"Ahem!"
Lin Yi covered his mouth with his right hand and coughed lightly, offering a polite smile.
"Well... there's really no need!"
"A three-star top-grade Divine Crystal is exceptionally precious. I'm not fortunate enough to enjoy it."
"Let's talk about a package deal for the other treasures instead."
A Divine Crystal?
A crap crystal!
Lin Yi wouldn't take it even for free!
Even a dog would shake its head at it!
Besides, the hunched old man definitely knew this thing was useless. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so generous.
"A package deal?"
The old man paused briefly, then slowly shook his head.
"I run a small business, and these are all samples. There's no such thing as a package deal."
"If you're short on funds, young hero, let's head down to the first floor!"
Lin Yi thought for a moment before speaking slowly.
"Senior, I have some treasures here that might interest you."
"Perhaps we could... barter?"
The old man raised an eyebrow, looking a little curious.
"Oh? What good stuff could a kid like you have? Take it out and let me see."
Lin Yi reached into his robes and placed the items on the counter one by one.
They were all materials, equipment, skill books, and the like that he had obtained from killing bosses earlier.
[Dire Wolf's Eye], [Ironclad Essence], [War Bear Soul], [Ironclad War Bear's Heart Protector], [Blazing Flames], [Ironclad War Bear's Gallbladder].
The old man's gaze swept over the items one by one, a flicker of surprise crossing his eyes.
But he coughed lightly and spoke again.
"These things are certainly decent, but they're still a little short of what it would take to trade for my treasures."
The old man shook his head, then sighed softly.
"But I can see you haven't had it easy. Let's form a good karmic connection here."
"Apart from the [Stardust Triangle Chain], you can pick one of my three Z-grade treasures."
"And I'll throw in that three-star top-grade Divine Crystal for free. What do you think, young hero?"
From the old man's expression, Lin Yi knew he was somewhat tempted.
Now it was time to haggle!
Lin Yi shook his head and said flatly:
"No deal!"
"I risked my life to get all these things."
"Trading them for those few things of yours would really leave me at a loss!"
"Forget it! No trade!"
Lin Yi put the treasures away, flicked his sleeves, and turned as if to leave.
"Hey, hey, hey! Hold on, young hero!"
"To be honest, these things of yours would barely be enough to trade for a single [Stardust Triangle Chain]..."
"Do you have any other treasures? I can help you appraise them."
Lin Yi knew that what he currently had wasn't quite enough to take everything on the second floor.
It looked like he had come a little too early. Killing a few more bosses next time should more or less do it.
As for... other treasures?
Aside from the equipment he was wearing, he probably didn't have anything else.
Oh, right. There was still a pair of bear paws.
Those things probably weren't worth much either.
Still, he might as well try!
Lin Yi casually tossed the [Ironclad War Bear's Paws] onto the table and said flatly:
"Please take a look and see whether this counts as a treasure!"
The old man looked at the glossy bear paws on the table and seemed to freeze for a moment. Then his eyes blazed with light.
"Z... Z-grade bear paws?"
"Y-you... how did you know bear paws are my favorite food?"
Lin Yi's eyes went wide, as though he hadn't expected this turn of events.
He took a deep breath and recalled every sad thing from his previous life. His eyes reddened slightly, and he choked out:
"This bear paw cost me almost my entire lifespan."
"I was thinking that if this trade went smoothly, I'd give it to you for free to form a good karmic connection."
"Unfortunately, I'm just too poor!"
"I don't even qualify to trade with you!"
"It looks like I'll have to keep working harder!"
Lin Yi put the bear paws away and walked toward the door, step by step.
At the same time, he silently counted down.
Three!
Two!
One!
At that very moment, the old man suddenly shouted:
"I'll trade!"
The corners of Lin Yi's mouth lifted slightly, but when he turned around, his face was full of gratitude.
Before he could speak, however, the old man continued:
"But while these bear paws are rare, they're still not quite enough!"
"Add another two hundred years of lifespan, and you can take all these things!"
Lin Yi looked at the old man with reddened eyes and displayed his remaining lifespan in the air, speaking as though he were holding back his grief.
"I really don't have two hundred years left to live!"
"The most I can give you is a hundred and twenty-four years!"
"As for what I owe you, next time I'll..."
The old man waved a hand and said with apparent nonchalance:
"All right, all right!"
"Let's call it forming a good karmic connection!"
"I'll only charge you a hundred years!"
"Hurry up and make the trade. There's a whole crowd of customers downstairs waiting to spend!"
Lin Yi suppressed his joy and said with excitement written all over his face:
"All right... let's trade right now."
[Ding! Lost [Dire Wolf's Eye], [Ironclad Essence], [War Bear Soul], [Ironclad War Bear's Heart Protector], [Blazing Flames], [Ironclad War Bear's Gallbladder], [Ironclad War Bear's Paws], [One year of lifespan] ×100] [Obtained [Energy Bracelet] ×3, [Death-Exemption Scarecrow] ×3, [Agility Pill] ×3, [Stardust Triangle Chain], [Mysterious Q Divine Crystal],]
Lin Yi hadn't wanted to take this [Mysterious Q Divine Crystal].
But then he thought there might be a slight chance of obtaining that so-called vessel later on, so he put it away too.
After all, why turn down something free?
Once the trade was complete, Lin Yi headed downstairs without another word, afraid the old man would change his mind.
Passing through the players lined up to shop on the first floor, Lin Yi headed toward the north side of the village. At last, he could no longer stop himself from grinning.
He had traded a pile of things he didn't need for a pile of good stuff.
Calling it profitable wouldn't do it justice. He had made an absolute killing!
The [Energy Bracelet] wasn't much use to him. After all, each person could only wear one Destiny Bracelet.
But once he left the starter village, its price would easily multiply several times over!
The [Death-Exemption Scarecrow] gave him an extra life out of nowhere!
The [Agility Pill] would be even more significant for his early-game improvement!
Using the [Stardust Triangle Chain] for two years wouldn't be a problem!
Running a general store?
I'd say you're running a charity!
On the second floor of the general store, the hunched old man stood by the window, watching Lin Yi leave, and let out a long breath.
"Phew..."
"I've formed the good karmic connection."
"That ancient prophecy..."
"Could it be true?"
The old man shook his head with a smile as he spoke.
"I really am getting old, believing something so absurd..."
"This time, I really... took a huge loss."