Chapter 134: Snatching the Bargain

Chapter 134: Snatching the Bargain

The merchant detected Luo En's interest in the arena battles, his smile growing sycophantic as his thick fingers subconsciously rubbed together.

"If you, sir, intend to participate in the arena matches, selecting a high-quality combat slave is absolutely critical", he said meaningfully. "We have a batch of premium embryos in our back yard, specially reserved for elite customers like yourself. Allow me to show you?"

Luo En nodded slightly, maintaining a calm demeanor as he followed the merchant. Internally, however, he grew wary of this smooth-talking man.

From the merchant's earlier descriptions and his own observations, Luo En had already identified a key issue:

These so-called "premium combat slaves" were mostly rushed products—grotesque weapons forged through brutal bloodline fusion and spirit suppression.

While they might unleash shocking short-term combat power, they all harbored fatal flaws: unstable spirits, short lifespans, and the constant risk of total loss of control.

"A truly quality combat slave should resemble Cui Xi's Panther Girl", Luo En mused inwardly.

Li Yue's formulation process, despite her origins in a destroyed native tribe, had been evidently more gentle and meticulous.

Her bloodline foundation had already been superior to begin with. The enhancement process was moderate, gradually stimulating her potential while allowing her body and spirit ample time to adapt.

Combat slaves cultivated this way not only possessed formidable strength but retained basic rationality and lived far longer than these rushed creations.

Passing through a dim corridor, the merchant led Luo En to a secluded chamber deep within the exchange hall.

Pushing open a heavy metal door, they entered a room housing dozens of specialized incubation pods. Each contained an embryo or juvenile organism suspended in nutrient fluid.

"This is our 'Seed Vault'—where all our most valuable cargo gestates", the merchant boasted. "These rare bloodlines have been collected from across the lands, some even retrieved by expeditions near the Abyssal Chasm."

Luo En surveyed the room while activating his Transcendent Perception ability, meticulously scanning each incubation pod.

"How about this one?" the merchant gestured toward a pod containing a purplish-black embryo, his eyes gleaming with greed.

"A Hellhound and Abyssal Worm Chimera! Upon maturity, it will master both Black Flame and Earth-Swimming techniques. A mere five hundred Mana Shard Fragments!"

[Hellhound & Abyssal Worm Chimera Embryo

Bloodline Fusion Degree: Gold-Ring 32%

Stability: Critically Low

Estimated Lifespan: 3-5 years

Special Abilities: Black Flame, Earth-Swimming (Unstable)

Risk Evaluation: Extreme – 80% mutation probability during development]

Luo En's expression remained neutral, though he already recognized this as another unstable short-lived creation.

"What about this?" The merchant enthusiastically directed attention to another pod containing a glowing liquid-like embryo.

"A priceless treasure! A Phoenix and Mercury Elemental Chimera—absolutely invaluable! Once mature, it won't just possess partial Regenerative Capacity, but also Metal Manipulation abilities! The perfect guardian and battle assistant!"

[Phoenix (Diluted) & Mercury Elemental Chimera Embryo

Bloodline Fusion Degree: Gold-Ring 25%

Stability: Practically Zero

Estimated Lifespan: Under 2 years

Special Abilities: Limited Regeneration, Metal Manipulation (Highly Unstable)

Risk Evaluation: Catastrophic – Chaotic Core Mana Structure, potential self-collapse imminent]

Luo En reviewed the Transcendent Perception results, gaining deeper appreciation for the merchant's sheer audacity.

This wasn't a treasure—it was a literal time bomb.

Forcing together such diametrically opposed elements resulted in practically zero stability, with spontaneous self-destruction imminent.

How could this merchant dare sell such dangerous merchandise? Did he truly have some shocking backing?

"Over here are some premium options more suitable for advanced formulation", the merchant continued unabated. "This Star Fairy and High-Level Wraith fusion, this Deep-Sea Merfolk and Wind Elemental Fairy hybrid, and most precious of all—this legendary Time Lizard and Eye Tyrant Chimera embryo!"

Luo En scanned each one. The results were uniformly similar—low fusion rates, terrible stability, numerous hidden dangers, yet all priced exorbitantly.

