Cultivation Begins with Skill Points-Chapter 204: Don’t Play Tricks Next Time

"Greetings, senior. Could it be that our Purple Cloud Auction has neglected you? If so, I will immediately have him executed to apologize to you."

The Guardian of the Purple Cloud Auction, a Spirit Sea Realm expert, bowed tremblingly toward Zhong Lin.

The soul power that had just surged out had frightened him; this was a Yunling Realm expert, even the Sect Master would have to bow before such an expert.

Such a person was absolutely not someone he or his Purple Forest Sect could afford to provoke.

"It’s nothing. I just hope he can offer a reasonable price."

Zhong Lin spoke calmly.

Both of them sighed in relief as if a burden had been lifted off their shoulders.

"Senior, I will definitely give you the most reasonable price."

The Treasure Appraiser felt like he had escaped death, wiping the cold sweat off his forehead as he hurriedly spoke.

"Senior, this martial arts secret manual is worth fifteen thousand... no, it’s worth twenty thousand spirit stones. Are you satisfied?"

Following a deep breath, the Treasure Appraiser announced a price, but feeling unsure, he clenched his teeth and added another five thousand.

Truthfully, this price had exceeded the original worth of this Golden Light Shield. Even if a wealthy Spirit Sea Realm expert appeared at the auction, it would likely fetch just this price, not more.

"Agreed."

Chen Jia transmitted the message.

Zhong Lin also nodded, "Not bad, let’s go with this price!"

Afterward, the Treasure Appraiser handed over twenty thousand spirit stones to Zhong Lin, and upon receiving them, Zhong Lin left the premises.

After Zhong Lin left, the Spirit Sea Realm expert at the Purple Forest Auction patted the Treasure Appraiser on the shoulder, praising, "Smart move, two thousand spirit stones may exceed the martial arts manual’s value, but it avoids many troubles. Anger a Yunling Realm expert and it’d be over for both of us."

The Treasure Appraiser also spoke with a face full of reverence, "That senior is truly formidable. Unexpectedly a Yunling Realm expert came to Purple Forest City, and came to our auction house to auction a secret manual? Unbelievable!"

The Guardian’s hand paused mid-action, his face suddenly changed, and with a step, he seemingly vanished from the auction house to the street.

The street was bustling with people, but nowhere was Zhong Lin in sight.

The Treasure Appraiser also came running out at this moment, questioning in confusion, "Sir, what’s wrong?"

"Damn it, we’ve all been deceived."

The Guardian’s face was as dark as a pot bottom, letting out a roar of fury.

"Huh?"

"A dignified Yunling Realm expert, how could he lower himself to come to Purple Cloud City to auction items?"

"No, the soul power just now..."

"Must be some special spiritual artifact, damn little thief, don’t let me catch you, or I’ll tear you to pieces." fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

...

In a distant, deserted alley, Zhong Lin twisted his body, accompanied by a crackling sound, his entire stature grew taller, and the muscles on his face twisted, leaving no trace of his former image.

"Whew! That was thrilling; just now, that was a Spirit Sea Realm expert; one slap could have killed me. Master, please don’t play this kind of trick again."

Zhong Lin deeply exhaled, muttering a complaint.

"What are you afraid of? With my soul power, they will only see you as a Yunling Realm expert," Chen Jia casually remarked.

"Fake is fake; Master, your soul power was but a flash. If they thought about it calmly, they would notice something amiss; I guess they’ve already realized it by now."

"Haha, anyway, twenty thousand spirit stones are enough for you to establish yourself in Purple Cloud City."

Hearing about the twenty thousand middle-grade spirit stones, a smile appeared on Zhong Lin’s face as he weighed the pouch in his hand, his eyes full of eagerness.

Don’t misunderstand; Zhong Lin was staring at the pouch.

The pouch was made of some unknown beast hide, entirely gray-black, covered with strange patterns, palm-sized. Yet such a small pouch contained twenty thousand spirit stones; mind you, each spirit stone was the size of a lychee.

A storage bag, or perhaps called a spatial bag.

Only a legendary storage bag could do this.

Spirit stones, transmission arrays, now comes a storage artifact. If not for feeling the circulation of innate true qi inside him, Zhong Lin would seriously suspect this was an immortal cultivation world; such coincidences otherwise.

"Just a storage bag, the space inside is extremely small, only enough for some spirit stones. Now that you have twenty thousand spirit stones, you can go to the shops to buy a better space ring."

Ignoring Chen Jia’s words, Zhong Lin infused a trace of true qi into it, instantly feeling he had entered a narrow space.

The space was indeed small, similar to a suitcase, with no up or down, no front or back, and a pile of spirit stones lay in the corner.

The energy contained within these spirit stones was extremely abundant, more pure and abundant than those obtained in the Black Wind Forest, each piece similar in size, obviously cut specifically.

The sky had fully darkened; Zhong Lin directly found an inn to stay the night.

The next morning, he found a broker, a middleman, to rent a courtyard in a lane named Wind Willow Alley located in the outer city.

The courtyard was very quiet, with a small bridge and flowing water; warehouse, cultivation room, and kitchen were all available.

Martial artists, especially when honing martial arts, cause a great commotion, so these courtyards are staggered, each with ten meters between them, single-gated and standalone, with excellent privacy.

"Martial artists value privacy; no one wants their martial arts to be stolen. So it’s reasonable, just a bit of low land utilization."

Zhong Lin circled around the courtyard, checking out other tables and chairs, pondering over what to buy, before stepping out of the residence.

Yesterday, having consumed a part of his soul power, Chen Jia was now hiding in the Soul Nourishing Ring asleep.

Just then, the courtyard next door happened to open, and a man and a woman, both martial artists, emerged.

The man looked over fifty, but he was tall and burly, with a beard covering his face and a large knife on his back, with a ruddy face and vigorous spirit, an innate martial artist.

The woman, however, was petite and cute with Second Grade Meridian Passage Realm cultivation.

The two stood closely, seemingly intimate, yet giving a beauty and beast vibe, like an old husband and a young wife.

Upon seeing Zhong Lin, both of them were taken aback.

"Greetings to you two, I am Zhong Lin, having just rented here; we’ll be neighbors from now on."

Zhong Lin smiled, clasped his hands, and saluted.

Internally, he marveled; no wonder the Luoxing Islands were so full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons, even in the outer city, any random neighbor turned out to be an innate-level martial artist.

"So it’s Brother Zhong, I am Gao Xin, and this is my wife Xu Bin."

Gao Xin introduced with a good-natured laugh, his voice booming.

"So it’s Brother Gao and Madam Xu..."

Zhong Lin kept his composure, and after the three exchanged greetings, they each went their separate ways.