Chief, don't hit me in the face

Chapter 11: The Rich Guy

The tribe’s warriors wouldn’t even stop at a stall like this; the only ones there were teenagers in their early teens. “I spotted it first!” The boy haggling over the price glared fiercely at Xia Ye, trying to scare him off. “Hand over a hundred dao coins, and it’s yours—or shut up!” the old man snapped. “Twenty!” The boy clenched his teeth—that was the most money he could come up with. “Are you kidding me?” Under normal circumstances, the old man would have sold it, but now that he had a “cash cow” like Xia Ye, he was naturally going to fleece him: “Move aside—let the genius take a look at the treasure!” Xia Ye paid no heed to the teenager’s threats, nor did he let the old man’s flattery go to his head. His gaze swept over the stall. It was just a grubby piece of linen, on which were laid out about twenty items: copper-rust-stained ore, colorful feathers, and bone ornaments from all sorts of strange, unidentifiable creatures. “The Dominion Tower is a tribe’s central structure and its most vital hub. With it, you can analyze various cores to create slave workers, which in turn allows you to construct the corresponding buildings. The higher its level, the more cores it can analyze, and the more buildings the tribe can construct. At the same time, the Dominion Tower ensures that the ‘natural structures’ transplanted here can survive!” The old man explained. In nature, there are some naturally occurring “structures”—for example, whirlpools in lakes that are tens of thousands of years old, which can give birth to water elemental creatures, or wind caverns within raging storms that can give birth to wind elemental creatures. These creatures vary in type; some can serve as soldiers in battle, while others are immensely helpful for agricultural production. The formation of these “whirlpools” and “wind holes” requires strict, specific environmental conditions; once transplanted, they would collapse. One of the functions of the Dominator Tower is to simulate these environments, allowing them to continue to exist and produce species continuously. “Can I touch them?” Xia Ye felt like laughing; they were all objects that looked somewhat mysterious, and it was clear the old man had gone to great lengths to make them look the part. The old man hesitated, but when he saw Xia Ye turn to leave, he immediately relented: “Sure!” In the upper right corner of the burlap cloth lay a bluish-black shell, carved with patterns that looked like gibberish—though unfortunately, it was incomplete. Xia Ye pretended to examine a few items, then his finger shot straight for the shell. The moment he touched it, his left eyelid twitched violently—with a force he’d never experienced before in his life. “You have a truly keen eye. This is the shell of an ancient giant turtle, dating back over 100 million years. Do you see? Engraved on it are divine characters. Once deciphered, they grant eternal youth and a lifespan as long as the heavens!” The old man was talking so enthusiastically that spit was flying everywhere. “Such a rare tortoise shell—and you just leave it lying around with all this junk?” Xia Ye quipped. “Uh!” The old man nearly choked on his words, but thankfully, he had a thick enough skin to manage an awkward smile before snatching the Dominator Core from the haggling teenager’s hand and launching into a vigorous sales pitch. “This item comes from an ancient ruin. Although it’s damaged, the main totem is still intact, and it can still be used to construct a Dominator Tower. Asking you for a hundred Knife Coins isn’t too much!” A building consists of three parts: the core, the keel, and the foundation stones. Among these, the core is the most important, as it determines the building’s potential. The better the core, the greater the potential—just like the Tower of Glory towering over the Barbarian Stone Plaza, a Level 3 structure that can summon a Vitality Guardian Beast to fight when the tribe is under enemy attack. Of course, the better the core, the higher the price. “Thirty Blade Coins!” Xia Ye spoke up. “He’s mine!” The boy who had made the counteroffer roared, but unfortunately, no one paid him any mind. “I’d be losing money even if I sold it for a hundred!” The old man felt like crying but had no tears left. “All right, cut the act. We all know exactly what kind of junk this street-stall stuff is.” Xia Ye was getting impatient. He pointed to his money pouch: “I’m in a hurry—I still need to buy something for the Great Prophet. Forty coin blades—if that’s okay, I’ll take it!” The old man shook his head, studying Xia Ye’s expression, but the kid gave nothing away, which left him feeling quite discouraged. “All right, fifty Daobi!” The old man sighed: “You’re not short on money, but I’ve got a family waiting for some millet to put in the pot!” “All right, fifty dorbis. And throw in these two feathers and this piece of turtle shell too!” Xia Ye was about to pay. “Huh?” The old man wasn’t happy about it. “I just thought the feathers were pretty and wanted to buy them as a gift. If you don’t want to sell them, never mind!” Xia Ye frowned and turned to leave. “All right! Here you go!” The old man looked thoroughly annoyed, his expression screaming, “I’m getting ripped off!” “Be sure to come back next time!” With the knife coin in hand, the old man watched Xia Ye’s receding figure, coughed up a thick glob of phlegm, and spat it on the ground: “Idiot. ‘Half-blind’? I’d say he’s completely blind. That junk I picked up for one knife coin could fetch fifty times the price—I’ve really hit the jackpot!” What the old man didn’t know was that Xia Ye, having turned away, was stifling a laugh as he silently labeled the old man a “moron”! Judging by the pattern of his twitching eyelid, that Dominator Core alone