Sold

Chapter 7: Selling

A quarter of an hour later, Shi Yue arrived at the entrance to the valley. The sound of a bustling crowd drifted from within.

A white stone stele stood at the valley entrance, with four large vermilion characters carved into it: "Great Void Market."

Shi Yue's eyes flickered, and he strode into the valley.

The market had only one street, running north to south. Neat rows of buildings lined both sides, and the shops varied in size. The tallest were pavilions more than ten zhang high, while the shortest were stone houses barely one zhang tall.

The street was bustling, the crowd surging like a tide. Cultivators streamed in and out of the shops, filling the market with life.

Shi Yue had visited the market many times and knew his way around.

Before long, he arrived at a two-story pavilion with a signboard reading "Spirit Grain Studio."

The name made it clear that the shop dealt in Spirit Grain.

Behind a long counter sat several leather sacks, each filled to the brim with Spirit Grain. A faint, sweet fragrance hung in the air.

Three shop assistants in matching green robes stood behind the counter, explaining the uses of Spirit Grain to several customers.

"Fellow Daoist, how may I help you?" A green-robed shop assistant asked with a smile as Shi Yue approached the counter.

"Do you buy Spirit Grain?" Shi Yue asked directly.

"We do. Please follow me." The shop assistant nodded and led Shi Yue into a side room.

"There's no one else here. You can take out the Spirit Grain you want to sell, and I'll make you an offer based on its quality."

Shi Yue nodded, took a grain of rice from his Storage Bag, and handed it to the shop assistant.

The assistant rubbed it between his hands, and the husk crumbled like paper, revealing a snow-white grain of rice that gave off a faint, sweet fragrance.

He took out a golden dagger, sliced off a small piece of Spirit Rice, and chewed it a few times.

"Low-grade Spirit Grain. One Spirit Stone per pound. What do you think, fellow Daoist?" The assistant narrowed his eyes and asked with a smile.

"That's fine. Weigh it and tell me how many pounds there are, and how many Spirit Stones they're worth." Shi Yue nodded and tossed the Storage Bag containing the Spirit Rice to him.

The assistant flipped his hand and produced a palm-sized Silver Disc, engraved with several numbers.

After he infused it with magical power, the Silver Disc expanded to five or six zhang across.

The assistant tossed the Storage Bag into the air and made a hand seal at it. The bag's mouth sprang open, and a beam of rosy light shot out, landing on the Silver Disc.

The light faded, leaving a large pile of fist-sized grains of rice on the disc.

"Eighty-seven pounds in all, worth eighty-seven Spirit Stones," the assistant said, stepping forward and checking the lower-right corner of the Silver Disc.

Shi Yue went over and saw the three black characters for "eighty-seven" displayed in the disc's lower-right corner.

"Deal." Shi Yue nodded. The weight was just as he'd expected.

He took a Storage Bag from the assistant, confirmed the amount was correct, and walked out.

As he left the Spirit Grain Studio, a faint smile crossed Shi Yue's face. You reaped what you sowed. The moment the Spirit Stones were in his hands, a year of hard work seemed to vanish.

With eighty-seven Spirit Stones suddenly on him, everyone on the street looked like a thief.

Now that he had Spirit Stones, naturally he would buy pills to aid his cultivation.

Shi Yue walked down the street. Before long, he arrived at an elegantly decorated pavilion. Above the entrance hung a golden signboard about one zhang wide, with three flowing characters written across it: "Hundred Pills Pavilion."

The hall was bustling with two or three dozen cultivators, all clustered around several counters, talking with shop assistants dressed in red.

Shi Yue glanced around and headed for the counter with the shortest line.

"One bottle of Qi Refining Powder costs twenty Spirit Stones? That's far too expensive! Can't you lower the price a little? I'll buy two bottles." A middle-aged man stood at the counter, haggling.

"You get what you pay for. This Qi Refining Powder was refined by alchemists of the Great Void Sect, and its quality is definitely much better than what you'll find at roadside stalls. You're already at the peak of Qi Refining Level 7. Take some Qi Refining Powder, and you may well break through to Qi Refining Level 8." The shop assistant spoke in a persuasive tone.

"All right. Give me two bottles." The middle-aged man thought it over, then spoke.

After paying the Spirit Stones, the man tucked away two bottles of Qi Refining Powder and left. Shi Yue took the opportunity to hurry over.

"Fellow Daoist, what would you like?" The shop assistant asked with a smile.

"Two bottles of Qi Refining Powder," Shi Yue said directly.

The shop assistant nodded, took two White Porcelain Bottles from the shelves behind him, and handed them to Shi Yue.

Shi Yue pulled out the stoppers and sniffed the contents, then nodded, paid the Spirit Stones, and left with the two bottles of Qi Refining Powder.

Five li outside the market, Shi Yue mounted his flying artifact and headed back to the sect.

After returning to his quarters, Shi Yue sat cross-legged on the stone bed, took out a White Porcelain Bottle, poured out a Green Pill, and swallowed it.

The pill melted as soon as it entered his mouth, turning into a stream of pure spiritual energy that flowed through his meridians.

He hurriedly circulated the Great Void Art to refine the pure spiritual energy, then slowly closed his eyes.

The next morning, as soon as he woke, Shi Yue could sense the changes in his body. His spiritual sense was far sharper than before, especially in its perception of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy.

Shi Yue's face lit up with joy. He knew exactly what it meant: he had advanced to Qi Refining Level 3.

He had been stuck at Qi Refining Level 2 for more than two years. He should have advanced to Level 3 long ago, but he hadn't had any Spirit Stones to buy Qi Refining Powder and cultivate with. He had only managed to break through now.

Spirit Stones were wonderful!

Shi Yue calmed his excitement and entered the Mysterious Space.

Compared with the day before, the plants in the three mu of Spirit Fields had all grown much taller.

Shi Yue made a circuit around the three Spirit Fields, carefully inspecting every plant. After confirming that nothing was wrong, he nodded with satisfaction.

Shi Yue formed hand seals with both hands. Waves of blue light appeared out of thin air above his head, gathering into a white cloud several dozen zhang across.

"Go!" Shi Yue pointed ahead, and the white cloud swiftly flew above the Spirit Rice.

Raindrops as large as beans poured down, landing on the mu of Spirit Rice.

A little over half a quarter of an hour later, the rain stopped. The white cloud flew to the left and reached the Blazing Sun Grass.

Shi Yue formed a hand seal with one hand. The white cloud churned, and a gentle drizzle fell from it, sprinkling over the Blazing Sun Grass.

Half a quarter of an hour later, the rain stopped, and the white cloud flew above the Condensing Smoke Grass. It churned, then raindrops as large as beans poured down.

A quarter of an hour later, Shi Yue withdrew the hand seal, and the white cloud dispersed.

After advancing to Qi Refining Level 3, Shi Yue found it much easier to water the three Spirit Fields. The trouble was that the Spirit Rice, Blazing Sun Grass, and Condensing Smoke Grass required different amounts of water, so he had to water each crop separately.

But when he thought of the Spirit Stones he could earn, the work no longer seemed like a bother.

After harvesting the Spirit Rice, the Spirit Field in the courtyard had been left empty. Shi Yue needed to buy a batch of Spirit Rice Seeds and plant them as soon as possible. He also needed to go to the Deacon Hall to collect his regular assignment; otherwise, he wouldn't earn even a single Spirit Stone this month.

As he thought it over, Shi Yue left the Mysterious Space and flew toward the Deacon Hall on his flying artifact.