Chapter 143 – A Charlatan? I Am Not a Charlatan

This spiritual plant was of the second tier, an exceptional specimen among thousands, and more than just the two of them wanted it. After that man made his bid, someone else spoke up.

“Six hundred thousand.”

Lian Mu swept her gaze around. It seemed there were more competitors than she’d thought.

Muzhou knew this was the plant she needed. He glanced at her, just in time to see her clear her throat lightly—immediately he had a bad feeling.

Lian Mu called out, “One million.”

“Pfft—!”

The man opposite her had just taken a sip of tea and promptly sprayed it all over the face of the guard beside him.

Everyone turned to look at her: “???”

Is this person insane!?

The auctioneer on stage could barely keep his mouth from splitting open in a grin: “Little friend, you are truly generous.”

Some people looked ordinary but were wealthier than everyone else. This one was obviously a precious guest of the Star-Plucking Tower.

Ten million—this figure far exceeded the true worth of that plant.

Sure enough, after she called out that number, no one else dared to bid.

The plant ended up hers. The moment the gavel fell, several attendants immediately surrounded her, serving her tea and bringing her food.

Beside her, Muzhou left without a word, expressionless.

Lian Mu watched his retreating back and cheerfully called after him, “Take care, Second Master. Don’t forget to come back and pay later.”

The remaining items were mostly third-tier and above, with starting prices alone scaring off many people. Combined with the presence of two bidders who loved to inflate prices, everyone became extra cautious with their offers.

After securing all the essential plants she needed, Lian Mu realized she was still missing one. She assumed it would appear as the grand finale, so she waited patiently and collected whatever else she could in the meantime.

Sure enough, the man opposite her continued to compete relentlessly, pushing prices up crazily—unfortunately for him, he couldn’t outplay Lian Mu.

“The final item today is the Azure Dragon Sea Pearl, produced by a first-tier water beast. This pearl is over a hundred years old. When placed in water—”

Lian Mu frowned slightly: “…”

Something was wrong.

This didn’t match the list she had.

She looked down at her notes: she was still missing a spiritual plant called the ‘Corpse Flower’. It was on the auction list, but hadn’t appeared.

She stood up, left through a side passage, and grabbed a guard while showing her token. “Why did you swap items at the last minute?”

The guard saw the token and immediately said, “This was the floor master’s order. The item that was swapped had an issue and couldn’t be presented for now. Are you one of the tower master’s people? I can take you to the treasure vault manager to ask.”

Lian Mu followed him to another area, passing through walls with a talisman. This place was specifically for storing the auction goods. She discovered she wasn’t alone: the man who had been bidding against her was there too.

They hadn’t noticed her yet, so Lian Mu watched from a short distance.

He was dressed in rags, with a guard beside him—at first glance, it was hard to tell who was the master and who the servant.

“Young Master Ning, our floor master said this flower can’t be sold and must be returned immediately to the Third Domain.”

“But I urgently need this flower—I’m willing to pay any price.”

“This isn’t about money. This Corpse Flower grew for ten years in the Third Domain. Someone accepted a spiritual plant bounty and discovered it was the companion plant of a second-tier wood beast. After bringing it back, the beast went berserk and is now attacking other demon hunters in the Third Domain. No one can subdue it for now, so the flower must be returned to its place.”

“But—”

“No.”

Lian Mu listened for a while and roughly understood the situation. She stepped forward and said, “I want this plant too.”

The man called ‘Young Master Ning’ turned around: “You again. Miss, why do you always like to fight me for things?”

Lian Mu: “…You think too highly of yourself. I’m not here to fight you—I needed it from the start.”

Ning laughed: “What a coincidence—I need it too.”

The guard looked at her and sighed helplessly: “Another one… I already said, for the safety of the other demon hunters in the Third Domain, this plant can’t be sold to anyone.”

Lian Mu said, “A demonic beast causing havoc and no one can suppress it? I heard those who take high-level bounties are all top experts. A mere second-tier demonic beast shouldn’t be a problem for the Star-Plucking Tower.”

“Times have changed,” the guard sighed. “Since you’re here, you must have the tower master’s permission. To be honest, the Star-Plucking Tower isn’t what it used to be.”

“Recently, two people from the Flying Sea Pavilion made trouble in the lower floors—one of them, Bai Lingque, drove out all the sword cultivators below, then waited outside to challenge other cultivators, claiming he’d beat everyone he met. He’s so powerful that even the higher-ups can’t defeat him. As a result, very few independent experts come to the Star-Plucking Tower anymore.”

The guard continued, “The Flying Sea Pavilion has set its sights on the Third Domain. The tower master refuses to give up this territory, so their pavilion master keeps stirring up trouble. The tower’s strong cultivators are fed up with the chaos and have been swayed by a few words to defect to the Flying Sea Pavilion. Our tower master has bad legs and rarely stays inside the tower, and the Second Master can’t stop the Flying Sea Pavilion people alone.”

