Chapter 73: Is Young Master Here To Have Fun?

Lu Changsheng didn’t go straight back after leaving Southwest Street.  Sᴇaʀch* Thᴇ n0vᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.Instead, he found an inn on a nearby street and spent a spirit stone to rent a room. Once in the room, Lu Changsheng took out a medium-grade purification talisman from his storage pouch and used it on himself.  Among the myriad of techniques used by cultivators, there were many methods to leave marks on others for tracking purposes.  This purification talisman could dispel and cleanse such marks from the body. Seeing that the purification talisman had no effect on him, Lu Changsheng breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that he hadn’t been marked for tracking.  After all, he had been followed as soon as he left Niutou Mountain after selling some items. He reminded himself to be cautious.  The comfortable life in the Lu Family over the past two years had made him somewhat less vigilant compared to when he first arrived.  However, he always reminded himself to be wary and prepared for the worst.  Otherwise, he might encounter unexpected danger. After resting in the room for half an hour, Lu Changsheng changed into a different human skin mask and left the inn.  With an unremarkable appearance, he made his way back to Southwest Street.  Despite spending so many spirit stones today without earning any, he wasn’t ready to return home just yet.  He planned to sell some items in exchange for spirit stones. Walking along the same street as before, Lu Changsheng continued browsing.  He had bought enough materials for practicing the Hundred Treasure Refinement Body Tempering Technique earlier, so he didn’t need to purchase more for the time being.  It was important to have some spirit stones on hand for emergencies. He came across a stall selling books and spent two spirit stones on a copy of “Secret Techniques for Enhancing Intimacy” and “Essentials of Jade Chamber Secrets.”  These books taught methods to enhance intimate abilities and techniques to preserve vitality during intimate encounters, but they were merely ordinary techniques and not profound cultivation methods. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be possible at this price. In Lu Changsheng’s view, this thing was just for fun. If he really wanted to practice the secret technique of dual cultivation or cultivation techniques, he had to rely on the system. After strolling around for a while, Lu Changsheng arrived at the toll booth at the street corner and paid a spirit stone and prepared to set up his stall. The cultivator at the toll booth gave him a wooden sign. There were numbers on the wooden sign, corresponding to a stall, which could be used for three days. After taking the wooden sign, Lu Changsheng found the corresponding stall on the street and sat down. He took out a stack of talismans. A total of thirty low-grade talismans and five medium-grade talismans. When he was just wandering around, he also observed the stalls selling talismans. He knew he couldn’t take too many, or it would easily attract attention. Then, he took out the flying sword, flying knives, and bells he had harvested from the three bandits on Niutou Mountain. With the Qingyan Sword and plenty of talismans on him, he didn’t need these three magical instruments, so he naturally chose to sell them for money. As for the three storage bags he had previously obtained, one was used to store miscellaneous items, one was used to store talismans, so he temporarily didn’t sell them. Maybe he would need them later. After pricing everything, Lu Changsheng waited for business to come. However, half an hour passed. Occasionally, people glanced at his stall, but most of them were not interested, and he only sold five or six talismans. “The location of my stall is not good, and it is too far back.” “And in a place like Jiulong Market, where there are too many people selling talismans and magical instruments, it’s too competitive. Most people rely on word of mouth and regular customers.” “Although my prices are slightly lower than other stalls, I still can’t compete unless I lower them even further.” “But lowering them a bit won’t help, I have to lower them significantly, but doing so will obviously disrupt the market and make me an easy target.” After selling for so long without much success, Lu Changsheng grew impatient and decided to close his stall and leave. He was ready to see if there were any buyers for talismans and magical instruments, regardless of the price. It didn’t matter if the price was a bit lower. Otherwise, relying on the stall, he didn’t know when he would make a sale. “I have thirty low-grade talismans and five medium-grade talismans, would you be interested in buying?” “No.” “No.” “No.” “What price are you offering?” After asking four stalls, one stall owner spoke up. “I’m offering a ten percent discount.” Lu Changsheng said. “Too high, fifty percent off, I’ll take them all.” The stall owner said. “In that case, I might as well sell them myself.” Lu Changsheng turned and walked away directly. Damn, there should be a limit even to being greedy.  