Sinisterium Pawnshop: Exclusive to Malevolent Objects

　　The process was very short, lasting only three or four seconds, during which the luster on the surface of the Fish Astonishment Stone dimmed.

　　For a brief moment, electric arcs flickered on the jujube wood stick before it returned to its original state.

　　However, Lu Fei distinctly felt that the power of the heavenly thunder within the stick had released another ten percent, making it somewhat prickly to hold.

　　It was as if the power of the heavenly thunder were contained in a room, and whereas originally only one door was open, now two doors were open.

　　"Excellent, excellent, excellent!"

　　Lu Fei was overjoyed and quickly picked up the green inner core.

　　He sat cross-legged, holding the pea-sized inner core in his hand, and channeled the spiritual energy from his dantian to absorb the power within.

　　Although this inner elixir is small, it was Lu Fei's first time absorbing one, so he still proceeded cautiously and did not swallow it directly.

　　It took the whole night for Lu Fei to completely absorb the power of the inner elixir, doubling the amount of spiritual energy in his dantian.

　　Drenched in sweat, with a dizzy head as if drunk, he fell asleep right away...

　　An unknown amount of time passed.

　　Lu Fei was woken up by the sound of knocking on the door.

　　"Boss, boss, are you awake? Old Liu has brought guests over."

　　"I'm awake, please have them wait a moment."

　　Lu Fei sat up in bed, his head still slightly dizzy, but he felt especially full and powerful in his dantian.

　　He tried sensing it, finding his body light and agile, with twice as much spiritual energy as before.

　　Now that he not only had a life-bound magical instrument, but also such abundant spiritual energy, he could at least be considered a first-class cultivator.

　　"No wonder Jing Jian is so eager for the inner elixir, given how effective it is."

　　Not everyone can cultivate through the power of merit like him. The vast majority of cultivators can only slowly practice on their own or rely on medicinal herbs and treasures to assist them.

　　After washing up and changing clothes, Lu Fei felt refreshed and stepped into the shop.

　　"Brother Lu, I've been waiting for you for days, and you're finally back!"

　　Liu Fugui hurriedly got up to greet him.

　　Behind him was a handsome young man in his early thirties.

　　"Brother Lu, let me introduce you. This is the friend I told you about. His name is Zhou Yuyang. Don't let his youth fool you; he's a big boss in the e-commerce business!"

　　"Mr. Zhou, nice to meet you!"

　　Lu Fei politely extended his hand and shook hands with the young man.

　　"I apologize, I was away on business for a few days and made Mr. Zhou wait for a long time."

　　"Manager Lu, you're too kind. Brother Liu has explained many times, and I understand. A person like you must be very busy." Zhou Yuyang smiled, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

　　Lu Fei was younger than he had imagined, but he was very composed and calm.

　　He had seen this kind of demeanor in some business tycoons, but it was different. Lu Fei also exuded an additional aura.

　　What it was, he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

　　The three of them sat down, and Huzi made some fresh tea.

　　"Mr. Zhou, I heard from Old Liu that you bought a piece of jade that isn't quite clean?" Lu Fei got straight to the point.

　　"Yes, ever since I put on this piece of jade, I've been having really bad luck." Zhou Yuyang quickly took out an antique-looking small box from his bag, a worried expression on his handsome face.

　　"I asked others to take a look at it, but they couldn't find anything wrong! Manager Lu, your Sinisterium Pawnshop is an expert in this field, please take a look."

　　"Just a moment." Lu Fei put on gloves and opened the intricately crafted box.

　　Inside was a piece of Hetian jade.

　　The pixiu design has no impurities inside and has a very good luster.

　　According to legend, the pixiu only takes in and never lets out, which is why it's loved by business people.

　　Lu Fei looked at it carefully for a while and said, "Firstly, this piece of Hetian jade is not an antique; there's no old charm to it. It should be jade mined in recent years."

