When the flag-holding cultivator saw Han Li approach, he hastily brought out several tens of spirit stones to give to the store employee before hastily flying off with his friend.
Han Li gloomily gazed at them as they took off. He felt slightly at a loss!
But just a moment later, the store employee politely addressed Han Li, “Senior, my sincerest apologies! As this is the first floor, I’m afraid there is nothing of interest here. If Senior truly wishes to find suitable items to purchase, then the floors above the third would be best. Those floors specialize in receiving high-class cultivators.”
Initially, Han Li was somewhat startled, but he soon recovered his usual bearings. He asked indifferently, “Could you give me an introduction to the floors of the Stardust Pavilion?”
The employee appeared slightly surprised, but he respectfully agreed, “Of course. Since it’s Senior’s first time at our Stardust Pavilion, it’s only natural that I introduce our store to you.”
“Our Stardust Pavilion has a total of nine floors. The first seven are open to the public, and the last two are closed off to outsiders. The first three floors are for inferior Qi Condensation cultivators. Floors four through to six are for high-grade cultivators such as yourself. As for floors seven and higher, they are at the service of Core Formation cultivators.”
The employee quickly gave Han Li a general introduction to the store. Han Li nodded his head and then wordlessly walked straight toward the stairs to the second floor.
The second and third floors were a bit smaller than the first, but the arrangement was obviously more luxurious. It seemed that the farther up he went, the more precious the items that were on sale.
With that thought, Han Li quickly passed through floors two and three, even directly passing through the fourth floor.
He had originally thought to head straight toward the sixth floor, but a young, red-clothed servant blocked his way.
“According to the store rules, you must first gain the approval of the fifth floor shopkeeper before being allowed to proceed to the sixth floor.” The elegant, young servant expressionlessly said. Although he was only a Qi Condensation cultivator, he didn’t fear Han Li, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, in the slightest.
Han Li wrinkled his brow and headed toward the fifth floor’s main hall instead of becoming angry.
Although the main hall wasn’t large, there were several young, pretty female servants waiting there. When Han Li walked in, a man and woman were having a relaxed discussion.
The man had a common appearance and seemed to be about thirty-five years old. The woman appeared to be nearing forty years old and had the grace of a noble woman. It could be seen that in her youth she was a rarely seen beauty.
While the two were both Foundation Establishment cultivators, Han Li was surprised to see that the middle-aged woman was a late Foundation Establishment cultivator.
“Fellow Daoist, do you require any assistance?” When the middle-aged woman saw Han Li enter, she turned her head and gave him an enchanting smile. She spoke with a melodious voice that soothed those who heard it.
“I wish to purchase a few truly precious items. Do you have any such items? I don’t care whether it is a magic tool, talisman, or anything else.”
Hearing that Han Li’s tone was rather arrogant, the man glanced at Han Li with slight surprise.
“Hehe! If Fellow Daoist truly wishes to buy quality goods, then he has come to the right place. So long as you have the money to pay, we will definitely leave you satisfied.” Although the middle-aged woman was no longer young, her laughter was just as charming as that of a young woman.
“But as it happens, this Fellow Daoist also wishes to buy quality goods. Please wait for a bit, and I’ll take out a few items for you to browse.” The woman said with a beaming smile.
She then turned her head and gave a command with a serious expression, “Violet Lotus, come and serve these two esteemed guests some tea!”
“Of course, Madam!” The maid standing behind the woman respectfully replied.
As the middle-aged woman leisurely walked out, the maid poured a cup of tea for Han Li and the man who was originally here.
Chapter 354: Madam Lan
Han Li and that man were seated on different sides of the square table. They took several glances at each other, but neither of them had any intention of talking.
Cultivators who came here to do their shopping had no intentions of treading too closely to strangers as it would only breed hostility.
Despite this, the man still shot several curious glances at Crooked Soul who had remained outside the hall by the staircase.
