After Charles and Celestine followed Daniel Long through a narrow passage, their surroundings suddenly brightened. Various calls of vendors filled the underground space.
The lights were bright, making it feel nothing like being underground, and there were quite a few people coming and going.
It seemed everyone was waiting for the small auction to start, looking to pass the time at the item exchange market.
“Mr. Charles, feel free to browse around and see if anything interests you. I have some matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving for now.” Daniel Long said, slightly bowing before turning to leave.
Now it was just Charles and Celestine. Charles glanced at Celestine, who wore a curious expression, and he led her into the crowd.
“Top-quality alchemy materials, an absolute must-have for every alchemist! Come take a look!”
“Gold quality mystical beast egg, don’t miss your chance! Come and see!”
“Purple quality forging materials, absolutely rare, and the price is very low—only 50 silver coins.”
When Charles heard about the mystical beast egg, he instantly perked up. Out of curiosity, he approached the stall and examined it closely.
An information prompt appeared immediately, it was merely a Silver quality mystical beast egg, coated with a special layer of paint to make it look more like a Gold quality one.
Noticing Charles’ lingering gaze, the vendor eagerly said, “Hey there, young man, come take a look! A Gold quality mystical beast egg is quite a rarity.”
“Are you sure this is a Gold quality mystical beast egg?” Charles asked deliberately.
“Absolutely! I even have an identification certificate! Here, take a good look!” The vendor said as he pulled out a dirt-covered identification certificate.
Charles had never heard of the identification agency listed on it, it was clearly fake.
Thinking this, Charles was about to get up and leave when he heard a voice from behind:
“Isn’t that Charles, the genius? What brings you to the item exchange market?” It was Zane, speaking in a sarcastic tone, barely suppressing his anger.
He was also there to attend the small auction, hoping to find a suitable weapon.
Last time, Bailey Zhao picked a white quality supreme spear from the royal treasury, which nearly drove him mad!
His father, Benson, had explicitly instructed him not to provoke Charles during this time.
However, the moment Zane saw Charles, he lost control. A deep-seated hatred within him made it impossible to ignore Charles.
“It’s you? What’s the matter?” Upon recognizing Zane, Charles decided to stay at the stall, unwilling to leave.
“Can’t I come to take a look if there’s nothing going on? Charles, I’m not here to cause trouble, I’m just passing the time, just like you.” Zane recalled his father’s warning, his tone slightly less aggressive.
He didn’t want a direct confrontation with Charles at that moment. Instead, he thought of other ways to annoy Charles.
Like intentionally buying something Charles wanted before him.
Or he could drive up the prices at the auction, making Charles spend more money.
These were all tactics Zane planned to employ, and no one could really say anything about it, after all, it wouldn’t be fair for only Charles to buy items.
With that in mind, Zane’s gaze landed on the mystical beast egg at the stall, and he curiously leaned towards a nearby person and whispered:
“Didn’t Charles just contract his third mystical beast not long ago?”
The person quickly replied in a low voice, “Yes, according to Charles’ records, he contracted his third mystical beast only about half a month ago.”
Hearing this, Zane’s heart stirred with an impossible thought.
Could it be that Charles had already broken through from a Level 3 Beast Master to a Level 4 Beast Master?
How could that be possible!
Reaching Level 4 Beast Master in just half a month? Anyone who heard that would surely think it was a joke, no one would believe it!
At that moment, Charles asked the stall owner, “How much for this Gold quality mystical beast egg?”
The stall owner’s eyes immediately lit up, and he quickly replied, “This one originally costs fifteen gold coins. Since you’re the first customer, I can offer a slight discount—only thirteen gold coins.”
“Thirteen gold coins, huh?” A flicker of interest crossed Charles’ face, though he appeared hesitant.
It seemed he was tempted, but the price of the mystical beast egg felt a bit high, and he didn’t have enough money on him.
“Only thirteen gold coins? Boss, I’ll buy this mystical beast egg for thirteen gold coins!” Zane pushed through the crowd and shouted directly at the stall.
His gaze remained fixed on Charles. Regardless of whether Charles had indeed broken through to Level 4 Beast Master, this mystical beast egg was definitely something Charles needed.
And at thirteen gold coins, the price for a Gold quality mystical beast egg was hardly steep!
Charles turned around, glaring at Zane with evident annoyance. “Zane, didn’t your family ever teach you about taking turns? I haven’t even said I’m not buying yet!”
