Chapter 318: Pointing Out a Clear Path

"I can't help with this..." Miao Yan hadn't finished speaking when Shen Qingpeng already grabbed his arm tightly: "I'll write a letter right now and have my brothers transport the Hundred Ailments Cabinet and the Heart-Measuring Scale from the branch office to you!"

Miao Yan said calmly, "Shen Qingpeng, don't you understand yet? That thing produces!"

Before the Great Matriarch was here, whatever branch office held it was that branch's property.

Now that the Great Matriarch has returned, it all belongs to the Great Matriarch!

They only listen to the Great Matriarch!

"This, this..." Shen Qingpeng refused to let go; after thinking for a moment, he gritted his teeth hard: "One hundred thousand taels of silver! I only ask Brother Miao to point me toward a clear path!"

With one hand gripping Shen Qingpeng's arm, he quickly pulled a stack of silver notes from his chest and forcibly shoved them into Miao Yan's hands.

Miao Yan's eyes lit up; with these hundred thousand taels, the accounts of the Zhan Cheng Society would look good.

But if this fellow carried ten thousand taels on his person... his hidden assets must be even greater!

But Miao Yu quickly calmed down; he could not take this money!

Because this money belonged to the Great Matriarch, or rather, this money should belong to Lord Xu.

This matter will inevitably be brought before Lord Xu; if I take too much, Lord Xu will have less.

Suppressing his greed, Miao Yan only accepted the hundred thousand taels in silver notes, leaned close to Shen Qingpeng's ear, and whispered, "The only person who can persuade the Great Matriarch to change her mind is Lord Xu Yuan!"

Shen Qingpeng suddenly remembered that this name had been mentioned in the secret reports from the Zhan Cheng spies.

He was the Patrol Inspector of the Zhan Cheng Purification Bureau; the Nancheng Patrol Station before him was his yamen, and the Great Matriarch lived inside it.

"So that's it." Shen Qingpeng immediately rushed toward the gate.

Zhou Leizi drew his sword and stood, shouting angrily, "What do you think you're doing?"

"I..." Shen Qingpeng hurriedly stopped: "I request to see Lord Xu."

"Hmph! Who do you think you are? Do you think you can see my lord just because you ask?"

Shen Qingpeng reached for silver to pave the way again, but since he had already given all his silver to Miao Yan, he extended a hand to the subordinate behind him: "Bring the money."

A trusted aide pulled out ten taels of silver and handed it up.

"Please, my lord, do us a favor and announce our arrival."

Zhou Leizi accepted the silver without hesitation, then said, "My lord is not here."

"Not here?"

"He went out early this morning."

"When will he return?"

"Who knows?" Zhou Leizi at least had some conscience: "No need to pull out more silver; I truly don't know. My lord told no one."

"Ah, this..." Shen Qingpeng was greatly disappointed; finally, he gritted his teeth: "I'll wait, I'll wait! I must wait until Lord Xu returns!"

After Xu Yuan sent his stepmother back in the morning to invite Uncle Mao Si, he went out by himself.

He carried that treasure, the Dog-Head Gold.

The condensation artifact for the Merchant Law requires using an "artifact" to complete a "transaction."

Simply put, one must use the Dog-Head Gold to cast the "Merchant Law" to buy something.

Then, make the seller buy something back from oneself.

It must be bought back using the Dog-Head Gold.

After the Dog-Head Gold completes the transaction, it returns to Lord Xu's hands.

Throughout the entire process, the greater the "value" the Dog-Head Gold can demonstrate, the better.

The higher the level of the trading counterpart, or the greater their background, the better.

But it must be a genuine transaction.

It cannot be a transaction agreed upon by both sides merely to complete the "ritual."

This process hides enormous risks; once the Dog-Head Gold is in someone else's hands, how easy would it be to get it back?

Cultivating the Seven Great Gates actually conceals dangers at every step.

Especially after reaching the Middle Third-Tier.

A large portion of the cultivation methods are "inherited" from evil spirits, all carrying a degree of danger and eeriness.

Xu Yuan's Merchant Law is at the Seventh-Tier level, and the value of the Dog-Head Gold is extremely high.

Once the Merchant Law is attached to the Dog-Head Gold, whatever it buys will surely be extraordinary.

A counterpart capable of completing such a transaction... must be no simple matter.

