Ya Fei naturally knew that Xia Kong was willing to keep working with Mittel even after discovering he was being followed and watched because he trusted her. She would certainly not disappoint him. Had she not feared that investigating behind his back would displease him, she would have captured everyone tracking him and handed them over for him to deal with.
"Mm, hahaha, you're certainly generous, little brother Xia Kong. Rest assured! I won't betray your trust."
Ya Fei took out the jade boxes she had prepared beforehand and carefully sealed away each stalk of Spicy Jade on the table, a bright smile lingering on her exquisite face throughout.
"Little brother Xia Kong, these are the proceeds from the ten stalks of Spicy Jade you last consigned to us-a total of three hundred and fifty thousand gold coins. In light of our friendship, I've waived the commission."
Xia Kong knew perfectly well that Ya Fei was deliberately doing him a favor to secure their long-term partnership. Even so, he felt no aversion to it whatsoever. He reached out to accept the weighty gold card, held it between his fingers along with his previous card, which still contained a hundred thousand gold coins, and idly flipped them around as he spoke in an even tone.
"Sister Ya Fei, have you found anything for me over the past half month? Gold coins aren't much use sitting in my hands."
"Listen to you. A fortune others couldn't earn even by working themselves to death becomes a burden in your mouth."
Ya Fei chuckled. A faint glow then shone from the Storage Ring on her finger, and two ancient-looking Dou Technique scrolls appeared in her hands.
"With your Spicy Jade as a key to open doors, quite a few old fellows in the imperial capital have been tempted. After all, who wouldn't want their descendants to form a Dou Qi Vortex and become a Dou Zhe sooner? Thanks to that goodwill, I finally managed to find these two Dou Techniques that suit you very well."
Yet her hands paused slightly as she brought out the scrolls. If I give Xia Kong these last two Dou Techniques Mittel can offer, what if he stops working with us? A barely perceptible trace of hesitation crossed her brow.
"Sister Ya Fei, is something troubling you?" Xia Kong asked when he noticed.
Ya Fei came back to herself and smiled. Never mind. Let things take their course. Without further hesitation, she spread the two scrolls out before Xia Kong.
Though Xia Kong did not know why Ya Fei had hesitated, he let the matter drop when she began introducing the two Dou Techniques.
"Green Leaf Wandering Steps, a Mid Black Tier movement Dou Technique, was created by imitating branches swaying in the wind and fallen leaves drifting unpredictably. Once mastered, your figure moves like fluttering green leaves, leaving layers of afterimages that make illusion indistinguishable from reality. The price is four hundred and fifty thousand gold coins. Blossom Sword Cluster, a High Black Tier sword Dou Technique, lets you manifest countless blossoms from Sword Energy that bloom in midair once mastered—beautiful, yet capable of killing without a trace. The price is seven hundred thousand gold coins. Hehe, these are already the lowest prices I can offer you as a friend."
"Hiss!"
In that brief instant, Xia Kong's delight at hearing about two Black Tier Dou Techniques turned into a sharp intake of breath at their staggering prices.
Though his heart ached at the expense, he was decisive. "They may be a little pricey, but I'll take them both!"
With that, Xia Kong handed both gold cards back to Ya Fei.
The two gold cards held a total of four hundred and fifty thousand gold coins, just enough to purchase Green Leaf Wandering Steps. The twenty stalks of Spicy Jade he had just delivered, at the going rate of three hundred and fifty thousand per ten stalks, came to exactly seven hundred thousand gold coins-enough to exchange for Blossom Sword Cluster.
Xia Kong privately wondered whether Ya Fei had calculated all this in advance or whether it was merely a coincidence. Nor did he know how much profit she could still extract from those prices.
Regardless, obtaining these two Black Tier Dou Techniques was already an enormous gain for him.
A thought stirred as he remembered the twenty stalks of more potent level-two Spiritual Plants still stored in his backpack inventory. Unwilling to give up, he ventured another question. "Sister Ya Fei, doesn't the Mittel Family have any Earth Tier Cultivation Methods or Dou Techniques I could practice?"
"Hehe, don't tease me, little brother." Ya Fei covered her lips and chuckled, leaning slightly closer to Xia Kong. Her intoxicating feminine fragrance filled his nostrils. "Who even knows whether there are any Earth Tier Cultivation Methods or Dou Techniques in the entire Jia Ma Empire? Even if there are, bidding would start at several million gold coins whenever one appeared. How could a mere Dou Zhe like me produce such a precious treasure?"
Xia Kong quickly recalled the original story's events. Within the Jia Ma Empire, most Dou Huang experts practiced only High Xuan Tier methods and techniques. Even Yun Shan, who had broken through to Dou Zong, seemingly had no Earth Tier Cultivation Methods or Dou Techniques.
Good grief.
