Chapter 26: Profiteers, they are all profiteers

For this procurement task, Luo Chen did not head to the rogue cultivator market.

He had just made a massive purchase yesterday; going there again today would be far too suspicious.

Furthermore, that place was crowded and full of gossip, with most of the people being from the outer districts. Anyone with an ulterior motive could easily discover the changes in Luo Chen if they looked into it.

Therefore, Luo Chen gritted his teeth and went to Baicao Hall to make his purchases instead.

The final result was that he had to spend ten more spirit stones than before to complete the set of raw materials needed for refining pills.

As a result, he was left with only twenty-nine spirit stones in hand.

If he were to purchase various daily necessities and firewood later, he would have to spend another four spirit stones.

Twenty-five!

Just last night, he had held a massive sum of nearly one hundred and fifty.

"Spirit stones really don't last."

"This amount isn't even enough to buy a Traction Technique."

Standing at the crossroads, Luo Chen looked at the antique-style Wanbao Pavilion and gritted his teeth before walking inside.

As an enterprise of the Six Great Sects, its reputation and strength were the finest in the Dahe Market.

Consuming goods in a place like this made it difficult for other rogue cultivators to gather any information.

"Guest, would you like to purchase a magic tool?"

As soon as he entered, a maidservant approached him.

Entering such a high-end establishment for the first time, Luo Chen felt a bit uneasy.

He said he would look around first, and the maidservant left.

There was no enthusiastic sales pitch.

This was simply because his cultivation was only at the fourth level of Qi Refinement, and the dharma robe he wore was somewhat old and slightly too small, making it look tight.

He looked exactly like a rogue cultivator with weak purchasing power.

After wandering around the spacious first floor for a while, Luo Chen's uneasy mindset stabilized.

In particular, after glancing at the shelves for high-grade magic tools, he felt more confident.

Summoning the maidservant, Luo Chen said directly, "I want to sell a magic tool. You accept them here, right?"

The maidservant nodded. "We do, but it must first be appraised by a master before a price is given. As for whether the price is suitable, you can decide whether or not to sell it yourself at that time."

"There's no appraisal fee, right?"

"Haha, you must be joking, guest. Since you are selling to us, naturally, there will be no appraisal fee."

Luo Chen was truly terrified by Sun Shou's maneuvers yesterday.

Various fees seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Sun Shou belonged to the Yuding Sword Sect, while Wanbao Pavilion was an enterprise of Tianfan City; he feared that these wealthy but unscrupulous great sects were all birds of a feather.

Upon arriving on the second floor, an old man was sipping tea while playing with two red walnuts in his hands.

"Elder Chu, this guest wishes to sell a magic tool."

"Mhm, you may leave for now!" Elder Chu played with the walnuts in one hand and extended the other, "Let's see the goods."

A short sword was handed to him, its hilt shaped like a swallow.

Elder Chu nodded. "It is the Flying Swallow Sword, a standard-issue magic tool forged in our Tianfan City. Grade: High."

After weighing it, he shook his head. "The weight is short by one tael, and the blade is severely worn; it needs to be melted down and reforged."

As magic power was injected, it flowed through the blade, finally emitting light at the tip, the body, and the hilt.

"The Sharp Metal Array is damaged."

"The Qi-Dispersing Array still retains eighty percent effectiveness."

"The Fortification Array is unstable; the array patterns need to be reconstructed."

"Oh, and the owner was an idiot; he even carved words on it."

Having finished, Elder Chu casually tossed the Flying Swallow Sword onto the table.

"One thousand. If you want to sell it, Wanbao Pavilion will take it for one thousand spirit stones."

Hearing this massive number, Luo Chen's eyes widened instantly!

It wasn't because it was too high.

It was because it was too low!

It was common knowledge that the price of magic tools fluctuated with the market, and cultivators were very sensitive to this.

Low-grade magic tools ranged from one hundred to five hundred.

Mid-grade magic tools ranged from five hundred to one thousand.

High-grade magic tools started at one thousand spirit stones.

Among them, offensive magic tools generally had lower prices, with blades and swords being the most common and lowest in value.

Defensive magic tools were the most expensive.

