“Tenfold the selling price? Is that for real?” Zhang Xuan asked worriedly, seemingly unconvinced by the attendant’s words.
“Of course! Our Spirit Emporium prides itself on its credibility!” the attendant replied.
“I see… Since you are willing to go so far to guarantee your credibility, I’ll trust you for now. I’ll pick out a few more items first before paying for them together later on!” Hearing the other party’s words, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
Credibility? Sun Qiang’s mouth twitched.
An organization that murders others to steal their possessions, what kind of credibility can it possibly have?
You’ve got to be kidding me!
The young master actually believes this kind of nonsense?
More importantly, regardless of whether the young master believes that or not, we don’t have the money to pay for the items!
The high-tier spirit stone given to the attendant previously was the prize which the young master obtained back in the Master Teacher Tournament. With even that gone, they were completely broke. How could they possibly afford the Bottleneck Surmounting Pill now?
Hearing that Zhang Xuan was going to pick a few more items, the attendant nodded in excitement.
“That’s fine, feel free to!”
Since the other party was willing to toss a high-tier spirit stone out so casually, it could only mean that he had no lack of money. Besides, even if he couldn’t afford it then, with the security around the Spirit Emporium, he couldn’t possibly take the items away with him as well.
The attendants in the Spirit Emporium were paid on commission depending on the amount of spirit stones they earned for the store.
As long as he could seal this deal, he could easily earn a sum greater than the sales commissions he had received over the last few years.
“Un.” Nodding, Zhang Xuan walked around the shelves before him, and raising his fan, he pointed to one item after another. “This, this, this…”
Soon, he had already pointed out eight of the items.
Seeing Zhang Xuan pointing out so many items at once, the attendant’s face slowly grew redder and redder.
The items placed on display here were the more valuable artifacts in the store, and every single one of them was worth a fortune. Perhaps, he might just be able to earn enough money for his entire life through this deal!
The attendant wasn’t the only one who was reacting so intensely to Zhang Xuan’s actions, the crowd in the surroundings had frozen in shock as well.
Buying a grade-6 low-tier pill with two high-tier spirit stones had already blown their minds, and yet that fellow was still going on a shopping spree. When did such an extravagant, rich man come to Hongyuan City?
“I’ll immediately take those items down for you!” The attendant hurriedly took down the items pointed to in agitation and began calculating the price.
“Leave those eight items aside, wrap the remaining items up for me!” Zhang Xuan waved his fan casually.
Putong!
The attendant’s knees suddenly caved in at those words, and he nearly collapsed to the ground in astonishment.
The lower jaws of the crowd fell to the ground.
Even Sun Qiang nearly keeled over from those words.
He knew that he had often behaved brazenly due to the old master’s backing, but from the looks of it now, he couldn’t even hold a candle to the young master!
To put aside the eight of the items and take everything else…
There were at least a hundred items on display here, and a large portion of them were weapons and armor, which were valued at several high-tier spirit stones at the very least! To take all of them at once…
That would at least cost a hundred high-tier spirit stones!
Could he definitely afford such a sum?
He did know that he’d be pummeled to death if he failed to fork out the money later on, right?
After a long moment, the attendant finally recovered sufficiently to ask hoarsely, “You want… everything else?”
He was still thinking a while ago that, with the commission from those eight items, he could easily live extravagantly for the rest of his life, but the other party was actually intending to take everything else except for those eight! He had truly stumbled upon the God of Fortune this time around! As long as he sealed this deal, he would have sufficient money to feed ten generations of his descendants!
“That’s right. Wrap them up for me!” Zhang Xuan waved his hands arrogantly.
“Yes!”
The attendant pinched himself hard, and it was only upon feeling the sharp pain that he finally believed he wasn’t dreaming. He hurriedly gathered all of the items together and began calculating the price.
“All in all, there are 93 items, and the total sum is… 237 high-tier spirit stones!” the attendant said with a quivering voice.
“237 high-tier spirit stones? That isn’t too expensive!” Zhang Xuan nodded before gesturing to Sun Qiang, “Butler, pay him!”
Pay him? Sun Qiang froze.
You are asking me to pay him? But I don’t even have a single high-tier spirit stone on me, what am I supposed to pay him with?
Just as Sun Qiang was at a loss for what to do, Zhang Xuan abruptly raised his hand, seemingly stopping Sun Qiang from making a move, before gazing at the pile of items warily. “Wait a moment! Are you certain that every single item here is authentic, and if I find any fakes, you will refund me tenfold?”
“Of course! All of the items here were personally verified by a 6-star appraiser, Master Mo Fei! There is definitely no problem with their quality!” The attendant swiftly reassured Zhang Xuan.
“I trust you, but I want to be absolutely sure that they are all authentic. How about you invite Master Mo Fei here to appraise them right before me? Only then can I dispel my doubts and buy these items!” Zhang Xuan said.
“This…”
The attendant hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Alright then. Please wait here for a moment, I will invite Master Mo Fei over this instant!”
After which, he swiftly rushed off.
“Well, given the sheer volume of items he is buying, it’s natural that he would want them reappraised to ensure that they are authentic!”
“That’s true. However, I do know of that Master Mo Fei, and while he’s a 6-star appraiser, he is living off the Spirit Emporium’s payroll. Are his words really trustworthy?”
“Even if he were to spout nonsense, outsiders like us would be none the wiser!”
“In any case, it seems like that fellow has no lack of money. He is just probably asking for a reappraisal to calm his mind…”
…
Taking the scene in sight, the crowd muttered among themselves.
Typically speaking, most artifact dealers would seek a third party to appraise their works so as to ensure reliability. However, Appraiser Mo Fei was an employee of the Spirit Emporium, and that cast doubt on his reliability.
