Flender, the Shameless Profiteer

After returning to the Rose Hotel, Ye Liangchen checked out of his room, put on a bamboo hat, and set off toward the neighboring Fasinuo Province.

As he passed a street, Ye Liangchen glanced over casually and noticed a shop. Above its entrance was the Hammer and Sword Emblem. Clearly, it was a Soul Master Shop.

Huh! Could this be Four-Eyed Cat Eagle Flender's Antique Shop?

At that moment, Ye Liangchen remembered that Tang San had obtained a piece of Hair Crystal from Flender's Antique Shop and made it into the deadly Dragon Beard Needle. That thing was as fine as a strand of hair; once it pierced the body, it would rapidly curl into a lump, causing unbearable pain, and in serious cases, it could even kill the victim.

The Dragon Beard Needle was as tiny as a strand of hair, making it impossible to guard against. It was a true killing weapon, especially in the hands of an expert in Hidden Weapons like Tang San—it was simply like a fish in water.

He could not let that guy get this thing. Otherwise, during future matches, if the other side could not accept losing, lost his head, and used this kind of Hidden Weapon to hurt the young ladies around him, that would be bad.

Under the influence of Little Rabbit, Tang San had a perverse desire to protect her. Once Little Rabbit was hurt, he would immediately lose his reason and use every underhanded trick he had, regardless of the consequences.

Yu Xiaogang had spent a long time brainwashing Tang San, telling him he was the number-one genius under heaven, giving him a twisted sense of superiority. Once he suffered defeat, he would likewise lose his wits.

When he had Soul Fights with others, that guy always acted like, I can hit you, but you can't hit me, as if the whole world had to revolve around him.

Thinking of this, Ye Liangchen strode into the Antique Shop, intending to take that Crystal Slab in advance. Though he had no use for it himself, he absolutely could not leave it to Tang San.

Creak...

As soon as Ye Liangchen pushed open the shop's wooden door and walked inside, all kinds of ancient smells rushed at him. Some even carried the fishy scent of soil, as if they had just been dug out of the ground.

Then he saw a middle-aged man wearing glasses lying in a rocking chair with his eyes closed in feigned sleep. This man was Four-Eyed Cat Eagle Flender.

"If you want anything, pick it yourself. Prices are fair."

Seeing a young man wearing a bamboo hat enter his shop, Flender lifted his head and said blandly, then pretended to lie back down again, a cunning glint in his eyes.

Ye Liangchen scanned the items throughout the shop. They were all insignificant old objects, along with a few storage-type Soul Tools, though slightly damaged and not worth much money. A few old items also lay on the table. Among them was a slightly yellowed transparent crystal with many golden threads inside. That should be the Crystal Slab.

"Boss, how much is this crystal? I want it."

Ye Liangchen pointed directly at the Crystal Slab on the table and asked Flender, wanting to see how this profiteer would behave.

"One hundred Gold Soul Coins. No bargaining."

As soon as Flender heard that business had come to his door, and that the other party had even taken a fancy to that shabby crystal, he was instantly delighted, so he tentatively named a price.

"Fine. Here are one hundred Gold Soul Coins. I'll buy this crystal."

Ye Liangchen knew Flender was trying to trick him, but he did not care about a mere one hundred Gold Soul Coins. He directly took a small bag of Gold Soul Coins out of his Soul Tool, tossed it onto the table, picked up the Crystal Slab, and turned to leave.

"Hold it! Your money isn't enough. My crystal sells for five hundred Gold Soul Coins."

Just as Ye Liangchen picked up the Crystal Slab from the table, Flender's treacherous, sly voice rang out again.

Originally, Flender had casually shouted one hundred Gold Soul Coins. He had not expected the other party to really pay that price, and immediately realized this brat was rich, so he planned to slaughter him for a fat sum.

"Boss, you're not keeping your word?" Ye Liangchen pretended to be surprised. He had long known that Flender was a profiteering swindler.

"My crystal is worth five hundred Gold Soul Coins. Take it or leave it."

Seeing that this young man could pay one hundred Gold Soul Coins, Flender concluded that the brat definitely needed this crystal, so he felt the other party would surely keep paying.

"Boss, five hundred Gold Soul Coins as the final price, right? No going back on it."

Ye Liangchen did not care about five hundred Gold Soul Coins either, so he took out another four hundred Gold Soul Coins and tossed them onto the table, then picked up the crystal and left.

"Hold it. Now my crystal is worth two thousand Gold Soul Coins."

When Flender saw this brat take out another four hundred Gold Soul Coins without even blinking, he was absolutely a big fat sheep. A chance to make a fortune had arrived. If he did not slaughter him properly, how could he live up to his nature as a profiteer? So he directly raised the price to two thousand Gold Soul Coins.

"Boss, you do business without any honesty at all. You're planning to make this a one-time scam—cheat whoever you can, aren't you?"

Ye Liangchen was speechless. From the novel, he already knew this guy was shameless, but he had not expected him to be this shameless, actually raising the price straight from five hundred to two thousand.

"My crystal is worth that much. You look like a Soul Master too. If you don't have enough money, you can pay five hundred first, then pay ten Gold Soul Coins every month for the rest, but there'll be ten percent interest."

Flender continued putting on that shameless look. In any case, he was determined to squeeze a sum of money out of this brat today.

"My elders once mentioned to me that there was a four-eyed profiteer in Suotuo City. Seeing you today, it's true. What kind of profiteer is this? You're simply a shameless swindler."

"The dignified Dean of Shrek Academy, one of the Golden Iron Triangle, Four-Eyed Cat Eagle Flender—this is the sort of conduct you have?"

