Zhan Kong slept tiredly, yet his mind was still occupied by the strange incident at Dongting Lake.
He was eager to know if Mo Fan was the one who had demonized the Giant Lizards. If he was, it would mean that he was still alive. However, why was he still alive? Why did he keep killing the Giant Lizards of Dongting Lake?
He did not get much sleep that night. Early in the morning, Zhan Kong summoned one of his old subordinates and asked him to send a few men to the west of Dongting Lake.
"Commander, Zhang Xiaohou left the army before dawn. Judging from the things he brought with him, it seems like he'll be gone for quite some time," said the old subordinate.
"That idiot!" cursed Zhan Kong.
"Should I ask someone to bring him back? He shouldn't be too far away. Leaving your post without permission is a serious offense," said the old subordinate.
"Give him a declaration that he's out on a mission, and stamp it with my badge in my room. The kid might be a little dumb, but he's still a promising young man, "said Zhan Kong.
"Affirmative."
"The Demon Wolves have been up to no good lately. I have to deal with them. Send a secret message to Biyi. Qiu Xin is my Senior Brother, he should know how to deal with the strange incident at Dongting Lake. Also, if you see that idiot Zhang Xiaohou, ask him to bring him back, so he won't die out there," said Zhan Kong.
"Affirmative, I'll do it right away."
…
…
Biyi City, Zhang Xiaohou, who was wearing outdoor attire like a Hunter, grabbed a passerby and asked for directions to the marketplace.
"Are you selling Soul Essences here?" Zhang Xiaohou pulled the brim of his hat higher, revealing his beady eyes.
"Of course, where is this? Biyi City. The closest fortress to the Dongting Lake Horde is like a city right outside the demon's den. Both the military and the Hunters have been fighting the demon beasts of the Dongting Lake all the time. The number of Giant Lizards' corpses every month is enough to circle the Earth twice. Their Soul Essences might be rare, but they're sold every day, and most of them are fresh, "the street vendor explained.
"Okay, that's good." Zhang Xiaohou nodded.
"Young man, I think you want to buy Soul Essences. Actually, I have a way here. If you want, I can give you a good discount. After all, what difference would there be in the middle of the market? The shoe-faced trafficker said.
"Really?" Zhang Xiaohou said happily. He didn't think that he would be so lucky as to be able to sell Soul Essences to a random person who had set up a magic stall. As expected of Biyi City, Soul Essences were auctioned in some small cities.
"Of course, the main thing is, do you have enough money on hand?" the peddler asked.
"It's enough, it's definitely enough. I have nine million on hand …"
"Nine … nine million?" The peddler was taken aback. He sized up the seemingly honest young man again.
"Yeah, I was planning to buy three of them, but I heard that the normal Soul Essences cost at least three to four million, and the better ones cost at least five million … I only have nine million, and I only managed to get so much by selling a piece of my magic Equipment. Are you willing to sell one to me for three million? "Zhang Xiaohou asked.
The peddler was stunned for a moment before he collected his thoughts. He did not expect Zhang Xiaohou to have such a huge sum of money on hand despite his ordinary appearance!
"Three … three it is, we'll make a small loss in this deal, but since you're in such a hurry, I'll contact someone for you, even if the higher-ups are going to scold me," the peddler said.
"Thank you so much. By the way, what should I call you?" Zhang Xiaohou asked.
"I'm … ugh, you can just call me Big Gold."
"Alright, thank you, Brother Big Gold. You're really something. It's not easy to get three Soul Essences."
"Of course, HAHAHA!" the peddler laughed proudly.
…
Zhang Xiaohou followed Big Gold through a few turns and arrived at a magic store whose signboard was covered in dust.
Apart from the marketplace and auctions, there were also some private magic stores. Most of the items in these magic stores were obtained by merchants who dealt with Mages through some special means. Their prices were usually cheaper than the marketplace and auctions. Many Hunters would visit these stores to look for treasures, as there were plenty of people who were clueless about the value of the items. Besides, the prices of magic stores were usually negotiable.
Big Gold smiled as he led Gu Ning into the magic store. He brought Gu Ning to a small hall in the store.
The store did not have many customers. It was deserted, but there were some Magic Tools and Magic Equipment on display, as well as some standard magic ores.
Big Gold asked Zhang Xiaohou to take a seat while he went to the back of the store. He was having a discussion with the owner of the store, who weighed almost two hundred pounds, with a cunning smile.
"Sell him the fake Soul Essences that cost over two hundred thousand. Judging from his reaction, I bet he won't be able to tell the difference between the real Soul Essences. Besides, even if he does … hehe," said Big Gold softly.
"It's useless to ask the people of the Magic Association to deal with it. We'll just say that he didn't preserve the Soul Essences properly, and lost their energy. It's none of our business, HAHAHA!" The fat man burst out laughing along with Big Gold. He added, "If there are any idiotic foreigners like him, just bring him to me."
"Not a problem, not a problem, we're all so familiar with each other."
After the two agreed, the fat man went to retrieve three fake Soul Essences.
The fake Soul Essences were still Soul Essences, but they had lost a lot of their energy due to the improper way they were collected, or because they were not preserved properly. The fake Soul Essences were useful, but they were incomparable to real Soul Essences. Even the marketplace would not sell them, but it was a different story for a small store.
"Here's the stuff. Let us check your money first. Our store is small. It won't be good if you scam us and give us fake money," the fat man said to Zhang Xiaohou arrogantly.
"The money is on this diamond card."
"Diamond card? This thing doesn't have a password. You can withdraw the money directly from places like the Magic Association or the Hunter's Union? "Big Gold squinted his eyes with a smile.
The diamond card was used by Magicians to make it easier for them to make large transactions. It was not tied to their identity, and was similar to a check. This thing is good, it's the most suitable for illegal transactions!
"Take the stuff. I'll have to check the card first," said the fat man.
Zhang Xiaohou did not think too much about it. He handed the diamond card to the man for verification, and took the three containers that contained the Soul Essences to check his goods.
However, Zhang Xiaohou immediately realized something was wrong as soon as he inspected the Soul Essences with his Telekinesis.
"There's something wrong with the Soul Essences!" said Zhang Xiaohou with a frown.
"What do you mean there's something wrong? You were the one who didn't keep an eye on them and leaked the energy," the fat man pretended to be surprised.
"Give me back the diamond card," Zhang Xiaohou handed the three containers back to them.
"What diamond card? Don't you know the rules of the store? The buyer has to check the goods first and make sure they're fine before paying. You didn't even check the goods. How am I supposed to take your card?" said the fat man.
Zhang Xiaohou's face darkened.
He did not expect them to team up to trick him!
The fat man and Big Gold were grinning. Big Gold was a veteran who had mixed with different people all the time. He could easily tell who was a greenhorn at first glance. However, he did not expect the greenhorn to be so rich. It was rare to find such a big fish.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
