By this time, it was already around two o'clock in the afternoon.
"We are currently deep inside the forest. The return trip will take at least five hours, so it will be better if we go back as soon as possible. Otherwise, dealing with the poisonous insects and other predators that hunt during the night won't be a pleasant experience," Edward said to Draven.
Draven nodded, and both of them began their journey back on their white horses. By the time it was seven in the evening, they had returned to the Hunter Association and completed the paperwork for the mission's completion, along with the appraisal of the hunted goods by the association's appraisers.
It took two hours for the appraisers to evaluate all the materials. In the end, the chief appraiser came towards Draven and Edward and bowed his head in greeting. "Grandmaster Draven, Sir Edward, the appraisal is complete. The mission reward will be 208 second-tier essence coins. The rest of the beasts at the Ascendant realm, which Sir Edward wishes to buy from Grandmaster Draven, are appraised at 3,850 second-tier essence coins. The Mortal-level beast carcasses will come to around 600 first-tier essence coins."
Edward's eyes nearly popped out after hearing the price, even though he had expected such a ridiculous amount. It had to be noted that the average income of a first-tier Ascendant realm hunter was only one second-tier coin per week, and that too if everything went right.
But here, a Mortal realm cultivator was earning a thousand times that amount from just a single day's hunt. It was simply unbelievable.
Meanwhile, Helen Light, the head of the Hunter Association, was standing to the side with a numb look on her face. This was the first time she had ever seen a Mortal realm cultivator earn so much, to the point that it even made her feel somewhat inferior as she thought back to when she was at the same stage as Draven.
"I will transfer 2,500 second-tier essence coins and 600 first-tier essence coins to your account. For the rest of the 1,558, I will write a contract. How does that sound?" Edward asked with a heavy sigh.
Draven nodded casually, and both of them proceeded with the rest of the paperwork before Draven left the Hunter Association on his black Phantom.
The first place he went straight from there was to the Merchant Association, specifically to its third floor.
After looking around, he finally settled on a second-tier storage ring with five space stones of 10-cubic-meter capacity each embedded in its body.
"Pack this up, and inform Uncle James that Draven wants to talk about a large order with him," Draven said to the attendant.
The attendant nodded and called someone on his phone. After relaying the message, he smiled at Draven and said, "The 21st Elder asked me to escort you to his office."
Draven nodded and followed the young attendant to James's office. When the office door was pushed open, he saw an old man with short white hair and a neatly trimmed beard, sitting with his eyes fixed on the tablet screen in his hands.
The attendant bowed to the old man and left. Meanwhile, Draven pulled over a chair and sat opposite the old man without a word.
"What is it this time, Draven? Do you want any other imported stuff?" the old man asked without lifting his head from his tablet screen.
"I want a custom-made second-tier super bike like my black Phantom," Draven said lazily.
But the old man's casual expression vanished the moment he heard Draven's words. "Kid, you are in luck this time. Please give me a moment. I will show you a new design for the black Phantom, a newly customized model made by replicating the latest Six-Faced Spider super machine."
Draven frowned. "I don't need a replica or anything from a spider. Just tell me if you can contact the agents from Black Phantom and have them make a second-tier custom super bike for me like my last order. If you can't, just say so, and I'll find someone else who can."
The old man smiled reassuringly. "You still don't get it, Draven. The Six-Faced Spider is a customizable model, with only one piece given out to each stronghold. Normally, such luxurious goods don't have buyers in the 36th Stronghold and would instead be purchased by some rich kid from another stronghold through someone else."
"It has been only half an hour since the model was officially released. Otherwise, the model we received would have long been bought by some rich kid from a higher stronghold. Just from this fact, you could estimate its value. So, being able to have a super bike resembling the super bike variant of the Six-Faced Spider is a hundred times better than your current one."
"Variant of the Six-Faced Spider? Is it some sort of transformation-based machine?" Draven looked at the old man suspiciously.
