Transmigrating as the Heart Demon of the Ruthless Sword Venerable – Chapter 20

Same Kind (2)

Another Heart Demon

Tang Wenchun could never have imagined that the cultivators in books—who flew here and there, either pursuing Ascension and immortality, or romance, or thrilling adventures—would also be this down-to-earth… making money?

            

She followed Yu Zhaoming for a walk around the long street, watching as Yu Zhaoming paused every few steps, inquired about prices, and finally selected a spot before shaking out a cloth and skillfully setting up a stall.

Tang Wenchun noticed that Yu Zhaoming’s chosen spot seemed deliberate. The people nearby wore untidy clothing, clearly not sect disciples, while it wasn’t far from the bustling area where sect disciples clustered their stalls. If anything happened, they could quickly get support.

The rogue cultivators nearby didn’t look pleased when they saw Yu Zhaoming setting up a stall, but after noticing the small embroidered sword identifier on her robes, they reluctantly shuffled aside without making any aggressive moves.

            

Still, some grumbling reached her ears.

“Sect disciples, coming to steal business from us rogue cultivators.”

“Ah, it’s the Sword Sect.”

            

“…No wonder.”

Yu Zhaoming simply ignored them. She arranged her wares and wrote a line of large characters: Fair prices for all, no haggling.

Tang Wenchun had assumed someone like Yu Zhaoming would mostly sit there with a cold face, just as unapproachable as her usual demeanor.

            

Unexpectedly, Yu Zhaoming pulled out a piece of paper, rolled it into a makeshift megaphone, tugged at the corners of her lips, and shouted: “Bargain hunting! Bargain hunting! Newly forged artifacts from the Sword Sect’s reclusive weapon refiners—limited stock, first come first served!!”

Her voice shed some of its usual coldness, becoming like a freshly ripened honeydew melon with threads of sweetness.

Tang Wenchun: …The difference was so huge she felt like Yu Zhaoming had been possessed on the spot.

            

She stole a glance at Yu Zhaoming. Seeing her expressionless face as usual—still shouting, but with that same demeanor—Tang Wenchun let out a breath of relief, though her feet moved involuntarily a step outward.

Yu Zhaoming turned to look at her, set down the megaphone, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Uh…” She couldn’t exactly say she’d been startled. Tang Wenchun scratched her head and could only say, “Nothing, I just didn’t expect you to hawk goods like this, and your voice…” How could she sound so sweet while her face stayed completely blank!

            

Yu Zhaoming’s expression didn’t change. She simply said, “If I don’t, no one will come.”

There was something in those words that felt tinged with the hardship of life… Tang Wenchun fell silent for a moment, then hesitantly added, “Then you should smile a little.” After saying this, she felt she might be overstepping. Remembering how ruthless Yu Zhaoming could be, she quickly added, “Ah, I don’t mean to demand anything, it’s just, just…”

Just what, Tang Wenchun couldn’t quite articulate.

            

Yu Zhaoming didn’t take offense. She nodded seriously: “Shizun¹ says the same thing. But right now there are no customers, and smiling constantly makes my face tired.”

“…I see…”

I see, my foot! That makes it even weirder!! Tang Wenchun fell silent and stood blankly beside Yu Zhaoming. Yu Zhaoming glanced at her, then pulled a small folding stool from her Storage Bag² and handed it over.

            

Tang Wenchun looked down at the small folding stool in her hands. It was a finely crafted little stool, carefully sanded smooth of splinters, lacquered, with the character “Yu” carved into its legs. But the fabric on top showed signs of wear—she couldn’t tell how many times it had been used.

How to put it…

It suddenly made her heart ache.

            

Tang Wenchun sat carefully on the small folding stool. It was steady and didn’t wobble at all. She rested her chin in her hands, watching the bustling long street with its various hawking calls, feeling somewhat dazed.

This was nothing like the world of dashing adventure in the books she’d imagined.

She looked up at Yu Zhaoming, who was calling out enthusiastically, and thought—she was also very different from the Emotionless Sword Venerable she’d imagined, who would have achieved great accomplishment in the Emotionless Dao yet lived in solitude.

            

You could say there wasn’t a single similarity.

“Hey, it really is the Sword Sect!” A sudden voice rang out. Tang Wenchun looked up to see two rogue cultivators, one tall and one short, walking over. They looked decent enough, but their darting, calculating eyes made people dislike them on sight.

The taller one nudged his companion with an elbow. The shorter one chuckled and stepped forward, casually picking up a cylindrical container and asking, “How much is this?”

            

“These are the Nine Nether Primordial Needles³. They can fire one hundred needles at once—just press the base, and the needles retract back into the cylinder for reuse. One hundred medium-grade spirit stones, or ten high-grade spirit stones. We don’t accept low-grade spirit stones.”

