Dominator Emperor

The shopkeeper came back to his senses and immediately said to Li Qiye, ”Since you want it, sir, this box is yours.”

”Shopkeeper, no matter what he offers, I’ll use True Master Essence Jade to buy that box from you.” The shopkeeper’s sudden change in attitude made Leng Chengfeng’s expression darken. He spoke in a cold voice.

The shopkeeper shook his head. ”I’m afraid, sir, that this box is not for sale. It is a gift from our humble shop to this gentleman, a small token of our appreciation!”

”You—!” The shopkeeper’s words made Leng Chengfeng’s expression change drastically.

The shopkeeper said in a solemn voice, ”Sir, our shop is closing now. Please leave. Forgive us for our poor hospitality!”

”You—!” Leng Chengfeng’s face turned livid as he glared at him. The shopkeeper, however, remained perfectly calm, as if he didn’t notice Leng Chengfeng’s fury.

In the end, Leng Chengfeng just snorted heavily, flicked his sleeves, and left. Though he was aggressive, he still understood the basics. In a treacherous place like Celestial Ancient City, anyone who could run a business like Ancient Meaning Studio had to have a shocking background. Otherwise, they would have been robbed blind long ago!

”So what if you’re rich!” Nan Huairun shouted as Leng Chengfeng left. ”Compared to our Eldest Brother, your stinking money is less than a fart!”

Leng Chengfeng trembled with rage at Nan Huairun’s words. His face was a livid, ugly mask. In the end, he slunk away in disgrace.

”You kid, why the venomous tongue?” Li Qiye said with a laugh, shaking his head. It was less of a scolding and more of an accolade.

”Heh, Eldest Brother, I just can’t stand that nouveau riche attitude of his. Does he think he’s hot stuff just because he has some stinking money?” Nan Huairun said with a grin.

Just then, the shopkeeper deftly packed the box himself and presented it to Li Qiye. ”This humble one had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. I did not realize you were so profoundly knowledgeable, sir. I hope you will accept this meager gift.”

The shopkeeper was so polite and respectful that it wasn’t just Nan Huairun’s group; even Li Shuangyan and the others were stirred. Li Qiye had utterly transformed the shopkeeper’s attitude with just a single sentence. It was truly unbelievable.

”Shopkeeper, my Eldest Brother’s words are worth a fortune.” While Qu Daoli and the others didn’t dare say more, Nan Huairun, ever the sycophant, licked his lips and couldn’t resist adding, ”Hey, Shopkeeper, I’ll also say, ’Huang Zhong Kunwu, one toll to shake the heavens.’ Can you give me a treasure too?”

Li Qiye smacked him on the back of the head and chided with a laugh, ”You brat, what do you know about Huang Zhong Kunwu or ’one toll to shake the heavens’? That’s a secret of the ancient Ancestors!”

”Heh, if Eldest Brother knows, then that’s the same as me knowing,” Nan Huairun said shamelessly.

Li Qiye shot him a glare, and Nan Huairun immediately shut up. He certainly knew what could be said and what couldn’t.

”Would you be willing to join me in the inner hall, sir? This humble one wishes to ask for your guidance,” the shopkeeper said with utmost respect.

”Very well.” Li Qiye nodded, leading Li Shuangyan and the others into the inner hall of Ancient Meaning Studio. The shopkeeper then instructed his clerk to close up for the day; they were done with business.

After they were seated in the inner hall, the shopkeeper was incredibly enthusiastic. In one swift motion, he presented Li Shuangyan and the others each with a piece of precious jade. ”This is the highest-level VIP Jade Seal for our Ancient Meaning Studio,” he said. ”Whenever any of you grace our establishment with your business, everything will be thirty percent off!”

The shopkeeper’s enthusiasm stirred everyone present. They all knew that Ancient Meaning Studio dealt in high-end goods, with transactions easily running into the millions of Essence Jade. A thirty percent discount was a staggering offer.

At that moment, Li Shuangyan and the others truly understood that Li Qiye’s words were worth a king’s ransom. His pronouncements were practically made of gold.

”Our humble shop has a matter we cannot comprehend, and we need you to clear our confusion, sir,” the shopkeeper said earnestly, rubbing his hands together after sitting down.

”If you want the Nine Ancient Languages, Shopkeeper, just say so. From what I can see, you’re a man who can make the final decision,” Li Qiye said with a leisurely smile.

The shopkeeper was profoundly shaken. ’Nine Ancient Languages...’ This was utterly shocking to him. Others might not have known, but his family understood just how precious this thing was!

”You are a great master—” The shopkeeper shot to his feet and bowed. ”May I ask for your esteemed name, sir?”

”Me?” Li Qiye said with that same leisurely smile. ”I am Li Qiye, a disciple of the Xiyan Ancient Sect. But I wonder, which branch of the Gu Family are you the Great Steward of, Shopkeeper?”

”You’re too kind, too kind.” The shopkeeper was visibly moved and hurriedly replied, ”My clansmen have shown me great favor. I am barely qualified to hold the main seat.”

”Now that is a surprise,” Li Qiye said with a smile. ”The Patriarch of the Gu Family, personally running the shop. That’s quite a rare sight.”

Nan Huairun and the others could only stare at each other, completely baffled. They didn’t understand a single word of the conversation between Li Qiye and the shopkeeper. What Gu Family? What Great Steward? They were totally in the dark.