James nodded. "You are spot on. It has six forms, and each is unique compared to the others. On top of that, the materials used in building this machine are so expensive that nobody in the 36th Stronghold could even dream of buying one."
"There are only forty of this special Six-Faced Spider model in this world, and each one will have a unique color and name, with a lifetime upgrade guarantee as long as you have enough essence coins to spend. The most important thing is that this special machine has an aura-masking function, so it can even be used inside the forest without being targeted by beasts." James handed him the tablet he had been scrolling through earlier.
On the screen was a video of a palm-sized metallic spider. It looked exactly like a real spider, with eight legs and a silvery body. The next second, the spider transformed into a stylish-looking super bike that was even more beautiful and sleek than Draven's current super bike design.
It was difficult to believe that a palm-sized spider could transform into something as large as a bike in seconds, but that was only the start. Soon, the bike transformed into a stunning super car that looked exactly like the Rolls Royce Ghost Draven had known on Earth.
Next, the car transformed into something even bigger: a luxurious yacht cruise ship, fifty feet in height with a lavish exterior. Then it changed into a submarine of the same size, resembling a whale.
Finally, the whale transformed into a modern aircraft, about fifty feet in length with a slim build and a shiny finish.
Draven's eyes remained fixed on the screen even after the video stopped playing. James smirked when he saw this. "Isn't its super bike model better than your current one?"
"Contact the executive of black Phantom and tell them I am interested in buying this thing," Draven said to James without even lifting his head as he read the details of the Six-Faced Spider listed below the video on the tablet.
James nodded with a broad smile, took out his phone from his storage ring, and contacted the executive of the black Phantom. After a long discussion of about thirty minutes, he handed the phone to Draven.
"You can confirm the deal. Also, tell them your preferences. They will customize the super bike according to your needs."
Draven took the phone, and a pleasant female voice rang in his ear. "Sir, my name is Sara Shine. I am the executive head of sales for the black Phantom. The 21st Elder explained to me your interest in creating a super bike resembling the super bike variant of the Six-Faced Spider model. Do you prefer any other extra features, like storage artifacts, weapons, or such, in your bike?"
Draven waited for her to finish and said calmly, "I don't need a bike that resembles the super bike transformation of the Six-Faced Spider. I want the Six-Faced Spider variant meant for the 36th Stronghold."
Both James and Sara were shocked by Draven's unexpected words.
"Draven, don't play around. Its price is something none of us can afford, even if we sold ourselves," James said hurriedly.
"The Elder is right, sir. It is somewhat expensive," Sara also said awkwardly.
"How much?" Draven ignored their advice and asked again.
Sara paused for a moment and said, "Six thousand second-tier essence coins."
This time, it was Draven's turn to be speechless. "Are you sure you are not telling me the stock price of your company shares?"
Sara sighed helplessly. "I already told you, sir. You were the one who didn't listen to me."
Looking at the picture of the Six-Faced Spider on the tablet once more, Draven gritted his teeth. "Can I pay 2,000 now and the rest of the money in a week's time? Can you reserve this model for me until then?"
"It is possible, but the product will only be delivered after the full payment is made. If you do not complete the payment within the agreed period, your money will not be returned, and your reservation will be canceled," Sara said seriously.
"No problem. I am proceeding with the reservation," Draven agreed without hesitation and gave the phone back to James.
James blankly received the phone. After a while, Sara sent the reservation contract for the Six-Faced Spider model to James's mail, and the deal was successfully finalized after the payment was made.
When everything was done, James, who had been silent until then, finally asked, "Two thousand second-tier essence coins... I haven't even seen that much money together in my entire life. Don't you have any regret spending all of it on such useless luxurious stuff?"
Draven shook his head. "Luxury is the way of kings. It's not about money; it's about mentality. But don't worry. I am capable of earning the money I spent in a matter of days, so this much spending is still within my budget."