for those of excellent quality and special function poisons, he never meddled and regularly brought them into the pavilion.

Thus, he remained very stable, and no one could make an issue of this matter.

Even if someone wanted to, they couldn't!

And, Li An did this very infrequently, collecting only nine Spirit Medicines this way over two years.

To cover his true purpose and obscure his intent, those nine poisons were merely ordinary poisons, and over time, no one paid attention to this hobby of his.

...

The carriage he rode stopped in front of Wuyang Street.

Since becoming an Artifact Evaluator, he also owned a house with a small private courtyard here.

"Master, Boss Cai is waiting for you in the study..."

The only gatekeeper in the house, "Old Song," courteously spoke.

Old Song was already ninety, at the Qi Cultivation Seventh Layer, selectively chosen by Li An, as the house needed servants, after all.

"Hmm,"

Entering the study, Cai Chao was waiting respectfully, "Master Zuo, here's the Spirit Medicine you wanted..."

Cai Chao handed over the box.

His emotions were rather complicated, reminiscing about decades ago when Li An drank tea and read books at Yun Dao Tea House; though a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he lived in poverty and solitude, yet now, he became a distinguished figure that even Cai Chao had to treat with respect…

Of course, this was merely a sentiment, and to him, it was a favorable development.

After Song Mingzhang's death, being able to win over Li An meant he still had some backing!

Li An accepted the box and nodded slightly, "Thank you, Boss Cai,"

"By the way, the Alchemist you helped me find last time did a good job on the Poison Pill; what was their name?"

Cai Chao replied: "To report to Master, that Alchemist is named Gu Hong, a Loose Cultivator, quite a decent person."

Li An nodded: "These two medicines as well, please ask her to refine Poison Pills… Let her do her best!"

He handed over two more poisons to Cai Chao.

Over the years, besides striving for the position of Artifact Evaluator at the Treasure Pavilion, Li An had also been watching Gu Hong's situation.

Gu Hong opened a Spirit Pharmacy in the city, and business was going well.

But with her current management, achieving Core Formation...

Might be very difficult.

Therefore, since Li An became an Artifact Evaluator, while collecting poisons, he had Cai Chao find Alchemists to help refine Poison Pills.

He never specified whom to find, but he expressed dissatisfaction with Cai Chao's previous finds, continually changing Alchemists until it fell upon Gu Hong.

——Though no one in Celestial Yang City knew his identity or his connection with Gu Hong, he remained extremely cautious!

As an Artifact Evaluator, he could indeed offer some assistance to Gu Hong…

Of course, all of this aid needed to be under safe conditions, so he wouldn't let Gu Hong know his identity.

"Okay, rest assured, Master!"

Cai Chao promptly departed respectfully.

After he left, Li An activated the Tier Two array in the study!

This Tier Two array was meticulously crafted by Li An, dormant under normal circumstances, not actively functioning, so supported by the Tier Two Spirit Vein on Wuyang Street, it almost didn't consume Spirit Stones.

This was the benefit of cultivating in Celestial Yang City.

Previously in Moon Tempering Valley, a similar Tier Two array required constant activation of detection functions for safety, consuming many Spirit Stones.

Here, it's generally safe, only turned on when needed, saving much effort.

Then, he opened the box.

Picking up the black and white intermingled jade grass, there was a hint of entrancement in his eyes…

Then, he directly opened his mouth and swallowed the jade grass!

...

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