I can’t believe he could even say fifty percent off. “Brother, forty percent off.” Seeing Lu Changsheng leaving, the stall owner immediately shouted. “Twenty percent off.” Lu Changsheng paused. “Okay, let’s meet halfway, thirty percent off.” The stall owner proposed. Lu Changsheng looked hesitant for a moment, then nodded, “Deal.” He took out a stack of talismans for the other party to count. Suddenly feeling guilty towards Hong Yi, he sold the talismans here at a thirty percent discount. But he had only given Hong Yi a discount of twenty percent. “According to market price, it’s a total of eighty spirit stones. At thirty percent off, that’s fifty-six spirit stones.” The stall owner counted the talismans and quoted a price. “Deal.” After completing the transaction, Lu Changsheng immediately left Southwest Street. He changed his appearance again and found four talisman shops to sell talismans. Considering his identity, and his disguise skills not being sufficient, Lu Changsheng didn’t go to those big spiritual symbol shops. The prices for buying talismans were all around thirty percent off. In this way, Lu Changsheng sold a total of one hundred and forty-five low-grade talismans and sixty medium-grade talismans in five talisman shops. He harvested a total of three hundred and sixty-six spirit stones. After walking out of the last talisman shop, Lu Changsheng didn’t continue selling. As the saying goes, be cautious and careful over time. With over four hundred spirit stones on him, it would be enough for him for a long time. And he only had five sets of human skin masks left. This wave had used them all up. After walking out of the last spiritual symbol shop, Lu Changsheng didn’t change his disguise. Instead, he went to a nearby magical tools shop and asked if they bought magical instruments. After hearing that they did, Lu Changsheng took out three magical tools. “These three magical tools, although they look intact, have obviously been used for a long time and have noticeable flaws. They might even break when used.” “If you’re willing to sell them, our store is willing to buy them for thirty spirit stones each.” The shopkeeper of the magical tools shop examined Lu Changsheng’s three magical tools and then quoted a price. “Really outrageous!”  Lu Changsheng couldn’t help but think to himself upon hearing this. He had personally inspected these three magical instruments.  It could only be said that the three bandits on Niutou Mountain had taken good care of their magical instruments, and they were all in excellent condition without much damage.  Saying they were ninety percent new wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Yet the shopkeeper only offered thirty spirit stones each. “Forget it then, a minimum of one hundred and twenty spirit stones for the three,” Lu Changsheng shook his head, stating his price and pretending to leave. “Too high, one hundred and twenty spirit stones is too high. How about one hundred spirit stones? I’ll take the three for one hundred,”  The shopkeeper said as Lu Changsheng made to leave. “Let’s step back. One hundred and ten spirit stones, it’s really the highest price I can go. Go ask elsewhere, it’ll be the same price,” but seeing Lu Changsheng really leaving, the shopkeeper immediately shouted as Lu Changsheng reached the door, “One hundred and fifteen spirit stones.” “Okay.” Hearing this, Lu Changsheng felt it was about right and stopped in his tracks. He exchanged the three magical instruments for one hundred and fifteen spirit stones. “Hmm?” At this moment, Lu Changsheng noticed a pair of green boots in the shop, which matched his robe quite well. Pointing at the boots, he asked, “Shopkeeper, what level are these boots? What effects do they have?” “These boots are a medium-grade magical instrument made from the fur of the demonic beast Qingfeng Wolf. They have six effects: size manipulation, dust avoidance, self-concealment, lightness, wave-walking, and wind manipulation.” The shopkeeper immediately introduced. “Medium-grade magical instrument?” Lu Changsheng nodded slightly and asked, “Can I try them on?” “Of course,” the shopkeeper said with a smile. The shopkeeper took the boots out of the cabinet and let Lu Changsheng try them on.  The boots were lightweight, very thin, and soft, with a fine fleece inside.  As Lu Changsheng put them on, his first feeling was one of comfort and softness, as if he were wearing nothing at all.  He felt much lighter and agile, thanks to the effect of the boots enhancing his speed and agility.  As for the effects of walking on water and wind manipulation, when activated, they allowed him to move quickly on water and essentially gave him a windwalking ability. “How much for these boots?”  Lu Changsheng asked.  He was quite satisfied with the boots.  Not only did they look good, but they were also very comfortable to wear.  