Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 152 - 147: The Magical Instrument I Can’t Afford_1

Chapter 152: Chapter 147: The Magical Instrument I Can’t Afford_1

Above Boat City, there were many scattered stalls, all set up by the cultivators. The businesses they conducted naturally involved odd and fantastic treasures related to cultivating. Although their quantity was small, they were all of great value.

At this moment, what caught Li Xuan’s attention was a stall on one side of the ship’s passage.

This stall was extraordinarily small, only six feet wide, but situated in an excellent location, a must-pass for the crowd. All the items displayed on the stall were premium goods.

One of these was a black cloth bag the size of a fist that firmly drew in Li Xuan’s gaze. It appeared to be the stall owner’s trump card, placed in the center of the stall.

Li Xuan hesitated for a moment, but was still drawn over, "How much for this Qiankun bag?"

"Twenty yuanqi stones, one top-grade magical implement, or five units of Diyuan elixir, or other equivalent items."

The stall owner was a Taoist with a clean, white-bearded appearance. He exuded an aura of being out of the mortal world. He glanced at Li Xuan, then returned to his calm and serene demeanor, "Your ’Kuiniu luminous armor’ can be exchanged for it, or any three items from your medium-grade magical instruments."

He was able to immediately identify most of the items Li Xuan had on him.

"Can I pay with gold and silver?" Hope flickered in Li Xuan’s eyes. He believed that, even if he had to sell his iron pot and sell his dignity to raise money, he could still make up seventy to eighty thousand teals.

However, the Taoist waved his whisk and said coldly, "Don’t disturb!"

Li Xuan couldn’t help but ’tsk’, thinking that this service attitude was really bad, and that this stall owner would inevitably go bankrupt in the future.

"Qiankun bag~" Zhang Yue looked at the bag with full desire, "I have wanted this thing for a long time too. With it, I wouldn’t have to carry this shield on my back all day and look like a tortoise. But unless my father dies, I estimate I have no hope. Even Peng Fulai is better——"

"We’ve been doing business for several generations, and now we only have two." Peng Fulai shook his head, "It’s only because I got into the Liudao Division that my father gave me this bag. Now, my life depends on the things in this pouch."

Yue Qianqian didn’t speak, but her expression was also one of great envy. However, she noticed that Luo Yan, who was next to her, was not only very indifferent, but even had a touch of scorn in her eyes.

"Let’s go, business comes first——"

Before Li Xuan could finish his speech, his gaze was captured by another item on the stall. He picked it up and asked, "What is this?"

It was a jade bracelet belonging to a woman, placed on the edge of the treasure stall.

It looked identical to ordinary magical instruments, but Li Xuan found that there was a strong power of Yin circulating within the bracelet.

Upon holding it, Li Xuan felt the item was exceptionally light, almost weightless, and there was also an illusionary feeling to it. It seemed that it would disappear once mana was infused into it.

"That is a medium-grade Yin device, a branch of magical instruments, but it is specially refined by gods and ghosts." The Taoist gave Li Xuan a look, "This kind of item is rarely seen and has few buyers. Because it is a newly refined piece by me, and it has not been used by others, the selling price is fifteen thousand teals of patterned silver, or two kinds of materials that can cast low-grade magical instruments or their equivalency."

"A Yin device?" Li Xuan raised his eyebrows slightly, "So, Guardian Spirits can also use it?"

The Taoist showed no interest in responding. Instead, Yue Qianqian answered, "All deities and ghosts can use this type of Yin device. Guardian Spirits are no exception."

After some thought, she whispered softly in Li Xuan’s ear using a secret sound technique, "But if it’s your Shouyuan Spirit, I’m afraid this device won’t be very useful. Your Shouyuan Spirit possesses the aura of an emperor, matching only with Emperor’s Devices, preferably those containing Dragon Qi. This medium-grade Yin device has limited uses."

However, after hearing this, Li Xuan hesitated for a while, but still opened his mouth, "I can only afford to offer up to twelve thousand teals! Do you sell or not?"

The Taoist still didn’t respond; he just pointed to a line next to him - "No bargaining at this stall!"

Li Xuan couldn’t help but grip the coin purse around his waist, his expression twisted, cursing that this stall owner would go bankrupt soon.

However, this wasn’t likely, as the man before him was clearly a skilled Artifact Refiner. A figure like this potentially earned more in a year than even Peng Fulai’s father.

Compared to these highly skilled elixir and artifact refiners, they, the children of the nobility, were all poor. Even the Peng family couldn’t be considered rich.

※※※※

In the end, Li Xuan paid. The pocket money he accumulated over a month was instantly reduced by seventy percent, leaving him with a bitter taste.

But when he put this bracelet into his sleeve, the corners of Li Xuan’s lips lifted slightly, revealing a hint of satisfaction.

Because at that very moment, a fair, slim hand reached out from the void, took hold of the jade bracelet in his sleeve, and then disappeared into the void along with it.

-- It was the female ghost in red, the Guardian Spirit of the young girl who had sealed herself within the Song of Righteousness scroll. She had unexpectedly stirred at this moment.

At the same time, Li Xuan also felt a sense of relief. It seems that his Guardian Spirit was observing the outside world even though she had sealed herself. He was fortunate that he had resisted the urge to look at the erotic paintings stored by his original self after taking the Liudao Renyuan Elixir last night.

"What are you doing buying this Yin device?"

