novelraw Chapter 125-1: Squeezing Bennett Dry, A Great Windfall! (1)
Chapter 125-1: Squeezing Bennett Dry, A Great Windfall! (1)
After reading the price list on the newspaper, Lin Xun could only feel that this NPC was even less human than the Corrupted Blacksmith.
Doing the math, he had only a bit more than 34,000 Spirit Essence in his inventory.
According to Bennett’s pricing, that was just enough to cover the transplant of one pair of Rare-grade eyeballs.
Eyeballs had to be bought in pairs, and the price list only displayed the cost of a single eye. The transplant fee alone was equal to half the price of one eyeball.
A Rare-grade eyeball listed at 10,000 Spirit Essence meant the actual total cost for the transplant was 25,000 per pair, two and a half times the base price.
Clenching his jaw, Lin Xun was ready to switch into the Earth Giant shell and fight this bastard to the death.
But a sliver of reason restrained him from resorting to violence.
He narrowed his eyes and began weighing the pros and cons.
There was no doubt Bennett was an important NPC, possibly connected to side quests or future gameplay content.
Knowing how this hellish game worked, killing a trading NPC like this wouldn’t drop any of the items available through transactions.In other words, if he killed Bennett and possessed his body, he’d probably only get a shell skill like XX-Level Transplant Surgery Technique.
Lin Xun did have the surgical tools needed for drilling and extracting eyeballs, meaning he could theoretically perform transplants on himself.
The craftsmanship might be lacking, and he was missing the Neural Tissue Growth Solution needed after opening the eye sockets.
But sacrificing an important NPC just for a surgery skill? That still seemed questionable.
[Bennett seems to notice your financial distress and signals you not to rush.]
[From beneath his black morning coat and bird-beaked mask, he pulls out a Brass Sand Maraca and gently shakes it…]
[Sha-Sha. A soft rustling sound emerges…]
[From the staircase beside the counter, a young maiden descends. Her golden hair glows like sunlight, her maid outfit of black and white hugs her shapely figure, swaying elegantly as she walks.]
[She carries a black box in her hands and approaches you.]
[Only now do you see that her skin has a faint brass luster. In the center of her spine is a brass winding key that turns ever so slightly as she moves with mechanical stiffness.]
[She’s a doll, one crafted with astonishing precision and realism.]
[Bennett explains that the maid doll, while working, accidentally mixed a batch of defective eyeballs with one extremely rare special eyeball, making them impossible to distinguish.]
[If you’re willing to pay 1,000 Spirit Essence to try your luck, you might just get a surprising return.]
Another gambler’s favorite feature!
But that Brass Sand Maraca reminded Lin Xun of his own Brass Whistle.
Could the maid doll, like the Three-Headed Lion, be a summon?
If so, Bennett likely did have a side quest line.
After some thought, Lin Xun decided to put aside the idea of killing Bennett for now.
From the emblem reward options, he chose the 20% discount.
Immediately, all prices on the list dropped to 80% of their original values, including the gambler’s black box, which now cost only 800 Spirit Essence per draw.
Spending most of his Spirit Essence to buy Rare-grade eyeballs seemed unwise.
He had the Lucky Gold Coin, his cheat tool for rigged draws. No matter how he gambled, he wouldn’t lose.
[You spend 800 Spirit Essence to draw once from the black box.]
[The Support-Type Maid Doll gives you a playful wink. With a few adjustments, a hole opens atop the black box, just big enough to fit one hand.]
[You reach into the box and feel a bunch of smooth, slippery, round objects.]
[You grab one at random…]
[You obtained: Unknown Creature’s Eyeball (Junk)]
[After Bennett’s careful appraisal, the origin and function of the eyeball are now clear.]
[Common Resident’s Eyeball (Junk): An eyeball from an ordinary resident of Sophia City. Besides basic visual functionality, it’s only good for decorating the eye sockets of the blind.]
[Bennett gestures for you not to lose heart. Life is full of ups and downs. Why not try again? Sooner or later, your luck will turn.]
“Lucky Gold Coin didn’t activate?”
The Lucky Gold Coin didn’t trigger often, but it had a persistent passive effect where he might hit the jackpot, but he would never lose.
Why wasn’t it working here at Bennett’s?
Could it be…
Narrowing his eyes, Lin Xun continued the draw.
[You spend 800 Spirit Essence for another black box draw.]
…
[You randomly grab one…]
[You obtained Unknown Creature’s Eyeball (Junk)]
[Bennett gestures for you not to lose heart. Life is full of ups and downs. Why not try again? Sooner or later, your luck will turn.]
Again!
[You spend 800 Spirit Essence for another black box draw.]
…
[You obtained Unknown Creature’s Eyeball (Junk)]
…
[You spend 800 Spirit Essence for another black box draw.]
[You obtained Unknown Creature’s Eyeball (Junk)]
[You spend 800 Spirit Essence for another black box draw.]
[You obtained Unknown Creature’s Eyeball (Junk)]
…
After spending a total of 8,000 Spirit Essence, Lin Xun did a full ten-pull.
Not a single usable eyeball, just ten pieces of junk.
There was no way the Lucky Gold Coin failed to trigger ten times in a row. That black box had to be filled entirely with junk-grade eyeballs!
At last, Lin Xun was certain, Bennett was without a doubt a black-hearted merchant.
In a flash, rage surged to his crown, his hair bristled with fury, his eyes burned with wrath. He was absolutely livid!
All that talk about weighing the pros and cons, all that ‘maybe we should think this through.’ He tossed it all out the window.
“Screw you!”
[You have possessed the shell of the Corrupted Earth Giant!]
[With both feet planted on the earth, you let out a sky-shaking roar and activate Blessing of Mother Earth at full power!]
[In Bennett’s terrified gaze, you raise your weapon the Ancient Dragonfang Greatclub.]