Chapter 2: Passing the Lie Detection
Chapter 2: Passing the Lie Detection
The Primordial Wildlands was a world where cultivators ruled over humans, with a very strict hierarchy!
Mortals were like ants.
First Grade Cultivators were merely servants.
Second-rank Cultivators could establish themselves independently.
Third Grade Cultivators founded clans. Those above Third Grade could guard entire regions. Once someone reached Third Rank Peak, they were considered halfway into the middle stage of the Epiphany Stage. Even common marketplaces were rare existences for them. As for the late Epiphany Stage and the higher Spirit Condensation Stage, they were usually found in major sects and were rarely seen in ordinary times.
Lu Hangzhi personally saw several servants beaten to death by their masters’ cultivators in the marketplace for trying to take small advantages. The most tragic one was burned to ashes by a Second-rank Cultivator using a fireball spell. In the end, the servant’s family dared not speak up, and others saw it as normal.
In the Primordial Wildlands, ordinary mortals were like ants. If they angered a master’s cultivator even slightly, having a leg broken was considered a rather merciful punishment.
The only way for ordinary mortals to ascend and become cultivators was to attach themselves to large clans or sects. They had to rely on outstanding talent and several times more diligence than the clan’s own disciples to fight for more resources to continue their cultivation path.
Thinking of stepping onto the cultivation path relying solely on talent?
Wishful thinking!
After understanding the cruelty of this world, Lu Hangzhi constantly thought about ways to accumulate resources, but he absolutely dared not act recklessly. He only dared to use legitimate methods.
This time, a real opportunity had come.
Lu Hangzhi remembered that although the cultivators in the marketplace had agreements not to dump various spirit items to suppress prices, private transactions were not forbidden. Cultivators even encouraged their errand-running servants to find clients and secure orders… The prices could be slightly lower than market rates.
Liu Tao appeared to be only in his forties, but he was actually over seventy years old. He was a Second-rank Cultivator, knew several spells, and was quite famous in Violet Cloud Town.
Returning to Cultivator Liu Tao’s residence, Lu Hangzhi respectfully knelt outside the door.
“Master.”
A voice came from inside.
“Finished selling so quickly today?”
“Yes, Master.”
Lu Hangzhi took out the money pouch containing the Spirit Coins and placed it on the ground outside.
“Hmm, go rest.”
“Master, I have some good news to report.”
“Speak.”
Lu Hangzhi hurriedly explained the matter of the Zhu Residence needing forty bottles of Spirit Spring for a banquet in detail.
As soon as he finished speaking, a gentle yellow light immediately shot out from inside the door.
First-grade spell, Truth Detection Spell!
The yellow light circled around Lu Hangzhi once, then leisurely flew back inside the door.
Confirmed correct.
Liu Tao’s slightly satisfied voice came from inside the room.
“You’re quite sharp. Forty bottles of Spirit Spring, traded at market price would be eighty Spirit Coins. That’s ten percent higher than the usual black market price. If this deal is successful, I will naturally reward you.”
After speaking, a small Qiankun Pouch shot out from inside the door. It neatly contained forty bottles of Spirit Spring.
“Thank you, Master!”
Lu Hangzhi secretly broke out in a cold sweat. He picked up the Qiankun Pouch, turned, and left.
Only after leaving the courtyard did he secretly breathe a sigh of relief!
Good, good.
Fortunately, he had seen these cultivators’ methods before. He knew they were usually solitary and distrustful of outsiders. Whenever they encountered anything, they would first cast a Truth Detection Spell to check if it was true or false. If he had hidden even a little, lied about the transaction price, or anything else, what was thrown out probably wouldn’t have been a Qiankun Pouch but a destructive fireball spell to eliminate evidence.
Luckily, he never intended to profit from the price difference with Liu Tao.
Holding the Qiankun Pouch, he returned to the marketplace. Da Niu was already waiting there.
“Did you get it?”
Seeing Da Niu’s expression, Lu Hangzhi knew the other had succeeded. He showed a faint smile.
Sure enough, Da Niu shook the Qiankun Pouch in his hand, revealing a simple, proud smile. He grinned and answered, “All here. Eighty fruits, not one less.”
