Chapter 43: I am Dragon Serpent Fruit, I Speak for Myself

Li Xiaobai entered full-on bragging mode.

He was now the man in charge – and such a man should exhibit the grandeur fitting of his status.

If he acted too cautiously and timidly, it would only arouse suspicion in these sly folks.

Indeed, the less scheming and calculating Li Xiaobai appeared, the less doubts people had in their minds.

Having maneuvered in the cultivation world for several hundred years, deceiving a newly sentient child was as easy as pie, wasn't it?

"Hehe, Fruit Brother, don't be angry, this old fool doesn't know any better and lacks tact, don't stoop to his level."

Elder Feng stepped forward, grinning as he spoke.

Chen Kun's face turned from green to red in quick succession, dark and almost dripping with gloom.

However, considering the crucial timing, he didn't want to create any trouble and could only endure silently.

"Old man, you're quite impressive, very eloquent. Do you also want to buy a Dragon Serpent Fruit?"

Li Xiaobai asked with a smile, a stark contrast to his earlier demeanor.

"Indeed, how much would it take to make a purchase?" Elder Feng inquired tentatively.

"How much do you have?"

"One thousand top-grade spirit stones, plus fifty stalks of mid-grade spiritual medicine," Elder Feng quoted, upping the bid slightly better than Chen Kun's.

"All of these are for my brothers!" Li Xiaobai declared indignantly.

"And then?"

"You need to add more money!"

Li Xiaobai's eyes narrowed, staring intensely at Elder Feng.

"So, it's just a matter of the price not being right? Easy, these are all trivial issues."

Elder Feng let out a sigh of relief, simultaneously cursing in his heart, damn, turns out this guy is just greedy for money; he almost thought they were really about to witness a melodrama of deep brotherly love.

"Two thousand top-grade spirit stones, one hundred stalks of mid-grade spiritual medicine."

"Deal!"

Li Xiaobai reached out and took Elder Feng's space ring, sliding it onto his finger, yet didn't immediately hand over the fruit.

"I still have seven brothers; as the eldest, I hope my siblings can all find a good home."

"This old man has already reserved one of my brothers; who else wants to take home one of my brothers?"

Ignoring Elder Feng's shocked gaze, Li Xiaobai began to call out for more offers.

Elder Feng's expression changed; he instinctively felt something was amiss. He had given away his resources but hadn't received the fruit in return—surely there couldn't be any deceit going on?

Chen Kun's expression also seemed to be enjoying the situation; thankfully, he hadn't given up his resources ahead of time. Given the circumstances, even if he had paid, whether he'd actually get the goods was another matter entirely!

"Fruit Brother, I would also like to reserve one," came a voice.

"But I don't have that many spiritual medicines or spirit stones; can we trade with goods instead?"

The elder from Xiao Cheng Sect also moved closer to the action.

"What good goods do you have?"

"I have a copper mirror that can reflect the heavens, the earth, and people's hearts. This mirror, crafted by a disciple of Elder Tianji from Central Province, allows no one to hide once they are reflected within it. It is quite extraordinary," the elder said confidently, clearly having faith in the mirror.

Too bad she overestimated her proposition; Li Xiaobai needed items that could enhance defensive power, and this trinket was of no use to him whatsoever.

Casually, he tossed the copper mirror back to her.

"This is dross, this is trash, and can't take my brothers away!"

The old woman's breath caught; she didn't expect Li Xiaobai to be so discourteous. It seemed that this unfortunate item only recognized spirit stones and spiritual medicine.

To think that such a precious mirror was bluntly called trash—it was obviously her own lowliness, and yet she had the nerve to blame someone else's mirror.

She had no idea that Li Xiaobai's store had everything one could want, except for Spirit Stones.

"This old body offers two thousand high-grade Spirit Stones, plus a hundred mid-grade Spiritual Medicines."

"You're thinking too small, with such a petty amount of money, you might as well be begging!"

Li Xiaobai looked disdainful, infuriating the old crone to the point of almost exploding in rage. She had given a bid identical to Elder Feng's and was now being scorned.

However, this commotion made everyone realize that each time Li Xiaobai announced his price, it was much higher than the previous one.

Damn it, it's just a Dragon Serpent Fruit, yet he's so greedy. Who knows who he learned that from!

"Two thousand high-grade Spirit Stones, plus one hundred mid-grade commodity Spiritual Medicines!"

"Deal!"

"Wait a moment!"

Just as the old crone was about to hand over the resources to Li Xiaobai, Elder Feng stopped her movements.

"I have already offered a vast amount of resources, but have not yet received the fruit. There might be something fishy going on here."

"Elder Feng, I wonder if you could produce the fruit you just bought from me," asked Elder Feng with a smile.

"What's the hurry? Let me confirm the buyer first and then I will give you the fruit all at once. Do you think I, the great Dragon Serpent Fruit, would default on a debt?" Li Xiaobai said, displeased.

"Elder Feng did not mean that. It's just that you, Brother Fruit, keep delaying in handing over the Dragon Serpent Fruit, which keeps us anxious," Elder Feng explained.

"What's there to be anxious about? That ignorant old man just now, and this old crone, they both made their bids without so much as a furrow in their brows. It's you who's been fussing and nagging all this time."

"Perhaps you're pretending to be uneasy, but in truth, you want to swallow up all my resources for yourself, don't you?"

At these words, Elder Feng's expression also changed.

This was a topic that involved everyone's interests, and it was not easy to respond.

"Don't think I don't know what you're planning. You just want to ruin my reputation so that my business fails, leaving you as the only buyer!"

Li Xiaobai fully entered his role, pressing aggressively.

At these words, not only Elder Feng, but the expressions of the other big shots also began to look strange.

Although the Holy Demon Sect was quite agreeable on normal days and had a not-so-stiff relationship with several other factions, none who had climbed to this level were soft-hearted or merciful.

They all knew that the sort of scheme Li Xiaobai was talking about was definitely within the capabilities of the Holy Demon Sect's people.

Without further hesitation, the old crone immediately handed over the Space Ring to Li Xiaobai.

"Brother Fruit, I, from Yun Mengze, would like to reserve a spot. Please remember me," she said.

"Mm, rest assured, just stand to the side for now, and I'll contact you later," Li Xiaobai said indifferently with his hands behind his back.

The remaining experts immediately stepped forward, one after another handing over their Space Rings to Li Xiaobai, fearing they were too slow to make their bid.

"Three thousand high-grade Spirit Stones..."

"Two hundred high-grade Spiritual Medicines..."

"Five jin of Profound Iron..."

"What about three Heavenly Mountain Snow Lotuses?"

"I also have a batch of Celestial Horned Horses..."

The original trade slowly started to turn into an auction.

Chen Kun of Tianwu Sect also joined the bidding again.

The thoughts of the crowd were actually very consistent, that was, it was unlikely they would truly trade with Li Xiaobai; the resources were merely temporarily stockpiled with the other party.

Once they got the fruit in hand, they planned to think of a way to swindle it out. At that time, the crowd could simply divide the humanoid fruit among themselves, and the resources given out would ultimately return to their own hands.

What Li Xiaobai didn't know was that, in the back of the crowd, a young man in white was coldly watching everything unfold.

...