As for some strange and peculiar magic tools, cultivators judged their value based on their effects, but their prices remained high.

In this world, there was no such thing as "the weirder the magic tool, the faster you die."

The more peculiar a magic tool was, the more likely it was to have unexpected effects, which could lead to a decisive victory during combat or while exploring secret realms.

Luo Chen was mentally prepared for the low price of a flying sword.

But he could not accept it being *this* low.

"The Flying Swallow Swords in your shop are sold for two thousand five hundred low-grade spirit stones!"

Elder Chu said indifferently, "Don't tell me you didn't know that for second-hand magic tools, Wanbao Pavilion mostly buys them back at half price?"

"But this isn't even half price!" Luo Chen argued.

These sect members might not care about a difference of a hundred or two hundred spirit stones, but for him, that was his entire life's savings from years of struggle.

"Then do you know how much effort it takes for us to take these magic tools and put them back on the shelves?"

Elder Chu counted on his fingers. "First, we have to send them back to the sect; the shipping is an expense."

"Selecting suitable materials for repairs is another expense."

"Hiring an array master to complete the arrays costs even more."

"Furthermore, to ensure quality standards and avoid being criticized for Tianfan City selling inferior goods, we have to hire high-level cultivators to conduct careful inspections."

"Finally, we have to expend great effort to transport them thousands of miles to various Wanbao Pavilions."

"As for other miscellaneous expenses, I haven't even calculated them for you."

Luo Chen felt a sourness in his teeth.

This old man lacked the magnanimity of a Foundation Establishment cultivator; his pettiness was comparable to Old Taoist Chen.

"Speaking of which, I have to mention you young people."

Elder Chu shook his head, speaking with a tone of disappointment, "All you know is fighting and killing all day long. Are magic tools meant for showing off and brawling? They are tools to protect one's Dao; they should be cherished carefully."

"After a battle, one should at least wash and wipe them!"

"When there is nothing to do, nurturing them with magic power is something that should be done!"

"Every second-hand magic tool sent to me is ravaged and broken."

"It breaks my heart to see them!"

By the end, he actually became emotional.

The way he looked at the Flying Swallow Sword was as if he were seeing a beloved being defiled and sent home broken.

Luo Chen found it a bit hard to bear.

But for the sake of cultivation resources, he gritted his teeth and persisted, "It's too low. I truly cannot accept this price. If I take it to the rogue cultivator market, someone will definitely pay fifteen or sixteen hundred."

Having said that, he picked up the sword and turned to leave.

"Hey, hey, young man, wait a moment."

Elder Chu quickly spoke up, "One thousand one hundred. How about that? This is the highest price I can offer within my authority."

"Still too low."

"It's not low, it's really not low. I haven't even offered this price for flying swords in better condition than this one."

Elder Chu said seriously, "Besides, a flying sword with words carved on it like this—ordinary rogue cultivators wouldn't dare take it, right?"

"One thousand one hundred, that's the price. If you are sincere about selling, Wanbao Pavilion will take it. And I promise, we will absolutely not disclose any information regarding your sale of the magic tool!"

Luo Chen stood in place, his expression shifting between various emotions.

Finally, he let out a long sigh.

"Fine, deal."

A moment later, Luo Chen walked out of Wanbao Pavilion.

Facing the dazzling sunlight, he unceremoniously spat on the ground.

"Damn it, profiteer!"

A female cultivator passing by gave him a contemptuous glance.

What kind of manners was that!

Inside Wanbao Pavilion.

Elder Chu smiled as he handed the Flying Swallow Sword to a burly man with a bare, muscular torso.

"Melt away the words on it, add some Five-Metal Qi, and then put it on the first-floor shelf!"

The burly man took the flying sword and scratched his head.

"The condition is actually quite good; it's not very damaged. Elder Chu, how many spirit stones did you get for it this time?"

"Not bad, one thousand one hundred. There's a profit."

Elder Chu said with a smile, then paused and sighed.

"Young people these days... they are getting better and better at managing their lives. They even haggle with me over a hundred low-grade spirit stones. With such stinginess, how can they ever attain the Great Dao in the future!"

(End of Chapter)