"Li Lezi, I heard something happened to you. How are you now?"
An anxious face showed beneath short pink-and-blue hair. The moment she saw him emerge, she grabbed Xiao Zi's arm without a word...
Wang Dong again.
For an instant, Xiao Zi felt she was an NPC that respawned on a fixed schedule. Her timing was far too precise!
Not wanting to say much about Ma Xiaotao, he put on a casual expression. "Nothing much. I was just helping a senior from the Inner Court and got held up."
Her nostrils twitched, catching a faint, intoxicating fragrance. Wang Dong felt suspicious, but she could find no flaw in his explanation and finally breathed a sigh of relief. Realizing that a classmate she had met only a handful of times could sway her emotions, she could hardly believe it herself!
"What did you need me for? If there's nothing else, I'll be going!" Unwilling to get tangled up with her, Xiao Zi planned to make himself scarce.
"Don't go!" Wang Dong had clearly come prepared. She took a sheet of red paper stamped with gold from inside her clothes. "This is an invitation to the Treasure Appraisal Fair. I brought one especially for you so you wouldn't miss this opportunity. No need to thank me!"
The Treasure Appraisal Fair was organized by the major merchants and held in Shrek City, exclusively for academy students to purchase treasures. Only what remained after they had picked through everything would go on sale to the public.
Every core student from both the Inner and Outer Courts would receive an invitation, and Xiao Zi was among them. He had intended to have Dai Huabin fetch his, but Wang Dong had beaten him to it.
"Thank you." Xiao Zi thanked her and accepted the invitation.
Seeing him accept it seemed to spark Wang Dong's enthusiasm. "The Treasure Appraisal Fair is only a few days away. Our Outer Court's event might not compare to the Inner Court's, but I hear there are plenty of good things, like pills, Soul Tools, custom Soul Rings, and so on. Almost everything is top quality. You have to take a look!"
Her words stirred Xiao Zi's interest, but he gave a wry smile. "Good things naturally come with steep prices. It's fine if nothing catches my eye, but wouldn't it be embarrassing if I wanted something and couldn't buy it? I don't have much money, so I think I'll pass!"
Wang Dong transformed into a learned old professor and explained smugly, "That's where you're wrong! Not everyone at Shrek has money. The Treasure Appraisal Fair thoughtfully allows purchases on credit. That's why it isn't open to ordinary students."
Xiao Zi remained unenthusiastic. "Debts still have to be repaid, and there's interest too. I don't really want to go."
"Come on! How could you miss such a great opportunity? If you enter the Inner Court later, your benefits will improve accordingly. You won't have to pay any interest at all, just repay the principal on schedule."
"So that's how it works." Xiao Zi wore a look of sudden understanding.
Wang Dong looked excited. "By the way, have you gone into the city at all since coming to Shrek?"
"No," Xiao Zi answered honestly. Since enrolling, he had been busy with miscellaneous matters (stirring up trouble) and had never gone out to explore the streets.
"I was kind enough to bring you an invitation, so you can repay me by coming shopping!" Wang Dong took his hand and dragged him away, giving him no chance to react.
Xiao Zi suspected her increasingly warm attitude was due to his growing fortune, which had stirred the divine thought rooted in her mind and compelled her to draw close to someone possessing fortune power.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao had been the only Child of Fate. Xiao Zi's devouring it with the Golden Horned Beast had been entirely accidental. Strictly speaking, there were now two people blessed with fortune.
Looking at the oblivious Wang Dong, who was actually being manipulated like a pawn by her father, Xiao Zi couldn't help feeling a flicker of pity, though he quickly suppressed it.
Even if they did not become mortal enemies in the future, they would still be strangers walking in opposite directions. The misery of his past life remained vivid before his eyes. He could not tread that disastrous path again!
Only after night had deepened did Xiao Zi return to his dormitory. He greeted his roommate, Dai Huabin, then sat on his bed to cultivate.
After devouring Ma Xiaotao's evil fire, his Soul Power had reached the peak of rank twenty-nine. Breaking through a bottleneck was often the hardest step to take. Even with the Five Hearts Toward Heaven Cultivation Method from Swallowed Star helping him along, he could not afford to be careless.
On the evening of the Treasure Appraisal Fair.
Following behind Dai Huabin and the others as usual, Xiao Zi entered the Treasure Gathering Pavilion.
The four-story building towered dozens of meters high and occupied a sizable area. Its unusual exterior resembled a treasure basin.
The four young women welcoming guests at the entrance were slender and graceful, their exposed fair skin inviting flights of fancy.
This was his first appearance here. His handsome face contrasted sharply with his icy demeanor, and together with his youth, drew quite a few eyes.
After showing his invitation to the staff and having his identity verified, he walked inside, where an air of extravagance immediately washed over him.
From the second floor onward, an entirely different world unfolded, filled with all manner of rare treasures. Students attending the fair came and went in a ceaseless stream. His gaze swept over pills, Soul Tools, medicinal herbs, and other items before finally resting on the most valuable treasures: Soul Bones.
"I don't even know what Nannan likes. Every time I give her something, she refuses it..."
A man dressed in gaudy clothes and holding a folding fan sighed mournfully. It was Xu Sanshi, who had pursued the Outer Court beauty Jiang Nannan without success, and the young sect master of the Xuanming Sect in the Dou Ling Empire.
Dai Huabin did have some history with him. Both were young masters from distinguished families, so jealous rivalry was inevitable, and neither could stand the sight of the other.
"Dai Huabin, is this your new lackey? He looks like a pretty boy. He's lasted quite a while, though. When are you planning to kick him out?"
Fanning himself, Xu Sanshi approached with an affected air of elegance, the ornaments at his waist jingling incessantly.
Dai Huabin sought his master's permission with a glance before turning to answer. "Young Master Xu, Li Lezi is my friend. Don't take your words too far!"
Xu Sanshi was unimpressed. "I never would've guessed someone like you could have friends. If I remember correctly, this fellow wagered a Soul Bone and nearly made you kneel and kowtow!"
Xiao Zi spoke up. "Senior Xu, if you don't know how to speak properly, keep your mouth shut. We're still looking around, so you'd better stay out of the way!"
Having never thought a lackey worth his notice, Xu Sanshi was left unable to save face by that retort. Feeling humiliated, he snapped coldly, "Your master hasn't even spoken. What right does a servant like you have to butt in? Want me to move? First, help me pick out something women like!"
The moment he finished, it was clear he wanted a gift for Jiang Nannan. Xiao Zi snorted. "Borrowing someone else's flowers to offer to your Buddha, Senior Xu? You're truly devoted. No wonder you're still a lone dog after all this time."
Talking did not slow his movements. He gave what appeared to be a gentle shove, yet Xu Sanshi staggered and stumbled back several steps before regaining his footing.
The move left Xu Sanshi stunned. This servant is turning heaven and earth upside down! Isn't Dai Huabin going to rein him in?
Jiang Nannan was his dragon's reverse scale. Using her to mock him was no different from slapping him in the face before everyone. Furious, Xu Sanshi snapped his folding fan shut and prepared to strike.
"Stop!" A soft female voice suddenly rang out.
Accompanied by a waft of fragrance, a woman with a lovely face and an elegant bearing glided inside. Tender grace shone in every glance, and her beauty was beyond compare.
This was none other than Jiang Nannan, hailed as the Outer Court's greatest beauty, whom Xu Sanshi fawned over but could never win!