Above the mage!

Chapter 484 The Red-Haired Beauty (Part 1)

This unexpected mishap interrupted Gaode's first black market trip to Black Sail City.

Knowing he was being watched, he lost all interest in going back to the black market. After exchanging a glance with Lanwen, he chose to return directly to the port.

"You're finally back," Apache, who had just stepped onto the dock floor and was still supervising and busy in the slaughterhouse after learning of Gao De's return, rushed over and explained the situation to Gao De:

"The throat-strangling seal has been almost completely dealt with, and the price has been agreed upon. The Embroidered Anchor Gang's valuation is 2300 gold."

I checked and there weren't any major problems. The price they offered wasn't low, so I agreed.

The complete carcass of a Tier 3 sea beast, if fresh and properly prepared, is worth around 2000-2500 gold.

However, this refers to the market price.

Due to various factors such as the difficulty of preserving prey, supply and demand, transportation losses, and intermediate costs, there can be a significant price difference between the purchase price and the market price, often exceeding 50%.

Sea hunters are essentially hunters, while the gangs that control the docks are essentially merchants.

Merchants buy prey from hunters at the purchase price, of course.

However, Tier 3 Throat-Snatching Octopuses are rare fish, at least in Black Sails City.

For rare fish, due to high market demand, the price difference is actually slightly lower, around 40%.

Therefore, Apache can get about 1400 gold coins from the Embroidered Anchor Gang for the throat-grabbing badge, which is estimated to be worth about 2300 gold.

According to the previously mentioned profit sharing, 40% of these 1400 Golden Bird Coins belong to Gaode.

Apache took a heavy leather bag from his pocket and handed it to Gao De: "There are 650 Golden Bird Coins in here, please count them?"

Gao De took the leather bag; the leather smelled damp.

He untied the sea monster sinew binding the bag, glanced inside to confirm that it was all "genuine coins," and then weighed it in his hand. In an instant, he calculated that there were exactly 650 gold coins in the bag.

"Thank you." He handed the leather bag to Lan Wen beside him. His savings, which had just fallen below 2000 gold coins, had returned to 2307 gold coins.

At this point, the deal between Gaode and the Hunter Team is considered settled.

Upon arriving at the berth where the Columbus was docked, a group of people could be seen gathered around the ship's side from afar.

It was a group of people sent by the Embroidered Anchor Gang who were checking the goods against the cargo list that the other Ice Mage on the ship had just given them.

This takes some time.

Verifying extraordinary materials is a huge undertaking. The Embroidered Anchor Gang dispatched nearly ten verification personnel, led by a burly man with a full beard, who was likely a professional "appraiser."

In addition, the other personnel brought a bunch of tools, including brass scales, scrapers, and balances.
Verifying extraordinary materials is not as simple as just counting ordinary goods.

When Gaode arrived, they were verifying the raw ore of the cold iron ore.

This is a third-order mineral. Because it is raw ore, these ores are irregular in shape.

When it was first taken out of the cargo container, fine white vapor condensed on its surface, instantly freezing a ring of white frost onto the wooden planks on the deck.

The bearded appraiser, who was in charge of evaluating the quality of the beard, couldn't help but nod slightly upon seeing this.

A very important criterion for measuring the quality of raw icy iron ore is the level of ice element energy it contains.

He waved his hand behind him, and immediately a person came forward with a runic bronze scale to weigh all the cold iron ore one by one.

The beard appraiser, on the other hand, randomly picked up several pieces of raw ore and scraped off a little bit of debris with a scraper.

The fragments shimmered with a faint silver light, making his eyes shine slightly.

The brighter the silver light, the higher the purity of the raw ore.

"The purity is top-notch." He clicked his tongue and wrote the corresponding mark next to the item on the list.

Meanwhile, the weighing process was still ongoing on the other side.

About ten minutes later, the weigher finished the weighing and announced the numbers: "Total weight 10 tons 77 pounds."

The appraiser checked the numbers on the list and found they were mostly correct, so he put a checkmark next to them and prepared to start checking the next item.

"Sir!" At this moment, Eli, who was in contact with the members of the Embroidered Anchor Gang, noticed Gao De and Lan Wen who had just returned and quickly greeted them.

Eli was also a member of the Phoenix Sheriff's Department, a third-circle Iceborn mage, and highly regarded by Lanwen.

