https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-19-The-Bustling-Multiverse-Market/12833195/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-21-Cosmic-Colossi-and-the-Apocalyptic-Mechanical-Civilization/12833197/
Chapter 20: Discoveries in the Flea Market
Chapter 20: Discoveries in the Flea Market
As time passed, the number of beings in the market grew rapidly, soon reaching several hundred. Under the intimidating presence of the ten first-tier Fire Chrysanthemum Soldier Statues, these diverse creatures remained surprisingly well-behaved. Surprisingly, no incidents occurred over the course of a few hours, which left Song Chi somewhat astonished.
In a short span of time, all the items he had purchased in bulk the previous day were sold out, netting him a profit that was at least three times the original cost. This substantial gain was indeed gratifying.
However, amidst his joy, Song Chi couldn't help but sigh.
His initial capital was indeed too small. Even with a significant markup, the profit from this batch of goods amounted to less than a thousand strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence. While this wasn't a negligible amount, it certainly wasn't a substantial sum.
Fortunately, the trading in the flea market area continued, and the transaction tax alone would bring in a decent profit for Song Chi.
With over a thousand strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence in hand, Song Chi felt more confident and decided to join the flea market as a trader.
Of course, the term "thousand strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence" was more of a figure of speech. He didn't actually have that much Floating Land Essence. In reality, he had more Life Nuclei, which, when converted according to the exchange rate of the Ember Human Civilization, amounted to more than a thousand strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence.
Floating Land Essence, as a resource, is generally used as currency by mid-tier star sea civilizations. For lower-tier civilizations, Life Nuclei are the hard currency.
...
The flea market area was not large, with a 10m x 10m space that felt incredibly cramped for the hundreds of star sea intelligent beings.
Seeing this, Song Chi spent 150 strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence to upgrade the market from Level 0 to Level 5.
Amidst the mixed reactions of the hundreds of intelligent beings, the market began to expand rapidly, quickly growing from 100m x 100m to 300m x 300m.
The flea market area also expanded from a meager 10m x 10m to a more spacious 30m x 30m. Though it was still crowded, it was a significant improvement over the previous conditions.
Name: All-Heaven Market
Market Owner: Song Chi
Level: Lv5
Size: 300m x 300m
Basic Configuration: 24 vacant shops, 1 flea market area (30m x 30m), 1 one-story inn (30 rooms), 1 all-attribute training room (Lv0, doubles the efficiency of Phantom Energy training), 1 Phantom Energy protection array (Lv0), 1 ultra-long-range spatial gate random deployment platform (Lv0).
Additional Configuration: None (0/4)
Special Features: Evasion (Can freely move through the void, evading natural disasters)
Upgrade Requirements: 60 strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence, market transaction volume reaching 600 strands of zero-grade Floating Land Essence.
Note: An inconspicuous small market located on the dark side of the shattered star sea, seemingly only allowing beings below the first tier to enter. However, it has great potential.
Looking at the market attribute panel visible only to him, Song Chi furrowed his brow.
Even the additional configuration slots increased to two when the market was upgraded to Level 5, but the all-attribute training room, ultra-long-range spatial gate random deployment platform, and Phantom Energy protection array remained unchanged. To enhance these features, he would need to spend additional resources.
This news did little to improve his mood.
The only silver lining was that the monthly market opening brought in a substantial profit. As long as he had enough initial capital and the spatial gate deployed to a favorable location, the returns would be stable.
After upgrading the market, Song Chi began to browse the various stalls, hoping to find some bargains.
Prices vary greatly across the fragmented star seas. It's entirely possible that some cheap items in the hands of other alien races are extremely scarce resources in the Xinhu human civilization's domain.
Song Chi scanned the various stalls, shaking his head repeatedly.
"A ton of refined iron ore for twenty zero-tier life cores? That's twice the market price outside. Even a dog would shake its head at that."
"Two tons of mithril ore for eight first-tier life cores? That's a bit cheaper than the market price, but without a proper distribution channel, dealing on the black market would result in a loss. No good."
...
After about ten minutes, Song Chi stopped in front of a small stall run by a bull-headed humanoid. His eyes seemed to wander, but his peripheral vision was fixed on a palm-sized black sphere.
Curiosity: Refined Gold Ore
Quality: White
Evolvable: 1 {Golden Moon Guandao}, 2 {Golden Rock Shield}, 3 {Golden Rock Ship Armor}
Note: A fine example of a white curiosity.
This unremarkable black sphere was, in fact, a white curiosity. When he first discovered it, Song Chi was extremely excited. His earlier talk about finding bargains was more about hoping to find items with a price discrepancy. He never expected to come across such a significant find.
Each star sea curiosity is extremely valuable, requiring a very long time to form. Even the lowest-tier white curiosities are no exception.
Pretending to browse through the other items on the stall, Song Chi casually picked up the black sphere.
"What is this thing?"
The bull-headed stall owner scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed. This item was obtained from a warrior of an opposing tribe. He had no idea what kind of ore it was, only that it was exceptionally hard, even the best blacksmith in his tribe couldn't smelt it.
"If you want it, you can have it for 100 zero-tier life cores. This ore is of very high quality, and once forged into a weapon, its destructive power will be astonishing."
Song Chi frowned and countered.
"I don't even know what kind of metal ore it is. 100 zero-tier life cores is too high. How about 50?"
He knew that if he agreed immediately, it would raise suspicion. Multiple rounds of haggling were necessary to avoid arousing suspicion.
In the end, Song Chi bought the white curiosity for 75 zero-tier life cores.
Holding the refined gold ore in his hand, his face remained calm, but inside, he was elated. As the name suggests, refined gold ore is essentially the same as refined gold ore, but it is the essence of an entire large gold ore vein, making it far more valuable.
From its attribute panel, it was clear that as a gold attribute curiosity, it could be transformed into ship armor for Xinhu flying ships, as well as individual weapons and shields.
Encouraged by this find, Song Chi became more frequent at the various stalls, though he did not find another star sea curiosity. He did, however, buy a few batches of materials that were rare in the Xinhu civilization's domain. Even if he sold them on the black market later, he could still earn over a hundred zero-tier floating land essences, which was better than nothing.
Time ticked by, and most of the market's opening time had already passed. Song Chi's expression turned slightly sour. He remembered clearly that he had set a spatial gate to be placed in a mechanical civilization's domain that was recorded in the Xinhu human civilization's records. Yet, no mechanical beings had entered the market yet, which left him disappointed.
(End of Chapter)
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