The Treasure Pavilion is located at the very center of the city, with roads leading in all directions.
No matter which path you take, you will pass by this place, making its location quite advantageous.
The rent here is almost sky-high, but the Treasure Pavilion is large in scale, with numerous cultivators and merchants coming and going daily.
Its profits far exceed the rent, making it the most popular shop in the city.
Many family forces have followed suit and opened shops around it, but compared to the Treasure Pavilion, they are like ants trying to shake a tree, unable to shake its position at all.
The only place that can rival it is the auction house.
No one knows who the owner of the Treasure Pavilion is, but since its establishment, no one has ever dared to cause trouble here, simply because each branch is guarded by powerful cultivators.
The Treasure Pavilion is a four-story building, exquisitely and elegantly decorated, using the finest wood, which is very spiritual.
It even emits a faint spiritual mist, with a very rich spiritual energy.
The first three floors are for commercial use, selling various magical treasures and elixirs, while the fourth floor has a Spirit Gathering Array, serving as an expensive training room.
It is said that the training room is filled with luxurious exotic incense from the demon realm, which can enhance comprehension.
Therefore, many small sects or rogue cultivators come here to cultivate when they are on the verge of a breakthrough.
When Tang Muxi and her companions arrived, the building was crowded with people, all of whom were cultivators.
Fortunately, the space was large enough to accommodate many people.
The first floor mostly sells commonly used magical tools and elixirs, and occasionally higher-grade treasures are put up for auction.
Today, by coincidence, it was the day for auctioning treasures.
“Five thousand top-grade spirit stones, going once! Any higher bids?”
The shopkeeper hosting the auction shouted loudly.
After a while, a spirit talisman flew in from a private room.
“Seven thousand top-grade spirit stones!”
The shopkeeper’s voice trembled as he called out the bid.
Even though he had been in the business for many years, he had never seen such a high price.
As soon as he said this, the whole place was in an uproar.
In the world of spiritual cultivation, spirit stones are exchanged at a standard rate of 100:1.
One top-grade spirit stone is equivalent to one hundred high-grade spirit stones.
However, top-grade spirit stones are rare and have pure spiritual power, often stored by various sects or cultivation families as emergency items, rarely used for transactions.
Today’s auction item was a lower-grade Earth-ranked feather fan.
The craftsmanship of the artifact smith was extraordinary, making the magical tool not only beautiful but also powerful.
The feather fan was inscribed with both wood and water runes, capable of controlling the elements.
Tang Muxi was attracted by the exquisite patterns and couldn’t help but take a few more glances.
“Do you want it?”
In the noisy crowd, Jiang Yin leaned slightly, almost speaking into her ear.
The warm breath was tempting, and the voice was full of allure, but it was directed at Tang Muxi, a simple-minded person.
Tang Muxi looked for a while and then shook her head.
“Forget it, it looks nice, but it’s too expensive.”
Seven thousand top-grade spirit stones, she couldn’t afford that even if she sold herself.
“Seven thousand top-grade spirit stones, going twice! Any higher bids?”
The shopkeeper continued to call out.
Jiang Yin looked at the feather fan and shook her head after a moment.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t afford it, but the feather fan used the cultivator’s own power instead of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth.
With Tang Muxi’s current low cultivation level, even if she bought it, she wouldn’t be able to use it.
“Deal!”
No one else bid, and the shopkeeper made the final decision with a hammer.
The surrounding cultivators sighed in disappointment.
Jiang Yin noticed a hint of disappointment in Tang Muxi’s eyes and couldn’t help but laugh, “Didn’t you say you didn’t want it?”
Tang Muxi blushed.
She just thought it looked nice and didn’t really want it that much.
“When your cultivation improves, I’ll buy you an even prettier one, how about that?”
Upon hearing this, many cultivators around them perked up and glanced at the two.
A magical artifact better than an Earth-grade one?
They were really bold to say that.
No one took their words seriously; most were just watching the show.
Tang Muxi felt embarrassed under their gazes, her face turning red as she pulled Jiang Yin’s hand and hurried upstairs.
Residences weren’t a necessity and weren’t in high demand, so they were placed on the third floor.
Tang Muxi climbed to the third floor in one breath, stopping to catch her breath, “Don’t say such things in the future.”
