Chapter 13, First Release on Jinjiang Literature City: Returning the Sword to the Ruler (Part 1)...
After leaving the cave, Yao Sisi rushed into the city without stopping. She had been away for quite a while this time, and she didn't know if there would be any reaction in the city.
It would be awkward if you thought she had left and taken the room away!
But... it's not a big deal for a cultivator to go out for ten days or half a month, there shouldn't be any major problems...
She hurried back with all her might, but as soon as she reached the city gate, she was blocked by Qi Mu.
She was covered in dust from her journey, and when she saw him sitting in the sedan chair waving at her, she was a little embarrassed to go over, since there was still blood on the hem of her clothes.
She approached him and greeted him, "What brings you here, young master?"
It was getting close to dusk, and the city gate was a rather noisy place, not a place for a pampered young master like him.
The exquisite sedan chair was lifted by a fair hand, and Qi Mu, bathed in the setting sun, saw her smiling at him without any burden.
That smile carried a hint of politeness, yet it was more intimate than the smiles of others, and for some reason, he couldn't utter a single question.
Seeing that she was unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I was worried that you wouldn't have anyone to take care of you since you hadn't been back for so long."
Yao Sisi smiled and said, "I originally wanted to come back earlier, but I was delayed because I saved someone on the way."
Qi Mu assumed she was referring to Gong Yichen and didn't pay much attention. Instead, she was worried about her safety but didn't know how to tell her, so she said tactfully, "It's good that you're back. Things aren't very peaceful outside lately. Please stay out of the way for a while and don't go out, okay?"
Yao Sisi realized that she had encountered quite a few men in black along the way, which was indeed different from before.
"Well, I happen to have other things to do recently, so I won't leave the city for now."
Qi Mu breathed a sigh of relief, and his smile became more genuine. However, he smelled an aura on her that did not belong to her, as if she had been with other men for a long time. Yet, judging from her appearance, she did not seem to have attracted any unwanted attention.
He kept it to himself, perhaps he was overthinking it.
Yao Sisi waved to him, "Young master, you should go back quickly, it's too chaotic here."
Qi Mu wanted her to leave as well, but he couldn't let her get into the sedan chair. A lone man and woman in a secluded place would damage their reputation, so he could only purse his lips regretfully, "Miss Sisi..."
Yao Sisi: "Hmm, what's wrong?"
Qi Mu whispered, "I'll go back to my private residence and wait for you."
Yao Sisi didn't think too much about it and nodded, saying, "Then I'll go back as soon as possible."
Qi Mu's words were already excessive. For a young master from a prominent family to wait for a woman who was not related to him at his private residence was truly shameless.
After Yao Sisi came to this world, she didn't feel that there was much difference between men and women. Apart from the fact that the rules of the high-class family were a bit more complicated, everyone else was fine. She resigned from Qi Mu and planned to take stock of all the gains she had made in the past few days.
After visiting several stores, I sold almost all of my mystical beasts. Except for the one half-crippled wind wolf that remained in my space, I cleared out all the others and also sold the spiritual herbs I dug up.
Based on this calculation, she has quite a bit of money.
Yao Sisi excitedly ran to the shop that sold the knife. She had been coveting this knife for a long time. It was placed on the shelf with a cold gleam, as imposing as ever.
"Is the shopkeeper here? I want to see this knife!"
A young man was standing in front of the counter. Hearing her say that, he called out "shopkeeper" and soon the curtain inside the room was lifted, and a middle-aged man came in. He had a bunch of keys on his waist. He pointed one at the counter, and with a click, the precious sword was taken out.
"Sir, you have a good eye. This knife was crafted by a famous weapon-forging master in the city. Originally, its quality could have been even better, but unfortunately, the weapon-forging master had something to attend to and had to leave in a hurry, which caused the quality to be slightly inferior. However, if you buy it and find good materials to refine it yourself, then the quality of this knife can be improved, allowing you to use it for many years!"
Yao Sisi didn't say anything, but took the knife and examined it. She reached out and flicked the blade lightly, producing a dull sound.
The knife is indeed made of good material, but she didn't show much enthusiasm for it.
"Well, I only need it temporarily because my weapon broke. I don't plan to use it for long. Shopkeeper, name your price!"
