Chapter 124
While the Pavilion was bustling with talk of the Cloud Sea Secret Realm, a hesitant Young Prodigy finally gathered his courage.
“E-excuse me, Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong.”
The Audience’s attention was drawn to the voice that cautiously broke the ice.
“If it wouldn’t be an intrusion, how about entering the Cloud Sea Secret Realm with me? I feel it would be incredibly reassuring to pair up with someone like Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong…”
The Young Prodigy’s face flushed red as his words trailed off.
It seemed he was embarrassed by all the gazes converging on him, making his hard-won courage feel in vain.
“What do you mean, pair up.”
To Baek-Cheong, the offer was rather unappealing.
She intended to extend her Divine Sense to navigate through the Cloud Sea and sweep up only the rare treasures.
But if someone tagged along beside her, it would be difficult to roam around freely.
‘They’d just be in the way.’
Of course, she had no intention of revealing her true thoughts so bluntly.
She held a small smile and politely declined.
“I appreciate the thought, but I’ll decline. I don’t plan on being too greedy in the Cloud Sea Secret Realm.”
“I-I see…”
“It will be enough for me to just look around and pick up whatever catches my eye. I would only end up holding you back, Fellow Daoist.”
Regret and Admiration mingled on the Young Prodigy’s face.
Admiration spread among the young prodigies at her lack of greed, even when faced with a Secret Realm where rare treasures lay dormant.
“As expected, her caliber is simply different.”
“To possess such Talent and yet show no greed.”
Moreover, Baek-Cheong possessed an outstanding appearance that belied her young age.
Given her white jade-like face and modestly lowered eyes, one couldn’t help but nod in agreement at her claim of having no greed.
‘They’re taking it all at face value.’
Baek-Cheong was satisfied with the agreeable atmosphere.
This way, she could sweep up everything to her heart’s content all by herself later.
“No big greed?”
On the other hand, Seo Ju-A was watching with an untrusting expression.
How could someone who unleashed twenty Ice Dragons across two waves just to win possibly lack greed?
It was obvious she was harboring some other ulterior motive.
She wanted to snap at her right then and there, but she kept her mouth shut.
Picking a fight without clear evidence could just come off as pointless jealousy.
Rather than risk looking pathetic, she found it better to pretend not to notice.
She pouted and turned her eyes to the jade bottle she was hugging to her chest.
She gently rubbed it with her sleeve, afraid it might get scratched.
‘Hmph, it’s enough for This Lady to just take care of This Lady’s own things.’
The pride of obtaining a Precious Treasure temporarily pushed aside her desire for revenge and her suspicions.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the Pavilion had changed.
It was due to the commotion that had swept through regarding the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills.
Because everyone had spent all their Spirit Stones to buy the pills, the young prodigies had no Spirit Stones left to put up for trade.
The gathering, which had been full of haggling, naturally fizzled out.
The young prodigies sat around in small groups, sharing tea and exchanging idle chatter.
The gathering that was supposed to be a trading event had fizzled out, turning into nothing more than a social mixer.
“This is boring.”
Baek-Cheong had no interest in a gathering where people drank tea and recited poetry.
The reason she had wandered into Cheongunru Pavilion in the first place was something else entirely.
She intended to sweep the auctions clean with her newly fattened pouch of Spirit Stones.
It was time to rise from her Seat.
She adjusted her Attire and stealthily rose to her feet.
“I’ll go look around now. Everyone, have a good time.”
She left a demure greeting and was just about to leave the Pavilion.
But an urgent voice followed from behind.
“W-wait a moment! This Lady was also just about to go look around!”
Seo Ju-A sprang from her Seat as if competing.
The two maidservants hurriedly followed her.
At that, the young prodigies who had been reading the room all rose in a rush.
“W-where are you going? Let’s go together!”
“My legs were just starting to itch as well!”
These were young prodigies who were anxious to make an impression on Baek-Cheong.
They had been looking for a chance to ask to accompany her, and seized this moment to tag along.
Suddenly, Baek-Cheong and Seo Ju-A found themselves strolling through the auction gatherings surrounded by a group of young prodigies.
“No, why is everyone following me?”
Baek-Cheong was bewildered, but she couldn’t shake them off coldly.
It was because she remembered the teachings she had heard back in her Clan countless times.
They said one should not sever ties recklessly.
It meant treating everyone nicely, as you never knew when, where, or how it might come back to you.
Besides, if she thought about it, they were all customers who had just bought her Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills.
‘Well, there’s no need to treat them poorly.’
When she didn’t bother to push them away, the young prodigies vied with each other to strike up a conversation.
“Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong, even for us, it was our first time seeing Yak-seon’s Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill that you showed us earlier!”
“I heard you became the Top Ranker without once drawing your sword in the Martial Arts Competition. What on Earth is your secret?”
“How can you be so mature despite your young age? We are simply in awe!”
To the barrage of questions, Baek-Cheong only gave short replies.
“I was just lucky.”
Even at her indifferent response, everyone’s eyes sparkled.
To others, it seemed to come off as modesty.
The more she did so, the more excited the young prodigies became as they hovered around her.
And this situation was the same for Seo Ju-A.