The merchant was clearly targeting the most expensive, rarest embryos—those utterly unsuitable for beginners. He was determined to exploit Luo En's apparent inexperience for maximum profit.

"Do you have any more foundational embryos?" Luo En asked calmly. "I'm just starting with bloodline formulation. I'd prefer to begin with something simpler."

The merchant's smile faltered briefly before resuming its groveling form. "Of course! But those are mere commonstock. Someone of your genius should naturally begin at the peak!"

"I'd still like to see the foundational ones", Luo En replied evenly, though his gaze had hardened.

Sighing theatrically, the merchant led Luo En to another chamber. This room's incubation pods were plainly less sophisticated, containing much more ordinary organisms within.

"These are all basic species—cheap, but offering nothing remarkable", the merchant said dismissively. "Surely someone of your caliber wouldn't find them interesting."

Ignoring the merchant's obvious attempts at manipulation, Luo En carefully examined each pod.

He noticed several units positioned near the wall, seemingly deliberately overlooked. One contained a small blue lifeform—unlike the other embryos, this appeared to be a recently born juvenile.

Approaching, he saw it was a young Siren, no more than twenty centimeters long. Its upper body resembled a human female, its skin a pale blue, while its lower half was a slender fish tail shimmering with silver-blue scales.

It looked extremely weak, curled within the nutrient solution, its small face contorted in pain—clearly in poor condition.

"What's this one's situation?" Luo En asked, pointing toward the tiny Siren.

The merchant glanced over, his face showing mild disdain. "Just an ordinary Siren juvenile. Nothing special. Born with weak constitution, eats constantly yet never grows. Probably won't live much longer. A complete waste of your time."

Activating his Transcendent Perception, Luo En examined the young Siren closely:

[Common Siren (Juvenile)

Bloodline Purity: Silver-Ring 95% (Exceptionally rare high purity)

Condition: Severe Malnutrition

Special Innate Talent: Gluttonous Appetite (Second-Tier Innate Talent – Greater nutritional intake results in faster growth and higher potential ceiling; conversely, development becomes suppressed)

Potential Evaluation: With sufficient nourishment, capable of reaching Gold-Ring upper limits with remarkable malleability. Post-formulation, possesses potential for higher bloodline evolution]

Luo En's heart skipped a beat.

This tiny creature might look frail and delicate, but it actually possessed an exceptionally rare high-purity bloodline. Combined with its extremely uncommon "Gluttonous Appetite" Special Innate Talent, as long as it received sufficient nutrition, its future potential would be limitless!

The reason it currently appeared listless and weak was precisely because it lacked adequate food and nutrients. This caused its innate talent to backfire, suppressing its own development.

The Slave Merchant had carelessly tossed it into a corner, clearly because after observing its insatiable appetite with no visible results, he assumed it was a worthless defective specimen slated for disposal.

This was a golden opportunity to snag a bargain!

"How much for this little guy?" Luo En asked casually, feigning indifference.

The merchant hesitated, clearly surprised that Luo En would take interest in this "defective model":

"It? Fifty, no, forty Mana Shard Fragments. Honestly, if we weren't under contract with suppliers from the relevant sea regions, we'd have already discarded this creature. Regulations prevent us from abandoning embryos and hatchlings freely."

Detecting the merchant's disdain, Luo En deliberately adopted a slightly hesitant expression: "How about thirty? Its condition is pretty poor after all."

The merchant thought for a moment, then waved his hand: "Fine, thirty it is. Keeping it around is just wasting cultivation solution anyway."

Clearly, in his eyes, this little siren was truly worthless.

Then, Luo En noticed several smaller containment tanks nearby. Floating inside were transparent gelatinous orbs of varying colors, all identical in size and structure.

"What about these?" he asked, pointing at the jelly-like spheres.

"Oh, those are autophagic slime mold of the lowest tier – purely experimental material. I heard the Crystal Spire has higher-tier specimens. These are just leftovers from the boss's recent shipment that I'm handling. If you're interested, I can give you a discount."

