Chapter 2122: Purchases
The massive hall was split up into two clear sections, one of which was the same as an ordinary shop with rows of stone shelves and counters, upon which were placed all types of treasures and materials.
Behind each section of a counter that was around 100 feet in length stood a young and beautiful female attendant, and there were around a dozen devilish beings purchasing different items near the counter while the female attendants offered assistance where required.
As for the other half of the hall, it was concealed behind an azure light barrier, and there were two azure-robed employees standing at the entrance of the light barrier.
There were also some shelves beyond the barrier, atop which were placed some treasures that were clearly far more valuable than the ones outside.
Han Li's brows furrowed slightly as he released some of his repressed spiritual pressure.
Even though he was only releasing a late-Spatial Tempering Stage aura, everyone in the hall still immediately detected his presence and turned toward him with awe and veneration in their eyes.
Right at this moment, a devilish woman with far superior looks and cultivation base compared to the female attendants outside emerged from within the light barrier.
She appeared to be around 23 to 24 years of age, and her brocade robes only served to further accentuate her beauty.
She made her way over to Han Li in a graceful manner, then lowered her head slightly as she said, "Welcome to our Rainbow Pavilion, Senior; my name is Xiao Yan, and I am the stand-in shopkeeper here. Is there anything I can help you with?"
The woman was a Deity Transformation stage high-grade devilish being.
"I've heard that this is the largest shop in all of Blue Waterfall City; is that true?" Han Li asked.
"I wouldn't dare to proclaim that, but we definitely have the widest range of stock among all shops in the city," Xiao Yan replied with a smile.
"I see, then it looks like I've come to the right place. I wish to purchase large quantities of certain items from your shop," Han Li replied with a nod.
Xiao Yan was quite elated to hear this, and she hurriedly replied, "It's our honor that you've decided to choose our pavilion, Senior; please follow me to the VIP booths on the second floor."
Considering the cultivation base that Han Li had displayed, the "large quantities" that he had mentioned definitely entailed a massive business opportunity for the pavilion.
Han Li had no objections to this, and thus, he was led toward the staircase by the woman.
A short while later, Han Li was seated in a room with elegant decor, sipping on a cup of fragrant silver tea.
Xiao Yan was standing beside him with a smile as she said, "This Devilish Taro Tea is a specialty local product from our Blue Waterfall Lake that can calm the mind and improve focus, and our pavilion only receives several tens of kilograms of it per year, so it's quite a rare delicacy."
"It is indeed quite an exceptional tea, but its efficacy is virtually negligible for those of my cultivation base," Han Li said in a nonchalant manner.
"Of course, that's only to be expected. May I ask what items you're looking for, Senior? As long as our pavilion has them, we'll be sure to satisfy your needs to the best of our abilities," Xiao Yan said with a smile.
"Foreign Devilish Metal and Bloodtooth Rice," Han Li replied in an extremely concise manner.
Xiao Yan's expression remained unchanged upon hearing the first item, but her expression changed slightly at the mention of the second item, and she suddenly fell silent.
"Is there an issue?" Han Li asked.
"Truth be told, the Foreign Devilish Metal is quite easy to arrange. It's a rare material, but we have a lot of stock in our warehouse, so I can take you to see them right away. As for Bloodtooth Rice, that's rather difficult to come by," Xiao Yan replied in a slightly awkward manner.
"Prior to coming here, I've heard that Blue Waterfall City has very strict regulations on Bloodtooth Rice, and that one can only purchase two pieces per year, but surely a pavilion of this caliber will have some alternative avenues that it can use," Han Li said as he raised an eyebrow.
"It seems that you're completely unfamiliar with the production of Bloodtooth Rice in this area, Senior," Xiao Yan said with a wry smile.
"I only just came here, so I am indeed quite unfamiliar with everything; would you be able to explain the situation to me?" Han Li asked.
"This isn't a confidential matter, so I can certainly disclose the information to you. It's no exaggeration to say that our Rainbow Pavilion will be able to get our hands on a substantial amount of any other type of treasure or material, but the Bloodtooth Rice is directly regulated by the city lord's manor, and we can only receive a set amount from the city lord's manor per year. Our shop may be one of the largest in the city, but we really don't have much of a supply of Bloodtooth Rice. On top of that, the sales of Bloodtooth Rice must be registered according to the city lord's manor, and rigorous examinations are conducted every year," Xiao Yan explained.
