Chapter 440: Is He Really Showing Off His Prosperity Here?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Ten million?
All at once, all the people in the audience were dumbfounded.
Isn't it insane?
Why did he bid for a magical artifact with ten million low grade Spirit Stones without even waiting for the introduction, and even without knowing the level of the artifact?
He is just making trouble, right?
Everyone looked towards the room of Xu Que in mute amazement.
Now only lunatics who sought death could make trouble in the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce.
The woman who was wearing the court dress was also stunned at this moment.
After hosting so many auctions throughout her life, today she had broadened her horizons again! An auction could be used to show off one's prosperity!
No, it seemed it was not only for showing off his prosperity; it was also for bickering!
Liu Yun's face was quite gloomy.
This was the perfect definition of slapping someone in the face!
Just now he had made a bid of one million and said some sarcastic words. Then the next moment, Wang Sicong had made a bid of ten million right away.
His face looked as if it had been slapped, which was painful and shameful!
The more Liu Yun thought about it, the madder he got. His family could be considered one of the richest families in the Imperial City. He had never expected to be humiliated like this in today's auction, and it made him feel quite embarrassed.
"I don't believe he is truly able to offer ten million low grade Spirit Stones. This guy must be a troublemaker!" Liu Yun shouted immediately as he stood up.
His words also resonated among many participants of the auction.
None of them had ever seen an auction participant as dominant as Xu Que. It seemed like the Spirit Stones were just numbers in his mouth. His arbitrary bidding was too outrageous!
From one million to ten million low grade Spirit Stones, his bids for ordinary magical artifacts were impenetrable. This would be unacceptable even for the emperors of the five nations!
Some people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce also started to become doubtful.
Before, people with the jade invitation cards were treated as distinguished guests. As long as the jade invitation card was produced, the chamber of commerce would never inquire about any personal information of the holder.
However, they were now bothered by the current situation!
Why did the guy use ten million low grade Spirit Stones to buy an ordinary magical artifact?
It is extremely irrational!
It was okay if the guy in private room 3 was really wealthy; otherwise, it would make a fool out of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce if a guy who didn't have enough Spirit Stones to pay had managed to buy all the auction pieces.
"Zhuang, send someone to check out the guy in No. 3 private room and investigate his background." Finally, an old man was sitting in the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce delivered a message to the lady who was wearing the court dress.
"As you wish!" the woman who was wearing the court dress replied without turning a hair. Then she opened her red lips to deliver the message to one of her maidservants, asking her to perform the investigation.
The maidservant nodded her head slightly; then carrying the White Pearl Golden Hairpin, she sent it to Xu Que's room on the second floor.
Everyone fixed their eyes on that maidservant and watched her enter the private room of Xu Que.
Everyone was wondering whether the guy in that private room could really produce so many Spirit Stones!
After all, ten million low grade Spirit Stones was really a big number.
Many people in the building could afford this price. However, they would rather die than spend ten million low grade Spirit Stones on an ordinary magical artifact.
Therefore, at this moment, a lot of people thought the guy in that private room on the second floor was absolutely a trouble-maker.
"Humph! That guy is doomed!" Liu Yun snorted coldly, his tone full of sarcasm.
"If he can't provide over ten million Spirit Stones, he will be deemed as a malicious bidder. His punishment will range from cultivation deprivation to a death sentence according to the rules of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce!"
…
A moment later, the wooden door of that private room opened suddenly.
After that, the maidservant ran back to the hall in a flurry, taking that jade plate. She nodded at the lady who was wearing the court dress slightly.
Everyone was shocked and didn't know what was happening.
What's going on?
She just entered that room for a short while; why did she ran out in a flurry?
Could it be that the guy in No. 3 private room has a formidable background?
Whoosh!
At this moment, the blind in No. 3 private room on the 2nd floor was drawn aside suddenly.
Wearing the human-skinned mask and a white robe, Xu Que appeared gracefully before the eyes of everyone.
Standing there poker-faced, Xu Que pretended to be aloof as he glanced over all people in the hall majestically.
Everyone was stunned.
The guy in No.3 private room was a young man!
He was so young, handsome and elegant! He looked nothing like a pushy rowdy brat!
"Humph! Your Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce is too snobbish! You really don't think I can afford the price of just ten million Spirit Stone?" At this moment, Xu Que snorted coldly.
Whoosh!
The next moment, he took out ten best grade Spirit Stones from his storage in the System, which floated in his palm.
Ten best grade Spirit Stones were equal to one thousand high grade Spirit Stones, or one hundred thousand middle grade Spirit Stones, or ten million low grade Spirit Stones!
"Gasp!"
All at once, everyone gasped.
Holy shit! This guy really has ten million low grade Spirit Stones!
But is he mad? Why did he state such a formidable price for an ordinary magical artifact?
"See? I can definitely afford the price I state. If you doubt me again, you will have problems!" Xu Que said coldly; meanwhile, he heard the System's notifications about his successful tough-acting.
The hall was in silence!
No one dared to speak a word again!
In particular, Liu Yun's face was red all over. He could find no place to hide himself for his shame.
After seeing Xu Que, the lady who was wearing the court dress was stunned slightly. It seemed that she hadn't expected the person in the private room to be so young and handsome.
When she came to herself, she immediately explained with a smile, "What Lord Wang said is right! I worried too much and I am really sorry about that. I hope Lord Wang will be magnanimous enough to forgive my rudeness."
Xu Que waved his hand, "I promised to someone that I will not make trouble here. So let's just forget it and I will accept your apology as if I am making a new friend."
"It is my great honor to be a friend of Lord Wang!" said the lady who was wearing the court dress in delight.
Everyone was jealous of Xu Que. The reason that this lady was the auctioneer of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce was not only her charm arts, but also her beauty.
It would be much easier to develop a closer relationship with such a gorgeous woman after making friends with her.
For this, Xu Que was admired by many male cultivators in the hall!
However, Xu Que bragged with a sneer, "Not to mention honor. When I want to make friends with others, I never concern myself with how wealthy they are. Anyway, none of them are wealthier than me!"
His words widened the eyes of everyone in the building and almost made them spit blood.
Damn! This guy is really showing off his prosperity here!
You don't care about how wealthy the one who you are going to make friends with is; just because you are always wealthier than them, right?
What the hell! How wealthy can you be?
No matter how wealthy you are, can you be wealthier than the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, which is the No. 1 chamber of commerce in the five nations?
However, when everyone settled down, Xu Que started to speak again.
His face was full of impatience and boredom. He urged, "Since there are no more questions, let's just proceed with the auction! How about this? Just place all auction items on the platform. Anyway, I, Wang Sicong, will buy all of them!"
Chapter 441: No One Can Be Better At Arguing Than Me
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"I, Wang Sicong, will buy all of them."
Hearing this, everyone at present sneered.
They believed that no one could really buy all the objects in this auction, even if they were an Emperor. After all, the last few objects in an auction were normally extremely expensive.
The lady smiled. "Lord Wang, you are really humorous. We shall continue with the auction now."
Another jade plate was delivered to the central platform. The maid uncovered the plate, upon which lay another magic weapon.
"This is a three-star magic weapon that has been used by the Water Empress from a young age, the starting price would be…"
Dong!
"A million Spirit Stones," Xu Que shouted.
This weapon seemed very popular and it was also three-star, so a million Spirit Stones was not that much.
"A million and twenty thousand Spirit Stones."
"A million and fifty thousand Spirit Stones."
"A million and a hundred thousand Spirit Stones."
…
Right at this moment, Xu Que struck the bronze bell again.
Dong!
"Ten million Spirit Stones! Is there anyone else who can give a higher price?"
…
All of a sudden, all the people present fell silent.
They all stared at Xu Que and felt very angry.
Ten million Spirit Stones again? What on earth is he doing? Spending ten million Spirit Stones of low quality on a three-star magic weapon?! Is he insane or desperate to get rid of his fortune?
