Sit Back and Reap the Rewards? Dream On~

"Well then, sir, I'll go pack up the items you just purchased."

Jiang Nannan bowed and followed an attendant into the auction house. Jiang Hao went with Lin Huiqun and sat down on a soft leather sofa in the reception area.

As the maids nearby offered them drinks, Lin Huiqun asked, "I heard you recently moved out of Shrek Academy. How have you been?"

Lin Huiqun looked Jiang Hao up and down, marveling inwardly at his cultivation speed. After obtaining a Soul Ring, he had raised his Soul Power Level to sixteen in such a short time.

As long as a prodigy like him didn't die young, he would reach the rank of Titled Douluo before long. Then he would become a pillar of Shrek.

With that in mind, she grew even warmer toward Jiang Hao.

That old fox is definitely up to something. She sees my talent and wants to win me over.

Why didn't she treat me like this before my Martial Soul awakened? She wouldn't even give me the time of day. Now she serves me tea whenever we meet.

"I could tell you were destined for great things ever since you were little. That incident caused quite a stir recently—a child defeating an Outer Court teacher. The academy disciplined her for bullying you, but the Soul Tool Department kept her from being dismissed. She was only fined some Gold Soul Coins and had some cultivation resources withheld. She got off lightly, and that was the end of it." Lin Huiqun spoke calmly, though she kept watching Jiang Hao for a reaction.

Jiang Hao merely smiled. "I didn't expect you to hear about that. That teacher was used to throwing her weight around. Most Martial Soul Department teachers have that problem. Someone needs to knock them down a peg now and then.

"She was unlucky, though, and far too arrogant. I don't know how she teaches her students when she didn't even use her full strength in a fight.

"No one would have blamed her for going all out to protect herself when she needed to. As for defeating her, I just got lucky."

As they spoke, the maid named Jiaojiao came over. "Hello, sir. Here's the list of everything you purchased at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion. Please take a look; your items are being packed.

"If everything looks right, you can sign at the bottom, and I'll take you to settle the bill.

"Purchases at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion are ten percent off right now."

Jiaojiao spoke in what she evidently thought was a sweet voice, bending so close that she nearly brushed Jiang Hao's face.

The sharp smell of her perfume made him lean back. He took the bill she offered and held it between them as he looked it over.

There wasn't much text, mostly after-sales guarantees and various terms. But when Jiang Hao turned to the last page, the sales associate's line didn't bear Jiang Nannan's name. Instead, three characters were scrawled there in flowing script: Jiaocaihua.

"Where's the sales associate who handled my purchase just now? I have a few questions for her."

The sales associate visibly panicked at his question, but quickly composed herself. "She's preparing your order for packing. You can just sign here."

"Besides, I'm a Gold Salesperson at the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, so I can offer you an additional discount. If you'd like to get a membership card, I can bring your discount on this purchase up to twenty percent. And if you're worried about your items on the road, I can personally escort them to your residence."

Jiaojiao couldn't help leaning closer as she spoke. In her eyes, he was a big fish who could keep her fed and clothed for the rest of her life.

Watching from the side, Lin Huiqun wore a faint smile. The Treasure Gathering Pavilion is full of talent. Even a sales associate knows how to handle herself with composure. That's how business should be done.

"Wow, that's generous. I'll wait for the sales associate from earlier to come back." Jiang Hao set the list on the table without ceremony, propped his legs on the coffee table, and stretched them out. He paid no mind to Lin Huiqun beside him, his manner brazen.

Why should you sit back and reap the rewards of someone else's work? You think you can bully her because she didn't eat well growing up and ended up flat-chested? Dream on.

Jiang Hao waited a while longer before Jiang Nannan came running from the back, breathless. "I'm sorry, sir. The manager called me in for a talk, so I was delayed. I'll handle the paperwork for you now."

She started to hand him the stack of documents clutched tightly to her chest, but then saw the identical stack on the table. Her pupils widened. Her outstretched hand slowly stopped, and tears welled in her eyes.