Seeing that she touched the knife and then put it back on the counter, the shopkeeper was unsure of her intentions and tentatively offered a price.
“Mystic weapons are naturally not as cheap as ordinary weapons. If this sword had been fully refined back then, it could have sold for tens of thousands of Mystic Pearls. But now… the customer only needs to pay half the price…”
Yao Sisi interrupted him: "I had this knife here last time I was here. I guess most people use swords, so it's not selling well. I only have 3,000 Xuanzhu right now. Shopkeeper, you should consider it!"
She looked at the knife with a regretful gaze, as if she were destined to never have it.
The shopkeeper sighed, "3000 is really too little. I've already lost money on materials recently, and if I lose even more..."
Seeing that he hadn't given a definitive answer, Yao Sisi felt there was still room for negotiation. She wasn't in a hurry to leave, so she casually asked, "Why did you lose a batch of materials?"
The shopkeeper said, "Sir, you may not know this, but our shop does not mainly sell weapons. However, if a shop is open without weapons, it will have far fewer customers. Therefore, we specially commissioned a weapon refiner to forge a few weapons to keep it safe. The knife you want to see has been kept safe in the shop for some time now."
Yao Sisi didn't want him to raise prices, "but you can't rely on just one price to keep the shop running smoothly. Besides, it's been around for so long that it's lost its novelty and can't attract more customers anymore."
The shopkeeper nodded: "So a few days ago I had someone forge a sword. This time I wanted to make a peerless sword to serve as a symbol for a while and also to enhance my prestige... Unfortunately, despite using so many materials, we were still a little short, which prevented the sword from reaching its best quality."
He shook his head as he said this, clearly very distressed.
Yao Sisi: "The materials for forging those swords must be quite expensive, right?"
Shopkeeper: "Of course!"
Yao Sisi said, "What will it look like after it's finished? I haven't seen you display it, shopkeeper!"
The shopkeeper took out a sword box from his storage bag. "I just got it too."
He opened the sword case, and a cold glint flashed. A slender sword, about two feet long, lay there quietly, as if waiting for its owner to take it away.
Its blade was bright and clear, exceptionally sharp, with an array engraved on the hilt, and even the tassel was already on, with a dark blue ore pendant with a branch of unknown material hanging from it.
Yao Sisi thought to herself: This sword is really good.
The ore, in particular, reminded her of the dagger Qi Mu had given her; it had been incredibly helpful for her hunting these past few days. Besides, he had been so refined and gentle back then.
Under a clear blue sky, he stood quietly in his brocade robes. The sky was blue, but not as clear as the young master's eyes.
"Here, take this dagger for your self-defense!"
"Mystic artifacts are inanimate objects; people are the most important."
“I originally had a sword, which was my childhood playmate. As I grew up, the sword became too small. I gave it to my father and asked him to find someone to reforge it for me. They said that the sword blank was too poor and it was not worth the effort to waste good materials.”
"It would be better to forge a new one."
Her eyes flickered, and her gaze shifted to the sword on the counter. It was slender and pure, perfectly matching his temperament, as if it had been tailor-made for him. Good weapons are hard to find, and it is even more difficult to come across one by chance.
She clicked her tongue inwardly: Indeed, the hardest thing to bear is the kindness of a beautiful woman…
Yao Sisi said, "This sword is nice, but... I want a knife. Have you thought about the price of three thousand, shopkeeper?"
The shopkeeper seemed somewhat helpless: "Fine, three thousand it is!"
Yao Sisi asked, "Shopkeeper, how much is this sword?"
The shopkeeper was taken aback: "You want to buy a sword?"
Yao Sisi: "Let me ask first."
The shopkeeper stroked his beard: "Even if this sword is missing some materials, it wouldn't be that cheap."
Yao Sisi understood; after all, the sword could still be kept at the counter for a while, unlike the knife which she had to sell at a loss.
"Tell me about it, I'll listen."
Shopkeeper: "Fifteen thousand Xuanzhu!"
Yao Sisi took a step back and steadied the knife on the counter: "This is too expensive! Let's settle the bill for the knife first!"
Seeing that she had no intention of buying the sword, the shopkeeper put away the sword box. "It's not that I'm selling it for too high a price. The price I quoted you is just enough to cover the cost of the materials!"
