A Small Windfall

Chapter 25: A Small Fortune

Upon entering the Marketplace, Lei Dong's eyes were opened. The Marketplace wasn't large, but it was filled with many antique-looking storefronts. Each shop sold a wide variety of dazzling Magic Items, Pills, and Talismans. Some stores sold everything, like convenience stores, while others specialized in Pills or Magic Items. Additionally, there was a street dedicated to cultivators setting up stalls to sell their wares. For the low price of one Spirit Stone, a cultivator could rent a stall for the entire day.

Lei Dong had never dreamed that so many cultivators would gather here. While not as crowded as a market day in his hometown, it was still bustling with people. After wandering around discreetly for half a day, Lei Dong gradually understood. Stores that sold everything had decent business, but precisely because they sold everything, it was hard to find high-quality goods.

Specialty stores operated professionally and, for long-term business, usually placed great emphasis on reputation. However, for small items, their prices were ten to twenty percent higher than those outside, though the quality was more assured. As for the miscellaneous stalls, they were run by individuals and offered a true hodgepodge, from a single Yin Mushroom to Magic Treasures used by Golden Core Cultivators. Of course, the quality of goods at these stalls was hard to guarantee. Many people, seeking bargains and hoping to strike it rich for cheap, often ended up losing out at these stalls.

Buyers were never as sharp as sellers. Based on Lei Dong's observations, most stall owners were seasoned veterans who had been hawking their wares here for years. The stalls seemed to have formed a tacit alliance, specifically targeting newcomers and low-level cultivators. However, a small minority were individuals who, dissatisfied with the shopkeepers' buy-back prices, chose to set up stalls themselves, hoping to get a better price.

Even for this latter group of stall owners, Lei Dong didn't dare to trust them easily. Who knew if they were just seasoned veterans pretending?

He spent one Spirit Stone to rent a room in an inconspicuous inn for a month. Every night, he practiced Qi and meditated in his room. During the day, he continued to wander around, occasionally striking up casual conversations with shop assistants and stall owners. Having lived two lives, Lei Dong, though not particularly worldly, understood more than others his age. He would seize moments when people were not busy to offer pleasantries and subtle flattery. Thus, though he didn't spend money to buy things, he didn't make himself disliked. Everything he heard and saw, he noted down and pondered in secret.

More than twenty days later, Lei Dong, full of confidence, stepped into a small shop specializing in the sale of Spirit Ghosts. As this area was still within the Yin Sha Sect's territory, most of the patrons were from heretical sects, and the market for Spirit Ghosts was quite substantial. Relying on hearsay and discreet inquiries, and after comparing several similar shops, he concluded that this Spirit Ghost shop had a good reputation, reasonable prices, and didn't cheat newcomers. Finally, Lei Dong decided to sell a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost here.

A young attendant, a mortal without any cultivation, listened carefully to Lei Dong's intentions and politely invited him into a private room. Knowing that the purchase of a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost was beyond his authority, he bowed and went to fetch the shopkeeper.

Soon, two young maidservants, no older than seventeen or eighteen, dressed in palace attire, came to pour tea and offer water. They were quite pretty and demure. However, having spent a long time in the Myriad Ghost Cave, Lei Dong wasn't particularly interested in them. Firstly, there were plenty of mortal maidservants of all kinds in the Myriad Ghost Cave. Secondly, Lei Dong felt he was still young and should focus his energy on cultivation.

A moment later, the shopkeeper, dressed in neat and tidy clothes and appearing to be middle-aged, walked in with a smile. "My apologies, my apologies. I was tied up with some urgent matters just now, and I've kept young brother waiting. I am the third shopkeeper of this Spirit Ghost Pavilion, my surname is Li. You can call me Old Li. May I know young brother's name?"

"Senior Li is too kind. This junior's surname is Chen, and my given name is Hua." Lei Dong stood up calmly and returned the bow. "Senior Li's cultivation far surpasses this junior's. How could I dare to be presumptuous?" In the Cultivation World, strength was paramount, and the law of the jungle prevailed. When encountering a higher-level cultivator who was stronger than oneself, it was best to be humble and discreet. Otherwise, a single careless word could lead to one's demise without even knowing how. Lei Dong couldn't see through the cultivation of this third shopkeeper who called himself Old Li, so how could he dare to address him as such?

