abcnovels
Chapter 787: Shopping Spree
Chapter 787: Shopping Spree
Chapter 787: Shopping Spree
"Lead the way," Shi Chuankong said in a casual manner.
The green-robed woman did as she was told, leading Han Li and Shi Chuankong to an individual booth, where various types of fruits, snacks, and tea were offered to them.
"These Dark Fruits and Spring Mist Tea are specialty local products of the Ten Hazards Mountain Range, feel free to give them a try, Fellow Daoist Li," Shi Chuankong suggested.
Han Li raised a cup of steaming tea, then took a small sip before giving a slight nod.
Right at this moment, the door of the booth was opened, and a young woman in a pink dress stepped inside. She had also taken on a humanoid form, and there were no visible inhuman features on her at all.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I am Mei Lan, an administrator of the Floating Gold Pavilion," the young woman introduced.
Bouquets of pink flowers were emerging in the air around her as she walked, giving off a fragrant aroma.
Han Li raised an eyebrow at the sight of the young woman, who was at the pinnacle of the Golden Immortal Stage. It appeared that she was most likely a tree demon, and whatever cultivation arts she was using seemed to be quite remarkable as well.
It was quite strange to Han Li that someone of her cultivation base was serving as a mere administrator in this Floating Gold Pavilion, but he quickly realized that this was most likely a business tactic of the pavilion.
By sending out an administrator of a far superior cultivation base to the customer, the Floating Gold Pavilion would be able to exert subtle pressure on the customer, thereby gaining the initiative.
However, such a tactic naturally wasn't effective on Han Li and Shi Chuankong, and the two of them continued to sit and drink tea with their expressions completely unchanged.
Mei Lan was slightly taken aback by the composure displayed by Han Li's duo, but her expression also remained unchanged as she sat down across from the two of them and asked, "What can I help you with today, esteemed guests?"
Shi Chuankong casually set down the teacup in his hand, then flipped a hand over to produce a storage bracelet, which he tossed at Mei Lan as he said, "We heard that the Floating Gold Pavilion is one of the largest shops in Black Weasel City, and we wanted to discuss some business with your shop. Here's the deposit."
A hint of surprise flashed through Mei Lan's eyes upon hearing this, but she still caught the bracelet, and after inspecting its contents with her spiritual sense, an astonished look instantly appeared on her face.
Inside the storage bracelet were five hundred thousand Devilish Origin Stones stacked in neat piles, presenting a stunning sight to behold.
Upon realizing her own loss of composure, Mei Lan hurriedly composed herself, then set down the storage bracelet in her hand as she said, "It is a great honor for our Floating Gold Pavilion that you've chosen us. May I ask how I can help you today?"
A hint of amusement flashed through Han Li's eyes upon seeing this.
Mei Lan had intended to intimidate the two of them with her vastly superior cultivation base, but Shi Chuankong had employed the same tactic against her, claiming the upper hand by presenting such an enormous sum of wealth.
An unspoken contest was taking place here, and Shi Chuankong had gained the upper hand, as expected of such an integral figure in the Vast Origin House.
"We're looking to buy a batch of high-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade," Shi Chuankong declared in a straightforward manner.
Mei Lan's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and she offered no response.
"Are you not interested in making such a deal?" Shi Chuankong asked.
"Please don't misunderstand. We're naturally very much willing to do business with you, but Purple Sun Warm Jade has always been in very short supply, and we don't even have any mid-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, let alone high-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade," Mei Lan explained with an awkward expression.
"I know Purple Sun Warm Jade is always in short supply. How about this? We're willing to pay you an additional 30% over the market price, but the product that you supply has to be good," Shi Chuankong offered.
"You misunderstand my intentions, esteemed customer, I'm not trying to increase the price. Instead, I'm merely telling the truth. I'm guessing that the two of you aren't from Black Weasel City, right? This may come across as a little rude, but you don't seem to have much of a grasp on the market for Purple Sun Warm Jade.
“While it's true that this city produces Purple Sun Warm Jade, the quantity produced is extremely low to begin with, and most of it falls under the control of the Black Weasel King. Even though we're one of the biggest shops in Black Weasel City, we only have a very small supply of Purple Sun Warm Jade, and it's all of the low-grade variety," Mei Lan explained with a wry smile.
Han Li and Shi Chuankong's expressions darkened slightly upon hearing this.
"So you're saying that you can't help us?" Shi Chuankong asked.
"If you're looking for anything else, then I'd be happy to help, but I'm truly powerless to help when it comes to Purple Sun Warm Jade. Please accept my sincerest apologies," Mei Lan sighed.
"In that case, I won't try to force the matter," Shi Chuankong said as he retrieved his storage bracelet, while Mei Lan looked on with a wistful expression.
"You just mentioned that you have a supply of low-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, right? I'd like to take a look at that if possible," Han Li suddenly said.
A hint of elation flashed through Mei Lan's eyes upon hearing this, and she immediately replied, "Alright, please wait for a moment."
