"Sect Master… this hotel… it must've cost a fortune…"

The sect elders were dumbfounded by this luxurious place that was grander than any hotel they have ever seen before.

"Well, it did cost a few hundred Spirit Stones…"

Liu Lanzhi revealed the amount to them, causing their eyes to widen with shock, as they were not expecting such a large number.

"A few hundred Spirit Stones?! Just to live here for a few weeks?! That kind of money can buy a few Spirit Treasures!"

"T-This is plain robbery in daylight!"

The sect elders found it hard to believe that Liu Lanzhi would be so generous in her spending, especially when the Sect is in no position to be wasting resources.

Of course, the only reason Liu Lanzhi would dare to spend such money was simply because of the wealth that Su Yang had given her, or else they would be camping in tents for the entire month.

"I know it's a lot of money, but we have to at least have a place to stay for the remainder of the month — unless you want to sleep in the streets. What's more, it's relatively cheap if you compare it to the other hotels in this city. Once you see those prices, you will be thankful that I'd only spent this much…"

"If the Sect Master says so..."

The sect elders quickly accepted her explanation, as none of them wanted to sleep on the streets for the entire month.

"Anyway, let's head inside and settle down before I give you all a briefing," said Liu Lanzhi as she opened the doors to the hotel.

"I apologize for the inconvenience dear guests, but this hotel is already fully occupied."

The receptionist said to them before they can even reach the front desk.

"We are from the Profound Blossom Sect, and we already have a reservation." Liu Lanzhi showed her the receipt.

The receptionist took the receipt to look at it closely.

Once he confirmed its authenticity, the receptionist nodded and said, "Thank you for choosing to stay at our Snow Crystal Hotel. Your rooms will be on the fourth floor. Here are the keys to your rooms…"

Just as the receptionist retrieved a stack of keys from under the desk and prepared to hand it over to Liu Lanzhi, the door opened again, and another group of individuals walked inside.

"I apologize for the inconvenience dear guests, but all of our rooms are already fully occupied…"

The receptionist said to the newcomers.

However, instead of leaving immediately, these newcomers actually approached the desk instead.

Once they reached the desk, the middle-aged man leading this group pointed to the keys in the receptionist's grasp and spoke, "I will pay you twice the amount of what these people here paid for those rooms."

"..."

The place immediately became awkward and silent.

"I-I'm sorry but I don't think that—"

Before the receptionist could even finish speaking, the middle-aged man retrieved a leather bag from his robes and calmly tossed it onto the desk.

"There are two thousand Spirit Stones in that bag. I will buy the rooms from you," he said.

However, the middle-aged man was not looking at the receptionist when he had spoken those words. In fact, he was offering the Profound Blossom Sect the Spirit Stones for their rooms.

"..."

Liu Lanzhi looked at this unknown middle-aged man with a slight frown.

"No, thank you," she said to him in a relatively calm voice.

And immediately after Liu Lanzhi refused their offer, the disciples behind the middle-aged man began speaking out loud.

"Who are these no-names? Do they have no idea who we are?"

"They must be from a backwater place to not know us."

These disciples spoke with disregard, clearly looking down on them.

Upon hearing their Sect being badmouthed, the Junior Disciples from the Profound Blossom Sect also began speaking out loud, "Indeed, who are these idiots? To show such disrespect towards us and senior apprentice-brother, they must be courting death…"

"That's right! Who do they think they are?!"

Because these Junior Disciples were confident in their safety due to Su Yang's acquaintance with the Divine Sword Master, they did not hold back on their trash talk.

And as one would have expected, the other party looked at these Junior Disciples with wide eyes filled with shock. They would've never imagined that a bunch of little brats would dare talk back to them, much less with such ridicule.

"H-How dare someone from a no-name place to disrespect our Golden Altar Sect!"

"You guys are the one courting death!"

"Golden Altar Sect…?"

Liu Lanzhi's frown became deeper upon hearing that familiar name. After taking a moment to ponder, she finally recalls the Golden Altar Sect. It was a place that although not recognized as an Elite Sect, they are powerful enough to rival even places such as the Million Snakes Sect.

Of course, because they usually remain lowkey, people from the other continents would normally not be familiar with them.

"Calm down, disciples…"

The middle-aged man finally decided to step in.

"I apologize for my disciples' rudeness," he said to Liu Lanzhi with a calm smile.

"I apologize for my disciples, too…"

Although she didn't say anything, Liu Lanzhi noticed a feeling of scorn behind the middle-aged man's calm face. He obviously didn't take his own apology seriously.

"Anyway, we will not be selling our rooms," said Liu Lanzhi as she grabbed the keys out of the receptionist's hand.

"...Is that so… how unfortunate…"

The middle-aged man shook his head and proceeded to walk out the door.

However, there was a strange atmosphere around the middle-aged man, and it was not just Liu Lanzhi who felt it. In fact, even the Junior Disciples felt something was off about the middle-aged man.

Once the Golden Altar Sect left the scene, the Junior Disciples spoke, "I had a dangerous feeling from that man…"

"Me too…"

"Forget about them. Let's hurry to the fourth floor, where I will assign your rooms," said Liu Lanzhi, before taking the disciples upstairs.