Chapter 787: Shopping Spree

Chapter 787: Shopping Spree

"Lead the way," Shi Chuankong said in a casual manner.

The green-robed woman did as she was told, leading Han Li and Shi Chuankong to an individual booth, where various types of fruits, snacks, and tea were offered to them.

"These Dark Fruits and Spring Mist Tea are specialty local products of the Ten Hazards Mountain Range, feel free to give them a try, Fellow Daoist Li," Shi Chuankong suggested.

Han Li raised a cup of steaming tea, then took a small sip before giving a slight nod.

Right at this moment, the door of the booth was opened, and a young woman in a pink dress stepped inside. She had also taken on a humanoid form, and there were no visible inhuman features on her at all.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I am Mei Lan, an administrator of the Floating Gold Pavilion," the young woman introduced.

Bouquets of pink flowers were emerging in the air around her as she walked, giving off a fragrant aroma.

Han Li raised an eyebrow at the sight of the young woman, who was at the pinnacle of the Golden Immortal Stage. It appeared that she was most likely a tree demon, and whatever cultivation arts she was using seemed to be quite remarkable as well.

It was quite strange to Han Li that someone of her cultivation base was serving as a mere administrator in this Floating Gold Pavilion, but he quickly realized that this was most likely a business tactic of the pavilion.

By sending out an administrator of a far superior cultivation base to the customer, the Floating Gold Pavilion would be able to exert subtle pressure on the customer, thereby gaining the initiative.

However, such a tactic naturally wasn't effective on Han Li and Shi Chuankong, and the two of them continued to sit and drink tea with their expressions completely unchanged.

Mei Lan was slightly taken aback by the composure displayed by Han Li's duo, but her expression also remained unchanged as she sat down across from the two of them and asked, "What can I help you with today, esteemed guests?"

Shi Chuankong casually set down the teacup in his hand, then flipped a hand over to produce a storage bracelet, which he tossed at Mei Lan as he said, "We heard that the Floating Gold Pavilion is one of the largest shops in Black Weasel City, and we wanted to discuss some business with your shop. Here's the deposit."

A hint of surprise flashed through Mei Lan's eyes upon hearing this, but she still caught the bracelet, and after inspecting its contents with her spiritual sense, an astonished look instantly appeared on her face.

Inside the storage bracelet were five hundred thousand Devilish Origin Stones stacked in neat piles, presenting a stunning sight to behold.

Upon realizing her own loss of composure, Mei Lan hurriedly composed herself, then set down the storage bracelet in her hand as she said, "It is a great honor for our Floating Gold Pavilion that you've chosen us. May I ask how I can help you today?"

A hint of amusement flashed through Han Li's eyes upon seeing this.

Mei Lan had intended to intimidate the two of them with her vastly superior cultivation base, but Shi Chuankong had employed the same tactic against her, claiming the upper hand by presenting such an enormous sum of wealth.

An unspoken contest was taking place here, and Shi Chuankong had gained the upper hand, as expected of such an integral figure in the Vast Origin House.

"We're looking to buy a batch of high-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade," Shi Chuankong declared in a straightforward manner.

Mei Lan's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and she offered no response.

"Are you not interested in making such a deal?" Shi Chuankong asked.

"Please don't misunderstand. We're naturally very much willing to do business with you, but Purple Sun Warm Jade has always been in very short supply, and we don't even have any mid-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, let alone high-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade," Mei Lan explained with an awkward expression.

The price was within the realm of Han Li's expectations, and he couldn't be bothered to barter, so he nodded in agreement.

Having claimed the storage tools of Tie Yu and Tong Yu, he currently had quite a large supply of Devilish Origin Stones, so this was not a significant sum to him.

He stowed the purple jade box away, then summoned a storage ring that he handed over to Mei Lan.

"Thank you for your patronage," Mei Lan said with a smile after briefly inspecting the contents of the storage ring.

After the deal was complete, Han Li and Shi Chuankong promptly departed, and Mei Lan accompanied them all the way to the entrance of the Floating Gold Pavilion.

Lu Xie had been waiting for them this entire time, and he immediately approached them as they exited the shop.

"How did it go, seniors?"

"Don't ask unnecessary questions. Just do your job and take us to the next shop," Shi Chuankong replied in a cold voice.

Lu Xie shuddered slightly upon hearing this, and he hurriedly gave an affirmative response.

A short while later, the carriage drew to a halt in front of a tall pagoda, and Han Li and Shi Chuankong entered the shop before re-emerging close to an hour later.

"Take us to the next one," Han Li instructed.

All in all, the two of them visited six or seven large shops before night fell, clearing out all of their supplies of Purple Sun Warm Jade.

That night, they chose an inn to stay in.

Inside his room, Han Li made a hand seal before releasing a flurry of array flags out of his sleeves, and the flags descended all around the room, setting up several light barriers.

After that, he conjured up a door of silver light before stepping into the Flower Branch domain.

Inside the bamboo pavilion, Weeping Soul remained unconscious as she laid on the bed.

Her complexion was so pale that her cheeks almost appeared translucent, and small plumes of black qi were rising up out of her body before dissipating into nothingness.

A grim look appeared on Han Li's face upon seeing this.

Weeping Soul's condition had worsened significantly since he last checked on her several days ago, and the rate at which her essential energy was dissipating had also sped up drastically.

After taking a deep breath to compose himself, he swept a sleeve toward the nearby table, and five or six jade boxes appeared on the table amid a flash of azure light, containing a total of over two hundred pieces of Purple Sun Warm Jade, all of which were of the low-grade variety.

Even though he hadn't managed to purchase even a single piece of mid-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade, he was hoping that such a large quantity of low-grade Purple Sun Warm Jade would be able to help Weeping Soul's condition.

The only concern was that buying up so much Purple Sun Warm Jade had most likely already attracted him a great deal of attention from those who were in the know in Black Weasel City.

Thankfully, Black Weasel City was a thriving business hub with many merchants coming through from outside, so their activities weren't particularly suspicious.

However, after some discussion with Shi Chuankong, the two of them had already decided that they were going to stay for one more day to purchase more Purple Sun Warm Jade before leaving the city to avoid unnecessary trouble.