Chapter Thirteen: Branching Out

  "Who is this person, who just competed with the Demon King of the Mortal World and now competes with the Western Monk, could it be that Old Man Star has hanged himself, tired of living?"

  "In my opinion, it's unlikely. As the saying goes, 'If you don't have a diamond, don't try to sell porcelain.' It can't be said that this young person has anything to rely on."

  "It's hard to say, I bet he won't be able to leave Tianbao Pavilion, and will disappear without a word."

  "Do you think the Six Ding and Six Jia of the Heavenly Court, the Golden Armor Gods are just for show?"

  "Little fairy, you're so silly and naive! Things like this have happened before, but in the end, nothing comes of it. For a small fairy like me, it's better not to get involved in this mess. Once the auction is over, let's hurry up and leave on our cloud, or else we might get into trouble."

  "Hum, we'll be waiting with bated breath!"

  ……

  The auction is still ongoing.

  When Zhang Youren quoted the price, the monk's body swayed slightly, and amidst his anxiety, he also showed some hesitation.

  After a long while, he took out a string of prayer beads from his neck and handed it to the tray held by the fairy standing beside him. He said loudly to Leng Xianren: "This is a prayer bead that has been blessed by my master, with 18 forbidden spells on it, which can temporarily withstand the full force of a Golden Immortal's cultivation for someone holding it. Can I exchange it for 2 million immortal stones?"

  The fierce immortal took a look at the rosary and quickly distinguished between true and false with his eyes. He nodded and said expressionlessly, "Okay!"

  Upon hearing the permission of Lie Xianren, the monk turned his head and glanced in Zhang Youren's direction with a hint of disdain in his eyes. With an air of determination, he said: "Since that string of prayer beads is worth 2 million Xian stones, then this poor monk will offer 4 million Xian stones."

  "Four hundred million, my goodness."

  "Didn't I hear it right, is it 40 million and not 4 million?"

  It is known that in the heavenly court, immortal stones serve as a medium of exchange and resource measurement, which is hard currency. Normally, an ordinary heavenly immortal's annual consumption is only around 100 immortal stones or so. Four million immortal stones are enough to exchange for resources to cultivate an ordinary mortal to the pinnacle of heavenly immortality. One can imagine how unwilling everyone's mood was when a monk quoted a price of four million just to auction off a relatively worthless strange object.

  While others are working hard for tomorrow's cultivation resources, they are spending money like water just to get a treasure that calms the mind and quiets the energy. Can this be balanced?

  Even if Buddhist techniques have a remarkable effect on treasures like Tianling Pearl, it shouldn't be so extravagant.

  But the shock is far from over.

  When the monk's voice had barely faded away, Zhang Youren's voice rang out again.

  "Five hundred million Spirit Stones."

  His flat tone made it seem like he was talking about ordinary stones, not sacred ones. His bid stunned not only the ordinary gods sitting in the hall but also Ziyun standing beside him, her small mouth agape as she struggled to think straight, her eyes shining with light, muttering to herself.

  After a long while, Zi Yun finally regained some of her composure. She was certain that Zhang Youren had made an offer and began to see stars in her eyes as she calculated with her fingers. With this transaction completed, she would have several hundred years where she wouldn't need to suffer in the Tianbao Pavilion, cultivating independently and freely without worrying about insufficient resources.

  "You're cruel!"

  The monk calmed down after a long time of silence, gritted his teeth and said harshly, with a fierce glint in his eyes, staring at Zhang Youren's handsome face as if to imprint it on his mind.

  "Fierce, humph! After I've settled the matter, if you're still in Heaven's Court, you'll be in for a disaster! Baldy, those who know what's good for them should hurry back to the Western Heavens. Otherwise..."

  Zhang Youren secretly thought to himself, casting a disdainful glance at the monk. He turned his head and calmly looked at the Tianling Pearl on the counter, shaking his head repeatedly, "What a pity... If only he could take a photo of the foundation-establishing object, that would be great."