After a few pleasantries, Shopkeeper Li, while sipping his tea, smiled and said, "I heard from the attendant that young brother Chen has a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost to sell to our pavilion. Here, I, Li, thank young brother for his trust in our establishment. Young brother Chen must have inquired about our reputation before coming. I can assure you here that as long as they are our customers, we will absolutely not leak any information about them to outsiders, and we will ensure that the transaction is fair and just, so that young brother will not suffer any losses."

Lei Dong nodded. Business, especially long-term business, indeed placed great importance on reputation. But he also understood that if what he brought out made them extremely covetous, and they could easily eliminate him without anyone noticing, they wouldn't mind seizing an opportunity to act as bandits. This was a matter of boundaries. As the saying goes, it's not that betrayal won't happen, but that the stakes for betrayal are too low, and the cost is too high.

However, given the strength and reputation of the Spirit Ghost Pavilion, taking the risk of eliminating him for a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost was not proportional to the potential gains and losses. Therefore, Lei Dong felt relatively at ease. Of course, keeping an extra eye out and maintaining a degree of vigilance was still necessary, as his current strength was too weak.

"This is a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost that I happened to capture while on a sect mission. The reason I'm selling it is twofold: firstly, I don't primarily cultivate the Ghost Taming Art, and secondly, I don't want my fellow disciples to be too envious of me." Lei Dong said these words discreetly, explaining why he was selling it and subtly indicating that he was a disciple of a sect, not a low-level rogue cultivator found everywhere.

Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Li became even more enthusiastic. Disciples of sects and rogue cultivators were indeed vastly different. If a sect disciple, even the lowest-ranking one, suffered a loss while traveling outside, the sect would definitely investigate and retaliate. This was a survival law of sects; if their disciples were bullied and they didn't intervene, acting like cowards, the sect's cohesion would gradually dissipate over time. When the hearts of the people were lost, the sect would naturally decline.

Especially since this area was still within the Yin Sha Sect's sphere of influence. The nearest other sect seemed to be tens of thousands of miles away. This indicated that if the young brother's words were true, he should be a disciple of the Yin Sha Sect. Shopkeeper Li wouldn't even entertain the thought of offending such a behemoth as the Yin Sha Sect.

"Young brother Chen, please rest assured, the details of this transaction will not be leaked in the slightest." Shopkeeper Li said solemnly, "As for that attendant, I will personally handle him."

Lei Dong was slightly taken aback and couldn't help but chuckle. "That won't be necessary. The situation is not as serious as Shopkeeper Li imagines. It's enough if it's not publicized." He secretly thought that Shopkeeper Li had likely guessed he was a disciple of the Yin Sha Sect, otherwise, he wouldn't be so cautious. But it didn't matter. There were plenty of Yin Sha Sect cave mansions; no one would be so bored as to investigate him for a Middle Grade Spirit Ghost.

Shopkeeper Li also felt a slight relief. After all, it took considerable effort to train a clever and capable attendant. After a moment of thought, he asked, "May I know at what price young brother wishes to sell it to us?"

Before coming, Lei Dong had carefully researched the price of Middle Grade Spirit Ghosts. In a reputable specialty store like the Spirit Ghost Pavilion, Middle Grade Spirit Ghosts were considered relatively rare. Because of their rarity, they were usually sold externally for around thirteen to fourteen hundred Spirits, and they were quite sought after. Lei Dong, having already decided on a price, said steadily, "One thousand two hundred Spirits."

Shopkeeper Li's expression faltered slightly, and he let out a wry smile. "Young brother's price is a bit high. Although we can sell them for around thirteen to fourteen hundred externally, our shop is located here, and our expenses for rent, taxes, and personnel are not low. If you agree to sell for one thousand Spirits, we can conclude the transaction immediately."

"You can't say that. Middle Grade Spirit Ghosts are rare items and in high demand. Shopkeeper Li, once you acquire it, you'll make two hundred Spirits profit just by reselling it. If you don't do this business, doesn't your shop still need to pay rent and other expenses? It's just a casual transaction." Lei Dong said, sipping his tea and speaking eloquently. It wasn't that he was eager to haggle, but such a large transaction, involving tens or hundreds of Spirit Stones back and forth, was not a small sum. Although he had the Soul Devouring Pagoda, which could produce Middle Grade Spirit Ghosts, if he didn't restrain himself and sold them everywhere, his end would not be far off.

After a back-and-forth exchange, Lei Dong, who stubbornly held his ground, managed to sell it for one thousand one hundred Spirits. This was already four hundred Spirits more than he had estimated before coming to the Marketplace. He couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction; his Spirit Stone assets had finally exceeded a thousand.