Thanks to his perceptiveness, he had already made out Crooked Soul to be a refined corpse, but the Spiritual Qi fluctuations he felt from Crooked Soul’s body left him quite baffled.
After all, cultivator-refined, iron-skinned corpses normally only had immense strength. It shouldn’t be possible for them to possess magic power.
The man strongly suppressed his desire to ask questions. Although Han Li was a mid Foundation Establishment cultivator like himself, he was rather wary of him.
After Han Li had sipped away most of the tea, the woman finally returned to the main hall.
This time, she had two strong, robust men following behind her. These two men didn’t possess any magic power and had rather stiff faces. They were unexpectedly two realistic-looking puppets.
The puppets held a huge tray, wrapped in a bundle of silk cloth. It seemed that the shopkeeper intended on concealing the precious items within it.
A strange expression flashed from Han Li’s eyes. He had just used his spiritual sense to see through the red silk and find out what was underneath it. However, he hadn’t expected that the unremarkable silk cloth would block him. In his surprise, he couldn’t help but turn his head to look at the man beside him.
He also appeared astonished. It was obvious he had done the same.
The middle-aged woman approached Han Li and the man until she was a few steps away. She wordlessly smiled before she spoke, “I’ve already acquainted myself with you, Fellow Daoist Fan. Might I ask for your name, Fellow Daoist? My surname is Lan. You two Fellow Daoists may call me Madam Lan.” The woman gave herself a well-practiced introduction.
Naturally, Han Li couldn’t awkwardly remain silent so he reluctantly said, “My surname is Han.”
Afterwards, he said nothing further and displayed a cold demeanor, unwilling to speak further.
Madam Lan didn’t take this to heart. After all, a vast majority of cultivators that came here feigned indifference like Han Li. It was something she had long become accustomed to.
As a result, she smiled slightly and beckoned to the puppets behind her. The well-chiseled puppets immediately walked forward. Afterwards, Madam Lan extended her flawless finger and lifted the red cloth cover, revealing the several items underneath.
Han Li and the man surnamed Fan simultaneously gazed at the items on the tray, their eyes gleaming with rapt attention.
A long sword, short blade, throwing dart, a ring, and a piece of jet-black armor were arranged in a line. From one glance at the sparkling shine each of these items radiated, one could tell that these were not common goods.
Once the magic tools on the dish were clearly seen, Han Li and the man surnamed Fan had differing reactions.
The cultivator named Fan intensely stared at the plate with a gaze containing a slight trace of exhilaration. But when Han Li glanced at them, he immediately turned his gaze away, revealing a lack of interest. This greatly surprised Madam Lan, causing her to pay closer attention to Han Li.
“This item is called the Cold Crystal Blade. It was refined using rare profound crystal and ice jade. Not only are its attacks powerful, it also possesses dark-cold Qi, capable of unknowingly decreasing the power of enemies in a chaotic battle. It truly is a quality item among top-grade magic tools.” The woman gave calmly introduced the item after deftly grabbing the transparent, spar
kling short blade from the tray and lifting it into the air.
She then waved the magic tool in her hand, immediately releasing a breeze of icy Qi. As soon as it appeared in the room, the Qi Condensation maids couldn’t help but shiver.
“Could Madam let this one take a look at that blade?” The man surnamed Fan looked at the magic tool with excitement.
Madam Lan faintly smiled in response and handed over the blade without the slightest of hesitation. Afterwards, she took a hidden glance at Han Li.
She only saw Han Li with an indifferent expression. He had merely lowered his head to look at the empty tea cup in his hand. As he did not show the slightest interest in this magic tool, Madam Lan felt slightly disappointed.
As he was playing around with the short blade in his hand, the man surnamed Fan spoke in a loud voice, “Alright, I want to buy this Cold Crystal Blade. How many spirit stones will it cost?”
Although Madam Lan was somewhat surprised to hear this, she calmly asked, “Doesn’t Fellow Daoist Fan intend to look at the other magic tools?”
