Beast Taming Begins with the Inner Circle of Pets

Chapter 17 Trip to the Black Market

Lin Manman then realized why it was all so mysterious.

"The people doing business here are all professionals. Once we're inside, you must be careful about your words and actions to avoid offending anyone you shouldn't. Also, this place is very complex; there are both good and bad items. If there's anything you want to buy, let me take a look first," Qiu Xiangjing carefully instructed Lin Manman as she led her through the winding alleyways.

"Also, there are usually a lot of people at night. Since you're not familiar with the area, you must stay close to me."

Lin Manman listened quietly, nodding occasionally to show that she understood. Relying on the system's authentication function, she wasn't worried about being deceived at all; on the contrary, she was filled with anticipation.

After turning what looked like the seventh or eighth bend, the narrow alley suddenly opened up before us. The road, just wide enough for two vehicles to pass side by side, was bustling with people, lined with shops and stalls, brightly lit and very lively.

"Shall we go straight to see the spirit beasts or wander around first?" Qiu Xiangjing looked at Lin Manman, who was overwhelmed by the sights, and a smile flashed in his eyes. Qiu Xiangjing was quite familiar with the Lin family. In his memory, Lin Manman used to be a well-behaved but unambitious girl. However, when the family suffered a series of misfortunes, this young girl was able to quickly adjust her state and take on the responsibility of the family, which really impressed him.

"Let's go check on the spirit beasts first." If they meet the requirements, she might be able to gather the necessary awakening materials while she's at it.

Qiu nodded to the scenic spot and walked ahead to lead the way for her.

After turning two more streets, the two arrived at a less crowded alley. There were four or five shops on both sides of the alley, and judging from the signs, they were all spirit beast shops.

These spirit beast shops are in a much worse environment than the regular shops in the city. Two of them even put the cages for the spirit beasts outside the door.

Lin Manman used the system to visit several shops one by one and found sixteen spirit beasts that met the requirements. Sure enough, the base number was high. Unfortunately, she and Qiu Xiangjing couldn't buy them all with their savings, and besides, she also wanted to try her luck on the black market.

After discussing it, the two decided to reserve nine bronze-level spirit beasts for now, and the rest would have to wait until next time.

"Transfer the deposit to this anonymous account of mine, and I will make the payment." Qiu Xiangjing and his fellow professionals were regulars on the black market, and he was most familiar with the rules here.

Seeing that the other party had thought things through, Lin Manman listened and did as instructed.

The nine bronze-level spirit beasts cost a total of 2.8 million. A deposit of 800,000 was paid, and the owner agreed to pick them up before the market closed. Afterwards, the two returned to the bustling central market. This time, Qiu Xiangjing closely followed Lin Manman, while Lin Manman looked around with great interest.

It has to be said that the black market truly lives up to its name; the materials are not only 20-30% cheaper than in regular stores, but the variety is also much greater. Lin Manman doesn't recognize many things, but fortunately, she has a system, which she uses to navigate the market.

"Uncle Qiu, I see that there are also maps of secret realms for sale here. Are the maps sold here more detailed than those sold in the official adventure shop of the Professional Alliance?" Lin Manman asked, puzzled, as she saw a crowd gathered around a map stall.

"The maps compiled by the Alliance for the purpose of protecting professionals are of course very detailed, but many expeditions that discover valuable items in secret realms may not necessarily report them to the Alliance. If their expeditions are not strong enough to acquire them, they will exchange the maps for money. However, the black market is a mixed bag, and these maps are of course a mix of genuine and fake, depending on the buyer's experience and luck."

Lin Manman nodded thoughtfully. There are rules above and countermeasures below. It seems that even with the Professionals Alliance restraining the professionals, it cannot guarantee against the darkness that breeds profit.

"Uncle Qiu, let's go take a look at that stall." Lin Manman saw that there weren't many people at the stall, and there weren't many valuable materials on it. Most of them were things that didn't have much energy fluctuation.

"That stall doesn't have anything useful; it's just for scamming people who want to find a bargain." Qiu Xiangjing said helplessly. This little niece had just awakened her profession, and her father probably hadn't told her about professional expedition teams before, which made her curious about everything.

Little did he know that it wasn't that Lin's father wouldn't tell him, but that a certain girl who only wanted to sponge off her parents simply didn't want to listen.

Lin Manman, who was hoping to find a bargain, choked up. Any professional could tell that the materials had energy fluctuations; there was no chance for her to find a bargain.

Lin Manman couldn't explain why she relied on the system to avoid being fooled, so she could only pretend to be naive and curiously walk towards the street stall.

The street vendor was an old man around sixty years old. He was thin and frail, lying on a recliner, fanning himself with a tattered palm-leaf fan, his eyes closed, almost asleep. He only slightly raised his eyelids when he noticed someone approaching, without even saying hello.

Lin Manman couldn't help but twitch her lips. Did she think her things were worthless and that she didn't care if they were stolen or robbed?

Scanning the items on the stall through the system, she actually discovered two unusual things: a small, oddly shaped, grayish-brown stone and a blood-red gem the size of a pigeon's egg.

The seeds of the withered Tree of Life have lost their vitality and should not be planted.

[High-grade mythical-level Earth Tyrant essence blood; spirit beasts have a chance to enhance their bloodline upon consuming it.]

Lin Manman hadn't expected to encounter something related to the Tree of Life so soon, but unfortunately it had already withered and was completely useless. She felt a pang of envy and even when she saw the effects of the essence blood, her emotions didn't stir much.

As she was pondering how to ask the shopkeeper for prices in a way that wouldn't seem too deliberate, the rainbow jade hanging around her neck suddenly woke up. The rainbow jade, having broken free of its mimicry, disappeared from her neck and reappeared on the stall the next second, its body coiled up with a light blue bead, flicking its tongue at Lin Manman.

"Hiss." Master, I want to eat this.

"A level two water-attribute spirit beast core, perfect for it, 300,000 Chinese Yuan, no bargaining."

The old man, who seemed to be asleep on the recliner, spoke slowly.

Lin Manman was taken aback. So it wasn't that the other person didn't care; they were just incredibly skilled and daring. She glanced again at the bead firmly wrapped around Hongyu's body, and sure enough, it was a level two water-attribute spirit beast core.

"Boss, what's the price of this ruby?"

"Five hundred thousand."

"This is more expensive than a level two spirit beast core?" Lin Manman's attempt to bargain was cut off by the old man's open eyes.

"Although I don't know the specific function of this thing, it was brought out from an S-level secret realm. 500,000, no bargaining. Take it or leave it."

Judging from the old man's assertive tone, she knew he was a master. Lin Manman couldn't haggle any further, so she pretended to be naive and smiled, pointing to the withered seeds of the Tree of Life, saying, "Alright... I'll take both of them. Boss, how about a bonus? How about that stone?"

"Take it." The old man glanced at the withered seed of the Tree of Life, not caring much. This little stone was not his own product, and he hadn't noticed when it appeared in his inventory. He just thought it was a uniquely shaped little stone.

Qiu Xiangjing hesitated several times before speaking, but when Lin Manman had agreed to buy it, he stepped forward and paid. He only started scolding her after the two had walked some distance away.

"That spirit beast core is fine; it'll help your pet level up. But I don't see anything special about that ruby. Why did you waste your money on it?"

"This gemstone has such a beautiful color, I love it!" Lin Manman continued to play dumb.

Although many women in this society still like gemstones, most families still spend their money on improving their social standing, so gemstones are very inexpensive.

(End of this chapter)