Chapter 81

Song Li had no choice but to lift the tassel on the car door and step out. He didn’t know what to expect, but when he came out, he saw a sea of heads, black as the night. It seemed that almost everyone on the entire street had gathered here, men and women, old and young, buyers and sellers, all kinds of people had been drawn over. There must have been tens of thousands of people, which truly startled him.

"Your Highness, please say a few words to us..." A young man standing in the front row looked up at Song Li, his eyes full of admiration. Every young person has a hero complex and an idol complex, and Song Li, through this incident, had accumulated a good reputation. Whether in terms of character or combat ability, he was enough to become the idol of the young people in the capital.

Song Li smiled and waved to the crowd, thinking that no wonder so many people in his previous life had vied to become celebrities. The feeling of being called by a mountain of people was indeed intoxicating, making him feel like he could fly. Especially facing so many eyes filled with admiration, Song Li felt his feet start to float. "Grandma, from today on, I also have fans!"

Song Li waved to the crowd with a smile, exuding a sense of grandeur. He imagined a scene where he would say, "Comrades, you have worked hard!" and the crowd would respond in unison, "For the people!" If that were to happen, it would feel incredible!

He cleared his throat, and under the gaze of the crowd, his expression and movements became more restrained. At such a moment, he couldn’t help but act cool.

"Thank you, dear fellow citizens, for your love and support for Song Li. In fact, I haven’t done anything extraordinary. I just acted in time to prevent a tragedy that should not have happened. I believe that any person with a sense of justice and conscience would have done the same. As a member of the Song royal family, protecting the people is my duty. Therefore, I am deeply ashamed of the enthusiasm and praise you have shown me. Today, I have asked Pan Shaofeng to come and apologize to everyone because he has hurt the feelings of the people of the capital. He drove recklessly on the streets, not only threatening the lives of the people but also trampling on their dignity! I have always believed that everyone has their own dignity, whether they are nobles or commoners, there is no difference in their character! Pan Shaofeng has no right to ignore this dignity! Therefore, he must come here and kneel to apologize to those he has hurt, because he has trampled on your dignity, he must sacrifice his own dignity to make amends! Everyone must pay the price for their mistakes, and this is my principle and stance!"

Song Li’s words were righteous and powerful, coming from the heart, and thus had a tremendous force that penetrated the hearts of the people! Everyone was moved by his passionate tone, their eyes red, looking up at Song Li, feeling that his tall and slender figure was so majestic...

Never before had anyone stood up for the people, challenging the highest administrative official of the capital, and personally escorting his son to kneel and beg for forgiveness for the dignity of the people of the capital. Song Li was different from any other noble they had seen; he possessed a rare power that made everyone see light, warmth, fairness, and justice...

"Song Li, Song Li..."

"Hero, Hero..."

Almost everyone, with tears in their eyes, raised their fists and shouted Song Li’s name, calling him a hero. The people’s way of expressing their feelings was simple, but those few words contained a powerful force that inspired the heart. Song Li, looking at the surging crowd, felt his eyes blur...

"Oh my, it’s too moving, too touching! I can’t help but shed tears..." Pang Da couldn’t help but wipe away his tears to the side.

At this moment, no one cared about Pan Shaofeng anymore. Whether to forgive him or not, who would still care?

Pan Shijian and Pan Shaofeng left, they slunk away from the political center of the Holy Lion Empire, heading towards an unknown future. The highest administrative official of the capital, because his son had angered Song Li, had to withdraw from the highest power center of the Holy Lion Empire. What a bitter fate.

After this incident, Song Li’s reputation soared. Everyone knew that the heir of the Ming王府 was not to be provoked, not only because the Holy Emperor supported him, but also because the people of the capital regarded him as a hero. Many young people in the capital now idolized Song Li, and he also became the dream lover of most young girls and the ideal son-in-law in the hearts of most mothers-in-law.

At first, Song Li was indeed dazzled by this great honor for a few days, drinking and celebrating with Pang Da and others. However, after a few days, he found such a life to be meaningless. Wasting time every day, making no progress in cultivation or alchemy, made him very anxious.

His goal was not to just deal with a few rich brats and become a national idol. He wanted to be the most powerful being on this continent, and by this standard, he still had a long way to go. He couldn’t be complacent just because he had achieved some success. Without great strength, all the honors were just fleeting clouds.