Following Mei Lan's departure, Han Li swept a sleeve through the air to cast a restriction in the room, then asked, "Do you think she was telling the truth just now, Fellow Daoist Shi?"
"While she was speaking, I used a secret technique that can verify the truth of one's words to a certain extent, and the secret technique tells me that she didn't appear to be lying," Shi Chuankong replied.
"In that case, it really does look like it'll be quite difficult for us to get our hands on some high-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade," Han Li said with furrowed brows.
"We'll just have to do our best, and if it doesn't work out, then so be it. There's quite a large disparity in the efficacy of Purple Sun Warm Jade of different grades, and low-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade has a rather mediocre soul nurturing effect, so it won't do us much good," Shi Chuankong replied.
"In any case, if it can help Weeping Soul's condition, then we can't afford to pass up on it," Han Li said.
Shi Chuankong merely smiled and offered no response, following which both of them became absorbed in their own thoughts.
A short while later, the sound of footsteps rang out from outside, and Han Li dispelled the restriction in the room, following which the door was opened.
Mei Lan stepped into the room with a purple jade box in her hands, and she set the box down in front of Han Li as she said, "Sorry to keep you waiting. This is all of the Purple Sun Warm Jade that our shop currently has."
Han Li opened the jade box to reveal around two to three dozen fist-sized purple crystals that were giving off a faint purple glow.
However, there were some flaws and blemishes on these crystals that were rather eye-catching, and they also somewhat dulled the purple light emanating from the crystals.
He picked up one of the purple crystals, and it was warm to the touch. Furthermore, it was releasing a burst of warmth into his mind to envelop his soul, making it feel as if it were basking in a warm spring breeze.
Han Li's eyes immediately lit up upon sensing this. It seemed that this Purple Sun Warm Jade was indeed going to be beneficial to Weeping Soul's condition.
"These are all low-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, but they're still nothing to be looked down on. What do you think, esteemed customer?" Mei Lan asked.
"How much are you selling this Purple Sun Warm Jade for?" Han Li asked as he placed the purple crystal in his hand back into the jade box.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Mei Lan stated a price that was 10% over the market price.
The price was within the realm of Han Li's expectations, and he couldn't be bothered to barter, so he nodded in agreement.
Having claimed the storage tools of Tie Yu and Tong Yu, he currently had quite a large supply of Devilish Origin Stones, so this was not a significant sum to him.
He stowed the purple jade box away, then summoned a storage ring that he handed over to Mei Lan.
"Thank you for your patronage," Mei Lan said with a smile after briefly inspecting the contents of the storage ring.
After the deal was complete, Han Li and Shi Chuankong promptly departed, and Mei Lan accompanied them all the way to the entrance of the Floating Gold Pavilion.
Lu Xie had been waiting for them this entire time, and he immediately approached them as they exited the shop.
"How did it go, seniors?"
"Don't ask unnecessary questions. Just do your job and take us to the next shop," Shi Chuankong replied in a cold voice.
Lu Xie shuddered slightly upon hearing this, and he hurriedly gave an affirmative response.
A short while later, the carriage drew to a halt in front of a tall pagoda, and Han Li and Shi Chuankong entered the shop before re-emerging close to an hour later.
"Take us to the next one," Han Li instructed.
All in all, the two of them visited six or seven large shops before night fell, clearing out all of their supplies of Purple Sun Warm Jade.
That night, they chose an inn to stay in.
Inside his room, Han Li made a hand seal before releasing a flurry of array flags out of his sleeves, and the flags descended all around the room, setting up several light barriers.
After that, he conjured up a door of silver light before stepping into the Flower Branch domain.
Inside the bamboo pavilion, Weeping Soul remained unconscious as she laid on the bed.
Her complexion was so pale that her cheeks almost appeared translucent, and small plumes of black qi were rising up out of her body before dissipating into nothingness.
A grim look appeared on Han Li's face upon seeing this.
Weeping Soul's condition had worsened significantly since he last checked on her several days ago, and the rate at which her essential energy was dissipating had also sped up drastically.
After taking a deep breath to compose himself, he swept a sleeve toward the nearby table, and five or six jade boxes appeared on the table amid a flash of azure light, containing a total of over two hundred pieces of Purple Sun Warm Jade, all of which were of the low-grade variety.
Even though he hadn't managed to purchase even a single piece of mid-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, he was hoping that such a large quantity of low-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade would be able to help Weeping Soul's condition.
The only concern was that buying up so much Purple Sun Warm Jade had most likely already attracted him a great deal of attention from those who were in the know in Black Weasel City.
Thankfully, Black Weasel City was a thriving business hub with many merchants coming through from outside, so their activities weren't particularly suspicious.
However, after some discussion with Shi Chuankong, the two of them had already decided that they were going to stay for one more day to purchase more Purple Sun Warm Jade before leaving the city to avoid unnecessary trouble.