Reincarnated as a bamboo rat, it begins its extreme survival struggle.

To be fair, the magic scrolls that the mages concocted were simple to use and had amazing effects.

Aside from the relatively high price, there are absolutely no problems. The problem with the high price is not the magic scroll itself, but the buyers.

"This magic scroll costs twenty gold coins, which is equivalent to half a chainmail."

"Sir, the raw material cost of this magic scroll alone is twelve gold coins, not including the labor costs incurred by the mages in making it."

Bell idly fiddled with the directional blasting beacon in his hand and remarked with a sigh.

Magic scrolls are a type of manufacturing technology.

Not all magic scrolls are in the form of paper rolls. For example, the [Directional Explosive Beacon] is a jar-shaped item that can be held in one hand, and it can be quickly activated and detonated using a special magic scroll.

In a way, this is somewhat similar to the magic energy cores that the elite team used to blow up the Bone Spire, but compared to the general-purpose magic energy cores, the [Directional Blast Beacon] is much more professional and convenient.

No mage is needed to perform the modification; any creature with magical power within it can be activated.

"I'll take all these magic scrolls, swipe your card."

Bell selected over two hundred magic scrolls, both high-level and low-level, which cost him a total of over five thousand gold coins. These were indeed expensive, and they quickly reduced the balance of Bell's crystal cards by more than half.

The most expensive magic scroll cost Bell a full thousand gold coins, making it the most top-tier one-time use item in the entire Azure Star City.

[Homogeneous Explosion]

Type: Props

Description: A high-level magic scroll crafted by several advanced mages. When used, it will generate an inextinguishable special flame that will continuously burn any item with the same aura until the magic effect completely disappears.

This scroll is very important to Bell, firstly because it provides him with a window into advanced magical knowledge, and secondly because it aligns with the direction of Bell's subsequent plans.

Seeing the rapidly decreasing balance on his crystal card, Bell opened his mouth, indicating that he couldn't bear it.

If he didn't need to set aside money to buy magic potions, he could have spent all his money in this magic scroll shop.

Without a doubt, these specialty prop shops are veritable money pits; they can consume any amount of money you bring.

"I need to go to the third floor to exchange some more money, otherwise I won't have enough to buy magic potions."

They quickly arrived at the third-floor area where stolen goods were being sold. The waiter following Bell left on his own to deal with the goods Bell had purchased at the free market and on the second floor.

Even the waiters on the third floor of the upscale market are not allowed to look around or move around freely.

"I had heard that a distinguished guest had come to the high-end market today, but I didn't expect it to be Mr. Ning."

As a place specializing in the disposal of stolen goods, Ning arrived in his new identity. Unlike the last time Bell came, the person behind the counter was not dozing off. Instead, he greeted her energetically.

This is because Bell's identity has changed. Last time he was Edu, the kid who followed Sabir, but now he is the rising star 'Nin'.

"Stop with the formalities, I need to send out a batch of items."

With a flick of his wrist, a large number of odds and ends appeared on the counter of the black market for selling stolen goods.

These are the spoils Bell has acquired from his interactions with various adventurers. Among them are weapon sets from four Shadow Thieves, equipment left behind by adventurers who died in the Bamboo Forest, and odds and ends he collected along the way.

Except for the Shadow Thief's equipment that detects the intensity of life energy, which wasn't put up for sale, Bell brought out everything else.

"Mr. Ning is truly generous, bringing so many items."

As the manager and frontman of the black market, the old man behind the counter didn't seem to care about the uneven value or the scattered nature of these items.

They always do business here by accepting all comers.

Refuse, or accept everything, but the price will have to be significantly reduced.

"A fine-grade dagger, suitable for professions such as thieves. It looks very well maintained. Its market price is seventy gold coins, but here it's only worth forty gold coins."

Among a large pile of items, the cunning old merchant first pulled out a few daggers, then immediately bargained down the price and bought them.

He actually recognized the dagger as the personal weapon of the four shadow thieves. After all, the old shrewd merchant often dealt with those shadow thieves, buying equipment and supplies from them at low prices.

He was somewhat taken aback when he heard the news of the deaths of the four Shadow Thieves not long ago, after all, those four guys were considered strongmen in Cangxing City when they joined forces.

But the old shrewd merchant didn't feel sorry for the deaths of the four Shadow Thieves.

It's quite normal to die in conflict in this world, even though people are usually very restrained and rarely resort to violence to solve problems.

But when things escalate to the point where action is required, someone usually dies.

After all, everyone here is a professional adventurer, and all they've learned is how to kill. No one dares to hold back in battle, because if they do, they'll be the ones dying the next second.

This situation is somewhat like everyone owning a gun. If everyone has the power to end the lives of others, then not having that power is a sin. Without the power to deter others, one is always in danger.

"Round it down to eight hundred and sixty-seven gold coins in total. Would you like cash or have it transferred to your crystal card?"

