Chapter 59: Brother-in-law!?
"However, if the esteemed guest truly wishes to sell it, you could visit our Black Moon Merchant Guild branch in Cangfeng Imperial City. They would definitely offer a price that would satisfy you." As he spoke, Pu He carefully picked up the King Xuan Dragon Pill and placed it in front of Yun Che.
Yun Che silently retrieved the pill, his face expressionless. He did not leave immediately, but instead asked abruptly, "Who is Sikong Han?"
The question surprised Pu He. After a moment of hesitation, he cautiously replied, "In New Moon City, I only know of one person named Sikong Han. He is the Grand Elder of the Mystic Hall of the New Moon Mystic Palace, established by the imperial clan. He is known for his humble and upright character, and holds great prestige in New Moon City. Might the esteemed guest... have some connection with Sikong Han?"
"Hmph!"
Yun Che just let out a cold snort, not even deigning to answer. He turned around and prepared to leave... At that moment, Mo Li's voice suddenly rang in his mind: "Don't leave! This princess wants that red dress! Buy it, buy it, buy it!"
Yun Che paused mid-step, then had to turn back, looking in the direction Mo Li had indicated. On the upper left of a huge shelf, he saw a large red skirt. The skirt was small and delicate, clearly made for a young girl. He pointed at it and said with a sidelong glance, "That girl's skirt. Name your price."
Seeing Yun Che turn back after he had already turned away startled Pu He. He quickly glanced at the skirt and said, "Esteemed guest, you might not know, but this 'Red Mist Immortal Skirt' is made for girls under fourteen. Its style is small and delicate... it might not be suitable for your esteemed wife."
Yun Che rolled his eyes inwardly and said coldly, "Daughter."
Mo Li: "~！#￥%……"
Pu He came to a sudden realization and quickly said, "This Red Mist Immortal Skirt is crafted from the finest heavenly silk chiffon. Not only is its design exquisite, but it is adorned with a full eighty-one Red Blood Crystal tassels. It is not only dazzlingly beautiful but also protects the body from evil and moisturizes the skin. There is only one such piece in all of New Moon City, so the price is a bit higher: 500 Purple Mysterious Coins."
"..." Though Yun Che appeared utterly calm on the surface, inside he felt like thousands of grass-mud horses were stampeding through his mind.
Yun Che naturally knew about Red Blood Crystals. They had a bright, lustrous color, were as light as nothing, and wearing one could warm the blood and qi while warding off evil. Thus, they were expensive. And those rows of red, glistening tassels on this immortal skirt—they were all damn Red Blood Crystals! A full eighty-one of them! And the price of this skirt was a staggering 500 Purple Mysterious Coins!
Having just obtained 300 Purple Mysterious Coins and thinking he was suddenly rich enough to splurge, Yun Che now realized he couldn't even afford a girl's dress!! Damn that Black Moon Merchant Guild! What kind of merchandise were they selling!?
Before coming to New Moon City, he had repeatedly promised Mo Li that he would buy her the most beautiful clothes. And now, the very first thing she had her eye on...
Seeming to sense Yun Che's predicament, Pu He didn't hesitate. He reached out, pulled the Red Mist Immortal Skirt over, and placed it in front of Yun Che. Chuckling, he said, "Esteemed guest came to me with a King Xuan Dragon Pill, which is already an honor for me. But my humble shop lacks the financial resources, and I'm afraid I've disappointed you. Please accept this Red Mist Immortal Skirt as a token of apology. Consider it..." Pu He swallowed hard and lowered his voice cautiously, "a chance encounter, and a friendship."
500 Purple Mysterious Coins—even for this small branch of the Black Moon Merchant Guild, it was no small amount. But if it could earn the favor of this "big shot" and create a small personal connection, it would be a thousand times worth it.
Yun Che pretended to be silent for a moment, then picked up the Red Mist Immortal Skirt, turned around, and walked away slowly, dropping a low, deep remark: "I will remember this favor."
Pu He watched until Yun Che disappeared from sight, then let out a long sigh of relief. He unconsciously reached up to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. The clerk who had been standing nearby, not daring to interrupt, finally walked over and whispered, "Old Pu, when did a figure like this appear in New Moon City? He actually brought out a King Xuan-level pill! When I saw it was a King Xuan Dragon Pill, my heart almost stopped. If news spreads that a King Xuan Dragon Pill has appeared in New Moon City... all the experts within a thousand li would swarm here! Wouldn't that make New Moon City..."
At that, the clerk shuddered.
