Chapter 503: Chapter 441: Spirit Pearl Specialty

Zhao Lin’s rewards for completing his mission at sea were as follows: 20,600 merit points and 105,000 Spirit Coins.

The details were listed clearly: 10,000 merit points for seizing three pearl beaches, and 10,000 merit points for slaying thirteen Earth Dark Sect cultivators.

First Grade Spirit Pearls were exchanged for 600 merit points and 3,000 Spirit Stones.

The sabers, polearms, talismans, and other items seized from the Earth Dark Sect cultivators were valued at 2,200 Spirit Stones.

The total value of the items from eight unlocked storage pouches was 5,300 Spirit Stones.

Zhao Lin was overjoyed. The number of Spirit Stones was double his estimate.

’The reason is probably that the female cultivator’s storage pouch had something valuable inside,’ he mused. ’The other two Transformation Realm cultivators’ pouches were both destroyed.’

In fact, Zhao Lin had also confiscated three magic treasures from them: the Silver Flood Dragon Whip, the Black Robe Pouch, and the Octagonal Ancient Mirror. Any one of them was worth at least tens of thousands of Spirit Coins.

The Octagonal Ancient Mirror, in particular, was worth no less than the Small Tai Chi Array.

Zhao Lin had once considered selling one of them for cash, but now, it seemed he could keep them all.

Golden Core Hall, tea room.

"Elder Gu, do you think this is enough money?"

Zhao Lin slapped a stack of Spiritual Tickets onto the table, pushing it toward Gu Dezhao.

"So much money!"

Gu Dezhao gasped. He quickly counted it—a total of 80,000 Spirit Coins—and his expression changed. "Shopkeeper Zhao, you didn’t take out a high-interest loan, did you?"

Zhao Lin smiled faintly. "Don’t worry. There’s no interest on this money, and no rush to pay it back."

Gu Dezhao clapped his hands together, his voice filled with excitement. "With this much, we’ll have enough to buy the Spiritual Vessel!"

Zhao Lin nodded. "According to our agreement, today is the day we can go to Red Tail Island to collect the Spirit Pearls. There’s no time to lose. This is the perfect opportunity to take the vessel and collect them."

The two of them immediately found Wan Jingsheng, withdrew the money from their accounts, and, taking Tang Zhengquan along, headed straight for Treasure Ship Hall.

They then paid for and collected the vessel. It came with three complimentary Tokens, which were required to control the Spiritual Vessel’s various Arrays.

Before long, the three of them were aboard the Spiritual Vessel, spiraling upward before heading toward the coast.

In the courtyard of Harmony Hall, Shopkeeper Tian and Yangquan both looked up at the sky.

A brand-new, deep blue Spiritual Vessel streaked across the sky with three people standing on it. They could vaguely make out Zhao Lin’s figure among them.

"What is Zhao Lin going to Red Tail Island for?"

Yangquan asked in confusion.

"I don’t know."

Shopkeeper Tian sighed. "The sect took a heavy blow this time. Even Lord Jing Shigen was stripped of his position as Island Master. News from the island is slow to arrive, so we’ll have to find things out for ourselves."

Yangquan looked down, dejected. "I never thought he’d be so vicious. Three Transformation Realm cultivators couldn’t even handle him... It’s just..."

Shopkeeper Tian immediately raised a hand to stop him. "Be careful what you say. We are only responsible for gathering intelligence; we do not comment on the decisions from above."

...

The Spiritual Vessel flew down to the surface of the sea, descending slowly. Then, riding the wind and waves, it forged ahead through the water.

In less than four hours, the party of three arrived at Red Tail Island.

"One Second Grade Spirit Pearl, fifteen Third Grade Spirit Pearls, sixty Fourth Grade Spirit Pearls, and one hundred and twenty Fifth Grade Spirit Pearls... Here’s the manifest. Young friend Zhao, please take a look."

The Sicao on the island received the trio warmly. He directed the guards to load the prepared goods onto the vessel and handed Zhao Lin a manifest.

"Tang Sicao, this is our shop’s transport manager. His surname is also Tang. From now on, he will be in charge of transportation."

Zhao Lin took the manifest, passed it to Gu Dezhao, then pulled Tang Zhengquan forward and introduced him to the Sicao.

"Tang Zhengquan greets you, Lord Sicao."

