Chapter 71: It seems we were thinking too simply before

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: It seems we were thinking too simply before

"Don’t say that, Junior Brother. I’ll still need your help delivering letters in the future."

Yang Haichen shook his head. Perhaps in the past, he would have lost himself amidst the fawning of these Outer Sect Disciples.

But after being ignored by a True Disciple, Yang Haichen understood. These Outer Sect Disciples didn’t value him as a person, but rather his status as an Inner Sect Disciple.

Any Inner Sect Disciple would be fawned over like this. Once he understood that, he would no longer let it affect him emotionally.

"Don’t say that, Senior Brother. If you need a message delivered, just say the word and I’ll personally come to your door."

The disciple delivering the letter was secretly delighted. His relationship with Yang Haichen was actually quite good. Now that Yang Haichen had become an Inner Sect Disciple, perhaps if he ran into trouble in the future, he could use this connection to ask for help.

"Oh, and speaking of letters, I’ve had one here for a few days. The recipient is one of the two junior sisters you asked me to keep an eye out for last time, Senior Brother."

At this thought, the disciple hurriedly retrieved a brocade box from his Storage Ring and handed it to Yang Haichen.

Yang Haichen recalled the two letters from last time, which the disciple had simply held in his hand. He then looked at this letter, which had been carefully placed in a brocade box, and shook his head helplessly.

"Well done."

Yang Haichen put the brocade box away. Aside from him, no other disciple on Purple Bamboo Peak ever went to the back mountain, the courier included. ’Since they sent a letter, it must not be anything urgent,’ he reasoned. ’A few days’ delay probably won’t matter.’

"What’s the price for sending a letter now?"

Yang Haichen took a letter from his Storage Ring. He had prepared it before taking the Inner Sect Disciple assessment. The main point was to announce his success and, more importantly, to request resources.

"You’re joking, Senior Brother Yang. How could I dare let you pay?"

The disciple hurriedly shook his head. Sending a letter only cost two or three Spirit Stones. It was a bargain to trade that for the friendship of an Inner Sect Disciple.

Besides, being a letter carrier came with a few perks, like sending several letters for free each day. He hadn’t understood the reason for this perk before, but now he did. It wasn’t for the couriers; it was for the Inner Sect Disciples.

As for True Disciples, sending letters was completely free for them.

"Here are five Spirit Stones. From now on, if you receive one of the letters I’ve asked you to watch for, bring it directly to my place."

Yang Haichen shook his head, turned, and left. He planned to take the letter to the back mountain. Even though it was already a few days late and probably wouldn’t change any outcomes, it might affect Junior Brother Liu’s opinion of him.

A letter passed from Yang Haichen’s hand to Liu Chen’s, and finally landed in front of Ye Linglong.

"Your family sends letters in brocade boxes?"

Ji Suyao, who was sprawled on the table, couldn’t help but ask as she eyed the brocade box in Ye Linglong’s hand. If that was the case, why didn’t the last letter get the same treatment?

"This was obviously prepared by the courier disciple or Senior Brother Yang."

Ye Linglong rolled her eyes at Ji Suyao and opened the package. Inside, besides a letter, there was also a Storage Ring.

Between the lines, the letter was full of questions about her relationship with Senior Brother Liu. Ye Linglong chose to ignore them. She had expected as much when she decided to make Senior Brother Liu an Honored Guest Elder of the Ye Family.

After performing the Blood Recognition, Ye Linglong inspected the contents of the Storage Ring. Inside were more than ten books, still smelling of fresh ink, and several dozen scrolls.

Ye Linglong pulled everything out at once. Ji Suyao, who had been lazing on the table, shot up and fled as if by reflex. The items brought back unpleasant memories of her childhood tutoring.

"These are all needed for building the bamboo house."

Ye Linglong rolled her eyes at Ji Suyao. Back in the mortal world, her friend only ever came to find her for two reasons: she had scared off a tutor and needed a place to hide for a few days, or she was tired of studying and wanted to treat herself to some of Ye Linglong’s food.

"It’s that complicated?"

Ji Suyao asked uncertainly. She had almost forgotten about it. With the modifications she and Ye Linglong had already made, the bamboo house was plenty big enough for the two of them.

"It seems we thought it would be much simpler."

Ye Linglong glanced over the materials. She didn’t really understand the technical terms. If they were supposed to use Magic to achieve the desired effect, she and Ji Suyao were nowhere near capable enough. ’Perhaps Senior Brother could do it, though,’ she thought.

"Senior Brother seems to have gotten really busy lately. He probably doesn’t have time to build a bamboo house."

Ji Suyao thought back on their senior brother’s recent cultivation routine. Although it looked the same as before, she always had a feeling that he was in a hurry.

"We’ll ask tomorrow."

Ye Linglong nodded. More than this letter, she was waiting to see the Spirit Contract signed between her father and Purple Cloud Valley. That would mean Purple Cloud Valley had completed its evaluation of the Ye Family, and her senior brother could officially become their Honored Guest Elder.

’But then again,’ she thought, ’something this important wouldn’t be sent by letter. The Steward from Purple Cloud Valley in charge of it will probably make the trip in person.’

On the eighth day of the eighth month, Liu Chen watched Senior Brother Yang leave with the two portions of Spiritual Cuisine he’d sold him. To prepare for the upcoming trial, Liu Chen was willing to part with a bit more of his Spiritual Cuisine.

Even if those True Disciples tried to haggle him down, it didn’t matter. For Liu Chen, this was basically a business with no overhead; there was no way for him to lose money.

If any of the True Disciples pushed too hard, Liu Chen could just add them to a blacklist after the trial was over. ’I’d rather not sell at all than sell to you,’ he thought.

Yang Haichen had just left the back mountain with the Spiritual Cuisine when several True Disciples immediately surrounded him, Spirit Swords hovering menacingly around them. If Yang Haichen didn’t know for a fact that they were here to trade for Spiritual Cuisine, he would have bolted on the spot.

"Junior Brother, take a look. These are all First Grade Spirit Swords, but they’re more than enough for a Body Tempering Realm Cultivator. Just tell me which one you like."

"Get outta here! You bought all those at the Marketplace yesterday. Junior Brother, look at mine. This is a Purple Bamboo Sword, forged from Purple Bamboo itself. You should know, Junior Brother, a single stalk of Purple Bamboo costs a thousand Spirit Stones!"

"Tch! That’s clearly a Cyan Bamboo Sword that you later infused with purple crystal. You really think our junior brother is an amateur who can’t tell good from junk?"

"Junior Brother, you should check out my Cyan Maple Sword. It’s made from top-grade Cyan Maple Wood, and its toughness surpasses even that of Purple Bamboo!"

"Junior Brother is looking for a Spirit Sword. Why are you showing him a stick?"

Yang Haichen watched in silence as the True Disciples tore each other’s offers down. He carefully examined the Spirit Swords his senior brothers had presented and sighed internally.

He had seen these Spirit Swords in the Marketplace before. People would ask about them, but those who could afford them didn’t want them, and those who wanted them couldn’t afford them.

"A First Grade Cyan Steel Sword, plus one Golden Body Technique."

Just as Yang Haichen was about to say something, he heard a different kind of voice. This person sounded very calm, and from her tone, it seemed to be a senior sister.

"Thank you, Senior Sister."

Yang Haichen nodded. The Cyan Steel Sword was a standard-issue Spirit Sword. While common, its quality was more reliable than those privately forged ones. And that wasn’t even mentioning the addition of the Golden Body Technique.