“Shopkeeper Tong!” A voice called out, causing Shopkeeper Tong to turn his head. Seeing a familiar face, he smiled and cupped his fists, “Shopkeeper Jin!”
Shopkeeper Jin was also a half-grown old man, and like Shopkeeper Tong, he was also a Second Order cultivator. He had always been at the bottom of the 3000 Worlds, struggling to earn some small profits and spending a great deal of effort on a few dozen Open Heaven Pills.
But now, the two of them were both radiant and full of vigor. Shopkeeper Tong could see the beautiful future of Void Star City, so how could Shopkeeper Jin not see it? All they needed to do now was wait for the popularity of Void Star City to gather so they could display their full strength and work hard.
“Is there something you need, Shopkeeper Jin?” Shopkeeper Tong asked. This old fox had always been a man of few interests. The two of them had done business together in Star City and had interacted with each other more than once, so they both understood each other’s personality.
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Jin smiled and said, “This Jin will congratulate Shopkeeper Tong.”
Shopkeeper Tong chuckled, “What’s there to congratulate about?”
Shopkeeper Jin said, “Void Land’s actions this time aren’t small. In the future, Star City will have great prospects. As a group of people who have been left behind, we can naturally share the profits. Isn’t this a happy occasion?”
Shopkeeper Tong said, “Happy occasion, didn’t Shopkeeper Jin also stay?”
Shopkeeper Jin sighed, “That’s right, I had no choice but to stay here. Heh, I didn’t expect this disaster to be a blessing in disguise. If Shopkeeper Sun and the others knew about this, I’m afraid their intestines would turn green with regret.”
The Shopkeeper Sun he was referring to was one of the Shopkeepers who had fled Star City in advance after seeing the situation in the Void Land turn sour. The situation in the Void Territory had truly changed.
“In life, there will always be such a time, but in life, there is no need to force things,” Shopkeeper Tong chuckled.
Shopkeeper Jin pointed at the bustling Star City in front of them and said, “Shopkeeper Tong, this Jin has asked that Sir Chen about this before. The shopkeepers who remain here like you and I can obtain a new shop on the original site without paying any rent. In other words, this shop will be ours from now on and no one can take it away.”
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Tong was overjoyed, “Really?”
Shopkeeper Jin nodded, “It is absolutely true, this is something that Sir Chen Tian Fei personally said.”
“That’s great!” Shopkeeper Tong clenched his fists tightly. Although he had bought a shop here before, it was just a rental and didn’t have any authority. But now, Void Land had actually given them a new shop. This was a great deal. Whether it was his own shop or leased, it was a sure win.
Pondering for a moment, Shopkeeper Tong asked, “What about Shopkeeper Sun and the others?”
Shopkeeper Jin sneered, “On this Star City’s low popularity day, it was precisely when everyone needed to work together, but Shopkeeper Sun and the others left early. Even if they came back, how could they have a share in the shop?”
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Tong nodded, “That Void True Lord’s punishment and reward is quite clear.”
Whether it was intentional or because they were forced to do so, they still stayed in the Star City to maintain the remaining popularity of Star City, so Void Land was willing to give them a new shop on their original site. As for those who left early, how could Void Land care about their interests?
Shopkeeper Jin continued, “Now that Void Star City has expanded by more than five times and there are many shops, it’s easy to imagine that in the future, this Star City will definitely become extremely popular and every inch of land here will become extremely expensive!”
“Shopkeeper Jin is right,” Shopkeeper Tong nodded in agreement.
Shopkeeper Jin turned his head to look at him, “Shopkeeper Tong, you and I both don’t have any backers. Before, we could only do some small businesses and squabble. Now that we have such a rare opportunity, does Shopkeeper Tong not want to make it big?”
Shopkeeper Tong frowned slightly and asked, “The two of us don’t have any connections, how are we going to expand?”
Shopkeeper Jin clenched his fists, “If we have the capital, we can naturally make a big deal out of it! However, with the amount of money we have on hand, even if we occupy a shop, it will be difficult for us to do anything we want. If it was like before, it would still be a small matter, not worth mentioning.”
Shopkeeper Tong frowned and sighed, “Brother Jin’s words are exactly what this old master has been worried about these past few days. No matter what you say, it’s still not enough!”
Shopkeeper Jin’s eyes burned with anger, “It’s easy to ask for money, but I wonder if Brother Tong is willing to bet with me.”
Shopkeeper Tong’s eyes flashed, “Brother Jin means…”
“Tomorrow is Void Star City’s auction, and that Void True Lord personally said that there will be a Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill being auctioned. This is our chance!” After saying this, Shopkeeper Jin looked at Shopkeeper Tong meaningfully, “These past two days, Brother Tong has been selling his goods without hesitation, so don’t tell me you have no interest in the Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill.”
“Oh…” Shopkeeper Tong secretly cursed this old fox for being so cunning. As soon as he made a move, this old fox had already noticed some clues, so there was no point in denying it now. Since this old fox had come straight to the point, it was obvious he had already seen through him. He immediately nodded and said, “That’s right, this Tong does have some ideas about the Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill, but this pill is too precious, so this Tong has no choice but to try and listen to destiny.”
