Chapter 289 Senior Brother, The Dandy Young Master
Earlier—
In a dark stone room, silence reigned.
A woman wearing a snow-white nightsuit and a fox mask sat in meditation on a straw mat, her Qi visibly fluctuating.
*Jingle, jingle~~*
Suddenly, the sound of a bell shattered the quiet.
*!!*
Su Wan’er’s body trembled violently, losing control of the spiritual energy within her. She coughed up a mouthful of blood but quickly regained her composure, hastily calming her internal energy to avoid exploding.
“Hoo—”
Su Wan’er wiped the blood from her lips, turning to look at the jade bell placed on a simple altar with a fearful expression, her heart filled with lingering dread.
She had tried every method she could think of, but whether it was fire, a hammer, or her spirit sword, none could leave even a scratch on the jade bell, let alone get rid of it.
Therefore, she suspected the jade bell was a high-level tracking magical artifact, and a particularly terrifying one.
For the past month and a half, every time she rested or was completely focused, the jade bell would suddenly appear by her ear and ring twice out of nowhere.
It was bad enough that the jade bell startled her, but she was also terrified the old woman from Xuan Xing Sect would find her. The slightest sound around her would send her nerves on edge.
Under this dual pressure, she felt like she was going insane.
Su Wan’er looked at the bell, her face a mask of distress. She finally regretted her actions and slapped her own right hand with her left:
“Su Wan’er, you fool!! Why did you steal from that young lord? If you hadn’t stolen her things, why would you be suffering like this?”
She rubbed the back of her reddened right hand, then took a deep breath and said:
“Whatever! I won’t hide anymore. At worst, I’ll be caught by that old woman. Even if she’s petty, she’s a cultivator at the Deity Transformation stage. She wouldn’t stoop to my level as a mere Core Formation Stage cultivator, would she? At worst, I’ll kowtow to her, wash her feet, give her a massage…”
“But speaking of which, when did Xuan Xing Sect get a Second Miss? She looks at least ten years old. There wasn’t any news about her in the black market.”
“Sigh—”
Su Wan’er sighed, cupping her cheeks with both hands for courage.
Then, she stood up, took out a set of clothes from her Storage Bag, removed the snow-white nightsuit she had worn for over a month, and took off the fox mask.
Beneath the mask was a doll-like face, its eyes like ripe apricots and its lips like soft cherries, bearing a large red imprint from the mask.
She took out a bronze mirror and admired her face:
“Heh heh~ This fairy is truly beautiful.”
*Jingle, jingle~~~*
*!!!*
Startled, Su Wan’er leaped a foot into the air as the jade bell suddenly teleported to her shoulder. Gritting her teeth slightly, she grabbed the bell and glared, cursing:
“Xuan Xing Sect’s Second Miss, huh? If you have the guts, have your mother come catch me!! This fairy is waiting! Hmph…”
At worst, it would be kowtowing.
She didn’t say the latter part out loud, as it was too embarrassing.
Su Wan’er pouted, tied the jade bell to her belt, and with a Sword Finger gesture, her figure instantly transformed into a wisp of white smoke, drifting out through a crack in the stone room.
… …
—
Inside Jade Pass City, in the Jade Sand Pavilion’s teahouse.
The shopkeeper, a scar across his face, stood behind the counter, his abacus clicking rapidly. Every time a customer entered, he would glance up.
The shopkeeper’s name was Wu Guang, and he was the Pavilion Master of the “Jade Sand Pavilion.”
The “Jade Sand Pavilion” was a top-tier pawnshop in the black market, dealing exclusively in reselling. They had informants within every sect and no item they dared not sell, only customers who dared not buy.
They had even recently acquired a batch of goods from cultivators at the late Deity Transformation stage, just below the Golden Core stage, and were actively seeking buyers.
As he watched the teahouse patrons enter, Wu Guang felt a bit bored, thinking there wouldn’t be much business today. All the newcomers were just small rogue cultivators looking for tea, with no real profit to be made.
