Chapter 45: The Tip

"Pfft! What did he say? Did I hear that right? Something under eight gold coins?"

Hearing Zhang Xuan's bold words, everyone spat out their drinks, staring dumbfounded, looking at him as if he were a madman.

Really?

Gambling on treasures is about the thrill, about wealth. Any single piece costs at least a hundred gold coins. Eight gold coins... what can you buy with that?

"Is this guy out of his mind?"

"Eight gold coins? Hahaha, you might as well grab a handful of dirt from the ground!"

"And he said 'under eight gold coins'—there's nothing that cheap here, okay?"

...

After a moment, everyone was laughing so hard tears streamed down their faces.

Damn, kid, are you a joker?

How could there be anything under eight gold coins here? Even eighty wouldn't buy anything!

"What? A prestigious place for treasure gambling doesn't even have items under eight gold coins? How shameful!"

Unfazed by the crowd's mockery, Zhang Xuan looked at the stall owner with righteous indignation.

His predecessor had left him only eight gold coins; he had no more, even if he wanted to pay more.

"Pfft!"

Everyone exchanged glances again, nearly bursting with laughter.

You're the one who's embarrassing!

It's like going to a real estate office and asking if there's a house you can buy for one gold coin.

Bro, are you sure your head's on straight?

"There's certainly no treasure worth eight gold coins. How about this: pick anything from this pile, and I'll pay for it. If you profit, it's yours; if you lose, just apologize to me as agreed earlier."

Seeing the young man's demeanor, 'Master Moyang' looked at him with utter contempt, clasping his hands behind his back, assuming an air of superiority, like a lofty expert.

"As expected of Master Moyang, truly a man of grace!"

"This kid is just a clown, here only to embarrass himself!"

"The master's character, I admire it!"

……

Hearing that the "master" was actually willing to pay for his opponent, the crowd secretly admired him one after another.

See that? What class he has, and then look at this kid...

Forget it, better not compare, I'm afraid I'll throw up...

"Are you sure?" Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up.

Knowing the other party was a swindler, spending his money brought no psychological guilt.

"Of course, I, Mo, always keep my word!" "Master Moyang" stood like a transcendent being, unstained by the mud.

"Hehe, then I'll pick..."

Zhang Xuan smiled faintly, strode up to the stall, and looked at the pile of treasures.

Since the other party had chosen a small one, he naturally couldn't pick a large one; besides, large ones took time to polish and were extremely troublesome.

"This kid is utterly shameless!"

"Yeah, I really don't know why Master Moyang has such good temper. If I met such a guy, I'd have slapped him flying long ago!"

"Insulting the master and then spending his money to buy things... Disgraceful!"

...

Seeing that the young man showed no trace of guilt but instead cheerfully selected items, the crowd was speechless.

They had seen thick-skinned people, but never one this thick.

You openly blasted the master, called him a fraud—regardless, that made you an adversary, right? In such a situation, you still have the nerve to spend his money to buy things and then compete with him... You're really something!

Ignoring the crowd's comments, Zhang Xuan touched each treasure as he looked. Soon, he also picked a palm-sized treasure and handed it over.

"Also 200 gold coins!" the stall owner glanced and said flatly.

"Master, hurry up and pay!" Zhang Xuan said without any sense of shame, waving his hand.

"..." "Master Moyang" was covered in black lines.

He wanted to make the other party look foolish, but instead the other party took his words seriously, making him feel like a servant.

Suppressing the urge to strangle the other party, he paid the money.

"Alright, let's polish it here, with so many people watching, no one can say it's fake!" Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

"Hmph, after it's polished, let's see if you're still so arrogant!"

Seeing the young man's behavior, the stall owner was also itching with anger, casually took out the polishing tools, and began polishing bit by bit.

Before long, the object wrapped in moss and rock revealed its true appearance.

It was a translucent stone, emitting a warm luster.

"This... is a Linglong Stone?" Seeing the stone's appearance, someone in the crowd shouted, their voice full of disbelief.

"What is a Linglong Stone?" Some knew it, while others did not.

"You don't even know that? Linglong Stone is one of the main materials for refining Ghost-grade weapons. Each piece is extremely valuable, and it's hard to find on the market!" The first speaker breathed rapidly.

Weapons are classified into Divine, Saint, Spirit, Ghost, and Mortal!

In a place like Tianxuan Kingdom, even a perfect Mortal-grade weapon is almost unheard of, let alone a Ghost-grade weapon. Each one would likely fetch an astronomical price.

A main material for refining Ghost-grade weapons, once put up for auction, would surely drive countless families and experts crazy.

"How much is it worth?"

Someone who didn't recognize the item couldn't help asking.

No matter how rare it was described, without a concrete concept, but once the value was stated, everyone understood.

"A few years ago, I heard that one was auctioned in Liuzhu Kingdom, smaller than this, only the size of an egg, and it sold for fifty thousand gold coins! This one is so big and looks purer, it should be at least a hundred thousand..."

The speaker swallowed his saliva.

"A hundred thousand..."

Everyone present almost went crazy.

Bought something for two hundred gold coins, and it sells for a hundred thousand?

That's a 500-fold increase...

Is it real?

"This... this..." The stall owner's hands trembled as he looked at the item in disbelief.

As a stall owner dealing in gambling treasures, he recognized many treasures and knew the prices, and he knew that what that person said was absolutely correct!

This thing was definitely worth that price!

"Impossible... must be a mistake..."

While the crowd was shocked, Master Moyang was about to have a seizure.

He had thought the other party would definitely not pick anything valuable, so he could mock him and once again show off his superiority. He never dreamed that the other party would pick such a valuable treasure.

Both bought with two hundred gold coins, his own was only worth two thousand, while the other's was worth a hundred thousand...

The gap was too big!

"This Linglong Stone, I'll auction it now, to the highest bidder!"

Knowing what this thing was, Zhang Xuan showed no surprise on his face. He took the treasure from the stall owner's hand and looked around.

"I'll pay a hundred thousand!"

The guy who recognized the Linglong Stone shouted first.

Although a hundred thousand gold coins was a lot, compared to a treasure like the Linglong Stone, the latter was certainly more precious.

"I'll pay a hundred and ten thousand!"

Someone else also recognized its value.

"A hundred and twenty thousand..."

...

Soon, the price finally settled at one hundred and fifty-three thousand gold coins, snatched by a wealthy middle-aged man.

"This is a universal banknote from [Tianxuan Bank]. With this, you can withdraw one hundred and fifty-three thousand gold coins from any bank in Tianxuan City!" The middle-aged man handed over a stack of banknotes after receiving the Linglong Stone.

Gold coins were heavy and inconvenient for circulation. Here, like in ancient times, paper money such as banknotes appeared.

"Mm."

After a glance, knowing it was genuine, he casually tucked it into his bosom, then took out a banknote worth a thousand gold coins and walked over to "Master Moyang" not far away: "You helped me pay two hundred gold coins earlier. Here's a thousand, no need to give change, consider it a tip!"