He found an empty spot at the entrance to an alley with a decent amount of foot traffic.
Imitating the nearby stall owners, he pulled a piece of rag from his Universe Bag and spread it on the ground.
Then he took a deep breath. With a thought, he laid out the treasures he had repaired the night before, one by one.
He placed the Black Iron Shield, restored to its original condition and gleaming with a steady metallic sheen, in the most conspicuous spot.
Beside it was the Green Edge Sword, its blade gleaming with a cold light.
Next to that was the Sharp Metal Talisman, a sheet of yellow paper covered in cinnabar and marked with profound runes.
Finally, there were a few other odds and ends he had repaired.
Although these were all the lowest-grade, first-tier Dharma Artifacts, among the nearby stalls selling scrap metal and damaged talisman papers,
his stall's pristine wares stood out like a crane among chickens!
Sure enough, the moment he finished setting them out, they caught the eyes of several passing disciples.
"Hey, that shield looks pretty good. It's in great shape."
"That sword's not bad either. It looks brand-new."
Alchemy pills were too expensive for most low-level disciples to afford.
If they wanted to boost their combat strength or have an extra means of staying alive when they went out on missions, buying practical Dharma Artifacts and talismans was the best choice.
Before long, a small crowd had gathered around Zhou Xuan's stall.
He didn't call out to passersby. He simply sat cross-legged, looking utterly composed and inscrutable.
Just then, a commotion of approaching footsteps sounded.
An invisible force parted the crowd.
Zhou Xuan looked up and saw several men in the white robes of Inner Sect Disciples swaggering toward him.
The one leading them was a young man in his early twenties. His face was haughty, his chin slightly raised, and his eyes held a condescending air of appraisal.
The lackeys behind him wore obsequious smiles.
"Well, well. Didn't expect to find wares of this quality around here."
The leading Inner Sect Disciple spotted the Black Iron Shield at once, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes.
He walked up to the stall and, without asking the price, bent down and reached for the shield.
Zhou Xuan furrowed his brows, but before he could speak, one of the lackeys beside the Inner Sect Disciple immediately barked at him with borrowed authority. "What are you looking at? It's your good fortune that Senior Brother Wang likes your things!"
Zhou Xuan sneered inwardly, but his face remained impassive.
The Inner Sect Disciple called Senior Brother Wang picked up the Black Iron Shield and weighed it in his hand. Then he tapped it with a finger, drawing a clear metallic ring.
"Hmm, not bad. It's made of Mystic Iron. The weight and quality are right."
He nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Zhou Xuan with some puzzlement.
"Is this shield new?"
The people nearby also turned curious eyes toward them.
Zhou Xuan had prepared for this. He put on an honest, simple smile.
He scratched his head and said, "To answer your question, Senior Brother, it isn't new. One of my elders used it years ago. I never had the heart to sell it, but money's tight lately, so I brought it out to trade for some Spirit Stones."
His story was airtight.
Senior Brother Wang didn't suspect a thing. He turned the shield over in his hands, liking it more with every look.
For Inner Sect Disciples like them, who often went out to gain experience, a sturdy shield could save their lives at a critical moment.
He casually tossed the shield to one of his lackeys, then pointed his chin at the stall and asked arrogantly,
"How much for this shield?"
Zhou Xuan sneered inwardly, but his face took on a touch of honest awkwardness.
He rubbed his hands together, glanced cautiously at Senior Brother Wang, then held up eight fingers.
"Senior Brother Wang, you know good quality when you see it. This Black Iron Shield may have belonged to one of my elders, but you can see for yourself how well it's been kept. It's the genuine article."
"If you're serious about buying it, eight Low-grade Spirit Stones."
As he named the price, Zhou Xuan's heart bled.
Damn it! Eight Low-grade Spirit Stones!
Repairing this thing cost me a full fifty Gold Touch Value!
At a rate of three Gold Touch Value per Low-grade Spirit Stone, the repair cost alone came to more than sixteen Low-grade Spirit Stones!
I'm selling it at half the cost!
But Zhou Xuan knew better than to count it that way. He was just an unknown Chore Disciple, new to the place.
If he wanted to establish himself here, he had to bring out something impressive enough to command respect.
The Black Iron Shield was his ticket to making a name for himself!
