by Tinalynge
“It is with my great pleasure to also inform you that Lord Zhan Weisheng is also present at our humble auction house.” As she spoke, an elderly man rose to his feet and nodded towards the buyers in the filled room.
The major families all stood up and bowed towards the man while the other cultivators and travellers did not show the same sign of respect.
‘Do you know who this Lord Zhan Weisheng is?’ Cao Cao’s voice curiously rang within Xu Min’s head. The young man chuckled once more as he petted the curious snake on his neck. ‘How can I know?’ he asked while laughing. ‘I haven’t had any time to really learn about this Ri Chu City yet. I’ll make sure to figure out all these things later.’
‘Hey, are we going to sell some of those flowers that you stole from Mother’s garden?’ Cao Cao asked curiously. The question caused Xu Min to raise an eyebrow. ‘Mother?’ he asked curiously. Cao Cao instantly quieted down for a bit. ‘Yeah. Father said I had to call the tree, Mother. I really don’t know whether or not she is my mother.’
Hearing the voice, it was like a child uncertain about its own heritage. Xu Min could only feel the pain that the snake felt. He too, was also completely uncertain about his heritage.
Xu Min had never before told anything to Cao Cao about his past. However, in the middle of the auction house did the human tell everything to the small snake who listened with wide open eyes.
At the right times, Cao Cao’s face showed killing intent. At other times, he showed sadness for the young man’s loss. Hearing about the goals which Xu Min had in his life, he did not laugh at how far away he was from his goal. Instead, he agreed that the two of them needed to take revenge together.
‘Father decided that you became my boss,’ Cao Cao said with a sigh. ‘I don’t really know why he chose a weakling like you, but you really aren’t as bad as I thought you were,’ he continued. ‘We’ll get revenge for your sister and also find out why your parents sent you and your sister away.’
Hearing these kind words, Xu Min could not help but laugh at them. With a gentle hand, he pet the snake once more on the head. He showed his gratitude through actions.
‘Back to your earlier question, I think I’m going to see whether or not I can trade a Yearning Sunflower for a few medicinal pills.’ Xu Min said with a smile. He was sure that if he brought forward his flower, the auction house would treat him as a great customer.
Having sat still for a couple of hours, nothing worth Xu Min’s attention appeared. Herbs and medicinal plants were sold, but plants were not what Xu Min was after. Armour and weapons appeared, but none of them were of any interest either.
Eventually, even captured Demon Beasts appeared within cages to be sold off to cultivators or families. They were either going to be tamed or be used to breed demon beasts for the major families.
Finally, the night drew to a close and the final item had been sold. As soon as the final item had been sold, all the customers who had purchased items went behind the stage into separate rooms. There, they each paid the gold coins they had spent before their items were handed to them.
Having bought nothing, Xu Min followed the stream of people outside the main building. As soon as he came out, he didn’t stopped even for a moment before going back into the inn where he got ready to spend the night cultivating.
‘I thought we were planning on selling some flowers?’ Cao Cao asked curiously on the way home. Xu Min just smiled as he petted the snake’s head in an indulgent way. ‘Don’t worry,’ he answered. ‘We will go there tomorrow. No rush, no rush. Rushing in now will seem weird.’ Xu Min said with a smile. After ordering the usual large portion of food, he sat on the bed where he calmed himself and started to focus on cultivating.
Cao Cao spent the better of half an hour eating quite a large portion of the food. It only left some of the food for Xu Min who could be hungry later. After finishing his portion, the snake moved onto the bed. He was next to the young man where he came to a rest. Cao Cao curled up right next to the young man. Happiness could be seen in his green eyes before he closed them.
Golden specks of light started to shine from both Xu Min and Cao Cao. The specks were both ingested and expelled from the bodies. They soon filled the entire room and both the cultivators were in a deep trance. Neither of them noticed as the hours passed. The moon shone through the clouds while cascading its light down upon the hotel. The rays of moonlight entered the hotel through the windows and illuminated the two friends, man and snake.
Chapter 26 - Pretty Woman
‘Let us eat breakfast before going,’ Cao Cao said with a smile on his face. The two had just awoken from their trance. Having just opened his eyes, Xu Min was slightly taken aback. He soon laughed heartily at the snake in front of him. It clearly thought about nothing else but when his next meal would be served.
Taking a quick bath and dressing in his best clothes, Xu Min stepped out from the room with a snake coiled around his neck. The two found a table within the restaurant and sat down, waiting for the waitress to notice them.
It did not take long before he was finally noticed. As soon as the food arrived at the table, the snake uncoiled himself and rushed to eat the dishes one after another. Once again, the young man wondered where all the food disappeared off to, as the snake never seemed to be full.
Having finished the food, Xu Min quickly rushed out the door and headed towards the Alluring Treasure Pavilion. His hand gently patted his pouch to ensure that the flowers he was going to sell were still there.