“Excellent.”
Lu Hangzhi’s smile widened.
The price he told Da Niu was ten fruits for eighteen Spirit Coins. Given Da Niu’s nature, he would definitely report truthfully. The Truth Detection Spell would confirm it was correct. Eighty fruits would earn him a price difference of sixteen Spirit Coins.
Just as expected!
After waiting a while, the marketplace servants gradually dispersed. Lü’e and Cong Fang hurried over to meet up. They immediately saw Lu Hangzhi waiting at the spot.
“Little brother Hangzhi, have you gathered the Spirit Fruits and Spirit Spring for us?”
“You can trust me with this task. All here! Eighty Spirit Fruits, forty bottles of Spirit Spring, not a single item missing!”
Lu Hangzhi put on a pitiful expression. “To help you two sisters, I risked being beaten to death by my master to get these.”
“Don’t worry, we won’t let you suffer a loss.”
Lü’e and Cong Fang confirmed the Spirit Fruits and Spirit Spring in the Qiankun Pouches were correct. They immediately showed relieved expressions. Hearing his words, they deeply sympathized, speaking in a tone of experienced people. “The Spirit Coins are all here. A total of two hundred forty Spirit Coins. Here, count them carefully.”
“Take these two Spirit Coins for yourself. Consider it your errand fee from your sister.” Lü’e quite generously took out two more Spirit Coins and put them in Lu Hangzhi’s hand.
Lu Hangzhi was overjoyed.
“Thank you, Sister Lü’e. Thank you, Sister Cong Fang.”
The two women were also very happy to have completed their task. They waved goodbye, saying, “Alright, we need to return to the residence now. Little brother Hangzhi, we’ll come see you again next time.”
“Okay, sisters.”
Lu Hangzhi smiled as he watched the two women leave. Only after they had gone far did he find Niu Gang hiding in an alley. “Da Niu, this is yours. One hundred sixty Spirit Coins. Take it back to settle your account.”
Holding the heavy money pouch, Da Niu was so happy he couldn’t close his mouth.
“Today I sold a total of ninety fruits. My master will reward me with two Spirit Coins! Thank you so much, Hangzhi. Later, I’ll treat you to rabbit meat!”
“Good, good, good!”
Lu Hangzhi didn’t dare tell Da Niu the truth. With his mind, if he accidentally let it slip later, both of them would be in trouble.
This way was best. Da Niu could get his reward from his master, and he could take the Spirit Coins back to settle accounts and receive his own reward.
Returning to the courtyard, Lu Hangzhi handed the pouch containing eighty Spirit Coins to Liu Tao.
“Not bad!”
“With these eighty Spirit Coins, I finally have some breathing room. Well done, Hangzhi. These two Spirit Coins are your reward. Later, put some effort into building a good relationship with the maids of the Zhu Residence. They are a major client.”
Liu Tao instructed.
“Hangzhi thanks Master for the reward. Hangzhi remembers.” Lu Hangzhi replied obediently.
“Hmm, dismissed.”
Hearing the slightly commanding tone in Liu Tao’s voice, Lu Hangzhi knew the latter was about to start cultivating again. Only then did he pick up the Spirit Coins, silently put them in his pocket, and walk out of the courtyard.
Not bad!
From this transaction, he earned a price difference of sixteen Spirit Coins and received a reward of 4 Spirit Coins. Adding his salary from the last three months, it totaled 23 Spirit Coins.
For ordinary mortals, 23 Spirit Coins was already quite a considerable wealth. Among servants, he was quite well-off.
“Hangzhi, Hangzhi! Let’s go play.”
Da Niu had arrived.
Lu Hangzhi walked outside the courtyard and saw Da Niu holding a rabbit cage woven from Purple Bamboo in one hand and a bundle of rope in the other. He couldn’t help but laugh.
“You… what are you trying to do?”
“Go to the Purple Bamboo Forest to catch Snow Rabbits!”
“Please, those are Spirit Beasts. You can’t catch them with ordinary rope.”
“Really?”
Da Niu always listened to Lu Hangzhi’s words. Hearing this, he didn’t hesitate and threw the rope on the ground. “I can use my hands then.”
