Chapter 166

Translator: 549690339

Upon first arriving in the Inner Domain, Xu Yan adhered to a low-profile principle, despite having a general understanding of the Inner Domain from Xie Lingfeng and his junior sister Su Lingxiu.

However, this was only a general understanding, which only covered the overarching structure of the Inner Domain.

Just like the difference between reading about scenery from a book and experiencing it firsthand, there was a difference.

Since arriving in the Inner Domain, Xu Yan realized how poor he was, and now all he was thinking about was how to earn enough Spirit Crystals to buy Spiritual Medicine.

No matter what the intentions of the people on the coach were, whether sinister or not, Xu Yan was not worried.

Although he had not made himself invincible in the Inner Domain, he could still easily deal with most of the Grandmaster martial artists.

Amongst this group of people, the most powerful was a seriously injured Grandmaster martial artist who posed no threat.

As long as he had enough Spirit Crystals, Xu Yan even hoped that they would try something, as this would result in a significant inflow of Spirit Crystals to him.

“Following my late mother’s wish, I’m taking her ashes back to our hometown. However, the journey has been fraught with danger. Given your apparent strength, I would like to hire you to accompany and protect me. Would that be acceptable?”

Du Yuying stated her intentions.

Ad

Xu Yan raised an eyebrow, so this was the matter. Even with a Grandmaster guarding her, she still felt unsafe, which meant the enemies she faced must be very strong.

“I just arrived in the Inner Domain and I don’t know anyone here. I don’t have any money and I’m just a penniless person. I have a limited understanding of the martial arts circles here. The forces that my junior sister mentioned are all highly influential entities.

“There are countless factions and sects in the Inner Domain. Just within the borders of the Great Yue Kingdom, there are many forces in play, not to mention outside the kingdom.

“Escorting her back might not be a bad idea. As for her enemies, I will fight if 1 can, and run away if I can’t. There is no need to worry about being involved in this. If things really come to that, 1 can just mention Brother Xie’s name.”

Xu Yan contemplated and made a decision.

“I do not mind escorting you, however, about the price…”

The woman held a significant status and should be able to offer a good amount of Spirit Crystals. Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Xu Yan’s face.

“One hundred Spirit Crystals, how does that sound?”

Du Yuying spoke.

Xu Yan instantly suppressed his smile, looking at her disdainfully, “Are you begging?”

He turned around, preparing to leave.

“Sir, please wait. What I meant was a hundred Spirit Crystals a day.”

Du Yuying spoke again.

A hundred Spirit Crystals a day?

Xu Yan’s eyes shone slightly, it seemed like the price was pretty good?

“How many days will you need to travel to get back?”

Xu Yan didn’t agree straight away.

If the journey were short and they’d reach their destination in a day or two, wouldn’t that devalue his own worth?

Ad

“The journey is dangerous. It’s hard to determine how many days it will take.”

Du Yuying replied.

“A thousand Spirit Crystals as a starting price, with an additional hundred daily. I will accept that.”

Xu Yan thought and gave his counteroffer.

“Agreed!”

Du Yuying quickly accepted the terms.

Seeing how quickly she agreed, Xu Yan couldn’t help but scratch his head. Did he quote too low?

“Get a horse for Sir!”

Du Yuying instructed.

“Yes, Mistress!”

A guard brought a horse.

After Xu Yan climbed onto the horse, he leaned against the carriage, “Where are the Spirit Crystals? 1 need the first thousand upfront.”

“Here you go!”

Cui’er opened the carriage curtain and handed over a thin, paper-like, silver card that was about three inches long.

Xu Yan took a look at it. The card was embossed with the words Tianbao Pavilion, the bottom left corner showed a thousand, and the back of the card had a small diamond-shaped brand.

“That’s a Spirit Note with a balance of one thousand. You can use it to purchase things in any Tianbao Pavilion or exchange it for Spirit Crystals.”

Knowing that Xu Yan was new to all this and probably didn’t know about Tianbao Pavilion’s Spirit Note, Cui’er explained.

“So, this is a Spirit Note!”

Xu Yan marveled as he observed it closely. The Spirit Note was harder than normal paper but it could still be folded without leaving creases.

“It doesn’t look hard to make a Spirit Note. Isn’t Tianbao Pavilion afraid of counterfeits?”

Xu Yan asked doubtfully.

“Pfft!”

Cui’er laughed, “The material for the Spirit Note is unique to Tianbao Pavilion and they’ve encoded anti-fraud measures on it. Who can forge it? Besides, forging Spirit Notes is equivalent to shaking the foundation of Tianbao Pavilion, tantamount to declaring war on them. Who would dare to do that?”

Xu Yan nodded, pocketing the Spirit Note, and rode the horse following the caravan out of the city.

“The horses in the Inner Domain are much stronger and faster than those in the Border Wastelands and their endurance is also much better. Is it because they live in the Heavenly Earth Lingji and can benefit from the nourishment of Spiritual Energy?”

Xu Yan thought to himself.

Once they left the Iron Mountain County, their pace quickened and they set off to the east.

Xu Yan didn’t ask about their destination, as long as he got the money, he was only escorting them after all.

Inside the carriage, Du Yuying sat silently.

Her maid, Cui’er, held a sword and sat next to her, looking like she wanted to say something but kept her mouth shut.

“Mistress, why did you hire a stranger to be an escort? He’s so young, at most, he has the strength of a third-grade martial artist. What use will he be if we encounter a powerful foe?”

Unable to curb her curiosity, Cui’er finally asked.

Du Yuying was silent for a moment before she said, “A novice who seems to know nothing about everything, yet is full of confidence. A fifth-grade martial artist disappeared in his hands. He’s not weak..”