novelraw Chapter 231: The Mysterious Merchant Who Drops Gold Coins
Chapter 231: The Mysterious Merchant Who Drops Gold Coins
The black waterproof leather boots slowly stepped over the doorway of the training room.
“Hello, guest!”
The blonde woman in front of him took off her hat, held it to her chest, and bowed slightly in greeting.
In a single breath, Chen Qi scanned her from head to toe.
She was wearing the standard Blood Blade Pirates uniform—a golden single ponytail, a white upper shirt, and loose red pants. A curved saber hung at her waist, giving her a very upright appearance.
Chen Qi’s inspiration vaguely noticed faint lines of spiritual energy along her jawline, like stitches sewn together.
Her human skin mask was a disguise; her spiritual energy field was like a tall tree, that of a third-tier transcendent.
Who exactly was she? Chen Qi’s heart stirred with suspicion.
He was currently aboard one of the Blood Blade Pirates’ main ships, the Blood Blade, near Red Maple Island.
The main ship was patrolled by numerous crew members and many powerful third-tier supernaturals.For an ordinary third-tier transcendent, breaking into this place was as difficult as running naked through a busy street unnoticed.
In other words, this person was either an internal member of the Blood Blade Pirates or an exceptionally skilled infiltrating transcendent.
Or perhaps both… Chen Qi’s Ember’s Touch stirred lightly.
If she was an ally, the easiest route would be to first enter Red Maple Island, then board the Blood Blade, and finally sneak here while the guards were distracted.
At this moment, the blonde woman revealed a set of white teeth and said:
“Guest, nice to meet you for the first time. I’m a merchant. My purpose here is to sell some interesting intelligence!
And all this comes at a friendly price of just one hundred thousand Shell Coins!”
A merchant, a Shell affinity transcendent? Chen Qi’s expression remained unchanged, his emotions unusually steady as he slowly said:
“One hundred thousand Shell Coins is too expensive, Miss Merchant.”
Chen Qi stared directly at her:
“If I beat you up, can the first deal be free?”
“Oh? Beat me up?”
The blonde woman lifted her head slightly, a faint smirk curling at the corner of her mouth—both disdainful and playful:
“You may have fooled others, but not a professional intelligence dealer. Black Hunter, you have some skills, but don’t be too arrogant!
There are legends in these seas, not just you! Although you have a better relationship with the Flower Witch, that doesn’t mean your strength matches hers.”
Her inspiration was enough to discern my rank, and in their eyes, I was merely an accessory to the Flower Witch.
A Shell affinity, combined with worship of the Flower Witch, and a good relationship with the Blood Blade Pirates… Chen Qi pondered, and a quick answer formed in his mind.
The Ice Demon Pirates!
And the style of an intelligence dealer plus a sales pitch…
Her identity was most likely Jin Li, the second-in-command of the Ice Demon Pirates and a traveling merchant.
An arrogant yet quick-to-bow person… Chen Qi didn’t hesitate and directly exposed her identity:
“Jin Li of the Ice Demon Pirates, I know you, so I wanted to test you.”
“That…”
Jin Li was clearly stunned. As an intelligence dealer, she was surprisingly recognized by the other party upon first meeting.
Moreover, despite knowing her identity, this person still dared to fight her!
Jin Li, a transcendent who adhered to Shell and Lamp affinities, had traveled far and wide. She had been injured, died, lost battles, but never backed down!
Jin Li silently stepped forward and made a beckoning gesture:
“Fine. If you can beat me, I’ll give you a piece of intelligence worth one hundred thousand Shell Coins for free! But if you lose, you owe me one hundred thousand Shell Coins!”
With a hiss in the air, Jin Li’s spiritual energy field suddenly expanded from a three-meter-tall small tree to a five-meter-tall large tree!
Chen Qi formed a punching stance and recalled information about this transcendent.
If the Ice Demon Pirates’ leader was the hardworking Shapeshifter Palu, then the great merchant Jin Li was his exact opposite—a typical trickster and swindler.
Jin Li was a fourth-tier legend, a traveling merchant with Shell and Lamp affinities, making her a very special legend.
She had many nicknames: the Mysterious Merchant, Super Swindler, Lifesaver, Most Likely to Be Killed Legend, King of Shell Coin Explosions, Female Merchant, and King of Hearts…
Her combat power was not strong among fourth-tier transcendent, but she possessed an extremely powerful ability: survival!
Her traveling merchant had three divine skills. First, Merchant’s Journey allowed Jin Li to randomly teleport over a vast range to places with “good business.” This skill even ignored spatial restrictions.
Therefore, in many dangerous rifts, Jin Li could break through rank limits and suddenly appear, carrying a large backpack to sell equipment and items to adventurers.
Hence, in player forums, Jin Li was hailed as the most formidable mysterious merchant.
Of course, as the king of trickery, her prices were at least five times the original cost!
Second, Super Currency was a common ability among high-level Shell affinity transcendent. Simply put, by completing tasks, one could obtain special currency and then enter a special shop to exchange for rare goods.
