Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“How dare you!” Shangguan Ru pulled away. Her friend threw punched him.
When she made contact with Jiang Chen, it was as if he had been punched by a shadow. Her arm pierced through his body, but he felt nothing. These two women were not real!
“What are you? Humans or ghosts?” Jiang Chen asked in surprise.
“You really don’t know or are you just pretending you don’t know?” The woman who had attacked him gave him a stare.
“This is the projecting formation of the Yunzhen Chamber of Commerce. We are on the Saint Reaching Continent. These are only our projections.”
“Oh, that’s great? Does this mean I can go to the branches of the chamber of commerce on the other two continents?” Jiang Chen asked excitedly.
The two women did not answer him. They just threw him an odd glance.
Jiang Chen knew he behaved like he was behind the times. Fortunately, he had disguised himself, so he did not have to worry about it. Currently, he looked like a man about 30 years of age, who was a little crazy. The way he had behaved perfectly matched the character he had designed for his disguise.
“Never mind. Let’s go.”
Shangguan Ru’s friend was totally disappointed in him. She was going to pull her good friend away from the con man.
Shangguan Ru walked toward the door, but then she stopped.
“Master, can you fix these?” She showed him the Aeolian bells.
Rolling her eyes, her friend could do nothing but let her do what she wanted.
“Doctrine Aeolian bells? You are sure you want to fix them?” Jiang Chen asked out of curiosity.
“Tell me what you know about them first,” the woman said tentatively, stopping Shangguan Ru from speaking.
“They are used to practice.”
“When wind blows, the sound of the bells can calm people down. They can guide practitioners through the comprehension of the lore of wind.”
Shangguan Ru was happy with Jiang Chen’s answer. It meant the man in front of her did know something.
“But they are already outdated,” Jiang Chen added.
Due to their complicated fabrication and their weak effects, Doctrine Aeolian Bells had been replaced with new artifacts.
“Master, they are very important to me. Can you fix them?” Shangguan Ru said.
“You should have seen the board at the door. I don’t do business with artifacts below doctrine level,” Jiang Chen said.
“I don’t think you can fix…”
Pulling on her friend’s arm, Shangguan Ru said, “How much does fixing a Doctrine Artifact cost? I’ll pay you the same.”
“It’s not about money. It’s a question of principle.”
Shangguan Ru frowned at him. She also thought he was too stubborn.
“What about this? I’ll fix them for you for free, but you will help me publicize my shop,” Jiang Chen said.
“No problem,” Shangguan Ru agreed immediately.
However, Shangguan Ru’s friend was somewhat surprised. Jiang Chen really did not seem to care about money.
“Many masters told me the magic pattern inside them had been worn out. It’s impossible to fix them.” Shangguan Ru was brutally blunt. She did not want to be disappointed when she came back here to fetch them.
“Let me have a look.” Jiang Chen took the Aeolian bells, but when his fingers had felt through the bells, he realized that the persons and the things in front of him were all mere projections. So, Jiang Chen had to approach Shangguan Ru to observe the Aeolian bells in her hand.
“That’s correct. They have lost all of the magic pattern. It’s almost impossible to fix them,” Jiang Chen said. He certainly was only able to fix things that could be fixed. The magic pattern of these bells had been worn out.
The woman wanted to say something, but this time she had learned to be smarter. She refrained herself from speaking.
As expected, Jiang Chen went on speaking. “I can carve the magic pattern again. What do you think?”
“Senior Mo said this kind of magic pattern had been lost to the world,” Shangguan Ru said in surprise.
“There are no such words as ‘lost to the world’ for me,” Jiang Chen said with a casual smile. “If you trust me, send the Aeolian bells to me. The shop will be closed at dusk.”
“Thank you, Master. How long will it take you to fix them?”
“An hour.”
Shangguan Ru and her friend, Han Cong’er, walked out of the shop. They looked puzzled.
“Do you trust this guy?” Han Cong’er could hardly believe him.
“Are you always so sure?” Shangguan Ru asked out of curiosity.
“No. I mean he does look like a master, but what he said was quite exaggerated. Most important, he is so young. It’s weird to call him Master.”
“Whatever, I have nothing to lose.” Shangguan Ru decided to give it a try.
“If this is a con, I’ll destroy the shop right away.”
Walking through a door, the two women went back to their physical bodies. They returned to the Saint Reaching Continent, and were going to send the Aeolian bells back.
“He has got business!” The crystal of the chamber of commerce not only showed advertisements, but also a ranking of all of the shops. At the moment, it showed the Sundry Goods Store had one transaction in progress. At first, people were surprised. It was not so weird, because people would go out of curiosity.
But then it said the customer of the shop was Shangguan Ru. This news created an uproar.
When the news was leaked, the man in charge of the Yunzhen Chamber of Commerce went to apologize to Shangguan Ru. He said, “Miss Shangguan, we’re very sorry. We have fired the guy who leaked the news.”
Shangguan Ru said it was okay. She also told him not to fire anyone. After brushing off the man in charge of the chamber of commerce, Shangguan Ru was going to send the Aeolian bells to the Sundry Goods Store.
However, at this moment, Master Mo from the Mysterious Weapon Pavilion arrived.
“Master.”
This was a real master. Even Han Cong’er had to greet him with respect.
As the most famous shop, the masters the Mysterious Weapon Pavilion hired were also very well-known. This Master Mo was a recognized master. He was 70 years old, but he looked younger. His white hair did not make him look weak either.
“Miss Shangguan, are you really going to send that pair of Doctrine Aeolian bells for repair?” Master Mo looked very mature. He did not sound like he was blaming her.
But Shangguan Ru and Han Cong’er knew things could not be that simple.
“Yes.”
“It’s none of my business, but I checked those Doctrine Aeolian bells too. This isn’t a problem of skill. They just can’t be fixed,” Master Mo said.
“Because the magic pattern inside them has been worn out?” Han Cong’er said.
“Exactly.”
“That man said the same thing.”
Master Mo was very surprised. He said, “Yes? The owner of the Sundry Goods Store? If he already knows that, why would he try an impossible thing?”
“He said he could re-carve the magic pattern.”
“Ha, ha, ha, ha.” Master Mo burst out laughing. He didn’t think that was possible.
“Miss Shangguan, Miss Han, no practitioners can live without artifacts or elixirs. Elixirs are a difficult and profound subject, but so are artifacts. Spiritual weapons have spiritual patterns. Magic weapons have magic patterns. And Doctrine Artifacts have doctrine patterns. Every kind of pattern is different. They were created by legendary people who had been inspired by the universe. The magic pattern of Doctrine Aeolian bells has been lost to the world. Even if he really can re-carve it, it won’t have the same effect. I could fix them for Miss Shangguan in this way too, but I don’t want to cheat you.”
Jiang Chen, waiting for the Doctrine Aeolian bells to be sent over, suddenly sneezed. He thought someone must be speaking ill of him.
Han Cong’er was persuaded. What Master Mo had said made sense to her. She said, “He probably just wants to cut corners, since he knows how important they are for you.”