Ye Liangchen was too lazy to keep going in circles with him and directly exposed his identity. In any case, his Chicken Dinner King HK416 already had the safety off and could be taken out at any time to deal with a crisis, so he was not afraid of Flender bullying the young as an elder.

"Mm! Who are you? How do you know my identity?" Flender froze, and a powerful aura instantly erupted from his body.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Ye Liangchen swiftly retreated several steps, and an equally powerful aura of Soul Power erupted from his body to protect himself. He prepared to take out Chicken Dinner King and give the other party a burst of fire.

But Ye Liangchen immediately thought of another method, so he shouted directly at Flender.

"Four-Eyed Uncle, are you planning to bully the young as an elder? If you attack me, the consequences will be very serious."

"We met at the Rose Hotel three years ago. Back then, you even tried to fool me into joining Shrek Academy! If you attack me, your end will definitely be miserable."

Hearing this young man directly reveal his identity, Flender was instantly stunned, so he directly restrained his aura.

He immediately stood up from the chair, his eagle-like eyes staring at the young man before him. Seeing the utterly ordinary face beneath the bamboo hat, he felt something was off. Clearly, this brat had disguised his appearance.

"Four-Eyed Uncle? You're that brat from three years ago."

Although Flender did not know Ye Liangchen's true identity, he had a deep impression of him. Three years ago, this brat had beaten Dai Mu Bai to the ground without using his Martial Soul. He was definitely a peerless prodigy.

"Four-Eyed Uncle, tell me, you're a dignified level-78 Soul Saint. How can you do this kind of cheating, swindling, and scamming? And you even want to bully a weak little Soul Master like me."

Ye Liangchen directly revealed Flender's strength level, giving the other man the feeling that he was not alone, and that some powerful expert had to be protecting him from the shadows.

"Ahem! Kid, I wasn't even going to take your money. I'll give you this crystal, so stop running your mouth."

"Besides, your strength has already reached the Spirit Elder level. How are you weak?"

Flender's expression turned a little awkward. This kid had identified his strength level in an instant, and judging by his calm gaze, as if everything was under his control, there was definitely a Soul Douluo expert secretly following him. So he hurriedly handed over the crystal, hoping the kid would leave at once.

"I don't like owing favors. I'll pay the price you first named—one hundred Gold Soul Coins."

Seeing that Flender had not made things difficult for him, Ye Liangchen put away four of the bags of Gold Soul Coins on the table along with the crystal, leaving only one bag behind.

"Kid, from the fluctuations of your Soul Power, I can already sense that your strength has reached High Spirit Elder. Incredible. Want to come to our Shrek Academy? Our academy is perfect for monster geniuses like you."

Flender quietly used his Soul Power to sense Ye Liangchen's strength, and was instantly shocked by the little fellow's Soul Power. He grew even more curious about the boy's identity, and very much hoped this little fellow would join his academy.

"Four-Eyed Uncle, I haven't even entered your academy yet, and you've already tried to trick me like this. If I went to your academy, wouldn't you scam me dizzy?"

"My elders have sent word to me. I have to go. Four-Eyed Uncle, do less of this cheating and swindling in the future. Be careful you don't run into some other expert one day—they'll definitely beat your head into a pig's."

Ye Liangchen did not tell Flender his true strength either, and walked straight out of the Antique Shop.

Flender was famously sinister and crafty. Ye Liangchen had originally thought he would make things difficult for him, but he had not expected that revealing the other man's strength level would directly make Flender back down. Still, the other party had also been bluffed by his calm expression, and really thought a Soul Douluo was protecting him.

After Ye Liangchen left the Antique Shop, he quickly departed from that street. Seeing that Flender had not chased after him, he finally let out a breath of relief.

Flender walked out of the shop. Watching the youth disappear, he muttered to himself, "That guy knows to hide his strength at such a young age, and he has plenty of experience in the world. He really is a talent."

Flender had originally wanted to check Ye Liangchen's Martial Soul and spirit rings, but when he released the aura of his Soul Power, the other party still acted calm and unruffled. That made Flender give up on the idea.

At a Post Station, Ye Liangchen spent a few Gold Soul Coins to buy a fine horse as a mount, then galloped along the official road in the direction of Fasinuo Province.

Several hours later, he finally left Suotuo City. Ye Liangchen sold the horse to a Post Station, then slowly continued along the official road.

"The Crystal Slab is in my hands. After Tang San joins Shrek Academy, he won't be able to show off anymore. During the assessment, Zhao Wuji will definitely knock him flat, and he might even be seriously injured."

"Once Tang San is seriously injured, Tang Hao definitely won't stay calm. After that, Zhao Wuji will probably end up badly injured too."

"That way, Zhao Wuji may very well resent Tang San in the future. Now that would be very interesting."

At dusk, Ye Liangchen ate roasted wild rabbit meat in the Mountain Forest while thinking that by changing only a few minor things, he could make what happened afterward shift as well. He felt like he was some great villain.

Heh heh heh heh...! Not bad at all.

Thinking of this, Ye Liangchen's mood soared. He took out the Crystal Slab, placed it on a hard stone, covered the surface of his body with Soul Power, then grabbed a large rock and smashed it directly onto the crystal.

Bang...

Crack...

After taking this blow, the Crystal Slab shattered outright. Many golden threads drifted out, quickly forming tiny beads that shot out in every direction.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Ye Liangchen activated the Five Elements Tracing Steps and quickly caught some of the metal particles in his hand, while most of the others fell into the gaps between the many stones.

As for those golden particles, Ye Liangchen did not care. In any case, he had no need for this kind of hidden weapon.