Misfortunes Never Come Singly

Misfortunes Never Come Singly

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Whether it was because the Crimson Blood Python's blood had some effect, or because good news lifted his spirits after obtaining those valuable items, Diya returned to Carlos City even faster than when he had left.

Before the sun had fully set, Diya had already returned to the city. Ignoring the stares of the two guards and the passing crowd, he headed straight into the city, making his way toward the area between the commoner district and the noble district.

Only at that junction could Diya find the shops he needed. Generally speaking, anyone who owned a shop could be called a merchant; the only difference was the scale of their business. And anyone capable of opening a shop was at least a commoner.

With slightly brisker steps, Diya passed by his home. He knew Uncle Fu must be waiting for him to return for dinner, but he felt it would be better to deal with the things in his hands first, lest they lose value.

Diya planned to bring the Red Snake Fruit home for Uncle Fu to eat. The snake gallbladder, the four shells shed by the Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes during their mutation and evolution, and the Crimson Blood Python's gallbladder would be sold to an apothecary. As for the snakeskin, it could be sold to a clothing shop. The more he calculated, the happier Diya became. This was no small haul.

The sun had completely disappeared beyond the horizon. Night descended, and darkness shrouded the land. Dim yellow lights lit up inside some houses as Diya finally arrived at a street lined entirely with shops.

He stopped at the entrance of an apothecary. The interior was brightly lit. It was the very apothecary Diya had mentioned, the one recruiting potion apprentices. Without hesitation, he turned slightly and walked inside.

"Customer, what do you need? We have a complete selection of medicines, with many varieties and excellent quality," a young man behind the counter greeted with a smile as soon as Diya entered. He did not look down on Diya because of his disheveled appearance.

"I have some medicinal ingredients to sell. Do you buy them?" Diya asked calmly.

"Medicinal ingredients? Of course we do. Please wait a moment," the young man said before turning and entering a small door. A few seconds later, he emerged again, followed by a middle-aged man.

"Little brother, what medicinal ingredients do you want to sell?" The middle-aged man was smiling, but his tone was flat. His eyes assessed Diya. In his view, someone like Diya could not possibly produce anything valuable, at most some common herbs worth a few coins.

"Take a look. How much is this worth?" Diya directly placed the four shells shed by the Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes on the counter, removing the black cloth wrapped around them and revealing the thin, pink keratin.

The middle-aged man picked up one shell in each hand. Frowning slightly, he studied them intently. The shells were extremely light. He raised them before his eyes and even sniffed them. Suddenly, his expression changed. "Could these be the shells shed when Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes evolved into Mutated Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes?"

"That's right." Diya nodded and smiled faintly.

"Fine, I'll take them. Two silver coins for all four shells," the middle-aged man said readily, placing the shells back down. Upon hearing this, Diya showed no expression. He simply reached out and wrapped the shells up again.

"Little brother, what are you doing?" The middle-aged man reached out to stop Diya, displeasure appearing on his face.

"Since the owner can't recognize quality goods, I'll find someone who can," Diya said calmly. Without even looking at the owner, he walked around him.

"Little brother, let's talk this over. If you think two silver coins are too little, name your price." A smile suddenly bloomed across the middle-aged man's face, making him look incomparably amiable.

"Mutated Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes may be low-level magical beasts, and any cultivator with some ability can easily kill them, but they cannot obtain the shells shed during their evolution. Moreover, Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes have a low chance of mutating into Mutated Blood-Sucking Mosquitoes, and even fewer people encounter them. Since you run an apothecary, I assume you understand the market better than an outsider like me. Such intact shells are top-quality materials for medicine. Ten silver coins each would not be expensive," Diya explained smoothly, making the middle-aged man realize he had encountered someone knowledgeable. Without deliberately studying the matter, it would have been impossible to know so much.

Ten silver coins for one shell was not expensive. Even fifty silver coins for all four shells would have been normal. Yet the middle-aged man was unwilling to take a loss. His original offer had been two silver coins for all four. That was outright robbery.

"It seems you know quite a lot, little brother." The middle-aged man gave the young man a fake smile and a meaningful look. The young man immediately understood and walked around Diya to the entrance, apparently preparing to close the door. The moment Diya saw this, he sensed that something was wrong. He hurried two steps toward the door, only to abruptly stop.

"Brat, offering you two silver coins was already showing you respect. Don't refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit. Today, you won't get even one silver coin," the middle-aged man said, his expression turning vicious. He grabbed Diya. With Diya's frail body, how could he withstand an adult's forceful pull? He immediately fell to the ground, but his hands still clutched the four shells tightly.

"Let go of me, or you'll regret it," Diya said coldly. He did not seem angry at all, but his voice was like solid ice, chilling to the bone.

