John followed behind the attendant, and the two quickly made their way deeper into the Mystic Trade Hall pagoda. The pagoda was incredibly large, and had dozens of floors, each with a dedicated trade purpose.
The attendant escorted John to an area with dozens of circular platforms, each glowing with powerful runic energy. A constant stream of cultivators and traders were walking up to the platforms and disappearing, while others appeared on different platforms out of nowhere.
The attendant walked onto one of the large platforms, quickly followed behind by John. Both of them instantly disappeared and reappeared, now in a new location. John took note of his surroundings, and a quick glance out of one of the far floor to ceiling windows at the end of the hall revealed his new location.
'I'm over a dozen floors up now? They have teleportation platforms for traversing the building, instead of stairs? Just how rich is the Mystic Trade Hall?'
"This floor is for the exclusive use of youths in the Meridian Forging Realm and Heaven Tribulation Realm," the attendant explained. "If you continue to follow me, I shall escort you to your private trade chamber."
John nodded his head, and continued to follow behind the attendant. His head swiveled in all directions, taking in the sights before him. The floor was crowded with youths his age, and John even managed to spot the youths he had seen outside the trade hall.
The youths were all being attended by someone, each going about their business with their personal attendant.
'The Mystic Trade Hall must also have quite an extensive list of powerful connections. They most likely establish a rapport with the most promising youths around, which only furthers their own power down the line. Impressive.'
While following behind the attendant, John couldn't help but notice a lone youth sitting off to the side of the teleportation platform. He wore incredibly luxurious robes, which were black and white, the same color scheme of the Mystic Trade Hall. He had a bald head and clean shaven face, and he was sitting in a meditative position, although his eyes were open. Instead of cultivating, he appeared to be calmly but carefully watching each and every youth that appeared on the floor.
The youth seemed quite unique, which John couldn't help but notice. At the same time, the youth noticed John through the crowd, and gazed at him for a moment. He raised an eyebrow upon seeing John, and his calm gaze continued to linger on John's face until John rounded the corner.
"Here we are young sir," the attendant spoke out a short while later as they arrived at their location. The attendant gestured to a nearby room, which had the door already open. John entered the room and looked around.
The room was a few dozen yards long and wide, and had several luxurious sofas and seats in the middle of the room. A large table, made of black and white marble with detailed designs was situated between the seats, while a table with tea was situated on the side of the room. The room was filled with expensive plants and herbs, making the environment incredibly fragrant and relaxing.
John nodded his head in approval at what he was seeing, as it truly was an incredibly lavish room to be attended in.
"If you'll wait here for a moment, one of our Trade Managers will attend to you shortly," the attendant said to John respectfully before he left to go find a Trade Manager.
John walked around the room for a moment before he took a seat on one of the sofas in the middle of the room. The sofa was incredibly soft, and felt himself fall into an incredibly relaxed state, as if he were sitting on a cloud.
'Getting me nice and relaxed so I'll be more inclined to spend money? Not a bad idea,' John mused internally as he saw through the ruse, but respected it nonetheless.
He leaned back on the sofa and relaxed as he waited for the Trade Manager assigned to him to arrive.
…
The attendant who had aided John was walking towards the Trade Manager room, when all of a sudden a lone youth stepped before him. The attendant, quickly taking note of who had stopped him, bowed respectfully for a short moment before straightening himself.
"Young Master Caz…how may I help you," the attendant spoke out, his voice incredibly respectful.
"No need for the formalities, Attendant Zaho. You know I do not like such flattery," the youth replied with a dismissive hand wave.
"Ah, of course," Attendant Zaho replied. "What can I help you with? Do you need something from me?" the attendant asked.
"Indeed you can," the youth replied. "That boy you were just escorting…who is he?"
"Him?" the attendant asked, his voice slightly surprised. He had not been expecting the subject to be about John, as John was a rather unassuming youth. "I'm not sure. He arrived just recently, and wants to acquire some expensive battle arts. As for who he is particularly, I'm not sure."
"He didn't say anything of his backing?" the youth replied. "How did he get up here then?"
"What did he say?" Attendant Zaho repeated. "He just said that he had enough spirit crystals to obtain the high-level battle arts he was seeking. There was no mention of his backing."
The youth raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. "Interesting…" he mused out loud while thinking about something.
Attendant Zaho stood there respectfully for a short moment before the youth spoke up once more.
"I'll take it from here, Attendant Zaho. No need to find that youth a Trade Manager," the youth instructed, causing a look of slight surprise to appear on Attendant Zaho's face.
"What? While this youth appears to have sufficient money, surely his status is beneath your notice. Are you sure you don't want…"
Attendant Zaho's voice trailed off as the youth shook his head. "It seems as though you don't recognize his robes," the youth replied.
"His robes?" Attendant Zaho replied. "Indeed I do not recognize them."
"You must study up on the surrounding region more, Attendant Zaho," the youth scolded lightly.. "The robes that youth is wearing belongs to the Heavenly Lightning Sect's War Hall."