Chapter 812: Chapter 812: Soaring Prices Chapter 812: Chapter 812: Soaring Prices The Dharma for suppressing one's aura? Feng Jun thought with delight, that's exactly what I need.
However, dealing with Liang Zhongyu required extra caution. He stroked his chin, somewhat reluctantly speaking out, “But what I'm interested in… isn't this.”
Liang Zhongyu thought to himself, of course I know that's not what you're after, but I can't just give you the other things like that, “This… follows a lineage. Having seen the earlier parts, you'd have a better understanding of the subsequent Dharmas.”
Feng Jun hesitated for a moment but shook his head, “Forget it, I didn't bring that many Spirit Stones with me. For ten merit points, you give me the technique for suppressing my aura.”
“I'd be at a big loss then!” Liang Zhongyu couldn't help but exclaim.
The two were whispering behind others' backs; his sudden outburst made everyone turn to look.
“Then let's forget it,” Feng Jun spoke indifferently, “you keep trying to sell me something I don't want to buy. I just want to ask, who is really forcing a sale here?”
“You can't possibly be without any Spirit Stones on you,” Liang Zhongyu stated firmly, “right?”
Feng Jun smiled and nodded, “That's right.”
Hearing this, Liang Zhongyu was taken aback. He thought Feng Jun might deny it–it is all part of bargaining, isn't it? But you're admitting so candidly that you have Spirit Stones and don't want to give them to me? “Lao Feng, you're not being very sincere.”
Feng Jun looked at him with a smirk, “And selling things like this counts as being sincere to you?”
After a lot of haggling, they finally struck a deal: Ten merit points for the ears, plus three hundred Spirit Stones for the aura suppression technique.
Liang Zhongyu didn't feel like he was at a loss either, as he believed that the Qi Concealment Technique was only useful in special circumstances, and that a Dharma capable of boosting one's aura would be more valuable.
Nonetheless, it troubled him that he couldn't rest for the entire night that followed–he had to write out this Dharma from memory.
The technique for utilizing one's aura wasn't long, at about three thousand words, and minor errors didn't matter much; the essence was the most important part.
Having used the technique for a long time, Liang Zhongyu had a profound understanding of it. Explaining it in person would be more useful than Feng Jun figuring it out on his own, making those little errors somewhat irrelevant.
Thus, by the next afternoon, Feng Jun had largely grasped the technique.
After testing it himself, he indeed managed to reduce his aura to the level of Qi Refining Initial Stage, and he clicked his tongue regretfully, “Tsk, spent five hundred Spirit Stones to learn just this little bit, got it in one day, and without even an official Cultivation Technique Manual, Lao Liang, you truly are a crafty merchant.”
“Be content with what you have,” Liang Zhongyu huffed irritably, “if it weren't for the bond of comrades-in-arms and my urgent need for merit points, I wouldn't have sold it so cheaply… I could have asked for eight thousand Spirit Stones at least, right?”
“Eight thousand Spirit Stones?” Feng Jun looked at him with a smirk, “Were you planning on selling it with a Soul Seal?”
Hearing this, Liang Zhongyu shivered involuntarily. The Soul Imprint Technique was… rather sensitive. Feng Jun's words were clear: if Liang Zhongyu didn't know better, something unpleasant might happen.
Of course, it was probably just a threat; otherwise, Feng Jun wouldn't have said it so openly. But thinking it over, Liang Zhongyu realized, perhaps Feng Jun really had the power to subdue him and conduct a Soul Search.
So Liang Zhongyu felt there was no need to provoke Feng Jun further, and he sensed that Feng Jun might likely be interested in buying the subsequent techniques, “Aren't you familiar with Tiantong? You could ask around, see if my Dharma is too expensive at three thousand.”
“That's alright, I can judge for myself,” Feng Jun wasn't that interested in the subsequent techniques, but he wouldn't say so outright. Instead, he spoke with a smile, “I still have to deduce if there are any traps in the Dharma.”
Liang Zhongyu let out a helpless sigh, “Ah, the credibility of a handwritten copy is just so low.”
In the afternoon, when merit points were being registered at twelve windows, apart from people recording and distributing the points, others were specifically checking the time of the Spirit Beasts' deaths.
It wasn't as simple as handing over an ear to be credited as a military achievement; otherwise, someone could hoard hundreds of ears, keep them in a Storage Bag for years, and cash in after a Spirit Beast invasion–is that not a huge profit?
However, determining the exact time of slaying wasn't easy – roughly within a month was close enough.
Seeing this, Feng Jun felt slightly alarmed–he had returned to the Earth Plane multiple times to recuperate, after all, which had taken some time.
Fortunately, he hadn't wasted too much time, otherwise it could have been quite dangerous.
He had originally planned to exchange for seventeen merit points, but learning how useful the points were, he decided to exchange for thirty-two–twenty of those were meant for getting a permanent residence, while the remaining twelve were to be kept flexible.
Adding the ten he sold to Liang Zhongyu, that meant he produced ears worth forty-two merit points.
This went a bit against his initial intention of “flying under the radar,” but it couldn't be helped–ten merit points could be a lifesaver.