”I know the rules of the Gu Family,” Li Qiye said with composure. ”And I know about the Gu Family’s Yellow Bell. Patriarch, the Gu Family has a time-honored name stretching back millions of years. Since you are men of business, I too prefer to discuss this as a matter of business.”

”The Nine Ancient Languages... name your price, sir.” Shopkeeper Gu was truly a businessman. Without beating around the bush, he got straight to the point.

”I don’t want much. How about this,” Li Qiye said with a smile. ”I just want those three sheets of paper. What do you think, Shopkeeper?”

”That—” The shopkeeper’s expression changed. In fact, it wasn’t just him; Nan Huairun and the others were shocked as well. Those three sheets of paper were an Emperor’s Treasure!

Li Qiye shook his head. ”Shopkeeper, I’m giving the Gu Family a fair price. Otherwise, I would have asked for the three sheets of paper *and* that stone. You should know how important the thing your Gu Family needs is.”

”I won’t hide it from you, sir.” The shopkeeper hesitated for a moment before finally saying, ”We need some sort of guarantee. After all, this matter is too important, and a verbal agreement is not enough.”

Li Qiye looked at the shopkeeper, then smiled. ”Fine. The Gu Family has been in business for millions of years; you have a golden reputation. I can trust your family’s credit. Bring me a brush and paper. I’ll write down one phrase for you, and you can take it back for discussion. I’ve already been more than generous with the Gu Family.”

”We are grateful for your trust in the Gu Family, sir!” Shopkeeper Gu bowed again, then fetched a brush and paper and handed them to Li Qiye.

Li Qiye took the brush, pondered for a moment, then finally wrote with a fluid, masterful flourish. He handed the paper to Shopkeeper Gu. ”Go. Don’t make me wait too long. My patience is limited.”

The shopkeeper instructed a clerk to attend to Li Qiye’s group, then hurried away, not daring to waste a single second.

After Shopkeeper Gu left, Li Shuangyan and the others, their minds filled with questions, all looked at Li Qiye. By this point, even Nan Huairun didn’t dare to speak up.

”What are the Nine Ancient Languages?” In the end, it was Chen Baojiao who broke the silence, unable to hold back her curiosity.

Li Qiye glanced at Chen Baojiao and shook his head. ”That is not something you should know. It pertains to an extremely ancient era.”

Hearing this, Chen Baojiao asked no more questions. She knew that if Li Qiye wanted to tell her, he would do so without being asked.

”Is that Yellow Bell the key?” asked Tu Buyu, who was normally a man of few words. He spoke little but observed much, and he was far more reliable than Nan Huairun.

”A keen eye,” Li Qiye said, glancing at Tu Buyu with a note of praise.

”The three sheets of paper are an Emperor’s Treasure, so doesn’t that mean the Yellow Bell is an Immortal Emperor’s Artifact? Or something just as precious as an Immortal Emperor True Artifact?” Nan Huairun exclaimed. ”How dare they display something so valuable? Aren’t they afraid of being robbed?”

Just as the shopkeeper had implied, if the three sheets of Yellow Paper were Emperor’s Treasures, and they were being traded for the so-called ”Nine Ancient Languages”—which were in turn related to the Yellow Bell—then the bell itself must be even more precious. That meant it had to be an Immortal Emperor’s Treasure or an Immortal Emperor True Artifact.

”Rob them?” Li Qiye laughed and shook his head. ”The Yellow Bell sits right there, but the number of people who could actually take it are few and far between. Besides, not many people would dare to steal from the Gu Family.”

”What is the Gu Family’s background?” even Qu Daoli couldn’t help but ask. To open such a grand Treasure Shop and dare to display an Unparalleled Treasure within it, their origins had to be absolutely heaven-shattering.

”They are a very, very ancient existence. The so-called ancient Nantian Family is a far cry from them,” Li Qiye said with a smile. ”Just because they keep a low profile doesn’t mean they aren’t powerful. In the Nine Realms, some existences are beyond your imagination. The most powerful forces in this world are not necessarily the Emperor Immortal Gates!”

”There are powers stronger than the Emperor Immortal Gates?” Luo Fenghua asked, visibly stirred. As a disciple of the younger generation, he had always seen Emperor Immortal Gates as incredible, nigh-unbeatable behemoths.

”It depends on which Emperor Immortal Gate you’re comparing to. There are powers stronger than the Qingxuan Ancient Country. As for those stronger than the Long River Sect... well, they exist, but...” Li Qiye trailed off, narrowing his eyes.

”Is the Long River Sect that powerful? Legend says the Qingxuan Ancient Country produced two Immortal Emperors,” the quiet Xu Pei asked softly.

It wasn’t just Xu Pei who thought this way. In fact, most inexperienced disciples probably felt the same. The Qingxuan Ancient Country, a nation that had produced two emperors, was already a behemoth that none could challenge. Any Great Teaching Territory would pale at the mere mention of its name.

”The Long River Sect is even more terrifying than the Qingxuan Ancient Country.” It wasn’t Li Qiye or Li Shuangyan who spoke, but the quiet Tu Buyu, who let out a soft sigh. ”The Long River Sect has produced three emperors from one sect. In the East Hundred Cities, they are a true colossus, an unshakeable titan.”

”O-o-one sect, three emperors—” The earnest Zhang Yu was so stunned he started to stutter. In truth, it wasn’t just him; all the younger disciples like Xu Pei were completely thunderstruck.

”One sect, three emperors!” Disciples like Luo Fenghua, who had never even left the Great Middle Realm, couldn’t help but gasp in shock.