Martial Peak

Translator: Silavin & Jon

Translation Checker: PewPewLazerGun

Editor and Proofreader: Leo of Zion Mountain & Dhael Ligerkeys

After going through the information in the last two jade slips, the Proprietress nodded her head, "Many thanks."

Yuan Rui De replied, "It's within my duties."

As the Proprietress fiddled with the jade slips, she asked, "How about the previous owner of this shop? Have you made him suffer any grievances?"

Yuan Rui De said with a smile, "I've paid him twenty percent more than the market value of his shop. The money is enough for him to buy a new shop in a different location with a tidy profit left over. He couldn't be happier, so I'm sure he doesn't feel aggrieved at all."

"Very good," A gratified Proprietress nodded her head.

Yuan Rui De bent his back slightly, "Madam, is there anything else you need me to do for you? If not, I'll take my leave and report to my higher-ups now."

"Do you want to stay overnight here before leaving?"

"Many thanks for your concern, Madam, but I've stayed here for quite a few days already so it's best I head back quickly."

"I won't make you stay, then. Old Bai, please see him off," the Proprietress ordered.

With a smile, Bai Qi stepped forward and extended his hand, "Please."

"Farewell, Madam." Yuan Rui De saluted her before striding out of the shop.

After he was gone, the Proprietress looked around and nodded, "It's a good place."

Bai Qi approached her, "Proprietress, are we going to reopen our inn here?"

The Proprietress walked around and asked casually, "What's wrong?"

A glint flashed across Bai Qi's eyes as he said with a grin, "There's nothing wrong with it. As long as you're around, we're fine with anywhere."

The Proprietress scoffed, "Do you think I have no idea what's on your mind? All of you are bored after travelling the void for so long, so you're eager to have fun in this lively place. I'm warning you now, all of you can have fun, but don't invite any trouble or slack off on your work; otherwise, I won't let you off."

"We won't," Bai Qi assured her before he turned his head to wink at the chef and accountant. He could barely contain his excitement.

"There's dust," The Proprietress wiped the armrest of a chair and took a look at her finger before rubbing it off on Bai Qi's shoulder. Then, she turned and made a circular movement with her finger, "Get everything here changed by tomorrow."

"Yes," Bai Qi replied respectfully.

The Proprietress covered her mouth and yawned, "I'm tired, so I'll take a rest now. All of you, have a good night's sleep as we start work tomorrow."

"Until tomorrow then, Proprietress," Bai Qi, the chef, and the accountant stood in a row and watched her enter a room. Yang Kai was stunned for a moment before joining them.

The Proprietress shot them a glance as she had seen through their thoughts. After flicking her sleeve, she shuffled into a room and said, "Yang Kai, come with me."

Instantly, Bai Qi and the others gazed at Yang Kai with sympathetic looks on their faces.

At that, Yang Kai was speechless as well. He wanted to take the opportunity to explore the Star City, but he hadn't expected to be forced to stay in the shop by the Proprietress. He wondered what she was up to.

With a helpless look on his face, he watched as Bai Qi and the others ambled out of the shop with their arms around each other's shoulders.

After a sigh, he shuffled towards the rear court. Hearing some noises from a room, he went over and knocked on the door.

Then, the Proprietress was heard saying, "Come in."

Yang Kai pushed the door open, only to see that two maid servants were busy making the bed for the Proprietress. What shocked him was that the wooden bed he had seen on the ship had been placed in this room now.

"Proprietress, what's wrong?" Yang Kai asked. He had been getting along with her pretty well for the past few months as she had never found fault with him again after that incident.

The Proprietress was seated in front of a quaint desk as she raised her head and asked, "You have an artifact that can conceal your figure and aura, right?"

"Why are you asking this question all of a sudden?" Yang Kai was puzzled. Nevertheless, he couldn't hide it from her as she had already noticed him when they were in the Golden Crow Divine Palace; therefore, it was reasonable that she had this speculation. Upon that realization, he simply nodded his head.

"Let me have a look," The Proprietress extended her hand.

Hearing that, Yang Kai summoned the Shadowless Veil and passed it to her.

The Proprietress took it with a faint smile on her face, "Aren't you worried that I won't return it to you?"

Yang Kai burst into laughter, "Nonsense. There's no way you'd be interested in such a thing."

"Nothing is ever for certain," After finishing her words, the Proprietress examined the veil and infused her power into it to probe it.

A moment later, she nodded gently, "This artifact itself is not bad. It should be able to prevent anyone below the Mid-Rank Open Heaven Realm from seeing through it. Even Mid-Rank cultivators might neglect it if they're not careful enough."

Yang Kai gave her a thumbs-up. The conclusion she had come up with was the same as what Du Ru Feng had said. She was able to come to this conclusion by just probing the artifact without refining it, which went to show that her vision and insight were incredibly sharp.

"You were pretty brave to rely on this thing to make a fuss in the Golden Crow Divine Palace." The Proprietress flashed a faint smile at him.

Yang Kai sighed, "I was left with no choice at that time. I didn't even mean to enter that place." He was trapped in that hallway for no reason, and then relied on his instincts to deal with the following issues. His actions were not intentional. Even the Golden Crow corpse was taken away by him by chance.

"Do you trust me?"