"So that means there's no room for negotiation at all?" Han Li asked as his brows furrowed slightly.
Xiao Yan hesitated momentarily before replying, "My sincerest apologies, but that is indeed beyond my capabilities. However, if you're only looking for two or three more than the stipulated limit, I could think of a way to provide them to you at the risk of being scolded by my superiors, but I'm afraid that's the extent of what I can do."
"Hehe, if I were only looking for so little, why would I have come to your Rainbow Pavilion? So be it, if it can't be done, then let's discuss Foreign Devilish Metal instead. How many pieces of this metal does your pavilion have, and what price can you offer?" Han Li asked.
"We just so happened to receive a new batch of Foreign Devilish Metal several days ago, so we have hundreds of pieces in our warehouse; how many do you require, Senior? If you're looking to purchase a large amount, I can offer you a very good price," Xiao Yan replied in a confident manner.
"Bring them all to me," Han Li replied expressionlessly.
Xiao Yan couldn't help but draw a sharp breath upon hearing this. "All of them? Did I hear that right?"
"Do you think I'm joking, Fellow Daoist?" Han Li asked as his eyes narrowed slightly.
Xiao Yan repressed the excitement in her heart as she replied, "I wouldn't dare to think that. Please wait a moment, Senior; I'll get someone to bring all of our Foreign Devilish Metal to you for examination."
Han Li merely nodded with a faint smile before falling silent.
Shortly thereafter, Han Li was accompanied out of the Rainbow Pavilion in person by Xiao Yan.
He then hailed another beast-drawn carriage before instructing the coach driver to take him to another large shop.
Thus, Han Li visited six large shops in succession and cleared out almost their entire stock of Foreign Devilish Metal, but he had hit a wall when it came to Bloodtooth Rice.
All of these large shops had expressed an inability to sell large amounts of Bloodtooth Rice to him, but he wasn't disheartened in the slightest by this.
That night, he booked a room in an inn, and the next morning, he continued to visit the shops in Blue Waterfall City.
However, on this occasion, he was visiting all of the medium-sized shops.
Thus, he stayed in Blue Waterfall City for seven days and visited almost all of the shops in the city, purchasing a huge amount of Foreign Devilish Metal during the process.
Such a large amount of Foreign Devilish Metal naturally cost an astronomical price, but this only constituted a small proportion of Han Li's enormous wealth.
However, even after purchasing so much Foreign Devilish Metal, he didn't find any that contained one of those mysterious crystalline beads, and was left very disappointed.
However, he didn't give up and continued to purchase Foreign Devilish Metal from other shops in the city.
As for Bloodtooth Rice, he didn't even bother to mention it to the smaller and medium-sized shops.
As a result of this, it became known throughout the city that an outsider was going around purchasing a huge amount of Foreign Devilish Metal, but most people didn't pay any heed to this.
With the popularity of Blue Waterfall City and the number of devilish beings visiting the city, such an occurrence was far from a rare one.
However, there were some people who developed an interest in this news.
On the eighth morning, Han Li had only just emerged from the inn and was about to hail a beast-drawn carriage when a devilish man suddenly appeared before him with a fawning smile. "I've heard that you're purchasing large amounts of Foreign Devilish Metal, Senior; would you be interested in seeing the Foreign Devilish Metal that I have in my collection?"
Han Li glanced at the devilish man to find that he was only at the Nascent Soul Stage, so he replied in a nonchalant manner, "I'm only purchasing in bulk; if you only have a few pieces, then don't bother me again."
"Rest assured, Senior; I wouldn't dare to pester you with such a small amount of Foreign Devilish Metal. My companions and I have a very large amount of Foreign Devilish Metal that I'm sure will be of interest to you, Senior," the devilish man continued.
Han Li's expression changed slightly upon hearing this, but he was still rather skeptical. "I see. Where are your companions right now? If they're outside of the city, then forget it."
"Rest assured, Senior; my companions and I are staying in the Immortal Abode Pavilion in the city," the devilish man hurriedly replied.
Han Li's expression eased slightly upon hearing this, and he instructed, "Alright, then lead the way."
The devilish man was ecstatic to hear this, and he immediately waved a hand, upon which a beast-drawn carriage that he had hailed earlier pulled up next to him and Han Li.
Han Li got into the carriage with the devilish man, and the carriage quickly sped away.
Several hours later, Han Li found himself situated in a secluded hall with several unfamiliar devilish beings gathered before him.