Chapter 335: Fang Zixu

The training ground was vast, its floor paved with huge white stone slabs. In the center was a massive circular platform, surrounded by numerous small stalls. The stall owners wore diverse clothing and spoke with widely varying accents. They were all guests invited by the Song family, who had dispatched a team of cultivators to maintain order and prevent any disturbances.

Wang Qingshan's gaze quickly scanned the stalls; though diverse, the items offered were not particularly remarkable. Suddenly, he stopped and squatted down in front of a small stall. The stall owner was a young woman in a red ruqun. She had delicate features, fair skin, and a rare hint of heroism in her expression. She was engrossed in reading an ancient book she held in her hands.

"How much for this Glazestone?" Wang Qingshan pointed to a crystal-like stone on the stall, which resembled glazed glass, and asked. Glazestone was a high-grade, second-tier crafting material, typically used for refining defensive magical artifacts or incorporated into flying swords to enhance their durability.

"Exchange only, not for sale," the woman in the red dress replied without looking up, her tone indifferent. A small sign on the stall read: "Exchange for fire-attribute crafting materials only; common ones not accepted."

"I don't have fire-attribute crafting materials. Would you consider trading for second-tier puppet beasts or second-tier spirit talismans instead?"

"No exchange. Only fire-attribute crafting materials; common ones not accepted." The red-dressed woman's tone was extremely aloof, giving the impression that she wanted to keep everyone at a distance.

Wang Qingshan shook his head, stood up, and walked away. Such exchanges could not, by nature, be forced.

Wang Qingzhi and Wang Changfei walked along a spacious street. As it was Wang Qingzhi's first time leaving the State of Wei, everything looked new and exciting to him. His eyes lit up, and he suddenly quickened his pace, with Wang Changfei hurrying to keep up.

Wang Qingzhi entered an ornament shop, where various items like jade hairpins, bracelets, and clasps were displayed—all items typically used by cultivators.

"Shopkeeper, how much for this hairpin?" Wang Qingzhi asked, pointing to a green jade hairpin.

"That's a mid-grade spirit artifact, the Jade Butterfly Hairpin. It's a defensive spirit tool, crafted primarily from green jade, and costs eighty spirit stones."

"Qingzhi, why are you, a grown man, buying a jade hairpin?" Wang Changfei walked over and asked curiously.

"I'm buying it for my sister; she should like it. Shopkeeper, eighty spirit stones are too expensive; can you lower the price?"

"Sir, we operate on thin margins. The lowest I can go is seventy-eight spirit stones, no less."

Wang Qingzhi, who had little experience with shopping, was about to agree, but Wang Changfei stopped him. "The ornament shop we just visited had a similar mid-grade spirit artifact for only fifty spirit stones. You're asking eighty; do you take us for fools? Fifty-five, no more."

The shopkeeper made a pained expression and said hesitantly, "Sir, fifty-five spirit stones wouldn't even cover my cost. How about we meet in the middle at seventy? That's the absolute lowest."

"Fifty-five. If not, forget it." With that, Wang Changfei pulled Wang Qingzhi and headed for the exit.

"Sixty! That's the lowest price." Wang Changfei, without looking back, pulled Wang Qingzhi out of the shop.

"Thirteenth Uncle, sixty spirit stones is already twenty cheaper. Why aren't you buying it?" Wang Qingzhi was greatly puzzled.

"You! You rarely leave home. When he saw how young you are, he definitely quoted a higher price. We're outsiders, and they're looking for a quick sale. As long as the quality is good, a slightly higher price is acceptable, but you should always compare prices, shop around, and don't rush. You've been cultivating fields and raising fish at home; you don't realize how hard it is to earn spirit stones. Trust your uncle on this."

Wang Changfei took Wang Qingzhi to several ornament shops, where his aggressive bargaining taught Wang Qingzhi a great deal. Wang Qingzhi looked at many ornaments, but none truly satisfied him.

"Fellow Daoist, forty-five spirit stones is the absolute lowest. This Purple Cloud Bracelet is a mid-grade spirit artifact after all. Its original price was seventy, so forty-five is already the best deal; I can't go any lower." A man who looked like a shopkeeper held a purple jade bracelet, speaking with a deferential smile.

Wang Changfei looked at Wang Qingzhi, who shook his head.

"Forty-five is still too expensive. Thirty would be more like it."

"Thirty? Fellow Daoist, please look elsewhere! If a mid-grade spirit artifact could be bought for thirty spirit stones, I'd buy every single one."

Wang Changfei led Wang Qingzhi out, understanding his thoughts. When Wang Changfei was Wang Qingzhi's age, he too accompanied elders to the markets. He would insist on buying anything he liked, even if it was a bit expensive, as if to declare his independence and that he no longer needed elders to tell him what to do.

"Thirteenth Uncle, I still like the jade hairpin we saw first," Wang Qingzhi hesitated for a moment before saying hesitantly. The moment he saw that jade hairpin, he pictured Qi Shanshan wearing it. No matter how many other ornaments he saw, he still preferred that particular hairpin.

"If you like it, go take a look! If it's suitable, buy it."

They returned to the first ornament shop and purchased the jade hairpin for fifty-nine spirit stones. Wang Qingzhi paid the spirit stones, put away the jade hairpin, and a broad smile spread across his face. "Fairy Qi will definitely look good wearing this jade hairpin," Wang Qingzhi thought to himself.

On the third floor of Sanyuan Residence, Wang Ruyan was enjoying tea and conversation with one man and two women. They chatted and laughed, getting along very well. The Wang family had an extensive network of acquaintances. Before her marriage, Wang Ruyan had accompanied her elders to visit many cultivation families, thus building a broad network of connections. She had inquired about places where foreign cultivators gathered and encountered an acquaintance at Sanyuan Residence. If Wang Changsheng had been present, he would have recognized the man too.

The man was Fang Zixu. Wang Changsheng had met him at an exchange gathering during the large auction held by White Dragon Valley years ago. One woman, around thirty and dressed as a young married woman, was Ye Yunshang, Fang Zixu's cultivation partner. The other, a tall girl of fifteen or sixteen with two charming dimples, was Fang Siruo, Fang Zixu's only daughter.

The Wang family's stronghold was quite distant from the Fang family, and the two families had no deep connection, so there was naturally little interaction. Nevertheless, when Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had their grand wedding, the Fang family still sent representatives with congratulatory gifts.

"Fellow Daoist Fang," Wang Ruyan said with an envious tone, "it truly confirms the saying, 'New waves push the old forward.' Your esteemed daughter, despite her young age, has already reached the sixth layer of Qi Refinement. Unlike my son, who is still stuck at the fifth—it worries me endlessly."

Hearing Wang Ruyan praise his daughter, Fang Zixu was very happy. "Madam Wang, you flatter me. Siruo isn't as remarkable as you make her out to be. Your Wang family excels in the art of puppetry; perhaps your son's cultivation was delayed by his focus on that skill? Unlike Siruo, who knows no special arts, she simply has to dedicate more time to cultivation."

"Madam Wang," Ye Yunshang said with a faint smile, "has your son arrived? Why not call him over so the younger generation can get acquainted?"