“There is no need. This one naturally knows that the other items are certain to be better. However, this one is embarrassingly short of money. I reckon that this blade is the only one I can buy. So even if the other items are better, this one does not have the heart to see them. This way, I can avoid feeling envy.” This Cultivator Fan spoke rather honestly with a touch of humor. The beautiful Madam Lan raised her hand to conceal a faint smile.
The woman quickly suppressed her smile and spoke methodically as usual, “This Cold Crystal Blade costs eight hundred spirit stones. Once Fellow Daoist Fan hands over that amount, he may take the item and leave.”
“Good. Could you take a look and check if this is the right amount of spirit stones?” Cultivator Fan bluntly took out a storage pouch. In the blink of an eye, a pile of varied- colored spirit stones poured out onto the table.
Madam Lan effortlessly swept her gaze across the table. With the corners of her lips slightly raised, she said, “How could I distrust you? There is no need to check.”
With that said, the woman took her storage pouch and absorbed the spirit stones on the table.
Madam Lan’s actions gave Cultivator Fan a very favorable impression. He then revealed an amicable expression before taking his leave.
But when Han Li saw this, he inwardly laughed in ridicule despite his indifferent expression.
‘What do you mean by “there is no need to check”! What was the spiritual sense enveloping the spirit stones supposed to be? Obviously, Madam Lan’s spiritual sense is far stronger than common cultivators and was able to to instantly count the number of spirit stones without anybody knowing. As such, she was able to deliberately say such a clever and convenient line.’ Han Li thought with an inward sneer.
Madam Lan hadn’t realized that her cheap trick had been seen through by Han Li. After she finished watching Cultivator Fan leave with a faint smile on her face, she turned her gaze upon Han Li once more.
“Fellow Daoist Han seems to hold no interest in these items! Could it be that these magic tools aren’t worthy of Fellow Daoist’s notice?” Madam Lan asked with a slight smile.
It was quite strange. She clearly knew that the person before her had inferior cultivation to her own. But for some unknown reason, she felt a trace of strange danger from Han Li, causing her speech to unconsciously become more tactful towards him as she didn’t dare to offend him.
“While the quality of these magic tools are quite decent, I am looking for magic tools that are a bit more exceptional. They must also be well suited to my techniques! Furthermore, not only am I looking for magic tools and talismans, I am also interested in rare items.” Han Li replied serenely.
“Oh! If Fellow Daoist Han had such requests, he should’ve said them sooner. This one had believed that Fellow Daoist Han would’ve been satisfied with any kind of magic tool, the same as Fellow Daoist Fan.” Madam Lan couldn’t help but giggle. She then continued speaking with great confidence, “So long as Fellow Daoist is able to pay the price, our Stardust Pavilion will provide all the items you desire.”
Han Li dryly laughed and directly answered with a question, “Since Madam insists, I will bluntly mention them. Does your esteemed pavilion have any pill formulas useful to Foundation Establishment cultivators for sale? Or any sets of magic tools? Naturally, the greater the number in a magic tool set, the better.”
The woman’s face revealed slight emotion before immediately regaining her calm.
Madam Lan stared at Han Li with her beautiful eyes before speaking deliberately, “Fellow Daoist’s requests are truly unusual. Were it half a month ago, I may have been left helpless. But now, my pavilion had acquired two such pill formulas and a set of high-quality magic tools. The prices of these items are truly great. They are not something that I am able to sell. Fellow Daoist will have to continue this conversation on the sixth floor!”
Han Li had anticipated what the woman would say and asked indifferently, “Then am I allowed to go up to the sixth floor?”
Madam Lan lightly brushed her hair before gently smiling. “Of course you can. But in accordance to sect rules, I must first inspect Fellow Daoist’s qualifications.”
“What qualifications?” Han Li casually asked.
“It’s very simple! It is whether or not Fellow Daoist possesses a thousand spirit stones or items of equivalent value.” The woman stated with an earnest tone.
“Is this enough?” Without any objections, Han Li took out the storage pouch that kept his spirit stones and tossed it toward the woman.
