Wizard: I'm leveling up by AFK in another world

Old Jack paused for a moment while holding the fried fish.

He turned to look at Claire, his face full of confusion.

"Materials? What materials can you collect?"

"Ah, actually they're just the corpses of some defiled creatures. I studied a bit of supernatural materials science before, and I feel like a certain part..."

"Um?"

"As you know, I'm very short of money, so I don't want to miss any opportunity."

"Um……"

"That means you get 10% of what you get!"

"Um!"

Claire looked up and found the old man looking at her with a half-smile, his eyes, which had been cloudy from drunkenness, were now clear.

"I knew you weren't simple, kid." Old Jack put the fried fish in his mouth and chewed it slowly. "You're a wizard apprentice, aren't you?"

"I'm guessing the assessment deadline is approaching, and his mental strength is just a little lacking?"

Claire nodded.

"Don't you wizards believe in equivalent exchange? Remember that next time, when you need someone's help, show them your sincerity first." Old Jack smacked his lips and filled his beer. "In Whale City, I know three ways to exchange things for magic stones."

He held up one finger.

"First, the City Hall's 'Joint Waste Recycling Center'."

"Each trading zone at the top has a station, absolutely safe, no one dares to tamper with it. But their purchase price is naturally the lowest. And..."

Old Jack sneered, "They'll charge you a 20% transaction tax and investigate the origin of your goods. If you happen to be missing any documents... you know the consequences."

He then extended his second finger.

"Secondly, there is Shell Street in Trade Zone No. 4."

"That's a private market run by a large company. It has a pretty good reputation, and many explorers and free traders choose to go there. There are more options than at the official market, but getting a good price will really test your skills."

"Sounds good." Claire nodded. "What about the third one?"

Old Jack paused for a moment, looked around, and lowered his voice.

"The third one... is Black Reef Fortress, which is about the same depth as the office."

"It's said that this black market existed even before Whale City was established. They don't ask about origins or identity. Anything you're willing to sell, someone will buy it. Similarly, even items explicitly prohibited by the city hall can be bought here."

At this point, old Jack looked at Claire seriously: "But I advise you not to go. It's a place even the city hall can hardly influence, and official wizards often frequent it. They see us like ants. If you insist on going..."

"A magic stone, here's a map and a password."

Claire looked at him expressionlessly.

Old Jack turned his head away and started drinking his beer.

"Thank you, Uncle Jack." Claire took out a magic stone and a few gold coins from her pocket and pushed them in front of old Jack. "This drink is on me."

"I knew you were sensible, kid." Old Jack grinned, stuffing the magic stones and gold coins into his pocket. "But take my advice, there's no need to go to such lengths."

"You'll be no older than thirty after your hard labor service; you'll have a long and promising future ahead of you!"

Claire stood up, bowed slightly to old Jack, and turned to leave.

"Hey, kid." Old Jack squinted, tapping his glass on the table. "Another one!"

After downing a glass, his cheeks flushed again.

……

……

The next night.

Claire left the cleaning department and boarded the elevator leading to the upper floor.

He had two pre-packaged parcels tucked into his arms.

One contained the extra venom glands of the Shadow Anemone, and the other contained the skin and fangs peeled from the carrion eel's corpse.

He also obtained a piece of fish spirit spine from this guy, which surprised him greatly.

The spirituality of carrion eels is theoretically very difficult to form such extraordinary materials, but unexpectedly, he obtained it on his first hunt.

Hopefully, I'll have that kind of luck again.

Stepping out of the elevator, Claire saw the sunlight again after two days.

Although it was a short time, it still gave him a feeling of being in another world.

After a moment of confusion, he followed the crowd onto the street and stopped a carriage.

Even as dusk approached, the crowds on Shell Street continued to flow.

The quaint streets were crowded with all kinds of stalls, and the cries of vendors rose and fell.

"Fresh blue pearls! Excellent material for jewelry making!"

"Freshly caught armored crabs! Their shells can be used as shields, and their meat is said to be aphrodisiacs!"