If Xu Que could hear what they were thinking, he would probably have said, "yes, I am RICH!"
Dong!
The lady knocked the desk with her hammer.
The magic weapon now belonged to Xu Que.
People could do nothing but remain silent. After all, they did not have as much money as Xu Que did.
The auction was ongoing.
"Now, the sixth object…"
Xu Que shouted. "I, Wang Sicong would like to have this for ten million Spirit Stones."
"The seventh object…"
"Ten million Spirit Stones!"
"The next one…"
"Ten million Spirit Stones! Is there anyone who can bid a higher price?!"
Seeing Xu Que buying all the objects one by one for high prices of ten million Spirit Stones, everyone was shocked.
Even Xu Que himself had no idea how many Spirit Stones he had spent by far. Anyway, he did care if he had enough Spirit Stones. He just kept shouting.
By now, he had bought around ten magic weapons, ten books of magic inscriptions and a few bottles of medicine.
Since most of the objects belonged to the Water Empress, the Spirit Stones he spent would all go to the Water Empress.
…
People at present were too shocked to think this through. The Spirit Stones Xu Que had spent so far amounted to as much as the fortunes of a few influential factions putting together.
Even the people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce began to doubt whether Xu Que had enough Spirit Stones.
After all, the number of Spirit Stones he had spent so far had already reached a billion. Throughout the years, no one had ever spent as much as Xu Que.
When Xu Que took out a few thousand Spirit Stones of top quality and played with them with his fingers, everyone was frightened, as were the people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce.
A few thousand Spirit Stones of top quality is equal to a few billion Spirit Stones of low quality! Where on earth did he get so many of them?! And now he is playing with them with his fingers as if they are just toys!
This is absolutely shocking!
…
Ding! "Congratulations to host 'Xu Que' for acting tough successfully. The reward is 310 Acting Tough Points!"
Ding! "Congratulations to host 'Xu Que' for acting tough successfully. The reward is 330 Acting Tough Points!"
…
The sound of the System's notifications kept ringing in his head.
Suddenly, Xu Que looked up to the ceiling and sighed. "Really! I have bought so many objects, but it has only cost me such a small amount of Spirit Stones. Do you have more expensive objects to sell?"
Xu Que turned around and looked at the woman in the court dress. "Show me the more expensive objects, otherwise, I cannot even go back home like this. Do you want to know why? Well, once I open the door, I will be drowned by the Spirit Stones. I daren't even clean my ass in the toilet, since using the Spirit Stones to wipe my ass is really painful."
Hearing this, people were stunned.
Oh, you live in a house full of Spirit Stones? Using the Spirit Stone to clean your ass? Really! Why don't you clean your ass with magic weapons instead?!
…
The lady forced out a smile. "Please be patient. There are only three objects left, and they are impressive!"
Everyone all sat upright and cheered up again.
After all, apart from the young cultivators, there were also many influential figures attending the auction. They had all come for the impressive objects, and so had the three people in the room next to and opposite Xu Que's.
These three people all had a jade invitation card. The reason they had not made any moves yet was because they were not interested in the objects that Xu Que had bought.
Now, the real battle would begin!
A young girl walked to the lady, carrying a jade box.
As soon as the box was opened, a fragrant smell wafted out. A ray of pale blue light appeared and rose up like smoke. The next minute, it became a small river flowing into the box.
Everyone was so shocked that their eyes flew wide open.
The maid started to speak. "This is the Water Empress' six-star medicine, it is called Great Clarity Green Water Pill. It can greatly help someone of the Infant Transformation Stage who finds it difficult to reach the next stage. I think you have all heard about it. The starting price will be ten million Spirit Stones of low equality, and remember that every time one calls out a price, that price should go up by more than a hundred thousand Spirit Stones."
As soon as she stopped talking, people immediately looked at Xu Que.
Since Xu Que had opened his curtain, he had been acting tough the whole time. Seeing everyone staring at him, he put on a poker face and was about to reach out his hands to strike the bronze bell on his desk.
Ding!
This time, it was not Xu Que who had struck the bell, but an influential figure in the room beside Xu Que's.
"Twenty million Spirit Stones of low quality!" an old man said.
Hearing this, everyone took a deep breath.
What is going on today?! Are they all crazy? Twenty million? Are my ears deceiving me?
But soon, the people calmed down. After all, the Great Clarity Green Water Pill was very precious and could help a cultivator of the Infant Transformation Stage reach the next stage. Besides, this pill could not be bought from a market.
Thus, for a strong man of the Infant Transformation Stage, twenty million Spirit Stones was totally worth it.
Don't be ridiculous! It's just twenty million Spirit Stones, I have got plenty of them! No one can bid a higher price than me!
He reached out his hand and struck the bronze bell.
Chapter 442: Who the Hell Are You?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Dong!
However, Xu Que's hand had hardly reached the brass bell when he was stopped by the sound of a tinkling bell from the room opposite his.
After that, a female voice echoed from that room.
"I make a bid of thirty million Spirit Stones!"
Thirty million?
Again, everyone was surprised!
Today's auction is way too formidable. Many participants are so wealthy!
Someone even made a bid of thirty million for a six-star pill, which is valued at only twenty million!
"It seems the big shots in those two private rooms are at a critical stage of the Infant Transformation Stage; so they need this pill to make a breakthrough!"
"It must be so! The Great Clarity Green Water Pill is very rare, but it is so effective in breaking the bottleneck in cultivation. If one really needs this pill, it would be worthwhile to spend forty or fifty million Spirit Stones on it."
"It is said that the highest auction price ever for the Great Clarity Green Water Pill was eighty million Spirit Stones. I wonder whether this record will be broken today."
"Definitely. Just now that Wang Sicong said that he would buy all the auction items. Now there are only three auction items left!"
"Hehe, these three items are the grand finale, it's possible he won't be able to afford all of them."
"Right. He hasn't stated a price yet for this one. Could it be that he has spent all of his Spirit Stones?"
"Haha, that is highly possible. After all, he has spent a lot of Spirit Stones already."
"Finally, we don't need to watch him show off his prosperity!"
Many people started to gloat over Xu Que's situation. They looked at the second floor with faces full of scorn. They thought that Xu Que didn't have enough Spirit Stones for further bidding.
…
In the other private room on the second floor, the one beside Xu Que's room, an old man snorted coldly with furrowed brows. "Humph, how dare a girl so young be so defiant… how dare she compete with me for the Great Clarity Green Water Pill!"
Dong!
He knocked at the brass bell and shouted loudly, "Forty million!"
"Wow!"
The hall was in an uproar. After three rounds of bidding, the price of the Great Clarity Green Water Pill had been raised to forty million; and this was only the competition between two people!
Moreover, the high price had prevented most people in the hall from participating in the bidding. Only holders of the jade invitation cards on the second floor would be able to participate in the following bidding war.
Now the price had been raised to forty million by the competing pair. If other big shots also participated in the competition, could the record be broken? And was it possible for the price to exceed one hundred million?
Many people were full of expectation, looking at the private rooms on the second floor excitedly.
Dong!
Finally, another bell tinkled, from the room of the lady opposite Xu Que.
"Fifty million!" the lady said coldly as she stared at the old man in the room next to Xu Que's.
However, the old man didn't give up. He knocked the brass bell and shouted, "Sixty million!"
Apparently, the old man was determined to get the Great Clarity Green Water Pill.
He had been stuck at level 6 of the Infant Transformation Stage for a long time. Because of his advanced age, it was very difficult for him to break the bottleneck. Therefore, this Great Clarity Green Water Pill was his hope. As long as he could make a breakthrough to level 7 of the Infant Transformation Stage, he would be able to increase his power and longevity.
Hearing the old man's bid of sixty million, the lady opposite Xu Que didn't say a word for a long time. Her face was quite gloomy. With furrowed brows, it seemed that she was unsure whether she should keep increasing the price.
Compared to the old man, she did not seem as determined to get this pill.
"Sixty million, calling once!" cried the lady in the court dress, wearing a faint smile.
