"I take it you found something tied to the Treasure Coin Palace?" asked Yang Qing, silently swallowing a bit of saliva to wet his sandy throat. It was a question that did not need asking. The evidence was right in front of him, roaring and doing everything it could to shout, "I am extraordinary."

"Mmh," hummed Tang Xiadan as his expression grew solemn. "I found clues leading to what is quite likely a ground of theirs, but I have not gotten the chance to verify it," he slowly said as he gazed deeply at Yang Qing.

"Because of the dangers?" Yang Qing guessed out loud as his gaze drifted meaningfully to his chest. Given the Soulfrost Sequoia and the desperation and risk in Tang Xiadan’s actions, it would make total sense if he had done so because he had stumbled across something tied to the Treasure Coin Palace.

While Yang Qing would not do the same, given his extreme aversion to death and everything associated with it, if he had even the tiniest bit of Feng Xin’s obsessive, reckless spirit in him, he would have made the same choice as Tang Xiadan, if it was the only way to access the place he had come across with ties to the Treasure Coin Palace.

"Mmh," nodded Tang Xiadan. "There were no detectable signs of it, but my instincts were screaming at me that if I went in there as I am, it would likely be my last adventure," said Tang Xiadan, reaching out to one of the coins. He pulled it out gently, with a burning fervor in his eyes, as he brought it closer for a look.

"I almost died where I found this," he said dreamily as he turned the coin, gazing admiringly at it. One side of the coin was black, while the other had a tree with a massive canopy inscribed on it. That tree had produced fruit that were hanging on its branches. The fruits were gourd fruits

Tang Xiadan twirled the coin. "Fate coins," he softly muttered, his gaze drifting distantly. "Have you heard of them, fellow Daoist?" he softly asked, his eyes still fixed on the coin. So were Yang Qing’s, to be fair.

"I do not think I have. Would you care to enlighten me?" said Yang Qing. In truth, he had heard the term, but what he knew was little, and it would not do to miss out on potentially more information, all because of a careless reply of saying he knew when he knew very little.

Taking that as his cue to continue, Tang Xiadan said, "It is said that the Treasure Coin Palace used to throw these coins out into the world for them to meet people fated with them."

"For those who found them, they could bring them back to the palace," he said, pausing briefly as he placed the coin on the table with the side bearing the gourd tree facing upward.

"For one coin," he repeated, his index finger pressed on that coin, "you could choose to either join the palace as an outer disciple, or trade the coin for a single top-tier gold-grade cultivation art, or another manual—be it recipe, formation formula, or technique of similar value. Or trade it for a top-tier ascendant-grade artifact perfectly suited for you, or a natural treasure of the same rank."

"And for two coins," he said, lifting another coin from the wooden box and placing it beside the first, "you get to join as an outer disciple, just like with a single coin. Or," he said, drawing out the word, "you can trade them for a purple-grade art, or techniques and formulas of similar value. Or trade them for a saint-grade artifact or natural treasures."

"When it is three," he continued as he pulled out the last coin and placed it beside the others, "you can trade them to the palace and join as an inner sect disciple. Or, if you decide otherwise, you can collectively trade them for a purple-grade art, a top-tier saint-grade treasure, an artifact of the same grade, and be allowed to cultivate at one of their treasured grounds for ten years, or be allowed to ask for a single favor from one of their elders."

He paused as his gaze drifted to the box that held those coins. Yang Qing’s gaze drifted over to the box as well. The box had ridges carved into its interior. Those ridges were shaped to perfectly hold coins, and that box had six ridges, meaning it was meant to hold six coins.

"As for four to six coins," Tang Xiadan said in a dreamy, drifting tone, "it is said that if you trade them, you can have your fate and fortunes overturned and transformed," he muttered.

"Overturned fortune and fate," he murmured dreamily. "For a behemoth like the Treasure Coin Palace, what do you think it could mean? Could they transform me into a dragon, or a kunpeng, or a Qilin, if I traded six coins to them?" he murmured, half-jokingly.

Yang Qing looked at him curiously, feeling that perhaps Tang Xiadan’s comment was not made entirely in jest. "Maybe," Yang Qing answered as his gaze moved back to the coins. "If three coins got you a purple-grade art, a top-tier saint-grade natural treasure, and an artifact of similar rank, then at four coins, to exceed what three coins gave... it must be something unimaginable," said Yang Qing as his gaze seemed to drift into that wonder.

The two, man and mouse, got lost in the wonder of the coins for a few minutes before it was finally broken by Tang Xiadan, whose expression turned solemn as he pushed one of the coins forward. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"For the life-changing favor and chance you have just bestowed me with your intervention, Fellow Daoist Yang Qing, I would like you to have this," said Tang Xiadan as he pressed the coin toward Yang Qing, who looked like he was about to refuse, given the awkward, dumbfounded smile he had on.

"Fellow Daoist Tang Xiadan, this..."

"The favor of giving someone a chance of reaching the Domain Realm is not something you can put a price on. Not to mention, there is the life-saving favor attached to it as well. When you look at it from that angle, a single coin, even one made from an Ancestral Dragon Jade, is a price many would unhesitatingly pay," said Tang Xiadan, smiling.

"Please," said Tang Xiadan, gently nudging the coin toward Yang Qing.

After a slight hesitation, Yang Qing sighed as he took in the stubborn seriousness in Tang Xiadan’s smiling expression. "I suppose I will have to shamelessly accept Fellow Daoist Tang Xiadan’s gesture," said Yang Qing, smiling as he took the coin.

"But will it not affect your chances of accessing that place you found?" Yang Qing suddenly asked as he briefly examined the coin. "You finding that place... I am guessing the coins had a part to play in it?" he continued, looking meaningfully at Tang Xiadan. His mentioning of that earlier story could not have been at random.

If the story behind the coins was true, then the coins were a form of token, given that they allowed one to become an outer sect disciple or inner sect disciple of the Treasure Coin Palace. It would not be too far-fetched to assume that the coins likely hid some way of connecting or guiding someone to a place tied to the Treasure Coin Palace, similar to how his gold eagle badge reacted when he was close to branches of the Order. And if he ever needed it, the badge could lead him to some of the safe houses as well. Maybe the coins had a similar function.