With so many people watching, it was embarrassing that they couldn’t afford it.
Jiang Yin just smiled and didn’t explain how rich her treasure trove was.
However, she mentally noted the style of the feather fan, planning to look for a similar one later.
“Fairy ladies, what would you like to buy?”
The third floor was less crowded, even a bit chilly.
As soon as the attendant saw someone coming up, he greeted them with a smile.
“A residence,” Jiang Yin said coolly.
The attendant stepped aside with a smile, “The residences are this way, please follow me.”
He didn’t ask how big a house they wanted, keeping a keen eye.
Female cultivators, compared to male cultivators, loved to dress up and liked beautiful things.
By not asking for the size, he could introduce the more attractive ones, possibly selling for a higher price.
If it were a male cultivator, they probably wouldn’t listen to the attendant’s eloquence and would just buy one that was good enough.
“This one has a lake with plants, floating bridges, pavilions, a study, and a workshop, all included. It comes with a spirit-gathering array, making the spiritual energy very dense…”
Buying a house for cultivators was different from mortals.
The houses were stored in storage rings, with a floating image of the courtyard above, allowing a macro view of the overall layout.
Tang Muxi was dazzled by the attendant’s flowery descriptions, finding each one appealing and wanting to buy them all.
But when she saw the prices, her eager heart immediately calmed down.
A single residence cost a thousand top-grade spirit stones?
Were the walls inlaid with gold?
Tang Muxi couldn’t help but widen her eyes.
Embarrassed to say it was too expensive, she gently reminded, “It’s too big. We just need one that can accommodate two people…”
The attendant suddenly understood and began introducing smaller, simpler houses.
At first glance, these seemed fine and were much cheaper, but after seeing the exquisite courtyards earlier, these felt unsatisfactory.
After introducing a dozen or so, the attendant was parched, but Tang Muxi still hesitated with a frown.
Even with her years of experience, she couldn’t figure out what she really wanted.
Jiang Yin roughly understood that Tang Muxi didn’t want to spend too much money and couldn’t help but laugh.
She reminded, “Don’t worry about it, I can afford all of this.”
However, Tang Muxi still felt constrained.
The shop assistant was a bit desperate and suddenly regretted his meddling.
Seeing that Tang Muxi still hadn’t made up her mind, he simply said, “Since the fairy isn’t satisfied, why not try your luck over there? Jubao Pavilion recently updated its lottery service. You can draw once with a mid-grade spirit stone, and the rewards are generous. The top prize is a set of exquisite mansions, which comes with a jade pendant containing a small world.”
A small world?
One draw for a mid-grade spirit stone!
Tang Muxi’s eyes suddenly lit up, and she looked in the direction the shop assistant pointed.
There was a treasure basin, obscured by a blurry formation, with various prize shadows rotating around it, just as the shop assistant had described.
The third floor had fewer people, but most of them were gathered around the treasure basin.
At first, Tang Muxi thought it was an auction, but she didn’t expect it to be a lottery.
She couldn’t help but rub her hands together.
Seeing Tang Muxi finally react, the shop assistant was overjoyed.
“The lottery is a small gamble for a big win. Last time, someone with good luck spent only a few high-grade spirit stones and won a top-grade Xuan-level robe. If the fairy has confidence in herself, don’t miss this opportunity.”
In fact, one draw for a mid-grade spirit stone meant spending a few high-grade spirit stones was equivalent to drawing hundreds of times.
Winning a Xuan-level robe after hundreds of draws was considered lucky.
Since Jubao Pavilion started the lottery, many cultivators had tried their luck, but few won anything, most leaving empty-handed and wasting their money.
Compared to the total spirit stones invested by many, the value of these rewards was negligible, making it a highly profitable business.
This time, the prize pool had just been updated, adding more valuable items, including Earth-level artifacts, which would attract even more cultivators to the lottery.
It wouldn’t be long before they made even more money.
Jiang Yin had seen such tricks many times.
Seeing Tang Muxi so tempted, she couldn’t help but advise, “Don’t be impulsive.”
She had plenty of spirit stones and didn’t need to participate in the lottery, which was just a scam.
Throwing spirit stones in was basically a waste.
Tang Muxi’s eyes sparkled as she tugged on Jiang Yin’s sleeve, acting spoiled.
