"Hey, you haven't taken your things!"
Flender's languid reminder came from behind Su Chen.
"You can keep those things. I only want this crystal!"
A smug smile tugged at Su Chen's lips. If he had shown a keen interest in the crystal from the start and then tried to bargain with Flender, he would only have ended up spending more money on that unscrupulous merchant.
He knew fifty thousand years into the past and fifty thousand years into the future.
Su Chen knew that the moment Tang San entered the shop, his gaze would land on this crystal. Add his bargaining to the mix, and he would be practically asking Flender to fleece him.
Su Chen had gotten up bright and early today, fortunately securing this opportunity ahead of time. Judging by the current situation, Tang San was still shopping with Xiao Wu and had not yet arrived at Flender's shop.
"Huh? Su Chen?"
Just as Su Chen stepped over the threshold of Flender's shop, a slightly boyish voice rang out in surprise.
"Tang San?"
Su Chen paused briefly. The person who had recognized him was none other than Tang San, whom he had met once yesterday.
"Hair crystal?"
Tang San blurted out in astonishment, his gaze burning with eagerness as he stared at the head-sized crystal in Su Chen's hand.
Tang San was overjoyed. He had never expected to encounter hair crystal here. "Su Chen, did you just buy that crystal from this shop?"
"Yes." Su Chen nodded.
"Could you sell it to me?" Tang San reined in his emotions, struggling to calm himself.
"One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!" Su Chen replied.
"One hundred thousand? Why don't you just rob someone? It's nothing but a lousy crystal without the slightest luster, and its transparency is absolutely terrible. It doesn't even have any color. It's not precious amethyst! One hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins-do you take us for fools?" Unable to stay calm, Xiao Wu angrily rebuked Su Chen.
"Buy it if you want it. If not, get lost." A hint of mockery appeared in Su Chen's eyes.
"All right, I'll buy it," Tang San replied without hesitation.
"San! Are you all right?" Xiao Wu frowned slightly, looking at Tang San in confusion. The adorable girl even reached out to feel his forehead. In her eyes, only someone whose brain had been fried by a fever would spend one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins on such a worthless rock.
Tang San shook his head slightly, signaling for Xiao Wu to be patient.
"Now it's one million Gold Soul Coins!" Su Chen slyly changed his price.
"What? One million! You crook! It was only one hundred thousand just now, but the moment you saw we wanted it, you raised it to one million!" Xiao Wu planted her hands on her hips, pursed her little lips, and glared at Su Chen.
"Are you sure you won't raise the price again?" Tang San asked, tempted.
"Fine, I won't change it again. If you can offer one hundred million Gold Soul Coins, I'll sell it to you!" Su Chen said mockingly.
"What? One hundred million?"
The commotion attracted quite a few onlookers. Even Flender, the crystal's former owner, was drawn over.
A gleam flashed in Flender's eyes as he looked at Su Chen, recognizing a kindred spirit. No merchant succeeds without a little cunning. Raising the price on the spot-Su Chen really has mastered the essence of business!
"You're so young, yet your heart is so rotten. Talking to you is an insult to our intelligence. It's just a lousy crystal. We simply won't buy it. San, let's go!" Xiao Wu hooked her arm through Tang San's and took a step, only to find that he had not followed.
"Young man, could you tell me why you're so interested in this crystal?"
Flender frowned slightly. Something about his earlier transaction with Su Chen had felt strange all along. Su Chen had picked out so many things, yet he had taken only that worthless crystal. The implication was clear: Su Chen had been after the crystal from the beginning.
Unfortunately, even with his many years of experience as a merchant, Flender could not tell what was so special about that oddly shaped crystal.
Curious, Flender could only turn his gaze toward Tang San, who was so interested in the crystal. He hoped Tang San could resolve his doubts.
Tang San sighed. Naturally, he had seen through it too. Su Chen had no sincere intention of selling the crystal; he was simply making a monkey out of him. Even if he offered one hundred million Gold Soul Coins for it, Su Chen would keep raising the price.
In other words, Su Chen was flaunting his prize and showing off in front of him!
"Among crystals, purple ones aren't the most precious. The most precious kind is actually hair crystal!" Tang San explained with a sigh.
"San, what's hair crystal?" Xiao Wu asked curiously.
It was not just Xiao Wu; even Flender had never heard the term hair crystal before.
Only after Tang San's explanation did the surrounding onlookers understand. Under certain conditions, outside influences could cause golden, threadlike structures to form within some natural crystals. Crystals containing these golden threads were called hair crystals.
A crystal containing these inclusions, known as hair crystal, was worth more than other crystals, including amethyst.
With Tang San's keen eye and intelligence, he deliberately left out the fact that the hair crystal in Su Chen's hand was actually plate crystal, the finest grade of hair crystal.
Only when the number of golden threads reached a certain level could it be called plate crystal. Tang San would have been willing to buy it even for one million Gold Soul Coins. With this plate crystal, he could obtain the Tang Sect's eighth-ranked hidden weapon, one designed specifically to pierce protective qi barriers-the Dragon Whisker Needle!
Tang San could not be certain whether Su Chen knew its secrets. If he did, that meant Su Chen possessed the Tang Sect's Eighth-Ranked Hidden Weapon!
Unlike other Tang Sect Hidden Weapons, the Dragon Whisker Needle required only soul power to form into a natural hidden weapon. That was precisely what had attracted Su Chen as well. Even if he could not craft Tang Sect Hidden Weapons, possessing this plate crystal would still give him a hidden weapon.
"Huh? That belt?"
Flender finally noticed the belt around Tang San's waist. His sharp eyes discerned Tang San's soul power level, and something dawned on him. For Tang San's sake, Flender waved a hand and took a bag of Gold Soul Coins out of his Soul Tool. "Here are your one hundred Gold Soul Coins. I'm not selling that item anymore."
"Not selling? Fine. One hundred million Gold Soul Coins. I want cash! If you can produce it, I'll give the item back to you," Su Chen said with a smile.
"I said I'm not selling it anymore." Flender's voice rose considerably, his tone commanding even without anger.
"We exchanged the money and the goods. That transaction is already complete. The item is mine now. If you want to buy it back, you'll have to offer a price that satisfies me. Given your attitude, it now costs one billion!" Su Chen said calmly, utterly unafraid.
"Are you sure?" Flender grew angry, staring straight at Su Chen. For Yu Xiaogang's sake, he did not mind throwing his weight around this once.
"Flender, are you planning to use your strength to bully the weak?"
Just then, an aged voice rang out from the crowd. Su Chen's face lit up when he saw the newcomer. He knew that even Flender, a Soul Saint, would not dare seize his plate crystal by force.
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