Today.
The entire human race was bustling.
Treasures of various kinds were successively transported from the Canglan human territory.
Cartloads of goods were delivered to the major cities, and then the city lord's mansion set up venues, dividing the selling areas into auctions, bartering meets, mission requirement boards, street stalls, and so on, categorized by transaction type into various grand venues.
Artifacts were sorted and placed in each venue for sale.
Southern Border City was a large border city with high walls, strict defenses, and a dense population.
Therefore, the amount of goods transported from Southern Border City was also substantial, second only to Central City, Northern Border City, and East Sea City.
Many merchants from nearby cities rushed over upon hearing the news.
For a time, the entire Southern Border City was filled with visiting merchants. The streets, usually sparse with pedestrians, were exceptionally lively today, with throngs of people heading towards the city lord's mansion.
Fortunately, the city lord's mansion occupied a vast area, otherwise, it truly couldn't accommodate so many people.
Today, Lin Yu, accompanied by his senior brother, came to the event.
Upon entering the venue, it was bustling with people everywhere.
Lin Yu surveyed the surroundings and spotted several venue signs, each representing a different transaction method.
However, generally speaking, auctions were held to the highest standard.
Lu Li said, "I've brought you here. I still have a lot to do. You guys can browse around here; I won't be accompanying you."
"Go ahead and be busy. We can explore on our own," Senior Brother waved his hand.
Lu Li smiled, turned, and left.
Lin Yu and Senior Brother walked along the main path, observing the various goods around them.
Senior Brother said, "Junior Brother, you go wander around first. If you see anything you like, tell your Senior Brother."
Lin Yu's heart leaped with joy. He had been wanting to explore anyway, and whether it was troublesome for Senior Brother or not could be dealt with later.
"Alright, Senior Brother. See you later."
"See you later!"
They parted ways. Lin Yu did not head to the auction house.
It wasn't that he didn't want to, but he was running low on money.
Furthermore, some things couldn't be bought with just Star Coins.
He went to the street stall section, where the items were the cheapest.
Here, along both sides of the street, sat stall vendors. Lin Yu stopped one and asked, only to learn that most of these fellows were from Northern Border City.
After the Canglan human territory was breached, they had taken advantage of the chaos, rushed into the Canglan territory, and seized many abandoned official treasures.
They sold the valuable items and were now selling the rest, which they didn't recognize or were of little value.
The items on their stalls often looked unassuming or peculiar, making it difficult to identify them.
The stall owners would often quote a high price, but if you haggled well, you could buy them for a fraction of the price.
This was the nature of street stalls; prices were highly volatile.
Lin Yu walked among them, looking left and right, searching for a target.
He was waiting.
At the last auction in Ji City, the appearance of the "Myriad Treasures Condensing Art" had triggered a prompt from the system.
He hoped that if he encountered another treasure, the system would still give him a prompt.
As he walked, the system remained silent. Lin Yu wasn't impatient; treasures weren't easily found.
The sounds of vendors and customers haggling constantly filled his ears.
"Old man, your bottle has a crack. Its condition is ruined; it's not worth much."
"My dear customer, even with a crack, this bottle is an antique. Three thousand Star Coins, firm. If you want it, buy it; otherwise, look elsewhere."
"Ah, I quite like this bottle. How about two thousand in the middle?"
"Deal!"
Customers browsed the stalls for treasures; some lost, some gained, it was all part of the game.
As he neared the end of the street stall section, Lin Yu felt disappointed.
"Oh well, it seems there are no treasures here. I'll try somewhere else."
Lin Yu sighed inwardly and was about to turn away.
Suddenly, he stopped and looked in a particular direction.
Taking two steps at a time, he arrived at a stall.
Upon seeing Lin Yu, the stall owner was startled, almost dropping the black robe covering his body.
He quickly composed himself and coughed twice.
"Ahem, what does the customer desire? Feel free to pick; everything here is a treasure."
He extended a plump, fair hand, picked up a rusty iron sword, and said:
"Don't mind this sword; it's covered in rust, but let me tell you, this sword is extraordinary."
He spoke in a mysterious tone, as if the sword truly had an impressive origin.
However, Lin Yu completely ignored the sword. In his eyes, it was just an ordinary iron sword.
With a placid expression, he calmly said, "Of everything here, the only thing I find acceptable is this jade pendant."
Lin Yu picked up a jade pendant and said, "This jade pendant is made of fine jade. Judging by its wear and tear, it must be quite old. Furthermore, it's inscribed with Canglan human characters, which adds to its value. I'll take this jade pendant."
Seeing Lin Yu's fondness for the pendant, the stall owner was overjoyed.
However, he feigned a pained expression and spoke with a tone of deep regret.
"The customer truly has a discerning eye. You may not know, but I found this jade pendant on a true disciple of the Canglan humans. It's priceless. If the customer is genuinely interested, I'll give you a discount: three million Star Coins, how about it?"
Three million Star Coins might not seem like much, but at a street stall, it was outrageously expensive.
Upon hearing the price, Lin Yu actually chuckled. Although he didn't have much money left, he could still afford three million.
"Three million? That's too much. How about this: you give me that rusty sword, and we'll call it three million for both? What do you say?" Lin Yu said leisurely.
He also lightly clenched his fist, conveying his inner tension, a scene that the stall owner noticed.
The stall owner's eyes narrowed, his pupils darting around. He thought: There's something fishy here?
He picked up the iron sword again and examined it. With his eyesight, he found nothing amiss.
Could this iron sword truly be a treasure? After all, divine artifacts often conceal their brilliance; the more ordinary something appears, the more likely it is a treasure.
No, I can't sell it! he resolved in his heart.
He slowly hid the iron sword behind him and said, "Customer, I'm afraid I can't sell this iron sword; it's already been pre-ordered!"
Lin Yu's face immediately darkened. "If you're not selling the iron sword, then I don't want the jade pendant either."
Saying that, he put down the jade pendant and prepared to leave.
Seeing this, the stall owner panicked. While there was a slim chance of finding a gem at these stalls, their primary goal was to swindle customers. He had already set his trap; he couldn't let the prey escape, or his efforts would be in vain.
He quickly called out:
"Customer, please wait! How about this? I'll give you another 20% off the jade pendant. What do you say?"
"Thirty percent off!"
"Deal!" the stall owner readily agreed.
Lin Yu was slightly taken aback. The stall owner, seeing this, rejoiced internally.
Heh heh, this rusty sword must be extraordinary. I'll find a high-level appraiser to examine it later.
And this jade pendant, it's clearly fake, with obvious signs of artificial aging. Only this kid would fall for it.
Heh heh, Fatty here still has a knack for business!
The two quickly completed the transaction.
Lin Yu took the jade pendant and left.
The stall vendor watched Lin Yu's departing direction and slowly took off his hat.
If Lin Yu were there, he would surely recognize who this person was.
"Even without attending university, I, Liu An, can build a fortune. This time, I'll try to dig more pits and hope more prey falls in. If only everyone were as easy to fool as Lin Yu, hehe. Once I've made money, I'll buy some elixirs to cultivate!" he chuckled.
Having just made a profit, Liu An continued to hawk his wares.
"Customers, come and see! All treasures from the Canglan territory."
"Once you miss this village, you won't find this shop!"