This shop offered a variety of items. If the transcendent also owned special Dice affinity items, they could even directly buy fourth-tier legendary profession cards there.
Third, Super Adventurer allowed the transcendent to create a traveling clone at the cost of reducing their own power and spending large amounts of coins, with a set resurrection point.
If the clone died, the transcendent would immediately revive at the original point.
This ability meant the transcendent could act recklessly and courageously during adventures, making bold attempts!
As a legend, even with “reduced power,” Jin Li still had impressive third-tier strength.
Of course, it was well-known that many mysterious merchants could be beaten up!
Jin Li was no exception.
If defeated in the rifts, as a special Shell affinity transcendent, she would explode with Shell Coins worth millions and drop a random high-value item after a mournful cry!
Therefore, Chen Qi had done a bit of research on killing Jin Li explosively.
He had killed her several hundred times, and with his current strength, defeating Jin Li should not be a problem… Chen Qi’s eight tentacles behind him twisted and grew firm, then formed curved fists.
Jin Li, exposed, stopped pretending and sneered:
“Little Black Hunter! Today, I’ll show you what a master is! Let the Flower Witch realize that I am her greatest future helper!”
Boom!
Jin Li clenched her five steel-rebar-like fingers into a fist.
Then, with a whoosh, she darted forward rapidly!
Qi Power. Steel Wind Fist!
Bang!
Chen Qi didn’t dodge. He bent his arm to block, dark qi swirling tightly around it.
Although he hadn’t mastered Steel Qi yet, combining Qi Transformation with knowledge of Shadow Armor already created strong defense!
Jin Li’s Steel Wind Fist was fast but lacked strength!
Bang!
The Steel Wind Fist hit a hard stone.
“Is that all?”
Chen Qi scoffed.
“You’ll pay the price!”
Jin Li’s mouth curled as she immediately took a step back.
“Then, how about move two!”
Immediately, Jin Li spread both hands, and two tiny mouths full of golden teeth appeared, opening and closing repeatedly.
Backpack Card Implant Surgery. Hand-Mouth, a surgery worth over five million Shell Coins.
Simply put, it turned her own body into storage space for backpack cards, connected to her consciousness, achieving a simple “object manifestation.”
Then, a large number of thousand-Shell Coin bills spat out from the small mouths.
Jin Li opened her hands, grabbed a pile of Shell Coins, and shoved them into her mouth.
Like drinking water, she rapidly absorbed the coins into her body.
“One hundred thousand Shell Coins! Body Enhancement. Release!”
A third-tier Shell affinity transcendent’s divine skill, Money Conversion! It materialized socially recognized currency into her own power!
With a roar, golden money symbols appeared all over Jin Li’s body, boosting her power and speed by fifty percent in an instant.
The next moment, Jin Li flashed forward behind Chen Qi and swung a punch:
“Fifty thousand Shell Coins! Gold Coin Charging Fist!”
Flanking attack!
The light of money gleamed in Jin Li’s fist!
Her lips curled, but suddenly she realized that Chen Qi’s Ember’s Touch behind him could also defend!
Whoosh!
A semi-illusory tentacle suddenly coiled around Jin Li’s small fist, combined with qi power to withstand the blow.
“!!!”
What? Jin Li was stunned. Her flanking tactic was useless.
This guy has a lot of hands!
Boom! Boom!
Without hesitation, Chen Qi expressionless commanded the tentacles behind him to strike two punches hard into Jin Li’s abdomen.
“Pff—”
Jin Li’s abdomen instantly caved in, forcing her to spit out thick fresh blood.
“Hunter, you do have a bit of skill…”
Jin Li gritted her blood-stained teeth, unable to tolerate it any longer, and shouted:
“Five hundred thousand Shell Coins! Fist King. Breathless Meteor Fist!”
In that instant, Jin Li’s palms produced numerous ten-thousand-Shell Coin bills, which she swallowed at lightning speed!
The next moment! Money runes appeared all over her body, and she ballooned from 1.7 meters tall to two meters tall! Her muscles expanded fiercely!
Breathless Meteor Fist! Jin Li’s signature move!
Simply put, it maximized the speed of both fists, delivering over a hundred punches in a breath! A terrifying, fast, accurate, and ruthless technique!
Even third-tier Blade affinity transcendent would struggle to withstand it!
“Kid! Feel the supreme power of money!!”
After two failed moves, Jin Li was furious!
In moments, her fists flew like lightning, throwing hundreds of punches!
Huff… Chen Qi didn’t hesitate either, running spiritual energy and activating Ember’s Touch beneath his clothes!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Neither side dodged as they exchanged punch after punch!
Punch me? Brat? Jin Li hastened her punches fiercely.
Bang!
Unexpectedly, one punch struck her face, knocking out her front tooth.
Her mask was torn off in an instant, revealing blue eyes and golden twin ponytails!
Why!