Everyone was surprised slightly, for none of them had expected the competition over this pill to finish up so fast, like the whip of a tiger's head or the lash of a snake's tail.
"It seems like the woman on the second floor has given up."
"Alas, the price has been raised to sixty million after all. No one would state a price like this readily, unless they had already been driven into a tight corner."
"I suppose the old man will keep increasing the price even when the price reaches one hundred million!"
"Wait! Where is Wang Sicong? Why did he stop stating prices?"
"Hahaha, he has run out of Spirit Stones, as expected!"
"As I said before, he is not wealthy enough! How could he buy all the auction items?"
Everyone shook their heads and took delight in talking about Xu Que.
"Sixty million, calling twice!"
At this moment, the lady in court dress spoke again. She looked around and it seemed like she was searching for other potential bidders, or encouraging people who would be willing to state a higher price.
The old man, who was in the room next to Xu Que's room, felt greatly relieved. He knew that Great Clarity Green Water Pill was about to be his.
"Hehe, when I get the pill, I will break the bottleneck and reach level 7 of the Infant Transformation Stage. At that time, I will take these sixty million Spirit Stones back from the people of the Water Nation, sing the same old way!" the old man said to himself with a sneer. Full of confidence, he picked up a cup of tea and took a sip.
…
"Sixty million, last ca…"
Dong!
When the lady in the court dress picked up the wooden hammer, about to make the last call, the clear tinkle of brass bell went off!
The lady in court dress stopped, dropping the hammer immediately.
Everyone was stunned. The ringing of the bell had come from Xu Que's room!
To everyone's surprise, he stood up and walked to the stand with his hands behind his back. Then in a deep voice with a faint smile, he said, "I, Wang Sicong, make a bid of one billion!"
Gasp!
All at once, everyone was dumbfounded and couldn't believe what they had heard.
One…one billion?
Holy shit! Is he insane?
He can state a price of one billion for one Great Clarity Green Water Pill?
Hearing Xu Que's bidding, the old man, who was in the room next to Xu Que's room, spat out the tea in his mouth.
One billion?
Damn! Are you deliberately finding fault?
What the hell is wrong with your head?
Bang! The old man was so angry that he smashed the table with his hand. Then he shouted at Xu Que angrily, "How dare you? Little brat, who the hell are you?"
Everyone could sense the power and anger of the old man.
Meanwhile, many people started to gloat over Xu Que.
Now Xu Que had just reached level 10 of the Original Infant Stage. By provoking the old man who had reached level 6 of the Infant Transformation Stage, he was asking to get killed.
"That little brat is doomed!"
"Hehe, I don't think the old man will take action in the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce now. However, it is highly possible that he will outside this building..."
"Besides the old man, I'm guessing this little brat has been targeted by many people. He is way too arrogant."
"People like him will not live long."
Many people were whispering.
As one of the staff of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, the lady in the court dress walked over in a hurry. She said to the man, "Predecessor, please calm down. In an auction, the highest bidder always wins."
However, Xu Que was quite calm. He walked to the wall of his private room and asked through the wall, "Old fellow, what did you say just now?"
With chilly eyes and a gloomy face, the old man spoke through gritted teeth. "Tell me, who the hell are you? And why are you against me?"
Everyone's eyes fixed on Xu Que, for they were also curious about his identity. After all, the name of Wang Sicong had never been heard of before.
At that moment, with a mean smile, Xu Que spoke through the wall. "I am Mr. Wang, your next-door neighbour."
Chapter 443: Chapter 443
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Mr Wang, your next-door neighbour? We know you are next-door to him!
People at present were all confused and had no idea what the phrase 'Mr Wang, your next door neighbour' really meant.
The old man grew very gloomy, but there were many people from the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce around. He wanted to save some face, so he did not say anything.
Still, he had decided to send someone to kill Xu Que as soon as the auction ended.
However, Xu Que was not frightened at all, even if the old man was at level 6 of the Infant Transformation Stage.
It was very quiet, and the atmosphere became rather delicate.
Everyone looked at Xu Que and sympathised him, since they thought he had to be in great trouble after offending that old man.
But Xu Que was still smiling. "Are you deaf? Say something. I am Mr Wang, your next-door neighbour. You can go back home and ask your mother, she knows me!"
"Shut up!" the old man shouted.
Is he crazy? How dare he offend him again at this moment?! Telling me to go home and ask my mother, seriously? How would my mother know about you?!
While the old man was shouting, Xu Que smiled. "F*ck you! I will not shut up!"
Hearing this, everyone was shocked.
The old man was furious. He suddenly stood up and glared at Xu Que.
"I won't shut up! If you are mad at me, come and fight me! If you've got the balls, then come!"
Xu Que meant to make the old man angry, so if he killed him, he would be able to claim self-defense.
After all, the old man had previously said that he would take his Spirit Stones back from the people of the Water Nation. Xu Que had heard all of it.
Xu Que would definitely help the citizens of the Water Nation, and would not hesitate to kill anyone who dared to hurt his peers of the Water Nation.
"How dare you!"
The old man was feeling extremely angry and kicked a chair at the wall.
Bang!
The next moment, the chair fell into a pile of wood and dust and was blown away by the wind, leaving some cracks in the wall separating him and Xu Que. If it were not for the fact that the old man had not used his full strength, the whole wall would have collapsed by now.
After all, the old man was in the sixth grade of the Infant Transformation Stage and his strength should not be underestimated.
The maid dressed in a dress of the palace warned. "The guests on the floor, please hold your temper, don't forget you are in the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce!"
Xu Que looked into the crack on the wall and smiled. "You old fool! Are you mad at me? Are you made at me? Ha!"
Seeing this, people were completely stunned.
What's wrong with him? He is really a shameless man!
"Wait, why do these words sound a bit familiar to me?"
"You are right! 'Are you mad at me?' I have heard this somewhere before."
"Crickey! It was General Zhuge who said that before."
They all took a deep breath and stared at Xu Que.
Even though Xu Que had changed his face, they all still felt that the tone of the young man called 'Wang Sicong' resembled General Zhuge's very much.
"Sh*t! He can't be General Zhuge!"
"Has he gone through facial surgery or something?"
"No wonder he has so many Spirit Stones. He has looted ten noblemen's residences, and the third Duke's residence as well."
"Nonsense! Even if he has looted ten residences as well as the third Duke's residences, he still wouldn't have so many Spirit Stones. He must be looting people's houses all the time."
"He even changed his face. Clearly, he has come here to ask for a fight!"
The young man who had competed with Xu Que earlier was so frightened that his face had turned all white. He knew how powerful General Zhuge was and decided to sneak off.
He discreetly stood up, about to run away.
The people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce were all shocked, since they had never thought the young man called Wang Sicong would also be the famous General Zhuge.
Xu Que's true identity had been revealed very simply through the few words he had spoken.
After all, there weren't many people in the world who were as shameless as he was.
However, the old man was not scared at all.
"Young man, I do not care who you are. Once you leave the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, you'll have to watch your back!" he threatened.
"Don't be ridiculous! If it weren't for the fact that I've promised someone to hold my temper and not kill anyone anymore, you would already be dead by now! Do you think I didn't hear what you said earlier?"
"What did I say?" the old man said coldly.
"There is no need to pretend, you know what you said. The reason why I haven't told the others is to save face for you."
The old man sneered, thinking that Xu Que would not dare to speak out.
But to his surprise, Xu Que spoke.
"You old fool! You are such a jerk. You bought the medicine with sixty million Spirit Stones of low quality, but you planned to take your money back. Besides, you also wanted to take the women away to rape and kill, including the old lady sitting in the seat 14 in the fifth row. Yes, you, old lady, he said you still look tasty and wanted to rape and kill you."
Hearing this, everyone at present was speechless.
Taking back all his money… and raping those women… and even that old lady…
This old man is really bad!
The old man was totally shocked.