Han Li’s collection of spirit stones had reached a thousand long ago. Now, he should be in possession of nearly two thousand spirit stones.
Madam Lan took the storage pouch and examined it with her spiritual sense. She then nodded her head and said, “Please follow me. I will personally accompany you to the sixth floor.”
When Han Li saw her walking towards the stairs, he silently followed after her.
The young, red-clothed servant guarding the stairwell silently stepped to the side upon seeing Madam Lan approach. Han Li and Madam Lan then climbed to the sixth floor one after the other.
Chapter 355: The Redthread Shadowchaser Needles
To tell the truth, Han Li was quite curious about the sixth floor’s shopkeeper. The fifth floor shopkeeper was a late Foundation Establishment cultivator. Could the sixth floor cultivator be a Core Formation expert?
Han Li felt slightly excited.
Then Han Li glanced at the young, seventeen-year-old woman that stood behind Madam Lan and was left dumbfounded.
The young woman was dressed rather simply, and her beauty was merely above average. However, for this young mortal woman who was lacking even the slightest magic power to be the sixth floor shopkeeper was truly beyond Han Li’s expectations.
But what was particularly unusual was what happened when the young woman saw Madam Lan climb to the sixth floor. She continously called out, “Aunty Lan! Aunty Lan!” with much intimacy. At the same time, she completely overlooked Han Li, causing him to feel sullen.
“That’s enough, Xiu’er! There is a guest here!” Although Madam Lan’s words were harsh, her tone was filled with obvious affection.
“Guest?” The young woman indifferently glanced at Han Li without the slightest of care.
“Yes. This Fellow Daoist Han wishes to buy pill formulas and the set of magic tools we previously acquired. Thus, I am bringing him to the sixth floor and having you receive him. I have to go back down. There may be more guests arriving at the fifth floor!” Madam Lan spoke with great warmth.
“So it's like that. But the next time Aunty Lan is free, she must definitely come up and keep me company.” The young woman spoke with reluctance.
Madam Lan gave a kind smile in response before heading back down. The young woman gazed at her as she descended.
She eventually turned her head to glance at Han Li and spoke coldly, “What sort of pill for
mulas does your esteemed self want? We possess eight pill formulas, but only two are useful to Foundation Establishment cultivators. In addition, the prices for them are astonishingly high. It won’t just cost several hundred spirit stones.”
When Han Li heard the tone of her voice, he smiled instead of becoming angry.
“So long as the pill formulas are genuine, price is of no concern.” Han Li’s tone was exceptionally grand. The young woman was surprised by his response and earnestly sized him up.
“Then please wait a moment. I will call for people to bring out the pill formulas and the set of magic tools.” The young woman’s expression softened. It was only natural that she acted more pleasantly around a magnanimous guest.
She merely took out a small bell and lightly tapped it with a rhythm. Then, she casually sat in her chair without the slightest intention of entertaining Han Li.
Han Li felt somewhat amazed at this. Still, he calmly pulled out a chair and sat across from the young woman. The only thing separating the two was a wooden table.
Han Li’s action caused the young woman’s graceful brow to lightly crease. Although her expression wasn’t very happy, she ultimately didn’t say anything.
A short moment later, a young female cultivator walked in, grasping two jade boxes: one large and one small.
“Place them there.” The young woman spoke indifferently as she pointed to the side of the table.
“Yes, Young Madam!” The female cultivator respectfully replied before placing the jade boxes down on the table. She then took the initiative to withdraw.
Han Li’s eyes flashed with surprise upon seeing the female cultivator speak so respectfully to a young female mortal.
“The pill formulas and the magic tools are here. Your esteemed self should have a look. If they are to your satisfaction, then I will tell you the price.” The young woman lightly pushed the jade boxes toward Han Li.
Since she insisted, Han Li didn’t act with the slightest politeness. He took the small jade box and opened the lid, revealing a red and white jade talisman.
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