Gu Shenge withdrew his Dou Emperor pressure. Ya Fei immediately felt the weight lift from her back, but she still didn't dare get up. Awe was plain on her lovely face; it seemed she wouldn't rise unless Gu Shenge told her to.
"Get up."
Only then did Ya Fei dare to stand. She respectfully took her place beside Gu Shenge as he pointed to the three items on the table and explained their uses to his newly taken concubine.
"As my concubine, you naturally won't be treated poorly. This is a seventh-grade Dou Di Bloodline. Fuse with it, and your cultivation aptitude will improve significantly. As long as you work hard, reaching Dou Zun won't be a problem."
"This jade slip contains a Heaven-tier low-grade technique called the Wind Dwelling Cloud Spirit Technique. And that card is a Dou King Inheritance Card. Use it, and your cultivation will rise to One-Star Dou Wang without any side effects."
Looking at the three treasures, surprise appeared in Ya Fei's beautiful eyes. A Heaven-tier technique and an inheritance card that could raise her cultivation to Dou Wang without side effects—suddenly, she felt that becoming Gu Shenge's concubine might have been a great bargain.
Although the man before her had her in his grasp, with his help she could take control of the Mittel Family. She would have to submit to only one person, yet stand above thousands. That wasn't so bad.
At this thought, a flattering smile appeared on Ya Fei's alluring face. Her red lips parted, her voice turning bone-meltingly sweet, and even the way she addressed him changed.
"Thank you... for your reward, Master."
Gu Shenge didn't seem particularly interested in the title. He shook his head and told Ya Fei to call him something else.
"You don't need to call me Master. From now on, you can call me Palace Master."
As the master of the Nine Luminaries Heavenly Palace, Palace Master was a more fitting title for him.
"Yes, Palace Master." Ya Fei immediately corrected herself.
"Use these three items soon. I'll come see you again tomorrow. Then I'll arrange for you to meet someone who'll help you take control of the Mittel Family."
Gu Shenge took a sip of tea and gave Ya Fei his instructions. He couldn't go to Jia Ma Holy City himself to help her take control of the Mittel Family, but he could prepare someone to assist her. With that person's help, Ya Fei could take control of the family legitimately.
Ya Fei nodded obediently and put the three treasures into her Storage Ring.
"Hmm?" Gu Shenge suddenly furrowed his brow, sprang to his feet, and shot out of the reception room as a streak of golden sword light. Ya Fei was left confused. What had happened?
Xiao Yan, who was outside the door, saw a streak of golden sword light shoot out of the reception room. Unable to make out who it was, he hurried inside and asked Ya Fei, "Sister Ya Fei, what was that just now?"
"Your big brother's friend. Xiao Yan, you've really gotten your sister into trouble this time."
After explaining, Ya Fei reproached Xiao Yan in a resentful tone. Of course, she knew it wasn't truly his fault. Even if he hadn't brought Gu Shenge to her, Gu Shenge would have found her anyway.
Xiao Yan was utterly bewildered. How had he gotten her into trouble?
Seeing his confused expression, Ya Fei didn't bother arguing with him. She simply told him to hurry after Gu Shenge. He had left in such a rush that something must have happened.
Xiao Yan apologized to Ya Fei, then left the Miteer Auction House.
Ya Fei gently touched her Storage Ring with a jade-like finger and sighed softly.
More than half an hour earlier.
A medium-sized market in eastern Wutan City had once belonged to the Jia Lie Clan. But after the Jia Lie Clan lost its struggle against the Xiao Clan, Xiao Yan had bought the market at a low price, and it had become the Xiao Clan's property.
The market was packed with people and deafeningly noisy. Shops stood in rows, and vendors filled the streets with their stalls. Pickpockets lurked in the crowds, making it a thoroughly mixed place where the careless could easily lose their money.
Three Xiao Clan disciples followed Qing Lin without getting too close, keeping a dozen meters between themselves and the little beauty with a snake's lower body. From that distance, they could keep an eye on her without disturbing her.