…
The Purple Bamboo Forest south of Violet Cloud Town bordered a lake as splendid as jewels. The scenery was beautiful, with a tea pavilion for resting every hundred meters. So even though it was outside the town, it was very popular. One could often see many cultivators and mortals coming and going. There was no need to worry about encountering evil spirits or Monster Beasts here.
Snow Rabbits were a type of pseudo-spirit beast that lived in the Purple Bamboo Forest.
Spirit Beasts with decent talent could form contracts with cultivators, helping each other. Weaker ones could only serve as food for humans—because Spirit Beasts usually contained rich and abundant Spiritual Energy, which greatly benefited cultivation.
The market price for the lowest grade, First Grade Spirit Beast, exceeded fifty Low-Grade Spirit Stones. One Low-Grade Spirit Stone was equivalent to two hundred Spirit Coins.
Although pseudo-spirit beasts couldn’t form contracts, they were already different from ordinary beasts. They contained a small amount of Spiritual Energy inside. After capture, they could be sold in the market for several dozen Spirit Coins.
Many mortals had, to some extent, considered catching pseudo-spirit beasts to exchange for Spirit Coins. But even pseudo-spirit beasts weren’t something ordinary mortals could easily capture.
Take the Snow Rabbit, for example. They moved swiftly, leaping seven or eight meters in one bound. Even martial arts masters might not be able to catch them.
Entering the Purple Bamboo Forest, Lu Hangzhi looked left and right along the way, completely ignoring Da Niu, who was obsessed with chasing rabbits. He let him stick his bottom up, parting clumps of grass tufts in search of treasure.
“Not here…”
“Where did they go?”
“Rabbits aren’t grass; they don’t grow in tufts. Can’t you go look for rabbit holes?” Lu Hangzhi really couldn’t stand watching anymore.
Da Niu thought very seriously for a moment. Hmm, that makes sense. He started looking for burrows.
At that moment, Lu Hangzhi suddenly noticed a procession with impressive decorations coming from the direction of the town. They headed straight for a tea pavilion in the middle of the Purple Lake. His eyes lit up.
At the front were four First Grade Cultivators. Behind them followed two rows of maidservants, each with graceful figures and considerable beauty. They held silver basins brimming with Spiritual Energy, containing Spirit Fruits, Spirit Wine, Spirit Tea, and bottles of misty Spirit Spring water.
Everyone nearby, whether cultivators or mortals, was immediately startled by the spectacle and stopped to watch.
Soon, all the spirit items were placed on stone tables on both sides of the tea pavilion. They were full of Spiritual Energy and fragrant aroma. The two rows of maidservants further adorned the Purple Lake, making it seem like a paradise on earth.
“Haha…”
“Junior Sister Fuqin is indeed impressive. Our visit this time was sudden, and we didn’t notify in advance. We didn’t expect Junior Sister to immediately prepare such a display. Combined with the beautiful lake scenery, it’s truly wonderful. It directly makes us wish to settle down long-term here in Violet Cloud Town. Haha… Truly worthy of being the top cultivation family in Violet Cloud Town.”
“Senior Brother, you flatter me. These are merely ordinary items, not worthy of your respect.”
“You’re too modest.”
A group of seven people, five men and two women, walked slowly towards the tea pavilion, chatting and laughing continuously. They were clearly the owners of this tea pavilion.
Lu Hangzhi’s heart stirred. He guessed this group’s identity.
The Zhu Residence’s eldest miss, Zhu Fuqin, and her various fellow disciples from the Xuanxin Sect!
He didn’t expect the banquet Sister Lü’e mentioned would be set up here at the Purple Lake.
“Senior Brother Ruo Yu, you jest. Violet Cloud Town is a small place. It has never produced a single true middle-stage Epiphany Stage cultivator. Everything worthwhile we have is right here. Please don’t laugh at me, Junior Sister.”
Zhu Fuqin kept her posture very low.
The group walked to the stone tables, picked up the Spirit Fruits from the silver plates, and then conveniently spread a Soundproof Barrier outside the tea pavilion. No more sound came out.