Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The metal was crystal clear and translucent. Its jade-like gloss shimmered with layered internal striations. The rare metal they had placed before Tang Wulin appeared dull in comparison to his own metal.
“Is this Jade Silver?” The shopkeeper almost cried out involuntarily. He walked in quick strides before he arrived in front of Tang Wulin. He lowered his head and picked up the golden hammer cautiously to knock onto the metal gently.
A melodious, crisp chime-like sound echoed at once. The echo was soft, but it had numerous twists and turns akin to a musical composition.
The shopkeeper’s face flushed immediately. “This is truly Jade Silver. Are…are you planning to sell this?”
Tang Wulin shook his head. “No. I would like to exchange it for your rare metal. It’s more convenient that way. Please set a value.”
“Please hold on.” The shopkeeper’s breathing had obviously quickened as he rapidly walked through the metal gate.
When he returned once again after a short while, a stocky middle-aged man followed by his side.
The middle-aged man was not tall, but he was extremely sturdy and strong, with his arms appearing especially well-built. He took a few swift steps forward after seeing the Jade Silver on the table. He placed the instrument in his hand on the table, then he looked toward Tang Wulin. “May I please examine it for a moment?”
“Of course.” Tang Wulin gestured for him to go ahead.
The harmony rate was the most important index in determining the spirit alloy’s value, so naturally, he needed to test that.
A moment later, Tang Wulin could hear a loud gulping sound following the weakening of the Jade Silver’s radiance on the instrument.
The middle-aged man looked at Tang Wulin and mumbled, “Little brother, this piece of Jade Silver’s harmony rate reaches up to eighty-one percent. Does your family know that you are selling it?”
Tang Wulin was stunned for a moment, while Gu Yue covered her mouth and chuckled softly at the side.
Tang Wulin coughed once, but he did not mention that he had forged it himself. “Of course they know. I am here to purchase rare metals on behalf of my family. My father said that it isn’t convenient for me to carry money, so he gave me some spirit alloy instead. Don’t worry. I’m well aware of the Jade Silver’s value. As such, please be fair when you’re setting a price.”
“Don’t worry. The spirit alloy is indeed rare, so its value is common knowledge. This piece of Jade Silver with a harmony rate that reaches up to eighty-one percent, we are willing to offer a price of…”
The shopkeeper by his side whispered something in his ear when he was halfway through his speech.
The middle-aged man dismissed his previous remarks and said, “You may select any one of the rare metals which you saw earlier. One hundred pieces of the rare metal in exchange for this.”
One hundred pieces? This exceeded Tang Wulin’s expectations. Jade Silver could be worth several cities, but this piece was what he forged by himself when he was a rank-5 blacksmith. It was just a Thousand Refined spirit alloy that had yet to reach the Spirit Forging level. If he were to use this kind of spirit alloy to exchange for rare metals of the finest quality on the Douluo Continent, he would receive around sixty pieces at most.
So he was quite taken aback when they stated one hundred pieces. In other words, the spirit alloy’s value on the Star Luo Continent was much greater than what it was on the Douluo Continent.
It was as though radiant coins were shimmering in Tang Wulin’s eyes. It seemed as if he was about to make a fortune!
He hesitated for a while before he continued. “Can you up your offer a little bit more?”
The middle-aged man gave a forced laugh and answered, “Our price is absolutely fair. If you were to possess a Jade Silver of even higher quality, or perhaps if you could offer it in a batch, then we would give you an even higher price.”
Tang Wulin spoke, “Those rare metals which I saw earlier, do you have an adequate supply of them? All of you should know that the failure rate of us blacksmiths in forging spirit alloy or Spirit Forging is very high. That is why we prioritize both the quality and quantity of rare metals.”
The middle-aged man exclaimed resolutely, “Don’t you worry about the quantity and quality. We are able to open our shop in the Star Luo Avenue only under strict scrutiny. As long as we keep to a certain limit, it shouldn’t be a problem for us. However, if you require an especially large quantity then I will need a certain period of time to meet your need.”
Tang Wulin nodded and answered, “Alright, deal. First I will exchange this piece of spirit alloy for one hundred pieces of Golden Crystal. Consider this a promising start. Please stock up on these three types of rare metals: Golden Crystal, Adaptive Silver, and Star Copper. I will go back to show the quality of this batch of Golden Crystals to my father, then we might return to exchange or purchase in a large quantity.”
“Very well. That won’t be a problem. The more spirit alloys, the merrier,” the middle-aged man answered joyously.
