The Price of Power and a Peculiar Reward

Armed with the miraculous ability of mind-reading, Lin Ran effortlessly maintained the upper hand throughout the negotiations.

He had these adventurers completely wrapped around his finger, docile and compliant.

[Noodles that can be eaten by just pouring hot water over them, lights that illuminate without magic, magical tools that can be picked up anywhere, and even miraculous items that stop bleeding when applied to wounds…]

[These things, more effective than magic itself, cost only one crystal core?]

[Damn it, that old dog of a priest in the city charges fifty crystal cores for a simple healing spell!]

[This isn’t a merchant; this is a true benefactor!]

Naturally, Lin Ran would never tell them that he could procure these items from the convenience store through zero-cost procurement (TL Note: A Chinese slang term for acquiring goods for free, often implying shoplifting or exploiting a loophole).

Nor would he inform them that if they bought from Anmeng Yue, for instance, instant noodles, a single crystal core could buy a day’s supply.

From him, however, one crystal core would only buy a single packet.

These modern snacks and gadgets were merely for the denizens of this otherworld, a way to earn a profit through technological dimensional reduction (TL Note: A concept from science fiction where a more advanced civilization uses its technology to easily overpower a less advanced one, often by simplifying complex problems or methods).

His true objective was to trade with other “players” who, like him, were trapped in the apocalypse.

The content of these transactions would be the potions brewed by Vera.

[This Young Lin doesn’t seem like a benevolent rich young master; he looks like an ordinary young man no matter how you slice it.]

[What is his purpose… is he trying to get me to promote that strange bottle of potion he has?]

[But the recipe calls for slime mucus and wood ash, both very typical alchemy ingredients, so it does seem like a reliable potion.]

“Ah, thank you.”

Taking the water Vera offered, the Scarred Man expressed his gratitude, his thoughts still churning.

[Sigh, my subordinates are already obsessed with the Slime Grass; refusing this business now is impossible. I’ll just have to play it by ear; this Young Lin doesn’t seem like a sly merchant either.]

[Speaking of which, this Young Lin truly has good fortune, to have such a beautiful official wife… I’m so envious, sigh… She’s both sensible and beautiful, and she can even perform alchemy!]

[It’s truly wonderful. Then I look at the tigress (TL Note: A Chinese slang term for a shrewish wife) I have at home… Comparing people only makes one furious.]

Indeed.

Vera was currently interacting with these individuals as Lin Ran’s legitimate wife.

The reason was quite simple: during the building search earlier, Vera had directly appeared before those men and introduced herself as such.

Upon acquiring her name, she had also gained the ability to mimic human expressions.

Her body had become even more fluid, appearing indistinguishable from a real person to the naked eye.

Even if they were to investigate her magic reserves, Vera, relying on the doll’s powerful mind-reading ability, could easily convince them that the anomaly was simply a side effect of the Slime Grass.

“Currently, we only have this type of potion available for sale, capable of treating minor injuries, but we will provide more types of potions in the future.”

“The price is five crystal cores. What do you think?”

“Of course, you are welcome to purchase them yourselves. However, I would prefer that you sell them at the [Wooden House].”

Lin Ran seized the opportune moment to speak, pushing a bottle of the potion across the table.

[Five?! That’s nearly ten times less! This price is too low! If this enters the market, those old bastard priests will never be able to do business again!]

[Only… the Wooden House? Speaking of which, many wooden houses like Young Lin’s have indeed appeared recently across the world. I’ll have the adventurers try them out then.]

Lin Ran himself was surprised; he had initially intended to set the price at three crystal cores, offering five as a starting point for negotiation.

Yet, the other party immediately agreed and even found it too cheap, so there was no reason not to earn the extra profit.

After a long period of deliberation, the Scarred Man had still considered haggling a bit.

However, gazing at Lin Ran’s seemingly all-knowing expression, he finally made up his mind and nodded solemnly.

“Alright, I agree. Happy to cooperate.”

He had to admit that facing Lin Ran made him feel like a child whose every thought was laid bare.

All his intentions seemed to be anticipated, leaving him no room to bargain for any benefits beyond what Lin Ran had already offered.

Having taken their introductory gifts and procured the first batch of goods from Vera, the adventurers soon departed.

Anmeng Yue rushed down from upstairs, and Lim and the other slimes finally emerged from various pipes and floor drains.

“Phew… I was suffocating… Master truly knows how to negotiate.”

“You actually turned them into your laborers, huh? And you called me a sly merchant; look at the prices you set!”

Listening to the surrounding sounds gradually grow lively and return to normal, Lin Ran smiled with satisfaction.

He hadn’t forgotten that this was a hidden event.

Resolving a hidden event surely meant a hidden reward, didn’t it?

Opening his phone, indeed, a message popped up.

[Congratulations! You have resolved the hidden event from the Adventurer’s Guild!]

[Your Dream-eating Tapir Merchant took no damage, gaining 60 points.]

[You took no damage, gaining 10 points.]

[The Adventurer’s Guild decided not to report to the king to send troops, gaining 30 points.]

[Congratulations, your score for resolving this hidden event is a perfect 100, making you the first human to resolve a hidden event with a perfect score!]

[You have received an S+ rating. Special enemies will appear in the next wave.]

It was still the same account that had previously announced the apocalypse, but this time it was a private message.

Moreover, these sounds manifested directly in his mind like a system notification.

Even turning off his phone wouldn’t stop it; he had to wait for it to finish reading before silence returned.

After all, external signals had mostly ceased, and it wouldn’t be long before power and internet connections failed.

Presumably, the creator of the apocalypse had used some special method to change phone messages into more efficient direct brain transmissions.

However…

Why is my best reward still the appearance of special enemies!

Lin Ran silently ranted in his mind.

Looking at the roulette-like object that appeared on his phone screen, it seemed that whichever monster it landed on would appear as a special enemy.

Yet, with options like [Griffin], [Angel], and [Demonic Dragon] on the big roulette, Lin Ran strongly suspected that this S+ reward was deliberately trying to trick him.

What could he possibly use to fight a Demonic Dragon now!

However, since that was for the third wave of attacks, he planned to use this time to return to his dorm and visit the convenience store for some supplies.

Within those few seconds of contemplation, the special enemy had already been generated.

A broadcast message directly echoed in his mind:

[Special Enemy – Treasure Mimic has been successfully randomized!]

[Monster Trait: A special creature that parasitizes treasure chests. Some coexist with the chests, claiming the wealth for themselves, while others are purely parasitic, simply devouring any creature that opens the chest.]

[Special Point: All Treasure Mimics in this round are pure parasitic types. Upon defeat, the treasures within the chest can be acquired.]

[Treasure Mimics will additionally appear during the third wave of attacks. Please be mindful of defeating them.]

Lin Ran nodded. Viewed this way, the Treasure Mimic, at least, offered drop rewards, making it a truly excellent special monster.

By then, as long as he avoided touching the chest and dealt with other enemies first before opening it, there would be no combat power issues.

Having made up his mind, Lin Ran called out to Vera and Lim, preparing to return to the dorm for some zero-cost procurement at the convenience store.

The dorm entrance was not far from the wooden house. The trio quickly stepped through the dorm door, a flash of white light, and the scene shifted.

However, in the very next moment…

“There’s a treasure chest!”

Lin Ran, like catching a chick, tucked the pouncing Lim under his arm to prevent her from causing trouble.

At the same time, he immediately prepared for battle.

This was hardly surprising—

He had just been warned that Treasure Mimics would appear in the third wave.

And no sooner had he returned to his dorm than he saw a chest large enough to hold two people, sitting squarely in the middle of the room.

****