“Thankfully, there are only two Totems of Calamities in the Holy Wood Empire.”

Ikasa thought as he lay on his bed in the Pleasant Dream Inn. His eyes moved to the silky golden feather on the dressing table and he sighed.

“To think this world would be fraught with calamities and disaster were it not for the Guardian Beasts…”

The information from the Ancestor had truly opened his eyes. This world not only faced a threat from some cyborgs in about 80 years but also from the natural disasters.

He had no reason to worry about either disaster but somehow he was inexplicably involved with both.

His unusual body and his connection to the hunched old man involved him in the first disaster about the cybernetic humans.

The feather bestowed by the Heavenly Horse made him concerned about the second disaster.

‘I wonder how long it takes for a Transcendent beast to be saturated with a totem’s energy and undergo rebirth.’

Ikasa thought in his heart while looking at the feather. This feather was not only his ultimate protection but also a heavy responsibility.

Someday when the Heavenly Horse will undergo rebirth, it may come to Ikasa to get protection during its weak period.

‘All of this is far into the future. I should focus on things I need to do today. Like visiting the Fair of Furnace Fire Empire’s merchants!’

Ikasa quickly got up and got ready for the day. Today was the day when he could fill his pockets with more 1-Star Spirit Coins!

An hour later, Ikasa, Xin Ruo and the kids were walking towards a large open ground. This was the location of the trade fair organized with the combined efforts of the two neighboring empires.

On the first glance, Ikasa saw numerous luxurious tents erected on one side of the ground while stalls were set up on the other side by the merchants from both empires.

As the group passed by the tents, the nose of Luo Qiqi and Bu Fan twitched, smelling the aroma of delicious foods. Apparently these tents served as temporary restaurants!

The greedy foodie and the ambitious Chef looked at Ikasa for his permission to break away from the group.

Ikasa could not say no to the drooling and pouting faces. He slightly shook his head with exasperation and gave them the permission to do as they wanted.

As soon as Ikasa nodded, the two foodies ran towards the nearest tent. Chu Qing ran after them so that he could keep their expenses under control. He was determined to save one more gold coin on this trip.

After watching the trio disappear into the rows of tents, Ikasa and his group turned to the left.

Merchants from both the empires had set up stalls here. The Furnace Fire Empire stalls had a distinct red and gold decoration while the Holy Wood Empire Merchants had decorated their stalls in green and brown colors.

The stalls decorated in red and gold sold a variety of rare and precious goods like Weapon Ores and low tier medicine pills to miscellaneous trinkets like toys and clothes unique to the Furnace Fire Empire.

On the other hand, the green and brown stalls showcased items like Agarwood essence, Calming tea, rare herbs and other products of the forest. Even spices and food grains were for sale on these stalls!

Ikasa, Xin Ruo and Yan Xiao waded through the dense crowd of people as they visited the stalls that caught their fancy.

“Do you have trouble meditating? Is your mind always distracted? Try our combination of Agarwood Incense and Calming Tea! Guaranteed to increase your cultivation efficiency by 100%! Only a spirit coin for 100 taels!”

“Tri Color leaf on discount! One unit for 1-Star Spirit Coin!”

“Hot Black Powder! Sweet Scent Nut! Spicy Leaf! Dried Star Flower! Buy any one to bring flavor to your food!”

Ikasa heard numerous such solicitations as he passed by the stalls of the Holy Wood Empire Merchants. These were still okay but when he reached the area of the Furnace Fire Empire, the very first stall made Xin Ruo turn beet red.

“Do you run out of stamina soon?” The salesman asked, blocking Ikasa’s path. He did not even wait for Ikasa to answer and turned to Xin Ruo. “Does the young master not satisfy you, Young miss?”

Xin Ruo blushed and avoided eye contact with the salesman. They had not even done it a single time yet! How could she be a judge of satisfaction?

The Salesman was as shameless as those on Earth. He thrust a jade bottle before her and said,

“Try our Ironwood Formula! For only one spirit coin, this magical blue pill can bring happiness to your bedroom!”

Ikasa’s face turned dark and he rudely shoved the salesman to the side without speaking a word.  He then snaked his arm around Xin Ruo’s waist and marched away from the stall with blushing Xin Ruo and a clueless Yan Xiao.