Tang Wulin chatted with him for a while longer in order to learn more about the exchange rate. Even though it was difficult to determine the rate between the Star Luo Coin and the Federation Coin, Tang Wulin managed to estimate based on the exchange quantity of rare metals. The value of Spirit Forging on the Star Luo Continent was almost the same as Douluo Continent, but the value of spirit alloy was much higher in the former. It was as if the blacksmiths in the Star Luo Empire lacked the skill for forging spirit alloy.
Gu Yue asked softly after they left the rare metal shop, “I remember that you still have quite a lot of that spirit alloy, right? Why didn’t you exchange more? The quality of the rare metals here seemed rather good.”
Tang Wulin sniggered. “There is no need to rush. No need to rush at all. Most of the spirit alloys that I carried with me now are Thousand Refined. There is still room for me to improve on its processing later. Once it is forged into the Thousand Refined spirit alloy or a spirit alloy fused with three types of metals, the value will be even higher while the cost of materials is relatively low. That’s the way to maximize the value! Don’t worry. I’ll certainly make a fortune once we’ve returned.”
“Such a moneygrubber.” Gu Yue could not help laughing.
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“The head of the house knows the cost of fuel and rice! Which part of our cultivation as Soul Masters is free? The mecha costs money, the battle armor costs even more money, all sort of heaven-and-earth treasures cost money too. Is it alright for me to stop working hard to earn money? I can only depend on myself!”
Gu Yue was stunned for a moment. “How about I take care of you?”
Tang Wulin stumbled as he almost fell down. “What did you say?”
“Nothing!” Gu Yue’s expression returned back to normal.
Tang Wulin grabbed her shoulder, “Can you still take back the words that you’ve spoken? Live up to what you said. You must take care of me!”
Gu Yue turned her head to the side, her eyes were filled with mirth. “I can’t afford to take care of you. You eat too much.”
Tang Wulin said, “What if I eat a little less?”
“No.” Gu Yue pushed him away. “Stop messing around. Let’s go.”
Tang Wulin laughed and asked, “While we’re on the topic of eating, should we find a place to have our lunch?”
Gu Yue rolled her eyes. “We just had our breakfast earlier, okay? It’s still morning.”
“Still good to have some snacks! I bet there are many local snacks in the Star Luo Empire. Don’t you want to try some?”
It turned out that Tang Wulin was not the only one who had a weak spot for food. Ten minutes later, both of them had reached a side street nearby to Star Luo Avenue. There were all sorts of small shops around the area. The both of them satisfied their cravings by sampling all sorts of the Star Luo Empire’s local snacks.
“The fish ball noodles earlier were delicious!” Gu Yue exclaimed excitedly.
Tang Wulin nodded repeatedly. “Yes! It tasted really good, but the portion was a little small.”
“Small? You finished all the fish balls that they were going to sell this afternoon, and you’re still complaining that the portion was too small?”
Tang Wulin felt that choosing to learn how to forge all those years ago was s great decision. They did not have any Star Luo Coins, but he managed to get a few in exchange for a piece of Golden Crystal before he left the rare metal shop.
As expected, the Star Luo Coin’s value was much lower than the Federation Coin’s. Spending the coins in such large handfuls felt rather decadent.
It was noon.
After they had left the street food, Tangin asked Gu Yue, “So where are we going now?”
Gu Yue considered before saying, “I am going to take a look at the Spirit Pagoda here. You can do whatever you like.”
‘The Spirit Pagoda? Yes! There ought to be a Spirit Pagoda over here too. They also have a Tang Sect here as well. Should I go and take a look at the Tang Sect too?’
Star Luo City was the Star Luo Empire’s capital. Tang Wulin was already aware that the Tang Sect headquarters over here was located within Star Luo City before he came.
“Alright. Then I shall go and take a look at the Tang Sect. Keep in touch in case either of us needs help.”
“Hmm.”
Gu Yue boarded a car and left, while Tang Wulin too boarded a soul taxi and headed to what was supposed to be the address of the Tang Sect headquarters in the Star Luo Empire.
The Tang Sect headquarters was not located in the center, but at the outskirts of Star Luo City.
Tang Wulin was astonished that the Star Luo Empire’s Tang Sect headquarters here was completely different from the Douluo Continent’s low-profile base. It had majestic buildings akin to a small city. The scale of its buildings far exceeded those of the Douluo Continent’s headquarters.
Tang Wulin was an intelligent person. He could tell that the Tang Sect received much more money from the public over here than the Douluo Continent, just judging from the architectural style.
No one was guarding the main entrance. He walked inside and arrived before the audience hall. Two enormous words were suspended on the top part of the audience hall’s front door.
As a disciple of the Tang Sect, Tang Wulin could not help feeling honored witnessing such majestic buildings.
Tang Wulin cracked a faint smile as he took long strides into the hall.