Fire essences! Ten mid grade mana crystals for one gram of fire essences!"
"Mana condensing formation panel! For someone who is still in the mana condensation stage!"
"Hundred-year old magical plant seed for mystical pet owners! For eight mid grade mana crystals!!"
"Aroma oil? Enchanted lamp? Bombs! Shackling rope!? It's all yours, my friend! As long as you have enough crystals!"
The deafening chaos in the market made ears split like standing under a giant speaker. Vendors yelled prices and frustrated buyers angrily argued with the annoyed shopkeepers. A nincompoop tries to cut the line to some famous shop across the market and everyone aggressively beats him to the last rope of his life. It seemed as if all the sounds in the world had come to a reunion.
"I don't remember the cultivation market being this crowded a few years ago." MF said, satisfied with the self repairing black bowler hat she bought for cheap on the nearest vendors as she traced the hat multiple times, ensuring that it was there like a child given a new costume for Halloween. The new hat complimented her black short cloak really well, she did offer Foel to get a matching hat but the tanomobi calmly refused.
Foel, who was surprised by her husband's eccentricity, darted her eyes to the gratification while scanning the vendors that sold cultivation laws. "The cultivation market was always this crowded especially after the newest breakthrough in universal teachings that almost everyone can cultivate and become a Usurper. So life seems to be getting better now, wait, what was this 'few years ago' equivalent to?"
"Around 100 years."
"... How old are you?"
"Around 3000 or so." MF casually replied, sinking the front of her hat to shade upper of her face.
"You're older than my grandpa, didn't know that I was actually proposed to by an old hag, or old gramps, whatever your gender was."
"I'm still your handsome husband, regardless."
"Being handsome doesn't equal having a pretty face and bosoms bigger than your wife."
"Want me to make you more voluptuous?"
"Then I shall decline that ominous offer."
"Scrumptious, I like my wife shorter than me in any way."
"So you aren't actually planning to!"
Upon many vendors they encountered, the shabbiest one was now what they approached. The old man who guarded numerous cultivation law books on top of the rag was showing his wide grin devoid of teeth. "Welcome! Welcome! Two young lass who tow the sawboard, tell this old man what seed you want to sow?"
"Referring to the cultivation law as a seed to sow, interesting." Foel scanned what the old man had to offer.
"Old man, got any physical cultivation law?" MF squatted down to see the delicate and precious storage of knowledge written in papers with some of the edges chewed by time, the dullness doesn't make the law book lesser than precious.
"Physical cultivation?" The old man opened his right eyes really wide. "None of the youngsters I met ever spoke that word since a long time ago, thus my belongings are rather rare and pricey as the time plays checker with unknown space hurriedly."
The old man grabbed the pouch on his back, a pocket space pouch. With it, his clutch brought back three cultivation laws book colored in red, spreading them open like a fan. Without even asking much of the two people in front of him why they need those laws, the peculiar old man showed a smile wide enough to squint his eyes.
MF looked at the three books previewed. "Iron Might Law, Scattering Petals Of Thousand Palms Law, and Rigid Shadow Without Mist Law. All of the three are quite ancient, I applaud your belongings, old man."
He put the books on the thin rag platform, gesturing all his fingers open. "Nyoho! One of them cost 10 mid grade mana crystals."
"That is quite a steal, no?" Foel said, pondering on the avant garde price.
1 high rank mana crystal was equal to 1000 mid rank, and 1 mid rank was equal to 10,000 low rank. Despite being extremely rich with 5 high rank mana crystals on the bag, Foel's mind was still lagging due to the severe poverty she had after all of those mindless search for mana crystals. So in her mind, she was still poor as hell and forgot that her husband's wealth was literally in her pocket space.
"My dear, the price was absolutely stunning because of the content." MF leaned forward a little bit to the old man. "Three of them for 40 mana crystals."
"Nyoho!? That is the spirit!"
"Darling, you're being wasteful."
"We have more than enough, my love."
"Oh… I forgot. There are some technique books here, don't wanna buy?" Foel said, leaned to scan the collection of thin books made to encapsulate martial knowledge.
"Just see what fancies you, my love. Most of the technique books require mana. Something that is insignificant for moi."
'Iron Might' Law book acquired.
'Scattering Petals Of Thousand Palms' Law book acquired.
'Rigid Shadow Without Mist' Law book acquired.
They paid with one high grade mana crystal, the sight of the wondrous iridescent from the crystal brimming with mana had made both of the old man's eyes stiffly yawned for a flat second. "Young master! take one more cultivation law book with you!"
It seems like the old man knew that the beautiful woman is someone of great nobility—even though she wasn't. Decided to aim for a long term mutualism.
'Fiery Fire Of Molten Heart' Law book acquired.
The old man gave a pocket space pouch from within his pocket space pouch containing the 960 mid grade mana crystals. Truly, a pocket space pouch-ception. Foel checked the inside to prevent any foul play and it does contain 960 mid grade crystals.
"Foel, you looked really excited, what's up?"
"I've just realized that I'm hella rich."
It was the first time for MF to see her cute wife's eyes sparkled like that. Quite easy to be read, the nonchalant devil thought of letting her tepid hamster experience the healing properties of wealth for once.
"You can use every mana crystal within your pocket space, we'll meet her again after one hour." MF winked.
"I-It's 4 high grades, 14 mid grades, and 9,945 low grades! This is overwhelming huwa."
MF approached and kneeled near Foel, the husband then caressed her forehead into Foel's, slowly trying to assure her troubled wife after the tanomobi got into an overwhelming revelation. "It's fine, just take it as an investment from me if you want it to be formal."
"Urgh, fine, I'll try to not be as wasteful as I can."
"Fufu, go wild!" MF gave her a thumbs up. "I'll be looking for something with the 960 mid grade mana crystals on this pouch."
"J-just don't let yourself be kidnapped."
After separating, MF traced the stalker that had been gazing at her since she and Foel stepped into the market zone. The following the presence, MF encountered a person in shady cloak
Obscure and degraded, a society blind place with few staircases every few meters rising as the path goes. There wasn't any living being who could hear, see, nor even know what would happen to someone if they were killed in this alley. Although the sun still shone through from the thigh gap of towering buildings, the light itself seems nefarious. In MF's view, a man who wore a long dark cloak. His complexion was hooded but the white gaze from him can still be felt, warmed by a snoods to the nose. He then spoke with a heavy and rough voice.
"Got something that might interest ya, hehehehe."