Chapter 161: An Evil Soul
Translator: _Dark_Angel_ Editor: Kurisu
“How may I address you, Mister?” Ma Tian Sheng was currently all smiles. The previous horrible impression that Ling Han had given him was completely swept aside, of course. This was a grand customer that was able to produce alchemical pills close to Earth Grade. What other person could do such a thing in the whole of Rain Country?
Absolutely none!
“Ling Han. You may address me as Young Master Han,” Ling Han replied.
Ma Tian Sheng involuntarily wiped off sweat from his forehead. He did not want to address a young man as “Young Master” even one bit, but Ling Han was indeed a very important customer. If he offended Ling Han and Ling Han decided not to commission the Spirit Treasures Pavilion to auction off the alchemical pills on his behalf… then he’d really be in deep, deep trouble.
“Young Master Han!” he could only do as Ling Han had said and address him as young master. Then, he said, “Please follow me. I shall help Young Master Han take care of the procedures for registration.”
“All right,” Ling Han agreed with a nod.
The news that nine alchemical pills close to Earth Grade had appeared at Spirit Treasures Pavilion very quickly reached the ears of the higher-ups. Very soon, an old man dressed in embroidered robes appeared and received Ling Han respectfully. Then, he introduced himself, “I am the Third Elder of this Pavilion. My surname is Jia, and my name is Jia Ba Yun.”
“Senior Jia,” Ling Han greeted him, raising his clasped hands in respect. This old man was a Spiritual Pedestal Tier elite, and more than deserved his respectful greeting.
“Young Friend, are you intending to auction these Foundation Building Pills here, or directly sell them off to our Pavilion?” Jia Ba Yun asked.
Ling Han smiled faintly, and answered, “Auction.” Such alchemical pills were used to assist one to break through to the next level, so it was of course best to auction them off in order to maximize their price.
Jia Ba Yun looked a little disappointed at this. If the Foundation Building Pills were directly sold to the Spirit Treasures Pavilion, they’d be able to auction a single pill every few years. Firstly, this would help to increase the reputation of the Spirit Treasures Pavilion, and secondly, rare items were always the most expensive. This would allow the Spirit Treasures Pavilion to obtain the highest amount of profit from these Foundation Building Pill.
Unfortunately, this brat was not that foolish.
However, nine Foundation Pills would definitely be auctioned off for an astronomical figure. The Spirit Treasures Pavilion would be earning more than enough from the commission alone.
“Young Friend, if a customer commissions the Spirit Treasures Pavilion to auction items, we usually charge a commission fee of fifteen percent. However, because the Foundation Building Pills are much too valuable, I can make the decision to lower the commission fee to fourteen percent. How does that sound?” Jia Ba Yun asked, smiling.
How ruthless, they actually had such a high commission rate.
Liu Yu Tong was pouting at one side. The value of nine Foundation Building Pills was definitely above a hundred million, and this commission fee of fourteen percent would be over a million silver coins, far above the monthly net profit of the Liu Clan. However, Jia Ba Yun was already generous enough to actually cut a hundred thousand out of the commission of the Spirit Treasures Pavilion.
Of course, this was also because the value of the Foundation Building Pill was really too high.
“All right,” Ling Han nodded. Money was not something that he attached a lot of importance to, anyways.
Jia Ba Yun smiled, and continued, “If you want these Foundation Building Pills to be sold for a good price, the best option would be to auction them over a few auctions. If Young Friend is not in a hurry to use money, why not use this small scheme?”
The more the Foundation Building Pills could be sold for, the higher the earnings of the Spirit Treasures Pavilion would be. Thus, Jia Ba Yun would naturally want to use a scheme that could earn the most profit for the Spirit Treasures Pavilion.
Ling Han shook his head, and replied, “I want them all to be auctioned off in a single auction.”
Jia Ba Yun was stunned for a moment, then sighed. The pills belonged to Ling Han after all, so even if he was a powerful warrior of Spiritual Pedestal Tier, he could only make suggestions and offer advice.
To Ling Han, the Foundation Building Pill was something that he could easily concoct, so he would naturally not care if it would be auctioned off for a good price or a better price. In the end, it would definitely be an astronomical price anyways. Worst-case scenario, he’d concoct a few other alchemical pills close to Earth Grade a few days later, and would still be able to earn a lot of money anyways.
“All right. This is your letter of proof. When the pills are sold, Young Friend can bring this along with you to withdraw your funds. You may also endorse someone else to do it for you. However, please take note—if the letter of proof is lost, please make sure to immediately report the loss here. Otherwise, if someone else withdrew the money earned without your approval, there is nothing even I can do,” Jia Ba Yun warned.