As such, that young man was probably going to be hoodwinked.
Amidst the muttering, the attendant finally returned with a potbellied old man behind him.
The old man harrumphed with his chin tilted up proudly.
“Who wants their item appraised?”
Appraisers were the most sought-after occupation in the market. Even the head of the Spirit Emporium had to treat him with respect.
“Me!” Zhang Xuan folded his fan and pointed it at the stack of items on the table. “I want to buy these items, so I need you to appraise them for me!”
Mo Fei glanced at the items on the table, and his eyebrows shot up.
“I have already appraised every single one of these items, and there is no doubt about their authenticity. Why? Are you doubting my judgement as a 6-star appraiser?”
“You have appraised everything here?” Zhang Xuan asked.
“That’s right. What are you waiting for? Bring the appraisal certificates over!” Mo Fei waved his hands impatiently.
The attendant hurried off to the counter, and after some fumbling, he returned with a pile of papers on hand.
These were the appraisal certificates of every single item on the table, and they were all signed off by Mo Fei.
“I see that there are appraisal certificates for them, good…”
Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief as he took the appraisal certificates from the attendant and began browsing through them carefully. With a peculiar smile, he asked, “I heard that the Spirit Emporium refunds tenfold of the selling price should any items be proven to be a fake, may I confirm if that’s true?”
“Of course!” Mo Fei nodded proudly.
As a 6-star appraiser, he was confident in his appraisals.
“Alright then, I would like to turn your attention to this pill first then…” With a light wave of his hand, the jade box containing the grade-6 pill flew into his hand.
“Why? Are you saying that there’s a problem with the Bottleneck Surmounting Pill?” Mo Fei frowned.
“It is written on the appraisal certificate that the vice head of the Apothecary School used 81 different types of medicinal herbs to create this pill which can allow any Chrysalis realm expert to raise their cultivation by a stage. Is that true?”
“Of course!” Mo Fei flung his sleeves proudly.
“While this is indeed a grade-6 pill, it wasn’t forged by the vice head of the Apothecary School. Furthermore, it was forged using only 72 different types of medicinal herbs. Judging by the slight yellow hue of the pill, it seems like the blood essence of a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan Golden Grassland Antelope. The slightly incongruous fragrance it exudes hints at the addition of a Sicklepod Flower…”
Opening the box, Zhang Xuan slowly analyzed it bit by bit.
In a single breath, he pointed out the various key anomalies regarding the pill.
With every single point that he mentioned, Mo Fei’s face turned a shade paler.
As a 6-star appraiser, he could tell that the other party’s judgement was spot-on.
It was as if the other party was present at the forging process! To be able to deduce all of this in just a short moment, it could only mean to say that the other party’s appraising ability was above his!
“So what if you can list all of the ingredients used in its forging? There are many variations to the Bottleneck Surmounting Pill in the market. As long as it can advance one’s cultivation, it can’t be considered a fake!” Seeing the young man before him go on and on, Mo Fei finally snapped.
“Advance one’s cultivation?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “After all I have said, you still don’t understand? The blood essence of the Golden Grassland Antelope is indeed extremely beneficial to a cultivator, but that is only if it hasn’t been mixed with Sicklepod Flower!
“Sicklepod Flower, otherwise known as the Flower of Eternal Rest, has to be mediated using the Heptad Verdant Grass. However, the apothecary who forged this pill has failed to do so… In other words, not only will this pill not advance one’s cultivation, the one who consumes it will even die of poisoning!” Zhang Xuan said.
“Die of poisoning?”
“Is that true?”
“If that’s the case, that would mean that not only is this pill a fake, it is even a weapon of murder…”
Hearing those words, everyone leaped in shock.
The reason a cultivator would spend their fortune on purchasing a pill was so they could achieve a breakthrough in their cultivation.
Yet, not only would they not be able to achieve a breakthrough with this pill, it would even poison them to death! To part with their life savings just to be poisoned, that would be a true tragedy!
“Nonsense! This pill is rich in spiritual energy, how could it be poisonous?” Mo Fei’s eyebrows shot up.
“You don’t believe me? Since that’s case… bring a Pill Sample Beast over then! We will know the answer with a quick test!” Zhang Xuan replied impassively.
“Fine!” Mo Fei harrumphed.
Soon, a Pill Sample Beast was brought over.
Pill Sample Beasts possessed a constitution similar to humans, making them an ideal subject to test for the effect a pill would have on humans.
“You should do it yourself lest you say that I tampered with the Pill Sample Beast or the Bottleneck Surmounting Pill!” Zhang Xuan passed the jade box over.
“Humph!”
With a cold harrumph, Mo Fei rubbed a bit of medicinal powder off the pill and fed it to the Pill Sample Beast.
Pill Sample Beasts were extremely sensitive to poison; thus, a small portion was more than enough for the test. Besides, if he were to take too much, the Pill Sample Beast might end up dying from the excessive influx of spiritual energy from the pill.
Gugugugu!
As soon as the Pill Sample Beast ate the powder, its aura suddenly intensified, growing stronger swiftly.
“Its cultivation is rising; this is clearly the effect of a normal Bottleneck Surmounting Pill. What else do you have to say for yourself?” Mo Fei turned around and sneered at Zhang Xuan for his ignorance.
However, at that moment, the Pill Sample Beast’s surging aura abruptly came to a halt, and its body began to convulse.
Pu!
A mouthful of pitch-black blood spurted from its mouth, and the small white beast abruptly froze before collapsing to the ground.
Italics have been enabled for us at last, so thoughts will now be in italics.
