Sage of Humanity

A while later, Lu Ye sat in a private compartment, surrounded by screens that blocked prying eyes. The female demon cultivator had disappeared without a trace, but just before she left, she asked Lu Ye to wait here, assuring him that a manager would soon come to trade with him. If there were any other instructions, he could also ring the nearby bell, and someone would come to attend to him.

There was a pot of brewed tea on the table, so Lu Ye poured himself a cup. After taking a sip, he immediately showed a look of surprise, because this tea seemed to be no ordinary brew — it contained some spirit force, though not much, it was definitely there.

This discovery made Lu Ye appreciate even more the vast wealth of Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union; this was just tea for entertaining guests, and heaven knows how much it would take to consume so much every day. Without a solid foundation, they could not afford such extravagance.

So he drank heartily. After finishing the whole pot, still no one had come to greet him. Lu Ye was not in a hurry, and gently shook the nearby bell.

Immediately, a maid from the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union came in, "Guest, may I help you with anything?"

Lu Ye pointed to the empty pot on the table, "Another round!"

The maid was slightly startled, but she caught on quickly. With a suppressed smile, she picked up the pot and went out.

A short while later, she returned with another pot of Spiritual Tea, placing it down gently, "Enjoy your tea, guest."

It was only after Lu Ye had consumed three pots of tea and had begun to burp that a woman entered, "I apologize for the wait, Fellow Daoist. I am Liew Ruyin, and it is a pleasure to meet you."

A faint hint of her scent lingered at Lu Ye's nose, and on observing the incoming woman, dressed scantily with a large expanse of snow-white skin exposed, coupled with her soft voice, the atmosphere in the small compartment became somewhat ambiguously charged.

"No trouble at all," Lu Ye nodded.

The woman named Liew Ruyin pulled out a chair across from Lu Ye and sat down, then picked up the teapot to pour him a cup of tea herself. As she leaned forward significantly, the outline of her back appeared enticing, and the white of her chest glimpsed from the parted neckline made Lu Ye's head swim.

He quickly took a sip of tea to calm his nerves.

When she came in, Lu Ye had sensed her spirit light and inferred that the woman was at Spirit Stream Level 3, but her spirit light wasn't very clear, which suggested she often relied on elixir pills for her cultivation.

After setting down the teapot, Liew Ruyin asked, "May I know what items you are looking to sell, Fellow Daoist?"

Lu Ye took out the pieces of ore he was planning to sell from his storage sack, but of course, he didn't bring them all out at once. This was his first contact with the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union, and he was still unclear about the union's character.

What he took out were the same pieces he had put up for sale at his street stall before.

Piece by piece, Lu Ye placed the ore in front of Liew Ruyin. She casually picked one up, examined it for a moment, and nodded slightly, "This piece of red essence iron is of good quality, though a shame it is too small. If it were larger, it could be forged into a longsword."

She picked up another piece, her beautiful eyes lighting up, "This Star Moon Stone is also good, with very few impurities."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Then she reached for the third piece...

Lu Ye witnessed what professional knowledge looked like. This woman named Liew Ruyin seemed profoundly familiar with the ore in front of Lu Ye, and her comments were all pointed and accurate, even though Lu Ye hardly understood them.

Then she picked up the origin magnetic ore, her lips carrying a smile, "This item is rare in the outer circle of the battlefield; it would fetch a good price."

Putting down the origin magnetic ore, Liew Ruyin looked at Lu Ye and said, "The union is willing to offer fifty Spirit Stones for these items. If Fellow Daoist finds the price acceptable, we can proceed with the trade."

Thanks to his observations in the marketplace earlier, Lu Ye had a rough understanding of the purchasing power of fifty Spirit Stones; moreover, the price was within his expectations.

Previously, while running his stall, even though many prospective buyers had approached with intentions of getting a bargain, overall, Lu Ye had gotten a decent idea of the general value of his ores.

One could say that the price quoted by Liew Ruyin was not far off.

He frowned slightly and said, "That's a bit cheap."