This token was split into half, and the Spirit Treasures Pavilion and Ling Han each held one half. The two halves could be joined together seamlessly. Both Jia Ba Yun and Ling Han left a handprint on their own half. This would help prevent any possibility of anyone using false identities.
“Young Friend, if you have other such pills in the future, why not come auction them off at our Spirit Treasures Pavilion again? As for the commission fee… it can still be discussed further,” Jia Ba Yun said.
“All right!” Ling Han agreed decisively.
Ling Han and his companions left the Spirit Treasures Pavilion right after. As for Fan Dong Ping, he naturally would not get a good end. Ling Han did not need to worry himself over it. Even if Fan Dong Ping was a Yellow Grade middle level alchemist, his crime involved an exorbitantly high sum of over a hundred million. It would be very difficult for him to escape the death sentence.
Who asked him to be so greedy?
It was already quite late, so Ling Han headed to the Cherishing Flower Pavilion, bringing Liu Yu Tong and Hu Niu with him.
The three of them slowly strolled through the streets. Hu Niu ran all over the place. Whether it was lollipops or cotton candy or anything else, as long as it was something new, she wanted to give it a try.
Thus, by the time they arrived at the Cherishing Flower Pavilion, the sky was already completely dark.
“Mr Ling, this way please.” Yun Shuang Shuang had already been waiting inside, and when she saw Ling Han’s figure, she immediately stepped out to receive him.
They arrived at a side courtyard. When Yun Shuang Shuang pushed open the door and entered, they saw Lady Yan helping out a youth and coming out to receive them. Lady Yan said, “We are honored by your presence, Mr Ling. Please forgive me for not going out to meet you.”
Ling Han looked at the two, and said, “That’s all right. It is not convenient for Lady Yan as well, so I understand your difficulty. This should be your son, am I right? He has been sleeping for quite a number of years, so his body should still be very weak.”
“Thank you for your understanding, Mr Ling,” Lady Yan said with a smile. She turned and said to the youth by her side, “Tian’er, this is your life-saving benefactor. Aren’t you going to greet your Big Brother Ling?”
“Big Brother Ling!” the youth immediately called. His face was extremely pale, and he spoke in a weak voice.
“Mr Ling, this is my son. His name is Yan Tian Zhao,” Lady Yan introduced to Ling Han. Then she took a look at Liu Yu Tong, and could not help but smile, “Mr Ling is indeed very fortunate to actually be able to obtain the favor of the princess of the Liu Clan.”
Instantly, Liu Yu Tong’s face reddened, yet her positive impression of Lady Yan improved even further. She liked listening to such words.
“Come, come, come. Come and sit down first.” Lady Yan guided the others into the side courtyard. There was already a delicious feast laid out, and around them, there were eight very beautiful female attendants holding onto lanterns. As the light from these lanterns flickered gently, it was a very uniquely enchanting scene.
They all sat down in their respective seats, according to their status as host and guests. Lady Yan naturally took the main seat, and on her left sat her son. Yun Shuang Shuang was seated next to him. Meanwhile, Ling Han was seated on Lady Yan’s right, with Hu Niu beside him, and lastly, Liu Yu Tong.
“Big Sister Liu, you are really pretty,” Yan Tian Zhao praised. A faint blush rose up on his pale face, as if he was being shy.
If it had been a young man saying such words, Liu Yu Tong would not be very happy. However, firstly, Yan Tian Zhao was only a teen around 15-16 years old, and secondly, she was elated to be praised like this in front of Ling Han. Thus, her good impression of this youth also improved greatly.
Of course, that was the affection that an elder sister had for a younger brother.
Ling Han only smiled at this. His eyes swept over Yan Tian Zhao, and a cold feeling rose up in his heart.
This was not fear, but… loathing, an extreme kind of loathing. It was as if there was an incomparably evil soul hiding within the body of this youth, causing a deep loathing to inexplicably rise up in his heart. He turned to look at Hu Niu and saw that when the little girl’s eyes swept over Yan Tian Zhao, her little face involuntarily stiffened, and she bared her teeth.
Obviously, Hu Niu had also sensed the evil nature in him.
Ling Han could not help but be immersed in deep thought. The Permanent Pill would be able to awaken a person who had been trapped in deep slumber. The important thing now was, why had Yan Tian Zhao fallen asleep in the first place? From the clues that Lady Yan and Yun Shuang Shuang had revealed, Yan Tian Zhao should have been sleeping for about ten years.
At that time, had he started sleeping because of some kind of illness? Or had he committed some great crime, which caused an unknown elite martial artist to entrap his spirit and force him to sleep for such a very long time?
That was the question.