Astral Pet Store

“It’s you…”

Su Ping remembered Milaluo, the Ascendant cultivator he had met before. He nodded and said, “Anyone with Ascendant cultivation can buy it. Now that you’re here, feel free to check if it’s satisfactory.”

He then led Milaluo into the room where pets were sold.

The other curious customers followed along, wondering if an Ascendant pet was truly available.

Su Ping was too famous and powerful to be lying.

Everybody soon entered the room and immediately saw a poster-sized board on the wall displaying a divine phoenix with black and golden feathers. The mere image was already intimidating and domineering.

“Is it truly an Ascendant pet?”

Many people were shocked, not expecting that Su Ping would truly be selling Ascendant pets, a phoenix to boot!

Although beasts had assorted bloodlines, any of those related to dragons or phoenixes were on the top tier of their level. Of course, there were some exceptions, but even those could also be hilarious pets for fun purposes.

“This is…”

Milaluo looked at the image with shock and suspicion. He could feel the powerful aura conveyed by the image, but he had never seen that type of phoenix before.

The creature wasn’t on Federation’s known Ascendant pet listing.

Is it a new species discovered in the borderlands?

But such unknown pets were usually studied first, and wouldn’t be sold until their potential and combat ability were deemed to be mediocre, even when fully developed.

“Boss Su, is this the one?”

Milaluo was stunned to see it was being sold for 23 billion astral coins.

…Only 23 billion?

What’s your problem?

Or rather, what’s the pet’s problem?

There has to be something seriously wrong with it!

Even a dying Ascendant pet should have been more expensive than that. Or being more straightforward, even the corpse of such a pet—which could only be used to refine pills—would have been sold for more than that.

“Exactly. This is the one,” said Su Ping.

Milaluo was rather suspicious. He asked, “Boss Su, do you need anything else besides money?”

“No, I only need the money.”

“…”

Milaluo was confused again.

The pet was dirt cheap, and he didn’t have to compensate with any rare materials… He would have thought that Su Ping was a fraud if he weren’t Shen Huang’s talented disciple!

Exactly at this moment—the sound of wind approached from behind them as a few people rushed into Su Ping’s store. They didn’t have to wait in line because they went directly to buy the Ascendant pet.

They soon saw Su Ping and Milaluo as they gathered.

They also saw the image of the Black Emperor Red Feather Phoenix when they entered the room.

The four Ascendant cultivators who had just arrived were in a daze. They hurriedly pelted Su Ping with questions.

“This is the one? It’s a phoenix! Huh?”

“Its price is only 23 billion? Are they talking about astral coins, or golden crystals?”

“Mr. Su, is this the pet you’re selling?”

Su Ping nodded. “This is the one. I only accept cash.”

He wasn’t the least bit interested in those Ascendant’s possessions. After all, he had even robbed four Superior Gods clean not long before; Ascendant State stuff didn’t attract him at all.

“Boss Su, I’m willing to pay 50 billion!”

“500 billion!” Another Ascendant State cultivator quickly raised the price.

“Mr. Su, I am Loulan Ruoyun. We’ll pay you however much you demand as long as you’re willing to sell the pet to us!” said a female Ascendant with a smile. Even though she looked beautiful and elegant, she still treated the lower-tiered Su Ping with respect.

Her attitude made the other Ascendants change their expression; the rest of the customers were shocked to see this.

They knew that Su Ping had an extraordinary identity, but they didn’t expect to see Ascendant cultivators—powerful lords in the universe—acting courteously in his presence.

“Well…”

Su Ping looked at Milaluo and asked, “You were the first to arrive. Do you want it? I’ll sell it to someone else if you don’t.”

Milaluo snapped out of his daze and quickly said, “Yes, of course. Boss Su, just name your price; I’ll definitely pay you as long as I can afford it.”

“The price has already been set. Pay up if you want it.” Su Ping waved a hand, dismissing the offer.

Milaluo was at a loss. That’s the price? He could tell that Su Ping wasn’t trying to swindle him out of his money. After all, the price was nothing compared to the other Ascendant’s bids; Su Ping didn’t have to lie to him.