Walking through town, Xu Min saw that shops were slowly opening. Some of the citizens were waking up and bustling about to complete their daily chores. He maneuvered around to escape the traffic of the high volume of the people. His speed swiftly changed as he made his way towards the building he had been at the day before.
Looking at the building in broad daylight, the young man bent his neck back in astonishment. The sun’s rays were shining upon the beautiful white jade building. Having seen the building at night, it had been beautiful and lit up by fire but it was nowhere near as stunning as it was right now.
The translucent jade was milky white as the light shone through it. The sunshine reached all the way into the pavilion itself. Rays of light shone onto various tables where, behind each, were workers from the Alluring Treasure Pavilion. They were all looking at various items being put up for sale.
Seeing this, Xu Min frowned slightly. He had wished to sell the Yearning Sunflower. However, if he picked it up at a location like this, it would instantly transform into a Lustful Sunflower. The herb would no longer be worth even half the price as it was before its transformation.
When Xu Win looked around, there were less people crowding at the tables further in the room. One could tell that the further one came in, the rarer the items became. Eventually, no one was present at the tables except for the clerks waiting to appraise the items being brought to them.
Although Xu Min had come to the end, the sunshine still shone through the translucent jade. A sigh was all the young man could muster. Every step that he took, further into the pavilion, more and more people would start glancing at him. Now that he had reached the end, everyone who glanced at him thought that he was either a tourist who knew nothing about their system or some other young master who wished to seem more important than he truly was.
However, this was not the case. Xu Min could do nothing but sigh deeply once more. Just as he was about to turn towards one of the clerks, a woman came walking into the pavilion from the opposite side.
This woman was the stunning beauty from the night before. She was the one who had managed to sell the Yearning Sunflower for an astonishing price. Although Xu Min didn’t feel a more deeper attraction to the woman, he still could not help but feel that she might be able to assist him.
It was not only he who recognized her. She too recognized the calm youngster from the previous night. He was the one who had been smirking without being too attracted to her to join the bidding frenzy.
Seeing a young man who was capable of not being mesmerized by her was news. Which was why she was feeling slightly indignant and curious at the same time. She instantly started swaggering towards him. She allowed for her alluring hips to move mesmerizingly from side to side. Her luscious lips caused all the clerks around to stare at her, mesmerized. However, Xu Min was still unfazed by the waltzing hips and the beautiful, deep eyes.
Seeing this, the woman did not give up right away. Her confidence was starting to slightly falter as she was not capable of figuring out how to seduce a young man alone.
“Hello there, young friend,” she said with her most alluring and melodious voice. The hint of a gentle smile was evident on her face. At the same time, she winked cheekily at the young man and asked, “What brings you here?”
“I have some items I want you to appraise,” Xu Min said directly. His voice never shook and his eyes looked straight at the woman’s eyes without blinking. He did not show any signs of blushing either. There were no signs of discomfort or reactions to her actions. This was something which caused the woman to almost explode with anger. Meeting a guy who was capable of completely ignoring her benefits was simply too frustrating.
“If you have items to appraise, I am sure these people are capable of helping you,” she said. The gentle smile still remained on her lips as she refused to admit defeat.
“I know,” Xu Min responded as he looked at the desks. His eyes scanned the surroundings and noticed that many of the clerks were glaring at him. They were clearly dissatisfied with the attention that Xu Min was getting from their local beauty.
“I need somewhere I can display my item. Somewhere with no sunshine,” Xu Min said straightforwardly. His words caused the woman to raise an eyebrow in surprise.
“Somewhere with no sunshine you said?” the woman continued and Xu Min nodded his head. The beauty asked slowly while her hand slowly tapped her chin. After a few moments, her beautiful face turned into a big smile which beamed towards Xu Min. Any human would feel their hearts beating slightly faster from such a smile.
“Something that cannot take sunshine surely has made me curious,” the woman continued. “Please follow me. I have a wonderful room where I can personally make sure to appraise your item for the right price.”
“Then I will take you up on the offer,” Xu Min said with a gentle smile on his face as he had managed to calm his beating heart. Without further ado, he followed the beautiful woman in front of him. She turned around and walked back the way she had come from.
Following behind the beauty, they left the pavilion and behind it was a large building. It was a the center of the management of the Alluring Treasure Pavilion.
Following the beauty, Xu Min noticed that this building was not created by translucent white jade much like the pavilion itself. Instead, it was build from red stones. Within the many rooms in the hub, the beauty went for a specific one in particular.
“Please enter,” she said with an alluring voice. She gladly held the door for the young customer. Her eyes batted at him which caused the young man to sigh deep within.
It was neither that Xu Min did not appreciate the beauty in front of him nor was he unfazed by her behaviour. The reason for his actions was that the young man had often seen that the people around him had become his enemies. His old teacher that he looked up to for years on ends was a prime example. Xu Min simply had no room for other people within his heart. It did not matter how beautiful they were.
