novelapdf Chapter 48 Beauty's Schemes
Chapter 48 Beauty's Schemes
Ye An reached out and picked it up, examining it closely.
His fingers gently caressed the armor plates, sensing the fluctuations of spiritual energy on the armor, and his expression gradually became solemn.
"A top-grade magic weapon." He raised his head, his gaze falling on Zhang Lin with a scrutinizing look. "This armor has extremely strong defensive capabilities and comes with the effect of spiritual energy reflection. Even a cultivator in the early stage of Foundation Establishment might not be able to break through it with a full-force attack."
Zhang Lin nodded: "Shopkeeper, you have a good eye."
Ye An pondered for a moment, then asked, "How much would you like to sell it for, young master?"
"Name your price, shopkeeper."
Ye An examined it again and held up three fingers: "Three thousand low-grade spirit stones."
Zhang Lin shook his head: "Too few. Even Foundation Establishment cultivators might not have one top-grade defensive magic weapon. Three thousand spirit stones won't buy it."
Ye An smiled wryly: "Young Master, even a top-grade magic weapon would fetch a high price of three thousand spirit stones in Qingxuan City..."
He paused, then said, "In that case, three thousand five hundred spirit stones is the highest price I can offer."
Zhang Lin was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Deal."
Three thousand five hundred spirit stones, although lower than the market price, if it were so easy to find a buyer, he wouldn't have come to Tianbao Pavilion. Foundation Establishment cultivators would use spirit artifacts to add a little money, and Qi Refining cultivators are not that wealthy.
Seeing that he agreed, Ye An smiled, took out a storage bag from his sleeve, counted the spirit stones, and handed it over.
"Three thousand five hundred low-grade spirit stones, please count them, young master."
Zhang Lin took it, counted it, and finding the amount correct, put the storage bag into his pocket.
Ye An added, "If Young Master Zhang has any more good items in the future, please feel free to come to Tianbao Pavilion. I will definitely give you a fair price."
Zhang Lin nodded, said goodbye, and walked downstairs.
Just as I stepped out of the Tianbao Pavilion, I suddenly heard a commotion not far away.
"Let me go, you scoundrels! How dare you harass an innocent woman in broad daylight!"
A woman's voice, clear as a nightingale's, carried a hint of panic and anger.
"Teasing? Hahaha, little lady, you sold us fake pills and cheated us out of our spirit stones, and you still dare to say we're teasing you? Don't even think about leaving until you return our spirit stones."
A rough male voice, arrogant in tone, with a hint of mockery.
"That's right, young lady. You're just a rogue cultivator at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, yet you dare to swindle and cheat in Qingxuan City. If you know what's good for you, hurry up and pay back the spirit stones, otherwise... hehe!"
Another voice, sarcastic and unpleasant.
Zhang Lin frowned slightly.
He didn't have the habit of meddling in other people's business, especially in Qingxuan City, where the Zhou family was watching him closely. It was better to avoid trouble.
But the commotion in the distance grew louder and louder, accompanied by the sounds of tables and chairs overturning and cups and plates shattering, clearly indicating that a fight had already broken out.
He hesitated for a moment, then took a few steps forward and looked in the direction of the sound. Through the gaps in the crowd, he saw a girl surrounded by several burly men.
Those burly men were all at the mid-stage of Qi Refining, dressed in coarse clothes, with ferocious faces, some of them shirtless, revealing the dark chest hairs covering their chests.
The leader was bald, with a face full of scars, and a thick gold chain around his neck with a low-grade spirit stone inlaid on it, looking utterly vulgar.
The girl in the middle was about sixteen or seventeen years old.
The girl wore a light green dress with a white silk sash around her waist. Her long, black hair was tied up with a jade hairpin, and a few strands of hair hung down beside her ears.
Her appearance was exceptionally beautiful, with arched eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes full of affection, a straight and elegant nose, peach-red lips, and skin as smooth and delicate as jade.
Even Zhang Lin was slightly taken aback when he saw it.
This woman was extremely beautiful.
But what caught his attention was not her appearance, but her temperament.
Although the woman was dressed as a freelance cultivator, she exuded the air of a lady from a prominent family.