He had indeed said that he would take all his money back, but he had never said that he would rape those women…
"How dare you tarnish my reputation like this?!" the old man shouted.
Xu Que smiled. "Can you swear that you never said this?"
"You…"
Swear?! Should I swear that I never said I would rape those sisters? Then everyone would find out that I had intended to take all my money back! F*ck! This young man is really ill-hearted and shameless!
"Everyone!" called the woman in the court dress. She was smiling. "We shall leave this matter to the end of the auction. Now let's congratulate the guest in room.3 for successfully obtaining the 'Great Clarity Green Water Pill'. All right, onto the next object."
She had finally managed to restore order to the situation. After all, this area was under control by the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, and the auction was still ongoing. If the two really did get into a fight, the reputation of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce would definitely be ruined.
…
Chapter 444: If I Choose to be Ruthless, I would Target at Myself
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"To the both of you, could you please maintain your dignity for the sake of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce?" The lady in court dress looked at the old man and Xu Que.
The old man would definitely show his due respect to the Chamber of Commerce. What she was worried about was Xu Que, whose behavior was always outrageous.
Xu Que smiled slightly. "I, Wang Sicong, don't lose face easily. However, this is something insignificant, so I will show you a respect and will not punish this old thing… for the moment!"
The corners of everyone's mouths twitched immediately.
As a cultivator of only level 10 of the Original Infant Stage, he had dared to say that he would punish an expert at level 6 of the Infant Transformation Stage.
If these words had been spoken by anyone else, the speaker would definitely have been treated as a mockery.
However, the speaker was Xu Que. For the audience, his words were fearsome and even persuasive.
After all, he was a notorious guy. Xu Que had even been able to eliminate the Third Duke, let alone this old man…
But the old man was not impressed by Xu Que's words. His face was quite gloomy. With a wry smile on his mouth, he regarded Xu Que like someone who was no longer relevant. Therefore, he just ignored Xu Que's words.
…
"If that is so, please accept my appreciation!" At that moment, the lady in the court dress smiled a bit and nodded at Xu Que to show her gratitude.
After that, she waved her slender hand and said to the audience, "The second item in today's grand finale is a mysterious copper sheet, which was also forged by Her Royal Highness the Water Empress. A secret art has been engraved in this copper sheet. However, the secret art, which was damaged slightly, is difficult to learn and cultivate. But the most precious aspect of this copper sheet is the fact that it is made of the Nine Heavens Star Meteorite!"
After finishing speaking, she opened the jade box and a palm-sized copper sheet entered everyone's view.
Surrounded by a halo of pale yellow, the copper sheet was blue-green all over. Thickly-dotted runes were visible on the surface of the copper sheet. However, most of the runes had been eroded over the long years, and were now beyond recognition.
"What? Is it real Nine Heavens Star Meteorite?"
However, all the audiences were surprised by the material of the copper sheet.
The Nine Heavens Star Meteorite, as the name suggested, was meteoric iron!
This was therefore a copper sheet from the Nine Heavens. Its material was very precious, and was mainly used to forge magical artifacts that were eight-star or higher.
All at once, many people were tempted by it. They lay their eyes on the lady in the court dress, waiting for the base price of this copper sheet to be announced.
Some of the audiences had delivered message to the big shots in their families to ask whether they should participate in the auction of this item.
After all, the material of this item was so precious that it was even rarer than the Great Clarity Green Water Pill. Also, demand for this material was higher than that for the Great Clarity Green Water Pill.
"According to our evaluation, the base price of this mysterious copper sheet is…"
However, when the lady in the court dress had just begun to introduce the cooper sheet and state its base price, Xu Que shouted out suddenly, "I, Wang Sicong, make a bid of fifty million Spirit Stones!"
His voice was clear and loud.
The rest of the audience were dumbfounded!
Many people who had been about to state their prices closed their mouths immediately after hearing Xu Que's bid.
Fifty million Spirit Stones was a reasonable price. There was still space to increase the price.
However, the price had been stated by Xu Que. No one else would dare to participate in the bidding!
The rest of the audience felt so depressed that they even wanted to spit blood!
We really don't want to compete for the auction item with him!
Leaving aside the question of whether we can even win the item, even if we do win the item, what would we do if he led his troops up to search our houses and confiscate our property? The Third Duke enjoyed this 'treatment'; but we really don't have the guts for that.
For a moment, everyone was frowning. They were irresolute as to whether they should keep bidding for the copper sheet.
This copper sheet was tempting… however, Xu Que's notorious reputation was too dreadful for them.
The old man also kept quiet. It seemed that he would let Xu Que win this bid, so that he would be able to rob Xu Que of this item as well as the Great Clarity Green Water Pill later.
The lady in the court dress was also surprised slightly. Then she furrowed her brows.
This was the last thing the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce wanted to see. Once one person's fame and dominance became overwhelming, the impartiality of the auction was endangered.
Also, this would influence the final hammer price, which could reduce the commission received by the Chamber of Commerce.
Dong!
But at that moment, another bell tinkled.
Everyone was surprised. Their eyes drifted to the second floor to find out who was awesome enough to compete with someone as ruthless as Xu Que!
However, the next moment, everyone was stunned again.
The one who had knocked the brass bell was Xu Que himself!
"What…what does he mean?"
"He has stated a price! Why did he knock the bell again?"
"Could it be that he forgot he had knocked the bell already? But this is almost impossible!"
Everyone was confused. Even the people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce were looking at Xu Que with puzzlement.
Xu Que smiled slightly and shouted, "I, Ma Yun of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of sixty million!"
"Ah?"
People immediately became even more confused.
Ma Yun of the Exploding Heavens Faction?
Aren't you Wang Sicong? How did you become Ma Yun?
The lady in the court dress was also stunned. She asked in astonishment, "Lord Wang, what…do you mean?"
Xu Que smiled. "I have no choice. I was entrusted by Ma Yun of our Exploding Heavens Faction to state a price for him!"
The rest of the audience instantly became speechless.
You were entrusted by Ma Yun of the Exploding Heavens Faction to state a price, right? You are being way too playful here!
Dong!
At that moment, suddenly Xu Que knocked at the bell again and shouted, "I, Hua Wuque of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of seventy million!"
"What?" Again, the rest of the audience was stunned.
How did this Hua Wuque come forth?
Shrugging his shoulders, Xu Que said reluctantly, "Again, I was entrusted by Hua Wuque of our faction to state a price. The Exploding Heavens Faction has a lot of members."
Everyone was silent.
Dong!
Xu Que knocked at the bell again.
"I, Ye Liangchen of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of eighty million!"
Dong!
"I, the Divine Eagle Master Yang Guo of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of one hundred million!"
Dong!
"Damn! I, Dugu Qiubai of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of two hundred million!"
Dong!
"Shit! I, Linghu Chong of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of three hundred million!"
…
The auction site was in silence. Only Xu Que kept knocking at the brass bell and performing his multiple role-play.
Everyone else in the audience was speechless. All they could do was continue to look at Xu Que in puzzlement.
"This guy is definitely insane!"
"He is horrible!"
"He is so crazy that he is even competing with himself! Who would dare to offend a lunatic like him?"
"He is continuously raising the price from fifty million to five hundred million! This is unprecedented!"
"I quit!"
"Me too!"
"We are asking for trouble by competing with him!"
…
No one dared to state a price again.
Finally, Xu Que won the Water Empress's mysterious copper sheet at the price of five hundred million.
The people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce were speechless about the result. The final hammer price, which had gone far beyond their expectations, had been stated by one person all the way from the beginning to the end of the item's auction.
It was the first time that they had encountered a circumstance like this. Therefore, they had to accept the result in puzzlement.
The lady in the court dress was also dumbfounded for a while before coming to her own senses. Then she dropped the hammer and announced the auction result.
After that, she said again, "Now, the most exciting part of our grand finale! The last item of today is…"
Dong!
She had hardly finished her words when Xu Que knocked the brass bell again.