Why was my super-fast punch blocked?
Jin Li was stunned.
Could a second-tier transcendent’s agility really surpass her five-hundred-thousand-Shell Coin move?
That move cost a whopping five hundred thousand!
Chen Qi kept punching expressionlessly.
His agility indeed couldn’t beat Jin Li’s stabbing punches, but he had many hands!
After brief practice, Chen Qi controlled Ember’s Touch to extend two flaming arms.
Add the eight tentacles of Ember’s Touch and his own two hands.
That made twelve hands in total!
No matter how fast your two hands are, can they compete with my twelve?
Just like the strategy, that five-hundred-thousand move was useless except for punch speed… Chen Qi no longer hesitated and exhaled a mouthful of crimson gas.
Blade Breathing Technique!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Hundreds of punches slammed into Jin Li’s body, creating several fresh red holes in her flesh.
Jin Li’s white shirt quickly became soaked with fresh blood.
“It’s over!”
After she floated up, Chen Qi’s right hand and a tentacle grabbed her right calf like holding a rag—
Then slammed down hard!
Bang! With cracks on the ground, Jin Li stared blankly at the ceiling.
“Ah…”
This entire battle took less than ten seconds.
I lost and lost 650,000 Shell Coins… Jin Li’s head throbbed fiercely, and her body felt shattered.
Though she couldn’t beat many powerful third-tier supernaturals, she never imagined one day she would be defeated by a second-tier transcendent!
If the fight continued, her body would explode, yielding one million Shell Coins!
Is this person the Flower Witch’s ally? Jin Li dragged her half-disabled body and struggled to stand.
She put on round glasses, tore off her outer clothes, revealing her usual outfit.
Twin ponytails, golden round glasses, and a belt-laden coat.
A twin ponytail swindler’s look.
Nice feeling… Chen Qi felt the warmth from his fists and the burning sensation inside.
This form of Jin Li already had third-tier strength.
His ability to reach this level proved he was fully qualified to spar with third-tier supernaturals.
Feeling satisfied… Chen Qi slowly dissipated Ember’s Touch and his spiritual energy, then asked:
“So, Great Merchant Jin Li, do you have any important intelligence?”
Jin Li spat blood and stared at Chen Qi defiantly.
Though defiant, as a Shell affinity transcendent, she still maintained integrity.
She spat out a blood-stained tooth:
“I have important news about the Blackfin Crew and the Flower Witch!”
“The Flower Witch was injured. They told me this information can only be told to you!”
The Ice Demon Pirates, as a pirate crew pursuing the Flower Witch’s ruins, had many members who naturally admired the Flower Witch.
Like this Jin Li before him…
Chen Qi vaguely remembered that Great Merchant Jin Li was a fanatic of the Flower Witch.
Besides the leader Palu, almost no one in the Ice Demon Pirates was normal.
Therefore, Chen Qi didn’t worry about the Ice Demon Pirates lying to him.
Chen Qi exhaled the warmth of his fists:
“What news?”
Jin Li shook her dizzy head and silently took out a photo from the small mouth in her hand:
“This matter, I already told the Blood Blade Pirates. Five days after this Trial Grounds operation failed, because of Captain Carol’s disappearance, the Blackfin Crew suffered continuous defeats and were besieged by the navy and Hunter crews…”
“You could say, because of Carol’s disappearance, the Blackfin Crew suffered losses exceeding one billion Shell Coins! It’s a disgrace to the Blackfin Crew!”
Carol’s disappearance… Chen Qi silently exhaled.
Legendary supernaturals were absolute regional powers. Their disappearance caused huge shifts in the Rift Sea’s power balance and triggered a series of reactions.
Without Carol, independent Hunter crews dared to attack the Blackfin Crew.
Jin Li continued:
“Therefore, the Blackfin Crew convened a cadre meeting early! All cadres in the Rift Sea were ordered to return to port!
Moreover, according to my information, they appointed a new member responsible for capturing the Flower Witch!”
She handed Chen Qi a photo:
“This photo I bought at great risk from a White Pigeon Press reporter.”
Chen Qi took the photo.
In the photo were Blackfin Crew cadres boarding a ship in the mist.
Big shots all around…
Chen Qi grew excited. In the photo, he saw many well-known Flower Witch Sea bosses.
Chaotic Matthew, Meat Mountain Captain, Fierce Bird, Thunder God…
Jin Li went on:
“According to what I bought, the guy in the lower left corner will temporarily take command of the Mermaid as the new captain after Carol’s disappearance and will very likely be responsible for hunting you.”
Lower left corner? Hunting us? Chen Qi looked at the photo’s lower left corner.
There was a blurry black crow’s head.
A strong sense of familiarity… Chen Qi blinked.
Little Crow? Becoming temporary captain of the Mermaid?
Wait, what does this mean? Is Little Crow getting promoted again?
How did this guy’s status rise so fast? Chen Qi rubbed his forehead.
Little Crow’s promotion speed had far exceeded his expectations.