Xu Yuan thought for a long time; in Zhan Cheng, the only place satisfying these conditions was the Old Market of the Little Western Temple.

A bit further away, perhaps only Guanghuo Street.

But these two places had too many uncontrollable factors.

Using the Dog-Head Gold to buy something is easy; wanting to trade the Dog-Head Gold back again, I fear problems will arise.

Since this concerns his own level, Lord Xu naturally prioritized stability.

So he prepared to make a trip to Luocheng.

If that still doesn't work, then go to Zhengzhou, to Nandu, or even Beidu.

It would just take a bit more time, but one must never plant hidden dangers from the start.

Recently, there was nothing much happening in Zhan Cheng; after instructing his subordinates, Xu Yuan took only Lang Xiao Ba and rode a horse to Luocheng.

But the fact that Lord Xu went to Luocheng must naturally be kept strictly confidential within the Nancheng Patrol Station.

Only those at the Inspector level were allowed to know.

Zhou Leizi truly did not know.

Lord Xu was now quite distinguished; once he left the city, he slapped two calligraphy sheets onto the horse's flank.

The two riders galloped swiftly, entering Luo City by mid-afternoon.

The Southern Jiaozhi Prefecture Office was located in the northwest of the city, a building with an overall grey-black tone, solemn and majestic in its grandeur.

Ma Tianshou happened to be inside the office; upon seeing Xu Yuan, he couldn't help but point at him and laugh, "The debt-collecting ghost has arrived, hahaha!"

Yan Lao chimed in with a teasing remark nearby, "It's just a wisp of Yin Qi; though precious, my lord is hardly likely to default on your debt."

Xu Yuan was torn between laughter and tears, but spoke gracefully, "Even if my lord truly does not give it, that would not be defaulting; it would be this junior offering it to my lord as a gift."

"Hahaha." Ma Tianshou laughed again, "Very well, very well, the exchanged item will be back soon; you will surely be satisfied. But as to what it is, I shall keep you in suspense for now. Come, tell me, what brings you all the way to Luo City?"

Xu Yuan said, "Let us go inside and speak."

Entering my lord's study and dismissing the idle crowd, Xu Yuan had Lang Xiao Ba stand guard outside. With only Xu Yuan, Ma Tianshou, and Yan Lao remaining inside, Xu Yuan then solemnly stated his purpose.

Ma Tianshou stroked his beard and clicked his tongue, saying, "Good lad, not bad at all; you have already begun dual cultivation of the Merchant Arts, and are preparing to condense a Law Artifact."

Yan Lao, standing nearby, pulled out a set of counting rods and said, "There are many places within Luo City that can meet your conditions; let me calculate for you which is most suitable."

Xu Yuan was overjoyed, "Thank you, elder!"

Luo City is the largest city in Southern Jiaozhi.

After Ma Tianshou became the Commander and suppressed the various evil spirits on the ground, Luo City grew even more prosperous, on the verge of becoming the largest city in all of Southern Jiaozhi.

Yan Lao calculated with great seriousness, spending a full half-hour, only to finally frown and ask in confusion, "How could it be... Dragon Horn Market?"

"What is wrong with this place?"

Ma Tianshou explained.

Dragon Horn Market is a place where dragons and fish are mixed.

Although it is the largest market within Luo City, selling everything imaginable, it is said that one can find anything you desire there.

However, the vast majority of goods traded are quite ordinary. Moreover, hidden within Dragon Horn Market is a place called the "Old Market."

Originally, Ma Tianshou and Yan Lao believed the most suitable places were "Thousand Gold Workshop" or "Five Lanes Alley."

Thousand Gold Workshop gathers dozens of high-end shops and regularly holds "Auction Fields."

Extremely rare treasures frequently appear within the Auction Fields.

These refer to treasures in general: high-level crafted items, precious ancient artifacts from previous dynasties, fine materials shed from great evil spirits, and so on.

Five Lanes Alley is somewhat special; only two types of people reside there: one type is high-level artisan cultivators.

They specialize in the trade of custom-made crafted items for others.

The other type is "Hunters."

【77】 Whatever kind of material you desire, as long as the price is right, the Hunters can find a way to hunt it down for you.

What kind of material do you want? As long as the price is right, the hunters can find a way to hunt it down for you.

Xu Yuan thought for a moment and said, "I trust Yan Lao; let us go to Dragon Horn Market and take a look first."

(End of this chapter)