"Regret it? You think I don't know you? A worthless piece of trash who can't even cast the lowest-grade summoning spell, the greatest waste in Carlos Academy's history. And you dare say I'll regret it? Hahaha!" The middle-aged man laughed wildly.

It was not strange that he knew Diya. Practically everyone on this commercial street knew that Carlos Academy had a student who had attended for many years yet could do nothing, a person with an extremely weak body. Some knew what he looked like, while others had never seen him. Unfortunately, this middle-aged man had seen Diya before.

"Are you going to hand them over now, or shall I beat you up and take them myself?" the middle-aged man said viciously. The young man's earlier peaceful expression had vanished, replaced by a sinister look. Judging by their coordination, this was clearly not their first time doing something like this.

"Brat, if you don't hand them over, I'll beat you up and then tell the City Guard that you stole my medicinal ingredients. When that happens, heh heh..." the middle-aged man said again.

Upon hearing this, Diya immediately released the four shells without the slightest hesitation. No matter what, he could not be taken by the City Guard. With his ability and financial means, once arrested, the charge of theft would certainly be pinned on him. He would be imprisoned, and might even be beaten to death. Uncle Fu would also be left with no one to rely on.

"That's more like it." The middle-aged man slapped Diya hard on the head, nearly making him stumble. Diya raised his right hand and knocked aside the man's palm. At the same time, his index finger and thumb brushed over the man's wrist. The middle-aged man withdrew his hand, anger faintly appearing on his face. But when he saw the four Blood-Sucking Mosquito shells, he suddenly smiled. "Trash may be trash, but at least you know how to behave. Since you're so sensible, I won't hold it against you. Let him leave." His last few words were directed at the young man guarding the door.

Diya lowered his head and walked out of the apothecary. Beneath the cover of his black robe, blood seeped from his palm. He would remember this place. One day, he would repay today's humiliation a hundredfold. However, when Diya had knocked away the middle-aged man's hand just now, he had used the broken little sword to slice across his wrist. After ten years of practice, unless something unexpected happened, that man would probably bleed before long.

"Customer, welcome back next time," the young man called from behind him, his voice filled with smugness. Diya's body trembled slightly, and his fists clenched tighter. He had thought he could earn a sum of money and ensure that he and Uncle Fu would not lack food or clothing for several years. Instead, not only had that failed, he had been humiliated once more. Cutting the middle-aged man's wrist was merely a small act of revenge in the end.

But what could he do? In the final analysis, it was all because he lacked strength. Without strength, one would be discriminated against and bullied. Diya silently questioned the heavens. Since they had brought him across worlds, why had they made him suffer such a fate? Unfair. It was unfair.

He wandered aimlessly through the brightly lit commercial street. Faint angry roars came from behind him. Before he knew it, Diya looked up and found himself standing outside another apothecary. Looking inside, he saw several customers choosing potions. After a brief thought, Diya remembered that he still had a Crimson Blood Python gallbladder in his robe that he could sell. There were also three people inside buying potions, all of whom looked like cultivators—two men and one woman. The same thing as before probably would not happen here.

Without hesitation, Diya stepped into the apothecary. The youth behind the counter glanced at him and asked somewhat unwillingly, "Customer, what do you want?"

After being pulled down by the owner of the previous apothecary, Diya's black robe had become covered in dust when he fell to the ground. He looked like a vagrant.

"Do you buy medicinal ingredients here?" Diya asked calmly, not the least bit angered by the youth's tone. In his view, anger would accomplish nothing.

"Yes. What do you have? Take it out," the youth said impatiently.

"..." Diya had wanted to ask him to bring out the owner, someone more capable of recognizing valuable goods, but seeing the youth's attitude, he knew there was little hope. Helplessly, he took out the black cloth bundle from his robe and slowly opened it. A faint bitter, fishy scent mixed with a fresh fragrance immediately wafted out.

"Snake gallbladder. Looks decent. Ten copper coins," the youth said after one glance. From his gaze and expression, Diya could tell that he was an ignorant fellow who only knew it was a snake gallbladder. Diya shook his head, wrapped it up again, and was about to leave.

"Wait, little brother." A voice called from behind him. Diya turned toward its owner. She appeared to be in her twenties, with long brown hair cascading smoothly downward and a fair oval face. A smile rested on her face. She was tall and curvaceous, clad in fitted leather armor that showed off her feminine figure. Though she could not be called breathtakingly beautiful, her mature charm and allure still drew the eye.

On the left side of the mature woman's ample chest hung a badge with an ice-blue background and two four-pointed stars. A one-handed longsword was strapped at her slender waist.

There were also two men standing at the mature woman's sides. One was a burly man in his thirties, while the other was a young man in his twenties.