The merchant explained casually, clearly considering them unprofitable common goods:

"They lack inherent bloodline traits. They can absorb characteristics from other organisms temporarily, but the effects are fleeting. This tier is typically only used by novices for basic practice."

The Transcendent Perception result displayed:

【Autophagic slime mold (foundational type)

Trait: Can consume other organisms' tissue to temporarily acquire partial traits. Color transformation reflects assimilation stability and fusion degree.

Use: Exceptional bloodline formulation testing subject – visually demonstrates formulation effects and stability.

(Foundational type can withstand bloodline limits no higher than Silver-Ring level)

Origin: Experimental lifeforms created by Ancient Alchemist Lans.

This invention established bloodline formulation as an independent academic discipline, earning its creator boundless Boon.】

"I'll take one containment tank of these back to practice", Luo En decided immediately.

For beginners, these creatures were practically perfect training tools – they visually displayed bloodline formulation effects and stability, making them far safer and more efficient than blind experimentation.

"Ten Mana Shard Fragments per tank", the merchant rubbed his hands together – after all, he could still make a small profit.

"Seventy for all nine", Luo En countered bluntly, "I'll take them home as a test batch. If you refuse, I'll walk."

He used the simplest bargaining tactic – pretending to leave.

The merchant frowned but finally relented:

"Ah... fine, sir, I'll accept your price!"

After all, in his eyes these were just low-end wares – selling them was already pure profit.

At checkout, Luo En spent only one hundred Mana Shard Fragments total to acquire:

- A young siren with staggering future potential, and

- Nine autophagic slime mold specimens for bloodline formulation practice.

Compared to the "premium goods" the merchant had initially tried pushing – items costing hundreds or even thousands Mana Shard Fragments – this was the difference between sky-high prices and dirt-cheap bargains.

Of course, in the merchant's eyes, Luo En was simply an uninformed apprentice too cheap to spend properly – wasting money on useless trash.

As Luo En departed the exchange, the merchant still wore a smiling face while seeing him off, though inwardly he sighed with exasperation.

"Young apprentices just don't recognize quality. Passing up genuine treasure, insisting on buying worthless cheap junk. Once he tires of these toys, he'll eventually return to purchase real combat slaves."

Holding the specially designed container with the siren and slime molds, Luo En's lips curved into an almost imperceptible smile.

He couldn't wait to return to his Workshop and begin his bloodline formulation experiments.

This acquisition might prove far more valuable than even he had anticipated.

...

Upon returning to the Workshop, Luo En immediately brought his new "experimental materials" into his most secluded laboratory.

"Master, shall I prepare anything for you?" Ai Lan asked gently at the entrance, her vines swaying gracefully.

"Prepare high-nutrient concentrated solutions – the more, the better."

Luo En instructed softly: "And during this period, if any guests visit, try to prevent them from discovering this laboratory's existence."

Ai Lan nodded. Her leaves traced an elegant line of script in midair: "Understood, master. I'll prepare a concealment Formation."

After settling the siren, Luo En turned his attention to studying the nine autophagic slime mold specimens.

Each was housed in a specialized glass container, semi-transparent and gelatinous – like nine giant droplets of water floating serenely in cultivation liquid.

"Autophagic slime mold", Luo En murmured, his gaze fixed intently on these peculiar organisms. "A magnificent creation of the Ancient Alchemist, specifically designed for bloodline formulation experiments."

He opened a borrowed volume from the School Library: Bloodline Formulation: Entry-Level and focused on the slime mold section:

".Autophagic slime mold forms one of the cornerstones of bloodline formulation. Through consuming biological tissue, they temporarily acquire partial traits from their targets. Their color transformation visually reflects bloodline stability and fusion degree."

"The slime mold's color transformation patterns: Blue indicates cold affinity; red indicates heat affinity; green indicates life affinity; purple indicates space/time affinity; black indicates rejection or corruption; white indicates extreme stability; gold indicates perfect fusion."

".Precisely because of this organism's invention, bloodline formulation evolved from dangerous blind experimentation into a controlled science. For this breakthrough, Alchemist Lans received boundless Boon, eventually transcending limitations to achieve the true Archmage realm."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end