I Am Cultivating in the Apocalypse

Chapter 768: Showy Fur

Jing Shu nodded.

Zhao Qian looked at the name on the pass and realized this special guest was her assignment for the day. As an appraiser, her task was to follow the guest closely and observe her. She really is different, Zhao Qian mused. Taming so many Dark Creatures so easily is remarkable. Dark Creatures were notoriously unruly; getting them to listen so obediently was simply inconceivable. Zhao Qian couldn’t help but wonder what this guest would trade.

"It’s just that your... mode of transport seems a bit large. Do you need me to have the main gate dismantled for you?" A troubled expression crossed Zhao Qian’s baby-soft face. Will I get in trouble with my superiors if the gate is dismantled?

"No, no, don’t trouble yourself. They can get in on their own." Jing Shu snapped her fingers. One by one, the massive Hulks approached the entrance, their bodies seemingly liquefying and ’flowing’ inside. Not all of them flowed in smoothly. Some maintained a more square-like shape, as if they were carrying something internally, making the whole scene incredibly bizarre.

Zhao Qian’s jaw dropped, her mouth wide enough to fit an egg. She only snapped out of it and hurried after the guest when Jing Shu was already some distance away.

"Hey, wait for me! I’m Zhao Qian, your assigned pricing officer. Your stall is this way."

The building’s interior maintained its pre-apocalypse decor. Rows of crystal lamps cast a dazzling light, and the ceiling, soaring over twenty meters high, gave the floor an extremely spacious and grand atmosphere. However, the ravages of time were evident. Stubborn rust stains, impossible to remove despite countless scrubbings, and the general decay made the place look somewhat dilapidated.

Jing Shu entered the brightly lit hall, her entourage of Hulks in tow. The people inside were also dressed in layers, but most wore clean, tidy clothing. A few individuals stood out in flashy attire. They were robust, held cigars, and wore arrogant expressions, clearly important figures accompanied by bodyguards. For a moment, Jing Shu felt as if she had stepped back in time, to the era before the apocalypse.

Zhao Qian finally puffed out her chest with pride. See? Our trade fair is quite high-class. It’s stunned the guest into a daze, hasn’t it?

However, as Zhao Qian observed the guest—dressed in simple yet immaculate clothes from which wafted the faint, sweet scent of laundry fragrance pearls, her glossy black hair casually pinned up to reveal a fair and delicate neck and ears, and her attire composed of items that looked ordinary but were almost all irreplaceable, discontinued relics... This guest,

she thought, is even more particular than the big bosses! The Hulks were the best kind of living advertisement, drawing the attention of almost everyone present. Many curious onlookers followed to get a better look, some even inquiring about purchasing the Hulks. Jing Shu politely refused all such offers. Hulks were rarer than rotten mermaids, incredibly versatile, and served as unique Amulets. Jing Shu would only rent them out under her direct supervision; they were not for sale.

The rules of the trade fair were exceedingly simple.

Zhao Qian led Jing Shu and her two companions to a corner of the square exhibition hall, marking out an area for them to arrange their trade goods. Once the items were displayed, the ’big bosses’ would typically stroll by to see if there was anything they wished to trade for.

"You just need to display the items you want to trade on the provided stand. Don’t worry, it’s very safe here," Zhao Qian explained. "Our One Flower is situated at a tri-city junction, a major transportation hub. The circulation of goods is far greater and more varied than you might imagine. Plus, we have the protection of the government, which is why many ’big bosses’ from surrounding cities frequent this place."

Zhao Qian pointed proudly at the glass display cases. In this apocalyptic environment, such high-end facilities are rare, she thought. And it’s even rarer for the government to openly support the circulation of these kinds of goods. After all, most of the time, such goods are directly confiscated.

"That won’t be necessary; it’s too much trouble." Jing Shu snapped her fingers again. The Hulks promptly dissolved into puddles of liquid, revealing the items they held within their mouths. These items then swiftly reformed into new display stands, ensuring no one could casually pilfer anything.

This time, Zhao Qian’s mouth fell open wide enough to stuff a fist inside.

To think something could be so... fluid in this apocalypse! Zhao Qian marveled. I’ve really seen something new today.

Even the self-proclaimed elites of One Flower, the upper-class individuals attending the trade fair, began to eye the Hulks with envy. Who wouldn’t want a pet that can freely change its physical form? Hmm? Isn’t that far more exciting and amusing than most dolls?

Soon, however, the crowd’s attention shifted to the actual products Jing Shu was offering.

The Hulks morphed into mannequins of various heights, each perfectly showcasing the items for sale. Under the bright lights, the furs shimmered with a soft, silky sheen. There were exquisite, high-end gray fur coats, complemented by white rabbit-fur gloves, black scarves, napped-leather hats, sheepskin knee pads, plush boots, and more.

Despite their somewhat primitive aesthetic, one glance was enough for a discerning eye to recognize the superior quality of the pelts. Whole pelts offered a level of warmth far superior to patched ones—a crucial difference, especially in the magically-blighted south where such garments were essential to prevent frostbite.

The furs quickly overshadowed the displayed tobacco sticks. Jing Shu found herself surrounded by people inquiring about prices before she even had a chance to look around.

"How much for these gloves? I have pickles worth 50,000 Virtual Coins to trade!"

"Are you interested in soybean sauce? Our factory produces a special apocalypse-flavored soybean sauce, valued at 200,000 Virtual Coins!"

Someone scoffed, "Soybean sauce isn’t valuable. That’s just a large quantity of cheap stuff. Stop embarrassing yourself."

Another voice chimed in, "I have soap worth 600,000 Virtual Coins over here..."

From food to daily necessities, a wide array of goods was available. The trade fair was indeed well-organized and offered many benefits, but it also had its drawbacks.

Zhao Qian explained carefully, "You can’t set your prices arbitrarily here; they are estimated by our government appraisers. However, the transaction tax isn’t paid by surrendering a percentage of your actual goods. Instead, you pay the assessed tax amount in Virtual Coins."

Jing Shu raised an eyebrow. For the upper class, apart from truly scarce resources, Virtual Coins are just numbers, aren’t they? This is practically like being tax-free! No wonder everyone abides by the rules and is willing to trade here.

"In that case, this truly is a legitimate trade fair," Jing Shu nodded, satisfied. To her, Virtual Coins were indeed just numbers at this point. After all, when you owe so much, the numbers just make you numb.

With the opening of this tobacco factory, she was bound to have a large stake. Having a stake meant investing money, right? And no money meant borrowing. Should she aim to pay off the debt quickly in ten years, or resign herself to a slow demise over thirty? Either way, the interest would be a dizzyingly long string of digits—so long that Jing Shu couldn’t even be bothered to count them anymore.

"According to the pricing rules here, a pair of fur coats is valued at 50,000 Virtual Coins, a pair of gloves at 3,000, and a pair of boots at 5,000. If you sell them for more than 20% above this assessed value, you’ll have to pay a surplus tax. That tax *is* calculated as a percentage of the traded goods’ value," Zhao Qian quickly explained, listing the day’s exchange rate guidelines for Jing Shu. To stabilize the market and prevent monopolies, such macro-market adjustments by the government were always deemed necessary.

Jing Shu frowned. The prices were indeed a bit lower than the typical market rate. Using luxury goods like sugar—which goes for 8,000 Virtual Coins per kilogram—as a benchmark, these furs wouldn’t exchange for a substantial amount of food.

But today was clearly different. Pricing officers might follow fixed rules, but the goods themselves are variable. And Jing Shu’s furs... their quality was exceptionally high.