I Don’t Want to Get Hurt, So I’ll Max Out My Defense

With every move she made, she exuded the demeanor of the nobility, clearly not someone raised in an ordinary household, but likely from a prominent family.

Moreover, the young lady appeared timid and a bit shy, obviously unacquainted with the ways of the world, having grown up under the spoiled care of a great family.

Such an innocent cultivator, pure as a blank sheet, having not experienced the darkness of the cultivation world, was a complete lamb to the slaughter, ready to believe anything told to her. With the right maneuvers, she was sure to bring a handsome profit.

Unfortunately, the sixth senior brother was not present. If the two of them were to set up a scheme to swindle these cultivators, success would surely be within easy reach. Now, alone, more careful planning was necessary.

"But I only have eight hundred top-grade Spirit Stones on me,"

said the girl in the white dress, her expression growing anxious, eyes fixed on the Jade Ruyi on the stall as if afraid it would run away.

Li Xiaobai couldn't help but smile; this young lady was here to bargain, yet he was someone who did not know what it meant to show pity for the fairer sex—he only recognized Spirit Stones, not beauty.

"Heh, if you don't have the Spirit Stones, then I can only sell the Jade Ruyi to someone else. If you really want it, you could ask your elders to bring more Spirit Stones. After all, a treasure suitable for those at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage might cause a bidding frenzy, and it's not impossible for a price war to ensue,"

said Li Xiaobai, smiling amiably.

"But I came here on my own, and the elders of my family are in the Eastern Sea. Could you perhaps make an exception and sell this treasure to me?"

pleaded the girl in the white dress, her beautiful eyes brimming with beseeching, evoking a sense of pity.

However, the cultivators surrounding her were not having it. Accustomed to living on the knife's edge, they wouldn't give up a treasure just because someone was pretty.

"If you don't have the money, then get lost. The Jade Ruyi has the effect of gathering Spiritual Energy. Even high-level cultivators at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage wouldn't give up using it, let alone for eight hundred, even eight thousand might not be enough to secure it!"

"Exactly, coming here without money just to make a scene. Where is the discipline of a family's child—where's your shame?"

"A pretty little girl, but how can you have such a thick skin?"

"Young Master Li, I'll give a thousand for that item. Wrap it up for me!"

"Back off, you shameless old man. How could you be so faceless? Thinking of taking it for a thousand—I offer two thousand!"

"Three thousand..."

Before Li Xiaobai could react, a group of cultivators at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage immediately pushed the girl in the white dress to one side and started a bidding war.

Li Xiaobai was momentarily stunned, then quickly regained his composure and said with a beaming smile, "One at a time please, the highest bidder wins."

Seeing his scheme had worked, Li Xiaobai's heart blossomed with joy. He was well aware of the value a treasure used by Transcendance Tribulation Stage cultivators could fetch.

The reason he had set the price so low was to encourage more cultivators to join in the bidding early on. The more people there were, the livelier the auction would be, essentially giving him free shills to boost the atmosphere. This, in turn, would only drive the final prices higher.

The girl in the white dress, now cornered, was on the verge of tears. In two days it would be her mother's birthday and she had come to the port to try her luck in picking a gift. It had not been easy to come across something as meaningful as the Jade Ruyi, and now she couldn't afford it.

At this very moment, she was filled with immense regret. If only she had known, she wouldn't have brought just her personal savings—she should have asked the family elders for more.

She thought about brazenly pushing her way back into the crowd, but then, seeing the fierce and murderous aura radiating from the cultivators, she shuddered in fear, and her foot that had tentatively stepped forward was hastily withdrawn.

Watching the intense competition among the group, her expression changed for a while before she suddenly made up her mind, gritted her teeth, and spoke aloud.

"Fellow Daoists, I am the legitimate eldest daughter of the Aolai Country Zong Family from the Eastern Sea, out on an errand to select a birthday gift for my mother. I humbly request that you give me some face and cede this treasure to me!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the cultivators in the venue were stunned for a moment, blinking as they turned their gaze toward the girl in the white dress, with many cultivators around them starting to whisper amongst themselves.

"The Zong Family, which Zong Family?"

"Obviously, it's that Zong Family. How many Zong Families could there be in Aolai Country?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I can't believe this girl is actually the eldest daughter of the Zong Family. She doesn't look like it at all. Where is the slightest bit of the grandeur of a significant power from this naive sweet girl?"

"You obviously don't know, but the former Zong Family was a prestigious and esteemed family. Unfortunately, they offended someone they shouldn't have offended, and now they have been suppressed to the point of irrelevance."

"I see now..."

Hearing the murmuring of the cultivators around her, the girl in the white dress's face turned so red it reached her ears, her eyes filled with indignant shame. She felt that bringing up her family's backing in such a manner was truly a disgraceful act.

Today, not only had she lost face for herself, she feared she might also bring complete disgrace upon her family.

Li Xiaobai, on the other hand, watched with interest. It seemed that the girl in the white dress had no ordinary identity, and given her willingness to disclose her family in front of everyone, this Zong Family must be a significant force in the Eastern Sea.

The dutiful daughter from a major force was certainly like a fat sheep, and an incredibly plump one at that!

However, Li Xiaobai did not immediately speak because he clearly saw a group of young men in the crowd who had been watching the girl in the white dress all along. He was familiar with this scene; they were waiting for the right moment to make a heroic move to save the damsel.

One fat sheep attracting several others—now that would be a bargain.

A few cultivators at the Transcendance Tribulation Stage exchanged looks, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes, but soon their expressions grew colder.

They looked at the girl in the white dress and said coldly, "The legitimate eldest daughter of the Zong Family? Merely a declining broken family now, what grand birthday are you celebrating? Be careful that your happy occasion doesn't turn into a disaster!"

"Trying to freeload using your family's power, is this the behavior of your Zong Family? It's becoming increasingly disgraceful!"

The expressions of the few Transcendance Tribulation Stage experts grew cold as they spoke, their eyes flickering with a chilling light. Indeed, the Zong Family was once a great family, but now it was just a declining small clan. Perhaps they had some underpinnings that could intimidate average cultivators; however, they were experts who had emerged from life-and-death battles during the Tribulation Crossing Stage—a mere family name could not intimidate them.

"It's not like that, I just..."

Intimidated by their stern gaze, the girl in the white dress's eyes flickered with tears, almost on the verge of crying from anxiety and fear.

"No matter how desolate the Zong Family has become, it's not up to you trash to criticize," said someone.

At that moment, a group of people emerged from the crowd, splitting and making their way forward.

This was a group of young people, all in their twenties, followed by a man in black, whose eyes were slightly narrowed, emitting a dangerous glint.

The young leader at the front had a mocking smile on his lips as he looked down at the several loose cultivators of the Transcendance Tribulation Stage.

"Kneel down and apologize. Don't make me say it a second time," he said.