Time passed as the mountain lord sat on his hotel bed and thought about his next moves. With no need to drink, eat, or even breathe, the mountain lord could survive without any problems, yet a life without cultivation seemed pointless.
After a few days, he finally got up with a plan. First, try something new and try to get to know the world and its people. Second, try to find the secrets this world holds in regard to cultivation. Third, if there is no better way of cultivating, find a way back to his old world.
The mountain lord was in a rush, so he tried to cultivate for a few more days, resulting in almost nothing before going out into the world he was transported to.
It was another hot day inside the city, and the big concrete blocks people called their homes or workplaces limited the vision of the mountain lord. He still wore the same white robes he wore when he came, albeit washed once within the hospital.
The mountain lord strolled around town and drank in the different scenes and sights. People dressed in suits, cars on the streets, an overall busy atmosphere. In the conversations he overheard, it seemed people tried to earn money.
He himself knew that wealth was everything yet couldn't quite understand this money. He looked into his storage ring and took out a banknote. In his world, be it lower, medium, or higher grade, spirit stones all had value by themselves since they were needed for cultivation, yet this money seemed to be pure paper without any actual value.
He decided to test out this money and see what could be exchanged for it. After walking for a while, he saw something interesting: multiple stalls like he would see in his world. Stall owners with "antiques" and items with history and collectors looking at them while haggling with the seller.
As he continued to go deeper into the street, the amount of people seemed to decrease by a lot, and by now a foul smell lingered in the air. The mountain lord was about to turn around until some people from a dark corner called out to him.
"Hey, you! Can you come with us and take a look at our wares?"
The people that called him looked somewhat disheveled with some scars on their faces and a black outfit. Some of them held baseball bats, while others looked at the mountain lord with a smug yet threatening face.
"Are you deaf?! Come with our boss now and see if you buy something!"
The mountain lord, oblivious to the sketchy situation, followed them. He was excited about what this money he had could buy him. Meanwhile, the thugs were somewhat surprised that this person in his white robe would follow them without running away or trying to talk himself out of it.
"Hah, it seems like he is either brave and not afraid or so afraid he can't even talk," the thug put his arm around the mountain lord's shoulder. "Hey, friend, which one is it?"
"I would like to see what you sell," the mountain lord said without any visible reaction.
The boss of the crew's smile grew even wider. "Well, good sir, how much money do you have on you? Depending on it, we might sell you this "antique" baseball bat," the boss said while provocatively holding a baseball bat, threatening the poor mountain lord.
The mountain lord took out the money he got from the kind hospital people and held it out. Will this be enough? He had never seen such a simple weapon; it may have been a weapon used by the less developed people to hit each other without trying to hurt one another. An interesting weapon for sure.
The boss gladly took the money and held it in his hands. "Yes, that will do good. Now get away before we hurt you!"
"Was it enough for this baseball bat?" the mountain lord asked.
"Ähm, do you want this baseball bat?"
"Yes, that's why I gave you the money, so will you give it to me?"
The thugs were somewhat confused. "Well, sure, I guess," and handed him the baseball bat. After all this, the victim cooperated nicely from start to finish; giving up a baseball bat wouldn't hurt.
Both parties walked away, and while the thugs were laughing without signs of stopping anytime soon, the mountain lord was happy about the transaction as well. Now he wanted to find out how much this "antique" baseball bat was worth. He paid the full 10,000 he got and wondered what the selling price would be.
Coming back to the street vendors, he sat down and put the baseball bat in front of him, intending to sell it.
He waited, but no one even took a glance at his baseball bat. He sat there without interacting with anyone until the sun was already setting. Most vendors were already gone, and the people looking around were reduced to just a few curious glances.
"Hey, why are you sitting here with a baseball bat?" An older lady came up to the mountain lord and asked.
"Are you interested in buying?"
"That thing? For how much?"
"11,000," the mountain lord had decided to try and make a profit.
"11,000? Are you sure you are here to sell and not to cause trouble?" the woman shouted. And two of her bodyguards stepped up with unfriendly faces.
"No, I just want to find out how much this is worth," the mountain lord said, somewhat surprised. Why would he cause trouble?
"Are you serious?"
"Yes. What would you say this antique baseball bat is worth?"
"Antique baseball bat? I would say about 300 Yuan."
"Are you sure? The seller said it was an antique?"
The lady just sighed, "Young friend, where exactly did you buy this "antique baseball bat"?"
"Well, at the end of the street I met some nice people dressed in black with scars on their faces who sold me this baseball bat for 10,000 Yuan."
The old lady facepalmed at that revelation. "They just scammed you. They are obviously thugs and not some traders. Is something wrong with your head?" Did this guy never see a thug?
"Well, I got amnesia and don't remember much about the customs here."
*Sigh* "I guess it can't be helped. I will give you 1,000 Yuan for this bat. That is the most you would ever get. Remember to not go into dark alleys or speak with thugs. Take that as a lesson that people are not always friendly around here," the old lady threw out 1,000 Yuan and went away. One of her bodyguards took the bat while shaking his head in disbelief at the mountain lord's stupidity.
Meanwhile, the mountain lord didn't dwell on the fact that he got scammed. Interesting, so they were bandits. But why were the bandits so nice? They didn't even hurt me or try to capture me to sell me off.