If he ever needed to run away from something, they would surely help him escape much faster. “This is the first sale of the day for our store. It’s original price is two hundred and ten spirit stones, but since you’ve just done business with us, you can have them for two hundred spirit stones,” the shopkeeper said. “Too expensive. A normal medium-grade magical instrument usually costs around one hundred and fifty spirit stones. How about one hundred and forty spirit stones?”  Lu Changsheng countered directly.  Just a while ago, the shopkeeper had offered thirty spirit stones for each of his three magical instruments, indicating there was significant room for negotiation.  And besides, even in his past life, he knew that bargaining was essential when making purchases.  If you agreed too easily, the seller might think you were too eager and regret it later. “That’s too low. These boots are not only made from Qingfeng Wolf fur but also contain Spirit Silkworm silk inside. The craftsmanship, weaving, dyeing, and engraving of the formation on them are all very fine. If you want them, the lowest price would be one hundred and ninety-five spirit stones,”  The shopkeeper explained, adjusting the price. In the end, Lu Changsheng haggled and managed to get the boots for one hundred and sixty spirit stones. After buying the boots, he looked around the shop again. He looked around the shop to see if there were any magical instruments suitable for his use. He felt that he still lacked sufficient means of defense and wanted to increase his defensive capabilities. After browsing, he spent sixty-three spirit stones on a low-grade magical instrument called the “Hundred Transformation Mask” and one hundred and ten spirit stones on a medium-grade magical instrument called the “Cold Jade Spirit Pendant.” The Hundred Transformation Mask adhered to his face and could change into another face at will.  Unless it was someone in the later stage of Qi Refining using the Heavenly Eye Technique, they wouldn’t be able to discern the disguise.  With this magical instrument, he no longer needed to buy ordinary human skin masks. As for the Cold Jade Spirit Pendant, when worn, it had the effects of clearing the mind, concealing spiritual power, hiding one’s presence, and shielding against spiritual sense detection.  In dangerous situations, it could passively generate a defensive spell to withstand a blow from someone in the mid-stage of Qi Refining. “Safe travels, friend,” the shopkeeper said with a smile as he escorted Lu Changsheng out of the shop. “Sigh, money really doesn’t last,”  Lu Changsheng sighed as he walked out of the shop.  Just a moment ago, he thought he had a large sum of money that would last him a while.  But in the blink of an eye, the money he earned from selling talismans and magical instruments was almost gone, leaving him with just over a hundred spirit stones.  He didn’t even have money left to buy magical instruments or talisman pens. “Money is meant to be spent, and money for upgrading equipment shouldn’t be spared. I’ll come back in about ten days or so to sell another batch of talismans, and then I’ll have money again,”  Lu Changsheng thought to himself as he sighed softly and went to a nearby inn to rent a room. After using a purification talisman to check if he was being tracked, Lu Changsheng put on the Hundred Transformation Mask and, with a slight mental movement, changed his appearance to that of Li Feiyu. “It truly lives up to being a magical instrument. No need for disguises anymore,”  Lu Changsheng remarked as he looked at himself in the mirror, his appearance constantly changing.  However, he couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed that the mask was only a low-grade magical instrument.  Advanced Qi Refining stage cultivators using the Heavenly Eye Technique could still discern some clues.  Nevertheless, it didn’t matter much to him.  He would just wear another human skin mask when the time came. As long as he didn’t reveal his true identity, it would suffice. After all, with just a low-grade magical instrument, what more could you ask for?  Lu Changsheng transformed his appearance with the Hundred Transformation Mask into a common face and left the inn.  Then, he turned left and right, reverting to his original appearance in an alleyway.  Clad in a Qingzhu embroidered robe, wearing Qingfeng boots, and with a handsome face, he looked quite outstanding. Just as Lu Changsheng was about to leave the alley, a seductive woman in a pink gossamer dress, revealing her alluring shoulders, emerged from a small courtyard nearby.  Her eyes lit up when she saw Lu Changsheng, and she greeted him with a charming smile, saying, “Is the gentleman here to seek pleasure and entertainment?” Lu Changsheng was puzzled. “Since the gentleman is here, why not come in for an experience?” the woman continued, her voice soft and alluring, as she extended her fair and delicate hand to pull Lu Changsheng closer.  Lu Changsheng felt a slight tingling sensation, almost like an electric shock.  Especially with the intoxicating fragrance of orchids and musk emanating from the woman, he felt a heat rising within him, tempting him to indulge in the seductive beauty before him. At the same time, the Cold Jade Spirit Pendant hanging from his chest emitted a cool and clear aura, slightly suppressing his heated emotions. “Charm technique!”  