Even when surrounded and flustered, her elegance in every gesture was undeniable.
Zhang Lin's gaze narrowed slightly.
This woman was no ordinary rogue cultivator.
"You...you're slandering me!" The girl's eyes reddened with anxiety, her voice trembling with tears. "The pills I sold were clearly genuine! You...you're deliberately framing me!"
"Framed?" The bald, burly man laughed loudly, reaching out to grab the girl's wrist. "Little lady, you say you're framing me, so you're framing me. Let's see if your Grade 1 Mid-Level Qi Cultivation Pill is real or fake. Do you think my spirit stones come from nowhere?"
The girl hurriedly stepped back to avoid the dirty hand, but she stumbled and almost fell.
She steadied herself, and suddenly, her gaze met Zhang Lin's in the crowd.
In that instant, a strange light flashed in the girl's eyes, and then she ran frantically towards Zhang Lin, shouting as she ran, "Young master, save me! Young master, save me!"
Zhang Lin frowned even more. With so many people in front of him, why were they targeting him?
The burly men caught up, and the bald man grabbed the girl's sleeve and yanked it hard.
"laugh--"
Her sleeve was torn, revealing a section of her snow-white arm.
"Ah!" the girl cried out in surprise, tears welling up in her eyes. "You...you..."
"Hahaha!" The bald, burly man sniffed the piece of cloth, a lewd smile spreading across his face. "Little lady, your skin is so tender, hahaha."
Upon seeing this, Zhang Lin instinctively took a few steps to the side.
Seeing that he remained unmoved, a hint of anxiety flashed in the girl's eyes, and she cried out again, "Young Master Zhang, I know you, please save me, they...they're going to take me away..."
Before she could finish speaking, the bald, burly man reached out and grabbed her shoulder.
Zhang Lin sighed, pushed through the crowd, and flashed in front of the girl, blocking the bald man's claws.
The bald, burly man was taken aback. He looked up at Zhang Lin, his gaze sweeping over him. Seeing that there was no spiritual energy fluctuation on him, he curled his lip in disdain.
"Kid, mind your own business!" The bald, burly man raised his hand and pushed, the wind whistling through his palm, the force was considerable.
Zhang Lin raised his hand and gently blocked, releasing his protective true energy.
"Bang!"
The bald, burly man felt a surge of force, and he staggered back several steps, crashing into the stall behind him and smashing it to pieces.
"You..." The bald, burly man's expression changed, realizing he had met a tough opponent.
His companions also surrounded him, each looking fierce and menacing, but none of them dared to make the first move.
Zhang Lin stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze calmly sweeping over the group, and said indifferently, "Can you speak properly?"
The bald, burly man gritted his teeth, his spiritual energy surging in his hands, about to unleash his attack, when he saw a flash of spiritual light at Zhang Lin's waist, and a sword light flew out, the sharp sword energy rushing towards him, making his back feel cold.
The bald man, seeing the flying sword approaching, dissipated his spiritual energy. He sized Zhang Lin up and down, still unable to discern his cultivation level, but knowing he had brought up a formidable opponent, he clasped his hands in a slightly obsequious manner and said, "Fellow Daoist, this matter is none of your concern, why bother interfering?"
"When you see injustice, you should naturally intervene," Zhang Lin said calmly. "You just said that the woman sold you a Qi Cultivation Pill, a mid-grade first-rank pill?"
"Exactly."
"Where are the pills? Let me see them."
The bald man was taken aback, then took out a porcelain bottle from his pocket and handed it over.
Zhang Lin took it, poured out a pill, and brought it to his nose to sniff.
The pills were dull in color and had a faint medicinal aroma, indicating that their potency was indeed less than 30%.
However, Zhang Lin noticed that there was a very faint gray powder on the surface of the pill, which he would not have been able to see if he had not been experienced in alchemy.
This has been tampered with.
Someone coated the surface of the pill with a powder that inhibited its medicinal properties, preventing it from exerting its effects.
This powder will gradually dissipate after consumption, leaving no trace.
Zhang Lin understood what was going on, so he put the pill back into the porcelain bottle and returned it to the burly man.
"The pills are fine, the problem is with you guys. Get out."