Lin Ran: What? One Hundred Million Gold Soul Coins?

The next morning, the skies over Heaven Dou City were cloudless for miles, and the rising sun draped the ancient city in a golden veil.

Lin Ran accompanied Huo Yun'er around Heaven Dou City, and the two of them bought some daily necessities.

This was also the first time since coming to this world that he had been in the mood to take in the bustling streets of this foreign land.

Huo Yun'er was clearly the same. Though the Duke's Mansion was near Star Luo City, she had never had the chance to look around it all these years.

She quietly followed at Lin Ran's side, a faint smile always lingering in her gentle eyes. Sometimes she looked at the lively streets, and sometimes at him.

Whenever Lin Ran counted on his fingers to figure out what daily necessities they still lacked, she thoughtfully filled in the gaps beside him.

Lin Ran wanted to see how the candied hawthorn of this world differed, but when the sourness made his little face scrunch up, Huo Yun'er beamed and laughed happily at him. So Lin Ran wanted her to try some too. Huo Yun'er did not refuse, and the two ate the sweet-and-sour candied hawthorn together, one each at a time.

The autumn chill had already arrived, and both of their clothes were rather thin. Lin Ran wanted to buy them several new outfits.

Huo Yun'er was very beautiful, and though Lin Ran was still young, he was quite good-looking himself. When they both changed into new clothes, the ready-made clothing shop owner's eyes lit up. He insisted on buying photographs of the mother and son for advertising, but Huo Yun'er smiled and shook her head, saying that they were not mother and son, and that it would not be convenient for them to show their faces.

Although they had fled to the Heaven Dou Empire, that did not mean they were safe.

The owner could only disappointingly invite them to visit again and gave them a discount card.

As he shopped, Lin Ran did not forget his system mission. Along the way, he paid attention to places that sold Soul Tools and rare metals.

The Heaven Dou Empire was unlike the Sun Moon Empire. Its Soul Tool technology was not advanced, and there were not many places that sold Soul Tools.

Lin Ran quickly settled on his target.

That afternoon, Lin Ran came alone to a lavish building. It was an eight-story tower, and the plaque above its entrance bore seven large characters: Heavenly Soul Royal Auction House.

Though the towering building was exceptionally grand and luxurious, to him, a royal auction house was far less appealing than a royal casino.

Though it was called an auction house, it actually had shops, lodging, and restaurants all in one place.

Lin Ran walked straight inside. There was no cliché scene of anyone looking down on him because of his age. Under a staff member's guidance, he arrived at a specialty store selling Soul Tools.

Passing directly by the counters selling Soul Tools, he came to the section selling rare metals.

Under the system's detection, he selected rare metals that met the mission requirements.

"How much is Star Silver Steel?"

"Little sir, Star Silver Steel is 100 Gold Soul Coins per gram." The female attendant answered with a smile.

One hundred Gold Soul Coins per gram meant one hundred million Gold Soul Coins per ton—enough to buy half a Snow Empress—

The mission deadline was only one year. Where was he supposed to earn one hundred million Gold Soul Coins?

Lin Ran felt as if the sky had fallen. He had never expected that the Laser Gun he had traded to obtain in advance, one capable of instantly killing a Soul Emperor, would cost him half a Snow Empress. Rounding it up, that was one whole Snow Empress.

With a dark expression, Lin Ran continued asking about prices.

"What about this Flame Sun Stone?"

"Thirty-five Gold Soul Coins per gram."

Lin Ran's expression eased slightly. It seemed there was still room for cheaper options.

"What about Obsidian?"

"Forty Gold Soul Coins per gram."

The more Lin Ran asked, the darker his face became. After looking through the entire store, even the cheapest rare metal that met the system's requirements cost ten Gold Soul Coins per gram. One ton would require ten million Gold Soul Coins.

After pondering for a moment, Lin Ran made up his mind. He looked at the female attendant who had been beside him the entire time and said, "Take me to see your manager. I have a Level 8 Soul Tool to sell."

The attendant's expression changed. She immediately made a respectful inviting gesture. "Young master, please follow me."

As she spoke, she led Lin Ran to a private room and respectfully said, "Young master, please wait a moment. I will invite our manager over right away."

With that, she hurried off at a small run.

Lin Ran waited patiently.

Selling the Laser Gun was not a spur-of-the-moment decision. To gather enough Gold Soul Coins for a ton of rare metals, selling the Laser Gun was the simplest and fastest method.

Moreover, this was the Heavenly Soul Royal Auction House, directly operated by the Heavenly Soul Royal Family. He did not need to worry that the auction house would ruin its own reputation and disgrace the entire royal family and the Heaven Dou Empire over such a trivial profit.

Most importantly, the Heavenly Soul Royal Family worked closely with the Body Sect. Their princess, Vina, was a core disciple of the Body Sect. If he wanted to join the Body Sect, the quickest way was to attract the attention of the Heavenly Soul Royal Family.

Before long, Lin Ran saw an elderly man with a full head of white hair enter. When the man saw him, a clear flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.

The old man sat across from Lin Ran and said with a smile, "In all my years at this auction house, this is my first time doing business with someone your age, little friend. How interesting. My surname is Liu. You may call me Manager Liu. May I take a look at the Level 8 Soul Tool you wish to sell?"

Lin Ran shook his head. "I don't have a Level 8 Soul Tool."

The old man was momentarily speechless, and the smile faded from his face. Then Lin Ran continued, "Although I do not have a Level 8 Soul Tool, what I intend to sell is far more valuable than one."

As he spoke, a flash of light appeared in Lin Ran's hand, and an unusual weapon appeared, shaped somewhat like a Soul Tool ray weapon.

"Please take a look, Senior."

Lin Ran handed the Laser Gun to the old man, who carefully examined it in his hands.

The weapon was forged from a rare metal he had never seen before, and its design was ingenious. Yet he could not detect any trace of Soul Power fluctuations within it. Clearly, it was not a Soul Tool.

Lin Ran said, "This is the weapon I intend to sell. Though it is not a Level 8 Soul Tool, its power surpasses one. Its range reaches ten kilometers. It can instantly kill any Soul Emperor and severely wound most Soul Saints. Even a Soul Douluo would need to treat its attacks with extreme caution."

"Most importantly, it requires no Soul Power to operate. Even an ordinary person could use it to kill Soul Emperors, Soul Saints, or even Soul Douluos."

The old man was quite surprised. He raised his head and glanced at Lin Ran. "Young friend, are you from the Tang Sect?"

Lin Ran's mouth twitched as he shook his head. "If the Tang Sect could create weapons with this kind of power, would it have declined to such a state?"

"That is true. This old man was being presumptuous." The old man nodded. "Forgive my poor eyesight, but I cannot determine whether this weapon possesses the power you described merely by looking at it. It will need to be tested. Would you be willing to cooperate, young friend?"

"Of course," Lin Ran said.

The old man led Lin Ran to a dedicated testing ground, a place specifically used to test the power of high-level Soul Tools.

Holding the Laser Gun, Lin Ran slowly raised a yellow soul ring beneath his feet.

A gleam flashed through the old man's eyes.

Lin Ran aimed at a steel plate five hundred meters away, set up for testing.

Electric light flashed from the Laser Gun's muzzle. The next instant, a piercing screech rang out from the steel plate. The old man looked over and saw that a bowl-sized hole had already been melted clean through it.