Gengxin City The air here is filled with the unique smell of rust, soot and metal smelting all year round. On both sides of the street, the jingle of the blacksmith shop is intertwined with the roar of large workshops. Blacksmiths and Soul Engineer wearing leather aprons and covered with fireworks are shuttled around.
This is a rough, tough, and powerful city, completely different from the Qing Ya Mountain Gate where Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect is located. In the center of the city, a building with a vast area, heavy architectural style, and a huge hammer and gear emblem hanging at the door is the mainland's famous metal trading center and Mercenary Guild Gengxin City branch.
There is a huge flow of people here, including Soul Master and adventurers who come to post tasks or look for jobs, as well as representatives of various forces who purchase rare metals and customize Soul Tool components. It is a mixed bag and a bustling place.
In the corner of the guild hall, in front of the relatively quiet counter.
Kraken - At this moment, he looks like a young man wearing ordinary gray cloth, with an ordinary face and a somewhat silent temperament - is placing an inconspicuous cloth bag on the counter and pushing it to the middle-aged steward with a mustache and shrewd eyes behind the counter.
"Appraisal, valuation, take action as quickly as possible." Kraken's voice was low, with a deliberately hoarse tone, sounding like a lone adventurer who was not good at words.
The middle-aged manager had seen many kinds of people, and was not swayed by Kraken's ordinaryness. He took the cloth bag skillfully and opened a corner. When he saw the thing inside, his shrewd eyes widened a little, and then he quickly regained his composure, but his movements became more cautious.
That's a Soul Bone.
The whole body is dark red, like solidified magma, and the shape is like a forearm. The surface is naturally imprinted with fine flame patterns, and a faint hot breath is emitted, but it is restrained by Soul Bone's own power and does not leak out. Just opening a corner of the cloth bag makes people feel that the temperature near the counter seems to have risen a few degrees.
"Fire attribute, left arm bone, age... at least 30,000 years old, high quality, well stored, Soul Power fluctuates actively." The middle-aged steward lowered his voice and spoke very quickly, with a trace of imperceptible greed and prudence flashing in his eyes:
"Guest, this is a good thing. Are you sure you want to sell it here? Our guild can auction it for you, or contact a reliable buyer. The price will definitely be much higher than selling it directly to the guild acquisition office."
Kraken shook his head and said concisely, "No auction, no designation, guild acquisition, now, the highest price."
He needs money, a large amount of cash that can be obtained immediately. Although Soul Bone is precious, it is not a necessity for him. What he needs more is Gold Soul Coin, a large amount of Gold Soul Coin, to pay those who provide "information".
Thinking of those "messages", Kraken's seemingly ordinary eyes flashed with a hint of helplessness. If I had known... when Mercenary Guild released the "reward" mission, the conditions should have been made vaguer and more stringent.
What he needed was "information about high-level Soul Masters that fit specific descriptions," especially those Soul Douluos and Titled Douluos who were alone or from small forces. The bounties offered were also quite generous. But he underestimated the enthusiasm and imagination of those low-level intelligence dealers, adventurers, and speculators.
Since he anonymously released that mission in those guilds, all kinds of information that is difficult to distinguish between true and false, and that is unreliable, has come like snowflakes. Some said that they saw a duel between mysterious masters in a certain mountain range, some said that a certain Soul Saint who was living in seclusion suddenly left his residence, and some even said that he heard a drunkard bragging about killing Titled Douluo in a tavern...
He had to spend a lot of time and energy to screen and verify, but most of the results were useless information, or even deliberately fabricated false information. Gold Soul Coin spent it like water, but received very little. Just paying the information fee was enough to give him a headache.
"If I had known it earlier, I would have said less..." This thought crossed Kraken's mind again. When releasing the mission, in order to find the target as quickly as possible, he not only gave a high bounty, but also described the target's characteristics in a relatively specific manner. Although this increased the possibility of finding the target, it also attracted countless people who wanted to fish in troubled waters and defraud the bounty.
If the conditions are made vaguer and more stringent, a lot of junk information may be filtered out, but correspondingly, truly valuable information may also be missed.
Dilemma.
Just as Kraken was thinking about how to adjust the mission requirements and how many Gold Soul Coins he could exchange for this Soul Bone, enough to pay for possible intelligence fees, the middle-aged manager behind the counter had quickly completed the preliminary appraisal and valuation.
"Guest, this piece of Fire-Attribute Left Arm Bone is indeed of rare quality. Our guild can purchase it directly, and the price given is..." The steward reported a number, an astronomical number that could bankrupt an ordinary Soul Master family and make even Soul Douluo tempted.
Kraken nodded expressionlessly. The price was quite fair, even slightly higher than what he expected. It seemed that the Gengxin City Guild was worthy of being the trading center for Continental Metal and Soul Tool, with a lot of money.
"Yes. Half of it must be bearer Gold Soul Card of the highest denomination, and half must be cash, large amounts." Kelake added. Gold Soul Card is convenient for portability and large-value transactions, while cash is used for scattered information payments and some occasions where it is inconvenient to use cards.