"I, Wang Jianlin of the Exploding Heavens Faction, make a bid of one billion. It's just one billion, which is not very high!"
…
Once again, the rest of the audience felt so depressed that they wanted to spit blood.
Holy shit! Did you lose your mind?
One billion? Just one billion? Not high?
Okay, you can do whatever you want because you are rich! It's your own business to state the price of one billion. But can't you state a price after figuring out what the auction item is first?
The purpose of stating your price now is to prevent us from even knowing the name of the last item in today's grand finale, right?
Chapter 445: This Is Really Embarrassing
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
After Xu Que had called out the price of a billion Spirit Stones of low quality, no one had dared to called out another price.
According to the rule, once a buyer called out a price and no one else called one higher, the object would not be revealed to the public. As a consequence, no one would have the chance to really see what this object was.
Everyone was very curious as they stared at the jade box.
After all, this was the last object in the auction. They all wanted to know what was inside that box.
Xu Que stood up and smiled shamelessly. "Do you want to know what is inside that box?"
No one answered. Although they were very curious about the contents of the box, they remained silent. They thought that since Xu Que had bought this item with a billion Spirit Stones, he would be desperate to see what was inside that box too.
"Well, since none of you are interested, I will not show it to you. When I get home, I will just give it to my pet dog, Buttface."
Hearing this, everyone became furious.
What the f*ck! He will give the object that he has bought for a billion Spirit Stones of low quality to his pet dog?!
Finally, a young cultivator could no longer suppress his curiosity and stood up. "Wait, Lord Wang, we want to know what is inside the box."
The person holding the box stopped and looked at Xu Que.
Xu Que smiled. "You really want to know?"
Both the young cultivator and others in the room nodded. "Yes!"
"Really?"
"Yes, we do!"
Xu Que stopped smiling. "Why on earth should I show it to you?"
"What?!"
Everyone was surprised.
"Take it away. Don't be ridiculous, grow up please! This is the gift that I have bought for my pet dog, Buttface. I will not show it to you!" Xu Que shook his head.
Hearing this, people almost passed out.
F*ck! You were the one who asked us if we wanted to see it or not in the first place! You're the one who should grow up!
"Fine! Never mind!"
Xu Que smiled and went back to his room, feeling extremely proud.
Everyone already knew that he was a shameless man and they were afraid that their houses would be looted by him later on. As a result, they did not quarrel with him, even if they were very angry.
As the last object had been bought by Xu Que, he had basically bought all the objects in this auction.
But the old man in the room beside him was not soft-hearted.
He had locked Xu Que in his room with his Soul Strength. Clearly, he meant to kill Xu Que and take everything he had bought.
"Lord Wang, we have put all the objects in the storage ring. Would you mind having a check of it? If everything is alright, please come to the side here and pay. The total amount will be 7.8 billion Spirit Stones of low quality."
The lady stood outside Xu Que's room and smiled.
Xu Que waved his hand and retrieved all the Spirit Stones from his System parcel.
All of a sudden, the huge room was filled up with Spirit Stones.
Spirit Stones of low quality, medium quality, high quality, and very few of top quality…
Seeing this, everyone at present was shocked. After all, they had never seen this amount of Spirit Stones in their entire lives.
"Here you are, these are all the Spirit Stones I have, you keep the change too, I don't mind," Xu Que said proudly.
At the same time, the sound of his system notifications kept ringing in his head. His Acting Tough Points were increasing.
People felt very jealous of the people of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, since they had gotten so many tips in such an easy manner.
The lady smiled. "Lord Wang, you are indeed a generous man. I give you my thanks on behalf of the entire Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce."
Xu Que waved his hand. "There is really no need. I still have plenty of them in my house. You have no idea how miserable it feels, sleeping in a pile of Spirit Stones! Every morning when I wake up, I always say 'f*ck off! You dirty stones'!"
Hearing this, people almost fainted.
F*ck you! I have never seen anyone who is as shameless as that! He is really arrogant!
…
Soon, the staff of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce came up and began to calculate the number of stones lying around.
When the lady received the result, she forced a smile and walked towards Xu Que. "Lord Wang, there...there are only 5.2 billion Spirit Stones of low quality in total. You need to pay 2.6 billion more."
"What?!" Xu Que was surprised.
This is impossible! This is what I got by looting a few Imperial Tombs, the treasure vault of the Fire Nation, and ten governors' residences, and the third Duke's residence as well. This is impossible!
"I think you should check it again." Xu Que got a bit worried.
After all, he had never counted the stones himself. If what the maid had said was true…
People saw Xu Que's facial expression and started to laugh at him.
"See? He hasn't got enough Spirit Stones to pay!"
"2.6 billion Spirit Stones more, he is not going to be able to run from this."
"This is really interesting."
…
People began to laugh and became very excited. After all, there was nothing funnier than seeing Xu Que lose face.
The lady forced out a smile. "Lord Wang, we are sure that there are only 5.2 billion Spirit Stones of low quality."
"I see." Xu Que nodded.
My god! How can I get another 2.6 billion Spirit Stones? Does it mean I have failed to act tough this time?! No way! I cannot allow this happen. Maybe I can sell Buttface to them!
"Maid, can I pay the rest by selling my pet dog to you? I have a dog. When it is not moving, it looks like a mild child; when it moves, it looks like a mad rabbit."
The woman was stunned and shook her head. "Lord Wang, we... only take Spirit Stones."
"Fine!" Xu Que shrugged.
Seeing this, people at present began laughing very hard.
"You were so proud earlier! But see how you look now, you pathetic creature!"
"Didn't you say that you have a pile of Spirit Stones in your house? Show us, then."
With so many people around, Xu Que knew that he would not be able to run away from this. Besides, he had promised the Water Empress that he would not make trouble.
What should I do?
Xu Que began to think very hard.
Suddenly, he came up with an idea. He started to stare at one of the objects he had bought.
"I know what I should do!" Xu Que smiled.
Chapter 446: Xu Que's Method of Making Money
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Xu Que had found a way—he had figured out an excellent method through which he could earn Spirit Stones very quickly.
"Young lady, please give me a few days so that I can go home and fetch some more Spirit Stones. Is that okay for you?" Xu Que looked at the lady in court dress with smile.
The lady was slightly surprised, then she said hurriedly, "Lord Wang, please wait a moment. I will ask for instructions from my superior."
After saying that, she walked out of the private room and consulted some of the big shots of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce.
Hearing Xu Que's words, the rest of the audience was greatly shocked.
"Does he really have that many Spirit Stones at home?"
"Holy shit! I thought he was bragging. I never expected it to be real. He will go home to get more Spirit Stones!"
"I don't think so. Seeing his personality, I'm guessing that he is planning to run away."
"Gasp! That is possible!"
All the other spectators were doubtful, for none of them thought that Xu Que was trustworthy.
After consulting her superior, the lady in the court dress returned to Xu Que and said with a faint smile, "Lord Wang, you have rendered a large number of Spirit Stones, breaking the highest record of all previous auctions held by the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce. Moreover, you are our VIP, so we will grant you seven days to collect the Spirit Stones!"
Hearing that, the audience was dumbfounded again.
Damn! The Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce has lost its mind.
They agreed to give him time to collect the Spirit Stones; and the time is seven days!
Aren't they worried about the possibility of this guy just running away?
Suddenly, the lady in the court dress added, "Lord Wang, for safety reasons, over the period of these seven days, the auction items you have won will be kept by the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce. Will that be okay with you?"
"No problem! Then it's a deal!" Xu Que agreed immediately by nodding his head joyfully.
For him, those auction items were nothing. If those items had not been related to the Water Empress, he would never had made bids for them.
Therefore, there was no difference between keeping those items in the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce and bringing them with him. Besides, he could still retrieve them from the Chamber of Commerce later.
All the people nodded their heads in satisfaction to show their approval for the decision of the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce. If Xu Que chose to run away, what he lost would not only include the auction items, but also the over five billion Spirit Stones he had already given them before.