"Hmm?" Yang Kai looked at her doubtfully. He had no idea how to reply to her after he was asked such a question all of a sudden.

The Proprietress fiddled with the Shadowless Veil, "If you trust me, let me keep this thing for now. I'll return it to you after some time."

[What is the woman up to?] Although the Shadowless Veil was valuable, it wasn't worthy of her attention; after all, she was able to see through its concealment at a glance back then. Furthermore, after spending half a year together with her, Yang Kai was convinced she wasn't someone who would snatch things from other people.

After giving it a thought, Yang Kai asked, "Can you tell me what you need this veil for?"

"You'll find out when the time is right," After finishing her words, the Proprietress directly put the Shadowless Veil away without getting his permission first. She didn't give him a chance to regret it.

Upon seeing that, Yang Kai became frustrated. He was weak now, so the Shadowless Veil was the most useful artifact he possessed currently. If it was really snatched by the Proprietress, he would be heartbroken; however, there was nothing he could do as he was much weaker than she was. What's more, he still owed her more than 10 million Open Heaven Pills, so for now he could only regard the veil as part of the repayment of his debt.

Following her actions though, the Proprietress fished out a box from her space ring and pushed it towards him, "Take it."

"What is this?" A puzzled Yang Kai gazed at her.

"Open the box and see it for yourself."

Since she had said as much, Yang Kai stopped asking questions and picked it up. The box was neither heavy nor big, only about as wide and long as a chopstick, making him wonder what was inside it.

After opening the box, Yang Kai was startled by what he saw. There was a true-to-life mask lying in the box. It was so delicate that it was as though it was really taken from a person's face. Apparently, it was a product from a Grandmaster Artifact Refiner.

Upon picking it up, Yang Kai realised that the mask was practically weightless and as thin as a cicada's wings.

Yang Kai wasn't someone who had just started cultivating, so although it was the first time he saw this mask, he had a speculation about what this artifact's uses were.

"Seven Faces." The Proprietress folded her hands and rested her chin on them as she looked smilingly at Yang Kai, "This treasure is called Seven Faces, which means that it can transform into seven different faces. More importantly, it can even alter the user's aura, voice, and figure, making it truly useful for concealment. It's something I obtained a long time ago."

Yang Kai's eyes brightened when he heard this. He had heard about masks that could help change a person's appearance; however, those items could only alter a person's physical appearance so others could easily see through such a disguise. On the other hand, Seven Faces could alter a person's aura, voice, and figure, which was truly incredible. In other words, it could completely turn the user into someone else.

"This treasure has the same limitations as yours. It can't block powerful cultivators from probing you. If that person has a strong Divine Sense, they can still see through your disguise. With that said, it can prevent Low-Rank Open Heaven Realm cultivators from spying on you."

In disbelief, Yang Kai gulped and said, "Proprietress, why did you…"

"Take it. You're too weak right now, so you need an artifact like this to protect yourself."

"You shouldn't have…" Yang Kai appeared elated. Despite what he had said, he was unwilling to put it down. In fact, the Shadowless Veil was more than enough to ensure his safety. However, if he also had the help of Seven Faces, he could be unrestrained when carrying out some tasks. At that instant, he was eager to go back to his room with the artifact and refine it to experience its abstrusity.

Nonetheless, he still said, "This is too expensive. I don't think I deserve it."

The Proprietress kept a smile on her face, "5 million."

Yang Kai became startled before he turned to stare at her, "What do you mean?" Why did she mention 5 million all of a sudden?

The Proprietress explained, "I'll lend it to you until you become an Open Heaven Realm Master. The fee is 5 million Open Heaven Pills."

An enraged Yang Kai bellowed, "You dare still say this isn't a bandits' inn!?"

He had the urge to strike her beautiful, smiling face with the Seven Faces in his hand. It was inconceivable that he was charged 5 million for a mask that he would have to return after he became an Open Heaven Realm Master. Why didn't she just become a professional thief instead? It was no wonder that she kept looking smilingly at him as though she was up to no good. He regretted deeply the fact that he was actually moved just now.

The Proprietress said lightly, "Whether or not you want to borrow this artifact, it's up to you."

An exasperated Yang Kai put down the box and turned around to leave. On the other hand, the Proprietress watched him leave with a smile on her face as she tilted her head and rested her chin on one hand.

Three breaths later, Yang Kai stormed into the room and grabbed the box, shooting the Proprietress a glare before leaving again.

The Proprietress shouted from behind, "It's 16.2 million now!"

Hearing that, Yang Kai staggered as he felt extremely bitter. It hadn't been long since he arrived in the Outer Universe, but he had already owed the Proprietress a huge amount of money. How long would it take before he could clear this debt?

Behind him, the Proprietress could be heard laughing heartily, which showed that she was pleased with what she had achieved today.

A bitter Yang Kai found a room in the inner court and pushed the door open. The room was well-decorated, and it was complete with every basic facility he needed.

Sitting on the bed, he suppressed his fury and examined the box. Although 5 million was indeed a lot of money, Seven Faces was probably more beneficial to him than the Shadowless Veil at this point. If it was used at the right time and in the right location, the benefits couldn't be gauged in mere monetary terms; therefore, despite the fact that the Proprietress was a black-hearted woman, Yang Kai still had no choice but to borrow this artifact from her.