“Fellow Daoist Seo Ju-A truly has an extraordinary elegance!”
“Aren’t you the very Fellow Daoist Seo Ju-A who proudly competed against Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong in the Martial Arts Competition!”
“Hmph, of course. This Lady is a worthy rival who competes for supremacy with Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong!”
Seo Ju-A stiffened her neck proudly, as if she had been waiting for this.
At this sight, the young prodigies were even busier flattering her.
* * *
A modest auction was being held in a certain annex.
However, the items placed on the modest Auction Platform were all lackluster.
Since they were put up by Qi Condensation Cultivators, the Dharma treasures were at best barely above mid-grade.
The pills were also nothing more than common 1st-Grade Mid-Tier pills.
‘Things like this aren’t even worth a glance.’
The young prodigies kept peeking around as if even that was fascinating, but to Baek-Cheong, it all just looked like junk.
Even after she had looked around a few auction gatherings, the situation was the same.
In the end, not a single item appeared that moved her heart.
Eventually, Baek-Cheong decided to leave Cheongunru Pavilion.
.
.
.
Since Bohwawon was built by leveling an entire Peak, the more she walked, the more large and small trades revealed themselves everywhere.
As she wandered far away from Cheongunru Pavilion, auction gatherings caught her eye, different from the ones at Cheongunru Pavilion, where only Qi Condensation Cultivators gathered.
Items worthy of being called fortuitous encounters were rarely seen, but it was still much better than Cheongunru Pavilion.
Just as she was moving her feet, Baek-Cheong stopped in front of a certain Auction Platform.
A few rare materials were neatly laid out.
They were materials that were hard to even catch a glimpse of in the market, even if one were to pile up mountains of Spirit Stones.
‘Oh, wouldn’t these be somewhat useful.’
Baek-Cheong called out a price without hesitation.
But every time Baek-Cheong called out a price, Seo Ju-A quickly cut in from the side.
“This Lady will bid double!”
For every material she set her sights on, Seo Ju-A desperately raised the price.
It was somewhat clumsy to call it sabotage, but regardless, Baek-Cheong ended up yielding one or two materials to Seo Ju-A.
Of course, if she had set her mind to it, she could have crushed her with financial power and claimed them.
However, it wasn’t like she was going to use them right away anyway; she just intended to stockpile them in her Storage Platform.
There was no need to go out of her way to fight over the price and engage in a battle of nerves with Seo Ju-A.
“If she wants them that badly, one or two are fine.”
Baek-Cheong shrugged it off as no big deal.
However, the way she kept interfering with her every bid was slowly starting to get on her nerves.
‘Then let’s see about this.’
Harboring a mischievous intent, she thought of a way to play a trick on Seo Ju-A.
Just then, an unidentified item was placed on a certain Auction Platform.
It was a dull, darkish object, made of a strange material that was neither stone nor iron, making it impossible to even guess what it was used for.
Even the person who put it up for auction didn’t know where it came from and offered it at a bargain price.
Baek-Cheong deliberately pointed at the item and called out an absurd price.
“I’ll buy this for five Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.”
The Audience murmured at such a price for a piece of junk with an unknown origin.
“Now, try following my bid again.”
But this time, Seo Ju-A didn’t follow suit.
She glanced at it out of the corner of her eye, then turned her head away with a puzzled look.
It seemed Seo Ju-A hadn’t intended to sabotage her after all.
It was just that the materials she had been aiming for coincidentally overlapped with what Seo Ju-A coveted.
Thanks to that, the unidentified item became entirely hers.
“Huh…?”
She had tried to play a trick, but instead ended up being the only one stuck with a useless item at a high price.
‘This isn’t right.’
Baek-Cheong looked down at the item in her hand with a sour expression.
But as she absentmindedly fiddled with it, the texture touching her fingertips felt strangely familiar.
It was definitely a feeling she had encountered somewhere before.
“Where… have I seen this?”
She couldn’t recall when or where it was.
And yet, it somehow didn’t feel unfamiliar, and a sense of déjà vu kept tickling the back of her head.
She turned the item this way and that, tracing her hazy memories.
Just as she was lost in thought for a long while.
A Murmur arose not far away, and She overheard a story not far away, and a story that caught her ear could be heard.
“A Cloud Sea Map? Are you saying a map of the Cloud Sea Secret Realm has been put up for auction?”
“That’s right! I heard some auction gathering was auctioning a Cloud Sea Map!”
Inside the Cloud Sea, one couldn’t trust one’s five senses and had to rely solely on Divine Sense.
But a map depicting the inside of the Cloud Sea? The hazy sense of déjà vu was instantly wiped clean from her mind.
“A Cloud Sea Map? That came out in an auction?”
Thanks to her Divine Sense, the Cloud Sea Secret Realm was already practically her own world.
But if she went in knowing the paths inside out, she would undoubtedly have an undeniable advantage.
‘Then it’d be an effortless journey.’
Baek-Cheong haphazardly tossed the unidentified item into her Storage Platform.
Then, she hurriedly moved toward the auction gathering where the Cloud Sea Map had supposedly appeared.
Seo Ju-A and the young prodigies, who were also intrigued by the same news, swarmed after her.