However, the old man in the room next to Xu Que's was so confused and depressed that he was about to spit blood.
Finally, the auction had finished. He had planned to kill Xu Que and rob him of his treasures when he left the chamber. He had not expected the auction items to be stored at the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce for the time being!
Damn! How can I rob him now?
The old man was very angry, but he could do nothing. He also couldn't provide over 2 billion Spirit Stones to 'help' Xu Que pay off the residual balance.
At last, he made the tough decision to stay and wait to kill Xu Que after seven days had passed.
However, Xu Que had neglected the existence of the old man and had long forgotten him. Now he was busy preparing his money-making plan.
He summoned the System, and purchased many appliances and materials. He was planning to do big business here that would astonish the whole world!
"Lord Wang, in that case, I will be waiting for your return here. Please be assured that we will take good care of your items," said the lady with a smile.
"Yep," Xu Que replied and said nothing more. Then he turned around and ran towards the gate of the building with a land deed in his hands.
Everyone was surprised by his sudden change of behavior.
"What's going on? What is he going to do?"
"Is he really going home to fetch more Spirit Stones?"
"But where is his home? Does he really need seven days? It seems that he is not a resident of the Water Nation."
"I don't care where his hometown is. If he fails to provide 2.6 billion Spirit Stones in seven days, he will become a laughing stock!"
"Haha, I am looking forward to seeing that."
…
After Xu Que's departure, people mustered up their courage and started to talk about him.
Many people didn't believe that Xu Que could bring back over two billion Spirit Stones. After all, the total sum was too large to be easily collected in such a short amount of time.
Also, a lot of people were very curious about the destination of Xu Que. They even left the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce to follow him.
Actually, he didn't need to be in such a hurry if he was only planning to go home. With the teleportation arrays, he could make a round trip through the five nations within seven days.
"What? Is he running in the wrong direction? This is not the way towards the teleportation array!" Someone realised that something was wrong after following Xu Que for a while.
Xu Que was not heading for the teleportation array, but for the outskirts of the market area.
He kept dashing forwards excitedly. Finally, he stopped before the store, Zhai Bao Ge.
This store had once sold spells. Several days ago, it had been bought by Xu Que for eight million Spirit Stones. Its inventory of dozens of spells had been used up by Xu Que. Now, there was only an empty store left.
Xu Que had already forgotten about this store. Just now when he had been checking the System, he had stumbled upon a land deed. A thought had come to mind. He was now planning to open his shop to do business.
Given his personality, he was a person who would take action whenever a thought came to mind. Therefore, he had left the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce and dashed right over towards this store. Now he was about to us all his skills to renovate the store.
"What is he going to do? Why is he standing there? Is that the store of General Zhuge?" Seeing that Xu Que had stopped, one of the people trailing him was quite surprised.
"Are you stupid? Of course this is the store of General Zhuge. Do you really think he is Wang Sicong? It is certain that General Zhuge is disguising himself as that Wang Sicong!" someone said, rolling their eyes.
The people who had followed Xu Que stopped, and kept watching him from afar.
After pondering for a while, Xu Que had figured out how to renovate this store. Then he took out a message delivering paper from the System.
Poof!
Overflowing with spiritual Qi, the message delivering paper ignited immediately.
Xu Que shouted, "Attention, Troops of the Snow City! Come immediately to Zhai Bao Ge without Buttface!"
Whoosh!
The message delivering paper turned into a beam of light instantly, flying towards the Royal Palace with Xu Que's message.
After that, Xu Que started to wander around the other stores in the vicinity of the Zhai Bao Ge.
With his hands behind his back, Xu Que looked at those stores cryptically, as if he was thinking of something.
The stores next to Zhai Bao Ge sold cloth and magical artifacts. Being watched by Xu Que, the shop owners began to feel afraid.
"What's going on? Who is this guy?"
"Why is he wandering around outside our store?"
"Look at his expression! I have a bad feeling about this."
"Oh, look! He has come into our store!" someone yelled in surprise, realizing that Xu Que had entered their store.
It was a store of magical artifacts. After a short period of observation, Xu Que decided that the business of this store was just so-so.
If he planned to open his store, he definitely needed to expand it. Zhai Bao Ge was not big enough.
"Sir, what do you want to buy?" the shopkeeper asked as he walked to greet Xu Que.
Squinting his eyes, Xu Que smiled. "I want to buy your store!"
"What?" The shopkeeper was immediately surprised.
"I want to buy this store. Please state your price," Xu Que replied.
After coming to his senses, the shopkeeper said with a wry smile, "This…this…"
"Stop nagging! I am planning to do business. See, Zhai Bao Ge next-door is mine. I want you to sell your store to me so that I can connect the two stores by pulling down the walls. Then I will start my business. Of course, you can also become a shareholder of my store!"
"Ah?" The shopkeeper was confused again.
A shareholder? What does that mean?
Xu Que raised his brows and explained. "To be a shareholder, you need to donate your store to me. When I make money by doing business, you can share in my profit! Of course, when our business grows in future, we can open some other branches with the profits we have made. In this way, one store will become two stores, two stores will become four stores, and four stores will become eight stores! After having eight stores, we can go public! Then we can collect money from the stock market! After that, we can make money by trading in the stock market and making spin-offs to our franchise. By the time that happens, you will be so wealthy that you will be smiling in your dreams!"
Chapter 447: A New Store
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Hearing what Xu Que had said, both the shopkeeper and the people around were surprised.
Going public? Collecting money? Making money by trading in the stock market? And making spin-offs?
Although these all sounded very confusing to them, still, they all felt that it might work somehow.
"So are you going to sell your store to me or not? Or will you become a shareholder? If you are not willing to work with me, I will go and ask other people." Xu Que was getting impatient.
The shopkeeper forced out a smile. "Young man, I can sell my store to you if you really want it, but as for becoming a shareholder, I cannot do that since I know nothing about it. Besides, my store is very expensive…"
"Just tell me how much you want, I have plenty of money," Xu Que smiled.
As long as I can expand my store, I can do anything he asks. As for the money, I will get it anyway.
"Good. please wait here for a moment."
The shopkeeper nodded. Then he walked into the store and began to calculate.
After a while, he walked to Xu Que and set the price of the store. Not including all the magic weapons and artifacts it contained, the store would cost two million Spirit Stones.
The shopkeeper had been wanting to sell his store for a long time. It was located far away from the centre of the city, and the store was not doing very well these days. But he had hated the idea of just leaving his store there. Therefore, he was now immensely happy that Xu Que wanted to buy his store.
The store was not small, so Xu Que thought this price was very sensible and agreed.
"Ya! Ya! Ya!"
All of a sudden, a huge number of men came riding over on horses, stopping outside the store. They were the three thousand soldiers of the Snow City.
"Hurry up, General Zhuge is going to loot someone's house again."
"Hurry up!"
"F*ck! How dare he not inform me about this!"
The soldiers thought that they were about to loot someone's house and had all gotten very excited.
Buttface was furious, however, since he had been told not to come.
Seeing them coming, Xu Que took off his mask and shouted, "Listen, catch Buttface!"
"What?" Buttface was shocked and stopped running. "What is going on? Why did you order them to catch me?"
People at present were also shocked when Xu Que took off his mask.
"He is General Zhuge!"
"I knew it!"
"Why on earth has he ordered the soldiers to catch his pet dog?"
"Can it be possible that he wants to kill the dog and sell its meat?"
Xu Que pointed at Buttface and shouted, "Today, we are going to 'loot' Buttface. Take all his Spirit Stones."
Xu Que knew Buttface had many valuable objects, such as an eight-star sword.
Since Xu Que had never been interested in these so-called treasures, he had never taken Buttface's objects away.
But this time, it was different. He needed some extra Spirit Stones. He had decided either to directly get some Spirit Stones from Buttface, or sell some of Buttface's eight-star magic weapons.
All of a sudden, the soldiers surrounded Buttface.