  ……

  At the end of the auction, Zhang Youren put the Tianling Pearl into his bosom and was about to turn around and leave when an old immortal hurried over, slightly excitedly saying: "Great Immortal, Little Immortal Wang Shouren, if I have the good fortune to borrow the Taiyi Thunderbolt to escape this calamity, I will certainly repay you with my life."

  Wang Shouren was granted the elixir of Taiyi by Zhang Youren, an immortal whose lifespan was about to end. He didn't pretend to decline it, and his embarrassed appearance carried a hint of sincerity, causing Zhang Youren to nod repeatedly.

  "Great Immortal, you must leave quickly and beware of Lei Shao and that monk. My abilities are limited, I can't help you much, I hope you can turn danger into safety. Thank you!"

  Before Wang Shouren left, he whispered softly, touching Zhang Youren's heart. He looked around at the crowd and saw that the monk with a bamboo hat had already gone somewhere after the auction was over.

  Just as I was about to make a reassuring expression for Wang Shouren, a loud and arrogant voice rang out.

  "Kid, you're the one competing with Ben Shao for the price, right?"

  "What's wrong?"

  "What's wrong, do you know who Ben Shao is?"

  "Who?"

  Zhang Youren deliberately asked with knowledge.

  He knew that Lei Tian would not let him off easily, but he didn't expect everything to come so quickly. In the Tianbao Pavilion, he dared to be so arrogant, as if the Tianbao Pavilion was his family's property?

  "This is a rare thunder on a sunny day! My father has summoned the Great Emperor Chen!"

  Lei Tian's eyes had an expression of looking down on everything with disdain, a "don't be scared" look that made Zhang Youren secretly laugh to himself.

  "Hold on, Great Emperor Chen, one of the Four Envoys of Heaven's Court! What's going on?"

  "Hmm, what's wrong?"

  Lei Tian's expression turned cold, and he said: "I saw you competing with that monk earlier, so I'll spare your life. I've decided to be merciful, so I won't punish you. Take out the pearl you were auctioning off and give it to me, and I'll let you off easy. From now on, follow me and I'll take care of you. Who knows, maybe you'll even have a future."

  Hahaha...

  Zhang Youren burst out laughing, "Following you around, is there any future in it?"

  He stared at Lei Tian Dong with a piercing gaze, "You think that in the Heavenly Court, relying on your father's reputation, you can do whatever you want and be arrogant!"

  Zhang Youren's tone turned solemn, his anger unspoken yet self-evident. A stern aura emanated from him, causing Lei Tiandong's carefully gathered momentum to falter slightly.

  However, due to the Haotian Mirror's influence, Lei Tiandong couldn't see Zhang Youren's cultivation level. He thought to himself, "This person doesn't even have a single follower accompanying him when he goes out; I don't know which local tyrant he is. Although his aura is slightly stronger, why should I, Lei Shaoyan, be afraid of him?"

  Then, Lei Tian Dong glanced at the Lian Xian Ren standing beside him and said: "I'm giving you face, but if you don't want it, then don't blame me for being impolite. Today, I'll put my words here, that pearl, whether you take it out or not, you must take it out, otherwise, forget about leaving the Tian Bao Pavilion."

  "Hum, how dare you!"

  Zhang Youren heard Lei Tiandong's threat and was at a loss for words. He turned to look at Lie Xianren instead.

  "Is this the rules of your Tianbao Pavilion?"

  The fierce immortal's eyes flickered, but he remained silent.

  "Haha... I get it now." Zhang Youren looked at the several attendants surrounding him, secretly annoyed. Now that his cultivation was completely lost and he had a mortal body, Xiao Qing had also run off somewhere, what could be done about encountering such banditry? Originally, he thought that even if Lei Tian Dong was a prodigal son, he would still have to consider his father's face and hold back in public. Unexpectedly, for the sake of the Tian Ling Pearl, he was so bold.

  Dear book friends: Just released a new book, asking for your support, eagerly awaiting collection and recommendation! Thank you!