Lian Mu: “…”

Bai Su, truly ruthless when it comes to business.

“So you mean, there’s no one left in the Star-Plucking Tower who can deal with that demonic beast?” Lian Mu said. “How about I give it a try? If I can kill it, the plant is mine—deal?”

“You?” The guard sized her up. “You think you can do it?”

Lian Mu immediately sold herself: “I’m a sword cultivator, triple spiritual roots but exceptional talent, a rising star. I’ve slain a first-tier demonic beast before. I’m trained by one of the top masters of our time—everyone says I’m destined to become the world’s number one sword cultivator.”

The guard was astonished: “That impressive?”

No wonder she could casually throw around hundreds of thousands or millions—real experts rarely lack money.

A triple-root sword cultivator who has slain a first-tier beast must have at least two hundred years of cultivation. Judging by her appearance, she must have reached the level where she can maintain her youthful looks.

“You can try if you want. This was your idea—if something happens, we won’t take responsibility,” the guard said. “If you really manage to kill it, you can have the plant for free. There’s a bounty for that wood beast downstairs too, but no one’s dared take it. If you succeed, the bounty is yours.”

“Wait, I’m a talisman cultivator. I can kill it too.” Ning suddenly spoke up. “Since it’s a bounty-listed demonic beast, there’s no issue with two people competing, right?”

The guard: “Do whatever you want. The bounty is downstairs—according to the rules, whoever kills the beast gets the plant. If you can’t resolve it by sundown, the Corpse Flower must be returned to the Third Domain.”

He left with the box containing the plant, leaving Lian Mu and Ning staring each other down.

After a brief silence, he said, “Miss, my surname is Ning, full name Ning Xun. If you’ve stayed long in Xi City, you must have heard of me.”

Lian Mu: “Nope. Don’t care who you are.”

Ning Xun froze for a second, then said, “I must have this Corpse Flower—I came first. Even if you’re a sword cultivator, I won’t back down.”

Lian Mu: “Oh? Then we’ll see who’s more capable.”

She reached into her sleeve and pulled out a teleportation talisman, ready to transport herself downstairs immediately. Ning Xun saw what she was doing and shamelessly grabbed her sleeve, pulling out his own talisman with the other hand.

The bounty was posted on the first floor downstairs. Whoever got there first could enter the Third Domain early, while the one who came second had to wait fifteen minutes. For two powerful cultivators, those fifteen minutes were crucial.

Seeing him act, Lian Mu simply matched his shamelessness and kicked him in the knee, stepping on his shoe and refusing to let go.

The two of them immediately began tripping and tangling with each other on the spot—neither willing to yield an inch.

“Miss, let go.” Ning Xun pressed down on her arm as he spoke.

Lian Mu leaned her forehead against his, her foot firmly planted. “You let go first.”

Ning Xun said, “You’d better not mess with me. I can tell fortunes—careful or I’ll read your fate down to the last coin.”

Lian Mu replied, “Save it. My fate can’t get any poorer than it already is.”

Not far away, a guard who had just finished clearing up the remains turned back to see the two of them grappling and fell silent: “…”

Just to go downstairs—was this necessary?

The guard barked, “Both of you, stop it!”

He pulled out a talisman, pressed it to their heads, and dragged them downstairs together.

The fourth floor—the bounty floor—was much quieter than the lower levels, and everyone there had an air of calm authority. One look and you could tell they weren’t ordinary folk.

When the three of them suddenly appeared in front of the bounty wall, every gaze in the room turned their way.

The guard glanced at the wall; right in front of them was the bounty notice for that rampaging wooden beast.

【Bounty: Demonic Beast—Stage Two Wood-Beast, Scaled-Hoof Twin-Headed Deer
Reward: 300,000 spirit stones
Objective: Dead
Current claimant: None】

The guard split the bounty into two copies. “Rip it off together and go in together—this should settle it, right?”

Without hesitation, Lian Mu tore off a copy. Ning Xun didn’t hesitate either.

【Bounty: Demonic Beast—Stage Two Wood-Beast, Scaled-Hoof Twin-Headed Deer
Reward: 300,000 spirit stones
Objective: Dead
Current claimants: ‘Cultivation Is Just a Money Grab’, ‘I Am Not a Charlatan’】

Lian Mu glanced sideways. “A charlatan… so you really do tell fortunes?”

Ning Xun looked exasperated. “I told you, I’m not a charlatan.”

When the guard saw the names appear on the bounty wall, he suddenly froze. “Y-you… you’re that sword cultivator who smashed through the lower levels with Bai Lingque from the Flying Sea Pavilion?”

Lian Mu seized her chance before Ning Xun could react—she bolted for the Transfer Mirror.