The trio picked up pace and soon reached the area with the largest stalls in the fair.

Crowd around this area was thin. The Merchants had left their positions and were gathered around a single stall, chatting and talking.

Their faces were grave and they looked outraged.

“…that puny innkeeper dared to refuse me a room. She even said that any Merchant from the Furnace Fire Empire is not as good as a small merchant from their Tier-3 City!”

The fat on the face of the speaker trembled with anger as he recounted his version of what happened at the Pleasant Dream Inn. His embellishment made a mountain out of molehill!

He made it sound like he was denied room not because of his own fault but because the people of Holy Wood Empire had conspired to humiliate him!

It seemed like his plan had succeeded. The other merchants from the Furnace Fire Empire grew incensed at the unfair treatment their colleague had faced.

“Brother Zhang, they really do not look at the face of our Furnace Fire Empire! Rest assured, none of us will visit the Pleasant Dream Inn.”

“And that guy, Ikasa or whatever his name is, can forget about doing business with any of us.”

“Yes, unless that Ikasa gets on his knees and begs for your forgiveness, we won’t sell him any weapon-ores or buy anything he has to sell!”

A wide smile appeared on the round face of Zhang Chun. He patted the backs of the two merchants closest to him and emotionally said,

“Thank You, brothers. We need to show these people from the Holy Wood Empire that offending one of us means offending all of us.”

Suddenly, there was a hard knock on one of the counters of a nearby stall. A charming masculine voice asked, “Is anyone here?”

The gathering of merchants immediately broke as they turned to see who had arrived. They saw a young man and a woman with a shy teenager looking at them. Their dressing style was simple but both, the man and the woman, had a Spatial Storage Bracelet on their wrists.

Seeing the young man, Zhang Chun’s face turned ugly. He pointed his thick and girthy finger at Ikasa and spat out the words, “He is that insolent bastard, Ikasa!”

Immediately, the way Merchants looked at Ikasa changed. Their gazes became full of hostility. They had already judged them to be poor from their simplistic dressing but they were still willing to do business with them as both of them possessed Storage devices.

However, since these people had offended Zhang Chun, the merchants were no longer interested in conducting business with them.

After all, there was no reason to incur the wrath of a big fish like Zhang Chun for a small sum they could obtain from this couple.

Ikasa heard the words spoken by Zhang Chun and noticed the wariness and open hostility displayed by the merchants.

‘Sigh! This is why I do not like slapping faces. It only brings forth endless troubles.’

Ikasa thought as he looked at the group of silent merchants. He decided to thicken his face and take the initiative to speak.

“The board here says that you are buying Prime Gold ores?”

Silence. His question was met with silence. Ikasa looked at the merchants who still kept quiet and then his eyes met Zhang Chun’s.

“I told you, Ikasa! You have offended Zhang Chun of Blaze City means you have insulted our Furnace Fire Empire! None of these merchants will buy your few dings of Prime Gold Ores!”

Zhang Chun roared with laughter. Ikasa narrowed his eyes at the fatty and the merchants surrounding him.

He did not want to beg them to buy his ores but approaching the other Merchants who dealt with Pills and herbs would not get him the best possible price.

‘Well, what they would offer would at the least be better than having to beg before these bastards. Worst case, I will bring the ores to the Royal Family of the Furnace Fire Empire myself.’

Ikasa decided to protect his pride and reputation and turned to leave.

At this moment, Yan Xiao tugged at Ikasa’s sleeves and asked in a relatively quiet voice, “Brother Ikasa, didn’t you say we were selling a hundred dings of Prime Gold ore?”

His voice was still not quiet enough. Most of the merchants opposite Ikasa had reached the intermediate stage of the Sense Realm at the minimum. Their sharp ears heard the words ‘a hundred dings’ and a look of shock and excitement appeared on their face.

From the corner of his eyes, Ikasa noticed the greed shine in the eyes of  many of the merchants standing beside Zhang Chun. Their will to stay true to their words was wavering.

As Ikasa took the first step to leave the area, he heard a merchant call for him.

“This… Brother Ikasa, please wait! I am willing to buy all hundred dings of your Prime Gold Ore!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep