Hidden Big Shot? Master of Myriad Treasures Pavilion!

"Big Brother, take a look for me—how much is this thing worth?"

"What is it? Why so mysterious? Open your hand and let me see!"

Seeing Xu Kun clench his fist tightly, the short, fat man grew unhappy!

Xu Kun immediately put on a mysterious expression. "Big Brother, this little thing is incredible. I'm afraid you won't recognize it!"

Those words seemed to question the short, fat man's expertise, instantly making his hackles rise. "Who are you looking down on? I've seen more treasures than the shits you've taken. What treasure haven't I seen? One glance is all I need—I can name every detail of any treasure!"

Seeing the short, fat man's confident expression, Xu Kun smiled. "You said it yourself. Then take one look. If you don't recognize it, Big Brother, I'll find someone else!"

"Hehe, someone else? There can't possibly be anyone else here besides you and me right now!"

Naturally, the short, fat man only muttered that to himself.

On the surface, he remained calm. "Fine, just one look. Look at you, acting so pathetic!"

"Hehe!" Xu Kun grinned and did not dwell on the short, fat man's attitude.

He held his hand out in front of him and opened it, revealing what was inside!

In an instant, the short, fat man's eyes went wide. But just as he tried to get a closer look, Xu Kun clenched his fist again and put it away.

"Hey, kid, let me look again! I didn't see it clearly just now!" the short, fat man said anxiously.

As he spoke, he even reached out to snatch it. But Xu Kun simply raised his arm. With the short, fat man's squat, stocky build, he could jump all he wanted and still not reach it.

"You said it yourself just now—one glance was enough for you to identify any treasure. I already let you take one look. If you don't recognize it, I'll let someone else have a look!"

The initiative had suddenly shifted to Xu Kun.

The short, fat man hopped a few times before finally giving up. He stared blankly at Xu Kun, and the sharp gaze so mismatched with his body sent an inexplicable chill down Xu Kun's spine.

Then, a meaningful smile appeared on the short, fat man's lips. "Good kid. You really can bring out some treasures!"

Xu Kun raised an eyebrow. Had this loudmouthed short, fat man really recognized it?

"Fine, I misjudged you today. I never expected a kid like you to possess an S-Tier Spirit Stone!"

Xu Kun's pupils shrank. This short, fat man was no ordinary person—he had actually identified the S-Tier Spirit Stone Xu Kun had just held in his palm with a single glance!

S-Tier Spirit Stones were things that did not even have pictures in textbooks. Xu Kun had only learned what it was after checking its information!

For an ordinary person to recognize it from its appearance at a glance, there was only one possibility: he had seen quite a few S-Tier Spirit Stones before!

Xu Kun smiled awkwardly and scratched his head. "Big Brother truly has a sharp eye!"

The short, fat man resumed playing with his pair of golden walnuts. He was no longer grinning frivolously and said seriously, "Since you've taken it out, name a price. I'll buy this treasure!"

"I... I'm not selling it!"

Xu Kun still did not understand the market value of such high-grade spirit stones. Faced with this mysterious short, fat man, he did not dare let down his guard in the slightest.

Sure enough, after he said that, the short, fat man's expression darkened. "Not selling? Then why did you take it out? Are you trying to amuse me?"

"Because I felt like it!" Xu Kun said, with noticeably less confidence.

But the short, fat man gave him no chance, a cold smile hanging from his lips. "That's not up to you. Today, you'll sell it whether you want to or not!"

"Tch, anyone can talk big!"

Hearing the short, fat man's threatening words, Xu Kun decided not to waste any more time with him and turned to leave.

"If you leave today, news that you're carrying an S-Tier Spirit Stone will spread immediately. Don't say I didn't warn you—S-Tier Spirit Stones are worth even those experts in the hundreds of levels fighting over!"

Xu Kun halted and turned back to look at the short, fat man, who wore an expression of complete confidence. "Are you threatening me?"

"You can take it that way!"

Xu Kun laughed. "Personal information is hidden within the trading district. Even if I have an S-Tier Spirit Stone, can you find me?"

The short, fat man froze for a moment before shaking his head. "I nearly forgot about that!"

Yet inwardly, he sneered, Foolish kid, you're the only one who thinks your identity hasn't been exposed. If I hadn't arrived in time, you'd still be smiling after being sold off!

Xu Kun breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought the knowledge point he had read was wrong.

