Slave Market

Morning, at Xiao Yang's house.

"Boss Xiao Yang, are we really just going to let this go?" Li Zhen slammed the table in anger. The Blazing Sun Hunting Team had been utterly humiliated today. Not only had Xian He stolen the woman his boss wanted, but Xiao Kuang had also beaten him black and blue.

Even worse, he was the one who'd been beaten and injured, yet that good-for-nothing Xian He had demanded three thousand Copper Coins in compensation.

They'd hunted a Yellow Radiance-grade monster and sold it for a good sum. They'd planned to celebrate with some porridge, but now all the money from the meat had gone to Xian He. In the end, they'd gotten nothing for their trouble.

When had Li Zhen ever suffered such an indignity? He'd been the one bullying others since he was a child; no one had ever bullied him. He absolutely couldn't let this go!

Xiao Yang poured a cup of cooling dandelion tea and pushed it toward Li Zhen, whose face was swollen like a steamed bun. He gave a sinister sneer. "Have some tea and cool off. We're absolutely not letting this go. Yun Ling is my woman. If anyone besides me marries her, they'll die."

"But that good-for-nothing has Xiao Wu backing him. If we make a move recklessly, Xiao Wu will punish us. So we can't attack him directly. We'll have to get someone else to do the dirty work."

Life on the Sky Origin Plateau was harsh, and it had bred many wicked people who would do anything to survive.

These people defied the tribe's authority and operated on the fringes of the law. They robbed and murdered, assaulted women, and committed every manner of evil.

If they hired people who specialized in dirty work to assassinate Xian He, wouldn't they be able to remove this thorn in their side without getting their own hands dirty?

"Oh? Get someone else to do it?" Li Zhen's eyes lit up. He said excitedly, "Are you thinking of hiring Greedy Wolf, Boss Xiao Yang? They don't come cheap!"

"As long as we get what we want, money isn't a problem." Xiao Yang waved a hand.

Meanwhile, after helping Old Man Yun sell his Wood Powder Porridge, Xian He took the money and headed straight to the slave market.

In the Sky Fortune Tribe, many families were so poor they couldn't afford food, and sold their sons and daughters.

Seeing a chance to profit, some merchants had gone into the slave trade. They trained slaves as male and female servants, then sold them to wealthy people.

Chief Xiao Wu had forbidden the tribespeople from buying and selling people. But with food scarce and conditions so harsh, he could only turn a blind eye. As long as it didn't happen within the Sky Fortune Tribe's territory, he wouldn't interfere.

The slave market was in the eastern part of the Sky Fortune Tribe. Transactions usually took place at dusk, though there were some at other times too. There just weren't many people around then.

By the time Xian He arrived, only one slave merchant remained, and he looked like he was about to pack up and leave.

"Wait, boss! Don't go yet. I want to buy some slaves!" Xian He hurried over.

The slave merchant wore a loose cotton robe and a black headscarf that concealed his face, leaving only a pair of shifty eyes exposed.

When he saw Xian He, the slave merchant froze.

Xian He had invented the irrigation waterwheel and married the most beautiful woman in the tribe. He was a well-known figure, and nearly everyone in the tribe knew him.

The slave merchant looked Xian He up and down, then suddenly let out a lewd, flippant laugh. "You're quite the lively young man, aren't you? You only got married yesterday, and today you're already looking to take a few concubines for fun. You've come at just the right time. I've got two pretty young girls here. I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"

"I'm not looking for concubines. I want to hire a few maids to look after Yun Ling," Xian He corrected him.

The slaves were tied to wooden posts like livestock. They were gaunt and frail, and they all gazed at Xian He pitifully, hoping he would buy them.

"Buy me, sir! Please!"

"Buy me! I'm strong and good at farm work."

"Buy me, sir! I'm fearless in a fight. Tell me who to beat up, and I'll do it!"

The slaves did their best to sell themselves.

Though Xian He had made it clear that he only wanted female slaves, the male slaves hadn't given up. They did everything they could to show off their strengths, unwilling to miss this precious chance to escape their bondage.

If this man bought them, they'd only have to do farm work. But if a hunting team bought them, they might be used as bait to lure monsters. That would leave them with no chance of survival.

"Shut your filthy mouths!" the slave merchant barked, raising his whip high.

The slaves cowered like frightened chicks and fell silent.

"Come with me, sir!" The slave merchant smiled and gestured for Xian He to follow.

Xian He nodded and followed him to several large Iron Cages covered with canvas.

The slave merchant lifted one corner of the canvas and pointed inside with his whip. "Take a look. These twin sisters were carefully raised and trained by my wife from a young age. They're not only pretty, but gentle too, and they're skilled at all kinds of housework."

Xian He bent down and peered into the cage. Inside were a pink-haired girl and a blue-haired girl. The pink-haired girl held the blue-haired one protectively in her arms, watching Xian He with wary eyes.

Rem and Ram?