Liew Ruyin smiled and said, "Compared to Fellow Daoist selling each item individually, of course it's cheaper, but doesn't it save you a lot of trouble? The mercantile union has a large business with many people to support. Fellow Daoist should allow us some room for profit."

"Add a bit more."

Liew Ruyin raised her hand to rub her forehead, looking troubled, but her natural beauty made this gesture not at all displeasing; on the contrary, it added charm.

"Alright, since Fellow Daoist is sincere about selling, I'll take the initiative to add four more Spirit Stones. You mustn't haggle any further, otherwise I'll have to pay out of my own pocket to close this deal," she said, gazing at Lu Ye with a pitiful look as if she had been wronged.

Lu Ye certainly didn't believe her, but seeing her act this way, he knew he wasn't going to get a higher price and said, "Okay."

Liew Ruyin's smile blossomed like a flower. "How does Fellow Daoist wish to be paid, in Spirit Stones or elixir pills?"

"How do you sell these elixir pills?" Lu Ye asked, somewhat surprised that he could actually pay with elixir pills. He had planned to buy elixir pills after getting the Spirit Stones, but on second thought, many low-level cultivators must do the same. The Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union having such a method of payment undoubtedly saved one step in the process.

"A bottle of nine Spirit-Nurturing Pills is priced at ten Spirit Stones."

Lu Ye frowned and said, "Don't cheat me, outside they're only sold for one Spirit Stone each, why are yours even more expensive?"

Liew Ruyin explained, "Although they're all Spirit-Nurturing Pills, the quality of the elixir pills produced by different alchemy cultivators is not the same. The alchemy cultivators in the mercantile union who refine Spirit-Nurturing Pills are all strong cultivators with exquisite skills, not comparable to those outside.

If Fellow Daoist does not believe it, you can buy some to compare, and you will feel the difference. Moreover, if the quality of the mercantile union's elixir pills was truly questionable, there wouldn't be so many cultivators coming here to buy."

Lu Ye nodded, "You make some sense with that. Then, I'll take five bottles of elixir pills, and the rest in Spirit Stones."

"Certainly!" Liew Ruyin nodded, stood up, and said, "Fellow Daoist, please wait a moment."

She turned and left the compartment, swaying her hips as she walked away, then quickly returned, placing five bottles and four Spirit Stones in front of Lu Ye, "These are Fellow Daoist's items."

After the transaction was complete, they each stored their items in their respective storage sacks.

Before Lu Ye could stand, Liew Ruyin asked, "It's getting late. Does Fellow Daoist have a place to rest?"

Her inquiry made Lu Ye suddenly remember something—he hadn't seen any place like an inn in the marketplace, at least, he hadn't noticed one.

Seeing the expression on Lu Ye's face, Liew Ruyin understood and said, "The third floor and above of the mercantile union is an inn, where you can stay for a night for just one Spirit Stone, guaranteeing that Fellow Daoist's rest and cultivation will not be disturbed. Furthermore…"

She leaned close to Lu Ye's ear, exhaling a breath as fragrant as orchids, "If Fellow Daoist has any... other needs, they can also be fulfilled. Just notify the manager over there."

"I'm not that kind of person!" Lu Ye said sternly, while inwardly he was amazed, thinking that the Heaven's Augury Mercantile Union really did conduct all sorts of business!

Having seen many people like Lu Ye, Liew Ruyin acted as if she didn't hear his protest, speaking in a soft, sweet voice, "I'm currently off duty, but if Fellow Daoist wishes for my service, you can call for the manager at that time to find me."

Lu Ye felt his head swell, "I really am not that kind of person."

Moments later, as Liew Ruyin watched the retreating figure of Lu Ye, her smiling face turned serious, and she said annoyed, "Stingy man!"

Normally, when a cultivator conducted a large transaction here, there would be a tip of one or two Spirit Stones, especially after Liew Ruyin had raised the price for Lu Ye.

This was an unwritten rule.

However, it was Lu Ye's first time making a transaction here, so naturally he didn't know about tipping.