This time, Lan Wen casually brought it with him, both because he trusted his abilities and thought he was useful, and also because he wanted to give him a chance to gain recognition in front of Gaode Maps.

Gao De waved his hand and said, "You guys continue."

The entire verification process lasted nearly two hours, from noon until the sun began to set.

During this period, the appraisers of the Embroidery Anchor Gang were extremely picky about every item, repeatedly confirming everything from quality to weight—this was an important basis for later price negotiation.

Eli remained calm throughout, responding to each of the other party's questions one by one, and arguing his point on the unreasonable aspects.

Only after the last item had been checked did the two men simultaneously press their fingerprints on the list for final confirmation.

“The check is correct,” the bearded appraiser put away the list. “Our boss said that once the goods have been counted and checked, we can start negotiating the price. Once the deal is finalized, we can start arranging the shipment.”

"Let's talk at the usual place, the Broken Bones Tavern."

“I will convey your message to our lord,” Eli said, nodding slightly.

The appraiser waved his hand and left with his men.

An afternoon later, Gao De returned to the Shattered Bone Tavern, this time with Eli by his side.

The Shattered Bone Tavern was no longer as bustling as it was at noon. There were far fewer customers in the hall, leaving only a dozen or so wary gang members.

Hawke, who had been waiting at the door for a long time, led the three of them into a room inside the tavern with a very attentive expression.

Inside the room, two people sat behind a table.

In addition to the one-eyed Santos whom they had already met once, there was another lean man.

Gao De's gaze swept over the lean man subtly, without revealing anything unusual on his face.

"This is Walker. He was in charge of appraising and pricing items for the Wrath of the Liberation auction. His professionalism is beyond question. I specially invited him to help. I've taken a look at the value of your shipment, and it's higher than I expected."

Santos introduced the lean man to Goddard while inviting the three of them to sit down.

Walker merely twitched the corners of his mouth without saying a word, but his gaze swept over Gao De, Lan Wen, and Eli, scrutinizing them as if he were assessing merchandise.

As before, Santos picked up the rum bottle on the table and poured a glass of craft rum for each of the three men.

This time, however, Gao De didn't raise his glass and drink it all in one gulp, seemingly having no interest in drinking. Instead, he asked directly, "What price are you prepared to offer?"

Upon seeing this, a subtle, unusual glint appeared in Santos's eyes.

Poisonous Gao De's pupils contracted slightly the moment he lowered his eyelids.

He wasn't in a hurry, but rather, relying on his [Primary Azure Amber Body]'s extremely powerful perception of toxins, he keenly sensed that the rum Santos poured contained a very faint trace of toxins.

This is actually a kind of psychological manipulation tactic.

On the first meeting, people are most wary, so the previous time was a normal reception without any poisoning. If nothing happened the first time, most people would subconsciously lower their guard on the second meeting, especially given the short interval.

Even Gaode Maps is like this; people's wariness towards beverages has decreased.

Moreover, poisoning wine is a rather low-level and easily detected method for a mage. As the leader of a gang, he shouldn't be so unscrupulous.

But the fact is, it's just that lowbrow.

Whether it's a black cat or a white cat, a cat that catches mice is a good cat.

Santos implemented this idea very thoroughly.

However, Gao De's ability to sense toxins comes from his [Primary Azure Amber Body], which is innate and requires no spellcasting.

Even though his vigilance had lowered, he still immediately sensed that something was wrong.

See through, don’t say through.

Gao De simply informed Lan Wen and Eli through the [Communication Technique] that the wine was poisoned, so that the two would be aware of the situation. On the surface, he maintained a calm facade, as if he had not noticed anything, and his demeanor was so natural that there was no flaw.

"These are the prices Master Walker set for each item based on the detailed list. Do you have any questions?"

Santos spread out the list made of fish skin that was already on the table and pushed it over.

Gaode took it and quickly scanned the list.

Based on the quality and weight of the goods previously verified by the Embroidery Anchors appraisers, Walker provided an evaluation and reference price for each type of goods.

"The raw iron ore has excessive purity; the price can be increased by 50% above the market price."

At the end of the list, the total price was marked in bold black ink:

14720 Golden Bird Flower Coin.

He offered nearly 15000 gold coin for Gaode's entire shipment of goods.

