Fate Treasure Pavilion

When he arrived, Ye Lin crouched down and parted the grass. A sparkling crystal stone lay among the blades.

Beside it, half-buried in the soil, was an ochre-colored fruit.

"Could this be the North Wind Fruit?"

Ye Lin pulled the fruit from the soil and put it into his Spatial Ring, then turned to look at the sparkling crystal stone.

"So it's a Mid-grade Spirit Stone. Was the dense spiritual energy inside it what nurtured this North Wind Fruit?"

Ye Lin picked up the stone and carefully sensed the spiritual energy within. Then, with a look of disdain, he tossed it away.

It was indeed a Mid-grade Spirit Stone, but there was hardly any spiritual energy left in it. There was no use keeping it.

"Now I've got the North Wind Fruit and the Ice Soul Needles. The last opportunity—and the strongest one—is One Breath Becomes Three Purities."

Ye Lin slowly stood and looked into the distance. Golden City lay a thousand li from the Azure Cloud Sect, an extremely long way off. He had no idea why Lin Zisheng had gone all the way there.

But none of that mattered anymore. That opportunity was his now.

"Golden City, here I come."

A day later, Ye Lin gazed at the massive city gates before him, his heart stirring with emotion.

Golden City was a major city, nothing like the small towns that could compare to it.

And major cities were places where cultivators gathered.

Ye Lin walked into the city. The guards at the gate didn't even look at him, and he entered without a hitch.

"Where's the antique market?"

Seeing the crowds bustling all around him, Ye Lin fell into thought.

"Hey, brother! Looking for the antique market?"

A man appeared beside Ye Lin. He had an extremely shifty look, a thin mustache, and stood no more than five feet tall.

"Yes. I've heard the antique market in Golden City is famous far and wide, so I came to have a look."

Ye Lin nodded.

"Brother, I'm Wang Laoliu. You can call me Old Wang or Laoliu, whichever you like. As for the antique market, you've come to the right man. There's nothing in Golden City I don't know about."

Wang Laoliu suddenly slapped his thigh and launched into a boastful spiel.

"Then could you take me to the antique market?"

When Ye Lin finished speaking, Wang Laoliu slyly extended a hand, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together with a crooked grin.

Ye Lin understood at once.

"Take me there first. You'll get your share afterward."

Wang Laoliu circled Ye Lin once.

"No problem. Follow me, brother."

With that, Wang Laoliu led the way, and Ye Lin followed close behind.

After winding through a maze of streets and alleys, they arrived at a marketplace. Above its main gate hung a gold-inlaid plaque bearing three large characters: Antique City.

"Brother, this is the place."

"Want me to take you inside?"

"Do you know where Fate Treasure Pavilion is in Antique City?"

At that, Wang Laoliu looked at Ye Lin strangely.

"What do you want with Fate Treasure Pavilion? It's notorious for ripping people off. Out of ten antiques there, not one is genuine."

"It's fine. I just want to take a look. I've heard plenty about Fate Treasure Pavilion on the way here, so I've always been curious."

Wang Laoliu nodded.

"Fair enough. Fate Treasure Pavilion may be a rip-off, but it's famous all the same. In that case, I'll lead you there."

With that, Wang Laoliu took Ye Lin toward Antique City.

Along the roadside were all sorts of little stalls. The young vendors stood there with bright smiles, calling out to passersby and making more outrageous claims than the last.

"Come have a look, honored guests! All this stuff came from ancient ruins. Even the Azure Cloud Sect's Sect Master bought some and said it was good!"

"Take a look at mine! I got these from a secret realm. I nearly died in there! These are all treasures belonging to cultivators. You won't lose out, and you won't get cheated!"

Just then, a young man approached a stall and asked the vendor in front of him,

"Brother, if it's fake, will you pay me back?"

The vendor froze for a moment, then earnestly reasoned with him.

"Young man, everything in this world involves cause and effect. You buy my item, you get the item, and I get the money. The cause and effect between us is settled, which means we're no longer bound to each other."

"Forget about refunds. That's a small matter. Why not take a look?"

At that, the young man vanished in a flash.

"This is Fate Treasure Pavilion."

Ye Lin looked at the imposing old building before him and nodded silently. It looked pretty good.

"Thanks for showing me the way."

Ye Lin tossed Wang Laoliu a silver ingot, which he accepted with a broad smile.

"Thanks for the reward. But, brother, I should warn you: Fate Treasure Pavilion is famous for ripping people off. Be careful."

With that, Wang Laoliu dusted off his pants and left Antique City. Ye Lin took a look around, then stepped inside.

The interior was an enormous space, filled with little tables, each displaying all kinds of antiques.

They looked like antiques, but whether they were real or fake was anyone's guess.

"Honored guest, are you from outside the city?"

A portly, middle-aged man looked at Ye Lin with shining eyes.

Everyone in Golden City knew the reputation of his Fate Treasure Pavilion. Every outsider who walked through its doors was a naïve fool.

"I am from outside the city. I heard your Fate Treasure Pavilion has plenty of treasures, so I came to have a look."

Ye Lin nodded, then walked over to a vase and asked the proprietor,

"How much for this?"

Wang Guofu looked at him disdainfully.

"Sell it? That's so vulgar. At Fate Treasure Pavilion, it all comes down to fate."

Ye Lin understood.

"This item and I are fated to meet."

"Five taels."

Ye Lin was briefly at a loss for words.

Then he pretended to wander around, while actually searching for the shabby flowerpot.

Just then, two more people entered. One was a man in white with a Long Sword strapped to his back, a refined young noble. The other was a woman, lovely and utterly adorable.

"Well, well! Are you two guests from outside the city?"

Wang Guofu wondered why business was so good today, but warmly welcomed them all the same.

"Yes, we're from the Heavenly Sword Sect. Junior Sister, have a look. Tell me if anything catches your eye. Once we're done shopping, we still have to investigate the Evil Demon's whereabouts."

At the man's words, Ye Lin's mind stirred. Someone from the Heavenly Sword Sect? Investigating the Evil Demon's whereabouts?

"So you're important guests from the Heavenly Sword Sect! Miss, feel free to pick whatever you like. I'll give you twenty percent off."

Wang Guofu was inwardly startled. The Heavenly Sword Sect was the great sect second only to the Azure Cloud Sect within a thousand li, and he couldn't afford to offend its disciples.

Looks like I'll have to take a loss this time. He glanced at Ye Lin, who was wandering aimlessly in the distance, and felt a little better.

At least there's still a clueless sucker. I'll make back twice what I lost from that fellow later.

"Hello, I'm Tang Xue, a disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect. Are you here to hunt for treasures too?"

Tang Xue came up to Ye Lin with a smile and asked,

"No, I'm just having a look."