"Since you don't know who I am, what can you do to me? The mountains are high and the roads are long. Until we meet again!"

Xu Kun decided not to linger any longer. The China Trading District was so vast that he would rather spend some effort finding another buyer than trade with this cryptic short, fat man!

"Stop!" the short, fat man hurriedly shouted.

"Is there something else?" Xu Kun asked warily.

The short, fat man revealed what he thought was a friendly smile. "Stop wasting your time. All the shops in the China Trading District are closed today, unless you go to another trading district!"

Xu Kun frowned. "Why is that?"

"Isn't it because of you?!" the short, fat man roared inwardly.

On the surface, he feigned ignorance and spread his hands. "It was naturally decided by the higher-ups. How would I know?"

As he spoke, he slowly walked up to Xu Kun. Seeing his hesitation, he smiled. "Alright, stop overthinking it. It's normal that you don't know me since it's your first time here. Let me introduce myself again. My name is Qian Manlou, also known as Qian Duoduo. The largest Myriad Treasures Pavilion in the China Trading District is my property!"

Seeing Xu Kun's blank expression, Qian Manlou added, "You might not know Myriad Treasures Pavilion, but you know Myriad Treasures Plaza on Blue Star, right?"

Xu Kun nodded. Of course, he knew the great name of Myriad Treasures Plaza well!

This was the largest shopping center spanning several major base cities in China, supplying eighty percent of Chinese people's daily necessities.

Hao Jian's parents usually bought race flesh for him at Myriad Treasures Plaza. Even billionaires worth hundreds of billions had to behave themselves there, because Myriad Treasures Plaza's backing was terrifying. Rumor had it that figures from the highest ranks of humanity stood behind it!

"You mean to say Myriad Treasures Plaza belongs to you?" Xu Kun asked, his mouth hanging open.

Qian Manlou shook his head. Before Xu Kun could breathe a sigh of relief, he heard him continue:

"Myriad Treasures Plaza is merely a subsidiary of Myriad Treasures Pavilion. Only low-grade items that can't be sold in Myriad Treasures Pavilion get sent to the Myriad Treasures Plazas in the various base cities. How could worthless junk like that require me to handle it personally? It's all just some incompetent underlings messing around outside!"

Listening to Qian Manlou's shameless humblebragging, Xu Kun was completely dumbfounded.

"I... you..."

"What, kid? Now you know fear?" Qian Manlou grinned, revealing several large gold teeth.

Xu Kun gathered his courage and said, "Why should I be afraid of you? Once we're on the zeroth floor of Haotian Pagoda, even if you're the Azure God, there's nothing you can do to me!"

This time, it was Qian Manlou's turn to be stunned. He stepped forward and clamped a hand over Xu Kun's mouth. "You brat, you really are a newborn calf unafraid of tigers. You dare to spout anything!"

"Mmph, mmph..." Xu Kun broke free from Qian Manlou's fat pig hand, rolling his eyes. "What, are you running a literary inquisition now?"

Qian Manlou shook his head helplessly. But thinking of the brat's identity, he supposed it did not matter if he said a thing or two!

"People should still have a sense of reverence!" Qian Manlou said earnestly.

"I only mentioned my idol's name. It's not like I said I didn't respect him!" Xu Kun rolled his eyes.

"Interesting!" Qian Manlou laughed. "Alright, I've introduced myself. You can trust me now, right? Sell me the item, and I'll give you a high price!"

Seeing Xu Kun's hesitation, Qian Manlou walked ahead, his voice drifting back. "I'll take you to see my Myriad Treasures Pavilion first!"

"Ah! Alright!"

Xu Kun was a little numb. He had originally only wanted to show off a little before this unreliable uncle, but the man had responded with an entire chain combo that smashed him straight into a wall, leaving his face thoroughly beaten and all his confidence gone.

When Qian Manlou used his fingerprint and iris to open the closed doors of Myriad Treasures Pavilion, then led Xu Kun up the elevator all the way to the top floor, Xu Kun no longer had the slightest doubt about Qian Manlou's identity!

This unremarkable, rustic, short, fat man was actually a hidden big shot?

He had previously thought Qian Manlou was after his S-Tier Spirit Stone, but after comparing their statuses, Xu Kun realized in shock that to a big shot capable of controlling the entire Myriad Treasures Pavilion, what was an S-Tier Spirit Stone worth?

No wonder he had recognized at a glance that the one in his center of the palm was an S-Tier Spirit Stone. Xu Kun had thought he was bragging before, but it turned out the man was genuinely impressive!

Not daring to look around, he followed Qian Manlou to the master's office on the top floor. Qian Manlou told him to make himself at home, then went to prepare tea!

Standing on the top floor of Myriad Treasures Pavilion, surrounded on all sides by floor-to-ceiling glass, Xu Kun discovered in shock that both the location of Myriad Treasures Pavilion and the height at which he now stood were at the very center of the entire China Trading District. Looking down from here, he could clearly see the China-red five-pointed star formed by the buildings of the China Trading District!

And just as Qian Manlou had said, every shop below was currently closed!

Had something major happened to humanity?

Xu Kun could not figure it out.

"Stop looking. Come over and have some tea!"

By now, Qian Manlou was seated in a grand armchair. The frivolity from before had vanished, and he held a string of prayer beads in his hand. Though his appearance was unremarkable, he now exuded the wealthy air of someone long accustomed to high status!

"Gulp..."

Having never dealt with such an important figure before, Xu Kun sat down stiffly, only half his butt resting on the rattan chair. His head hung low as he did not know what to think.

"Hehe, kid, now you know fear?"

Xu Kun lowered his head and said nothing.

Qian Manlou continued on his own, "You know, if this were Blue Star or anywhere else in Haotian Pagoda, then just based on the attitude you had when speaking to me earlier, countless people trying to curry favor with me would go looking to make trouble for you!"

Xu Kun pressed his lips together, forced to admit that Qian Manlou was telling the truth!

Money could reach the gods and command ghosts. For a human big shot as wealthy as Qian Manlou, merely tossing out a few scraps would be enough to make countless experts work for him!

"But here, in the Myriad Races Trading Ground, you can rest easy. I neither know your identity nor can I use violence against you. Here, have some tea!"

As he spoke, he pushed a steaming cup of tea toward Xu Kun.

"Th-thank you!" Xu Kun held the teacup, looking utterly lost.

"Try it!"

"Alright!"

"How is it?"

"Good!"

"How good?"

"Uh..."

"Hahaha!" Seeing Xu Kun acting like an obedient child who had been wronged, Qian Manlou burst into laughter. Pointing at the cup of tea Xu Kun had drained in one gulp without tasting it, he said, "Brat, do you know this is premium tea acquired from the Tier-B Race, the High Mountain White Ape Race? One tael costs over a million. That single gulp you just took cost at least tens of thousands!"

Xu Kun was startled. His mind had been full of other matters just now, so he had not tasted anything at all. What a waste!

He hurriedly picked up the empty teacup, raised it, and tipped it toward his mouth. His efforts paid off, and the final remaining drop of tea fell into Xu Kun's mouth.

He smacked his lips and savored it, but Xu Kun still could not taste anything. It did not even seem as good as a three-yuan bottle of cola!

Unaware that Qian Manlou across from him had already been utterly dumbfounded by his actions.

Xu Kun tentatively glanced at the teapot full of tea. Seeing this, Qian Manlou poured him another cup.

This time, Xu Kun took small sips, one mouthful at a time, afraid of wasting even a drop.

Though he still could not taste anything in the end, it did nothing to diminish his satisfaction!

He was drinking money! Every extra sip meant he had earned tens of thousands more for free!

He wanted another cup, but after noticing Qian Manlou's nearly murderous glare, Xu Kun sheepishly set down his cup.

Seeing the innocent look on Xu Kun's face, Qian Manlou's entire plump face darkened!

This was unbearable to watch. Was this brat really that person?

"B... Senior..." Xu Kun had originally wanted to call him Big Brother, but after learning his identity, he changed his form of address.

"Just call me Big Brother. It feels more cordial," Qian Manlou said indifferently.

"Got it, Big Brother!" Xu Kun immediately latched on. He had to hold tight to such a thick thigh!

That shameless behavior earned him another round of eye-rolling from Qian Manlou.

"Do you have many S-Rank Spirit Stones?"

Returning to the main matter, Qian Manlou became entirely serious.

Without any hesitation, Xu Kun answered, "Just one!"

Qian Manlou carefully studied Xu Kun's expression, but ultimately failed to spot anything unusual.

However, Xu Kun could clearly see a hint of disappointment in him.

Under Xu Kun's gaze, Qian Manlou took a book from the bookshelf behind him and handed it over.

