July 8th, 8775 of the Glorious Era
A light mist enveloped the entire city of Loran in the early morning, and the air carried a slight chill.
Lear, draped in a black cloak that concealed his face except for his eyes, slowly stepped into the most dangerous area of Ninth Street.
black market.
Whether they are big shots in the underworld or high-ranking nobles, they all have things they can't show in the light of day that they need to deal with in secret.
Because of the power of Loran, the black market in the Ninth District was renowned throughout the entire Northern Province.
No matter what kind of goods they are, they can be easily sold here.
The black market opens every three days.
Each time, it attracts a huge number of sellers and buyers, and even speculators who travel from afar.
The craziest thing is that the places that generate massive wealth transactions are hidden in the poorest slums.
This is undeniably a great irony.
Perhaps, that's precisely why slums deserve to exist?
The black market is built on the ruins of old buildings, with few intact structures.
Once the black market closes, this place becomes a ghost town, deserted and empty.
But at this moment, people are coming and going, a constant stream of people, and as far as the eye can see, there is a dense mass of heads.
More than half of them, like Lear, concealed their faces in various ways.
Both sides of the road were lined with all kinds of stalls.
However, there were very few people shouting out their wares; they all quietly waited in front of their stalls for buyers to inquire about prices.
Lear turned his head and looked at the stalls, which were filled with a dazzling array of goods; anything could be found there.
Unknown ores, broken fangs of wild beasts, sharp longswords, potions radiating magical energy, half-elf slaves bound in chains—and he even saw 20 sets of high-level full-body armor bearing the emblem of the Griffin Empire's Royal Legion at one stall!
They can openly sell this thing?
Only now did Lear truly witness the wildness of the black market.
But he didn't waste any more time and began looking for his own goal.
"It will be sold at the twenty-third stall at the entrance of the black market on the morning of July 8th, just as the sun rises."
This is the seventeenth stall.
Lear pondered this as he arrived at the twenty-third stall.
Before your eyes, an old man with a missing right arm and gray hair sits on a small stool, with colorful minerals laid out in front of him.
Are they tomb raiders?
Lear could not find any trace of it, and these ores were also difficult to associate with tomb raiding.
Who would bury ore in a grave for no reason?
Well, except for dwarves.
But there's only one entrance to the entire black market.
He silently bent down and began searching for the crystal ball.
The one-armed old man glanced at Lear when he saw his actions, but did not speak. He continued to carefully caress the jet-black ore in his hand.
Lear was happy to have some peace and quiet, but the stall was only so big, and there were only thirty or forty ores of ore. It wouldn't take long to look through them all, but there was no sign of the crystal ball.
His gaze fell upon the old man, and he was about to speak when a ray of warm sunlight pierced through the thin mist.
It lit up the entire city of Loran.
An orange-red sun came into view.
The sun has risen!
At the same time, three men dressed in shabby clothes, carrying large leather bags, and smelling of dirt, walked up to Lear's side.
The man in the middle, with a dull face and a thin build, had a seven-colored bamboo dragonfly tucked diagonally into his backpack, its crooked shape quite childlike.
It looked quite peculiar in this gloomy black market.
The three of them remained silent, looked at the empty space beside them, and simply spread out a yellowed, dirty cloth on the ground.
He opened the backpack behind him and began clumsily taking things out.
The man carrying the seven-colored bamboo dragonfly slowly took out a yellowish crystal ball from his backpack.
Lear's pupils contracted sharply.
Turning around, I saw that this group had already moved in front of the ore stall and become the twenty-third stall!
Taking a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turbulent emotions within him, he shifted his feet and said softly.
"Gentlemen, may we handle and examine these items?"
The three immediately looked up at Lear, whose face was covered by a cloak, revealing only a pair of dark eyes.
The man with a blank expression carefully placed the crystal ball down and said in a muffled voice.
"Of course you can, but if you don't intend to buy it, please take some with you. These things are quite old."
Lear nodded as he looked at some of the items that were still covered in damp soil.
"That's natural."
Even the standard armor of the Griffin Empire's Royal Legion is for sale, so things dug out of tombs are really nothing special.
He examined each item, inside and out, and after about ten minutes, he slowly grasped the crystal ball.
The size of a fist, with the coldness of rock.
The surface is covered with scratches and marks that are difficult to clean after being buried underground for a long time.
The look in his eyes was somewhat subtle.
Who would have thought that such an unassuming thing could conceal a divine power capable of driving the world mad?!
He pondered it for a moment, then casually put it down.
He then began to examine the other objects.
None of the three took it seriously; this product was sold precisely because it was a good fit for their needs.
If you hit it off, everything is easy to talk about.
However, this guy seemed to have just happened to come across him and was just browsing. They didn't have much hope of selling him, but having someone to attract attention was not bad.
After examining almost every item on the stall, Lear tentatively picked up an ivory bowl.
"What price are you all willing to pay for this?"
The thin, taciturn man spoke in a low voice.
"10 gold coins, no bargaining."
Lear picked up the second item.
"Then this ivory cup."
"12 gold coins, no bargaining."
After asking seven or eight questions, he casually pointed.
"This crystal ball?"
10 gold coins
Once the price was stated, Lear's gaze settled.
After asking about the prices of a few more items, he hesitated before selecting seven, but then reluctantly put four back, keeping only three.
"Gentlemen, I'm buying three items at once, could you offer me a discount?"
When the dull-witted man saw that Lear was indeed making a purchase, his expression became more lively, and he was no longer the lifeless man he once was.
Even the one-armed old man selling ore turned his head to take a look.
"These are all things we risked our lives to obtain, and the price is always fixed. However, if you are serious about buying them, I'll give you these three items as a package for 28 gold coins!"
Lear's eyes flickered slightly, and he said earnestly.
"How about 20 silver coins? Let's be friends."
The man's expression changed when he looked at Lear; this guy wasn't here to bargain, he was here to kill him.
"Impossible. We risked our lives to get this; there's no way it could be this price."
To put on a convincing performance, after a series of intense bargaining sessions, Lear finally bought three ancient artifacts that had just been unearthed from the tomb for 20 gold coins.
That yellowish crystal ball was among them.
Both parties were very satisfied with the transaction.
Only the old man selling the ore showed a hint of regret. He should have known this guy was a sucker and offered to help. Who knew this fellow was so easy to fool!
Lear packed away a few items, and out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed the unique seven-colored bamboo dragonfly on the other person's backpack.
He hesitated for a moment, then spoke slowly.
"Sir, would you be so reluctant as to part with this bamboo dragonfly?"
The man paused for a moment, then silently took the bamboo dragonfly, a smile appearing on his face.
"This was given to me by my daughter this morning. If you like it, I will keep it for you."
daughter?
Li Er remained silent.
In this cannibalistic world, everyone has untold stories to tell.
"Thank you for your generosity."
Holding a whimsical, colorful bamboo dragonfly, Lear slowly walked out of the black market, his face calm, but his heart surging with emotion.
Swamp Divinity—the most essential element of a deity!
The most precious treasure in the world is now in his hands!
This is something that could drive anyone mad!
Beneath the unkempt hair, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly, then gradually widened until they became arrogant!
In just two days, he already had a winning hand!