“You—!”

Ning Xun ran after her, but he was still a step too slow and missed the mirror.

Everyone around them: “…”

Just to use a Transfer Mirror—was this really necessary?

The guard came to his senses belatedly. “Wait! ‘Cultivation Is Just a Money Grab’, you’ve already been expelled from the Star-Plucking Tower—”

He didn’t finish. Suddenly, a pair of hands clapped onto his shoulders. He turned and immediately bowed his head. “Second-in-Command.”

Muzhou had come down at some point too. He looked at the Transfer Mirror, now calm again after its brief ripple, and said slowly, “Let her go.”

“But—”

Muzhou said, “Just a mere Three-Spirit-Root brat, so young, and she dares tackle a Stage Two demonic beast alone? She got lucky at the lower levels and now thinks she’s invincible. Put her name back on the Hunter list—I want to see if she lives to collect these bounties.”

“Yes, sir.”

——

After entering the Transfer Mirror, Lian Mu suddenly remembered she hadn’t brought her Star-Plucking Tower bracelet. If she killed the beast, there’d be no prompt, and no news would get back.

She was wondering if she should go back and ask for another when a man in black dropped down from the sky and tossed her a bracelet.

“‘Cultivation Is Just a Money Grab’, your old bracelet won’t work in the Star-Plucking Tower anymore. Second-in-Command has put your name back on the Hunter list—use this one for now.”

Lian Mu looked down. This bracelet was different from the old white one; this one was purple, the pass for the highest bounty tier.

So she’d skipped the clearance tests and become a top-tier Hunter outright?

“Got it,” Lian Mu said. “Tell your Second-in-Command to remember to pay the auction balance.”

The man in black had been about to leave but nearly slipped off his silver kite when he heard that: “…”

Rumor had it there was a sword cultivator down in the lower levels calling herself ‘Cultivation Is Just a Money Grab’, brazen enough to exploit every loophole she could find—he hadn’t expected she’d even dare fleece the Second-in-Command. She really did have the strength to back it up.

Lian Mu didn’t care what he thought; she only wanted to find that demonic beast first.

That Ning Xun wasn’t an easy opponent either. He might look ragged and reek of poverty, but anyone who dared tear down a high-tier demonic beast bounty without a word had to have real skill.

She walked a few steps and released her spiritual sense to search for traces of the beast nearby.

This area was dense with low shrubs—prime hiding ground for wood-beasts, which loved to disguise themselves among foliage and ambush passersby.

Lian Mu followed a narrow trail into the woods and caught a whiff of blood and rot. Tracking it to the source, she found a pool of blood and torn limbs.

That wood-beast had rampaged through many Hunters—this must be one of them. The area hadn’t been properly cleaned up; the bodies had probably been eaten to the bone.

She’d already slain a berserk Stage One Guardian Beast; she felt no fear at facing a Stage Two demonic beast now. Master Feng had expected this hunt might involve a beast encounter and had slipped her pills beforehand to keep her body stable—so long as she fought seriously, nothing major should go wrong.

She crouched, dipped her fingertip in the blood, and sensed the beast’s lingering aura—chaotic but enough to guess which way it had gone after feeding.

She was about to follow the trail when she heard a branch snap overhead.

Lian Mu drew her sword at once and sliced the tree in half.

“Ah!”

Before the trunk even hit the ground, a man fell out and crashed into the bushes with a thud.

Lian Mu: “?”

The man staggered to his feet, saw her, and gaped. “You again? That’s strange—I clearly divined there’d be no one here…”

Lian Mu said, “You charlatan—your divination sucks.”

Ning Xun snapped, “Stop calling me a charlatan! I’m a proper fortune master! Just wait—I’ll find that beast before you do.”

“Save it. It’s already gone far.”

Neither had found the beast yet, and he wasn’t a threat to her for now, so Lian Mu asked, “What do you want the Corpse Flower for?”

Ning Xun said, “I’m saving someone—someone very important. Miss, if you let me have the Corpse Flower, I’ll read your fortune and give you the full bounty too. My readings are spot on.”

“No deal. I’m saving someone too—someone very important.”

She thought about it. She was her own most important person, and that Corpse Flower was a key ingredient for the new spirit replenishing pill.

She didn’t need any fortune-telling nonsense.

“If you insist on fighting me for it, then I’ll just have to…”

Ning Xun narrowed his eyes, lowered his voice, and clenched his fists; talismans slipped from his sleeve and ignited in midair.

Lian Mu raised a brow. “You want to fight me?”

She had barely finished speaking when Ning Xun turned and bolted east, talismans swirling around him as he moved like the wind.

“Then I’ll just run first!”

Lian Mu looked at the direction he fled. “…”

A charlatan, indeed. The beast’s trail clearly led west—he’d run the exact wrong way.