Four Seas Merchant Guild

Heading west, Lin Chen arrived before a magnificent building. On the plaque above its doors, the four characters for Four Seas Merchant Guild swept across in bold strokes, gleaming in the sunlight.

He stepped into the hall, and a distinctive scent of sandalwood and medicinal herbs washed over him. The hall was spacious and bright, with seven or eight counters arranged in orderly rows. Behind each stood an attendant in uniform, receiving visitors from all quarters.

"What can I help you with, young master?"

"I have some items to sell. They should be worth a fair amount, so I need someone from your guild to appraise them," Lin Chen said, getting straight to the point.

The attendant's smile widened. "This way, young master. We have private rooms upstairs for valued guests to discuss business."

Following the attendant to the third floor, Lin Chen was shown into an elegant room. Its furnishings were simple and traditional, Spirit-Calming Incense burned in a censer, and several valuable paintings hung on the walls.

"Please have a seat, young master. An appraiser will be here shortly." The attendant served him tea and withdrew respectfully.

Before long, a man in his fifties, dressed in a dark robe, pushed open the door.

Though thin-faced, the man had sharp eyes and thick knuckles. He had clearly spent years handling all manner of objects.

"My surname is Han. I'm a second-rank appraiser with the guild," he said with a cupped-hand salute. "The attendant tells me you have items to appraise and sell?"

"That's right. Sorry for the trouble, Master Han."

Lin Chen returned the salute. Without another word, he took three storage bags from his robes and placed them on the table.

The bags had belonged to the three black-clad men who had attacked him in Miasma Forest. Lin Chen had not had a chance to sell their belongings in the past two years, so he might as well dispose of them all today.

Han's expression remained unchanged. He picked up a storage bag, sent a thread of spiritual power into it, and removed its contents one by one.

There was a standard-issue saber, its blade glinting coldly. Its quality was decent, but there was nothing special about it. There were also several bottles of common Pills, such as Qi-Recovery Pills and Blood-Staunching Powder, along with various odds and ends...

Then came the second and third storage bags.

Their contents were much the same, except that the third held a low-grade Spirit Grade manual for the Blood Butcher Saber Technique.

It had belonged to the leader. He had also carried a fine broad saber, but Lin Chen had fed that to his Life-Bound Divine Artifact, raising it to tier-two fine quality.

Han sorted the items into categories. After a moment's thought, he spoke.

"Young master, these two standard-issue sabers are merely well-forged ordinary iron. They barely qualify as sharp weapons. I can offer fifty Spirit Stones for each."

"The Pills are all common varieties, worth around fifty Spirit Stones in total. As for the manual, some copies are already circulating on the market, so I can only offer a hundred and twenty Spirit Stones."

"The remaining items come to twenty Spirit Stones."

Han paused. "If you're willing to sell everything together, the guild can offer three hundred Spirit Stones."

Lin Chen considered it briefly, then nodded. The items were of no use to him; getting anything for them was good enough.

Appraiser Han smiled and set the items aside. "Do you have anything else, young master?"

Lin Chen took out another storage bag. Its contents were the spoils he had gained from years of idle farming in Miasma Forest. His Life-Bound Divine Artifact had devoured the equipment he had acquired, leaving mostly Spirit Herbs, Pills, and minerals it had not consumed.

There were a dozen or so Spirit Herbs, mostly common ones such as Blood-Staunching Herb, Dew-Congealing Flower, and Earthroot Vine, all only around a decade old. The Pills resembled the earlier batch. There was also Blood Essence Ore, gallbladders from Red-Striped Demon Snakes, pelts from Red-Eyed Rabbits, and other demon beast materials...

Han examined everything carefully, his movements practiced, and eventually reached a figure.

"The quality of these items is ordinary, but there are quite a few of them. Together, they're worth six hundred and eighty Spirit Stones."

Lin Chen was pleased with the valuation, but he could not help feeling a touch of rueful amusement.

Those three black-clad men had roamed the world killing and robbing, risking their lives at every turn. Yet all they had gained fell far short of what he had earned by staying safely in the Herb Garden and farming Miasma Forest.

On second thought, Lin Chen understood.

Anyone who chose a life of murder and robbery was an outlaw who carried his head on his belt. Even if such a person acquired Spirit Stones, he would likely spend them quickly or turn them into an immediate boost to his fighting strength.

Otherwise, if he died a violent death one day, the Spirit Stones he had worked so hard to save would only benefit his enemies. That would be a tragedy through and through.

With that thought, Lin Chen took out one last jade box.

The box was small and could keep spiritual energy from dissipating. Lin Chen opened it gently, revealing a Spirit Herb inside.

The herb was pale gold, with distinct veins and seven leaves. A point of luminous white tipped each leaf.

As the box opened, a fresh, penetrating medicinal fragrance spread through the room, lifting the spirits.

Han's eyes flickered. Leaning forward, he carefully lifted the jade box and studied it.

"This is... Seven-Leaf Golden-Thread Herb!"

Excitement entered his voice. "The golden veins run through all seven leaves, and the white at their tips has formed without dispersing. It must be over a hundred years old! It's been preserved exceptionally well, with almost none of its medicinal potency lost!"

A gleam flashed in Han's eyes.

"Young master, this Seven-Leaf Golden-Thread Herb is of excellent quality and sufficient age. It can serve as a supplementary ingredient in many Profound Tier Pills, or as the main ingredient in certain Spirit Tier Pills. It's quite valuable."

"If you're willing to sell it, the Four Seas Merchant Guild will pay nine hundred Spirit Stones."

Of everything Lin Chen had obtained from years of idle farming in Miasma Forest, this Seven-Leaf Golden-Thread Herb was the most valuable. On a level-eleven-to-twenty map, it counted as an exceptionally lucky drop.

Unfortunately, while the Spirit Herb was extremely valuable to martial artists who practiced Metal-Type Cultivation Techniques, it was useless to Lin Chen.

Naturally, he agreed to the price of nine hundred Spirit Stones.

He needed those Spirit Stones to make sure he could win the bid for the Soul-Nourishing Jade.

The transaction was soon complete. Lin Chen had earned more than a thousand Spirit Stones in a single day. Added to the ones he already owned, he now had over two thousand.

For an ordinary Spirit Martial Realm martial artist, that was a huge sum. Even some at the seventh or eighth stage of the Spirit Martial Realm might not have as much as Lin Chen.

Other martial artists had to spend their Spirit Stones on all kinds of Pills to break through bottlenecks. Lin Chen had no such worries. He could simply use Attribute Allocation; Spirit Stones came in, but rarely went out.

Han smiled.

"Young master, your transactions today have exceeded a thousand Spirit Stones, so you've automatically become a fifth-class valued guest of the Four Seas Merchant Guild. From now on, you'll receive a two-percent discount at any of our branches."

He took a bronze token from his robes, the words "Four Seas" engraved on its face, and handed it to Lin Chen.

"This is your valued guest token. Please keep it safe."

Lin Chen accepted it. It felt slightly heavy in his hand, its quality unmistakable.

"If you have more treasures to sell, or anything you wish to purchase, please come to the Four Seas Merchant Guild."

Han gave a cupped-hand salute as he saw him off. "Should you need anything, the guild can also provide certain conveniences upon presentation of that token."

"Thank you."

Lin Chen rose and left the Four Seas Merchant Guild, escorted by the attendant.

Stepping out through the guild's doors, he felt much more at ease. With so many Spirit Stones on hand, the bidding for the Soul-Nourishing Jade should be in the bag!

Afterward, Lin Chen found an inn and booked a fine room. He did not go out again, waiting quietly for the auction to begin.