"You idiot!" Pu He glared at him. "How could that person possibly be from New Moon City? If there were such a figure here, would we not know? And casually taking out a King Xuan Dragon Pill to sell—he clearly doesn't regard it as anything special. This person's profound strength is likely beyond our understanding. Would such a person fear others coveting his King Xuan Dragon Pill?"
"But when he came in, I probed his profound energy. It seemed only at the first level of the Xuan Entry Realm?"
"See, you're still too young." Pu He patted his shoulder and said earnestly, "A person who can hunt a King Xuan beast—how could you possibly probe his true profound level! At that level, they can freely control the aura they emit. It's no surprise if you probe them at the Xuan Entry Realm, or even the Initial Xuan Realm. In the future, when you encounter guests with low profound power—especially older people—never be too arrogant. They might have already reached that level. This princess is your daughter!"
"I couldn't help it. I couldn't very well say I was buying it for my master, could I?"
"That won't do either... Hmph, never mind. This skirt is decent, so I won't argue with you. But if you dare defile this princess again, I will never forgive you!"
"A skirt worth 500 Purple Mysterious Coins! The total cost of all the clothes I've worn in two lifetimes doesn't even come close to the price of this one!" Yun Che said resentfully.
"This princess granted you a new mystical vein and became your master. Only today did I ask for a return of 500 Purple Mysterious Coins, and you're still complaining."
Yun Che was speechless...
"You were far too bold earlier. You just handed the pill right over to him. Weren't you afraid he might kill you and take it? This princess has no profound power to use right now. If he had any ill intentions, we'd lose the pill and our lives!" Mo Li said in a low, cold voice.
"No, quite the opposite." Yun Che grinned. "The more casually I handed the pill to him, the less daring he'd be to try anything crooked. Even if he probed my profound energy, he still wouldn't dare. Instead, he'd be extremely cautious. As for whether he'll spread the news—that's his own affair. It has nothing to do with me. But I'd say there's a ninety percent chance he won't."
"This princess has finally seen with her own eyes what it means to bluff and bluster. But what exactly are you trying to accomplish?"
"On the entire Tian Xuan Continent, the Black Moon Merchant Guild holds the most resources. The truly good things, they sell at high prices to the big sects. People like me probably can't buy them even if we have the money. So I need an identity that carries enough weight in their eyes. With this King Xuan Dragon Pill and my disguise, doing that is effortless. That way, when I deal with the Black Moon Merchant Guild in the future, things will be much smoother... Oh, let's not talk about the future—it worked just now, didn't it? The people at the Black Moon Merchant Guild are all arrogant as hell. If I hadn't scared them, would they have eagerly given me this immortal skirt? By the way, the Netherworld Brahma Flower you need—or even Purple Vein Divine Crystals—the most likely place to have them is the Black Moon Merchant Guild."
Mo Li was silent for a long time before suddenly asking, "Earlier at the Black Moon Merchant Guild, what was that killing intent from you?"
The intensity of that killing intent had deeply shocked even Mo Li. It was almost tangible, no less fierce than her own when she was in a rage... That kind of killing intent could not be cultivated or faked through any method. It could only be accumulated bit by bit through countless deaths. To be so bone-chillingly cold, one would have to have killed at least hundreds of thousands, even millions...
What truly terrified Pu He—a man of formidable Earth Xuan strength who dared barely even breathe—was that fleeting wave of killing intent. Otherwise, given Pu He's years of experience and sharp instincts, he might have started to suspect Yun Che.
Yun Che paused mid-step, then said with melancholy, "If I told you, you definitely wouldn't believe it. But we... are really the same kind of people."
…………………………
Apart from the capital Cangfeng Imperial City, the Cangfeng imperial clan had established imperial Mystic Palaces in seventy-two cities. New Moon City was one of them, and among all the imperial Mystic Palaces, New Moon Mystic Palace's strength ranked among the top. Moreover, its entry requirements were not too high—at least much lower than those famous mid-tier sects. As a result, countless people came every year to study profound arts.
New Moon Mystic Palace had thirteen departments: the Mystic Department, Medicine Department, Literature Department, Music Department, Painting Department... and so on. Of these, the Mystic Department was the largest. The Sikong Han that Xiao Lie had told Yun Che to find was the Chief Elder of the Mystic Department, holding a status second only to the three Palace Masters. However, even Xiao Lie did not know Sikong Han's position in New Moon City.
After asking a few people for directions, Yun Che quickly found the location of New Moon Mystic Palace. Just as he was hesitating whether to enter, an exaggerated voice suddenly came from his left:
"Brother-in-law... Brother-in-law?!"