Tang Zhengquan said with a cupped-fist salute.

"Ah, a fellow Tang! Well met, well met."

Tang Sicao knew Zhao Lin was one of Chu Hongtian’s favored people, so his response was exceptionally polite.

Looking at the vessel filled to the brim with Blue Heart Algae, Moonfall Skirts, Yellow Essence, Celestial Star Sand, and other Spirit Grasses and ores, Gu Dezhao beamed. With these rare items, the shop’s business was bound to flourish.

A question suddenly occurred to him. He pulled Zhao Lin aside and whispered, "So much cargo... how much do we have to pay? We don’t have much money left."

Zhao Lin replied with a smile, "Not a single coin. I’ve made an arrangement with the Island Master. We’ll settle the account after the New Year."

’He made an arrangement with the Island Master?’

Gu Dezhao was stunned into silence. ’What kind of connections does Zhao Lin have,’ he wondered, ’to be on speaking terms with a Purple Mansion Realm Island Master?’

’Then again,’ he thought, ’if he didn’t have such connections, how could he have secured this supply route in the first place?’

Once the cargo was loaded, the three of them bid farewell to the Sicao and the guards with cupped fists, and departed from Red Tail Island on their Spiritual Vessel.

They returned to the Dongfu District before nightfall.

Everyone from the shop, except for Elder Wan the accountant, went outside the marketplace to help unload the cargo.

"My, my... Red Beard Belts, Yellow Essence, Celestial Star Sand... With all this good stuff, did you go out and rob a caravan or something?"

The shopkeeper of Linglong Pavilion, Liu Chaoyuan, stood before the entrance of Golden Core Hall. He watched as Zhao Lin and his people moved cart after cart of goods inside, his eyes red with envy.

"You’re joking, Shopkeeper Liu." Zhao Lin wasn’t offended and simply chuckled in reply. "We at Golden Core Hall would never sell stolen goods."

"This all came from Red Tail Island, didn’t it?"

Liu Chaoyuan had a keen, experienced eye and recognized the goods’ origin.

"Your eyes are as sharp as ever, Elder Liu. You are correct, they are all specialties from Red Tail Island."

Zhao Lin gave him a thumbs-up. ’Not only was there no need to hide this,’ he thought, ’it was something to be advertised far and wide.’

"You’ve got some wild connections, kid!"

Liu Chaoyuan said, his voice thick with envy.

Zhao Lin just chuckled, thinking to himself, ’This all came from me putting my life on the line.’

That night, Zhao Lin gathered all the staff and formally announced that the shop had obtained the exclusive rights to sell products from Red Tail Island.

Although most of them had already suspected as much, hearing him confirm it personally was a huge boost to their morale.

This meant the shop’s business was sure to improve, and everyone’s compensation would rise accordingly.

The loss of the cargo Spiritual Vessel a few days ago had left everyone dejected, but no one had expected such a wonderful turn of events.

Early the next morning, Tang Zhengquan set off back to Han Chi County to procure magic robes, while Zhao Lin went out to visit the administrative office.

That morning, cultivators arriving at the Dongfu District were surprised to find eight identical placards posted on the notice board before the market entrance.

They read: For Spirit Pearls, go to Golden Core Hall!

"Huh, why is Golden Core Hall suddenly selling Spirit Pearls?"

"Really? What kind of connections does Golden Core Hall have to get their hands on Spirit Pearls?"

The cultivators who frequented the market were no longer surprised by Golden Core Hall’s bold moves, but the content of this announcement still shocked them.

Spirit Pearls were a rare commodity. Everyone knew they were small, portable, and incredibly convenient for replenishing one’s Spiritual Power while traveling.

Small Arrays could also run for extended periods using Spirit Pearls, eliminating the need to periodically replace Spirit Stones.

Moreover, Spirit Pearls were scarce. Even if one couldn’t use them, they could be resold elsewhere for a profit.

The cultivators swarmed over, nearly breaking down the doors of Golden Core Hall from the sheer volume of traffic.

They arrived to find that Golden Core Hall not only had Spirit Pearls, but also a variety of Spirit Grasses and minerals from Red Tail Island.

Zhao Lin had set up a large display shelf in a prominent spot near the entrance, filled entirely with specialties from Red Tail Island.

In less than fifteen minutes, the Spirit Pearls were completely sold out!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.