Strutting past Xu Min, the woman walked towards a desk where she sat down and gestured for Xu Min to sit across from her. The young man quickly followed her gesture and sat down.
With a gesture of her hand, the windows suddenly were blocked from all light. The room emanated a light glow as only a few candlelights were keeping it lit. This was something which seemed natural because many sellers wished to stay anonymous.
Looking at the woman who was curiously observing him, and with a sigh, the young man opened his bag and with a stealthy move, withdrew one Yearning Sunflower while skillfully hiding the rest of the contents within his bag. He had long since learnt that showing off his wealth was not recommended.
The eyes of the woman instantly widened as she saw the Yearning Sunflower. She was incredibly familiar with the flower as she had sold one just the night before, and knowing the sunflower, she also knew how much it was worth. It was definitely not what she had expected to see the young man withdraw.
Clearing her throat, the young woman sneaked a glance at the young man who had leaned back against the chair. His eyes were calm and a smirk was on his face. Xu Min felt a weird satisfaction for stunning the woman who had done everything in her power to entrance him.
“This is… a Yearning Sunflower?” She said it as a question. But without giving him the time to respond, she picked up the flower in her hands. She looked at it from every angle and in every nook and cranny while her face grew more and more astonished.
“This is indeed a Yearning Sunflower,” she said with an amazed sigh. Only after a moment did she finally manage to pick herself back up. Her gaze was shifted back to the young man in front of her and her eyes narrowed slightly.
“I assume the Yearning Sunflower from yesterday also appeared from that bag of yours,” she said with a gentle and thoughtful voice. “I have a fairly good guess that you have more than this one sunflower, is that correct?”
Without answering, all Xu Min did was shrug. He had no interest in telling this vixen exactly how much wealth and how many sunflowers he had.
“This Yearning Sunflower is all that I have for sale right now,” he said. He neither confirmed nor denied her claim. The woman could do nothing but sigh.
“What do you want for this flower? I assume you are not just interested in selling it for some petty coin,” she continued. She had seen the entertained look on the youngster’s face the night before. It was clear that he was not moved by money so the vixen had no other ideas as to what could move this cold young man in front of her. She had no other option than to ask him directly.
“I am willing to trade it,” Xu Min started. He spoke slowly and each word was clearly heard within the dark room. The woman leaned forward in the chair. For some reason, she held her breath while her eyes were glued to the young man in front of her.
“What I need is not beautiful flowers such as this one,” Xu Min continued. “What I want is quite simple. I want medicinal pills which are created for the Early Stage Warriors.”
Hearing this the woman could not help but frown. “This is it?” She asked feeling anticlimactic. “You are willing to trade a Yearning Sunflower for something as useless as medicinal pills for Early Stage Warriors? You’re not even going to ask for some for the Advanced Stage? You should be able to trade the sunflower for one of such pills.”
Before she was capable of stopping herself, the words had already come out of her mouth. She realized it was already too late to take back her words. Cursing at herself, the woman swore that she needed to be more on guard when speaking with such a level headed young man.
“I’m not interested in Advanced Stage Warrior pills,” he said calmly. His words caused the woman to once more feel relieved. Getting the Yearning Sunflower for cheap pills would be a great accomplishment.
Usually, she managed to get her items cheaper than other appraisals within the store as she was capable of playing on her beauty. In this current transaction, her beauty had no usage whatsoever. She had already accepted that the price she had to pay for this Yearning Sunflower would be extremely high. Who would have known that he was willing to sell it for such a cheap price?
Hearing this, the woman once more became ecstatic. “I’ll sell it to you for a box with a hundred medicinal pills of various sort aimed at the Early Stage Warrior rank.”
Chapter 27 - Purchase Complete
“A hundred medicinal pills of various sorts? All of them aimed at Early Stage Warriors?” Xu Min frowned as he heard the answer. Although the offer seemed
incredibly good and he was truly very excited, he was still uncertain about the “various sorts” that was mentioned. Although he was looking for medicinal pills, he was not looking for the kind that healed injuries. He was looking for the kind that either replenished his internal energy after it was depleted or the kind that helped increase the amount of energy of the heavens and the earth one could absorb and refine.
Seeing how he was frowning, the woman in front of him was taken aback. Most people would have instantly accepted the offer she had made; however, this strange young man was clearly not pleased with the offer she had given. She could not help but curse at herself for her greed.
She had indeed intended to give him medicinal pills that were used for healing or for replenishing energy. However, the more expensive ones that were used to improve cultivation bases were medicines that she had no intention of handing over if she had any way of avoiding it.
The price of the flower was definitely enough to cover a hundred pills of the highest class. The woman wished to get it for the cheapest price but she now regretted it.