No matter what was wrong with the pet, buying it wouldn’t be a mistake.

It was an Ascendant State pet anyway!

Even if it were sick, he could always spend some more money to heal it!

Even the weakest pet of that realm would cost more than 20 trillion, forget about 20 billion!

All things considered, he should definitely buy the pet. Milaluo looked at Su Ping and hesitated. “So, I just pay that amount and it’s mine?”

“It’s fine even if you pay while doing a headstand.” Su Ping was feeling rather helpless at that point, not expecting to waste so much time talking after setting such a low price.

“Well…” Milaluo coughed and said, “I’ll pay right now.” He then dashed to the counter and transferred the money from his account in the Universe Bank.

Loulan Ruoyun and the other three Ascendants looked at each other in bewilderment. Their biddings were considerably higher. Why did Su Ping pick Milaluo?

Are they friends?

“Boss Su, are you seriously not going to reconsider?”

“I have a piece of Dragon Drool Wood that’s thirty thousand years old. You can also charge me however much money you want. I hope you’ll reconsider, Mr. Su,” said another cultivator.

Loulan Ruoyun didn’t want to give up just yet, either. She said, “Mr. Su, the Loulan family will surely offer you the most satisfactory price. I hope you…”

“It’s been decided,” Su Ping shook his head and said, “Just come early next time a pet is available. First come, first served.”

The four of them were stunned. Next time a pet is available? First come, first served?

What about the price? Does the pricing mean nothing to you?

Any Ascendant pet can be put up for auction and raise a fortune!

At least it would be sold for a much higher price!

“Mr. Su, are you saying that you’ll sell the pet to whoever arrives first?” one of the bidders couldn’t help but ask.

Su Ping looked at him with a strange expression. “Of course. That’s the rule in business; I believe that even ordinary people know about common courtesy.”

“Well…”

The last person to ask was lost for words. You’re applying the ‘first come, first served’ rule to sell Ascendant pets? Do you think you’re selling bread and butter?

Loulan Ruoyun was shocked too. She had long heard that Mr. Su was a quirky man who, instead of focusing all his time on cultivation, wasted time running a pet store. Little did she expect that the guy was actually doing business in such a crazy way.

That’s an Ascendant State pet you just sold! Wake up!

“Try to come early next time,” Su Ping said to Loulan Ruoyun. She was from the Loulan family anyway, and Su Ping didn’t mind reminding her.

Loulan Ruoyun nodded, still having trouble understanding the situation.

After having made the payment, Milaluo then approached Su Ping uneasily and said, “Boss Su, the payment was made. This pet…”

“Prepare to sign the contract. By the way, you must not resell or cancel the contract of any pet sold by this store within a ten year period, unless the circumstances are special. Otherwise, you’ll be blacklisted,” said Su Ping.

“Of course.” Milaluo accepted the request without hesitation. Ten years was just the blink of an eye for an Ascendant State cultivator.

Everybody kept their eyes peeled while they looked at the image of the phoenix. They were eager to find out why that Ascendant pet was sold for the measly amount of 23 billion!

Su Ping asked the crowd to move back and clear the area. He then summoned the Black Emperor Red Feather Phoenix. “Come out!”

A shriek was heard, and a powerful and domineering aura was spread out of a certain space within the store. The hot waves quickly increased the temperature, but then stabilized after reaching the upper limit.

A glamorous phoenix covered in black and golden feathers descended with brutality and ferocity in its eyes. It only showed fear when it recognized Su Ping.

Su Ping had previously beaten it up black and blue in order to improve the beast-catching ring’s success rate. He rendered it incapable of resisting while barely keeping it alive. That was an extremely delicate job, and he had to torture it bit by bit. The beast still vividly remembered the process, and considered Su Ping a fiend.

“Well…”

“What a powerful aura!”

“Is it a true phoenix? It’s so intimidating…”

The onlooking cultivators were shocked to see the creature reveal; its aura was too powerful. They were all terrified when it arrived, as if they were facing a strong ferocious beast. They found the phoenix extremely dangerous.

It might even be stronger than them!

