Huh? Isn't this an adventure kingdom building game?!
Chapter 212 Luring the Snake Out of the Hole

Chapter 212: Chapter 212 Luring the Snake Out of the Hole

When it comes to the gossip in the auction house, Miss Hu Jiu immediately grew animated, "Don’t be fooled by how their business is booming and their cooperation looks seamless like an iron plate. In reality, the inner power factions are quite clearly divided!"

The mysterious owner of the auction house has rarely appeared in public for years, delegating everything to Liu Wanhai.

Yet, the owner specifically hired the demon cultivator Qing Wu to oversee those high bidders who fail to produce the Spirit Stones. In terms of pricing power, Qing Wu’s equal to Liu Wanhai.

Whether the owner deliberately arranged for them to restrain each other is unknown. Nonetheless, all the fighters like Leopard Cultivator take their orders from Liu Wanhai, and if Qing Wu wants to have an easier time, he must pretend to flatter Liu Wanhai.

However, cunning and insidious as Shopkeeper Liu is, not only does he not trust Qing Wu, but he’s also constantly worried Qing Wu will report him to the owner behind his back. Therefore, Liu Wanhai prefers to use Qing Wu as a pawn, urging him to handle any troublesome issues.

"As for Qing Wu, he’s proud and arrogant, likely to fall for it most of the time," Miss Hu Jiu laughed, "Even if he doesn’t take the bait, I can easily lure him to the general store. What’s difficult is ensuring Liu Wanhai gets provoked without dragging the young master and the general store into it."

Hu Zhile laughed after hearing this, "That’s not hard. Just find another way to lure him. You should go to the auction house..."

After whispering for a while, Jiang Yuan also thought her plan was more ingenious. They immediately discussed the follow-up cooperation and then rushed off.

Miss Hu Jiu dressed up nicely in luxurious palace attire, holding a smoking pipe, and strolled as usual into the back hall of the auction house, where she saw Liu Wanhai writing and calculating.

"Oh, Miss Jiu is here?" He looked up to see this little fox spirit, even more beautiful after transformation, and immediately filled his face with a helpless smile. "I know you’re here to urge me about the Foundation Establishment Pill again, but we really don’t have any! You have no idea how rare alchemists are, and how hard it is to pry those elixirs from their hands to sell!"

Miss Hu Jiu leisurely blew a smoke ring and joked, "Shopkeeper Liu, you’re overthinking. I don’t need the Foundation Establishment Pill anymore."

Saying this, she retrieved a delicate little bottle from her Storage Bag, opened the cap, and blew a gust of Medicinal Incense.

Shopkeeper Liu’s face froze immediately, "Foundation Establishment Pill? Miss Jiu, where did you get it?"

The scene of the general store flashed quickly through his mind, he thought it damned, with such competition how could he inflate the elixir prices in the future?

"Oh, Shopkeeper Liu, your information is really not perceptive." Miss Hu Jiu still beamed with innocence. She put away the Foundation Establishment Pill and casually took out a Spirit Core Pill to showcase, "Look, I bought all these elixirs from the black market. Didn’t you know?"

The black market actually has people selling elixirs too?

Upon hearing this, Liu Wanhai harbored no doubts. After all, having been in the Market for so long, he understood each other’s background quite well. This little fox spirit spoiled by her elder sister is completely naive and clumsy, without a hint of scheming, only knowing how to gossip and daydream, easy to fool into spilling secrets.

There she was, flaunting her good stuff foolishly, not even considering the danger of being marked by others.

The Market prohibits fights. Having roamed here for years and being too well protected, she hardly understands how unpredictable people in the Cultivation Realm can be. But precisely because of this, it’s exceedingly easy to extract information about elixirs from her mouth.

"Do you know how much the Spirit Core Pill sold by the Cultivator in the black market costs?" She asked with a gossiping expression that required no pretense, sticking to her usual strength, which was enough to convince anyone. "Twenty thousand Spirit Stones per pill! It’s actually a thousand Spirit Stones cheaper than the Spirit Core Pills sold at the general store. Initially, I worried it might be fake, but later found it genuine.

