Brother, how come you're a witch?

Su Yan listened to the two arguing and shook his head helplessly.

Even with the extra money, the stall owner still couldn't pay the full amount due. The scratches were insignificant. These secondhand vendors took advantage of the fact that ordinary cultivators didn't know anything, so they recklessly lowered prices to buy low and sell high for profit.

This is indeed a way to make money. With Su Yan's eyesight after a thousand years of cultivation, he can naturally see the intricacies of common magical artifacts clearly.

But to do this job, you need capital and time to build a reputation, and unfortunately, Su Yan has neither of these.

Even if he uses the last of his spirit stones to set up a stall, why would anyone do business with him instead of trading with the established secondhand dealers who have been here for a long time?

Let's not think about it anymore.

Su Yan put aside his thoughts and continued walking until he reached a stall selling spiritual herbs and plants. His gaze casually swept over the goods on the stall, and he paused slightly.

He narrowed his eyes and pointed to a large, plump spiritual herb:

"Boss, can you guarantee the ripeness of these medicinal herbs?"

The stall owner, who was dozing off, lifted his eyelids and frowned:

"Looking for trouble?"

"No, it's just that the roots and stems of this clump of grass are large, and its body has three layers, inside and out, and nine parts. Due to the influence of many factors during its growth, the maturity of each area is different."

Su Yan waved his hand, speaking eloquently:

"Your label says that the top six and two layers are fully cooked, and the bottom one and one layer are half-cooked, but in my opinion, it is one-nine-leap-cooked, three-seven-sweet-cooked, and the rest are undercooked. It is more suitable for refining elixirs that nourish the kidneys and replenish essence, rather than for tempering the meridians as you wrote. Moreover, its medicinal properties are much worse than you described..."

After saying all that, it all boils down to one sentence: sell it to me cheaply.

Su Yan believed that if he reasoned with the stall owner, the stall owner would be convinced.

"You still say you're not here to cause trouble!"

The stall owner suddenly slammed his fist on the table and stood up:

"I specialize in buying and selling spiritual herbs and plants. Do you think I'd sell you grass seedlings? If you can't afford it, get lost and stop your babbling! Do you recognize the flying sword in my hand?"

"Tsk."

Su Yan shook his head.

Young people still have too fiery tempers; they'll start yelling and threatening to kill at the slightest provocation.

He initially thought that the stall owner might have been cheated when receiving the goods, since identifying the Tuan Tuan Grass was somewhat difficult for cultivators at this level, as their knowledge and experience were still insufficient.

The stall owner was clearly furious, indicating that he was well aware of the maturity of the plant. He probably had negotiated a lower price when he bought it from the previous owner, claiming it was under-ripe, and was now reselling it as over-ripe.

Is the Xuanqing Sect's secondhand market ever going to recover?

Su Yan stood with his hands behind his back and sighed.

The discrimination based on cultivation level is also reflected in trade. High-level cultivators are knowledgeable and have the ability to fight you to the death, so they can generally get a relatively fair and reasonable price in transactions.

Low-level cultivators have low combat power and limited knowledge. Unless they directly spend a high price to buy goods from shops with legitimate backing, they are easily ripped off in the second-hand market.

However, when Su Yan's cultivation level was low, he mainly operated in the Western Desert. The people there were relatively simple and honest, with few ulterior motives. They would simply take what they wanted directly, so there was much less intrigue and backstabbing in trade compared to the Southern Territory where the Xuanqing Sect was located.

The Xuanqing Sect's secondhand market urgently needs a overhaul!

As Su Yan watched the bustling crowds in the market and heard the sounds of people asking and bargaining, a vague idea began to form in his mind.

However, it will take some time to think about turning this idea into a concrete thought.

To turn that idea into reality, some external help is needed.

Su Yan's eyes flickered as he hurriedly left the market and headed towards the outer disciples' residence.

......

Nothing was said that night, except that the candles in Su Yan's room remained lit all night.

Even before the mountain mist had dissipated in the early morning, the paths throughout the sect were already bustling with people.

The disciples walked in groups of three or five toward the Dao Discussion Square. The problem with the Xuanqing Sect was that everyone had to get up early every day for morning lessons, unless they had a legitimate reason.

Ye Jingqiu, carrying her flying sword, slowly descended a stone staircase along the mountain. When no one was paying attention, she gave a small yawn, then quickly resumed her icy expression.

She got up earlier than most of her disciples.

Not only because she had to practice a sword technique every morning, but also because as an exchange student she lived in a remote area, a bit far from the cafeteria, so she had to leave early, and also because after eating she had to go to the outer disciples' residence to intercept Su Yan.

As usual, she strolled out of the sixth canteen on the hill on time. Just as she stepped down the stone steps, she saw a familiar figure standing smiling on the floating bridge in front of the hill, waiting for her.

Ye Jingqiu looked closely and saw that it was Su Yan. Before she could even block the door, he had come to block the bridge first.

Something unusual must be going on.

Ye Jingqiu hesitated and stopped at the bridgehead, not daring to go up:

"you......"

Good morning, Xiao Ye!

Su Yan greeted her warmly, even carrying breakfast in his hand, and affectionately embraced Ye Jingqiu.

"Have you eaten? If not, have some."

"..."

Ye Jingqiu was extremely uncomfortable with Su Yan's sudden friendliness. He shrank his shoulders warily and stared at the breakfast for a long time before finally managing to utter a sentence:

"What do you want to do?"

"Nothing much. I'm the leader of the training group, it's normal for me to care about my members."

"You, you should just tell me what's wrong, I'm scared."

Ye Jingqiu, who had been fearless and clear-headed since he first held a sword at the age of three, flinched for the first time.

"Tsk, look at you."

Su Yan forcefully shoved the hot breakfast into Ye Jingqiu's cold little hands:

"It's nothing, I just need your help."

Ye Jingqiu was still staring at the breakfast: "I won't do anything that violates the clan rules."

Does forging my signature and signing in for me not violate clan rules?

Su Yan mentally scoffed, but still maintained a smile on his face, holding up a finger in front of Ye Jingqiu's lowered eyes:

"It's just a small matter, not difficult for you. After it's done, I'll not only give you spirit stones, but I'll also demonstrate my sword aura to you. How about it?"

Ye Jingqiu's pupils trembled, he raised his eyes, frowned slightly, and lowered his voice:

"Who do you want to kill?"

Su Yan was taken aback, then realized that the girl had misunderstood, and couldn't help but laugh:

"Didn't we say we wouldn't do anything that violated the clan rules?"

"Giving more isn't necessarily a bad thing."

Ye Jingqiu said in a serious tone:

"So who are you going to kill?"

Su Yan chuckled, looking at her earnest little face, and suddenly wanted to tease her:

"Liu Baishuang".

"this......"

Hesitation flashed again in Ye Jingqiu's pupils. Her hand touched the hilt of the sword at her waist, as if weighing something. After a moment, she pursed her lips and shook her head.

"No, this is the Xuanqing Sect. Killing her is too risky, and..."

Su Yan remained silent, then silently raised another finger.

Ye Jingqiu's words caught in her throat. She stared at the two fingers held up in front of her, her pupils trembling slightly, and swallowed hard.

Suddenly, she grabbed Su Yan's hand, gripped it tightly, and said with a determined look in her eyes:

"Let's make a plan."