Realizing he could not run away, Buttface threatened them, saying, "Stay where you are! Anyone who dares to touch me will be kicked to death by me!"
Xu Que smiled. "Buttface, behave yourself! Hand me all your Spirit Stones, I will return them to you once I make some money!"
"I haven't got any!"
"Really?"
"Yes!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! I am sure!"
Xu Que nodded. "Fine, I meant to treat you to a very nice meal if you gave me some of your Spirit Stones. What a pity…"
"Wait! Here they are. If you need more, I will get more and give them to you!" Buttface said while taking out two Spirit Stones of top quality.
In fact, Buttface was not extremely interested in food. However, since eating the stinky tofu that Xu Que had made, he had become addicted to it. As soon as he heard the phrase 'a nice meal', he was unable to resist the temptation.
"Here they are, if you need more, just tell me!"
"I need more!"
"You're not lying to me about the nice meal, right?"
"Just give me all the stones you have!"
"Only ten more."
"Fine! Give them to me. I promise I will treat you to a good meal tomorrow."
…
In total, Xu Que now had twelve Spirit Stones of top quality.
Seeing this, everyone at present was speechless.
Even his pet dog is this rich! This young man must be extremely rich. But still, he is indeed shameless, lying to his own pet. He took the stones without treating his dog to a nice meal. Seriously, there are twelve Spirit Stones of top quality here, which equates to twelve million Spirit Stones of low quality! Even meals in the royal palace would not be this expensive.
…
"Come over here. You take the two million Spirit Stones of low quality first, and clear your store now!"
Xu Que gave two Spirit Stones of top quality to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper then gave him a contract. The deal was done.
Then Xu Que ordered the soldiers to tear down the walls between the store and Zhai Bao Ge. He also took out some beautiful objects from his System Parcel to decorate his store with.
These include things like wallpaper, desks and chairs in a modern style, some decorational ornaments meant for the glass window, and some colorful lights, which had never been seen by anyone in the Cultivation World before.
When the wall collapsed, Xu Que began to clear and decorate the store.
With the help of some magic inscriptions, he set about doing his job quickly. He dispersed all the beautiful, modern decorations around the store, illuminating the lights with Qi.
The people at present were all surprised by what they had seen.
Xu Que worked from daylight to dusk. After the sun had set, some of the onlookers left. But soon, many other people came.
After all, these objects were all very fancy and included things that they had never laid eyes on before.
Buttface came too. He even thought that one of the pieces of decorative glass was actually something delicious. When he was preparing himself to eat it, Xu Que quickly kicked him away.
…
By the very next day, Xu Que had finished with the decorations, and hung a shop-sign outside.
Many people heard that the General had opened a store and all hurriedly came to have a look. As soon as they saw his store, they were greatly surprised.
Amongst all the ancient buildings in the Imperial City, it was really rare to see such a new, smart and modern-looking store.
This store had a strange name, too—McDonald's of the Exploding Heavens Faction.
…
Chapter 448: Is This an Unscrupulous Store?
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"Hey, have you heard the news that General Zhuge altered his appearance and participated in the auction held by the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce, where he won a lot of items, well worth over seven billion Spirit Stones in total?"
"I have already heard this news. That sum is way too formidable!"
"However, I've heard that he has run away because he didn't have enough Spirit Stones to pay."
"That's baloney! He opened up a store. Its name is McDonald's of the Exploding Heavens Faction."
"My God! Really? Can that guy open a store? Who would dare to visit his store?"
"Exactly! It's a pity that his store hasn't opened to the public yet. I wonder what its main commodity would be."
"I've heard that he is planning to sell dog meat. It seems his dog is doomed."
"No, I've heard he is going to open a brothel!"
…
Early in the morning, everyone in the Imperial City was talking about Xu Que.
After finishing his renovations, Xu Que closed the store right away, evoking endless curiosity from the onlookers.
From her place inside the Imperial Palace, the Water Empress also heard the news.
The Water Empress was dumbfounded after hearing that Xu Que had spent so many Spirit Stones to bid for items in the auction, doing it all under the name of Wang Sicong.
Apparently, she had not expected Xu Que to be so wealthy. Regardless of whether he could pay it all off at the end, he had still already spent over five billion Spirit Stones, which was an enormous number.
"This little chap is really good at making trouble!" The Water Empress shook her head with a wry smile.
After that, she waved her hand gently to summon a maidservant. Then she said in a low voice, "Go to the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce and stop them from asking for the two billion remaining debt from Xu Que. They can deduct that sum directly from my profit at this auction!"
The maidservant was stunned. Then she said hurriedly, "Your Majesty, I've heard that General Zhuge had promised to the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce that he will pay off the balance after seven days. Now he has opened a store in the Imperial City. It seems that he is going to start a business."
"Is he going to open a store?" The Water Empress was surprised again.
"Yes. It is said the name of his store is McDonald's of the Exploding Heavens Faction. Many people are attracted by his store. However, it hasn't been officially opened. No one knows what commodity he is going to sell."
The Water Empress shook her head and couldn't help but laugh. "This little chap always gets such fantastic ideas. What kind of business could make over two billion Spirit Stones within seven days?"
"Yes, a lot of people are planning to have a good laugh at him."
The Water Empress smiled slightly again. "Maybe they will be disappointed."
"Ah?" The maidservant was surprised. "Your Majesty, just now you said that his ideas are always fantastic, right?"
"I mean his ideas are always different from those of normal people. Tasks that would be impossible for ordinary people can be accomplished through the fantastic ideas of this little chap," The Water Empress replied with a faint smile.
The maidservant was totally confused. "So…should I still go to the Tian Liu Chamber of Commerce?"
"Not necessarily. Let's see what will happen in seven days." The Water Empress smiled.
The maidservant was even more confused.
To her, it was absolutely impossible for someone to earn over two billion Spirit Stones within seven days. Even the Water Empress would be able to make that happen.
But why was the Water Empress so confident about that General Zhuge?
….
In a guesthouse in the Imperial City, some young people who came from wealthy, official families were drinking in a private room. All of them were laughing.
"Haha, that Wang Sicong was actually Zhuge Liang in disguise. This is really a huge humiliation for him!"
"I thought he was going home to fetch Spirit Stones. I didn't expect him to open a store!"
"He is too childish! Does he really think he is a know-it-all? A war expert is not necessarily an expert in doing business!"
"He is daydreaming about earning over two billion Spirit Stones within seven days!"
"Even the most experienced businessmen couldn't promise to earn one hundred million Spirit Stones within seven days. How can he make over two billion?"
"Hehe, just ignore his bragging. In seven days, he will be a mockery."
"Exactly. I hope all of you will use your power to prevent people from buying whatever it is that he is planning to sell. Like that, all he will get will be humiliation and embarrassment!"
"Hahaha…"
The private room was filled with laughter.
…
At that moment, Xu Que had selected over ten soldiers who had basic cooking skills from the 3000 soldiers of the Snow City. Then he started individually teach each of the selected soldiers how to use these new technologies and products.
Furthermore, the meals of McDonald's were not very complicated. As long as the materials were available, everything could be made easily like an assembly line.
As a chef, what Xu Que could do was process the foods at the last step to add all kinds of magical effects.
Of course, he decided to try the foods himself before opening the store to verify all possible effects of the foods.
Finally, he wrote down the effects of each meal on the billboard, so that the customers could place orders accordingly.
After a whole morning's worth of busy learning, the selected soldiers had mastered the skills to operate the equipment purchased by Xu Que. Then they started to work excitedly.
Some of them were responsible for frying potato chips, some of them were responsible for frying chicken nuggets, some of them were order-takers and the rest were responsible for collecting the Spirit Stones.
Now, everything was ready.
"Okay, my brothers, let's set a small goal of earning one billion Spirit Stones on the opening day!" Xu Que started to motivate the soldiers by shouting loudly.
Hearing his goal, those selected soldiers freaked out.
Is he planning to earn one billion Spirit Stones on the opening day?
How… how could this be possible?