Thankfully, he had traded away ten points, so having only thirty-two on hand was less conspicuous.
Actually, he had worried too much about this matter. It was only during the registration that he realized although most people had very few merit points, there were quite a few with thirty to fifty points, and even occasionally some with over a hundred points.
He didn't want to sell his merit points, but there were indeed people who aimed to make money by selling theirs.
For example, some cultivators who only visited Qiuchen occasionally but got conscripted–since they might never return to Qiuchen, why bother keeping the merit points?
As for Feng Jun's thirty-two merit points, they just made the registrar lift their head to glance at him in slight surprise. Upon noticing he was at the high tier of Qi Refinement, they asked nothing more and looked back down.
These merit points were directly recorded onto his identity token, tightly bound to his identity, somewhat like the points one accumulates on a driver's license.
Having registered his merit points, Feng Jun walked forward only a few steps before three or four people surrounded him, “Sir, do you have any Spirit Beast Materials to sell? We pay high prices.”
The people who hang around here offering high prices? Feng Jun didn't believe it at all and walked away without even a glance.
He acted rather aloof, but others wouldn't let him off easily–after all, this man had thirty-two merit points on him.
After a few more steps, he finally got annoyed, “Move aside, move aside, I'm not selling… I need them for myself!”
Seeing him get angry, many were hesitant to press further, but a Mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator said with a smile, “Sir, with thirty-two merit points, surely you can't use all those materials by yourself, right?”
Feng Jun looked at him deeply, as if about to burst out. In the end, he just pointed his finger at the man with a menacing look, not saying a word, but the message was clear–I've got my eye on you, kid.
He smelled the thick scent of scheming, but acting out here would not only be unbecoming of his status but would also draw even more attention.
“Move aside, everyone move aside,” at that moment, a voice shouted from the side. It was none other than Liang Zhongyu.
Although slightly overweight, his movements were extremely agile. He darted over and placed his hand on Feng Jun's shoulder, rebuking the others, “It's enough that you're allowed to buy materials here. Whether we sell or not, do we need to look to you for how to conduct our business?”
This fellow, although he looked like a businessman, had an innate ruffian-like boldness. As soon as he spoke, others could sense he would be troublesome and stepped aside obediently.
Feng Jun inwardly felt inferior, as he lacked that 'keep away' vibe–no help for it, with his handsome face, he easily garnered others' favor and simply didn't look like a villain.
Once the others were chased away, Liang Zhongyu grinned and spoke, “Old Feng, I've underestimated you. Sell me ten merit points, and you'll still have over thirty left… Exactly how many Spirit Beasts did you kill?”
“Does the number really matter?” Feng Jun smiled faintly, “I'm agile, and I was able to pick up the pieces… does that count?”
Liang Zhongyu's eyes shifted, “Then did you manage to pick up the ears of a Feral Beast?”
“I did,” Feng Jun nodded, speaking seriously, “I was worried it was too ostentatious, so I was embarrassed to exchange them for merit points.”
“Haha,” Liang Zhongyu burst into uproarious laughter, slapping Feng Jun's shoulder, “Old Feng, you really do have a sense of humor. But no matter what, I really admire your attitude.”
Feng Jun's mouth twitched involuntarily as he spoke helplessly, “Why does everyone nowadays hate hearing the truth?”
The two chatted for a bit more before parting ways.
Feng Jun arrived at the inn he had booked before, just in time to find Jing Qingyang and Chen Junsheng peering out at the entrance.
Only after asking did he learn that the battle had gone on for more than twenty days, causing everything in Qiuchen Xian Market to increase in price–even the cost of accommodations had risen.
Because they had checked in early, the innkeeper, who was particularly conscious of his reputation–as mentioned before, people in this society generally cared a lot about their standing–did not raise the room rates for them.
However, with prices rising day by day, even the innkeeper couldn't bear the costs anymore. A few days earlier, he had hinted politely that others had raised their prices, and if they didn't raise theirs, the inn would lose money. How about they waive a couple of days' room charges, so they could try finding accommodations elsewhere?
The problem was, no one knew when the war would end.
Apart from the materials needed for battle, daily necessities hadn't really become scarce, but prices soared as traders hoarded their stock, with Spirit Rice prices increasing by fifty percent.
Chen Junsheng and his party knew the innkeeper's rationale was sound, but leaving just like that didn't seem right. Apart from other considerations, among their group of five, the highest in Cultivation Level were only at the fourth layer of Transcendence. Leaving and finding another place to register and stay would be difficult.
So Chen Junsheng and Jing Qingyang suggested that they would forgo the inn's meals and fend for themselves–was that acceptable?
In the following days, the two of them took on odd jobs to earn enough for the meals of all five.
But they bore no grudge against the innkeeper; their view was simple–these circumstances were normal during a time of war.
Now, hearing that the cultivators had won and Feng Jun might be returning soon, the two had been waiting at the entrance.
After hearing their account, all Feng Jun could do was shake his head and sigh, “Alas… it won't be like this anymore.”
Chapter end
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