Lu Changsheng immediately became wary, realizing that the woman was using a charm technique on him.  He quickly took a step back, shaking his head, and said, “I’m sorry, I’m just passing through.” “Today, this maiden finds the gentleman very attractive. For just ten spirit stones, the gentleman can enjoy my company,”  The woman continued, her voice still soft and alluring, her beautiful face revealing a pitiful expression that evoked feelings of pity and the desire to pamper and ravish her. Hearing this, Lu Changsheng silently recited Buddhist scriptures in his mind, bowed politely, and quickly walked away. “Sir, if you insist, I won’t ask for your spirit stones today,”  The woman called out softly, her face turning slightly unpleasant as Lu Changsheng left the alley in a hurry, ignoring her. “Hmph, ignorant fool, just because he’s handsome!”  The woman muttered angrily with a sour expression. Afterwards, she turned back into the courtyard.  “Phew!”  Lu Changsheng walked out of the alley and let out a long sigh.  There was no romantic sentiment in his heart, only a sense of relief. “I thought that after experiencing numerous battles and trials, my willpower was firm and I wouldn’t easily be swayed by female charm. But I never expected charm techniques to be so powerful.”  “I thought the woman just now didn’t have a very high cultivation level, and was probably just in the mid to late stage of Qi Refining. But even in that situation, I found myself affected by her charm.”  “If it were a cultivator with higher cultivation or proficient in charm techniques, it would be extremely difficult to guard against.”  Lu Changsheng couldn’t help but think to himself.  Although the woman just now had a good appearance and a seductive figure, she didn’t affect him much.  However, her mere presence and actions made him feel a bit heated, almost as if he wanted to succumb to her charm.  “Strength, increasing strength is the key!”  Lu Changsheng sighed again, realizing the importance of improving his own strength.  If he encountered powerful charm techniques or other undefendable methods in the future, even with his array of talismans and magical instruments, he might not be able to use them effectively.  “I shouldn’t wander around these kinds of alleys casually in the future. You never know when danger might strike.”  Lu Changsheng shook his head and headed towards the talisman shop.  He decided to avoid such deserted alleys as much as possible.  Although Jiulong Market was relatively safe, there was always some degree of danger.  Incidents could happen occasionally, and there might be evil cultivators or bandits lurking in such deserted alleys.  On his way back to the talisman shop, Lu Changsheng passed by the White Jade Tower and couldn’t help but pause for a moment.  Then, with a determined look in his eyes, he strode inside.  After all, getting married and having concubines and children couldn’t be postponed.  It was the foundation of his existence in this world.  If he could buy concubines with Spirit Roots, it would be the best option.  Otherwise, it would be difficult to find them on his own.  And by “difficult,” he didn’t just mean the challenge of finding wives and concubines. Lu Changsheng knew that with his current conditions, it wouldn’t be a problem to marry several “fairies” with Spirit Roots. But after marrying and taking concubines, one would have to invest time, energy, and emotions into the relationships, especially when it came to having children.  With so many wives and concubines already, Lu Changsheng could already feel the limitations of his time and energy.  It was impossible for him to cater to each one individually.  If he could solve these matters with money, he wouldn’t have to invest so much emotional energy into them. Inside the White Jade Tower, the atmosphere was spacious and elegant, with simple seats set up and seven or eight young women dressed in uniform red dresses standing around.  In the hall, ten young women in red dresses were explaining and introducing something to seemingly wealthy cultivators. “What does this gentleman want to know? Are you interested in marriage or purchasing concubines? Let me introduce our services to you,” a woman in a red dress approached Lu Changsheng with a warm smile. “Do you have concubines or maids with Spirit Roots here?” Lu Changsheng asked directly. The woman in the red dress was slightly surprised to hear this. After carefully assessing Lu Changsheng’s appearance and demeanor, she realized he was serious.  Her smile deepened, recognizing Lu Changsheng as a potential big client, and she promptly led him upstairs. The layout of the second floor was different from the hall downstairs, with many small rooms separated.  Leading Lu Changsheng to one of the rooms, the woman in the red dress knocked on the door. “Come in!”  A lazy and seductive voice came from inside, sending shivers down one’s spine just from hearing it.