Not long after, Shi Xuan reappeared in the black market of rogue cultivators with a different face. Although her appearance had changed, Xiang Rong's features remained the same. The audience all knew that the person who appeared with another round face was probably the Round-Faced Master.
As darkness fell, the number of people in the black market increased.
Shi Xuan took Xiang Rong to buy tickets for the VIP stands in the arena and they sat down. They had been to this arena many times and always participated themselves, but this was the first time they had sat in the stands.
The competition they were watching today was for the Foundation Establishment group; the arena in this black market only had Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment groups. This was because, for independent cultivators, those who could reach the Golden Core stage were already very few.
Before the duel even began, someone stood next to Shi Xuan and whispered, "Fellow Daoist, do you know the Round-Faced Master?"
Shi Xuan turned to look at him. The man was short and stout with a square face. He was none other than Wang Laosan, Leng Rufeng's friend from back then.
Shi Xuan remained silent, wanting to see what he was going to do.
Wang Laosan didn't dwell on Shi Xuan's reply. He took out a storage bag, placed it on the table in front of him, and said, "This is the bet I owed Master Round Face back then."
He was quite trustworthy; the token for the Azure Dragon Secret Realm was obtained from him, and Shi Xuan also gained immense benefits from the Azure Dragon Secret Realm. As for these trivial matters, Shi Xuan had already forgotten about them.
“No need to give it to her,” Shi Xuan pushed the storage bag back and said, “You can keep it for yourself.”
Wang Laosan smiled sheepishly: "I heard that Xiao Leng is already working at Master Round Face's shop. I wonder if Master Round Face's shop is still short of people. Over the years, I, Wang Laosan, have traveled all over the country and have achieved some success in business."
Shi Xuan sized him up. Judging from the things Wang Laosan had sold, he had indeed been to many places, and someone who could produce the Azure Dragon Token must have plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
The sect leader just happened to have given her the whole street, and she was short-handed.
Shi Xuan nodded and said, "Okay, but remember not to participate in any gambling while working in the shop."
"Alright!" Old Wang was overjoyed. "Don't worry, this incident has broadened my horizons. There are always people more capable than you, and there's always something beyond your understanding. In this cultivation world, anything can happen! I'll never make any more bets with anyone again!"
This statement indicates that he had already determined that this person was the round-faced master.
Shi Xuan nodded: "Go to the affordable shop tomorrow and find Leng Rufeng. There are quite a few shops recently, so you can set them up. I'm going to hold a small private auction there in three days."
"Alright!" Old Wang agreed readily, then hesitated and said, "Your auction... I'm afraid it can't be small-scale..."
Indeed, she only made a brief appearance, yet the crowd in the black market nearly overwhelmed her. If an auction were held, the number of people just coming to watch the spectacle would be immense.
What's your idea?
Wang Laosan said, "Why not sell tickets? Ten high-grade spirit stones per ticket, only those who buy tickets can enter and participate in the auction. This will effectively prevent some people who just want to watch the excitement from getting in."
This is a good idea, but selling tickets for ten high-grade spirit stones gives the impression that they want to make money by selling tickets, which is somewhat inappropriate.
If it were just Shi Xuan alone, it wouldn't be a problem. But now everyone knows that the round-faced master is Shi Xuan of the Lianfeng Sword Sect, and she represents the face of the Lianfeng Sword Sect, so this is somewhat inappropriate.
Shi Xuan pondered for a moment and said, "How about we change it to a deposit system? They can pay the spirit stones first, and then return the spirit stones to them after the auction."
"Alright!" Wang Laosan readily agreed: "That's a great idea. Leave it to me, Wang Laosan. I'll go find Xiao Leng right now and make sure the auction in three days is handled perfectly for you!"
Shi Xuan suddenly remembered something: Wang Laosan travels all over the country, so he must be very well-informed.
She asked, "Do you know about the Soul Gathering Stone?"
"Soul Gathering Stone? I know! The Liu family of Qingyuan is said to have a Soul Gathering Stone."
"The Liu family?" Shi Xuan had never heard of them. "How can we contact them?"
Wang Laosan: "The Liu family is a family of cultivators, located within the territory of the Yuxing Sect. They don't usually come out much. It's not easy to find anyone from their family..."
Shi Xuan nodded, thinking that once he finished his business here, he could go and visit the Yuxing Sect.
After Wang Laosan finished speaking, he left. Xiang Rong clicked his tongue in amazement: "You say everyone has a round face, so how come you're a master? My round face is just a round face."
"Or, I'll give you a few books on alchemy so you can go back and practice them, and become a master yourself?"
"Please spare me!" Xiang Rong wailed. "One sword manual is enough for me to master. If you ask me to do anything else, I'm afraid I won't be able to do any of them well!"
As the gong sounded on the dueling platform, two people walked into the arena. Shi Xuan was delighted to see that they were none other than Ling Yun and Tie Dao, whom she had fought before.
The two men seemed to recognize her, or perhaps because they had already been exposed the first time they came in, because they both bowed to Shi Xuan at the same time after they came on stage.
Shi Xuan gave an awkward laugh. Both of them were now in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, but in terms of the speed of their cultivation advancement, Shi Xuan was already more than a whole level ahead of them. Looking at it this way, he suddenly had an embarrassing feeling that his acting had been seen through...
"You know him?" Xiang Rong asked with a face full of curiosity.
Shi Xuan nodded helplessly: "I've fought them all."
"Haha," Xiang Rong laughed, "Dong Jingwei probably lost his spirit stones on one of these two people! So, which one do you think will win?"
Ling Yun was tall and handsome, which Xiang Rong thought made him look like a pretty boy, while Tie Dao was imposing and domineering.
Unexpectedly, Shi Xuan replied, "Ling Yun."
"Why?"
“Because,” Shi Xuan turned to look at Xiang Rong and said with a mischievous smile, “because iron knives are easier to deceive.”
As Shi Xuan had predicted, Ling Yun emerged victorious in the final match.
Xiang Rong sighed regretfully, "Sigh, I should have placed a bet. Maybe I could have won some pocket money."
Shi Xuan mocked her mercilessly: "Then you must have bet on the iron knife, and then lost the spirit stones. When you got back, you couldn't stand anyone who used a knife, haha!"
Xiang Rong: ...
However, thinking about it from the perspective of current affairs propaganda, it's not impossible...
The next day, Shi Xuan sorted out some odds and ends that were worth a few spirit stones but weren't very useful, made them into a list, and handed it to Leng Rufeng.
Adhering to the principle of keeping things as simple as possible, we finalized thirty lots.
With Chen Ji and Chen Shengjun's help, Wang Laosan chose the largest courtyard on the entire street and renovated it, creating a large hall.
Although it's called a hall, it's not like a professional auction house on the black market; it already feels quite crowded to accommodate two hundred people.
After discussing it with Shi Xuan, we decided to release 120 numbers, and those who paid a deposit would be given a first-come, first-served basis.
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