At the corner of a crossroad stood the largest lot called the Court of Treasures. It was the grandest among all the other shop lots in the area.
“Court of Treasures?” Ye Chen slightly raised his eyebrows. He had several artifacts such as the Blue Dragon Dagger and the mysterious tiny cauldron. He wondered if he could get them appraised and find out what they can do. If he could get them appraised, it would save him a lot of work!
“Little Wingsy, let’s go to the Court of Treasures!”
When Ye Chen walked in through the door, a young man came to greet them. He looked at the outfits of both Ye Chen and Little Wingsy. The two were dressed commonly and based on their aura, he could tell that they came from martial arts families hence he showed them respect.
“What do our two guests need? At the Court of Treasures, we can appraise our guest’s items. We also sell spirit artifacts and precious treasures of all tiers!” The young man introduced passionately.
Ye Chen’s Astral Body brushed through the young man. The young man who looked around twenty-five years old had a Ninth Level cultivation base. Ye Chen also sensed that there were a Heavenly Venerable Rank fighter and several other Earthly Venerable Rank fighters as well. The Court of Treasures was a formidable place!
“I wish to have some items appraised,” Ye Chen replied.
“Appraisals will cost up to ten Chi-amassing Pills or fifty Chi Deposition Pills. You better prepare ten Chi-amassing Pills first.” The young man was adept at noticing slight changes in expression. When he saw Ye Chen did not react to the mention of ten Chi-amassing Pills, he determined that Ye Chen must be an esteemed patron. His smile grew even more charming as he bowed politely. “Please, follow me!”
The young man led Ye Chen and Little Wingsy to the second floor.
When they had reached the second floor, Ye Chen found themselves in a large hall. The walls were lined with shelves stocked with a large variety of precious antiques and treasures. Dozens of chairs were stacked against the walls and a large group of people was chatting merrily.
Each of them looked wealthy with their delicately embroidered satin.
“Please, take a seat.” The young man took Ye Chen to the end of the row and assigned them two chairs.
Ye Chen sat down and looked at the people around him. The majority of them were young. There were five men and three women in total. The men were relatively handsome and the women quite beautiful, especially the lady who sat in the middle. She appeared to be in her early twenties. She was gorgeous and tended to cover her mouth whenever she smiled. She had a head of soft, smooth hair and she wore a red robe that made her look like a stalk of red chili. Her smiles revealed a line of pearly white teeth. Most people would try to steal a second glance at her. Most of them were in their twenties and they were mostly Earthly Venerable Rank including the red-robed lady. One of them was mid-Earthly Venerable Rank.
Three of the young men constantly stole glances at the red-robed lady. They were quite obviously the admirers of the red-robed lady.
Apart from this group, there were another two plump, large men. They were clad in gold and silver, giving off a wealthy impression. Based on their appearances, they were probably wealthy merchants.
When they saw Ye Chen and Little Wingsy walk in, they glanced at two of them then reverted their attention to what they were doing. They did not pay them any more mind.
A square table was placed in the middle of the room. Seven to eight items were placed on the table. There were weapons, jade pendants, pearls, and items of the sort. They appeared very ancient like they were dug out from some place.
A middle-aged man with dignified aura stood beside the table. He was closely inspecting a jade bracelet in his hands, all the while injecting his Celestial Chi inside to examine it. Judging by the aura around him, he was a Heavenly Venerable Rank fighter!
Was the Heavenly Venerable Rank fighter the boss of the Court of Treasures?
“Congratulations, Countess Zilan! Even though this bracelet isn’t a spirit artifact, it’s crafted using the extremely valuable purple jade. It has healthy nourishing effects on the body and its value should be no lower than a Tier Four spirit artifact!” the man said smiling before placing the bracelet back on the table.
“Thank you, Master Qi,” the red-robed lady thanked the man while a faint smile greeted the corner of her lips. She did not look very concerned with the bracelet.
The red-robed lady was a countess. That explained her prideful persona.
In places like the Xiwu Empire, a Tier Four spirit artifact would be considered a family heirloom of some martial arts family and sects. The countess made it seem like it was just an insignificant little object.
“What sort of treasures did Young Master Lian bring to the master for appraisal?” The red-robed lady looked at a young man in the blue shirt. Among the group, the elegant young man had the highest cultivation base. He was mid-Earthly Venerable Rank.
“This item I brought cost me more than sixty thousand Chi Deposition Pills. I bought it from an elder. I don’t want to get ahead of myself but this item must be at least a Tier Five spirit artifact!” the young man said proudly, holding a fan in his hands.
“I believe in Young Master Lian’s judgment, you can’t be mistaken.”
“Sixty thousand Chi Deposition Pills for a Tier Five spirit artifact, that’s a bargain.” The two wealthy merchants chipped in laughing.
When he heard their remarks, Young Master Lian looked pleased with himself.
Ye Chen raised his brow slightly. The one named Lian was a young master. He wondered where he came from. The people present here had a very reputable background.
“Brother Ye Chen, it’s a Tier Five spirit artifact, it must be valuable. Should we snatch it and take it back with us?” Little Wingsy who was sitting on a chair beside Ye Chen blurted out. He turned to Ye Chen excitedly after hearing the group’s conversation.
