The Shop Assistant

Sun Biao suddenly thought of a place where he could settle Xu Qingtong. He oversaw the sect's external affairs, and the sect had a shop in a nearby cultivators' market. Why not register the boy as a nominal external affairs disciple and send him there to help?

To put it plainly, a nominal external affairs disciple was merely a long-term hired hand employed by the sect, not a true disciple at all. Much like the servants of great lineages, they were not members of the lineage, but once outside, they could proudly declare, "I belong to such-and-such a household!"

Sun Biao led Xu Qingtong out of the main hall toward the gates of Jade Spring Mountain. As they walked, he said, "Boy, you heard what the sect leader said. Your aptitude is too poor. If you cultivate within the sect, I fear you'll never see the day when you rise above the rest. Better to work as an assistant in one of our shops. For one thing, you can earn some spirit stones; for another, you can broaden your horizons. You're still young, so there's no hurry about cultivation. Gaining experience is more important for your future cultivation."

Xu Qingtong fell silent. He had thought he would enter the Immortal Sect, practice immortal arts, and find the path to everlasting life. He had never expected to end up a shop assistant instead. Still, he was already here. What could he do but take the job? Go back to his uncle's house and tell him that the Immortal Sect had rejected him and sent him packing? His uncle had placed such high hopes in him, and he did not want to disappoint him. Since I'm here, I might as well settle in!

At that thought, Xu Qingtong's gaze grew firm. He nodded and said, "I'll leave everything to your arrangements, Elder Sun. I have no objections."

After they left the mountain gates, Elder Sun took Xu Qingtong with him, activated a Flying Talisman, and flew off in one direction. About four hours later, they reached the entrance to a valley shrouded in thick mist. Elder Sun formed a hand seal with his right hand and cast it forward. The mist parted, revealing a path, and Sun Biao led Xu Qingtong inside.

Once they entered, the scenery changed completely. This was clearly a marketplace. A road more than twenty feet wide ran from south to north through the entire market. Shops lined both sides, their banners swaying in the breeze. As far as the eye could see, places such as the Precious Herbs Hall, the Hundred Refinements Pavilion, and the Myriad Treasures Tower stood packed together like scales on a fish or teeth in a comb.

Xu Qingtong followed behind Sun Biao, studying the shops on either side as he walked. He noticed that almost everything they sold was related to immortal cultivation. After looking around for a while, he guessed that this market must have been established specifically for cultivators.

His guess was soon confirmed. As they walked, Elder Sun explained, "Young Xu Qingtong, this is a market owned by the Biluozong. Everything sold here is for cultivators' use. Ordinary people cannot enter this market. Some of these shops belong to the Biluozong, while others belong to the Three Flowers Sect or our Jade Spring Mountain. Even Gloomwind Valley and the Azure Sea Gate have storefronts here."

"A Foundation Establishment elder from the Biluozong is stationed here to maintain order in the Market. Apart from the Biluozong's own shops, every other shop on this street must pay the Biluozong one to two thousand spirit stones each year," Elder Sun continued.

Xu Qingtong was secretly astonished. A single shop had to pay a thousand spirit stones a year. There were at least a hundred shops on this street, and he did not even know whether there were more elsewhere. By that reckoning, the Biluozong earned over a hundred thousand spirit stones a year from rent alone!

While he was pondering this, they arrived in front of a shop. Xu Qingtong looked up, and a signboard caught his eye: Jade Spring Commerce Association. This must be our destination!

Sure enough, as soon as they entered, a shop assistant hurried over and bowed. "Elder Sun, you're here!"

"Mm. Go and fetch your shopkeeper," Elder Sun replied.

"Please wait a moment, sir. I'll fetch him right away." With that, the assistant ran upstairs, his footsteps thudding.

A moment later, an old man in his sixties or seventies hurried down the stairs, cupping his hands as he came. "Elder Sun, you honor us with your presence! Forgive this old man for failing to come out to welcome you!"

