After eating and drinking their fill and collecting their spirit stones, the two of them left the City Lord's Mansion.
Recalling Mu Tianqing's words, Xue Mingzhao changed her direction. “Come on, let's go check out the Spiritual Registry Office.”
Su Ye was completely baffled. “What are we going there for?”
“To spend money!” Xue Mingzhao smiled mysteriously.
As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the Spiritual Registry Office, Xue Mingzhao was utterly dumbfounded. The queue snaked around like a massive serpent, winding three times without an end in sight. It was a dense, black mass of cultivators, every single one of them wearing a gloomy expression as if they were attending a funeral.
“...So many people?” Xue Mingzhao's lip twitched as she obediently joined the back of the queue with Su Ye.
A blue-robed cultivator ahead of them heard the commotion and glanced back. Seeing their sect disciple attire, he let out a sigh, his face filled with a shared sense of misery. “Which sect are you from? Are you also here to beg the Spiritual Registry Office to buy back your land deeds?”
“Buy back land deeds?”
The blue-robed cultivator chuckled bitterly. “Who else could we sell them to? In this godforsaken Eastern Territory, cultivators are either fleeing or selling off their properties. Now, people crowd the entrance of the Spiritual Registry Office every day, begging them to take their land in exchange for some spirit stones so they can run away. If you're late, you won't even get a drop of soup!”
A white-robed cultivator nearby also leaned over, his face clouded with gloom. “Exactly! It was bad enough that the spiritual energy was already sparse, but two days ago it got even worse—nearly half of it vanished directly! There was even an anomaly. Who knows, maybe some strange treasure was born and sucked all the spiritual energy away. This place is truly uninhabitable now!”
Xue Mingzhao feigned surprise. “Ah? I heard that anomaly was caused by a sect refining a supreme-grade Mahayana Pill.”
The blue-robed cultivator scoffed, his face practically screaming that she was too naive. “You actually believe that? It was probably a lie made up by the City Lord to soothe people's minds because he's afraid everyone will run away!”
The white-robed cultivator nodded in agreement. “Exactly! Even if there really is a supreme-grade Mahayana Pill, what does that have to do with us? We don't even have the right to get a sniff of it! Instead of wasting away here until we die, we might as well find another path soon.”
He paused, a trace of longing flashing in his eyes. “In a little while, it will be the Heavenly Origin Sect's once-in-a-decade disciple recruitment assembly. If we're lucky, maybe we can get selected to become outer sect disciples!”
Xue Mingzhao nodded cooperatively. “Then how many spirit stones at most does the Spiritual Registry Office give for buying back land?”
The blue-robed cultivator sighed again. “Our sect is small and located in a remote area in the east. I estimate... it'll only be around five hundred thousand spirit stones. Anything we can get is better than nothing.”
The white-robed cultivator scoffed directly. “Keep dreaming! With the way the Spiritual Registry Office operates, they'll give you three hundred thousand at most, and they might not even accept it.”
As the two of them went back and forth, cursing the black-heartedness of the Spiritual Registry Office with spit flying everywhere, Xue Mingzhao suddenly chimed in, “Why don't you sell it to me? I'll give you three hundred and fifty thousand.”
The air instantly fell silent.
The blue-robed cultivator whipped his head around, his eyes widening like copper bells. “You... you're really willing to buy it?”
Xue Mingzhao nodded, looking completely sincere. “The Spiritual Registry Office will give you three hundred thousand at most. I'll offer fifty thousand more—”
Before she could even finish her sentence, the blue-robed cultivator whipped out a jade slip with a swish, wiped away his spiritual seal with a swipe of his finger, and shoved it directly into Xue Mingzhao's hand.
Was there really such a fool in this day and age?
What kind of person would still spend money to buy land in the Eastern Territory at a time like this?
She must be lacking a brain!
Holding the lukewarm jade slip, Xue Mingzhao looked utterly bewildered. “What is this?”
“The land deed! You just agreed to buy it, you can't go back on your word!”
Xue Mingzhao: “...”
So land deeds in the cultivation world were just jade slips?
She had thought it would be made of silk or something. Since it was her first time seeing one, she felt a bit like a country bombkin.
But... how did one complete the transaction?
Did he just give it to her directly like this?
Seeing her blank expression, the white-robed cultivator understood immediately and kindly advised, “Is this your first time buying or selling a land deed? Just drip your blood into it, and the land will be yours. A blood covenant serves as proof; there's no backing out.”
Xue Mingzhao came to a sudden realization. So that was how it worked!
She immediately pulled out a dagger, sliced her finger cleanly, and a bead of blood fell onto the jade slip with a patter.
The covenant was formed!
This small sect now belonged to her!
The three people around her fell dead silent upon seeing her action.
Xue Mingzhao looked at them in confusion. “What's wrong?”
The white-robed cultivator remained silent for a long time before extending his hand. With a swirl of spiritual energy at his fingertip, he condensed a bead of blood.
Xue Mingzhao: “...”
Oh.
You could do it that way too.
The Chaos Spiritual Root rolled around laughing inside her dantian. “Hahahahaha! What a massive idiot!”
Flustered and angry, Xue Mingzhao roared in her mind, “Why didn't you two tell me this earlier?!”
Cang Jue spoke up faintly, “...I thought you preferred a sense of ceremony, Boss.”
Xue Mingzhao: “...” Thank you so very much.
With a dark face, she transferred three hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones from her spirit stone bag to the blue-robed cultivator.
After accepting the spirit stones, the blue-robed cultivator said, “You can use your divine sense to perceive the land and verify it.”
Xue Mingzhao did as instructed and extended her divine sense into the jade slip. With a swish, a map unfolded in her mind. The layout of a small sect was clearly visible: a small island, fewer than ten courtyards, and a few acres of spirit fields.
Well... for three hundred and fifty thousand spirit stones, no wonder it was sold so cheaply. It really was tiny.
Perhaps feeling a slight pang of conscience, the blue-robed cultivator offered a kind piece of advice after all. “The Eastern Territory is not what it used to be. It's better to keep some spirit stones on hand for your own security.”
Then he turned and slipped away, terrified that Xue Mingzhao might regret her decision.
The white-robed cultivator inwardly cursed the man for being dishonorable and burning his bridges.
He sized Xue Mingzhao up from head to toe, his gaze like he was looking at a walking bag of spirit stones.
He leaned in with a warm, friendly smile. “May I ask, Fellow Daoist, why are you buying land at a time like this?”
Xue Mingzhao grinned foolishly, her voice slow and slurred. “A few days ago, I had my fortune told by a roadside diviner. He said Dongcang Heavenly Capital is about to rise! So I'm striking first to secure some land and hoard it!”
Su Ye couldn't bear to look at his junior sister acting like a drooling idiot. He quietly lowered his hand and gave Xue Mingzhao's arm a gentle nudge behind his back, signaling: You're taking the act a bit too far!
Rate on N.U.