The attention of the entire room immediately turned on to Little Wingsy when they heard him.
Ye Chen smiled. “Just a child’s ramblings, no need to think much of it!” Little Wingsy did not filter as he just said whatever came to his mind. Ye Chen had to help him resolve the tension.
“Whose insolent child is this, coming to the Court of Treasure?” The red-robed lady sneered, raising her brow slightly.
“Yes, Master. How could you let someone like this into the Court of Treasure? Such a buzzkill!” Young Master Lian complained as well.
“My apologies, my dear guests. This one here is also a guest. As a merchant, it wouldn’t make sense to leave my guests at the door,” Master Qi said smiling. He was a quick-witted man.
Ye Chen was not pleased when he heard the tone of these arrogant people. However, since he was in the Central Empire, it was best to not cause trouble.
“I’m not an insolent child.” Little Wingsy grumbled.
Ye Chen patted Little Wingsy’s head. It was best to keep your tongue before you fully understand the situation! They were here for an appraisal, not to start a fight.
“Young Master Lian’s item is certainly a Tier Five spirit artifact. Although it’s slightly damaged, it should easily sell for two hundred thousand Chi Deposition Pills in the auction house.” Master Qi smiled.
Upon hearing Master Qi, Young Master Lian immediately danced in celebration. “I knew this was a Tier Five spirit artifact!” With this, he would be able to make more than a hundred thousand Chi Deposition Pills in profit!
“Young Master Lian certainly has great judgment!”
“Two hundred thousand Chi Deposition Pills. An average small sect can hardly afford it even if they sold everything they had!”
“The Ashen Cloud Valley is a sect that ranks among the five top major sects in the Central Empire!”
“For Young Master Lian’s background, two hundred thousand Chi Deposition Pills are just a small figure.”
After hearing their conversation, Ye Chen began to have a better idea. All these people with a formidable background had come from renowned houses. Three of the young men came from the top ten sects of the Central Empire. They were trying to court the red-robed lady, who was none other than the Countess Zilan.
Countess Zilan was the Countess of Yunyan County and she was royal blood!
Ye Chen did not think much of them. He was going to leave after settling his own business. He doubted he was going to have much to do with them anyway.
Ye Chen listened to their conversations while waiting for Master Qi to appraise their items one by one. He learned a lot about the ongoing development of the Central Empire by doing so.
“Word is the young clansmen of the Scarlet Flame Sect are going to host a Grand Martial Tournament tomorrow. Would you all like to go together?” Young Master Lian asked, smiling.
“The young clansmen are hosting a Grand Martial Tournament? Interesting.”
“I can go with Brother Lian.”
“How about the Countess?” Young Master Lian looked at Countless Zilan.
Countess Zilan nodded faintly. “I’ll go too.”
Grand Martial Tournament?
“I heard the daughter of the sect leader of Scarlet Flame Sect was an unrivaled beauty called Ye Rou. Is that true?” One of the young men wearing a white shirt took the chance to gossip.
Ye Chen’s expression changed when he heard them discussing Ye Rou.
“Don’t even bother, Young Lord Sao. Ye Rou has been taken by the young master of the House of Storms so it’s hopeless for you. The House of Storms is the top sect in the Central Empire. Their sect leader is a Godly Venerable Rank fighter. Even if my Ashen Cloud Valley joined forces with all of your houses, we might still not be able to rival the House of Storms,” Young Master Lian said bitterly, “Still, Ye Rou is certainly a great beauty. They say that around ten years ago when the Scarlet Flame Sect faced a great crisis, they decided to send Ye Rou out of the sect. They only took her back this year. When the young master of the House of Storms saw Ye Rou, it was love at first sight. He immediately proposed marriage but I heard Ye Rou was not very willing. However, it was not easy to turn down a sect like the House of Storms. Ye Rou simply delayed it by telling them she’ll reconsider when she turns eighteen.”
“Hmmph, I ran into Ye Rou several times too. She should consider it a great blessing if she can wed into the House of Storms. She always put on a good front, who knows, maybe she’s a whore behind the scenes. Maybe she had already been promised to someone else.” Countless Zilan sneered and mocked displeasingly. It made her upset just thinking about her failed attempts of befriending Ye Rou the last few times she went to the Scarlet Flame Sect.
When Ye Chen heard what Countess Zilan had said, his eyes flashed with anger. This woman was a countess and yet she would utter something so vile. It made him want to give her a few good slaps.
“Let it go. Let’s not talk about this anymore.” Young Master Lian chuckled. “Let’s continue the appraisal.”
“Of all the eight items we’ve appraised, we have six Tier Three to Four spirit artifacts and a Tier Five spirit artifact. You bring these to any small kingdom and they would be seen as precious family heirlooms where some country bumpkins would gawk at them.” Young Lord Sao mocked, his eyes drifting toward Ye Chen’s direction. He had a scornful look on his face.
Little Wingsy’s remark earlier had subjected them to mockery for nearly the entire day.
Young Master Lian’s gaze followed Young Lord Mo’s and turned to Ye Chen’s direction. A devilish idea suddenly came to him. He looked at Ye Chen and said, “Hey, brat. We’ve already appraised so many items. Why don’t you take out yours as well? Let Master Qi take a look at what sort of treasures they can be?”