So only people with outside connections, like Yao Lao and Xiao Xun'er, could produce Earth Tier treasures. This northwestern Jia Ma Empire really was a land barren of resources.
He shook his head repeatedly with a rueful chuckle.
"I was asking too much of you."
Xia Kong did not bring up searching for Earth Tier Dou Techniques or cultivation methods again.
With their third transaction successfully concluded, the atmosphere in the VIP room relaxed, and the two chatted casually. Most of the time, Ya Fei recounted recent events in Wutan City, both great and small, along with curious stories and amusing anecdotes, while Xia Kong sat beside her and listened quietly.
Though Xia Kong was not much of a conversationalist, with the alluring Ya Fei present, the conversation never fell flat.
As they chatted, Ya Fei naturally brought up the earth-shaking uproar over the broken engagement at the Xiao Clan the day before.
At those words, Xia Kong immediately perked up, his interest thoroughly piqued.
Noticing Xia Kong's particular interest in the matter, Ya Fei carefully recounted everything she had learned, from beginning to end.
Xia Kong already knew these events inside out, but hearing them told by this lovely woman, whose voice seemed imbued with magic, offered an entirely different pleasure.
"Little brother Xia Kong, what do you think of Xiao Yan and Nalan Yanran?" Ya Fei suddenly changed tack and posed the question.
Xia Kong paused slightly. "Why the sudden question, Sister Ya Fei?"
"Don't you find those two fascinating? I've never heard of anyone's Dou Qi vanishing into thin air. Nalan Yanran personally came to break off the engagement, yet not only did she fail to get her way, Xiao Yan publicly repudiated her as his wife instead, and they even made a three-year agreement. Isn't that plot even more exciting than the illustrated tales and storybooks circulating in the streets?"
"Hahaha, if you ask me, the two of them are actually quite well matched."
"Well matched? What makes you say that?" Ya Fei blinked her beautiful eyes, her face full of curiosity.
Most of the rumors mocked Xiao Yan as a useless fool who did not know his limits, or condemned Nalan Yanran as arrogant and spoiled, disregarding the dignity of both families' elders. This was the first time she had heard such an assessment.
"Haven't you noticed, Sister Ya Fei, how much the present Nalan Yanran resembles the former Xiao Yan? Xiao Yan was once a genius. Now he's fallen into the dust, but who's to say he won't soar into the heavens again? Nalan Yanran is currently the gifted young sect master of the Misty Cloud Sect, but who's to say she won't fall back to earth one day? It's hard to imagine what things would look like if, after the three-year agreement ended, the two of them still wound up entangled with each other."
"Well..." Ya Fei was momentarily at a loss for words.
Xiao Yan, who had become a Dou Zhe at twelve, had once basked in boundless glory, his reputation as a genius resounding throughout the Jia Ma Empire. Yet three years of silence had followed. Though Nalan Yanran had not matched him, she had joined the Misty Cloud Sect at ten and received Yun Yun's personal instruction, become a Dou Zhe at thirteen, and now enjoyed immense prestige as a fifteen-year-old Three-Star Dou Zhe. The two were just like the hero and heroine of a storybook, their love always separated by layer upon layer of hardship. The three-year agreement born of their betrothal bound them tightly together, a tangle that could neither be cut apart nor combed straight.
Suddenly, as though she had caught the hidden meaning in his words, her beautiful eyes widened.
"You mean Xiao Yan's talent will recover? And Nalan Yanran will suffer defeat and humiliation at their three-year agreement?"
"Very perceptive, Sister." Xia Kong made no attempt to hide his praise and admiration for Ya Fei. At the same time, he could not help picturing Xiao Yan taking the stage three years later to fulfill the agreement, brimming with confidence and spirit. "Dou Qi would never vanish into thin air for no reason. Sooner or later, that unknown vessel will be filled."
"But he's wasted three whole years. He'll have to cultivate his way back to Dou Zhe, step by step. Nalan Yanran has the Misty Cloud Sect behind her, with an endless supply of cultivation methods, Dou Techniques, pills, and other resources. Could a mere three years really be enough for Xiao Yan to catch up, or even gain the upper hand over her?"
No matter what, Ya Fei could not believe that anyone's talent could reach such heights. Nalan Yanran was already a genius she could only gaze up at, never hope to reach. If Xiao Yan could surpass Nalan Yanran even after all this, just how extraordinary would his talent be? How far would he go in the future?
"Hehe, Sister Ya Fei, have you heard that deep accumulation leads to a sudden outpouring, and that things reverse when pushed to their extreme? Perhaps Xiao Yan's missing Dou Qi never truly dissipated at all."
"I understand!" Ya Fei smiled radiantly. "Now that you've put it that way, little brother, I'm looking forward to that three-year agreement even more."
Before you continue