?Following the compass, they quickly found the Shadow Hunter Hub in their area.
“Look, Leader! A mini outpost!”
“There seem to be a lot of people too!”
“Hahaha, how nice! We can finally relax after a few months in this hellish place.”
As the group celebrated, they quickly reached the entrance of the shelter.
Seeing that they were not stopped from coming inside, their smiles widened.
“Great! Leader, we are finally safe!” Sebas said excitedly.
Although they knew there was a place for their retreat, it was still uncertain.
Now that they are in the actual place, they felt the baggage on their chests lighten.
Feeling the pure mana without abyssal aura, they finally felt that they were back in society.
“Let’s buy supplies first, then find a place to rest,” Zach suggested.
“As you said, Leader,” the others nodded in agreement.
Walking around, all the shops seemed to bear the crest of the Shadow Hunter Guild.
From every building and architecture, the place was fully marked.
Finally, after a few minutes of walking, they saw the supply market.
In the open-air market, bulks of resources were on display.
Prices and brief descriptions of the material were also listed next to them.
“Shadow Coins?” Dylan suddenly muttered, noticing the currency.
“Shadow coins? Do we need that here?” Sebas repeated, asking in wonder.
As far as he knew, they only had a few shadow coins after exchanging the abyss source in one of the branches of the Shadow Hunter Pavilion.
If they wanted to get more shadow coins, they either had to gather rare resources or do missions like a bunch of labourers.
Furthermore, looking at the prices, it was so expensive compared to the usual prices.
This is a black market!
No, a black hub!
“Are you new here?” Suddenly, a man came up to them.
“You are?” Zach questioned.
“Relax, I’m Ethan from Bluestone Squad.”
“My squadmates are resting, so I figured I’d go around a little.”
“Then I saw you looking clueless, so I asked.”
“Is that so…” Sebas and the others nodded.
“By the way, you seem stumped by the prices here?” Ethan asked teasingly.
“It’s three times the usual price. How can we not be stumped?”
“Furthermore, shadow coins? How would we even get that? Is there a bank here?”
“Indeed. As long as it bears the symbol of the Shadow Hunter Guild, you can expect that it was a black price.”
Like them, Ethan and his team were taken aback by the prices they saw here, causing their blood pressure to rise.
Although such a hub would indeed increase their income and safety.
It seemed for naught as this greedy shelter cut off their fortune.
Fortunately, the one running this place is smart.
Although it cut off most of their income, their remaining income was still considerably compared to usual.
“As for Shadow Coins, there is indeed a bank here that you can exchange for shadow coins.”
“Can you tell us where it is?” Zach asked.
“Hmm, you can see a bank in the center of this Hub.”
“Thanks.” ʀᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛʀs ᴀᴛ NovlFire(.)nt
“Hahaha, no problem. I would also like to have more fellows here.” Ethan waved his hands.
Having more people in the outpost would mean less danger.
Although there are a lot more resources here than usual, there are also more dangers.
If there were more to share their pressure, they would gladly welcome it.
…
After receiving the reminder from Ethan, they temporarily left the supply market to exchange some money.
In the bank, there was a line of people exchanging crystal merits for shadow coins.
“Shadow Hunter Guild is fearless…” Zach thought deeply.
In the past, they only dared to exchange some shadow coins equivalent to merits in a guild.
But now, they were openly exchanging currency like it’s nothing.
Although it was only in their territory, Zach was sure it was not easy.
Indeed, a year ago, when they first openly exchanged currency, they faced attacks from all directions.
Different Guilds, organizations, and powerhouses came knocking on their door asking for explanations.
Maximus even had to fight and show some power so they could back off a little.
Unfortunately, there is no such thing as fear in the face of interest.
At that time, Maximus even thought of stopping such a crazy plan.
After all, the pressure he faced was not worth it just for some immediate interest.
Fortunately, it seemed like luck was on his side.
Rakasha, the strongest being in the abyss, the leader of the Etherium Council, noticed the commotion and decided to intervene.
