Because Their Currency Wasn't Accepted, the Two Were Left Embarrassed

"Let's go in and take a look." Lu Jing paused before the grand building, then pulled Wang Dong'er toward the largest general store in Spirit City.

The moment they crossed the threshold, the view opened up. The interior was enormous, divided into several orderly sections: weapons, armor, materials, medicinal herbs, Soul Tools... The dazzling array of goods was enough to make one's eyes swim. Clerks in matching uniforms moved among the displays, attending to richly dressed guests or those with extraordinary auras.

With a clear goal in mind, Lu Jing led Wang Dong'er straight to the counter at the deepest end of the medicinal herb section. The scent of medicine was strongest here. Jade cases and wooden boxes lined the counter, each containing rare herbs with obviously exorbitant prices. A sharp-looking middle-aged shopkeeper in a neat silk robe was checking his account book.

"Boss, do you have Whale Rubber?" Lu Jing asked. His voice was not loud, yet it carried clearly to the shopkeeper's ears.

The middle-aged shopkeeper looked up at the sound. A professional smile rested on his face, but when his gaze landed on Lu Jing's clearly youthful features, a faint, barely noticeable flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

Then, when his eyes fell on Wang Dong'er beside Lu Jing—slender and graceful, with peerless looks and temperament—that surprise instantly turned into amazement and deep curiosity. The boy was far too young, while the girl was beautiful enough to seem inhuman. Judging from her clothes and bearing, she clearly did not come from an ordinary family.

The shopkeeper was a businessman, after all, and quickly concealed his emotions. His smile became even more welcoming. "Yes, yes, yes! Young master and young lady, you want Whale Rubber? Our shop does indeed have some fine stock!"

As he spoke, he discreetly sized them up, apparently assessing their purchasing power and true intentions. Whale Rubber was valuable, but it was expensive and mainly used for alchemy and that sort of thing, so his thoughts were understandable.

"The best kind. The oldest available," Lu Jing added calmly, though his tone carried an unquestionable certainty.

"The best?" The shopkeeper raised a brow. His smile did not change, but his doubts only grew.

He asked tentatively, "Are you purchasing it for an elder in your family, young master?" He truly could not imagine why else a child would need top-grade Whale Rubber. Could it be for use with the beauty beside him, who obviously came from an extraordinary background? Wasn't that a little excessive?

"Why are you asking so many questions?" Wang Dong'er frowned slightly, displeasure in her voice. She disliked his probing gaze, especially the contempt it held for Lu Jing's age. "If you have it, bring it out for us to see. If not, we'll go elsewhere."

The shopkeeper was startled by her cool yet haughty tone and immediately put away his petty thoughts. He could tell that this girl was not merely beautiful; the innate nobility in her bones could not be faked.

He hurriedly smiled apologetically. "Please calm down, miss. It is not that I mean to meddle. It's just that... the finest Whale Rubber is indeed extremely expensive. I only feared the two of you might be disappointed after seeing the price. Since you want the best, please wait a moment. I'll fetch it at once."

With that, the shopkeeper turned around and carefully opened a hidden compartment in the cabinet behind him, one sealed with a special strip. It looked ordinary, but faint Soul Power fluctuations protected it. He cautiously took out two square boxes carved from dark purple sandalwood. The wood was smooth and warm, its grain fine, and a faint fragrance wafted from it. One glance was enough to tell they were no ordinary items.

He solemnly placed the two wooden boxes on the counter, then gently opened their lids as though unveiling priceless treasures.

The two pieces of Whale Rubber were nearly transparent amber in color. Golden liquid seemed to flow slowly within them, their radiance contained and not a trace of impurity visible. The jelly itself emitted a faint, warm heat, and the surrounding space seemed subtly distorted by the immense life energy within. A vast aura from the deep sea, originating from an ancient colossal beast, faintly seeped out and made one's mind tremble.

"Gasp..." Wang Dong'er could not help inhaling sharply, her beautiful eyes filled with shock. She came from the Clear Sky Sect and had seen countless treasures, but even ten thousand years later, Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Jelly of such purity and abundant energy was exceedingly rare!

Rare things were precious. Whale Rubber of this quality would probably have been worth a fortune ten thousand years later, and impossible to buy at any price!

"Young master, young lady, please look."

