bookrebus Chapter 4 Wandering Outside
Chapter 4 Wandering Outside
Liu Jun vanished from their sight in a flash, and Xing Lou and Lü Yuanbai finally breathed a sigh of relief.
They hadn't received a single word about the dignified sect's patriarch coming out of seclusion, and to make matters worse, he'd stumbled upon such a sordid affair right after emerging from seclusion. Lu Yuanbai felt immense pressure; it seemed the Xuanshan Sect needed a thorough overhaul.
Although he hadn't been involved in student recruitment for the past few years, leaving it all to his subordinates, as the head of a sect and also the head of the Xuanshan Sect, he had many other matters to attend to, and such trivial matters as student recruitment were none of his concern.
But since the patriarch has spoken, he has no choice but to intervene.
Lu Yuanbai and Xing Lou exchanged a glance, and Xing Lou spoke first: "Then I'll go and get the person first. Don't touch that game of chess yet; we'll play it again next time."
Lu Yuanbai didn't say anything more, and bowed as he saw the person off.
This sect is going to be quite lively for a while.
……
After showing off, Liu Xingxing quickly arrived at the city closest to Xuanshan Gate, and also picked up a few books on the customs and products of the Yuanzhou Continent and a map.
Having just emerged from seclusion, she knew nothing about what the Yuanzhou Continent looked like now. Liu Jun's memories were all from a thousand years ago, so it was necessary for her to learn more about it.
This Deer Mountain City is under the jurisdiction of Xuanshan Sect. Liu Xingxing casually took out a spirit stone and planned to stay in the restaurant here for a few days, and take the opportunity to learn about the current situation of the world before deciding where to go for fun.
But then he suddenly realized that the most basic thing in Liu Jun's property seemed to be high-grade spirit stones, which were piled up in his sea of consciousness, but he didn't even have a single mid-grade or low-grade one.
When the waiter at the restaurant saw the person in front of him casually take out a high-grade spirit stone, his eyes lit up. Liu Xingxing stared blankly at the spirit stone in her hand for a moment before she reacted.
It was due to carelessness. Ordinary cultivators rarely use high-grade spirit stones as common currency. They usually use them either to absorb the spiritual essence contained within the spirit stones to enhance their spiritual power, or to exchange them for various high-grade pills and magic treasures. How could they use them for something as trivial as staying at an inn, especially since these are high-grade spirit stones with extremely high purity?
Liu Xingxing scratched her head awkwardly: "Will you be able to open this?"
"Please wait a moment, young lady, I'll go ask the shopkeeper."
The waiter dashed off to find the manager, as if afraid the customer would run away.
Liu Xingxing quietly put the spirit stones into her pocket. She understood the principle of not flaunting wealth, and she noticed that no one in the restaurant would casually show off high-grade spirit stones.
A moment later, the innkeeper hurried over, politely cupped his hands in a bow, and said with a smile, "Miss, are you planning to stay here for a few days?"
Liu Xingxing considered for a moment, then took out the spirit stone from earlier: "Hmm... five days then."
"For five days, one mid-grade spirit stone and twenty low-grade spirit stones will suffice, you..."
The shopkeeper was a shrewd man; he could tell at a glance that the spirit stone was of very good quality.
On the Yuanzhou Continent, spirit stones are exchanged at a ratio of one to one hundred, but few people would exchange high-grade spirit stones for mid-grade or low-grade spirit stones. After all, high-grade spirit stones are not common, and the next level up is the top-grade spirit stone, which is even rarer.
Liu Xingxing didn't waste any words: "You just need to tell me whether you can find the money or not."
The shopkeeper was in a dilemma. His small shop mainly accepted mid-grade spirit stones. Even if he accepted spirit stones of this quality, he might not be able to keep them. Moreover, most of the people in the restaurant had seen them. They might disappear one day. Who could he complain to then? Besides, with his cultivation level, even if he absorbed them, it would be a waste and wouldn't be of much use.
After thinking it over for a while, the shopkeeper finally spoke: "Miss, why don't you go find a place to exchange it first? I really can't accept this."
Liu Xingxing was puzzled. "Isn't it possible to open a restaurant for a hundred mid-grade spirit stones? This restaurant doesn't seem like it could afford a hundred mid-grade spirit stones."
I don't understand.
Liu Xingxing didn't press him further: "Does the shopkeeper know where they can accept it?"
The shopkeeper thought for a moment and then said, "There's an auction in the east of the city today. Miss, you might want to go and take a look."
Someone who can casually take out high-grade spirit stones is probably not short of money, so the shopkeeper's suggestion is reasonable.
Liu Xingxing thought about it for a moment and realized that it made sense; there were no shops like money exchanges in the cultivation world, so it couldn't be exchanged.