However, just as he thought this, a clear voice came from outside the counter:
“Boss, a bowl of Jade Sand’s best tea.”
This was the secret code for the Jade Sand Pavilion, indicating someone had something valuable to sell.
Wu Guang paused, then looked up. A little girl, not even as tall as the counter, walked in from the door. Seeing that she was already a Core Formation Stage cultivator, he no longer dared to judge her by her appearance:
“Isn’t this Miss Su? Have you… got some work again?”
“Indeed, a big job.”
Su Wan’er flashed a grin, walked to the counter, and directly took out a spirit sword wrapped in oilcloth from her Storage Bag, along with two seventh-grade Talisman Scripts.
“Shopkeeper, take a look and give me a price.”
Wu Guang paused, glanced at the two Fire Element Talisman Scripts, then picked up the spirit sword and weighed it. He drew out half an inch from the oilcloth, and his eyebrows shot up:
“Oh? This is quite good. Eighty thousand Spirit Stones. Miss Su is a regular customer, how about eighty-nine thousand for you?”
“Shopkeeper, I’ve been in this trade for decades. Your price might fool a child, but not me!”
“Ahaha…” Wu Guang chuckled slightly. “I thought Miss Su had only recently come to Jade Pass these past few months, and assumed you were new to the trade. My apologies, my apologies.”
“In that case, give me a fair price. I don’t have time to haggle with you.”
“Let’s round it up. Twenty-two thousand. I’ll make a small profit of fifty thousand. This sword sells for about twenty-five, perhaps more if I find a fool. The Talisman Scripts will be ten thousand each…”
As they were discussing this, a sudden *jingle* interrupted Wu Guang’s words. Su Wan’er was startled and quickly scanned her surroundings, fearing she was being found.
Seeing her reaction, Wu Guang pouted and calmly said:
“It seems Miss Su’s items were stolen? In that case, according to the rules, it’s half price.”
It was a rule of the trade that stolen goods were bought at half price, as there was always the risk of being found. Moreover, they didn’t know who the items were stolen from.
If it were an ordinary small cultivator, it would be manageable. But if they stole from a ruthless individual, it would be troublesome.
“…”
Su Wan’er gritted her teeth, glared fiercely at the bell on her waist, but said nothing, waving her hand:
“Fine.”
“So decisive?” Wu Guang raised an eyebrow, narrowing his eyes. “Did you perhaps acquire it from a cultivator in Jade Pass? It’s been a month since you obtained it. This is the rule. Breaking it will ruin your reputation, and you won’t be able to do business in the black market anymore.”
“I got it a month and a half ago. I know the rules of the trade better than you do.”
Su Wan’er gave him a sidelong glance and waved for him to hurry up and give her the money.
*Jingle, jingle~~*
At this moment, the bell rang again, and at the same time, a young master in a scholar’s robe, his hands behind his back, walked in.
Ye Anping crossed the threshold, scanned the shopkeeper and Su Wan’er at the counter, and approached, saying:
“Shopkeeper, a bowl of Jade Sand’s second-best tea.”
This was the secret code for someone seeking information.
Wu Guang furrowed his brow, shrinking his neck as he looked at Ye Anping, then at Su Wan’er. Why were all his customers today so short?
“Young Master, are you new to Jade Pass? You look unfamiliar.”
Ye Anping smiled and replied:
“I used to run a shop in the Xuan Xing Sect’s marketplace, but the owner ran off. Now I’m here to make a living.”
“Hoh~ To run a shop in Xuan Xing Sect’s marketplace, that’s quite impressive. What information are you looking for, Young Master?”
“For example…” Ye Anping narrowed his eyes, looking at Su Wan’er, his gaze sweeping over the bell on her waist. He put on a dandy persona and said, “The name of this beautiful lady, perhaps?”
Wu Guang’s face turned black at his words.
Damn it, he thought he had gained a customer, but this one was here to flirt.
“Tsk…”
… …
