Chapter 319: The Six Demon-Eliminating Treasures
Chapter 319: The Six Demon-Eliminating Treasures
"Excellent. You've worked hard these past few days," Chu Liang said, glancing at Wen Yulong. "You've worked so hard that you've even gained some weight."
"Hehe, it's no trouble at all," Wen Yulong replied with a wave of his hand. "Manager Zhang from Precious Pill Pavilion should be arriving soon. I'll go greet him."
Precious Pill Pavilion was the same shop where Chu Liang had previously bought Spirit-Concentration Pills. It was one of the largest pill shops in Taotie City and had assisted Chu Liang in contacting several other pill shops for their stock.
Later, when they discovered that the market demand for Spirit-Concentration Pills far exceeded supply, they realized the reason why Chu Liang had made that purchase. And so, Elder Sun quickly contacted Wen Yulong, expressing his eagerness to buy back the Spirit-Concentration Pills.
When Chu Liang arrived in Taotie City today, Elder Sun immediately sent his steward over to negotiate, and Chu Liang gladly agreed to the meeting.
"Young Hero Chu!"
Before long, Wen Yulong walked over with a middle-aged cultivator. The man had a long, thin face and sharp eyes. Although his cultivation level was not high, he appeared quite shrewd.
"Manager Zhang," Chu Liang greeted, rising from his seat.
"Young Hero Chu, your foresight is impressive. I must commend you for that," Manager Zhang remarked with a smile.
Even the most oblivious could see that Chu Liang's purchase was no coincidence. Who would just so happen to buy such a large quantity of Spirit-Concentration Pills for no reason? Considering the consequences, it was clear that he intended for the purchase to influence the market.
"It was just a coincidence," Chu Liang replied with a smile.
"The demand is currently high and urgent. Let's not beat around the bush," Manager Zhang said with a straightforward approach. "When you initially requested a discount, Precious Pill Pavilion readily offered it in good faith to foster a positive relationship with you. Now, we are proposing to repurchase this batch of Spirit-Concentration Pills at the original price. Would you consider this offer, Young Hero Chu?"
The original price he referred to was one sword coin for two pills, whereas Chu Liang had purchased them at a discounted rate of two sword coins for five pills.
With 150,000 Spirit-Concentration Pills, Chu Liang could instantly make a net profit of 15,000.
However, the discount was mutually agreed upon initially. Without it, Chu Liang would not have made the purchase, and Precious Pill Pavilion had also profited significantly from the deal. However, if Chu Liang mentioned that the Precious Pill Pavilion had also made money, it would seem like he was pressuring Manager Zhang and making Manager Zhang feel uneasy or guilty.
The market price had increased significantly since Chu Liang's purchase. Manager Zhang's mention of good faith was aimed at securing additional profit from Chu Liang.
But if Chu Liang refused, he might gain a reputation for being untrustworthy. With him being new to Taotie City, this could make things more difficult for him in the city.
With just a few light-hearted words, Manager Zhang had forced Chu Liang into a state of dilemma.
Chu Liang smiled as he stood up and walked slowly towards the wall, speaking loudly, "Elder Sun has indeed treated me well. While one sword coin for two pills is much lower than the current market price, it's not out of the question..."
"You can't agree to it!"
The room door was suddenly pushed open with a bang.
It was Manager Liu from Charming Pill Pavilion in the city. He had been waiting in the room next-door for his meeting with Chu Liang. Upon hearing Chu Liang mention selling a large quantity of Spirit-Concentration Pills at one sword coin for two pills, he couldn't remain seated any longer.
Charming Pill Pavilion had always been the biggest competitor of Precious Pill Pavilion. How could he stand by and allow Precious Pill Pavilion to gain such a significant advantage?
"Manager Liu, what are you doing..." Chu Liang said, appearing somewhat flustered. "Weren't we scheduled to meet later?"
"I was waiting, but I couldn't sit still when I heard that you were about to be deceived," Manager Liu said loudly, "One sword coin for two pills may be the original price, but the current price of Spirit-Concentration Pills in Taotie City has skyrocketed. This is practically robbery! Listen to me, Young Hero Chu, Charming Pill Pavilion will certainly offer you a much better price!"