Losing money to make a splash was worth it!
Yet the fair price that he thought had already left him with nothing but his shirt seemed like the funniest joke in the world to Senior Brother Wang.
"How much?"
Before Senior Brother Wang could speak, one of his lackeys leaped forward and jabbed a finger at Zhou Xuan's nose, letting out a shrill cry.
"Eight Low-grade Spirit Stones? Why don't you just rob someone!"
"It's just some broken shield, and you've got the nerve to ask for a king's ransom!"
Another lackey chimed in mockingly. "Kid, are you dreaming? Do you even know who Senior Brother Wang is?"
"You should be grateful he likes your stuff. That's a blessing your ancestors earned over eight lifetimes, and you still dare to name some ridiculous price?"
Senior Brother Wang himself said nothing, but his narrowed eyes and the sneer at the corner of his mouth made his attitude perfectly clear.
He leisurely took the shield back from his lackey and tossed it in his hand, speaking in a tone of condescending charity. "Kid, you look like a dirt-poor Chore Disciple. It can't be easy, scraping together a living out here."
"How about this? I'll give you three Low-grade Spirit Stones for the shield."
He held up three fingers and waggled them in front of Zhou Xuan.
"Three Spirit Stones should be enough to pay a Chore Disciple like you for several years' work at the Miscellaneous Affairs Department. Take the money and get lost."
The disciples watching immediately began murmuring among themselves.
"Three Spirit Stones for a perfectly good Black Iron Shield? That's outrageous!"
"Shh, keep your voice down. That's Senior Brother Wang Teng from the Azure Cloud Peak of the Inner Sect. He's notorious for throwing his weight around. You want to provoke him?"
"Poor Chore Disciple. He's had the misfortune of catching the eye of a man like that."
The smile slowly faded from Zhou Xuan's face.
Now he understood.
These men hadn't come to buy anything at all.
They'd decided he was just a Chore Disciple, an easy target, and were using their status to rob him in broad daylight!
Three Spirit Stones? Did they think they were tossing a coin to a beggar?
Rage surged in Zhou Xuan's heart, but reason told him he couldn't lose his temper.
This was Yunlai Market, where the Deacon Hall's rules applied. They wouldn't dare actually lay hands on him.
He took a deep breath, forced a polite smile back onto his face, and cupped his hands toward Wang Teng.
"Senior Brother Wang, I'm truly sorry, but this shield was left to me by an elder, and it means a lot to me. I really can't sell it for less than eight Spirit Stones."
His tone was deferential, but his meaning was firm.
"If you don't think the price is right, then let's leave it at that. Please take a look at the other stalls. You might find something more to your liking."
With that, he reached out to take the Black Iron Shield back.
To Wang Teng and his lackeys, Zhou Xuan's calm, unyielding words were nothing less than a blatant provocation!
A worthless Chore Disciple who chopped wood and hauled water dared refuse the kindness of an Inner Sect Disciple?
The world had turned upside down!
"Kid, don't push your luck!"
The lackey who had jumped in first darkened his expression and clamped a hand over Zhou Xuan's as it reached for the shield. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes.
Wang Teng's face turned completely dark as well. He glared at Zhou Xuan and said in a frigid voice, "I'll ask you one more time. Three Spirit Stones. You selling or not?"
A faint spiritual pressure spread from him, bearing down on Zhou Xuan.
Zhou Xuan felt his shoulders sink, as if a boulder had been dropped on them.
But he still stood straight, his gaze unwavering.
"I'm not selling."
He spoke each word distinctly.
"Good. Very good!"
Wang Teng laughed in fury. He released the shield and slammed it back onto Zhou Xuan's stall with a dull thud.
"A Chore Disciple dares to put on airs with me, Wang Teng! I'll remember you!"
He pointed at Zhou Xuan's nose, his eyes openly venomous.
"Just you wait, kid. Let's see if you can keep doing business here in Yunlai Market!"
After delivering his threat, Wang Teng didn't spare him another glance. He turned and strode off with his lackeys.
The disciples who had gathered to watch looked at Zhou Xuan with sympathy and pity.
"That's it. He's made an enemy of Wang Teng for good."
"He's going to have a hard time from now on."
Before you continue