A few months ago...
Under the blanket of glimmering stars and a bright full moon, two shadows of youths could be seen standing on the shoreline. Both of them were wearing an elegant teal uniform of the Feng Sect.
"Qiaolian, how many beast cores did you manage to extract? I will buy a few if you sell them," said Feng Mo as he approached closer to Zhou Qiaolian.
Their sect would usually encourage their young members to participate in beast hunting. With this, such a tradition naturally evolved and became a game of competition among youths. Whoever can get the highest number of beast cores would be rewarded by the sect leader.
But, for Feng Mo, it was more than just about the reward. As the heir of the Feng Sect, he had to perform well. Thus, he would mostly offer to pay other sect members to get their beast cores.
"I have extracted 29 beast cores. Buy them all," Qiaolian responded with a brimming smile. She then extended her hand and signaled him for the price by raising three fingers.
"W-What?" Feng Mo immediately reacted. His expression turned dark but he managed to suppress his emotion and curled his lips into a fake smile. He had understood her hand gesture. It meant three gold per beast core!
"T-That's rather expensive! Qiaolian, we are partners in dual cultivation. How about you lower the price? 1 gold per beast core?"
"Feng Mo, don't be mad. But, comparing to these 29 beast cores... it's rather beneficial for me to absorb its essence and energy rather than our dual cultivation. So, if you don't want to buy them, I will just use them."
"Y-You--- Why are you like that!? I am the heir of the Feng Sect. It's not my fault if your ability to gather energy is too weak!"
"Heh!" Qiaolian snickered and placed her hand on the side. Her palm clenched into a fist. "And how could my ability be weak? I can absorb these 29 beast cores in less than an hour. The problem is certainly you!"
"Qiaolian, I am not here for this matter. I really want to buy the beast cores," Feng Mo expressed with a frustrated tone. There was no time left for him to dwindle. The next day, they would need to present all their beast cores to Feng Lu and the sect elders.
'Among all sect members, this Qiaolian is really the hardest to deal with. If it's not for my father's order, I would never agree to be her dual cultivation partner,' Feng Mo secretly thought while waiting for the lady to speak.
"Aiiyoo, Feng Mo, oh Feng Mo. How about we reverse this situation? Since I am your dual cultivation partner, you must not be stingy with me! Hehe... Come! Now, it's 10 gold per beast core!"
Ten gold per beast core!!! Such an increase in price for just a matter of a minute was totally shameless!
"Qiaolian, you are being difficult! How could you raise the price like that? That's very unreasonable!" Feng Mo almost yelled in anger. He gritted his teeth and gave her a cold glare.
"If you refuse to pay, then, I'll go back to my room and start absorbing these cores," Qiaolian shrugged her shoulder and started walking away. She does not lack money at all.
In a panic, Feng Mo grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. He deliberately exerted force on his grip and made sure that she would feel pain. But the lady did not even wince.
"Change your mind? Are you buying?" Qiaolian simply retracted her arms and smirked at him.
"I'll pay," said Feng Mo and took his money bag out of his pocket. "But I only have silvers here!"
"Hehe... 10 gold coins per beast core is 5,000 silver. Feng Mo, if you want to buy all my 29 beast cores, then, give me 150,000 silver. Just add 5,000 silver as the bonus for my hard work!" Qiaolian rubbed her hands, prepared to receive the money.
Feng Mo's expression turned extremely ugly. He scratched the back of his head and even pulled his hair. "You might as well rob the entire Feng Sect treasury!"
"1 gold is equivalent to 500 silver... Ah!!!" He had not even realized how much he needed to pay her! Only after he carefully calculated the total price of the beast cores that he almost collapsed!
It was 145,000 silver in total.
And Zhou Qiaolian did not even give him leeway and added another 5,000 silver for the sake of her so-called hard work?!
"150,000 silver! Qiaolian, do you see this money bag? Do you think it can hold that much money?!" Feng Mo was furious as he held his money bag in the air. When he counted the money inside, it only had 3,000 silver! It does not even reach the price of one beast core!
"Then, I'll just see you at midnight. I will take my leave first and absorb all these beast cores." Qiaolian finally walked away, leaving the dumbfounded Feng Mo staring at her back.
The anger in Feng Mo's heart swelled and erupted like hot lava as he felt humiliated. How can an outsider treat him with such boldness? No one in the Feng Sect had ever disrespected him. Only this girl. Only Zhou Qiaolian!
Unable to contain his emotions, Feng Mo stomped his feet and marched his way to his Father's place. "That's it! I will ask father to banish that girl! She must be exiled! The Feng Sect is actually raising a disrespectful outsider!"
Feng Mo's figure swiftly traveled to the courtyard of Feng Lu. "Father! Father!"
"Young Master, the patriarch is meeting a formation master expert. They are still having a serious discussion!" One of the servants quickly attended to him.
"How long can I talk with my father? I have an important matter to discuss with him too," Feng Mo insisted with a determined look on his face.
He took a deep breath and tried to calm down. But the scene of Qiaolian demanding for him to pay suddenly flashed in his mind and the thought started making him angry again. "I must talk with my father tonight."
Sensing the fury in his tone, the servant bowed his head and politely said, "I will tell the patriarch. Young Master, Please wait here."
"Hurry!" Feng Mo waved his hand and dismissed the servant, urging him to report his arrival to his father.
Meanwhile, just a few meters away from Feng Mo, the figure of Zhou Qiaolian could be seen lurking. He was not aware that she was actually following him.
Qiaolian had casually expressed her complaint to him about the imbalance of energy during their dual cultivation.
But, it was actually more than just a complaint. She had her suspicions that something was really wrong. Thus, she deliberately angered Feng Mo to secretly investigate her suspicions.