Chapter Five: Deyang City

Wandering in circles, Li Mu arrived at his intended destination. He whispered a few instructions to Li Si, then walked alone toward a towering building.

It was an imposing structure with wide gates. On a signboard made of crimson jade, three words glowed softly in blue light, "Treasure Pavilion," the characters flickering and drawing the eyes of every passerby.

Li Mu walked up to the gate and peered inside, confirming he was at the right place before stepping through the entrance.

A young attendant dressed in green saw someone approaching and hurried over, but after glancing at Li Mu, he gave a dismissive grunt and slowly turned away. The attendants here were well-trained, able to discern at a glance that Li Mu was not a cultivator and likely couldn’t afford to buy anything, so there was no need to serve him.

Li Mu paid it no mind, passing rows of shelves loaded with goods and heading straight for the counter.

“Is there something you need?” asked the shopkeeper, glancing up with little interest. He was holding a lens fragment, his eyes mere slits.

Li Mu cupped his hands in greeting. “Shopkeeper, I have an item I wish to sell.”

“We only deal in cultivators’ goods here. You’d best try another shop,” the shopkeeper replied, waving him away before turning back to examine a piece of jade in his hand.

“But this is an item for cultivators.” Li Mu took out a bean-sized, multicolored stone and placed it lightly on the counter.

A crisp, gentle sound rang out as the stone touched the jade countertop.

The shopkeeper looked up in annoyance, ready to scold, but the moment his eyes landed on the stone, they lit up with interest.

He picked up the stone delicately, rubbing it gently, then nodded slightly.

“The quality is decent,” he said. As he spoke, the stone emitted a flash of brilliant color, but in the blink of an eye, the glow faded and it returned to its dark, unremarkable appearance.

The shopkeeper, as it turned out, was also a cultivator.

Muttering to himself, he said, “Red, gold, blue, green, brown—five colors, all stable. I haven’t seen such a fine multicolored stone in ages.”

He spoke so softly that Li Mu could not make out the words.

With a puzzled look, the shopkeeper glanced up at Li Mu. “May I ask, young man, where did you come by this kind of jade?”

Li Mu had already prepared his answer. “I once inadvertently helped an immortal. This jade was a gift from him, meant to provide me a lifetime of prosperity.”

“Oh, a lifetime of prosperity,” the shopkeeper murmured, a hint of mockery on his face. “A lifetime is enough, I suppose.”

The shopkeeper then raised his voice. “An old multicolored stone like this is worth 150 low-grade spirit crystals. Is that agreeable? However, we don’t deal in gold here. If you want gold, you’ll need to take the spirit crystals to an exchange house across the street.”

Li Mu considered this for a moment. “That will do.”

He calculated in his heart. Such a tiny piece was worth 150 spirit crystals—how much would the rest fetch? But at present, he dared not bring out any more, lest disaster befall him.

While the shopkeeper sent someone to fetch the spirit crystals, Li Mu asked politely, “Shopkeeper, what exactly is this stone? Why is it so valuable?”

He had long wondered about this and had never known what he’d collected. Now, at last, he had the chance to ask.

The shopkeeper, having profited, was in a generous mood. “I might as well tell you. Ordinary folk have no use for it anyway. It’s called a multicolored stone. It can filter out impurities from spiritual energy in the air, thus increasing a cultivator’s cultivation speed.”

Li Mu was taken aback. So the stone he’d kept all this time really did have a purpose—it wasn’t just a keepsake.

“Ha, so all immortals use these?” he asked.

The shopkeeper shook his head. “There’s nowhere near enough of them for that. Most cultivators buy the cheaper kind, use them until they turn to stone, and then use them to build walls or even houses, to slightly purify the surrounding spiritual energy during cultivation. But this kind—though small—is rare, and not every cultivator can possess one. If you make it into a ring, it could be sold for—” He broke off suddenly, grinning at Li Mu, then tossed him a pouch of spirit crystals. “Here, 150 low-grade spirit crystals.”

Li Mu caught the pouch, smiled, and turned to leave.

Inside the Treasure Pavilion, a young man in green watched Li Mu intently. After a moment’s hesitation, he gritted his teeth and followed.

But Li Mu had anticipated this. He hadn’t gone far before he turned abruptly, coming face to face with the green-clad man. “What do you want?” Li Mu demanded, staring him down from barely a step away.

He had already noticed the man in green watching him during his transaction with the shopkeeper, his eyes fixed greedily on the spirit crystals like a wolf eyeing its prey.

Yet, inside Deyang City, Li Mu felt little concern.

The green-clad man looked flustered, unable to meet Li Mu’s gaze. He lowered his head and mumbled, “Brother, are you new to Deyang City? My name is Sun Qi. I’m looking for work. If you need anything in the city, I can guide you for just three spirit crystals.”

Li Mu, though only eighteen, had experienced much in his previous life. Just a glance told him the man’s offer was genuine.

“Sun Qi, are you a cultivator?” Li Mu asked, a trace of doubt in his voice. The man before him gave him the same impression as the shopkeeper and the purple-robed cultivator, yet there was something more down-to-earth about him.

Sun Qi kept his head down. “I am, but only at the initial stage of Qi Condensation. I don’t have any real power.”

Li Mu grew even more curious. Weren’t cultivators supposed to act superior? Why would he address him so humbly, even calling him ‘brother’ as if he were just an ordinary man? Even low-level cultivators rarely behaved this way—clearly, something unusual was at play.

Sun Qi noticed Li Mu’s silence and lowered his price further. “Two—just two spirit crystals, that’s enough.”

Li Mu considered, then agreed. “Fine, come with me.”

Sun Qi quickly replied, “Thank you, thank you, brother.”

“Don’t call me that. My name is Li Mu. Just call me by my name, Sun Qi.” Li Mu frowned and walked off toward Li Ying and Li Si.

Sun Qi trailed behind, keeping pace.

By the roadside, Li Ying was looking around curiously, her eyes filled with wonder, while Li Si seemed indifferent to their surroundings, gazing unblinkingly at Li Ying.

“Let’s go. Time to eat,” Li Mu said, scooping up Li Ying and patting Li Si’s arm. He turned to Sun Qi. “Sun Qi, where’s a good place to eat?”

In Deyang City, they couldn’t settle for ordinary fare.

“Brother Mu, there’s a good place just nearby,” Sun Qi said eagerly, leading the way. “Wind’s Abode has the best food around—I guarantee you’ll be satisfied.”

Before long, they were seated inside Wind’s Abode.

For the price of a single low-grade spirit crystal, they ordered a spread of dishes, and soon the table was filled with delicacies—green papaya, spiritwood fish strips, pearl rice mussels—all promptly served.

Li Ying and Li Si ate heartily, and seeing their long-missed smiles of satisfaction, Li Mu felt an unbidden joy well up inside. This world, he realized, was not without its moments of happiness.

He ordered a bottle of mild spirit brew and shared a drink with Sun Qi.

“Sun Qi, tell me about Deyang City. And tell me—why, if you’re a cultivator, do you show such respect to someone like me?”