Qing Lin crouched in front of a stall and admired the various jade ornaments on display, her beautiful eyes full of interest. She began browsing, and the stall owner immediately started promoting his wares.
"Little miss, you're naturally beautiful and charming, but you're missing one thing. This bracelet is made from the finest Hanqing Jade. Wear it, and it'll keep you cool all the time. Why not try it on?"
Qing Lin immediately became interested. After all, things like this were rare—
With the stall owner's help, she slipped the Hanqing Jade Bracelet onto her slender wrist, while the man wore a strange smile.
Just as expected, the little beauty with a snake's lower body had barely put on the bracelet when it suddenly snapped in two and fell to the ground, shattering into pieces. Wisps of cold air seeped from the fragments.
Seeing this, a look of bewilderment appeared on Qing Lin's small face. She hadn't expected the bracelet to be so fragile; it had cracked as soon as she put it on.
"Little miss, how could you be so careless? This Hanqing Jade Bracelet is worth two thousand gold coins! If I hadn't thought it would suit you, I never would've let you try it on. Sigh, I guess it's just my bad luck today. It's not entirely your fault, so how about you pay me a thousand gold coins? What a disaster! My Hanqing Jade Bracelet!"
The vendor cried out at just the right moment, his expression exaggerated and his face full of anguish, as though his parents had just died.
At his cry, several men and women in different kinds of clothing gathered around, surrounding Qing Lin and the stall as they started chattering over one another.
"Yikes! Old Chen, isn't that your most prized Hanqing Jade Bracelet? How'd it get broken? What a shame."
"Little girl, you broke his Hanqing Jade Bracelet. Pay up, or the market guards will teach you a lesson!"
"Little miss, you're so careless! Good thing Old Chen's kindhearted and is only making you pay half. Hurry up and hand over the money."
Some blamed Qing Lin, some lamented the broken Hanqing Jade Bracelet, and others urged her to pay.
The other vendors had seen this happen often enough that they weren't surprised. They all looked at Qing Lin with pity. That little girl was in for trouble.
Surrounded by so many people, Qing Lin heard accusation after accusation, each one bringing back painful memories. Her lovely little face turned pale, and her small hands clenched involuntarily, as if she were trying to hold something back.
Seeing this, the three Xiao Clan disciples standing some distance away grew angry. They immediately realized that the market vendors had set up one of their honored guests.
The market had once belonged to the Jia Lie Clan, and the Xiao Clan had only taken it over recently. They hadn't yet had time to deal with all its problems. One of the Xiao Clan disciples went to find the market guards, while the other two stepped forward to rescue Qing Lin.
Seeing the nervous look on Qing Lin's face, the bracelet seller looked pleased with himself. But then he noticed the green snake scales on the little beauty's wrist. His expression shifted as he realized something, and he suddenly grabbed Qing Lin by the wrist.
"What are you doing?!"
The sudden movement startled Qing Lin. When the vendor tried to pull at her sleeve, it pushed the little beauty with a snake's lower body over the edge. A brilliant, eerie glow shone from her turquoise eyes. Three little green flowers appeared and spun rapidly as a turquoise spatial vortex opened. A red serpent shadow with two heads emerged from within.
The sight terrified the surrounding vendors. They abandoned their stalls and fled, and the hired "spectators" scattered in panic as well. Only the vendor gripping Qing Lin's wrist remained, frozen in place, his whole body limp and unable to move.
PS: Just to be clear, the protagonist isn't a womanizer. [Marry Wives and Take Concubines] is only one part of the system's functions; other functions will be unlocked later. Also, in response to a comment claiming that the protagonist took Yue Mei and Hua She'er as concubines but didn't sleep with them, so he must be impotent and pretending to be a gentleman:
This was made very clear in the story: the protagonist took Yue Mei as a concubine not because he liked her, but simply to test the system's function—to see whether taking a concubine gave the same huge bonus as getting married.
If you have any other questions, leave them in the comments. I'll answer them one by one and make changes if needed.
The second world is the Douluo World. I'll have Xiao Yan take on Tang San then, hehehe~
Before you continue