Shi Yu was a regular at Tongyi Pavilion, coming by every few days to sell jade talismans or purchase various materials for cultivation and talisman crafting. All the shop clerks recognized her face.
“Ah, Young Master Shi! What do you need today?” A clerk approached, bowing politely.
Jiang Qihe was attending to another customer on the far side of the shop. Seeing Shi Yu arrive from a distance, he nodded slightly in greeting and gave an apologetic, warm smile, gesturing that he was tied up for the moment.
Seeing this, Shi Yu did not bother Jiang Qihe and directly asked the clerk, “Do you still have any Qingming Dew?”
The clerk nodded repeatedly. “You're in luck, Young Master Shi. We have just one bottle left. It's just...”
Noticing his troubled expression, Shi Yu asked, “Just what?”
The clerk offered a helpless smile. “The price of Qingming Dew went up over the last couple of days. It rose from ten low-grade spirit stones to fifteen.”
In business, prices fluctuated naturally according to supply and demand.
However, a jump from ten spirit stones to fifteen—a fifty percent increase—was a significant spike. Tongyi Pavilion was always known for fair pricing, so for them to adjust the price by this much, Shi Yu figured something must have happened.
This was a customer Manager Jiang cared about a great deal. The clerk glanced at her face, and seeing no annoyance, he breathed a sigh of relief. Leading her toward the display counter, he explained:
“Lately, spirit beast activity has surged. Merchant caravans are constantly under attack. Even with cloud boat escorts, avian spirit beasts in the sky like flocks of Fire Cloud Crows and Moon-Chasing Vultures are far more aggressive than before. Several cloud boats have already crashed...”
“Transporting goods in and out has become difficult, so all sorts of cultivation resources are much tighter than usual.”
Shi Yu had been buried in secluded cultivation recently, so she was unaware of these developments.
Hearing this, Shi Yu frowned slightly and asked, “Do you know why the spirit beasts are acting up?”
The clerk shook his head. “I have no idea about that.”
The Yuxu Sect was established amidst the towering mountains and treacherous ridges of Changyuan Prefecture in the East Continent, surrounded by thousands of miles of endless mountain ranges and sea-like forests. Traveling through these lands was already fraught with danger for merchant caravans, and now with the spirit beast unrest...
She had no idea how long this would last, but either way, life for the rogue cultivators in the market city was likely going to become even harder.
As they spoke, they reached the counter displaying the Qingming Dew. The clerk carefully pulled out a thumb-sized jade bottle. “This is the last bottle of Qingming Dew.”
Through the translucent jade bottle, a faint, pale blue liquid could be seen inside.
Spirit stones could always be earned again, but cultivation admitted no steps backward or compromises.
Taking out fifteen spirit stones, Shi Yu was just about to accept the Qingming Dew when a sharp, delicate voice shouted from behind, “Hold on!”
Shi Yu turned a deaf ear, accepted the Qingming Dew, and tossed the small, smooth jade bottle in her hand twice before turning her head to look at the newcomer.
The newcomer held a longsword, possessed a fair, lovely face, and carried an unconscious air of haughtiness in her gaze.
It was none other than Lu Yujiao, whom Shi Yu had glimpsed outside Duize Tower—the daughter of the Peak Master of Lingle Peak in the Yuxu Sect, as well as his personal disciple. She was the very person Chen Er and the others had to address respectfully as Senior Sister.
The nearby clerk recognized Lu Yujiao as well. Stunned for a moment, he bowed and asked, “Miss Lu...?”
Lu Yujiao's eyes swept over Shi Yu. Sensing that Shi Yu was merely a mortal who had not even stepped into the first layer of the Qi Refining Realm, a trace of disdain immediately surfaced on her face.
She pulled a small bag of spirit stones from her mustard-seed bag and tossed it onto the counter, taking it for granted as she said, “Twenty spirit stones. I'll take this Qingming Dew.”
Manager Yan of Duize Tower was smooth and tactful, leaving Lu Yujiao feeling thoroughly flattered every time she visited.
By contrast, the managers at Tongyi Pavilion were much more rigid. Comparing the two, Lu Yujiao preferred buying her cultivation supplies at Duize Tower.
However, cultivation resources like spiritual dew were often in high demand, frequently falling out of stock at both Duize Tower and Tongyi Pavilion. With the recent surge in spirit beast activity, goods had become even harder to come by.
Under such circumstances, if Duize Tower was out of stock, Lu Yujiao did not mind crossing the street to buy from Tongyi Pavilion instead.
The clerk did not dare offend Lu Yujiao, but Tongyi Pavilion had its own rules. He faltered for a moment before stammering, “Miss Lu, since this bottle of Qingming Dew has already been sold to this young master and the transaction is complete, it now belongs to him—”
Not waiting for him to finish, Lu Yujiao raised her chin impatiently at Shi Yu. “You bought it for fifteen spirit stones, right? I'll give you twenty. Give me the Qingming Dew, and you'll make a profit of five spirit stones just like that. How about it?”
Her voice was crisp and sweet, but her patronizing tone sounded so natural, as if she were utterly certain Shi Yu would not refuse.
Lu Yujiao knew how destitute and shabby these rogue cultivators lived. The deal she offered was a guaranteed profit with zero risk—how could anyone possibly say no?
To her surprise, the rogue cultivator before her turned a deaf ear to her words. Dropping a flat “Not selling,” without even bothering to lift an eyelid, he held the Qingming Dew and turned to leave.
Lu Yujiao possessed a noble status and exceptional talent, used to being pampered and adored wherever she went. When had she ever been so thoroughly ignored and snubbed?