was worth the price of admission. Add to that a piece of even more precious, unidentified turtle shell, and this bargain hunt had been an absolute bonanza. Fiddling with the turtle shell, Xia Ye planned to go back and study it thoroughly! “Hey! The boy who’d tried to haggle roared, storming over with a few companions and blocking his path: “I’m calling you—didn’t you hear me?” Xia Ye furrowed his brow. “Mark my words: I’m Xia Bao, one of the legendary Dragon, Tiger, and Leopard Brothers from South City. You’re half-blind, yet you dared to snatch food from the tiger’s mouth—I’ll remember you!” Xia Bao glared at Xia Ye, looking as if he wanted to devour him alive. “Oh!” Xia Ye gave a casual reply and brushed past him. “You…” Xia Bao was absolutely livid. “Brother Bao, beat him up!” A few of his companions egged him on, but Xia Bao took a few deep breaths and managed to hold back. He wasn’t a fool—even if he beat Xia Ye half to death, he wouldn’t dare snatch the Dominator Core right out in the open. Otherwise, he’d be waiting to be arrested by the security forces and sent to the mines as a slave laborer! “Once we get to the Ancient Forest of the Wasteland, I’ll cripple that kid and take back the Dominator Core!” Xia Bao plotted; he was confident he could take down a weakling. “Oh, right!” Xia Ye suddenly stopped. “What? Scared?” Xia Bao raised an eyebrow, thinking to himself, Is this kid about to back down? Too bad it’s too late! “Aren’t you Xia Bao? Why not change it to ‘Snatching Prey from the Tiger’s Mouth’? That’d be more fitting!” Xia Ye waved his hand. “Goodbye!” “Brother Bao, this guy has a really sharp tongue!” His companions were furious. “Wait until the Blood Survival Trial—I’ll beat the shit out of him and make him eat it right back!” Xia Bao cracked his knuckles, his eyes brimming with intense murderous intent. “There’s so much to prepare!” The trial begins in half a month, so they’d have to head to the Fengjing Ruins to hunt and try their luck. They’d have to leave by the day after tomorrow at the latest, or they wouldn’t make it back in time. “Hey, those items you just bought are pretty good!” Someone tapped him on the shoulder. Before Xia Ye could turn around, a girl dressed in unisex clothing walked up alongside him: “That core is worth at least a thousand knife coins. If that old man found out, he’d definitely cry and go hang himself from a tree!” “You want half?” Xia Ye curled his lip. “What do you take me, Mo Wu Heng, for?” The androgynous girl frowned and jolted her elbow into Xia Ye’s arm. “Haha!” Xia Yeyě didn’t seem to mind: “So, what brings the Great Craftsman here?” “I just wanted to ask if you still have any of those rare items left?” Mo Wu Heng patted her waist pouch: “I’ll take them all—I’ve got plenty of knife coins. And don’t call me ‘Master Craftsman’!” “We have some, but you’ll have to wait until tomorrow!” Xia Ye didn’t refuse. Mechanical engineers generally held high status, especially one so young—he didn’t mind, but his sister needed a friend. If Xia Lingyue could get closer to Mo Wu Heng through Hongtang, she might gain some protection. There was another reason: Xia Ye needed to commission some gear. Rather than seeking out unfamiliar shops, it made more sense to trade with this straightforward young woman. Of course, although Mo Wu Heng dressed in a gender-neutral style and was flat-chested, she had a very pretty face—which was definitely a plus. “Come on, let’s go to the shop!” Hearing Xia Ye’s reply, Mo Wu Heng was very pleased and tugged him along: “Pick whatever you need—it’s on the house!” The clerk at Da Mo Zao looked utterly dejected. It was one thing to miss out on tasting the rare delicacy—after all, he was just a penniless guy—but seeing that teenager earn over two thousand dao coins in less than an hour sent his mental state into a tailspin. “That’s the Great Prophet’s money!” The clerk could only console himself with this thought as he swung his feather duster furiously: “If I ever see that half-blind guy again, I’ll beat him until he’s on his knees begging for mercy!” Just then, he saw Xia Ye and Da Jiangzao walking in side by side. “Are you talking about me?” In the sunlight, Xia Ye laughed heartily, his eight white teeth gleaming. “Uh!” The clerk froze, a wave of deep disappointment and jealousy spreading through his chest. He was just a good-for-nothing living in the slums—what right did he have to chat and laugh so easily with the beautiful Daisho? “Do you think I’m not good enough to be with Daisho?” Xia Ye teased. “Please call me Mo Wu Heng!” The androgynous girl corrected him: “And don’t call me Da Jiangzao!” “Have we already reached the point where we’re on a first-name basis?” The shop assistant felt his heart ache; he was so upset he wanted to cry. Even though Mo Wu Heng was flat-chested, she was, after all, a mechanical engineer. He’d thought it wouldn’t be long before he got a promotion and a raise, became the shop manager, married her, and reached the pinnacle of his life—but now, his dream was shattered. “He has a rabbit!” Recalling her first impression of Xia Ye, Mo Wu Heng muttered under her breath, feeling a touch of pride in her spot-on judgment of character. “Yeah, he has a rabbit!” The shop assistant conceded defeat. He’d once called Xia Ye one of the Xia family’s “two good-for-nothings”—how could he possibly have ten knife coins just a week later? True, he didn’t have ten Dao Coins right now—but he had a thousand! That was a sky-high salary he couldn’t earn back even in a hundred years! “All right, let’s not waste any time. Go ahead and repeat what you just said about that thing!” Mo Wu Heng brought out a brush, ink, and silk, eagerly preparing to take notes. As a mechanical engineer, she was filled with an intense curiosity about the creation of anything new.