"Underwater breathing potion, only three magic stones a bottle! Come and check it out!"

Claire pulled her hood down and walked slowly into the crowd.

Many of the stall owners here are wizarding apprentices, and several even wear the robes of advanced apprentices.

Claire stopped in front of a stall that had a sign that said it was buying alchemy materials.

The old stall owner appeared to be a bloodline wizard with the blood of the Blue Sea Fishman, his skin was dark blue, and he was examining a pearl with a magnifying glass.

"Do you accept materials?" Claire asked.

The blue-skinned old man raised his eyelids and glanced at Claire: "Check the goods."

Claire took out the package and poured out two Shadow Anemone Venom Glands.

The old man picked one up, sniffed it, and then scraped the surface with his fingernail: "The poison glands of the Shadow Anemone, huh? That's rather rare..."

He examined it carefully for a while, then looked at Claire with some surprise: "The quality is quite good; whoever collected it has some skill. Where did you get it?"

Claire shook her head: "Will you accept it or not?"

"Of course. One thousand wizard coins each."

Currently, the exchange rate on Five Flower Island is approximately 10,000 Wizard Coins to exchange for one Magic Stone.

"Three thousand pieces. These were just collected and are very active."

"Those aren't dehydrated yet!" the old man waved his hand impatiently. "At most 1,500 pieces. Take it or leave it!"

Claire considered it for a moment.

This price is slightly lower than the official recycling center, but when you factor in the transaction tax, it becomes considerably higher.

"make a deal."

He sold all eight extra Shadow Anemone Venom Glands and got a check for 12,000 Wizard Coins.

Just in case, Claire decided to find another place to sell the carrion eel skin and fangs, and also look for the Primal Tide Essence.

He walked around half of the market and his eyes were drawn to a flag with a dolphin design.

The stall behind the flag was covered with a dark blue velvet cloth, which was filled with glass bottles and jars, arranged very neatly.

The stall owner, dressed in a fitted light blue robe and with her burgundy hair styled in an updo, was smiling as she introduced her wares to a customer.

Claire couldn't help but take a second look.

"Hello, is there anything you need?" The young witch noticed Claire's gaze and greeted her warmly. "We are an important partner of the Silvershine Fleet, and all the water-related materials on this stall are sourced directly from them!"

Silversun Fleet is one of the three major private fleets in the blue ocean industry, with a wide range of businesses, the most important of which is deep-sea mining.

[Blueprint material detected: Primal Tidal Essence]

Claire looked at a crystal display stand in the center of the booth.

There was a small glass bottle, about the size of a palm, containing a pearl as white as jade.

"You have excellent taste. This bottle of Primal Tide Essence is a brand new arrival, and it's of exceptional quality."

"How much?"

"One hundred magic stones," the witch said with a smile, uttering a chilling number.

Although it was expected, the price still left Claire breathless.

"Too expensive," he shook his head, turned to leave, "I can't afford it."

"Hey, don't rush off!" the witch urged. "If you don't have enough magic stones, we can barter. We guarantee a fair price!"

She had clearly noticed the carrion eel ingredients in the package.

Claire thought for a moment and then took the package down.

"I have this."

He untied the knot, revealing the grayish-brown skin of the eel.

The young witch's eyes lit up.

She stretched out her slender fingers and gently stroked the texture of the leather surface.

"This is a carrion eel?" She covered her mouth in surprise. "The texture and the state of its condition... this piece is of very good quality!"

The girl's tone didn't seem fake, which stirred something within Claire.

"How much is it worth?" he asked.

The witch took out her tools and examined the hide carefully again: "This hide is perfect, and with these fangs... hmm, I can offer you twenty magic stones, how about it?"

So many?

Claire almost couldn't help but laugh.

Before setting off, he also consulted materials and tried to judge their value.

The price was much higher than he expected, making him even suspect that the other party had made a mistake in the calculation.

As expected of a top-tier fleet purchaser, their vision is truly different.

"Deal!" He reached out his hand, about to release the magical bindings on the eel skin.

Just then, a lazy voice came from behind the stall:

"Wait a minute."