"Swipe your card."

The black market is very efficient; after all, that's their livelihood, and they won't be careless.

Just as Bell was about to go downstairs to the pharmacy to buy some potions, the old black market dealer stopped him.

"I heard that Mr. Ning came to the market to purchase various items. Why don't you take a look at the goods on our black market?"

"The goods here are not cheap."

He gave a nonchalant reply, then didn't head towards the door, instead waiting for the old shrewd businessman to continue.

They typically buy goods at a significant discount on the black market, but when they sell them, they don't offer any discounts; instead, they charge a much higher premium.

The only reason they can do this is because the things they sell are basically not available to outsiders.

They stockpiled some high-end goods and made sure that everyone at that level of consumption knew they had them.

Normally, these items are overpriced and difficult to sell, but in critical moments when they are needed, the black market can fleece those who desperately need them.

For example, ten years ago, a genius appeared in Cangxing City. Despite being born into poverty, his growth rate was no less than that of the scions of wealthy families, and his combat skills far surpassed those of his peers.

This man was destined to become the rising star of Cangxing City, but after a series of unforeseen events, he eventually left for distant lands.

Rumors in Cangxing City say that this genius's mother is seriously ill and urgently needs high-level treatment and several rare resources as targeted drugs in order to save her life.

At times like these, a genius from a poor family might be very skilled in combat, but the funds he can mobilize are far less than those of a wealthy family's son, not to mention the high-end resources that money can't buy under normal circumstances.

At times like these, the black market extends

They offered their help, providing crucial high-level resources to create medicine, thus saving the genius's mother.

But in return, this genius signed a secret contract with the black market that was unknown to outsiders.

Three months after the genius's mother recovered, the genius left Cangxing City and disappeared without a trace.

It wasn't until three years later that someone who had returned from out of town said they had seen the genius in an extremely dangerous place, but they didn't know the specifics.

Some say the black market signed a contract with him that was comparable to slavery, while others say the black market was preparing to invest in this genius.

However, the black market will never lose money in this deal; they only have one question: whether they will make a lot or not enough.

"This is our collection. If your husband finds anything he likes, just come to us. We never refuse business. Anything can be exchanged and sold here, including a strong person like yourself."

The old shrewd businessman still had a cheerful look on his face, but his words did nothing to put Bell at ease.

After glancing at the list of rare items in the black market, Bell turned and left, leaving behind the words:

"I will come again, and I will bring enough valuable items to exchange."

There was one item in the black market collection that Bell valued highly.

It was a piece of dry, twisted wood, priced at 16,000 gold coins on the black market, equivalent to the price Bell would pay for two fire-chewing hyenas.

In the black market, this thing is priced similarly to mithril, but its actual effect is not as good as mithril.

For those who need it, it's a priceless treasure; for those who don't, it's just a piece of broken wood that's been sitting around for years.

Coincidentally, Bell was someone who recognized its value and needed it.

【Eternal Withered Vine】A legendary material engraved with the aura of time and sealed with a wisp of true time power.

Even if Bell cannot utilize the power within this ancient withered vine, he must obtain it. Even simply staying by its side year after year would be of great benefit to Bell.

"Sixteen thousand gold coins? That's ridiculous! There's practically no one in Cangxing City who can use this piece of wood."

Spitting, Bell returned to the second floor of the market. The waiters who had disappeared earlier reappeared beside Bell, accompanying him to the shop that specialized in selling potions.

This is the place Sabir brought Edu to last time, so it's not unfamiliar to Bale.

After a brief conversation and observation, he entered high-speed ordering mode, and in just a few minutes, he ordered four hundred different types of potions, which immediately wiped out his funds that had just begun to recover.

"Grand opening today, boss, please take care."

Bell's large purchase pleased the pharmacist who served him. As the shop owner, the pharmacist, who specialized in practical application, also gave Bell five bottles of specially made exorcising potion before he left.

After all, Ning's current identity is that of someone active in the bamboo forest. Giving away items like exorcising potions is like giving away hard currency, so it can't be wrong.

Having completed his shopping, Bell had the waiters deliver the seeds and plants he had purchased to the empty house that old man Sabir had lent to Edu.

The most important magic scrolls and potions are carried in the inventory.

Buying this huge pile of stuff was just the beginning of Bell's plan. The most painstaking and laborious part was yet to come. He would have to deduce a great deal of magical knowledge from these finished products to fill in the gaps in his own foundation.

This is very important, as it relates to Bell's royal tomb development plan.

Chapter 181 Reverse Engineering

It took Bell a lot of time to transport the large amount of supplies he had purchased back to the branch base below the bamboo forest, since he had bought a lot of different things and his inventory couldn't hold them all.

Meanwhile, the various forces within Cangxing City who were paying attention to Ning's identity were also speculating about his situation based on the supplies Bell had purchased.