They were absolutely shocked, and none of them could utter a word. They could only stare while dazed.

The other customers watching the transaction had been scared off; some even fell due to the pressure.

Everything was happening while the pet was being suppressed by the store. Its full intimidating aura before being subdued would have made all the Ascendant cultivators feel the urge to flee.

“Is this…?”

Milaluo was completely stunned. Is this truly the pet that I got for only 23 billion?

He would have gladly paid ten thousand times the original amount for that intimidating aura alone, even if it was sick.

“Prepare to sign the contract.” Su Ping’s voice dragged Milaluo back to reality.

After being dazed for a moment, Milaluo looked at the phoenix and felt uncertain. To sing the contract… He didn’t think he could suppress that phoenix.

However, there was no way he would back off from owning such a powerful pet. He stepped up and quickly drew a contract, condensing a powerful mental mark.

The Black Emperor Red Feather Phoenix sensed something and shrieked furiously, unleashing scorching flames as it tried to attack Milaluo.

Once he saw that, Su Ping raised a hand and snorted. “Behave.”

An immense pressure was imposed; the creature shivered, remembering how it had been subdued by Su Ping. Its flames were gone, and stopped to watch as the contract was imprinted on its forehead with shock and fury.

The mysterious link was instantly established.

Milaluo felt an explosion inside his head. The next moment, he sensed that a powerful and arrogant consciousness entered his head, which belonged to the Black Emperor Red Feather Phoenix.

He prudently greeted and communicated with the phoenix, only to receive an angry and condescending reply.

Milaluo had also discovered that the phoenix wasn’t easy to deal with, and could only smile bitterly in his heart. He would have to take time in building up rapport. For the moment he simply examined the phoenix with the contract.

The longer he examined, the more surprised Milaluo was. It was possible to detect a pet’s basic stats with the contract, but only vets and trainers could diagnose their diseases.

The basic stats discovered by Milaluo had stunned him.

Strong!

So strong!

The pet was far stronger than him. He wouldn’t have been able to beat it even if he merged with another Ascendant pet.

“The pet test room is over there if you wish to have a feel, or maybe in another store elsewhere,” said Su Ping.

Milaluo snapped out of his pondering with a bitter smile. Was there any place an Ascendant pet could be tested? He asked Su Ping, “Is it possible to test it here? Won’t it… tear this place down?”

“Don’t worry about that. Not even Celestials can tear this place down,” said Su Ping without giving it any thought.

His words boomed in everyone’s ears. They all looked at Su Ping in surprise. Not even Celestials can tear this place down? Is there a Celestial expert hiding here?

Or maybe, is it an ancient array able to resist Celestial attacks?

They suddenly felt chills and uncertainty upon recalling Su Ping’s achievements. They had the feeling that a pair of eyes were looking down at them inside the store.

No wonder their senses couldn’t see through the store and explore the closed rooms.

He’s been really casual even when he talks about Celestials like his master. There must be another Celestial expert backing him… The idea occurred to all the Ascendant cultivators, who became even more respectful towards Su Ping.

Milaluo was stunned for a moment due to Su Ping’s answer. Although wrought with mixed feelings, he didn’t turn down the offer; he was eager to find out his pet’s real combat ability too.

Milaluo went to the test room and some curious customers followed along, including the other Ascendants.

Loulan Ruoyun spoke to Su Ping for a while, then went to the test room too.

The place wasn’t too big, but it was an independent world.

Everyone was dumbfounded by the pet’s performance.

The phoenix was too strong. It merely unleashed a flame, and Milaluo was almost killed!

Milaluo ended the test in a hurry and scurried out of the room. He was surprised, delighted, and more or less worried, fearing that he would die even before his opponents if he were to summon such a powerful pet on the battlefield.

“Boss Su, why did you sell such a powerful pet to me?” Milaluo couldn’t help but ask Su Ping.

All the others looked at Su Ping with shock and confusion too.

They also considered that pet to be unbelievably powerful; too much so to be sold. And in the event of selling such a pet, the price should have been much higher.

“Is it really strong?” Su Ping asked back.