The Kun Sea Part 2

Zhang Jingmo said, "I don't want to beat around the bush with you. If you have the goods, name a price. If I can afford it, I'll take it. If not, I'll leave. No need to waste time on other words."

The shopkeeper smiled, "I can see you are a straightforward person, sir. I won't beat around the bush either. We do indeed have the Fusion Sea Essence. But I'm afraid I can't give it to you today."

Zhang Jingmo's expression turned cold, "Why?"

The shopkeeper said, "Only because this item is too precious, I dare not name a price."

Zhang Jingmo said, "If you dare not, naturally someone else will."

The manager said, "Indeed someone can set the price. It's just that person is not in the shop right now, so..."

Zhang Jingmo said impatiently, "What are you trying to say?"

The shopkeeper said, "In one month, our Giant Devourer will hold an auction. The Fusion Sea Essence will appear at the auction then. If you are interested, sir, you can bid for it."

Zhang Jingmo said, "You talked so much just to say this? Where will the auction be held?"

The shopkeeper thought to himself that this customer was really impatient. He smiled, "But to participate in this auction...requires a deposit of a hundred high-grade spirit stones as an entry fee."

Zhang Jingmo's expression was lazy. When he heard about the hundred spirit stones, his expression did not change in the slightest. He said, "You went in such a big circle just to tell me this?"

The shopkeeper gave a wry smile. How could he have guessed that the customer in front of him was so impatient, and upon hearing the requirement of a hundred spirit stones as an entry fee, didn't find it the least bit unreasonable.

Seeing the shopkeeper looking a bit helpless, Zhang Jingmo said, "I've been to the auction at the Kunlun Peak before."

Upon hearing the words "Kunlun Peak", the shopkeeper's eyes changed and he looked at Zhang Jingmo even more cautiously.

Zhang Jingmo said, "They also have an entry fee."

The shopkeeper already knew what Zhang Jingmo was going to say.

Sure enough, Zhang Jingmo showed a look of disdain and said, "Your entrance fee is not even a fraction of what others charge. Why do you act as if you're afraid I can't afford it?"

The shopkeeper gave a dry laugh, not knowing how to respond. He had encountered many customers, all of whom were either wealthy or noble, but Zhang Jingmo was the first one he had met with such a magnanimous air.

Moreover, not everyone knew of Kunlun Peak. Only those at the pinnacle of wealth had the opportunity to participate and know a thing or two about it.

Zhang Jingmo didn't bother to listen to what the shopkeeper wanted to say next. He threw a bag onto the table and said, "Give me the Blackwind Wood and the entrance token together."

The shopkeeper carefully took the bag and looked inside, his breath catching in his throat. He saw thousands of high-grade spirit stones in the bag. Even after deducting the entrance fee, it far exceeded the value of the Blackwind Wood.

The shopkeeper didn't say anything more. After inspecting the spirit stones, he left the bag on the table and got up to retrieve the items.

Before long, the shopkeeper returned with a bag and a jade token in his hands. He handed the bag and jade token to Zhang Jingmo and said, "Sir, please check."

Zhang Jingmo rummaged through the bag and saw the Blackwind Wood inside. This Blackwind Wood was naturally not as good as the one his master had given him, but it was still a treasure that had aged well and was not easy to come by.

Seeing what he wanted, Zhang Jingmo then looked at the jade token in his hand.

The shopkeeper said, "Sir, please keep this jade token safe. If it's lost, it can't be replaced."

Zhang Jingmo weighed the jade token in his hand and asked, "Anyone who gives a hundred spirit stones can participate in that auction?"

The shopkeeper smiled bitterly and said, "Sir, how could there be such a thing? Only those who have spent more than a thousand high-grade spirit stones on transactions in our shop can participate."

Zhang Jingmo said, "That's more like it."

More than a thousand high-grade spirit stones - if it were the Zhang Jingmo from his first life, he probably wouldn't be able to earn that much in a thousand years. But now, he casually threw them on the table like he was throwing away garbage. He reflected that being reborn so many times was indeed very useful.

Zhang Jingmo put the bag containing the Blackwind Wood and the jade token into his Sumeru Ring, then got up to leave.

Seeing this, the shopkeeper spoke up and said, "Sir, if you want to bid for the Fusion Sea Essence, you need to prepare at least ten thousand high-grade spirit stones."

He meant well, afraid that Zhang Jingmo would make the trip in vain and end up blaming the Giant Devourer.

Hearing the shopkeeper's words, Zhang Jingmo didn't turn his head. He just responded indifferently with an "okay" and went straight out the door.

After Zhang Jingmo had walked far away, the shopkeeper instructed his subordinates to investigate what background this person had.

