The Science of Cultivation [Xianxia]

Chapter 155: Shopping Spree

“Dear guests, what is your approximate budget?” the saleslady asked as they walked out to the stables-like warehouse, where dozens of Skyrunners were showcased.

The trio let their smallest member with the mask answer.

“A-about twenty red crystals f-for the Skyrunner with a consumption of n-no more than ten Qi stones per hour.”

So far, the Skyrunner Li Lang received from Elder Cao only expended one Qi stone per hour. It was the most basic model there was. In turn, it meant it was slow.

With some wealth under their belt, and Li Lang’s ability to earn taken into consideration, they obviously chose something much better than their old one. Still, the group decided not to get ahead of themselves and set a modest budget of around twenty red crystals.

The main consideration behind their decision was the consumption. Ten Qi stones per hour were already quite a bit over their current earning ability, but they didn’t travel every day.

“Hmm, ten Qi stones, so we’ll be taking a look at the most basic Earth-grade Skyrunners or the peak of the Mortal-grade. Personally, I would recommend the latter, because you’ll be able to use both red crystals and Qi stones. In the event of an emergency, you’d also be able to power it with your own Qi, unlike the Earth-grade ones.”

Earth-grade items required Foundation Establishment level Qi to power. It was something Li Lang had investigated long ago, where he found Qi had a qualitative change once it reached a certain saturation point. Until one of them broke through, they would have to rely on red crystals to power the Earth-grade Skyrunner if they bought it.

No one objected to the salesperson’s recommendation, as their safety was on the line, so they soon found themselves inside one of the Skyrunner warehouses. Dozens of small gates decorated both sides, presenting a clear view of the vehicles behind them. The scene still made Li Lang expect a horse’s head to come poking out at any time, but that was evidently not going to happen.

“So there are quite a few options that fit your criteria. Most Mortal-grade vehicles don’t consume that many Qi stones. There are only about three we have on hand that have such a high consumption.”

“We’ll t-take a look at those, t-then.”

The employee did her job, guiding them to the vehicles, and went over the specifics of each of them. Li Lang was sure she went into such detail because she recognized Wei Ping as someone who knew his stuff. The conversation wasn’t exactly hard to follow, except for the various names of materials they mentioned.

Li Lang could have either never come into contact with these wooden resources or they were under unfamiliar names. There was no shortage of data entries within his lab that were placeholder names that consisted of numbers and letters in random sequences.

Either way, with only three candidates to go through, they finished looking over them within the hour.

“So, what do you guys think? If none of them meet your needs, we can continue looking at the others as well.”

Wei Ping glanced over at Li Lang for his decision. After all, he was still the one with the purse.

With all three being in the same ballpark in price, their performances understandably didn’t differ too much.

The first option was a dark brown vehicle with room for six in the back. It was the same size as the basic Skyrunner they had and cost nine red crystals. The sales lady introduced it as a basic model within the peak Mortal-grade.

The second option was similar, except it was larger, which also meant it was slightly slower. It could carry ten people in the back with room to spare for luggage. It cost fourteen red crystals.

The third option was the most expensive of them all. It was a size between the first two options and made from golden brown material. It didn’t have the luggage space like the second one, but could still fit ten people. Its price was justifiably higher because it could not only travel as fast as the first option, but it could also block out the Qi sense from prying eyes. The price tag was twenty-two crystals.

Li Lang didn’t have to dwell on the matter for long before he answered.

“We’ll take the last one we saw.”

His answer made the woman clap her hands.

“Good eye, dear guest. This Skyrunner was made by a talented woodsmith who only came short of nurturing it into Earth-grade due to a certain accident. Still, it should have no problem blocking prying sense from Foundation Establishment experts.”

“Where do we pay?” Li Lang asked, not amused by the flattery.

Taking the hint, they were swiftly guided back into the store.

The clerk quickly processed their sale inside the main building, where they fetched Sima Xue and rode back onto the streets of Polarity City on their new vehicle.

“Not bad. It’s pretty spacious back here,” Sima Xue exclaimed.

Li Lang had opted to drive their new Skyrunner, as Sima Xue would no longer tag along starting tomorrow.

“Yeah, this one is definitely more comfortable for me,” Long Yi added.

“That’s because mine was only intended for a girl like me. You’re just too big,”

Long Yi grinned and raised both hands in surrender. He didn’t argue with her accusations. The group of four slowly trekked across the city in silence for some time before Sima Xue got bored.

“Where are we going next, anyway?”

“To buy what you were telling me about yesterday,” Li Lang answered.

“Yesterday?”

“Yeah, at the auction.”

“Hmmm. I don’t remember, just tell me.”

“Just be patient. We’re almost there. You’ll see soon.”

“Cheapskate!”

As Li Lang had foretold, they soon arrived at a treasure pavilion. It was a five-story building, much larger than the previous one they had visited. It wasn’t a coincidence as they had asked around for the largest one around.

“Treasure pavilion? That doesn’t tell me anything," Sima Xue cried.

Li Lang didn’t bother to explain as they made their way in. There was an entire crowd inside, all lined up behind a counter. Thankfully, there was a staff member holding a sign at the back of the line, informing them it was for pawning items only.

“Seems like all these independent cultivators are doing their best to gather funds ahead of the auctions tonight,” Long Yi commented.

“Good. Hopefully, that means it’s more likely for them to have what we want.”

Leaving behind those words, Li Lang braved through the sea of people and made a beeline for the staircase. Items were placed on each floor by their respective value. He knew there was no way what he wanted was on the first floor.

The entire place was set up like a mirrored P, with the products displayed behind the counters of the oval area while a straight hallway connected the entrance to the stairway.

Arriving on the second floor, they found the scene much more serene. There were only a few other guests around. The staff members outnumbered the customers.

Looking to save time, Li Lang walked straight to a clerk who appeared free.

“Excuse me, do you know where I can find space rings here?”

“Space ring, sir?” the tall clerk parroted as if he thought he had misheard.

“That’s right.”

“Give me one moment.”

The man swiftly retreated into the back of the store for a few minutes before he returned with a much older-looking man who was cleanly shaven. He had an eye-catching scar that ran across his left cheek, all the way down to his chin.

“Greetings dear guest. Welcome to our Golden Beetle Pavilion. I am Tong Wei, one of the managers here. I heard you’re looking for a space ring?”

Li Lang nodded.

“Do you have any here?”

“Of course, of course. Our treasure pavilion has a stockpile of numerous valuables thanks to the prospering trade route due to our location. Please follow me up to the third floor.”

The middle-aged man walked with an air of confidence. Despite not detecting any Qi from the man, everyone in the group knew he was an expert. He nodded amiably to Sima Xue as he passed her before moving along at a steady pace.

Up on the third floor, the layout appeared the same. It was a simple oval room, filled with various items on the shelves behind the clerks. Manager Tong Wei swiftly got behind the counter and retrieved several boxes from the display.

He placed them on the counter just as Li Lang’s group approached.

“Here are the space rings we have on hand. As you would expect, while the auctions are going on, we only have rank one and two space rings on hand.”

The manager opened up the boxes, revealing half a dozen silver rings within. Each of them was adorned with a whitish stone that resembled marble. They were so similar that it was impossible for Li Lang to tell which were the rank ones and which were the rank twos.

Finally. It’s time for me to get my hands on a space ring. Not only will it help with our logistics, it’ll also sate my curiosity as to how they work!

Li Lang wasted no time and went straight to the question that mattered.

“How much are they?”