“What do you mean taking turns? All I know is that having money is what truly matters. So, boss, I’ll offer fourteen gold coins for this mystical beast egg!” Zane’s expression was arrogant.
For him, this amount of gold coins was substantial.
The Taylor family was wealthy, but that money wasn’t something Zane could easily access.
As the son of the head of the Taylor family, Zane’s total assets amounted to about twenty-five gold coins.
Buying this Gold quality mystical beast egg would leave him with very little left.
“Of course, that’s no problem! Naturally, whoever offers the most gold coins gets the mystical beast egg!” The stall owner’s face radiated joy, it was clear to everyone.
Zane, being part of the Taylor family, wasn’t just wandering around the item exchange market alone, he had a friend with him who was skilled in identification.
“Bailey, I feel like there might be something wrong with this mystical beast egg, the price seems a bit low.” his friend, Peter, whispered as he discreetly tugged at Zane’s sleeve.
Zane frowned and scrutinized the mystical beast egg on the stall.
He started to have doubts, the price was indeed significantly lower than the typical Gold quality mystical beast eggs.
Moreover, once a transaction was completed in the item exchange market, it could not be changed—that was the rule.
Everything relies on personal insight and experience, and there are plenty of things that are fake or of inferior quality.
Just as Zane was hesitating, Charles said without hesitation, “I will offer fifteen gold coins, this mystical beast egg is mine!”
After saying that, Charles bent down to pick up the mystical beast egg from the stall.
Seeing Charles’s movement, Zane didn’t have time to think, his only goal was to disgust Charles as much as possible.
So Zane immediately shouted, “Wait, I’ll offer fifteen gold coins plus fifty silver coins! That mystical beast egg belongs to me!”
After saying this, Zane, without waiting for Charles and the stall owner to react, quickly snatched the mystical beast egg from the ground.
“Hey, wait a minute, I haven’t said I would sell it to you!” the stall owner shouted immediately, he wanted Charles and Zane to continue competing.
Zane quickly packed up the mystical beast egg and said, “My offer is higher than his, so it naturally belongs to me.”
The stall owner looked at Charles and asked, “Young man, are you going to raise your bid? If you don’t, the item is his.”
To his surprise, Charles shook his head and slowly said, “How can I raise my bid? It’s just a Silver quality mystical beast egg, spending fifteen gold coins on it is just foolish.”
When these words were spoken, the whole place fell silent. The first to react was the stall owner, whose face wore a stiff smile as he said:
“Young man, that’s a Gold quality mystical beast, don’t speak carelessly!”
Even Zane started to panic, he quickly handed the mystical beast egg to Peter, who was good at appraisal, and asked, “Take a close look, is there anything wrong with it?”
Peter took the mystical beast egg and carefully examined it. He felt that the price of fifteen gold coins for a Gold quality mystical beast egg was a bit cheap.
After a long time, he couldn’t find anything wrong.
“Charles, you said that on purpose to cover up your own unwillingness!” Zane immediately took back the mystical beast egg, thinking he had seen through Charles’s thoughts.
Wearing an exceptionally smug smile on his face. As long as he could make Charles uncomfortable, Zane felt very happy.
Charles slowly spoke, “If you can’t even identify this, that’s pretty weak. It’s just a mystical beast egg disguised with special paint as a Gold quality egg. You can easily tell the difference by applying an alchemy potion.”
“Really?” Zane quickly turned to look at Peter.
Before they could test it as Charles suggested, the stall owner couldn’t hold back any longer and quickly said, “According to the rules of the item exchange market, once the transaction is complete, there are no returns or exchanges!”
Immediately, Zane and Peter’s bodies stiffened.
They looked at the stall owner and slowly asked, “What do you mean? Isn’t this a Gold quality mystical beast egg?”
“The appraisal certificate says it’s Gold quality, I’m just reminding you of the rules of the item exchange market.” the stall owner said while packing up his items, clearly planning to make a quick exit.
Charles looked at Zane and Peter and continued to remind them, “Oh, by the way, even though this mystical beast egg is Silver quality, due to the paint, there’s a high probability that it won’t hatch into a mystical beast.”
“In other words, you spent so many gold coins and got nothing. That’s just plain foolish.”
“Wait! I don’t believe it. Charles, you’re just saying this because you’re unwilling to accept it and feel upset.” Zane said, feigning disbelief, but his body was quite honest as he walked toward the stall selling alchemy potions.
Zane wanted to try Charles’s method to see if this mystical beast egg truly matched Charles’s judgment!