"Shopkeeper Gu, I've brought you someone today. This is a distant relative of mine, Xu Qingtong. Last time, you said you were short-handed, so here I am with someone for you. I hope you'll look after him!" Sun Biao felt somewhat guilty that he had failed to get Xu Qingtong admitted into the sect. He deliberately called the boy his distant relative, hoping to lend him a helping hand.

Shopkeeper Gu smiled broadly. "Not at all, not at all! This old man still has to rely on your support, Elder Sun!"

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Shopkeeper Gu, Sun Biao turned to Xu Qingtong. "Qingtong, work hard here and learn all you can from Shopkeeper Gu. Don't go causing trouble for me!" Then he cupped his hands toward Shopkeeper Gu again. "I won't keep you any longer, Shopkeeper Gu. I leave the boy in your care. Farewell!"

After Elder Sun left, Shopkeeper Gu called Xu Qingtong over and questioned him in detail about his circumstances and his relationship with Elder Sun. Unsure how to answer, Xu Qingtong gave a few vague replies and muddled through. Shopkeeper Gu then called over another assistant and introduced him. "Qingtong, this is Wu Zheng. He also works here. You'll be working together from now on, so look out for one another."

Xu Qingtong studied the assistant named Wu Zheng. He looked fifteen or sixteen, with an honest face and a shrewd air. Xu Qingtong hurriedly cupped his hands. "I'm Xu Qingtong. Greetings, Big Brother Wu! Please look after me!" Wu Zheng hastily returned the gesture. "You're too kind, too kind!"

Once they had finished exchanging greetings, Shopkeeper Gu instructed, "Wu Zheng, take Qingtong to the rear courtyard and find him a room. Let him rest tonight. Tomorrow, show him around the shop and explain the rules to him." With that, he went upstairs alone.

Wu Zheng led Xu Qingtong to the rear courtyard and pointed to a room on the left. "Brother Qingtong, that room is empty. Go and rest there tonight. If you need anything, come find me out front."

"Thank you, Big Brother Wu. Go ahead with your work. I'll tidy up," Xu Qingtong said quickly. Then he headed for the room.

Once inside, Xu Qingtong looked around. The room was small and sparsely furnished, with only a bed, a table, and a chair. A wooden basin stood beside the table. A layer of dust covered the bed and tabletop; clearly, no one had tended to the room in a long time.

He reflected that this would be where he worked and lived from now on. He wondered what Shopkeeper Gu and Big Brother Wu were like, and whether they would be easy to get along with. Never mind. No point thinking so much just yet. I'll clean up this little nest of mine first.

That evening, Wu Zheng closed the shop and came to Xu Qingtong's room. Upon entering, he saw that everything had been cleaned and put in order, with bright windows and spotless surfaces. He could not help praising him. "You certainly are hardworking, Brother Qingtong!" He set a paper parcel on the table. "We're short-handed here, so there's no one specifically assigned to cook. I bought a few steamed buns from the Li family's bun shop at the north end of the street. Make do with these for now."

Xu Qingtong picked up the buns and handed one to Wu Zheng. They chatted as they ate. From Wu Zheng, Xu Qingtong learned that the Jade Spring Commerce Association was a shop Jade Spring Mountain had opened in this market. Until now, only Wu Zheng and the shopkeeper had worked here; even with Xu Qingtong, there were just three of them. The shopkeeper, Gu Mingli, was seventy-three years old and at the eighth level of Qi Refining. If he could not break through to the ninth level soon, he likely had little time left to live.

The shop dealt in a wide variety of goods, from finished magical artifacts, pills, and talismans to artifact-refining materials, medicinal herbs, and talisman paper. It bought goods as well as sold them. In addition, it was responsible for gathering intelligence. Pills, magical artifacts, and similar goods were supplied by the sect, and the spirit stones earned from selling them were handed over to the sect. If the shop purchased something itself and then resold it, however, the proceeds belonged to the shop.

They chatted for over an hour. Although there were still parts of Wu Zheng's explanation that Xu Qingtong did not understand, he had gained a general grasp of the shop's workings. After seeing Wu Zheng out, Xu Qingtong lay on the bed and began planning the road ahead!