The spectacle of the three men kneeling on the ground astounded Shen Tian.
Normally, people would only kneel when they were trying to ask for money from others. Thus, it was the first time Shen Tian witnessed people kneeling in order to make others take their money!
Seriously!?
Even the crowd started siding with them.
"Brother Celestial, since they are doing it as a form of kindness, you should accept them!"
"Had it not been for you, they would not have obtained these Spirit Stones. Brother Celestial, you deserve them."
"There is a reward in every good deed. You should keep them!"
"That's right! We are fated with Master Celestial too."
"If you do not accept our tokens of kindness, we will feel ashamed to receive your help."
"If you don't accept our tokens of kindness, we will be called ungrateful pieces of trash!"
"Master Celestial, we beseech you to reconsider! Keep the stones!"
…
"I really cannot keep it!"
Shen Tian sighed and tried to pull them up. Unfortunately, Shen Tian's strength was not enough to even make them budge.
Thus, they were more convinced and determined to give their Spirit Stones to Shen Tian.
Master Celestial wants the stones after all. He's just too shy to keep them.
That must be the reason. If not, he would have pulled us up easily!
If that's the case, let's play along with Master Celestial!
…
Lucky Man A spoke up. "Master Celestial, please listen to me!
"Master Celestial, you are a disciple of Supremacy Feyte from Dark Grotto on Nippon Mountain. This means that you are your branch's successor.
"Although you do not need money or fame, your branch still needs them to be functional.
"We are indebted to you, meaning that we are indebted to your branch too! Please, keep these Spirit Stones as a donation we offer to your branch. Please!"
The other two agreed on it too.
"That's right! Even normal temples would not reject our donation!"
"We are fated with Master Celestial, and we're your supporters too. We will be very disappointed if you reject our donation."
Shen Tian was bewildered. He was still thinking of an excuse to keep the Spirit Stones, yet they came up with a rather good one on their own.
It would really be a shame if… I reject their offer!
"Why, why do you have to push me… I'm…" Shen Tian looked very troubled and sighed. "Never mind, it is your kind gesture, after all. I will keep them for my branch then. However, 90% is too much. I will only keep 10%."
Shen Tian's words momentarily stunned the crowd.
Lucky Man A spoke up again, "10%? No! Even Shopkeeper Song took 10% from us. If we only give you 10%, it shows that we are looking down on you!"
"That's right! Master Celestial, please do not refuse anymore. 80% is the least we should offer!"
Shen Tian was caught between laughter and tears. "Seriously, that's really too much. How about 20%? That is the most I can accept!"
"Master Celestial's moral character is exceptional! You should have at least 70%! Please do not refuse anymore."
"30%!"
"60%!"
"40%!"
"50%! Settled, we cannot take any more than that!"
The three of them said firmly, "It is our luck that we managed to have ties of fate with you."
"You are the one who picked these ores, and we did nothing at all. It's already wrong for us to keep half of it. We really cannot have more!"
"Master Celestial, if you keep refusing, we can only kneel here forever!"
Upon looking at the trio and the other 17 people who had yet to have their ores picked, Shen Tian knew that he had no other options.
"Sigh, alright! Guess I have no other choice."
…
Shen Tian was confused.
Why did this happen?
In the cultivation world, isn't it about the survival of the fittest? Everyone should be at odds and fight for fortuitous opportunities.
One should fight over the slightest hint of resources. That's how the cultivation world's way has always been! Why are they so generous!?
They're trying too hard to give away their Spirit Stones!
I didn't accept their tokens of gratitude, and they were unhappy about it? Seriously, what's wrong with them!?
…
After receiving 50% of their spoils, Shen Tian realized that their halos were slightly greener than before. It was not very noticeable, so Shen Tian was not sure if his eyes were playing tricks on him.
Since the shares were fixed, the flow of things was very smooth now.
The fourth lucky man bought a small ore priced at 10 Spirit Stones and found a Spirit Crystal in it, which was worth 1,200 Spirit Stones.
That was the highest payout among all four of them so far—120 times the initial value!
It was even higher than Little Spirit Fairy's show last time.
The man was so excited that he kneeled down immediately. Under Lucky Man A's influence, he offered half of the profit to Shen Tian too.
Their combined profit was about 8,000 Spirit Stones, meaning that Shen Tian's net profit was about 4,000 Spirit Stones. Even the entire Country of Fire's tax income could not reach 4,000 Spirit Stones.
…
Young Shopkeeper Song was staring at Shen Tian enviously, so Shopkeeper Song smacked his son's head.
"Kid, I warn you! Do not have any weird thoughts! He could kill our entire family effortlessly!
"4,000 Spirit Stones is indeed a large amount and very tempting. Many people would risk their life for it.
"However, this man is a personal disciple from the Grand White Grotto-Heaven. Also, according to rumors, he's dating the daughter of the Li Family.
"Not to mention, he has the ability to assess ores. Obviously, he must be strong enough to protect himself!
"Can you be like me? Stay out of trouble!"
Shopkeeper Song still felt very insecure. After all, Shen Tian had beaten up his son before.
If Master Celestial is still unhappy with him…
Shopkeeper Song needed to find a way to make peace with Master Celestial!
Soon, Shopkeeper Song took out a ring, reluctantly. He walked up to Shen Tian and said in a respectful tone, "Master Celestial, it's inconvenient to travel around with all these Spirit Stones, right?
"I have a Universe Ring here. I purchased it in the past, and it cost a lot. As long as you give it a drip of your blood, you will be its sole owner.
"It is a superior-grade Dharma artifact for storing items with a 100-cubic-meter space.
"You can have it."
"…"
Shopkeeper Song…
They gave me Spirit Stones because I helped them choose their ores.
Shopkeeper Song, why are you giving it to me?
Just because I'm handsome?
A superior-grade Dharma artifact with a 100-cubic-meter space should be worth more than 10,000 Spirit Stones!
Just because I cannot keep these 4,000 Spirit Stones, you are giving me a Universe Ring?
What's the logic here!?