Having obtained the jade token, Zhang Jingmo had completed half of his goal. After leaving the Giant Devourer, he found a tavern and checked in.

Then he ordered a table full of dishes made from spiritual plants and spiritual beasts and began drinking alone.

However, because he was not in his sect, Zhang Jingmo drank very moderately. He looked at the snowflakes fluttering outside the window, narrowed his eyes, and seemed to be thinking of something.

During the month of waiting, Zhang Jingmo had visited the entire Kun Sea market. Actually, there was nothing interesting about visiting this market, because he had already been there in his previous lives. He even remembered the names of each shop.

About ten days before the auction, Zhang Jingmo unsurprisingly encountered an "old acquaintance".

That acquaintance was picking out snacks on the street with his servant.

Zhang Jingmo saw him from afar but didn't go up to greet him. Instead, he walked past him.

The acquaintance picked a few skewers of candied haws, had his servant pay for them, then ran to a nearby noodle stall and ordered a bowl of noodles made from spiritual grains, slurping them up.

The corners of Zhang Jingmo's mouth turned up in a smile, and he returned to the tavern alone.

In the evening, the acquaintance Zhang Jingmo had seen during the day also checked into the same tavern. He was somewhat similar to Zhang Jingmo - as soon as he entered the tavern, he ordered a lot of wine and dishes and began eating and drinking heartily. Zhang Jingmo observed him from his own room for a while before heading down to the main hall.

Zhang Jingmo sat next to him, with a plate of freshly stir-fried soybeans and a pot of warm wine on the table. He slowly put the beans into his mouth.

When he put the seventy-fifth bean into his mouth, Zhang Jingmo heard the expected voice. The voice said, "Brother, are you alone? Let's have a drink together."

Zhang Jingmo turned his head to look at the man.

The man had a very ordinary appearance and looked a bit foolish when he smiled. He said, "I'm Wu Zuyao. What's your name?"

Zhang Jingmo answered him, saying, "Chen Baicang."

The man said, "Good name."

Zhang Jingmo was very familiar with these words. He smiled and said, "How is it good?"

Wu Zuyao said, "Few strokes, easy to write."

Zhang Jingmo had heard this answer countless times. His smile grew wider. "Indeed."

So the two drunkards sat together.

Wu Zuyao was very outgoing. He arranged the wine cups for Zhang Jingmo and filled them to the brim. "Drink!"

When Zhang Jingmo had met Wu Zuyao before, he didn't like drinking as much, so he always just took a sip. But in this life, Zhang Jingmo could be considered a seasoned drinker. When he smelled the aroma of the wine, he knew it was no ordinary thing. So he picked up the wine cup and downed it in one gulp.

Wu Zuyao exclaimed, "Good!"

If Zhang Jingmo had only met Wu Zuyao for the first time, he would never have let his guard down in front of a stranger like this. But he had known the man in front of him for a long time. He recalled that in a few past lives, this man had even lost his life because of him.

Wu Zuyao said, "The snow outside is really heavy."

Zhang Jingmo said, "Yeah."

Wu Zuyao said, "It would be even better if we could drink in the snow."

Hearing this, Zhang Jingmo also looked out the window. The heavy snow was indeed fluttering down like goose feathers. He smiled and said, "How is that good? If snow falls into the wine, it will become diluted."

Wu Zuyao said, "You don't know, but snow wine has its own flavor."

Zhang Jingmo smiled and didn't say much.

Wu Zuyao said, "Brother, is this really our first meeting? Why do I feel like you look exceptionally familiar?"

Zhang Jingmo replied, "Perhaps it's because I have an ordinary appearance."

Wu Zuyao laughed, "That joke isn't funny. If you are considered to have just an ordinary appearance, then how are the rest of us supposed to live?" As he spoke, he downed another full cup of wine.

Seeing this, Wu Zuyao's servant anxiously advised, "Young master, don't drink so hastily." Unlike Wu Zuyao, he didn't find Zhang Jingmo familiar at all. Instead, he felt this person before them was very dangerous, continuously pouring wine for his young master.

Zhang Jingmo's fingers slowly caressed the warm wine cup as he sighed, "This wine is truly delicious."

Wu Zuyao said, "Of course it's delicious. I personally brewed this wine."

...So it had already been a thousand years since he last tasted this wine. Zhang Jingmo slightly narrowed his eyes and exhaled a breath of cold air. He said, "Brother Wu, may I ask for what purpose have you come to Kun Sea?"

Wu Zuyao smiled awkwardly and said, "Me? I came to find my good-for-nothing younger sister."

The person hadn't changed, and neither had the purpose. However, Zhang Jingmo planned to change the outcome of this matter. He lightly tapped the wine cup and said, "I just wonder, what does your younger sister look like?"