Walking along the bustling streets of Soto City, Ye Yu kept his eyes peeled while casually asking breakfast stall owners and fruit vendors on either side of the street if they knew about a place called the Owl Shop.
After a round of inquiries, he finally found what he was looking for.
In the distance, he spotted a storefront with a sign engraved with the image of a sword, a hammer, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. That was it.
Because he had previously consumed the Immortal Herb Through the Void Dew, Ye Yu's spiritual power had undergone a qualitative transformation—and his eyes had been fundamentally altered as well.
One of the changes granted him vision as sharp as a hawk's.
Thanks to that enhanced eyesight, Ye Yu clearly saw the figure lounging beside the shop entrance: a man who appeared to be in his fifties, dressed in a gray leather coat, tall and lanky, with a long, hawkish nose perched on a face that could be mistaken for a shoehorn.
Just one look, and Ye Yu knew immediately—it was Flender.
Without hesitation, he made his way toward the shop.
Inside the Owl Shop, Flender remained reclined in his lounge chair, eyes closed. He didn't bother getting up to greet him. Only the occasional creak of the chair's gentle rocking broke the silence.
Ye Yu didn't pay him any mind.
Stepping into the slightly dim interior of the shop, he immediately began combing through the rows of shelves in search of the rare ore he had come for—Fajin (Spirit Gold).
The shelves were cluttered with various soul tools, most of which gave off faint spirit power fluctuations.
However, based on his observations, they were either support-type or lifestyle-type soul tools—many of them damaged or obsolete.
Essentially, they were worthless.
Just then, two voices—a boy and a girl—drifted in from outside the shop.
"Xiao San, what kind of things do you think they sell here?"
"Looks like a place tailored for Spirit Masters. Let's take a look and find out."
Ye Yu's brows furrowed slightly as he turned toward the door.
Moments later, accompanied by the sound of footsteps, a young boy and girl appeared at the entrance of the Owl Shop.
The boy looked about twelve or thirteen years old, dressed in blue, with short black hair and a plain face—yet his deep, intelligent eyes were strikingly bright.
The girl beside him wore a pink long dress. She had a tall, slender figure, her dark, glossy hair tied into a scorpion-tail braid, her skin fair and delicate, and her features lively and charming.
Though it had been six years since their last meeting, Ye Yu recognized them at a glance. His expression darkened slightly.
As Tang San and Xiao Wu entered the shop, Ye Yu hastened his search for the Fajin crystal.
Though the Owl Shop sold a lot of junk soul tools, it also stocked a decent collection of unrefined metal ores and crystals.
During his time in Heaven Dou Imperial City, Ye Yu had been focused almost entirely on compressing his spirit power and training his body with lightning. He hadn't had much opportunity to deal with materials .
Now, standing in front of a messy shelf full of all kinds of ores and crystals, picking out the Fajin (Spirit Gold). crystal among them wasn't going to be easy.
Ye Yu's eyes lit up as he spotted a transparent crystal embedded with dull yellow impurities, faint golden threads glinting inside. Comparing it to the image in his memory, he was sure—
He reached out to grab the crystal.
But just then, Tang San and Xiao Wu walked over as well. Tang San's gaze instantly landed on the crystal, eyes blazing with intensity.
He had assumed he was the only one here who recognized its value.
He didn't expect someone else to beat him to it.
Tang San's brows furrowed. He wasn't willing to let it go so easily.
He knew how rare Fajin was.
"Excuse me, brother," Tang San stepped forward with a warm smile, "would you be willing to part with that crystal?"
"This?" Ye Yu replied casually. "Just an ordinary crystal. Not worth much."
"But I find it pretty, and thought it'd look nice in my collection."
He chuckled. "Still, if you really want it, I can let it go for… say, five gold spirit coins?"
Originally, Tang San had only planned to offer one gold coin, but after noticing Ye Yu's refined attire, he thought better of it and raised the offer to five.
"Sorry," Ye Yu said flatly. "I think it looks nice too. Planning to keep it."
Pretty? Yeah right, Ye Yu snorted inwardly. You think I'm that easy to fool?
Ignoring Tang San's half-hearted attempt at misdirection, Ye Yu took the crystal and walked straight to the counter.
"How much for this?" he asked Flender.
Flender opened his eyes, glanced at Ye Yu's clothes, rubbed his chin, and held up one hand—five fingers extended.
"Five hundred gold spirit coins?"
Ye Yu didn't flinch. He wasn't in the mood to haggle. Reaching into his Jade Dragon Bracelet, he prepared to pull out the coins.
Tang San suddenly stepped forward, taking a deep breath.
"I'll pay six hundred gold spirit coins. Sell it to me!"
"Xiao San!" Xiao Wu immediately panicked.
They only had a little over seven hundred gold coins between them. If he blew six hundred on a chunk of crystal—
What are we supposed to eat?!
Flender, watching the two of them argue over what looked like a worthless rock, couldn't help but grin in amusement.
"This young man here saw it first," he said, adjusting his black-rimmed crystal glasses with a troubled expression. "If I sell it to you now, that'd put me in an awkward spot." Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs ɴovᴇl_Firᴇ.ɴet
But Ye Yu knew Flender all too well.
This miserly, greedy old buzzard wouldn't care who picked it up first.
No sooner had Flender finished his righteous little speech than that narrow face of his lit up with avarice. He rubbed his hands together, chuckling slyly.
"How about this—why don't we hold a little auction?"
"Highest bidder gets the crystal!"
"I'll bid six hundred!" Tang San said through gritted teeth.
"I'll bid one thousand," Ye Yu countered instantly, not bothering to play games. He knew Tang San didn't have the coin to keep up.
Let's see how far your pride takes you, young master of the Tang Sect.
Xiao Wu's eyes widened. She gave Tang San a pleading look.
Please don't be impulsive.
But Tang San clenched his jaw again. Without hesitation, he pulled out the money pouch from his Twenty Four Moonlight Bridges, a top-tier storage-type soul tool, and placed it on the counter.
Then he took off the belt itself and slapped it down as well.
"One thousand one hundred gold spirit coins," he declared. "I don't have all of it now, so I'll leave this storage soul tool as collateral."
"I'll redeem it once I receive my next Spirit Master stipend from Spirit Hall."
But the moment Flender saw the Twenty Four Moonlight Bridges, his eyes went wide with shock.
A wave of memories swept over him.
The greedy expression vanished instantly, replaced with a distant, nostalgic look.
After a long breath, he adjusted his glasses and looked at Tang San.
"One hundred gold spirit coins," he said slowly. "The crystal's yours."
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www..com/c/ReadJin