Yu Zhaoming finally put on a smile. Though it looked rather perfunctory, once she smiled, it softened the coldness around her, making her look more like a girl of her age—soft and easy to bully.

The short cultivator’s expression took on the smugness of someone who’d spotted prey.

            

Tang Wenchun didn’t like what she saw. Her hand couldn’t help but rest on the hilt of her newly acquired Luoze.

The short cultivator was completely oblivious. He weighed the cylinder rather flippantly, but couldn’t hide the surprise and delight in his eyes—he clearly liked it very much. Yet he feigned nonchalance, saying, “It’s really too expensive. Make it cheaper, name your price.”

“This shop does not haggle.” Yu Zhaoming still wore her smile.

            

The short cultivator snorted: “I just came from the front street, and the Weapon Sect sells them for much cheaper. I’m only patronizing you Sword Sect disciples because you’re always so pitiful…”

“The Weapon Sect sells them for fifteen high-grade spirit stones. I’ve already asked,” Yu Zhaoming said.

The short cultivator clearly hadn’t expected this. He froze briefly and instinctively turned to look at the tall one.

            

The tall cultivator frowned and bowed to Yu Zhaoming: “Please forgive us, we’re merely rogue cultivators with few spirit stones to spare. My younger brother simply likes it too much. Why don’t you do us a favor and lower the price? We would be deeply grateful. If fate brings us together again in the future, we will certainly repay you with our lives.”

Tang Wenchun was dumbfounded. First they tried a little trick, and when that didn’t work, they immediately played the sympathy card. The haggling tactics in the cultivation world were a bit much.

Yu Zhaoming dropped her smile and reached out to snatch the needle cylinder back. But the short cultivator dodged, the tall one threw down a smoke bomb on the spot, and the two of them vanished without a trace.

            

These two were clearly seasoned criminals!

Yu Zhaoming turned to glance at Tang Wenchun: “Watch the stall. If anyone comes to ask, you can sell or not sell.”

With that, she flicked her hand. Cangfeng flew from its sheath, and she vanished.

            

“Ah… hey…”

Tang Wenchun, left alone, reached out her hand—but where was Yu Zhaoming’s figure?

“Don’t worry, little girl, the enforcement squad will arrive in a quarter of an hour. As long as your shijie⁴ catches them before they run off the long street, the goods will definitely be recovered,” a nearby rogue cultivator kindly told the seemingly helpless Tang Wenchun.

            

Tang Wenchun was silent for a moment, then asked, “And what if they run off the long street?”

The rogue cultivator laughed heartily: “Then naturally the sky is vast and birds fly free⁵—they’ll never be found again.”

Robbery in the cultivation world was truly one of a kind… Tang Wenchun stood there blankly. For a moment, everyone she looked at seemed to harbor malicious intent, wanting to steal something, and she certainly didn’t dare call out like Yu Zhaoming.

            

Seeing this, the rogue cultivator just chuckled and didn’t press further.

After a while, a figure paused at the stall. Tang Wenchun looked up to see a woman in white holding a black umbrella, standing before the stall, silently examining the wares.

“How much?” The woman’s voice was soft and warm, but her expression carried a coldness.

            

“…The stall owner hasn’t come back yet. Maybe you could come back later,” Tang Wenchun replied after a moment’s hesitation.

“You can’t decide?”

The other party asked, and the question seemed to carry another layer of meaning. Tang Wenchun couldn’t help but look up and meet the woman’s eyes. She was startled to find that within the woman’s pupils, there seemed to be another pupil—she had the rare condition of double pupils⁶.

            

“You…” Tang Wenchun had barely opened her mouth when she sensed a strange aura from the woman. That feeling—it was like the bizarre sensation she’d experienced when she was about to become a heart demon and lose [censored].

In that instant, perhaps from some kind of instinct, Tang Wenchun suddenly perceived something unusual.

“You—!!”

            

She finally understood—the woman was just like her, another heart demon!

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The author has something to say:

Tang Wenchun: It’s so heartbreaking

            

Yu Zhaoming: …

Tang Wenchun: Is every Sword Sect disciple like this?

Yu Zhaoming: …

            

When dealing with Sword Sect disciples, first tell them their prices are too high. Sword Sect disciples usually can’t afford to check market prices. If that doesn’t work, play pitiful and get them to lower the price. The above tactics come from the rogue cultivator’s manual “Rogue Cultivator’s 500 Questions for Staying Alive: What to Do When You Meet a Sword Sect Disciple,” with the note: Congratulations, you’ve met a sucker! This is a rare opportunity to fleece a sect disciple!

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