The shopkeeper's voice carried a hint of pride and reverence as he explained, "These two pieces are the treasures at the bottom of Myriad Treasures Pavilion's chest. They were taken from Ten-Thousand-Year Deep Sea Demon Whales! They were refined by secret methods of top-grade apothecaries, all impurities removed. Their medicinal properties are gentle yet vast—supreme treasures! I'm afraid you couldn't find a third piece in all of Spirit City."

He paused before naming an astonishing price. "Thirty thousand Gold Soul Coins per piece."

"Thirty thousand?!" Wang Dong'er cried out instinctively. Though she had been mentally prepared, hearing the price still made her heart leap. If this price were placed ten thousand years in the future, let alone buying Whale Rubber of this level, it would already be impressive to get Thousand-Year Whale Rubber of the same quality.

"Boss." Lu Jing lightly tapped the counter with a finger, his eyes on the enticing Whale Rubber. His tone remained calm. "They're good goods, but thirty thousand is too expensive."

The smile on the shopkeeper's face stiffened slightly. "Young master, this is Ten-Thousand-Year Demon Whale Jelly! It is absolutely worth the price! You can ask around—"

"I know it's precious."

Lu Jing cut him off, his sharp gaze fixed on the shopkeeper. "But no matter how precious something is, it only has value if there is demand. Whale Rubber may be good, but its uses are ultimately limited. Besides, how many people on the entire Douluo Continent can afford to buy it at this price? Boss, how long exactly has this treasure of yours been sitting at the bottom of the chest? Twenty thousand. I'll take both pieces."

"Twenty thousand?!"

The shopkeeper's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He waved his hands repeatedly. "No, no, young master, you're cutting the price far too hard! This is Ten-Thousand-Year Demon Whale Jelly, not cabbage! How about this? If you sincerely want them, the lowest price for both together is eighty thousand!"

"Fifty thousand."

Without changing expression, Lu Jing stated his bottom line. His tone was decisive as he reminded him, "Boss, business depends on circulation. Can this Whale Rubber breed in your hands? Can it lay eggs? If you don't sell it to us today, we'll turn around and leave. Then your treasure will have to keep sitting in that hidden compartment at the bottom of the chest until who knows when. Maybe one day its medicinal potency will fade, and it'll become worthless instead. Fifty thousand, payment and goods exchanged on the spot. How about it?"

He did not speak quickly, but every word struck at the heart of the matter, directly targeting the slow turnover and tied-up capital of luxury goods like Whale Rubber. His confident, seasoned bargaining manner was nothing like that of a child. He seemed more like a shrewd veteran who had spent years in the marketplace, leaving Wang Dong'er beside him staring in astonishment.

The shopkeeper's face shifted between green and white, fine sweat even beading on his forehead. He had to admit that Lu Jing made sense. He had acquired these two pieces of Whale Rubber years ago by chance from a powerful soul hunting group in the deep sea. They had cost a great deal, yet few people had ever shown interest, much less wanted to buy both at once. If he kept them any longer and their medicinal properties truly began to fade, the losses would only be greater.

He looked into Lu Jing's unquestionable eyes, then at the breathtakingly beautiful girl beside him. Though she was surprised by Lu Jing's bargaining tactics, she clearly was not short on money and seemed ready to pay. Gritting his teeth, the shopkeeper said with the pain of cutting off flesh, "Th-this... Young master, you truly are... Fine, fine! Let it be a good opening sale and the start of a good relationship! Fifty thousand it is! Take both pieces!" As he spoke, he quickly closed the wooden boxes, as though afraid Lu Jing might change his mind.

"Pleasant doing business with you!" A faint smile finally appeared on Lu Jing's face.

While admiring Lu Jing inwardly, Wang Dong'er immediately took action. From an exquisite spatial Soul Tool at her waist, she took out a card that gleamed all over, its edges set with tiny diamonds. The card itself shone with a gentle Soul Power glow. Its front bore the emblems of the Clear Sky Hammer and Continental Union Bank, etched in extraordinarily intricate craftsmanship—a symbol of identity and wealth ten thousand years later.

"Here. Fifty thousand." Wang Dong'er handed the card to the shopkeeper with a natural, fluid motion.

The smile on the shopkeeper's face froze completely the instant he saw the card. The muscles on his face twitched, his eyes widening round with utter bewilderment and confusion.

He stared fixedly at the card he had never seen before, with its entirely different design, strange material, and faint Soul Power radiance, as though he were looking at something from beyond the heavens.