"No problem, Uncle Zhao."
Gao Shang nodded and said directly:
"The total price of this whale rubber is fourteen thousand two hundred Gold Soul Coins. As agreed, I'll give you an additional commission of one thousand four hundred and twenty."
"Also, there are fourteen pieces of thousand-year whale rubber. I'll give you another fourteen hundred for your trouble."
"That's seventeen thousand and twenty Gold Soul Coins in total."
Gao Shang did not count the hundred-year whale rubber piece by piece.
Unless Zhao Gang had gone mad, he could not possibly cheat him over something like this.
After confirming that the fourteen pieces of thousand-year whale rubber were fine, Gao Shang raised his hand and took out the corresponding Gold Soul Coins, then put all the whale rubber into his Storage Soul Tool.
Clatter!
The sound of colliding coins rang out in the room.
Zhao Gang stared at the pile of Gold Soul Coins, his eyes fixed.
He would have to use most of that money to repay his debts after he returned, and the amount that would actually end up in his hands was not all that much.
Even so, that sum was enough to match everything he had owned before.
"Well... Young Master Gao, I still need to count it."
Zhao Gang glanced at Gao Shang, a hint of caution in his voice.
"Would you mind..."
He knew very well that counting the money in front of Gao Shang looked somewhat bad.
But there was simply too much money. He did not dare accept it on trust alone. If it came up short, it would be too late for regrets.
"Go ahead, Uncle Zhao."
Gao Shang waved a hand, not taking such a trivial matter to heart at all. With both payment and goods settled, his thoughts had long since moved elsewhere.
After instructing the maid beside him to attend to Zhao Gang, he rose and headed straight for his courtyard.
Watching Gao Shang leave, Zhao Gang sighed softly.
But when he lowered his head to look at the coins before him, a smile immediately returned to his face.
This time, his gamble had paid off.
Elsewhere.
As soon as Gao Shang closed his courtyard gate, he could not help laughing.
"Hahaha! I'm rich! I've really struck it rich this time!"
Before this, even he had not expected Zhao Gang to buy so much whale rubber.
He could only say that money truly could make ghosts turn the millstone. The allure of Gold Soul Coins far exceeded his imagination.
"System, recycle all the whale rubber."
[Twelve-hundred-year whale rubber, quality...]
"Stop. Don't quote each price. Just tell me how much it all comes to."
Gao Shang cut off the system notification. Whatever price the system offered, he would make a killing anyway.
As for the exact quality of each piece of whale rubber, he could not be bothered to examine them one by one.
[Dear customer, there are one hundred and ninety-four pieces of whale rubber in total.] [Total value: eight hundred and seventy-four thousand Gold Soul Coins.]
"Gulp."
Gao Shang instinctively swallowed.
The next second, he pinched his thigh hard.
"Hiss... That hurts!"
He had already prepared himself quite a bit, but the price the system quoted still gave him a fright.
A full eight hundred and seventy-four thousand Gold Soul Coins!
That was over a hundred thousand more than his original estimate.
It went without saying that there had to be some exceptional pieces of higher quality, or older than just one or two thousand years, among them. They had most likely come from those nobles' collections.
After deducting the purchase payment to Zhao Gang and adding his original savings, Gao Shang now had over eight hundred and ninety thousand Gold Soul Coins.
He dared not make any other claims, but at least within this little patch of land called Nuoding City, he truly did not think anyone had more cash than he did.
Gao Shang remained excited for quite a while before slowly suppressing his exhilaration.
No matter how much money he had, it was only a number if he kept it in his hands.
Only by exchanging it for strength, or for things that could bring greater benefits, would he truly put it to its best use.
With that thought, Gao Shang hesitated no longer and opened the System Shop.
For the past half month, aside from cultivating every day, he would browse the System Shop whenever he had nothing to do.
Although he could not afford anything, he could still pick things out beforehand, so that when he had money, he would know exactly what was best to buy.
Soon, as five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins vanished from his balance, a pair of fiery-red wings appeared in Gao Shang's hands.
The wings were only palm-sized, their feathers translucent and gleaming like rubies.
"An external soul bone. Finally, I've got one."
What had appeared in Gao Shang's hands was none other than an external soul bone, whose rarity rivaled that of a Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone.
Of course, the one he had bought was only at the hundred-year level.
Its price was so steep because, in the System Shop, the base price of external soul bones below the hundred-thousand-year level was ten times higher than that of soul bones from other body parts.
An ordinary hundred-year soul bone cost only tens of thousands of Gold Soul Coins, while an external soul bone cost hundreds of thousands.
And the soul bone he had chosen, called the "Fire Phoenix Wings," was exceptional even among external soul bones, so its price was naturally even more outrageous.
The name sounded somewhat ordinary, but it was a soul bone left behind after the death of an ancient divine beast, a Fire Phoenix.
Not only could it grant its user flight, it could also control ultimate fire, and even improve the user's affinity for flames and ability to control them.
For Gao Shang, who currently specialized in Fire Style, this was practically a cultivation cheat tailored to him.
Five hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, well spent.
"Someone come."
"Young master."
Gao Shang called toward the door, and a maid pushed it open and entered.
"I'll be cultivating this afternoon. Don't disturb me for anything."
"Yes."
After giving the maid his instructions, Gao Shang sat cross-legged in the courtyard and began absorbing the Fire Phoenix Wings.
As his Soul Power touched the wings, the Fire Phoenix Wings immediately softened, turning into a mass of warm liquid that flowed along his arms toward his back.
The next instant, searing heat and intense pain struck together.
Gao Shang's body jolted.
He felt as though countless fine needles had pierced his back at once. The originally tiny meridians there were forced open bit by bit under the impact of that scorching power.
The Soul Power within the Fire Phoenix Wings flowed continuously through his meridians, destroying and repairing them at the same time.
It even used the existing meridians as a foundation to forcibly open new pathways.
The process lasted several hours.
Gao Shang also endured several hours of excruciating pain.
Fortunately, he was no longer the novice who had only just encountered the Soul Master system. After experiencing the absorption of his first soul ring, his tolerance had long since improved considerably.
No matter how much his body suffered, he kept his mind steady, never allowing the pain to overwhelm his consciousness completely.
Only when the bright moon rose into the night sky did the force continually battering his body gradually subside.
The meridians in Gao Shang's back had finally been reshaped enough to accommodate the Fire Phoenix Wings.
"Phew..."
He let out a long breath and opened his eyes.
His clothes had long since been soaked through with sweat and clung to his skin.
But Gao Shang had no time for that. The moment he awoke, he sank his awareness into his back.
After examining it carefully, he found that most of the Fire Phoenix Wings' energy had already dispersed into the skin of his back.
But their core power was hidden within his spine.
In other words, as long as his spine remained, even if the external soul bone was accidentally destroyed, it could grow back after some time.
"In that case, let's test their strength first."
Gao Shang stood up, his gaze settling on the stone table in the center of the courtyard.
"Fire Phoenix Wings, come forth!"