Free Web NovelChapter 574: Chapter 574: Oasis Auction (Part 1)
"You haven’t paid yet!"
The vendor’s words left Zhang Yuan dumbfounded. "Pay for what?"
The vendor gave a cold chuckle, then lifted a wooden board from the ground. Scrawled across it were the large characters: "Inquire Price Must Buy."
With a proud tone, he said, "Fifty thousand silver, not a coin less!"
Zhang Yuan immediately understood that the vendor must have taken him for an easy target, perhaps because he seemed new, so he intended to extort him with forced buying and selling.
This kind of situation was not uncommon.
What puzzled Zhang Yuan was why, when pretending to be a Tier Four Martial Artist, this vendor, with only a Tier One or Tier Two strength at most, was so bold.
Without getting angry, Zhang Yuan asked, "Inquire Price Must Buy? Since when is that a rule? I’ve never heard of it."
"Well, you’re seeing it today!"
The vendor sneered, "That’s the rule at Crescent Oasis. Hurry up and pay!"
Zhang Yuan asked with interest, "What if I don’t pay?"
He had noticed that all the other vendors around were watching with malicious glee.
Clearly, this wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened.
"Don’t want to pay?"
The vendor’s face darkened immediately, pulling out a whistle and blowing it.
Beep—
In the blink of an eye, a group of fully armed samurai hurried over. "What’s going on?"
The vendor stood up immediately, pointing at Zhang Yuan and ranting, "Sir, this guy is causing trouble, inquiring prices and not buying, disrupting the rules!"
The leader of the patrol was a middle-aged man with a troubled expression. His hands were exceptionally dark and rough, suggesting training in techniques like the Iron Sand Palm.
He exuded the aura of a Tier Four Martial Artist.
As soon as the vendor finished speaking, the five samurai immediately encircled Zhang Yuan, glaring at him menacingly!
The Warrior Leader slowly glanced at Zhang Yuan, his eyes pausing at the wooden token hanging from Zhang Yuan’s waist, then said, "You must be new here, understandable if you don’t know the rules."
Pausing, he continued, "You don’t have to buy if you don’t want to. Just compensate one-tenth of the price."
One-tenth?
This meant Zhang Yuan needed to produce five thousand silver as compensation to the vendor.
The vendor acted as if he was taking a loss: "Fine, fine, since you vouched for him, I’ll take a hit."
Zhang Yuan couldn’t help but laugh.
Goodness, this is quite intricate!
Ultimately, he knew he was being underestimated!
"No need!"
Zhang Yuan chuckled, "I’ll buy it. Fifty thousand silver, right? I can afford it!"
He reached inside, retrieved five ten-thousand silver notes from his storage space, and handed them directly to the vendor.
The vendor could never dream that Zhang Yuan would actually spend fifty thousand silver on a herb worth only three to five hundred silver.
He subconsciously accepted the notes, checking carefully to ensure they weren’t fake.
The vendor couldn’t help but look at the Warrior Leader.
Having dealt for years in Crescent Oasis, he had a sharp mind and keen eyes.
The five silver notes felt too hot to handle.
Because Zhang Yuan didn’t seem like someone who could command such wealth!
Unless he was deliberately hiding his strength.
The Warrior Leader also sensed something was amiss, frowned, and said nothing.
The atmosphere at the scene became subtly tense.
Zhang Yuan seemed oblivious, smiling, "Is there a problem?"
Yet there was no hint of humor in his eyes, a formless oppressive Evil Qi emanated from him.
The vendor’s face changed dramatically.
He felt like he was confronting a Fierce Beast engulfed in endless blood flames, every fiber of his being screamed in terror, his mind blank, his spirit adrift like being in a deep abyss!
"Tier Five!"
The Warrior Leader, though not directly targeted by Zhang Yuan, also sensed the terrifying presence emanating from him, involuntarily taking two steps back.
Once he regained his senses, he nearly cursed out loud!
Zhang Yuan was not only a Tier Five powerhouse, but without having a hundred or eighty lives in his hands, he couldn’t possibly exude such terrifying Evil Qi.
Even though there were Tier Six powerhouses in Crescent Oasis.
The Warrior Leader believed that if truly provoked, Zhang Yuan certainly had the power to kill everyone on site, including himself, leaving no trace.
If Zhang Yuan were to flee then, no one would seek justice for the Warrior Leader!
The Warrior Leader shivered, quickly snatched the silver notes from the vendor’s hand, respectfully returning them to Zhang Yuan: "Sir, this person was blind and offended you. I will teach him a proper lesson."
As he spoke, he swung a heavy slap at the dazed vendor’s face.
Knocking him to the ground with several teeth flying out!
Zhang Yuan took the notes, looking at the Warrior Leader with an enigmatic smile—was that all?
The Warrior Leader’s scalp tingled, he kicked the vendor violently several more times.
The sound of bones cracking was loud and clear!
The other vendors watching were all struck dumb with fear.
Immediately after, the Warrior Leader again turned to Zhang Yuan with a flattering smile: "Sir, if you fancy anything from this guy’s stall, feel free to take it, even take it all!"
"No need."
Zhang Yuan put away the notes, restraining the aura that he had been emitting.
He didn’t even glance at the vendor’s goods and turned away briskly.
The only thing on the stall that piqued Zhang Yuan’s interest was a Qilin Grass a few decades old.
But in reality, this Qilin Grass offered him little benefit, it didn’t make a difference whether he had it or not, not worth bothering.
Zhang Yuan didn’t even bother to take it.
The Warrior Leader subtly wiped cold sweat, hatingly kicking the blood-spitting vendor once more: "You blind fool!"
This greedy guy could die for all he’s worth, nearly dragging him down into offending a Tier Five powerhouse—that was a crime worth death!
The Warrior Leader signaled his subordinates to continue patrolling, while he quickly caught up to Zhang Yuan, using a flattering tone, "Sir, are you here at Crescent Oasis to attend the auction?"
Zhang Yuan paused, asking with interest, "That’s right, what do you want to say?"
The Warrior Leader licked his lips, cautiously asking, "Then may I ask if you have an invitation to the auction?"
"Invitation?"
Zhang Yuan hesitated, then shook his head, replying, "No."
He wasn’t aware of the specifics beforehand, naturally, he couldn’t have an invitation.
"It’s actually quite simple."
The Warrior Leader felt joy inside, immediately saying, "I can arrange to borrow one for you."
Zhang Yuan rubbed his chin, "What do you want?"
Zhang Yuan originally didn’t intend to engage with the Warrior Leader, but since he planned to attend the auction to find the whereabouts of the Wu Family’s lost treasure, the invitation was crucial.
Of course, there’s no free lunch in the world.
As long as the Warrior Leader wasn’t greedy, Zhang Yuan didn’t mind paying a price to get it.