Just as she was about to pull her hand back, Jiang Hao cleared his throat. "Give them to me. What are you waiting for? And clear the table while you're at it. There's too much trash."

He snatched the documents from Jiang Nannan's arms, flipped straight to the last page, signed his name in neat, square strokes, and stuffed them back into her arms.

Jiang Nannan looked at the papers and a teacup on the table. Lin Huiqun had already left, and nothing else sat there—not even pastries, let alone trash.

As she stood there at a loss, Jiang Hao pointed to the sales contract he had slapped onto the table earlier and cast it a sidelong glance. "Can't you see it? That huge wad of wastepaper."

The remark left the sales associate who had been waiting nearby for so long red-faced with anger. Seeing Jiang Nannan hesitate, Jiang Hao swept the contract off the table and into the trash, then rose and headed for the door.

A package of Whale Rubber had already been delivered there. He had only been waiting for Jiang Nannan; otherwise, he would have left long ago.

Only after Jiang Hao departed with his two underlings did Jiang Nannan open the sales contract and turn straight to the last page.

Jiang Hao. His surname is Jiang too. She turned to the amount and saw 183,000 Gold Soul Coins. At a ten-percent commission on luxury goods, that meant she would receive 18,300 Gold Soul Coins. I'll remember you.

She hugged the contract to her chest and walked to the front counter.

After leaving the Treasure Gathering Pavilion, Jiang Hao went straight back to the Courtyard and entered his room. He left a Clone there to stand in for him, changed his disguise, then used Shadow Bro's ability to slip out through the Back Courtyard.

Once he was sure no one was following him, he climbed into the carriage Training Bro had brought to meet him.

The horses' hooves kicked up dust. After some time being cared for, the two once-scrawny horses had grown sturdy, with powerful strides and more speed than before.

They reached the Market by dusk.

"Thirty-Person Group recruiting for Soul Hunting! Low prices, guaranteed support! Our team has assault, support, healing, and Food Type Soul Masters of all kinds, with prices to suit your needs. We'll safeguard your Soul Hunting Operation for just ten Gold Soul Coins!" Several Clones called out their pitch, while small groups of Soul Hunters gathered in Small Town to eat.

Training Bro stopped the carriage in front of a Lamb Offal Soup stall. Pretending not to know him, Jiang Hao sat at a wooden table. "Boss, one bowl of lamb soup and three Flatbreads."

"Coming right up!" Flatbread Bro, who had kept his eyes on Jiang Hao, swiftly gathered Soul Power and worked three Flatbreads into shape in his hands. With his other hand, he dipped a ladle into the boiling pot beside him and filled a bowl with lamb offal. He added onions, chopped scallions, and a generous heap of cilantro, poured rich lamb broth over it all, and hurried it over on a wooden tray. "Enjoy! Three Flatbreads and one lamb soup—that'll be three Silver Soul Coins."

The whole sequence flowed as smoothly as running water. He had clearly settled into his role as a merchant.

Not far from him, the steady clang of hammering rang out. A fierce, bare-chested man swung a bamboo-shoot-shaped hammer Martial Soul taller than himself, pounding furiously at the metal beneath it.

That was Hammer Bro.

Beside a furnace on the other side, Flame Bro sat cultivating with his Flame Lord Martial Soul released. Cultivating in a simulated environment—Flame Bro really knows how to pick a spot. That heat could melt metal, and he's sitting right in it. He's got impressive focus.

As Jiang Hao ate, he surveyed the area. From where he sat, nothing about Small Town seemed out of the ordinary. If he hadn't known the truth, no one would have guessed that every merchant there, and even some traveling traders, belonged to the same force.

After all, this group of Soul Masters was so large, yet its members shared no obvious traits or distinguishing marks. Who would think they were part of a sect?

"That soup smells amazing! How much is it? Boss, I'll have what he's having!"