"Page 96. It has the transaction prices for S-Rank Spirit Stones sold by my Myriad Treasures Pavilion in recent years. See whether they match your expectations."

Xu Kun hurriedly followed Qian Manlou's instructions and flipped the thick book to page 96. It contained hundreds of S-Rank Spirit Stone transaction records—some involving only one stone, others more than a dozen. Staring at the long strings of numbers, Xu Kun's eyes went wide.

Ones... tens... hundreds... thousands... ten-thousands... brother... father... grandfather... ancestor... god!

Xu Kun rubbed his eyes and confirmed that he had not seen wrong. The sale price of a single S-Rank Spirit Stone was no lower than one billion!

"Phew..." Xu Kun closed the book. For a moment, he wanted to take out all five S-Rank Spirit Stones, three SS-Rank Spirit Stones, and three SSS-Rank Spirit Stones on him and sell them!

Wealth truly moved the heart!

"Finished looking?"

Xu Kun nodded.

Qian Manlou set down his teacup and said calmly, "In recent years, humanity's demand for Spirit Stones has grown day by day, and their prices have kept rising. Do you know why?"

Xu Kun shook his head, indicating that he did not.

Qian Manlou smiled. "This era should, in principle, be the late Era of the Heavenly Eye. After a hundred years of development, humanity's technological standards have improved greatly. Among them, powerful weapons using Spirit Stones as their core are especially important. Prices keep increasing because the entire race has such a massive demand for them. Understand?"

So that was it!

"Even the lowest-grade F-tier Spirit Stone Shards fluctuate between eight thousand and ten thousand, while a complete F-tier Spirit Stone is worth one hundred thousand!"

Xu Kun knew something about F-tier Spirit Stone prices. Beyond that, he was completely in the dark!

"For E-rank Spirit Stones, whether fragments or complete stones, the price increases tenfold!"

Tenfold... that matched the estimated value he had made after picking up E-rank Spirit Stone Shards back then!

That meant a complete E-rank Spirit Stone was worth one million!

"Spirit Stones are not only used for technology. Within the Haotian Pagoda, crafting equipment of the corresponding rank also requires Spirit Stones of the corresponding rank. F-rank and E-rank Spirit Stones have high output, but equipment of those ranks is extremely common. Therefore, whether it is humanity or Haotian Pagoda challengers, the market can meet the demand for these low-rank Spirit Stones. That is why their prices are roughly like this and generally do not fluctuate much!"

Qian Manlou explained, and Xu Kun nodded in understanding.

"Above that, D-rank Spirit Stones cost around five million, C-rank ones around fifteen million, while B-rank ones are more valuable. Their normal starting price is at least thirty million!"

"A-rank prices vary, generally fluctuating between seventy or eighty million and one hundred million!"

High-rank Spirit Stones naturally could not multiply in price several times over as easily as low-rank ones, but the gaps were still far from small!

"As scarce strategic resources, S-Rank Spirit Stones have always remained expensive. But their output is simply too low, and most methods of obtaining them only become available after the hundredth floor of the Haotian Pagoda. If I am not mistaken, your S-Rank Spirit Stone dropped from some elite monster above the hundredth floor, right?"

"Uh... yes!"

How could Xu Kun dare say that he had obtained it during his beginner trial? He could only go along with Qian Manlou's words.

Qian Manlou smiled meaningfully again. Brat, keep pretending for me!

Qian Manlou had no intention of exposing Xu Kun's identity either. Naturally, he was afraid that this brat would immediately turn and run if he realized what was happening, which would delay matters!

As the dignified master of the Myriad Treasures Pavilion, his main task today was to placate this brat!

"One billion is the market's baseline price for an S-Rank Spirit Stone!"

Starting from S-Rank Spirit Stones, this category of Spirit Stones had reached an entirely new level. Spirit Stones below S-rank could only be considered resource materials, while S-rank Spirit Stones had already become scarce resources of strategic significance!

Whether in terms of acquisition methods or drop rates, they were far beyond what A-rank and lower Spirit Stones could compare to!

S-rank was already so scarce—what about ranks above it...

Seeing Xu Kun's thoughtful expression, Qian Manlou said "kindly," "What are you thinking about? If there is anything you do not understand about material prices, you can ask me!"

Xu Kun looked at Qian Manlou. Seeing the "sincerity" plastered across his face, he hesitated before asking, "I have a friend..."

Qian Manlou's gaze instantly changed, like a big bad wolf spotting a little white rabbit!