"We're in the middle of a business negotiation. Why are you interfering?" Manager Zhang retorted, clearly angered. How could he not be frustrated when the profit that was within his grasp had just slipped through his fingers?
Manager Zhang continued shouting, "Business is all about negotiation. If Young Hero Chu wants to sell at a low price out of consideration for our friendship, or at a high price, we can discuss it. What's it to you? Don't you understand the principle of first come, first served?"
At that moment, a faint glow suddenly flashed between the ankles of the two and disappeared instantly.
It was the Chain of Resentment...
Manager Liu, who was already anxious, stared at Manager Zhang's face and suddenly felt an inexplicable surge of anger. "To hell with first come, first served!" he shouted.
He actually threw a punch!
But before he could even swing his punch, the even angrier Manager Zhang had already acted!
The two of them immediately started brawling!
Chu Liang and Wen Yulong couldn't just stand by. They each grabbed one of them, shouting, "Stop fighting!"
The brawl spread from the private room to the bustling first-floor hall. Immediately, the fight caught the attention of those in the hall, and people began discussing it loudly.
"What's going on?" asked many curious onlookers.
"Hehehe! I know!" At that moment, a helpful insider laughed loudly. "The supply of Spirit-Concentration Pills is getting very low, and those two managers from the pill shops are fighting over buying them!"[1]
"What?" The crowd exclaimed in surprise. "Has the supply of Spirit-Concentration Pills gotten this bad?"
...
Meanwhile, three streets away, a crowd had gathered, creating a commotion over another matter.
This place was called the Pavillion of Celestial Fate.
The Pavilion of Celestial Fate stood out as one of the premier large-scale sellers of valuable items in Taotie City. Its wide array of goods rivaled the resources of a major immortal sect.
A small portion of the goods were sourced or acquired directly by the Pavilion of Celestial Fate itself, but most were consigned by outsiders for sale. At the start of each month, the Pavilion of Celestial Fate hosted an auction where rare and unique items often appeared and sold for very high prices.
Today, seven days before the auction, was the day when the Pavilion of Celestial Fate displayed the items to be auctioned to the public.
Each time this occurred, a crowd would gather to see if there was anything they desired, while others simply enjoyed the excitement.
On the white jade board hanging outside the pavilion, rows of large characters in golden light described the items, including treasures like the Millennium Jade Lingzhi and the Fiery Qilin Egg.
But there was one item that was the most eye-catching.
"The Demon-Subduing Pestle!" someone exclaimed.
"Is it Mount Shu's Demon-Subduing Pestle?" someone asked.
"How could it be Mount Shu's? Mount Shu lost it in a hidden realm four hundred years ago. According to the rules of the martial world, whoever retrieves it from the hidden realm afterward owns it!" someone shouted.
"This was one of Mount Shu Sect’s six demon-eliminating treasures, a famous item that once shocked everyone. Now all six of these treasured items are scattered all over the continent, which is really sad," someone sighed.
"..."
Mount Shu once possessed six demon-eliminating treasures: the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, the Demon-Slaying Sword, the Demon-Cutting Saber, the Demon-Binding Rope, the Demon-Subduing Pestle, and the Demon-Smashing Hammer...
Apart from the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda, which ranked first, the other five were also among the top hundred in the Catalog of the Mortal World’s Ten Thousand Treasures. While the Demon-Suppressing Pagoda achieved glory in subduing the demon god, the other five treasures also played crucial roles in supporting this achievement.
Over the years, one by one, the six demon-eliminating treasures disappeared. Eventually, even the most crucial Demon-Suppressing Pagoda went missing.
And now, only the Demon-Smashing Hammer remained in possession of the Mount Shu Sect.
In recent years, the Mount Shu Sect had been diligently searching for information about the six treasures, hoping to once again gather them and restore their former glory.
Who would have thought that they would see the name of the Demon-Subduing Pestle displayed outside the Pavilion of Celestial Fate today!
1. Just by seeing the Hehehe, I know who this is. ☜