Yao Sisi naturally didn't believe him. The price was definitely more than just the cost of materials. "This is too expensive. I don't think many people can afford it. Shopkeeper, you're not trying to avoid selling it just to keep the shop afloat!"
The shopkeeper accepted the money and felt a little relieved: "How could it be that I sold it too expensively? These mystical artifacts increase in price significantly with each quality upgrade. There's a price range for them, and I'm not just arbitrarily setting prices!"
Yao Sisi thought to herself, there is a threshold, but didn't you also boast that this knife could sell for tens of thousands? You offered 5,000 Xuanzhu, but you bargained down to 3,000 and got it.
Seeing that she was unhappy, the shopkeeper said, "I really didn't make any money from this knife. Three thousand was a low price. If it were properly refined, it could sell for over ten thousand. Even if it wasn't refined well, I wouldn't sell it for less than four thousand in the past."
Seeing that she had successfully negotiated the situation, Yao Sisi cut to the chase: "How about I sell this sword for eight thousand Xuanzhu?"
The shopkeeper paused, then clutched the sword box tightly: "Eight thousand? I won't sell it! Even if you skin me alive, I won't sell it!"
Yao Sisi thought to herself: Why would I skin you alive if I had nothing better to do?
"Eight thousand and you still won't sell? Do you know how few people have that much money! Those who go out hunting for a month and come back earn very little, not to mention that after selling the game, everyone has to split the money. It's already good if each person gets a thousand Xuanzhu."
The shopkeeper said, "What you're talking about is an ordinary team. In teams with higher cultivation levels, each person can get several thousand Xuanzhu!"
Yao Sisi clicked her tongue inwardly. Older people are just not easy to fool. "There are fewer teams with high cultivation levels, and besides, they don't necessarily lack weapons."
The shopkeeper said, "Well, you just bought one too, so you don't need any more."
Yao Sisi's eyes darkened: "I have a reason for buying it."
Shopkeeper: "I don't care, anyway, eight thousand is a real loss. If I sell it to you, the master will kick me out of my position as shopkeeper. Hurry up and add some more!"
Yao Sisi remained silent.
The shopkeeper was unsure of her meaning, thinking to himself: Why did I run into such a shameless person today!
"Twelve thousand! That's the minimum, I just got it!"
Yao Sisi: "Ten thousand. You can sell it if you want, or don't. Even if it's ten thousand, I don't have that much money. I still need to raise it."
The shopkeeper was so angry that his face turned red and his neck bulged: "You cut the price by five thousand right off the bat, is that how you behave?"
Yao Sisi took out two immobilization talismans from her storage bag. "I'll sell you these two. They can temporarily immobilize second-tier mystic beasts. In critical moments, they can not only save your life, but also greatly increase your hunting success rate in battle."
Second-tier demonic beasts, even the worst ones cost at least a thousand Xuanzhu, and there are quite a few that sell for three or four thousand Xuanzhu.
The shopkeeper's eyes lit up: This is a good thing.
"These two talismans that the guest brought have somewhat made up for my losses."
Yao Sisi thought to herself: What loss are you talking about? Although you didn't make much money with 10,000 Xuanzhu, you definitely won't lose money.
She rummaged through her storage bag. Even after clearing out all the mystical beasts, she still didn't have that much money. When she was outside, she spent a lot of time breaking through and practicing spells, and she didn't hunt all the time.
After rummaging through it, there were still over five thousand Xuanzhu left in the storage bag...
She took them all out. "I'll leave the knife here for now. I'm not going hunting these next few days anyway, so sell me the sword first!"
The shopkeeper, clutching the sword box tightly, said, "Then you're a little short on money too!"
Yao Sisi flipped through the papers and pulled out two more fixed characters. "I'm a talisman master. Do you think I'd be short of a few Xuanzhu? Besides, it's not like we're that much money now."
In the end, she managed to take the sword with her, but she was almost bankrupt.
On the way back, she clicked her tongue, thinking, "A beauty's grace, oh, a beauty's grace..."
This is really hard to bear!
A note from the author:
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Guess why the young master only drew the sword halfway before closing it again? Will the heroine succeed in delivering the sword this time?
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