"Are you confident?" Xu Que asked loudly.
The soldiers replied, "Eh…"
Xu Que said, "Those who are not confident will be punished according to military law!"
Immediately the soldiers shouted, "We have confidence!"
Hearing that, Xu Que nodded his head satisfactorily. Regardless of whether the soldiers were confident or not, he was quite confident himself.
After being processed by Xu Que's chef skills, the foods would be even more effective than three-star or four-star potions.
Moreover, the effects of some of the meals could not be realized by potions.
"General Zhuge, Buttface is planning to sneak into our store to steal food by digging a hole in the backdoor," a soldier of the Snow City reported in a hurry.
"Tell him if he doesn't want to be strangled to death, he should go back to the Imperial Palace. I will grant him a reward of delicious food in the evening!" Xu Que waved his hand.
Then he turned to the main gate. Waving his hand, he shouted, "Soldiers, on my mark, let's open for business!"
"Yes, sir!" the soldiers replied in chorus, in high and vigorous spirits,
Meanwhile, a lot of curious onlookers had already gathered outside the store.
Many people were discussing the commodity of Xu Que's store, for the renovation style was so novelty that none of them had ever seen anything like in the past.
Also, some people were looking forward to witnessing Xu Que's humiliation on the opening day of his store.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Finally, Xu Que ordered his soldier to lift up the rolling door.
Being fully surprised, all onlookers stared at the store with curiosity.
Along with the lifting of the rolling door, a typical McDonald's style renovation came into view of the onlookers.
All onlookers were totally shocked and dumbfounded.
"Awesome! It's really beautiful!"
"Look at that! It really turns me on!"
"Save your breath! In this world, this kind of renovation style is unprecedented. Of course it would turn you on!"
"Gee, look, it seems that it is a food store!"
"Really? Who would buy foods with Spirit Stones in the Imperial City? This is definitely a rip-off!"
As they shook their heads, these onlookers started to read the menu on the billboards.
The next moment, their eyes widened in great shock.
"Holy shit! Could this…be food?"
"Grilled Chicken Burger of the Exploding Heavens Faction, and the price is five hundred thousand Spirit Stones for one?"
"Damn! French Fries of the Exploding Heavens Faction, the price is ten thousand Spirit Stones for a single fry?"
"My God! This must be an unscrupulous store!"
Chapter 449: We Promise That If The Products Are Fake or Defective, We Will Compensate You with Ten Times' the Product's Original Value
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Inside the store, a billboard was hanging on the wall. On the board were pictures of all sorts of hamburgers, chicken wings, french fries and so on. Each one was tagged with its price and nutritional value.
In particular, the font size of the prices was very big.
"A yellow bun with some meat and vegetables in the middle costs five hundred thousand Spirit Stones of low quality?! This is insane!"
"The french fries are even more expensive. It is just potato, but he is selling it for the price of ten thousand Spirit Stones of low quality?! Wait a minute, each french fry costs ten thousand Spirit Stones of low quality…"
"And that 'Big Mac' is even more expensive than the french fries. Each one costs a million Spirit Stones of low quality!"
"My god! He really has no idea how to run a business! He only knows how to fight!"
…
Hearing this, Xu Que was not angry at all. He sat to the side with his legs crossed, lighting a cigarette and tapping the ash on a plate. The billboard also bore a few other words which read: 'No Smoking.'
The store was full of people, but no one dared to take a step forward and make an order, as everything was just so expensive.
"Oh, wait a moment, look over there!" a man suddenly yelled, pointing to the shop-sign.
"Look at the introduction next to the prices. The 'Grilled Chicken Burger' can help one recover immediately, and help him ascend into a higher stage… but it only works for someone who is in the Infant Transformation Stage, or at a lower stage than the Infant Transformation Stage."
"Holy sh*t! It that is true, this burger would be even more powerful than the Great Clarity Green Water Pill!"
"Nonsense! The Great Clarity Green Water Pill can help one exceed his own limits, and can be used many times. This burger can only be used once."
"And those french fries… With just one fry, you can increase the speed of your cultivation by two times in the span of one hour. That has the same function as the Soul Gathering Array."
"If this is true, then the price is actually very reasonable!"
"This cannot be true! Just think, we have never even heard about or seen this sort of food before."
"Yes, you are right. A bun with meat inside? A potato stick? It cannot have the same function as medicine does."
…
Besides, the prices were really high, so no one was willing to try anything.
But the written introductions were really alluring, especially for cultivators who were now experiencing a bottleneck in the development of their powers. They were desperate to ascend to a higher stage in a short time.
That was why the price of the Great Clarity Green Water Pill had gone up to sixty million Spirit Stones of low quality in the auction.
Now, one just needed to spend five hundred thousand Spirit Stones, and they could possibly enjoy the same effect.
"General Zhuge, what if I fail to get into a higher stage after I eat your food?" asked a middle-aged man, who was at level 2 of the Infant Transformation Stage.
"He is the master of the Liu family, a very influential family in the Imperial City. I never thought that he would come here alone."
"It is said that he has been in a bottleneck for thirty years, I think he might never enter the next stage in this life."
"I guess he would like to take this opportunity."
"Anyway, he should tell us what he will do if the food does not work."
…
All of a sudden, everyone stared at Xu Que.
Xu Que calmly put out his cigarette and took out a small plate. On the plate, there was a sentence, which read: 'We promise that if the products you buy are fake or defective, we will compensate you with ten times' the product's original value.'
Seeing this, people at present took a deep breath.
He promises that if the products we buy are fake or defective, he will compensate us with ten times' the product's original value?
Really?! If the burger which costs five hundred thousand Spirit Stones of low quality does not work, he will compensate us with five million?
"Can this burger really be that powerful?"
The master was a little hesitant. After all, five hundred million Spirit Stones of low quality was not a small amount of money. He had to think carefully before making any move.
Right at this moment, many more onlookers came.
"Do not be tricked by him! He must be lying!"
"Yes! No one would dare to ask for compensation from him if the burger does not have the effect he claims it does."
"You all know who he really is, you can do nothing about him…"
…
Hearing this, all people at present were in agreement.
Yes, even if the burger is fake, no one would dare to ask for compensation from him…
Bang!
Xu Que suddenly stood up from his chair and coldly looked at his audience. Then he changed into a shadow that darted amongst the crowd.
"Ah!"
"What are you doing?"
A few cultivators were dragged out and thrown onto the street.
Xu Que then stepped on their chests so hard that the ground beneath them broke. The next minute, they all began to spit out blood and passed out.
"You are really audacious! Do you really think I am a big softie?" Xu Que sneered.
Then he walked slowly back to his store.
Seeing this, people backed off and got out of his way.
They realized that Xu Que was still the old Xu Que, who was a cruel devil.
"Get out. You guys can't even afford a burger of five hundred million Spirit Stones. Get out of my store!" Xu Que began to push people out.
Everyone felt furious.
How dare you despise us?!
Yes, we are not rich, so what?!
We are still human beings, how dare you treat us like this?!
You can not push us out like this!
But they all knew that Xu Que was very cruel, so no one really made any complaints.
The master of the Liu Family sneered. "General Zhuge, since you are running a business, you should at least treat us equally. If you want to make money, you should not behave like this!"
Xu Que frowned. "You know nothing! This is called 'Marketing', a concept put forward by Stanislavski, the Murong Pooper Master!"
People at present were stunned.
Stanislavski? the Murong Pooper Master?
The master of the Liu Family also shook his head. "General Zhuge, as a businessman, you should always be honest! You said that if the products we buy are fake or defective, you will compensate us with ten times the product's original value, do you really mean it?"
"Of course I mean it! Buy or don't buy, it's your choice." Xu Que shrugged.
The master said loudly. "Fine! Here are five hundred thousand Spirit Stones of low quality, give me a Grilled Chicken Burger please!"
The landlord threw his money heavily on the desk.
Xu Que did not even look at him. Instead he pointed to the counter. "Go to the counter and make your order."