Fu Wen and Flender spent the time it took to burn a stick of incense perfectly dismantling the Bone-Splitting Giant Crocodile's corpse.
They separated flesh from bone while preserving as much of its completeness as possible—at least ninety-five percent.
The more intact the materials were, the higher the selling price.
That was why Flender hadn't simply used a skill to cut it apart.
He couldn't guarantee he'd be able to control the strike. If he brought it down that way, the crocodile's corpse would be a complete mess, and worth next to nothing.
"Whew! I'm exhausted. This isn't work just anyone can do."
Fu Wen was drenched in sweat. He let out a long breath, then finally started to recover.
"Yeah, it's exhausting work. After finishing this, my lower back's aching like crazy. This won't do. I'm getting old; my bones can't take it anymore."
"Next time, we should just bring it back and have people from the academy help us."
"That way, we can save on labor costs, too."
Flender pounded his aching lower back, grinning as his miserly nature showed.
He planned to squeeze every last bit of labor out of the academy.
After putting all the materials into his storage ring, he picked Fu Wen up and flew away.
"Dad, should I register with Spirit Hall as a One-Ring Soul Master? They give you one Gold Soul Coin a month."
High in the sky, Fu Wen asked.
"Your situation is special. You can't go."
"Or rather, wait until you're older."
"You're so young, yet you've already obtained your first Soul Skill, and your Soul Power is at level thirteen. Your Martial Soul is also such a powerful Mutated Sea Crocodile. They'll definitely figure out you have Innate Full Soul Power. They'll try to recruit you, and if you refuse, they'll report you to the main hall. I'm worried Spirit Hall might play dirty and secretly hunt down a genius like you."
"Spirit Hall is capable of doing things like that. The other factions are no different."
"There are plenty of Soul Douluo and Titled Douluo in Spirit Hall. If they really came to assassinate you, your old man's current strength as a Seven-Ring Soul Sage wouldn't be enough to protect you."
Flender shook his head.
"Then why can my brother go?"
The brother Fu Wen was referring to was naturally Oscar.
Like Fu Wen, Oscar had been raised by Flender from a young age.
He had simply joined the family quite a bit later.
The two brothers were very close.
Oscar was two years older than Fu Wen, so it was only natural for Fu Wen to call him big brother.
Fu Wen actually knew the reason, but he asked anyway, hoping to hear Flender explain it himself.
"Because Xiao Ao's Martial Soul is a sausage. It looks completely ordinary. Even if Spirit Hall found out he had Innate Full Soul Power, they'd just chalk it up to sheer luck."
"Spirit Hall won't think much of a Martial Soul like that."
"That's why he can go."
Flender explained.
"Then you'd better get to work making money, Dad."
Fu Wen teased him with a grin.
Flender smiled. "Of course. I'll do my best to get you into a villa within three years."
"Okay." Fu Wen nodded.
After leaving the Soul Hunting Forest,
the two landed in Suotuo City, at its largest market for Soul Beast materials.
Fu Wen had come along to broaden his horizons.
In six years, this was his first time visiting a place like this.
It was bustling inside, with shops and stalls everywhere selling and buying Soul Beast materials.
Everywhere you looked, there were materials from Soul Beasts.
Hide, flesh, bones, sinews...
There were all kinds of parts, in a wide variety.
Flender found the largest shop in the market.
It was called the Beast Treasure Pavilion.
He was a regular, and the owner knew him well.
"Old Chen, I've brought you a big deal."
Flender walked into the shop and greeted him with a smile.
Fu Wen looked around. The shop was enormous, and plenty of people were inspecting the goods.
"Well, if it isn't Boss Fu! What an honor!"
"Are you here to sell or buy this time?"
Old Chen rubbed his hands together with a smile.
"These are the materials from a four-hundred-year-old Bone-Splitting Giant Crocodile. It's a rare Sub-Dragon Species, and its strength at four hundred years is enough to rival an ordinary thousand-year Soul Beast. I'm sure you'll give me a good price."
"Everything's here except the meat."
"Name your price. If it's fair, they're yours."
With a wave of Flender's hand, the dismantled Soul Beast materials appeared on the floor.
They immediately drew the attention of everyone in the shop.
"That's a rare Sub-Dragon Species, a Bone-Splitting Giant Crocodile! And it's four hundred years old!"
"That thing can go toe-to-toe with an ordinary thousand-year Soul Beast!"
"I never thought I'd see one here!"
The crowd stared in astonishment, their eyes flashing with all kinds of emotions.
But every one of them was tinged with longing and greed.
"Excellent! This really is a big deal!"
"Boss Fu, give me a little time. I'll appraise everything right away!"
"I promise you'll be satisfied with the price!"
Old Chen's eyes gleamed as he caught the scent of a fortune.
He crouched down and began appraising the materials one by one.
His hand moved quickly as he wrote on the appraisal sheet.
Everyone else watched, curious how much the materials could be worth without the meat.
Scales and armor, ninety-five percent intact, appraised at two hundred Gold Soul Coins.
Bones, ninety-five percent intact, appraised at one hundred Gold Soul Coins.
Teeth and claws, ninety-five percent intact, appraised at fifty Gold Soul Coins.
Internal organs, ninety-five percent intact, appraised at fifty Gold Soul Coins.
Final appraisal: four hundred Gold Soul Coins.
"All done, Boss Fu. Please take a look. Are you satisfied with this price?"
Old Chen handed the appraisal sheet to Flender.
Flender took a look. The offer was more or less what he'd expected, so he nodded. "That'll do. Pay me that amount."
"Of course. Just a moment."
"Please take a look."
Before long, Old Chen handed Flender a heavy bag.
"No need. We've worked together for so long; I trust you."
Though Flender said that, he could tell from the weight the instant he took the bag whether anything was missing, thanks to his years of experience.
Nothing was missing.
The amount was exactly right.
Besides, Old Chen wasn't a fool. Shortchanging a valued customer would only offend him.
Next time Flender had better materials, he'd take them elsewhere.
At that price, Old Chen would still make even more by selling the goods himself.
He had his own connections and channels.
Merchants never made a purchase at that price unless they had a way to sell for more.
Otherwise, they'd have gone bankrupt long ago.
With the money in hand, Flender left with Fu Wen.
Everyone watched all that money and felt their eyes turn red.
Four hundred Gold Soul Coins!
How long would it take them to earn that much?
Many people wouldn't make that much in their entire lives.
"If you count it at the One-Ring Soul Master rate of one Gold Soul Coin a month, these four hundred Gold Soul Coins would cover four hundred months of allowances for you. That's more than thirty-three years."
"Here are twenty Gold Soul Coins. You and Xiao Ao can use them as spending money for the month. When you go to school, you'll get ten each."
"Don't complain that it's too little. I still have to pay the academy's teachers, and there are all sorts of things to take care of, like repairs. Then there are three meals a day for students and teachers, not to mention all the other odds and ends and cultivation resources. Four hundred Gold Soul Coins might be a fortune to an ordinary Soul Master, or even an ordinary person, but it'll be gone in no time for us."
Flender opened the bag and took out ten Gold Soul Coins to give to Fu Wen.
With food and lodging covered, ten Gold Soul Coins would last a long time.
In this world, Gold Soul Coins had tremendous purchasing power.
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