"Is Master Gaode satisfied with this price? If you have any different ideas, please feel free to bring them up," Santos said with a smile, leaning back in his chair and half-closing his one eye.

He believed that the price was already very reasonable, and Gaode Maps would certainly not have any objections.

As for why he is so kind?

Since he had no intention of paying anything and was planning to make a profit without any initial investment, he figured he would get his money back no matter how much he gave out, so there was nothing wrong with being generous.

If he weren't afraid of being too generous and arousing suspicion, he wouldn't have even blinked when the price was set at 20,000 gold coin.

But if you're going to put on an act, you have to go all the way. Santos doesn't mind staging another "business war" with Gao De.

“Not enough.” Gao De put down the list, his voice calm and even.

"Not enough? I wonder which item's price you're unhappy with, Venerable Master Gaode?" Santos frowned immediately, deliberately feigning displeasure.

“I transported this cargo all the way to Black Sail City, incurring huge expenses and taking enormous risks. This little bit of profit is not enough,” Gao De simply shook his head.

“But my pricing is already very fair. The price of the goods is determined solely by their quality, and has nothing to do with how much sweat or blood you shed on the way!” Walker retorted sharply.

Santos raised his hand to stop Walker's indignation. "I can understand what Master Gaode said, but there are hundreds and thousands of people in my gang, and everyone needs to eat. It's not easy for them either."

I think we don't need to negotiate the price item by item. How about this: you give me a total price, and if I can agree to it, I will. If it exceeds my expectations, then we can discuss it further. How about that?

His words seemed like a concession, but in reality, he was confident of success.

No matter how high the final price is, it's just a number on paper, at most it just passes through Gaode's pocket.

"can."

"Then name your price."

"I'm not actually greedy, I don't want much, 14720 gold coin is fair enough, but I want to add more."

With a light tap of Gaode's fingertip on the total price list, the tapping sound of knuckles on the fish-patterned paper echoed in the suddenly quiet room, like the second hand of a clock counting down, strikingly noticeable.

He drew out his words, and Santos and Walker's gazes and attention were drawn to God as if by a magnet.

"Just two heads!"

The moment Gao De finished speaking, a strong surge of magical energy emanated from Lan Wen's hand.

Intense magical energy surged out like a storm.

A chilling glint of light, like a waning moon, slashed forward, aiming straight for Santos's face.

【Frozen Blade】!
The signature spell from the Snowfield Guardians, after being confiscated by Gao De, was also learned and mastered by Lan Wen, who then unleashed even greater power.

The mages of Black Sails City are undoubtedly skilled in combat.

This is determined by the environment.

But how weak are the mages of the North in combat?

Before Gao De brought the Northwest Barley No. 1 seed, the mages of the North had to go out hunting for a long time to obtain food. In the harsh and extreme environment, they fought against the creatures of the ley lines, so naturally they were all good fighters.

Moreover, Iceborn mages are inherently much stronger than ordinary mages.

Because the spells and cultivation methods awakened by the Iceborn Mage bloodline are inherited and systematic, they are equivalent to "sect cultivators" with a complete lineage.

—Under normal circumstances, sect cultivators are definitely stronger than independent cultivators.

This frozen blade, enhanced by the Iceborn bloodline and the [True Ice Secret Technique], possesses power far exceeding imagination.

A chill swept through the room like a floodgate being opened.

In an instant, the murderous intent burst forth.

Before the icy blade even reached his body, Santos could already hear the crisp sound of his eyebrows freezing.

Lan Wen's move came too suddenly and unexpectedly.

Human attention and energy are limited; when planning an attack, one often neglects defense.

Santos was preoccupied with plotting against Gaode and Lanwen, figuring out how to get them to drink the poisoned wine. He never imagined that they shared the same idea and had even acted earlier than him.

Caught off guard, Santos had no chance to defend himself and was unable to cast any protective spells.

"Shoot-"

The sharp sound of the ice blade cutting through the air was so intense it hurt Santos's eardrums. He could even see his own astonished single eye reflected in the ice blade.

At the critical moment, a pendant hanging around his neck suddenly burst forth with a dazzling blue light.

hum!
A layer of blue energy shield flowed like water, protecting Santos's entire body.

Living in a place like Black Sails City, and being the leader of a gang, it's standard for someone to have several pieces of extraordinary equipment with automatically triggered protective spells!

(End of this chapter)