Rakasha used his authority to open the highest-level assembly to discuss this topic.
As many were in seclusion or were far away on their missions, the meeting was held off until now.
As for the use of Shadow Coins, Maximus was permitted to continue until they decided otherwise in the assembly.
…
Soon, it was Zach and his squad’s turn.
“Welcome to the Shadow Hunter Bank. How may I help you?” A puppet said emotionlessly.
“We want to exchange some shadow coins. Can you first tell us about it?”
“Sure…”
“Shadow Coins are the currency used by all establishments established by the Shadow Hunter Guild in the abyss.”
“The exchange ratio is 1 to 100 of crystal merits.”
“You can also exchange shadow coins for crystal merits anytime.”
“Are there any questions?”
“Previously, one could use shadow coins to exchange anything in the Shadow Hunter Pavilion.”
“Is this still available using the shadow coins exchanged here?” Zach asked thoughtfully.
Hearing their leader’s sharp question, the others looked seriously at the puppet, waiting for an answer.
If Shadow Coins can still be used to exchange anything in the Shadow Hunter Pavilion, then they would earn big time.
Thinking of the endless rare materials they could arbitrarily exchange, they couldn’t help but drool.
By then, their squad would be upgraded by a few levels.
“No—”
The simple answer seemed to pierce their hearts as they froze.
Zach seemed to have expected it and remained expressionless.
“The Shadow Coins you can get in the Shadow Hunter Pavilion are specially marked; you can only get them by doing missions or exchanging special resources with the guild.”
“I see.”
“Do you have any more questions?”
“No.”
“Then, are you ready to exchange currency with us?”
“Hmmm, here.” Zach nodded and threw a storage ring filled with crystal merits.
The puppet quickly caught it and put it into a special apparatus.
These puppets were only a low-level kind without any spirit property that could independently open storage rings.
So a special apparatus is needed.
“1,738,468,290 Crystal Merits…” Hearing the amount, Zach’s lips twitched a little.
Initially, he still had over 6 billion, but because he bought the overpriced positioning compass, their squad’s budget shrank considerably.
“Here is 17,384,682.90. Thank you for trusting our service.”
…
After exchanging some currency, they went back to the supply market.
With a fire in their chests that couldn’t be put out, they bought all the supplies they needed while holding back from cursing.
From magic crystals, potions, food, consumable items, travelling gear, etc.
“Fortunately, the supplies here were quite complete; otherwise, I don’t know if I can hold myself from punching someone,” Dylan muttered.
“Damn, don’t you see the rules posted on every street? Any destruction of property here requires payment.”
“If you don’t want us to go bankrupt, just hold yourself up and shut up.”
The squad jeered at Dylan while also holding themselves back.
Perhaps because of anger, they quickly finished buying the resources they needed in just a few minutes.
Of course, the reality was the efficiency of the supply market.
Lux ensured that the model here omitted all the processes.
You only need to choose and pay, and you’re good to go.
…
After shopping, they went to look for a residence to stay.
And as they expected, it’s another bloody pricing strategy.
Since coming here, they felt that their pockets were constantly being targeted.
Everywhere you look is temptation; everything you step on has a price; more importantly, it seems that every time they breathe, they have to pay.
If not for their leader, Zach, holding them back, the 17 million they just exchanged would reach a negative number in just a night.
As they relaxed at the rented residence, they came into a daze as they thought of their future.
“Leader, what should we do next?” Sebas finally asked.
“We fight, earn more money, then advance,” Zach said precisely, too lazy to waste some breath on his stupid squadmates.
“What do you mean, Leader? Can you elaborate?”
“We’re too stupid to understand such coded words. Can you repeat that again, Leader?”
Zach sighed, closed his eyes, and slowly explained.
“We stay here and fight in this greedy land.”
“Here, we can earn more money than we usually do.”
“Finally, after we have enough strength, we leave this godforsaken place.”
What they didn’t know is that this is only the beginning.
In the future, they would be lured deeper and deeper into the scheme hidden in the dark to earn more money.