Chapter 438: Chapter 296: New Pet Beast, Nearshore Dominator!
A week later, at dusk, Moonstone City, Big Port.
Rolling black waves churned as ships billowing thick smoke sailed in from the distant sea.
A dense crowd squeezed onto the harbor, looking towards the ships that carried not adventurers returning with their haul but mostly the injured—men and women, old and young alike.
In the cold autumn season, the wounded huddled together on the ships like cargo, tightly packed into every corner.
The sea breeze, tinged with the smell of blood, blew gently across as the ships docked, and the crowd surged forward anxiously.
A weapons merchant, with skin like tree bark and dressed in a tattered cloak, set up a small stall by the roadside of the harbor, gazing towards the crowd.
In the middle of the dense crowd stood a man in black hunter’s clothes, looking out at the sea from the harbor, motionless for a long time.
The weapons merchant asked in a withered, hoarse voice,
“Sir, are you a Hunter from Black Mine City?”
At his waist hung a Second Rank Hunter’s Certificate from Black Mine City.
Chen Qi adjusted his hood, turned back, and glanced over the other man.
The merchant appeared to be around sixty years old, his skin shriveled like bark, nearly clinging to his bones.
A Third Rank Shell Phase Transcendent, probably a ‘Store Manager’ of the Shell Phase—this is a very popular business occupation. By consuming an additional Third Rank Occupation Card during promotion, along with a relic anchoring the ‘store property,’ plus fifty Gold Coins, one can advance into a special Store Manager. Then, through selling items and completing tasks, they can earn the rare supernatural currency and inspiration points of the Transcendent world.
In Shell Country, many chaotic weapon store managers, potion store managers, dockyard managers, bar managers, Enchanting Demon store managers, and so on, all fall under the ‘Store Manager’ occupation branch.
Chen Qi confirmed,
“Weapons Store Manager?”
The merchant calmly lifted the tattered cloth over his goods,
“Yes, I used to be a Hunter from Black Mine City as well, sir. Are you looking to buy something?”
While speaking, the skin at the corner of the weapons merchant’s mouth made a noticeable creaking sound.
This was a common sign of ‘Shell Phase Fissure,’ a necrotic tree disease. Untreated, it could disable a Third Rank Transcendent for life.
In addition to death, the ‘fissure’ could inflict unimaginable and incurable diseases.
Stories of once-glorious Third Ranks, reduced to invalids due to disease after constant adventuring—sometimes even their bodies used as materials—were not uncommon above these seas.
Specifically, aside from dying in a fissure or conflict, this was the ultimate fate of most Third Rank Transcendents in the era of adventure.
Chen Qi lowered his head and scanned the goods in front of the weapons merchant.
He had been in Moonstone City for some time, but there was one important thing he had yet to obtain.
Occasionally, merchants at Moonstone City’s harbor had certain items; judging by quality alone, the goods the weapons merchant sold were not bad.
The weapon merchant added,
“Sir, my eldest son died of an abdominal infection from a poisonous insect; he didn’t receive surgery in time. Now, with the war upon us, the Black Whale Group has killed many sailors.
My second son, although a Second Rank, can’t refuse others and lacks his own opinions. There are limited spots for good Doctors, so I need to secure one in advance, if he’s able to return.”
Chen Qi didn’t respond, continuing to scrutinize the items.
Seeing this, the weapons merchant added a few more words,
“Sir, I’m not trying to play on your sympathy or trick you out of your money; these are good things I’ve found on early adventures. If it weren’t for some disputes I’ve had with Moonstone City’s business guild, they could be exchanged for a large sum of money…”
After a moment of silence, Chen Qi inquired,
“Do you have one of those ‘Tattoo Magic Circuits’ that can increase the total amount of Spiritual Power and casting speed just by being applied to the body, without the need for surgery?”
The weapons merchant replied calmly,
“That sounds familiar, let me search…”
Chen Qi had already purchased many items during his trip to Moonstone City.
Among them were eighty Spiral Magic Bullets valued at ten million and sixty Bright Flash Bombs worth three million, specially designed to blind large creatures. During the war, the prices of weapons in Moonstone City had surged, but to combat the Flying Dragons, he needed some aerial countermeasures.
Furthermore, the Holy Light Skill Occupation Card, which offered courage, strength, and inspiration enhancement, was valued at five million. Although a support skill, it was an essential ability for Lamp Keepers.
And in the black market, the sought-after “Water Breathing” skill which could enhance underwater breathing time cost him ten million Shell Coins.
Additionally, with the expedited ship tickets, special marketplace entry tickets, and other expenses, the fifty million Gold Coins Chen Qi had collected were now down to twenty million.
Fortunately, he had no reputation in Moonstone City and, with a Second Rank Hunter’s Certificate, he could enter any shop without scrutiny.
Soon after, the weapons merchant found a roll of ‘bandage’ among his densely stocked goods, marked with dark blue patterns.
Chen Qi’s eyes brightened as he took the bandage.
[Convenient Tattoo Magic Circuit
Nature: Book
Description: This Convenient Magic Circuit just needs to be entwined around the body to enhance your ‘Spiritual Power transmission efficiency’ and increase your total Spiritual Power.]