Hello, is this a letter addressed to Demon Fortress?

20,000 gold coins...

Lin Gui frowned deeply.

According to Blackbeard, at the selection meetings over the years...

The starting price for a qualified guide is at least 50,000 gold coins.

Compared to this, Shia's little savings are indeed insignificant.

He picked up the bag of coins Cass had left behind, untied the rope,

Pour the contents onto the wooden table.

With a crisp clang, a hundred gleaming gold coins rolled out.

Shia leaned closer and took a look, her eyes widening in surprise:

"One hundred gold coins?! This guy's here to rob me!"

She pointed angrily at the coins:

"The potions we bought from that dwarf cost a thousand gold coins a bottle!"

"He spent 10,000 gold coins, took five bottles, and only gave 100?"

She subconsciously used the term "damn dwarf".

Although he knew Blackbeard did not do it intentionally.

She was even more unaware of her demonic identity.

But that sudden arrow from the Witcher just now...

It still left her with lingering fear.

Eve reached out and picked up one of them.

She examined the flickering flames in the fireplace closely.

After a moment, he spoke softly:

"This is not an ordinary gold coin."

"It's a special coin issued by the largest bank on the Akara continent—"

"Star Coins"

She turned the gold coin towards Shia, her fingertips lightly tracing the edge:

"The surface looks ordinary, but the edges are coated with a layer of rainbow powder."

With a slight turn of the finger, a flash of light swept across the edge of the coin.

A dazzling stream of seven colors flashed by and disappeared in an instant.

Shea took the Star Coin and looked it over curiously.

She had heard of this kind of coin, but had never seen it in person.

It is said to circulate only among the great nobles and those in positions of power.

During the city-state era, gold coins suffered severe devaluation.

A nobleman could spend thousands of gold coins to purchase a single luxurious robe.

Several thousand gold coins are not something a small pocket can hold.

To facilitate large-scale transactions, Star Coin was created.

One of them is equivalent to one hundred standard gold coins.

Shia's eyes widened as she looked at the hundred Star Coins in front of her.

"So... he actually paid in full?"

"We even made a net profit of five thousand gold coins?"

Lin Gui shook his head and weighed the few Star Coins in his palm.

He had certainly seen that money before.

Most of the gold in Duke Joseph's vault in Carter's capital was like this.

He even used a considerable amount of it for his own future expenses.

Even if we include those one hundred Star Coins,

The funds are still far from enough to hire a mentor.

He looked at Eve helplessly.

This saintess of the number one religion on the mainland should have some savings.

Eve met his gaze and gave a soft, bitter smile.

She reached into her sleeve and fumbled around for a moment.

In the end, only five badly worn gold coins were found.

It was placed gently on the table, making a soft sound.

Lin Gui was somewhat surprised:

"Is the Church of Light... really that strapped for cash?"

"Is the saintess's income really that low?"

Eve's tone was calm, with a barely perceptible hint of self-deprecation:

"The saint serves as the outward face of the church."

"One must live strictly in accordance with the Holy Scripture of Light."

"The holy scriptures stipulate that saints should not accumulate worldly wealth."

"All expenses are provided by the church."

She paused, her fingertips brushing over the five gold coins:

"These... were before I left."

"The maid who takes care of me secretly slipped it to me."

The firelight from the fireplace danced on her face, flickering intermittently.

In the depths of those usually calm eyes,

A faint, elusive longing flashed by.

"or……"

Eve pointed to the hem of her plain-colored long dress and softly suggested:

"Sell the gems sewn onto my lining?"

To conceal her identity, she had long ago changed out of her luxurious priestess dress.

That outfit was left to the nun who left the capital in her place.

But she didn't change out of the close-fitting petticoat.

Several amethyst crystals were woven into the edge of the petticoat.

It is said that each one is worth 100,000 gold coins on the market.

Lin Gui waved his hand:

"Need not."

"It's not to the point where I need you as an ornament yet."

"Besides, this is a remote place, no one here knows its value."

His gaze slowly shifted to the corner of the wall.

Inside the wooden box, the semi-divine artifact staff "Wind Whisperer" rested quietly.

A faint blue halo flowed around the staff.

Following Lin Gui's gaze, Xia saw it and instantly understood what Lin Gui wanted to do.

Shea immediately jumped up, spreading her arms to block her view, and exclaimed speechlessly:

"I said! Can't you think of a normal way to do it?!"

"That's a demigod artifact! A demigod artifact!"

"You can't just throw away a wooden stick to sell for money!"

"I absolutely will not allow you to sell such a priceless treasure for a pittance!"

She glared angrily at Lin Gui.

Her emerald green eyes seemed to say, "If you dare to sell, I'll fight you."

Lin Gui withdrew his gaze and sighed.

"Then, there's only one way."

Shia asked warily:

"What's that? Borrowing money from the dwarves?"

"Should we break into some rich person's warehouse?"

Lin Gui looked at her speechlessly:

"Whose warehouse are you raiding? Blackbeard's? Cass's?"

"Or is it another bounty hunter?"

Do you know where they hide their money?

He paused, his tone carrying a hint of reminder:

"Back in Carter's capital, we were able to unlock so many treasure vaults—"

"It's because of Elvia."

"Her intelligence network spans all the major mansions."

"A cleaning lady, a kitchen apprentice, a noblewoman's lover, and even a gold-plated rat in a hole."

"With their information, it was easy to break into the vault."

"As for borrowing money..."

Lin Gui shook his head.

He didn't want to owe anyone a favor, especially not a favor to the dwarves.

Shia pressed further, "So what's your solution?"

Lin Gui smiled and uttered two words:

"Hitchhiking".

He looked out the window at the deep night, and in the distance, at the gates of Bounty City, it seemed that many people were entering one after another.

The voices were chattering, carrying a rare liveliness for a bounty city.

It seems that the selection event attracted quite a few people.

Adventurers? Bounty hunters? And ordinary people who want to trade their loved ones for a huge reward?

Hearing the sounds outside, Lin Gui chuckled.

"The selection process will end in three days."

"Let's see which team's route is closest to Avalon."

"Then we'll hang it on their heads."

"Sneak in with them into the Wailing Wall."

"Wait until you are as close to Avalon as possible, then leave the group and head to Avalon alone."

"Even without the dying clearing the way, we can rely on the speed of the airship and my ability to see through souls."

"It will also allow us to shake off those demons."

The only problem is, if they reach Avalon, how will the Forest Spirit leave?

Perhaps Rogue in Avalon, or rather, that white-haired, red-eyed demon king, could offer something else.

A method to safely walk across the Wailing Wall without relying on dying people to clear a path.

Now, since Avalon is supposedly a free and equal city-state...

Why would it be built in such a dangerous and forbidden area?

How do the inhabitants live in the misty Avalonli?

Too many mysteries troubled Lin Gui, but he believed that it wouldn't be long before he would know the truth.