On their way to Xuanyi House, Peng Fulai couldn’t quell his curiosity and murmured, "Are you planning to get a Guardian Spirit? It may help boost your power, but it will deplete your Yuan Qi, your vital energy. Especially the good-looking Guardian Spirits. I know a man who had one and suffered kidney deficiency by the time he was thirty."

Zhang Yue was puzzled, "What has a Guardian Spirit got to do with kidney deficiency? When you mention the depletion of Yuan Qi, do you mean depletion of life vitality?"

As he exchanged glances with Peng Fulai, comprehension dawned on them.

Li Xuan just shook his head, not feeling inclined to elaborate. Not far after, he halted his steps.

The reason being they had reached Xuanyi House. This infamous hub of goods sales and rentals in Jinling City was located on the third floor of Duke Xuguo’s eight-thousand-material ship. A large, eye-catching sign marked the place.

After taking a careful look at the sign, Li Xuan strode in with the sureness of a confident man.

"Welcome, dear guests, please come in," called a couple of store attendants enthusiastically. However, when they noticed the black veils on their customers’ faces, they froze, growing serious.

Luo Yan was the only one without a veil. With a friendly smile on his face, he scanned the room, "Where’s your boss? Send him out, please."

"I’m the boss!"

An elderly gentleman in his sixties, standing behind the counter, was attentively observing the newcomers, "We at Xuanyi House don’t do business with strangers."

"No need to worry, the identities of our patrons are guaranteed. They can’t get on the boat if there’s a problem with their backgrounds. You can check with Old Dai and his team if you have any doubts. And myself, my name is Luo Fei. I’m an officially registered broker in Boat City who only recently boarded. I haven’t had the chance to come over here before."

Luo Yan was acting the part of the ’broker’, he then smilingly pointed at Li Xuan and the others, "These gentlemen hail from the northern prairies, they wish to collect some exotic items from the south to take back with them. The cheaper, the rarer, the more valuable, the better. Also preferably easy to carry. And may I know your name, shopkeeper?"

The apprehension in the shopkeeper’s eyes was replaced with relief, "My name is Han! Please come in, dear guests. Sorry for the trouble, it’s just that the authorities have been cracking down hard recently. The Liudao Division is frenzied and has raided two black markets in Boat City in just these two months."

Despite his enthusiastic tone, Li Xuan noticed two attendants slipping out, evidently going to investigate.

A dismissive Luo Yan continued making amiable conversation with the shopkeeper. True to his reputation at Xuanying Tower for his ability to network, with just a few casual remarks, he had Han the shopkeeper beaming.

When those two attendants returned, Han’s enthusiasm only increased, "I see our esteemed guests might not care for the goods on this floor?"

Li Xuan, with an indifferent look, nodded. Yue Qianqian then spoke in an aloof yet fluent tone in a strange and exotic language that drew everyone’s attention. The Boshi of Demons was actually speaking the Mongol language.

"She says everything on this floor is garbage, not worth a second look." Luo Yan was still laughing, "We would appreciate it if you could show us something of a higher grade. These esteemed gentlemen are wealthy individuals who don’t care about the price."

Shopkeeper Han nodded understandingly, "If you will follow me, all the good stuff is upstairs."

He took the lead up the stairs, leading them to the third floor. Although this space was much smaller, the items displayed on the shelves were either intricate or extravagant.

Li Xuan’s pupils contracted, noticing two people sitting in the corner of this floor. Judging by the energy emitted, both were martial cultivators at the fifth house level.

Peng Fulai and the others also scowled, looking thoughtful.

The plan of action had been strategized the day before. If they could extract information about the ’Jinsi Cloisonne Golden Dragon Cup’ directly from Xuanyi House, it would be ideal. If gentle persuasion didn’t work, they would resort to force and snatch the item.

Xuanyi House had one manager and three supervisors. They had to try grabbing one without alerting the Boat City guards, then coerce them into revealing the true story.

The following escape plan was to plunge into the Yangtze River - firmly under the control of the Li Family. Li Xuan’s family’s Water Style technique, combined with Yue Qianqian’s spells, could enable them to submerge twenty feet underwater and hold their breath for at least a moment.

To do this was akin to stirring up trouble - a sure way to offend the shareholders of Boat City. Yet, members of the Liudao Division had already done this on more than one occasion. They’d even gone so far as to directly capture criminals from the blacklist in Boat City. Li Xuan and his group weren’t afraid of the consequences in the slightest.

However, looking at the current situation, it seemed unlikely they could grab someone stealthily.

Zhang Yue clenched his fists and looked at Li Xuan.

Li Xuan understood his intentions but shook his head with a bitter smile in return.

Despite the fact that he had disabled Situ Zhong, The Iron Heart, with a single slash in the palace, the man - together with the two Baihu officials frozen by Li - were just practitioners of the fifth house level. Situ Zhong’s ability to become the head constable of Jinling Government relied more on his investigative skills than his martial ability.

Moreover, on that day, Li Xuan had spent a full thirty breaths just preparing for that one hit. Now, it was utterly impossible for him to subdue those two without alerting the guards of Boat City.

His calculations had been off, he should have anticipated this. Jinling and its surroundings, especially around the Mid-Yuan Festival, were a breeding ground for demons. Boat City Black Market, harboring vast collections of treasures, was an even likelier target for demons. It was only to be expected that Xuanyi House would strengthen its security.

However, the next instant, Li Xuan noticed Luo Yan who was currently speaking to Shopkeeper Han, pointing at the martial cultivator on the left.

Li Xuan, seeing this, felt uplifted, quickly turning his worry into joy. He understood that Luo Yan implied he had the confidence to take down at least one of them.