“Just one try, what if I’m lucky?”
Jiang Yin had a headache, not expecting the shop assistant to actually fool her.
Seeing that Tang Muxi wouldn’t listen to reason, she felt helpless.
“Just this once. If you don’t win anything, don’t try again.”
This time, she would let her spend money to learn a lesson.
After getting nothing, she should come to her senses.
“Okay, don’t worry.”
Tang Muxi agreed quickly.
Jiang Yin silently took out a bag of high-grade spirit stones, thinking: I wonder how many will be left after this.
As they approached the treasure basin, several cultivators around saw the shop assistant bringing two beautiful female cultivators and laughed, “This shop assistant is really unethical, deceiving such young girls.”
Gathered here are people who have lost a fortune in spirit stones, only to end up with nothing.
Each one has worse luck than the last.
“Exactly, just a few days ago, a girl threw in a hundred top-grade spirit stones and only got a bottle of Foundation Establishment Pills. She cried on the spot.”
Many people chimed in, openly and secretly cursing the shop assistant for making dirty money.
The shop assistant felt awkward but kept a straight face, forcing himself to say, “Don’t talk nonsense, it’s just bad luck.”
An older man scoffed and earnestly advised, “Miss, I suggest you don’t get involved in this mess. It’s a black hole that will swallow you whole.”
Tang Muxi felt a bit scared and hesitantly glanced at Jiang Yin.
“Don’t worry, do as you like,” Jiang Yin said with a faint smile.
“It’s just a bag of spirit stones. If we lose them, we can earn more. Just swindle a few more fools or raid a few powerful residences, and the money will come back, even more than before.”
“I-I’ll just give it a try,” Tang Muxi said, lacking confidence.
Her voice was small, and it was unclear if she was speaking to Jiang Yin or herself.
The people around sighed deeply.
They had thought the same way once, but… trying led to dying.
Seeing that Tang Muxi was determined to try her luck, they said no more.
“Miss, how many times are you drawing for the first time? If you draw a hundred times at once, you get ten extra draws,” the shop assistant quickly said when he saw she wasn’t deterred.
This treasure pot gave kickbacks; for every person he got to draw a hundred times, he earned five mid-grade spirit stones.
Recently, his wallet had become quite fat from these kickbacks.
Tang Muxi thought a hundred times was too much.
After pondering for a while, she said, “I’ll just try once first.”
Once?
Everyone was stunned.
The odds of winning were so low that people usually started with a hundred draws.
Who draws just once?
The shop assistant was also taken aback.
“Are you sure? The more you draw, the higher the chances.”
Tang Muxi shook her head and didn’t even take the spirit stones Jiang Yin handed her.
She took out a mid-grade spirit stone from her storage ring and tossed it into the payment box nearby.
“And then?”
she asked, confused.
“Put your hand into the treasure pot. It’s filled with talismans. Tear one open, and it will tell you if you’ve won.”
Tang Muxi obediently bent down, her long black hair sliding to her collarbone, contrasting sharply and making her delicate skin look even more exquisite.
The treasure pot was filled with talismans, obscured by a formation, so no one could see what was inside.
There were so many talismans that Tang Muxi didn’t know which one to choose.
As she hesitated, suddenly, a talisman stuck to her finger, as if it had chosen her.
Tang Muxi was taken aback and instinctively took out the slip.
Having seen people usually wave their hands and produce a thick stack of talismans, seeing just a single thin one felt quite peculiar to everyone.
“Why don’t you tear it open and see?”
the clerk urged.
Tang Muxi tilted her head, frowning as she stared at the small talisman paper that had ended up in her hand, then slowly tore it open— A golden light immediately appeared, swirling around the numerous phantoms like a shooting star.
“Did… did she win?!”
The uncle who had advised her was visibly shocked.
“No mistake, no mistake, she really won!”
An excited onlooker exclaimed, “I was lucky enough to see someone win last time, and it was the same golden light surrounding them!”
The crowd erupted in astonishment at these words.
The clerk’s heart was in his throat: Oh no, did she really win the Small World?!
That’s the grand prize!
It was just added to the pool, and we haven’t even recouped the cost yet!
The golden light circled the phantoms three times, then shot into one of them.
With a resounding ding, the phantom lit up.
“A Tier Earth Alchemy Furnace!”
