To have Bai Hao pretend to be a soul slave would forestall many suspicions about who exactly he was. Plus, by using his ghost cultivator ability to change his appearance, it would be highly unlikely that anyone would ever be able to figure out who he was.
Bai Hao was getting even more excited. Clasping hands, he bowed deeply to his Master.
With that, Master and apprentice settled down in the shop. A few days went by before the doors of the shop opened. Although nothing about the shop looked very different, the spirit enhancer who operated it was as different from the previous one as heaven was from the earth.
However, the name of the shop was definitely not appropriate, and even after being open for about half a month, it was obvious that all the other shops on the street were very busy, but this one wasn’t.
When Bai Xiaochun realized that, and thought back to the grand words he had spoken to Bai Hao, he started feeling antsy. After some thought, he gave some new instructions to Bai Hao.
“Apprentice, after some thinking, I’ve decided that the reason people aren’t coming to the shop is that the name isn’t attractive enough. Therefore, we're going to change names. From now on, we're… The Number One Spirit Enhancement Shop Under Heaven!”
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Chapter
723: Bring In A Shill...?
Bai Hao hesitated for a moment. The name seemed a bit bombastic, after all. However, he could see how determined Bai Xiaochun was about it, and that there was really no choice other than to agree. Soon, the shop’s sign was replaced.
The Number One Spirit Enhancement Shop Under Heaven!
The new sign instantly caused a big commotion in the other shops in the area. Furthermore, quizzical expressions could be seen on the faces of all the passersby.
After changing the sign, Bai Xiaochun temporarily stopped his work on sixteen-colored flame and instead sat eagerly behind the counter, eyes glued to the front door as he waited for some customers.
Bai Hao stood to the side, equally excited. Although he felt that the new name was a bit flamboyant, he was just as eager to get new customers as Bai Xiaochun was.
But after two hours passed, not a single one of the hundreds of passersby stepped into the door. In fact, a lot of people were even pointing at the sign and laughing.
“Number one under heaven? Too pretentious!”
“I know this spirit enhancement shop. Their reputation went down the drain a long time ago. They ruined magical items belonging to quite a few customers. They’ll definitely be going out of business soon. What do they think, that changing the name will fool people or something?”
“Is that supposed to be some kind of a joke? We cultivators want reliability!”
Bai Xiaochun could hear many of the comments, and soon, his eagerness began to turn to rage. However, he took a deep breath and told himself that he just needed to have a little patience. A day passed. Then another. Eventually, seven days later, he couldn’t take it any longer.
During that week, not a single person had set foot into the store. At first, the change in sign had caused a bit of a stir on the street, but eventually, even the mocking comments ceased….
Nobody seemed interested in the shop at all, which got Bai Xiaochun depressed, but at the same time, defiant.
“I refuse to believe this! I'm a genius who causes a big scene wherever I go. How could a crappy little store like this be such a problem!?” With that, he called over Bai Hao, who stood there with a bitter smile on his face as he accepted some new instructions.
“Alright, my apprentice, I’ve thought it through. You see, our new sign isn’t enough to do the trick. Let’s put some auspicious couplets on either side of the door to show our proud and unyielding character!
“I’ve already thought of what to put on the couplets. It's best to be simple and direct. On one side put One Spirit Enhancement, 1,000 Portions Of Spirit Medicine. On the other side put Must Enter Shop With Minimum Of 10,000 Portions Of Spirit Medicine!” With that, he swished his sleeve grandly.
Shaken by what he had just heard, Bai Hao asked, “Um… what about the couplet on top?”
“Want Enhancements? Come in. Don’t Want Them? Leave!”
Bai Hao was now right in that spot between laughter and tears, but as long as his Master was happy, he was happy too. Before long, the couplets were written and hung up around the door. Yet again, a bit of a commotion resulted. All of the surrounding shops, and the passersby as well, were stunned at how crazy this shop was acting.
“1,000 for a single enhancement? Is that the set price, or the minimum? Other shops only charge a few hundred at most. A minimum price of 1,000 is the kind of price that only a celestial necromancer would charge.”
“Crazy talk! What kind of a scam do they think they’re running?”
“It’s kind of funny actually….”
Even as Bai Xiaochun waited excitedly, Bai Hao's eyes glittered, and he suddenly leaned over and whispered something into his ear. Bai Xiaochun blinked a few times, then slapped his thigh and agreed.
Was Bai Xiaochun’s original method effective? Or had word just spread? No one could tell. In any case, the day after the couplets were hung on the door, The Number One Spirit Enhancement Shop Under Heaven got its first customer.
He was a burly savage giant, who despite having shrunk his overall size, was still fully three meters tall. Even just stepping into the shop, he caused the ground to tremble around him.
Bai Hao was just about to hurry over and attend to him when the man waved his hand, causing a huge battle-axe to slam down onto the ground. Although it was relatively ordinary in construction, it had six silver designs on its surface, making it very eye-catching.
“That’s a really crazy sign you have out there,” the burly man said in a booming voice that immediately attracted some attention from outside. People even began to gather to see what was happening. “My battle-axe here already has a sixfold spirit enhancement. Now I want a seventh, and I’m not willing to pay 1,000. I’ll pay 3,000! But if you ruin my battle-axe, then I’ll tear your shop down!”
Bai Xiaochun clasped his hands behind his back and proudly walked out from behind the counter to examine the axe. “If you have the proper materials, I’ll do it for 3,000. Without materials, it will be 10,000!”
The burly man’s eyes went wide, and then a ruthless smile broke out on his ferocious face.
“Fine. 10,000 it is. I’ll wait here for the finished product.”
Bai Xiaochun nodded, then made a grasping motion, which caused the axe to fly over into his hand. Then, he walked into the back room. By this point, quite a crowd had built up outside, and when they heard 10,000 portions of spirit medicine mentioned, it caused a big stir.
“10,000 for a spirit enhancement…? You never see prices like that from small shops like this! Is that burly guy a shill or something? Doubtful. It seems too obvious.”
“Whether he’s a shill or not doesn’t matter. Let’s just see if the spirit enhancement works!”
“I never could have guessed that this shop would accept a job for a sevenfold spirit enhancement. If the enhancement fails, the shop’s reputation will definitely be in ruins.”
“Does this shop even have a reputation to begin with? If they can’t do spirit enhancements, then they’ll definitely be out of business soon….”
People stood there discussing the matter for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, until powerful fluctuations began to roll out from the shop’s back room. Then, eyes went wide as Bai Xiaochun walked out, holding the battle-axe in his hand. Clearly, it had seven silver designs on its surface!
“It actually worked!”
“Heavens! That’s a sevenfold spirit enhancement! And he did it in the time it takes an incense stick to burn!!”