Chapter 9: Shopkeeper Mengg

In the entire Lingxiao Pavilion, Yangx Kai was only familiar with one person: Shopkeeper Mengg, who stood before him. After all, he had to visit him once every month.

Shopkeeper Mengg had a nickname: Mengg Bapi. Although he was just a lowly Shopkeeper in the Lingxiao Pavilion’s Contribution Hall, his absolute favorite pastime in life was squeezing Contribution Points out of the disciples.

For the Blood Coagulation and Bruise Removal Ointment, originally priced at ten Contribution Points, he could sell two bottles’ worth for the price of three. His method was incredibly simple: he just divided the contents of two bottles into three. If you wanted it, you bought it; if not, you could get lost!

Of course, Shopkeeper Mengg didn’t do this kind of underhanded thing all the time, only occasionally. Furthermore, his targets were always the wealthy disciples. He looked down on penniless wretches like Yangx Kai.

Every disciple in Lingxiao Pavilion earned their Contribution Points the hard way, so how could they endure such exploitation? Almost every disciple who had been swindled by him reported him to the Elder Council. Shopkeeper Mengg had received numerous warnings from the Elder Council, yet he continued to do as he pleased, completely unmoved. Inexplicably, his position as Shopkeeper was unshakeable; no one could replace him. Because of this, countless Lingxiao Pavilion disciples hated Shopkeeper Mengg so much they ground their teeth in anger.

The old man gave no one the time of day, yet he was utterly helpless when it came to Yangx Kai. The reason was simple: once, while he was enthusiastically ogling a female disciple’s behind, Yangx Kai had caught him red-handed.

What an inappropriate old man! It was a complete lack of decorum. With this leverage held against him, Shopkeeper Mengg always felt inferior in front of Yangx Kai. It was precisely because of this that Yangx Kai had grown familiar with the old man.

The old man was a lecher, but he also had thick skin. In an instant, he adjusted his expression, glancing sideways at Yangx Kai. "The usual?"

"Yeah," Yangx Kai nodded honestly.

Shopkeeper Mengg didn’t say another word. He pulled out ten taels of silver from behind the counter, tossed them in front of Yangx Kai, and then took out a ledger to record the transaction.

Yangx Kai pocketed the silver and asked, "How many Contribution Points do I have right now?"

Shopkeeper Mengg rolled his eyes. "You save four Contribution Points every month. You spend one point a month in exchange for ten taels of silver, leaving you with three. So far, you’ve only managed to save a measly twelve Contribution Points. What, do you want to buy a bottle of Blood Coagulation and Bruise Removal Ointment?"

"No, I was just asking." Yangx Kai waved his hand, muttering, "Only twelve points..."

With so few Contribution Points, it wasn’t even enough to exchange for a single valuable medicinal herb.

Shopkeeper Mengg’s expression turned serious as he lowered his voice. "Little Yangx Kai, I know you want that Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill to improve your aptitude. But at this rate, it’ll take you until the end of time to save up enough."

"I’ll save enough eventually, won’t I?" Yangx Kai chuckled.

Shopkeeper Mengg was left speechless. He thought to himself that at this rate, by the time the boy saved enough, he would have been dead for a hundred years.

"However, Shopkeeper Mengg, there is one thing I don’t understand," Yangx Kai said, furrowing his brow.

"Speak!" The old man adopted an air that seemed to say Yangx Kai should consider himself lucky, for he was in a good mood today.

"How could a Pill as precious as the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill appear in the Contribution Hall? And how has it not been exchanged by anyone else?"

"HEH HEH..." Shopkeeper Mengg smiled smugly. "Because this Elixir is my own personal treasure. No one else knows about it."

"Ah, it’s yours?" Yangx Kai was stunned. He had always thought the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill was a Lingxiao Pavilion Elixir. So it was actually his own. No wonder this old geezer had quoted him an astronomical price.

"Don’t get angry," Shopkeeper Mengg said complacently, picking up the teapot on the counter to take a sip. "Even though it’s mine, I won’t sell it to you on the cheap. If you want it, just bring enough Contribution Points to exchange for it. I didn’t get the nickname Mengg Bapi for nothing."

"I’ll save enough," Yangx Kai nodded.

Shopkeeper Mengg’s expression suddenly changed again. He winked at Yangx Kai and whispered, "I heard you got beaten up again yesterday?"

Yangx Kai glared at him, turning on his heel to leave.

Shopkeeper Mengg called out from behind, "Tell me about it! Don’t be in such a rush to leave!"

What was there to say? Elder Mengg was clearly reveling in his misfortune.

Before Yangx Kai could leave the Contribution Hall, Elder Mengg’s expression suddenly turned grave. Staring at Yangx Kai’s back, he said in a deep voice, "Little Yangx Kai, go back to wherever you came from. Lingxiao Pavilion is not a place you can stay. Sooner or later, you’ll be beaten to death."

Yangx Kai paused his steps. Without turning around, he sighed softly. "I have nowhere to go."

With that, he walked out of the Contribution Hall.

Elder Mengg cradled the teapot in both hands, letting out a long sigh. "Why put yourself through this?"

He thought to himself that he didn’t actually possess a heaven-defying treasure like the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill. He had merely fabricated a lie to give the boy some hope, never expecting him to take it so seriously.

Yangx Kai first returned to his small hut to drop off his broom before hurrying out of Lingxiao Pavilion.

He was heading to Wumei Town, located ten miles outside of Lingxiao Pavilion. Since he had no choice but to exchange one Contribution Point for ten taels of silver today, he naturally needed to purchase some food rations. This was something Yangx Kai did every month.

Walking along the road, Yangx Kai surprisingly didn’t feel tired for the first time. In the past, whenever he visited Wumei Town, walking the ten miles would leave him flushed, his heart pounding, and gasping for breath. Today, however, he felt nothing of the sort. His body merely felt slightly warm, brimming with lingering stamina. Yangx Kai was confident that even if he walked another hundred miles, he probably wouldn’t feel fatigued.

Was this the Golden Form’s doing again? Yangx Kai suddenly remembered an incident from that morning. While he had been sweeping the floors, an unnamed junior disciple had bumped into him. Instead of losing his balance, he had stood firmly in place, while the sturdy junior disciple was knocked to the ground.

He hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but in retrospect, it was clearly unbelievable. With his frail physique, since when was it the other person who ended up on the ground? Usually, he was the one sent flying.

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. The changes the Golden Form had brought him were truly immense. Such transformations wouldn’t be entirely visible right away; only as he gradually grew stronger in the future would he slowly unearth the Golden Form’s true power.

Lost in thought, Yangx Kai only snapped back to reality when he arrived in the center of Wumei Town.

Looking left and right, he strolled down the street on his left. Yangx Kai was heading to a Rice Shop. The Rice Shop wasn’t large, and its boss, Mr. He, was a local resident running a small business. His goods were genuine, his prices fair, and he never cheated anyone. This was exactly why Yangx Kai always did business with him.

Small shops like this could be found everywhere in Wumei Town, making it exceptionally bustling and lively. Centered around Wumei Town, within a hundred-mile radius, there was not only Lingxiao Pavilion but also two other decent Sects: Fengyu Tower and the Blood War Gang. As for the other minor Sects and gangs, they were too numerous to count. However, these minor factions were merely ragtag groups and motley crews; they didn’t have their own territories like the three major Sects, including Lingxiao Pavilion.

Precisely because this region nurtured so many martial artists, Wumei Town was this prosperous and busy. Of course, it still couldn’t be compared to a place like Zhongdu. After all, Zhongdu was the capital of the Great Han Dynasty!

As he was walking, Yangx Kai casually glanced to the side and noticed several people gathered in a nearby alleyway. They were acting shady, secretly plotting who-knew-what. One of them was highly vigilant; sensing Yangx Kai’s gaze, he immediately glared back with a fiercely malicious expression.

Yangx Kai chuckled softly. Adhering to his principle of leaving others alone as long as they left him alone, he ignored them. However, what puzzled him a little was that one of those people looked familiar. He seemed to be a disciple of Lingxiao Pavilion.