"No problem, please wait a moment, guest. We need to carry out the final Soul Power resonance detection and sealing procedures. It will take about a cup of tea." A professional smile appeared on the steward's face, and his tone was more respectful. Someone who can readily sell Soul Bone of this quality and make such direct demands is by no means an ordinary character.
Kraken nodded, stopped talking, turned around and walked to the relatively quiet rest area on the side of the hall, found a corner and sat down, closed his eyes and rested Huo Wushuang's Ultimate Fire Attributes, he has a certain restraint on his "Dan-Devour", but after being absorbed and transformed by Scorpion Tail Arm, it seems to have brought some new characteristics, which improved his resistance to flames, but it is not obvious yet.
He also needs one Titled Douluo, or twenty Soul Douluo... He silently calculated in his heart that he still needed the last bit and he had to do it as soon as possible.
While Kraken was waiting silently, thinking about the next move in his mind, whether to continue searching for clues near Gengxin City or to go to intelligence distribution centers in other big cities, the door of the Metal Guild was pushed open again.
A slight but unignorable noise came from the door. It was not the kind of noise caused by ordinary adventurers, but a whisper and focused gaze with awe and curiosity.
Kraken did not open his eyes, but his perception was already like invisible water waves, covering a large area around him. He "saw" that a group of people walked into the guild hall.
The leader is a middle-aged man wearing a moon-white robe, with a gentle and elegant temperament. He has a handsome face, calm and deep eyes, and his movements have a calm and noble air that has been in a high position for a long time.
Next to him were an old man in white robes and a middle-aged woman with good looks and capable temperament. Behind them were several guards with calm auras and sharp eyes. Although they were wearing casual clothes, they were very disciplined in their actions, vaguely protecting the three people in the middle.
"Oh?" Kraken's heart moved slightly, still with his eyes closed, but his perception was like the most sensitive tentacles, and he passed quietly Entanglement. With the top auxiliary system Spirit Empire... With two powerful followers and elite guards, he appeared in Gengxin City Mercenary Guild? Are you here to release a mission, or to purchase rare materials? Or...
Several well-known powerful forces on the continent with top-level assistants Spirit Empire flashed through his mind. Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect... No, it should be Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect now. Its sect master Ning Fengzhi is the owner of the mainland's first assistant system Soul Master and Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda.
Could it be him?
Kraken's thoughts were spinning rapidly. He remembered that the headquarters of the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was not near Gengxin City. A sect master-level figure, along with his confidant elders, personally came to the Mercenary Guild in this metal city... The purpose may not be simple. Is it a coincidence, or...
At this moment, the middle-aged man in white robes - none other than Ning Fengzhi - seemed to have noticed something. In other words, after he entered the guild hall, his eyes seemed to be casual, but in fact he scanned every corner of the hall accurately. When he "accidentally" caught a glimpse of the young man in ordinary gray clothes who closed his eyes and meditated in the corner of the rest area, his eyes seemed to pause slightly for a moment.
It was an extremely brief moment, so fast that it was almost imperceptible. Ning Fengzhi's expression did not change at all, and he still had a gentle and elegant smile. He was chatting in a low voice with Elder Bai beside him, seeming to be asking about the prices of certain rare metals in the guild.
But Kraken's perception is so sharp. The probing meaning contained in Ning Fengzhi's seemingly random glance, although extremely obscure, could not completely escape his induction. It was not a curious look at a stranger, but a gaze with some confirmation and evaluation.
"Are you coming for me?" Kraken felt alert instantly, but remained calm on the outside, like a truly tired lone adventurer, leaning back in his chair and taking a nap.
He quickly recalled all his actions after entering Gengxin City. He went to the city and went directly to the Mercenary Guild to sell Soul Bone... There was nothing eye-catching about the whole process.
Although selling Soul Bone is a big deal, Mercenary Guild is not particularly rare in this metal city. Moreover, Ning Fengzhi and his party seemed to have just entered the city and came directly to the guild...
Is it a coincidence? Or has he left some clues that he was unaware of before, and was targeted by a top force like Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect? Or... the high-value intelligence bounty mission he anonymously released attracted the attention of some interested people, and Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect happens to be?
Countless thoughts flashed through Kraken's mind. He still had his eyes closed, but the muscles all over his body had been adjusted to their best condition. The power of Dan-Devour was quietly flowing through his fingertips. Although Scorpion Tail Arm was hidden under the skin, he could launch a fatal blow at any time. At the same time, he restrained all his aura, making himself look more ordinary, even a little inconspicuous.
Ning Fengzhi didn't seem to pay much attention to him, and quickly withdrew his gaze. Under the respectful guidance of a steward of the guild, he walked towards the VIP room. Ning Xin and the elders beside him did not look at Kelake again.
Everything seems to be just a small episode.
But Kraken knew that things might not be that simple. The Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect leader appeared here in person, and seemed to pay him an imperceptible amount of attention... There must be a reason behind this.
He waited silently for the procedures at the counter to be completed, but he was extremely vigilant in his heart. Should he continue to stay at Gengxin City, or should he leave immediately? He had not yet received the Gold Soul Coin sold by Soul Bone... Moreover, he also wanted to see what the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect master wanted.
If it was really aimed at him...Kraken's seemingly calm eyes, a faint, cold light flashed away in the depths of his eyes.