Chapter 254: Knowing the Dragon and the Cat

"Welcome!" A warm greeting startled Xu Xiaoshou. Before he could speak, the approaching receptionist wore a smile as gentle as a spring breeze.

"The Golden Merchant Guild is one of the top ten super-large merchant guilds on the continent. The services and treasures here are all of the highest quality," the receptionist began. "This is the Golden Merchant Guild's Heavenly Mulberry branch, which has a total of nine floors. The bottom six floors serve ordinary citizens, while the top three floors are for Spirit Cultivators. May I ask what level of service you require?"

Xu Xiaoshou's face twitched, and he felt an impulse to turn around and leave immediately. "Regardless of the service level, this place looks expensive just by looking at it," he thought. "I just wanted to buy a few clothes for Ah Jie. After all, I had promised to take it out for a stroll."

However, this was his first time leaving the Spirit Palace, and he had long heard of the Golden Merchant Guild's reputation, so Xu Xiaoshou halted his steps. "Let's see the prices in the outside world. Anyway, I still have a lot of stolen goods... bah, treasures that I haven't managed to exchange yet."

"Spirit Cultivator," Xu Xiaoshou replied.

"Certainly, I'll switch to a Spirit Cultivator to assist you," the receptionist said, smiling even wider. He paused for two seconds, then his aura surged. Xiantian! Yuan Court Realm!

Xu Xiaoshou was dumbfounded. "You switching... that's something else!" Mu Zixi was equally startled. "Just a random receptionist has Xiantian cultivation? The Golden Merchant Guild truly isn't simple!"

"Please follow me," the receptionist smiled as he led the way. The two exchanged glances and followed.

The seventh floor. Unlike the extremely spacious six ordinary floors below, this floor, dedicated to Spirit Cultivators, was even larger! The architecture here seemed to employ spatial formations. In any case, the bottom six floors didn't appear to change much in size from the outside. But this seventh floor's dimensions were definitely off. What his "Perception" revealed was that this single floor was roughly as vast as the combined area of the previous six floors! "...That's quite impressive!"

Xu Xiaoshou marveled inwardly. If a casual branch of the Golden Merchant Guild in the outside world could achieve this, one could only imagine how formidable its headquarters must be. "This might also be a top-tier power, then?"

"It seems you primarily do business with Spirit Cultivators!" Xu Xiaoshou remarked as they walked.

"That is natural," the receptionist replied with a respectful bow. "After all, it would be impossible to sustain all of us employees solely on business from ordinary people."

Xu Xiaoshou nodded, sizing up the other party. He said in surprise, "You don't seem very old?"

The receptionist chuckled, "You can think of the Golden Merchant Guild as a sect, just with different cultivation methods and practices. I am currently just a mere outer disciple."

"A sect spread across the entire continent?" Xu Xiaoshou was astonished. "This is more than just a little impressive!" To have such cultivation at such a young age would make him an inner courtyard disciple in the Spirit Palace. Yet, here, he was merely a receptionist? "Well, one can't really say that. A receptionist is a surface identity; ultimately, it depends on their unique cultivation methods. Is it the legendary Role-Playing Method..."

Xu Xiaoshou walked, lost in thought, then suddenly stopped. The seventh floor was filled with dazzling treasures of all kinds, displayed in various showcases and dedicated stands. It was divided into many sections, such as the Elixir Area, the Spirit Weapon Area... The three of them were currently in what appeared to be the Miscellaneous Items Area.

Xu Xiaoshou stopped, gazing at a purple crystal ball on a display stand. More precisely, he was drawn to a tiny cat perched on the crystal ball. A Spirit Beast? It was a snow-white spiritual cat, only about the size of two fists, standing like a statue on the purple crystal ball. However, Xu Xiaoshou's "Perception" observed that the two were not one entity, as the white cat's eerie purple eyes shifted slightly with his movements.

"What is this?" Xu Xiaoshou pointed, curious. "Shouldn't Spirit Beasts be kept in the Spirit Beast Area? Even if it looks harmless in the Miscellaneous Items Area, what if it accidentally injures someone?"

The receptionist followed his gaze, a smile spreading across his lips, and stepped forward to pick up the purple crystal ball. "Guest, you truly have discerning taste. This is an extremely rare treasure in our shop, called the 'Killing Intent Dragon'." He explained, "It's a life spirit artifact, containing extremely vast life force. However, the refiner was very extreme, using the concept of 'extremes meet' to forge this life spirit artifact into a fifth-grade Grandmaster Spirit Artifact capable of sensing nearby killing intent! Don't let this unassuming purple crystal ball deceive you. Once infused with spiritual energy, it will reveal the magnificent 'Killing Intent Dragon' within."

As the receptionist spoke, he injected spiritual energy, and the purple crystal ball instantly shattered into a starry expanse. Within it, a lifelike white dragon truly danced, exquisitely beautiful. Mu Zixi's eyes went wide. She didn't care about the white dragon; what mattered was how tempting and appealing this life spirit artifact was! From what she had seen, perhaps only Xu Xiaoshou's "Life Spirit Imprint" could surpass it. If she could acquire this item, she wouldn't need to constantly consume "Life Profound Pills." However... a fifth-grade Grandmaster Spirit Artifact! The young girl's eyes dimmed. Even if she sold herself, she wouldn't have that much money!

Xu Xiaoshou was also mesmerized, but unlike Mu Zixi, he was stunned by the white cat still perched on the purple starry expanse. Even with its head turned, the little creature's purple eyes were fixed intently on him. As he got closer, he could even see it drooling onto the floor.

"What the hell? Others can't see it, only I can?" Xu Xiaoshou was suddenly alarmed. Had this situation occurred before? Back at the Tianxuan Sect, when the gray-mist figure struck at Mu Zixi, the young girl seemed completely unaware, too? Recalling this, Xu Xiaoshou quickly swept his spiritual sense over it, and his heart sank. Invisible to the naked eye, invisible to spiritual sense—only his "Perception" could see it! "Ghost Beast?!" Xu Xiaoshou's pupils dilated, but looking at the white cat's desire to move yet inability to do so, he scoffed softly.

"This was clearly a special Spirit Beast craving life force. Although I don't know its abilities, at this moment, it's simply captivated by the purple crystal ball," he mused. "Such a small creature, if it loves life force, should have been unable to move upon seeing Mu Zixi. But seeing myself beside Mu Zixi... That's even more explosive! The immense attraction of 'Endless Life' to such creatures is already evident from my junior sister's situation. I really must be deluding myself. A Ghost Beast... How could such an entity, which only appears in alternate dimensions, be here, and so weak at that?"

The receptionist saw that both of them were attracted to the crystal ball and was immediately delighted. This idle item had finally found its owner! He continued to explain, "The 'Killing Intent Dragon' serves to detect killing intent directed at you from nearby people. Even the slightest hint can be directly detected, making it very useful! When killing intent appears, the Killing Intent Dragon will turn red. The stronger the killing intent, the deeper the red, and the more agitated the Killing Intent Dragon will become."