Oh, Shopkeeper Liu, haven’t you noticed the declining number of people in the auction house?

Given how long we’ve been neighbors, I’m sharing this with you. Seems like the people in the Market are all reaping undisclosed benefits, hiding it under wraps and unwilling to tell anyone..."

Miss Hu Jiu, having long mingled in the gossip circle of the Market adeptly incited flames, soon had Liu Wanhai’s head buzzing with irritation.

Especially with the low-priced elixirs she bought flashing before him, Liu Wanhai grew even more furious.

Initially, there was the general store selling elixirs; now there’s a mysterious woman in the black market peddling elixirs at low prices. The Cyan Fish Mountain Market isn’t that large. One after another, they scavenge the customers’ Spirit Stones. Who will still come for the high-priced elixirs at the auction in the future?

With the loss of auctioning elixirs as a major source of income, if the owner is displeased, his position would be at risk!

Once the naive little fox spirit flaunted enough, she wandered off with the pipe in mouth to gather more gossip about the Zhang family and Li family, and Liu Wanhai immediately got up to find Qing Wu.

"Someone in the black market is selling elixirs cheaply, disrupting our business. Can’t the shopkeeper send anyone else? Why specifically come to me?"

"Isn’t it just because the Market prohibits fighting?" Liu Wanhai’s unrestrained white hair danced as he leaned in to lower his voice, "But skills like disembowelment are not listed under the Array’s jurisdiction."

Upon hearing this, Qing Wu looked down at his skinless and boneless hands, grinning, "The shopkeeper still appreciates my craftsmanship."

To send someone out as a pawn, Liu Wanhai naturally couldn’t maintain a demeanor and wait for the other party to come and flatter him anymore. He immediately nodded with a smile and said, "That person is, after all, selling in the black market. A place like the black market is an easy target. Once you get close enough to gauge her vitals, no matter how mysterious she is, she’ll be under your control. If you can find out the elixirs’ sales channels, the owner will undoubtedly be delighted!"

Qing Wu calculated and found this move to be beneficial to himself.

The prohibition against fights in the Market means many ordinary Cultivator methods can’t be used. His Curse doesn’t fall under the Array’s jurisdiction. This type of overwhelming attack made him dismissive of anyone, and his mundane flattery was merely to put Liu Wanhai at ease, ensuring he wouldn’t discover the secret in the warehouse.

"Then I’ll take a trip to the black market!" He stood up, pulled out a cloak to conceal his bizarre body, and descended to head toward the black market.

Liu Wanhai was very satisfied. Whether Qing Wu succeeded or failed, he could reap the benefits without lifting a finger.

Hopefully, they’ll fight to mutual destruction and be half-dead, allowing the leopard repair following Qing Wu to pick up the aftermath. Afterward, he could send a confidential letter to the owner and soon have Qing Wu expelled from the auction house!

Of course, if not for worrying that he’d quietly fall victim to Qing Wu, he would’ve dealt with him secretly a long time ago, not needed to wait until now!

That silly chatterbox little fox spirit at the Cloth Shop did a great job by delivering such a perfect opportunity!

"High-grade artifact refining materials!"

"A flying sword for personal use, being sold at a low price..."

......

Qing Wu, cloaked in his cape, heard the chaotic cries as soon as he arrived at the black market. The market hadn’t been open for long, and many swindling loose cultivators mingled in the black market, hoping to take advantage of the chaos.

Ordinary cultivators would naturally have their sight and perception distorted by the Array’s interfering shadows, along with an additional layer of protective concealment many use, making it difficult to distinguish ages or genders, even face-to-face.

Meanwhile, in the black market, the numerous twisted shadows gradually revealed their approximate features in Qing Wu’s pitch-black eyes. Although some ghostly outlines swayed, obscured clarity, it was far better than fumbling blindly, and at the same time, the goods hidden under their cloaks waiting to be traded occasionally emerged.

"The mysterious woman selling elixirs..." Qing Wu’s eyes slowly scanned the crowd, quickly locking onto a pair of seemingly negotiating man and woman in the corner.