So, Song Li returned home and got back on track.

Now he was a senior alchemist, capable of refining middle-grade earth-level pills. A few days ago, he had decided to go to the market to buy the materials needed for refining the "Foundation Building Pill" and the "Six Yang Snow Melting Pill," but various affairs had delayed him. Now that the mundane affairs were settled, it was time to buy the alchemy materials.

Song Li tidied up, took enough gold coins, and got into the carriage, heading for the largest market in the capital.

Actually, alchemy materials could be auctioned or directly purchased at the auction house, where the variety was more complete. However, many experts liked to go to the market to find treasures. Although the auction house had a wide variety, the items were all appraised by experts, and the price system was mature. In the market, some of the sellers were herb farmers or laymen who had accidentally obtained some treasures and did not know the true value of what they were selling, giving experts the chance to find bargains.

Song Li, having learned from his mother for so long, considered himself well-versed, so he decided to try his luck in the market.

The largest market in Holy Lion City was located at the southern end of the city, while the Ming王府 was in the north. The distance was not short, and Song Li, riding in the carriage, took almost an hour to arrive.

This was Song Li’s first time visiting such a public market, so he found it very fresh. The entire long street was lined with stalls, with enthusiastic stall owners calling out to passersby, and more introverted ones sitting behind their stalls, waiting for buyers to come and select items. Most stalls had several buyers picking through the goods, while some stalls were deserted, with the stall owners idly chatting with their neighbors. The street was filled with the sounds of calls and haggling, making it lively and full of life.

"Come and see, fresh 'Qi Gathering Pill,' smell it and feel refreshed, take one and successfully gather Qi, from the Body Refinement stage to the Qi Induction stage, it’s no longer a dream..."

"Lion King Grass, a specialty of Holy Lion Mountain, look at the leaves still glistening with dew, it can be used as alchemy material or to treat illnesses, it’s a must-have for travel and saving lives..."

"Hey, brother, what are you looking at? Come and see, I have everything from low-level elemental skills to holy-level celestial skills. Look, this 'Great Thunderhand' is a holy-level celestial skill. I see you have a unique bone structure and a divine aura, you must be a one-in-a-million cultivation genius. I’ve been holding onto this secret manual for half a year, I don’t give it to just anyone, I’ve been waiting for someone like you... What’s the price? Come on, brother, it’s a holy-level celestial skill! It’s priceless! You’re asking the price, that’s insulting the four words 'holy-level celestial'! Don’t go... Alright, since we have a connection, I’ll sell it to you at a discount. Give me ten gold coins, and I’ll let it go with a bleeding heart!"

"Sir, what are you looking for today? Come to my stall, I’ll tell you, everything others have, I have, and what others don’t have, I also have. Herbs, wood, pills, cultivation techniques, combat skills, magical treasures, spatial rings... Whatever you want, I have it..."

"..."

Wandering through the market, Song Li heard all kinds of exaggerated calls, and in a daze, he felt as if he had returned to another time and place. This market was very similar to the market in his hometown, where on market days, people from the surrounding villages would dress up and happily go to the market. During the New Year, it would be even more lively. The goods sold in the market were different from those in the market here, but the strong sense of life and the exaggerated liveliness were similar.

A middle-aged man was vigorously promoting his "Spring Revival Pill," spitting out saliva as he praised his goods as unparalleled, saying that one pill could make one ascend to immortality. Song Li couldn’t help but laugh, thinking that this guy looked a lot like a quack selling rat poison and powerful pills in the market of his previous life.

Song Li strolled to the herb section and found that, as the largest market in the capital, the variety of herbs was indeed very complete. There were fresh herbs recently picked from the mountains, as well as dried and powdered old herbs. With Song Li’s discerning eye, he could see that most of the herbs were genuine. He also noticed a small secret: the stall owners who shouted the loudest usually had problems with their goods, while the truly valuable stall owners mostly sat quietly, waiting for buyers to come and select and ask for prices.

Among the buyers, there were all kinds of people, with the majority being those who pretended to know but didn’t. Experts like Song Li were extremely rare. On this continent, alchemists were a scarce resource, and not everyone was as fortunate as Song Li, having a mother with a deep family background to teach him.