　　"That's right, that's right. I bought this from a friend who owns a jade factory." Zhou Yuyang nodded vigorously, "I was planning to collaborate with him, but this piece of jade he gave me was problematic, causing my online stores to lose a lot of business!"

　　"I was going to go to him right away, but then I thought he definitely wouldn't admit it, so I needed to find someone to appraise this piece of jade first. With evidence, I can hold him accountable!"

　　Lu Fei glanced at him and asked, "Mr. Zhou, have you been wearing this jade recently?"

　　"Of course not, I'm not an idiot. I know this jade is problematic, so I wouldn't wear it." Zhou Yuyang said anxiously, "Manager Lu, please tell me, what's wrong with this jade?"

　　"Mr. Zhou, your friend didn't cheat you. This piece of jade is very clean. Although it's not top-quality, it's still considered high-grade." Lu Fei shook his head and put the jade pixiu back into the box.

　　"What?"

　　Zhou Yuyang was immediately taken aback.

　　"Manager Lu, why don't you take another look? If there's no problem, how could I suddenly be unlucky?"

　　"If it's a problem with this jade, then you wouldn't be unlucky if you weren't wearing it." Lu Fei smiled at him, "Has Mr. Zhou's luck improved recently?"

　　"No! It's getting worse and worse!" Zhou Yuyang frowned, "It must be the filthy aura from it that has contaminated me!"

　　"Getting worse and worse?" Lu Fei pondered for a moment and looked at Zhou Yuyang's appearance.

　　His cheeks were dark, his ears lacked luster, and there was a fine needle-like line in the middle of his forehead.

　　Indeed, he looked quite down and out.

　　But his facial features were actually very good, with a full and plump forehead, a square and dignified chin, a high and straight nose with plenty of flesh, and full nostrils that did not flare out; he should be a very fortunate person with good fortune.

　　"Mr. Zhou, your own luck is very good. Your bad luck is not due to a poor overall fortune but is influenced by external factors. But I can confirm that it is not the problem with the jade píxiū," Lu Fei said firmly.

　　"Then what could it be?" Zhou Yuyang was stunned.

　　"It should be something else. Besides this jade píxiū, have you come into contact with any other special items?" Lu Fei asked again.

　　Zhou Yuyang lowered his head and thought for a while, then shook his head and said, "I really can't remember. I've come into contact with a lot of things in these two months, and I work in the jewelry business. If I can't find the reason, and if my bad luck continues like this, my online store will have to close down!"

　　"That shouldn't be, President Zhou, I remember I had Old Liu give you an amulet. You aren't carrying it with you?" Lu Fei also found it very strange.

　　"I have it with me, I always carry it! It doesn't seem to have any effect." Zhou Yuyang took out the neatly folded ghost-repelling charm from his chest, with a bitter smile on his face.

　　The ghost-repelling charm didn't work?

　　Lu Fei was slightly surprised, and said, "If the amulet didn't take effect, that means you haven't encountered any evil spirits."

　　"Then what's going on?" Zhou Yuyang stood up in agitation and said forcefully, "Manager Lu, I'm not the kind of person who would joke about my own business! Don't joke around with me either!"

　　"Oh, President Zhou, don't be so anxious. Manager Lu didn't mean anything by it, he's just trying to get a clear picture of the situation and find the cause for you," Liu Fugui hurriedly soothed him.

　　"Manager Lu is different from those fraudulent fortune tellers outside, he won't deceive you for money."

　　Zhou Yuyang sat back down and said, "I lost my composure, I'm sorry, Manager Lu, don't take it to heart."

　　"It's fine." Lu Fei pondered. 

　　When a person suddenly falls into great misfortune, it's not because of evil spirits, nor is it because they've encountered something unclean. Then, what is the cause?

　　After a while, he finally thought of a possibility.

　　He looked up and saw Zhou Yuyang, whose face was full of gloom.

　　"Mr. Zhou, you should have had your fortune borrowed!"