Shopkeeper Jin smiled slightly, “How about we cooperate?”
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Tong’s heart jumped, “How do we cooperate?”
“The two of us don’t have a lot of money in our hands, and the Shopkeepers who are still in the Star City have far more wealth than you and me. If they participate in the auction, you and I may not necessarily be able to obtain it. Why don’t we pool all our funds together and try our best? If we can succeed, it will naturally be a win-win situation, but if we can’t, it will be our fate! After we win the Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill, we can wait for the right opportunity to sell it. After we sell it, the profits will be doubled.”
Shopkeeper Tong frowned deeply, his thoughts fluctuating.
Shopkeeper Jin stood quietly to the side and didn’t rush him. He knew that Shopkeeper Tong wouldn’t refuse his proposal. After all, this was a decision that would benefit both sides, unless Shopkeeper Tong had enough funds to suppress all the competitors.
Sure enough, after a moment, Shopkeeper Tong raised his head and said, “Good, let’s cooperate!”
Saying so, he raised his palm, and Shopkeeper Jin also raised his palm to meet it. Pa, pa, pa, after three high five, the two old men smiled knowingly.
…
The auction was held as scheduled. There was no promotion, and besides the cultivators who were still staying in the Star City, there was no one else participating. There were only a few thousand people, and among them, there were only forty or fifty Low Rank Open Heaven cultivators, with only a few Third Order Open Heaven Stage cultivators.
The Void Auction House was still under construction, and Yang Kai’s requirements weren’t low. In three days, Yun Xinghua simply couldn’t built it.
Therefore, this auction was placed in the Star City’s original auction house.
Void Star City also had its own auction house, and no one knew which force it belonged to before, but now that it was empty, Void Land didn’t need anyone’s permission to use it.
Currently, although there were not many people participating in the auction, it was extremely lively.
The Void True Lord had said that he want to auction a Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill, but no one had ever seen such a rare pill before, so no one knew if the Void Land really had such courage.
And now, it was time to see the truth. Whether the Void True Lord’s words were true or false, they would know today.
Shopkeeper Jin and Shopkeeper Tong sat together, occasionally whispering to each other, occasionally glancing around, silently observing their potential opponents.
Not long after, light gathered on the auction stage and a beautiful figure slowly walked up.
The noisy crowd immediately fell silent as everyone’s eyes turned towards the stage, only to see a woman in her thirties wearing a light blue dress, her figure graceful and her face beautiful.
Many people below the stage were secretly shocked. Over the past few days, they had more or less recognized some of the masters from the Void Land, so they recognized this woman as soon as she appeared.
She seemed to be an Elder from the Void Land called Lu Xue, a Fifth Order Open Heaven Stage cultivator!
Those who participated in the auction were at most Third Order. Normally, they wouldn’t dare stare at a Fifth Order Open Heaven Stage cultivator so impudently, but now they were given a chance to act openly.
Lu Xue’s cheeks flushed red as she felt somewhat uneasy.
She had also been driven to a corner. Although she was one of the managers of Sword Pavilion, she had never hosted an auction before. Now, among the Open Heaven Stage of the Void Land, Ding Feng City’s cultivators had never participated in an auction, so they didn’t know the process of the auction. Chen Tian Fei, Yun Xinghua, and the others all had their own matters to attend to and were too distracted to attend, so they could only let Lu Xue act as the auctioneer. Fortunately, although she had never hosted an auction before, she had participated quite a few times. Moreover, this time’s auction didn’t need to arouse the enthusiasm of others, so it wasn’t a difficult task.
Calming herself down, she thought about how she could crush the people below with a single finger and quickly calmed down.
Lu Xue’s personality was indifferent, so she didn’t say much and directly began the auction.
Since it was an auction, it was naturally impossible for there to only be one Heavenly Yuan Positive Seal Pill. The Void Land had also prepared some suitable items for the cultivators below the stage. Previously, the Hundred Force Alliance had been completely wiped out and the Void Land had harvested a large number of spoils of war. Now, with just a few of these items, they could naturally maintain the requirements of the auction.
This was a completely unique auction, because all of the auction items, regardless of their value, were auctioned off one Open Heaven Pill at a time. Seeing this, many cultivators were overjoyed and didn’t hesitate to raise the price.
However, their financial resources were limited, so no matter how much they raised the price, the price of the auction items had never exceeded a thousand. Most of them were sold for a hundred Open Heaven Pills.
No matter how one looked at it, this auction in the Void Land was a great loss, because no matter what item it was, it was worth more than the price in this auction.
However, everyone knew that the Void Land was trying to gain popularity by losing money, so it was understandable. Moreover, it was not easy to obtain such an advantage, so even if Lu Xue didn’t say much, the mood of the cultivators below was extremely high. To them, no matter what they won, it was a sure win. As long as they sold it again, they would be able to gain something.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Martial Peak