Moreover, although Lushan City is close to Xuanshan Gate, it is not a big place. There is no need to go to a shop that sells magic weapons and pills to buy things. Liu Jun has plenty of those kinds of things in his property.
Auctions are a good place to go; you can just take some things and sell them to make some change.
Liu Xingxing immediately decided: "Alright, then thank you, shopkeeper."
It would be nice to take a look at what an auction is like and broaden one's horizons.
The shrewd innkeeper added, "If you wish to return later, I will certainly reserve a superior room for you."
The shopkeeper was quite tactful; his implication was that he wasn't trying to drive customers away, but rather that there was a real reason for the difficulty.
Liu Xingxing didn't mind, nodded to indicate that she understood, and went out the door to the east.
We walked for quite a while before finally arriving at the auction venue the shopkeeper had mentioned.
"Changqing Tower?"
Liu Xingxing looked at the huge auction building in front of her and muttered something.
I've never heard of it, nor has it appeared in any novels. It probably isn't a big place.
However, there are quite a lot of people at this auction house. People are still constantly going in, and there are two people at the entrance verifying their funds.
With so many people around, Liu Xingxing secretly disguised herself by wearing a veil. She took an unknown ring from her consciousness space, disguised it as a storage ring, and moved a handful of spirit stones into it.
With everything ready, Liu Xingxing walked over.
The person verifying the funds glanced at Liu Xingxing and said, "Excuse me, could you please verify my funds?"
Liu Xingxing didn't say anything, but raised the hand with the ring on it. The man waved an unknown object above the ring, and a string of numbers appeared.
The man glanced at the number and exclaimed in astonishment, "Twenty-two thousand..."
Liu Xingxing was stunned. What? Did they put in too little?
The man said respectfully, "This way, esteemed guest."
Liu Xingxing paused for a moment, then realized that too much had been added.
In the novels she had read before, only wealthy families attended auctions, so Liu Xingxing deliberately put in extra supplies, but she never expected...
The man personally led Liu Xingxing through another door, and after entering, they walked into a large hall. Then, the man said something to the person guarding the hall and left.
The man guarding the hall glanced at Liu Xingxing in surprise, then put on a professional smile and walked over, saying, "Honored guest, please wait a moment. I'll go find someone to come and receive you."
After saying that, he left.
Liu Xingxing glanced around the hall and saw several people, like her, sitting in various places, hiding their faces. They glanced at her when she came in but didn't react much.
They all seem to be quite capable people.
Liu Xingxing also found a place to sit down casually, and before two minutes had passed, she saw the person from before walk over with another person.
The man said to the person next to him, "Manager Mo, this is the one."
After saying that, he returned to the spot where he had first seen her.
Manager Mo bowed and smiled, "May I ask whether you have come here to auction items or to buy something?"
Liu Xingxing picked out a pill in a jade bottle and said, "Manager Mo, right? What price do you think this pill can fetch?"
Liu Xingxing specifically chose the lowest-grade pill that she could guarantee in the space; she dared not take out anything else, in case she had some "good stuff" with her.
Mo Cao cautiously took the pill, opened the lid, and smelled it. His eyes lit up immediately. He closed the lid and smiled as always, "A fifth-grade high-quality Rejuvenation Pill. A good item. According to the rules of the building, the starting price for one pill is two thousand mid-grade spirit stones. The building will also take five percent of the auction price. What do you think, esteemed guest?"
Auctions typically start with mid-grade spirit stones to avoid appearing too high or too low, and a consignment fee is also charged – this is the rule.
Liu Xingxing said there was no major problem. Having a basic currency made things easier. Going out to play would require money, and there were three pills in the jade bottle, which meant a lot of mid-grade spirit stones. She was really happy.
"Very good."
Liu Xingxing did not show much emotion.
Mo Cao then said, "Honorable guest, please rest for a while. I will make the arrangements immediately. The auction will not start for a while. I will arrange your seat as well. If you see anything else you like, please feel free to bid on it."
"Excuse me."
Mo Cao bowed and withdrew.
With nothing else to do, Liu Xingxing began to study the people who were also waiting in the lobby.
It's impossible to use one's divine sense to observe, as that would expose them. So Liu Xingxing could only observe with her eyes.
After looking for a long time, they still couldn't figure it out. Not long after, a group of people came in and invited them over.
Liu Xingxing was led to an elegant room by a scantily clad girl. Opening the window revealed a panoramic view of the auction below.
There were still quite a few people gathered below, presumably also there for the auction, but Xiao Qianqian probably didn't have as many as Liu Xingxing, who had rooms to sit in.
The person on stage cleared his throat three times: "Ahem, everyone, this auction is about to begin."