“Stop right there!” Her willow-leaf brows raised sharply as she slammed her scabbard against the counter with a loud clack, instantly drawing the attention of everyone in the shop.
Assuming Shi Yu simply did not know who she was to speak so disrespectfully, Lu Yujiao leaned against the counter and curled her lips into a faint, half-mocking smile, kindly reminding him: “I am Lu Yujiao, a personal disciple of Lingle Peak in the Yuxu Sect.”
Having declared her identity in a single sentence, Lu Yujiao said no more. She waited at her ease, expecting the person before her to tremble in fear and hand over the Qingming Dew on his own initiative.
This market city relied entirely on the Yuxu Sect to exist, and she, Lu Yujiao, was the daughter of the Peak Master of Lingle Peak. She held a noble status, and her talent and cultivation made her one of the standout figures among the Yuxu Sect's younger generation.
A year and a half ago, she had even revealed a rare talent as a talisman master, giving her a boundless future.
Wherever she went, who wouldn't treat Lu Yujiao with utmost respect?
Yet upon hearing her identity, the person before her showed not a ripple of emotion. His expression seemed to ask: “So what?”
The youth had ordinary facial features that could only be described as delicate, but those bright eyes were like clear ripples reflected in a deep pool, making it almost impossible to look away at first glance.
Feeling humiliated by Shi Yu's indifference, Lu Yujiao tightened her grip around her scabbard until the veins on the back of her hand bulged from the force.
Shi Yu did not fear her. Though Lu Yujiao was at the fourth layer of the Qi Refining Realm, Shi Yu had never stopped crafting spirit talismans these days. She currently had dozens of spirit talismans stored inside the Yin-Yang Fate-Tapping Bell, which were more than enough to protect herself.
The only trouble lay with the elders standing behind Lu Yujiao. If a Foundation Establishment Realm Master backed her up and made a move, Shi Yu would have no choice but to flee and hide.
It was not that she was foolish or reckless; rather, on the path of cultivation... showing cowardice or giving way here would harm her Dao Heart.
She had drawn several Speed-Enhancing Talismans and Escape Talismans. If the worst happened, at most she would flee into the wild mountains and ancient forests and go on the run.
On the other side of the hall, Manager Jiang Qihe, who had been busy, noticed the commotion and hurried over.
After quietly gathering the details from the clerk, Jiang Qihe stepped in front of Shi Yu and cupped his hands toward Lu Yujiao. “Miss Lu, business transactions cannot be forced. How about this: as soon as Tongyi Pavilion receives more Qingming Dew, I will personally send someone to deliver it to Lingle Peak for you immediately?”
Lu Yujiao sneered. “What if I insist on taking this bottle today?”
Jiang Qihe smiled mildly. “Then I fear Miss Lu will have to return disappointed.”
“You!” Lu Yujiao's chest heaved with anger. “He is merely a rogue cultivator. Tongyi Pavilion would offend me for his sake?”
Jiang Qihe cupped his hands once more, tacitly acknowledging her words.
Lu Yujiao's eyes turned cold. “You had better think this through, Manager Jiang.”
Jiang Qihe's expression remained unchanged as he gave a calm smile, offering a polite reminder of his own: “Tongyi Pavilion has no intention of making enemies with the Yuxu Sect, but we do not fear the Yuxu Sect, either.”
Only then did Lu Yujiao remember that Tongyi Pavilion was a merchant union with branches everywhere; strictly speaking, its influence was by no means inferior to that of the Yuxu Sect.
She shot Shi Yu a venomous glare and snorted coldly. As she turned to leave, she threw down a parting threat: “From now on, I, Lu Yujiao, will never sell a single spirit talisman to Tongyi Pavilion!”
By making this declaration, she was officially cutting ties with Tongyi Pavilion in her capacity as a talisman master with a boundless future.
The foundation of any merchant union lay in its merchandise. Regardless of the business, every firm needed to cultivate and recruit talisman masters, alchemists, weapon refiners, and the like.
Countless people attempted to study the four arts—artifacts, pills, arrays, and talismans—yet those with genuine talent were exceedingly rare.
Pills, spirit talismans, and magic treasures were indispensable and paramount throughout a cultivator's life, which conferred an extraordinarily lofty status upon talisman masters, alchemists, weapon refiners, and array masters.
Although Lu Yujiao could currently only craft Tier-1 spirit talismans, having already become a talisman master meant her future was indeed boundless.
Seeing that she had finally left, Jiang Qihe shook his head with a wry smile, not forgetting to comfort Shi Yu behind him: “There is no need to take it to heart, Young Master Shi. Miss Lu is closely associated with Duize Tower, so she would not have sold her spirit talismans to our Tongyi Pavilion anyway.”
However, in a remote place like the Yuxu Sect's region, there were very few talisman masters and alchemists to begin with. Grand as Tongyi Pavilion was, goods of this nature had always been in short supply here.
Previously, transferring shipments from other regions could sustain them, but now with frequent spirit beast attacks, several transport caravans had suffered heavy losses, making the situation increasingly difficult.
If this continued over time, what was to be done?
Shi Yu lowered her eyelashes and expressed her gratitude: “Thank you for speaking up for me just now, Manager Jiang.”
Tightening her grip on the Qingming Dew, Shi Yu was not someone ungrateful, and a thought formed in her mind.
Once she stepped into the first layer of the Qi Refining Realm and no longer had to craft talismans through the cumbersome process of using spirit stones as a medium, her efficiency would increase dramatically. At that point, she could officially begin doing regular business with Tongyi Pavilion.
Since Jiang Qihe had treated her with such goodwill, she ought to return the favor.
Rate on N.U.
