Chapter 292: Penguin Trading Network

A New Quest: The Virtual Trading Network

At that very moment, Proprietor Fang received yet another fresh decree from the system.

Objective: Complete two hundred cross-regional online transactions through this establishment.

Details: Registered members may purchase virtual commodities online using the spiritual crystals already deposited within their membership cards.

Reward: The initiation of the Penguin Trading Network, accompanied by an elevation of administrative privileges.

The enhanced privileges entailed:

First: The authority to register store personnel within the system console and implement localized protective measures (dependent upon system energy consumption).

Second: The expansion of staff quarters to two rooms per storefront.

"What are you up to?" Boss Fang, thoroughly engrossed in a round of Fight the Landlord, suddenly noticed a message flashing across his Penguin interface.

"Nalan Mingxue? What could she possibly want with me?" He casually fired back a question mark.

"I intend to acquire a few volumes, specifically from the Morning Star Sea region. Give me a hand with the transaction," the response arrived swiftly.

"Acquiring volumes? A few?" Boss Fang found himself utterly bewildered. "Listen here, you're a warrior. With so few techniques available to your class, how many more volumes could you possibly need?"

Nalan Mingxue replied, "It is not just for myself; there are volumes for mages and Taoists as well. If you possess any, you may sell them to me. Two thousand for a Magic Shield, seven hundred for a Divine Armor Spell, ten thousand for the Light of Seduction..."

Upon finishing her text, she appended a droll, wide-eyed Husky emoji.

She proceeded to enumerate a vast catalogue of prices for various skill manuals.

"Guild Master, come quick! Someone is offering two thousand crystals for a Magic Shield and seven hundred for a Divine Armor Spell, not to mention hundreds and thousands for the other volumes. Let's sell ours! The buyer goes by 'Early Snow,' and she's been spamming the world chat relentlessly!" Ruan Ning and her companions, who were seated right beside Fang Qi, nearly leaped out of their chairs in excitement. Her personal inventory had essentially become the guild's communal vault, which was currently overflowing with skill books.

"Not selling, absolutely not!" Boss Fang sent an Akita dog emoji brimming with disdain, adroitly saving her droll Husky expression to his own collection in the process. "To think she would try to pull one over on the Proprietor himself. She certainly has nerves of steel."

"Why on earth shouldn't we sell?" Ruan Ning countered, her voice laced with dissatisfaction. "The market value has already skyrocketed tenfold; these prices are absurdly inflated. It is rare to encounter such a wealthy fool. If we don't sell now, the prices are bound to plummet eventually!"

"Allow me to offer you two words: keep dreaming."

Weary and cynical, Boss Fang flashed a cold smirk before firing off a message to Nalan Mingxue: "What is your game? Trying to become a scalper?"

Leaning over from the side, Ruan Ning craned her neck to peer at his screen. "Huh? This 'Early Snow' is the exact person you're telling me not to sell to, so why are you messaging her yourself?"

"...She happens to be a friend of mine, you silly girl," Boss Fang muttered, thoroughly exasperated. "Let me warn you, do not entangle yourself too closely with her. With that simple brain of yours, she could sell you off and you'd end up happily counting the coins for her."

"You're the one who would get sold off and count the coins!" Ruan Ning flared up instantly. "With buying rates this high, why shouldn't we take advantage of it?"

Across the network, Nalan Mingxue took a long while before finally sending a reply: "What is a scalper?"

"An unscrupulous merchant who hoards vital supplies and certificates only to resell them at exorbitant prices for pure profit!" Fang Qi attached another contemptuous emoji. "The conflict has barely concluded, and almost overnight, the price of skill manuals has surged tenfold. If someone isn't artificially manipulating the market, I'll eat my hat."

"It wouldn't happen to be your doing, would it?" Fang Qi inquired, testing the waters.

"(Husky smirk) It actually has very little to do with me." Nalan Mingxue typed out her reply, a faint, subtle smile playing across her lips. "Prior to the outbreak of hostilities, I observed everyone frantically gathering manuals in preparation for war. I simply decided to acquire some alongside them. Having hoarded until now, there is scarcely any supply left on the open market. Even if I raise the price further, I won't turn up much more stock. In another day or two, I estimate I will have to offer three to four thousand for a shield manual. Any higher than that, and I simply won't bother."

"You... all of you..." Watching the exchange unfold, Ruan Ning instantly detected the pungent, unmistakable aroma of a ruthless profiteer.

"Naturally, you won't find much more. Those who held stock and intended to cash out have long since done so. The ones still clutching their manuals—even the independent players—are merely biding their time to see how the tides turn," Fang Qi remarked disdainfully. "I must confess, I underestimated you. Transformed into a master scalper in a single night, have we? Out with it, just how much have you hoarded?"

"That is a secret (grinning widely)."

"With prices scaled this high, no matter how much she has hoarded, can she truly find buyers?" Ruan Ning asked, her brow furrowing in skepticism.

"A substantial number of veteran players still lack these manuals, and given the current state of affairs, a massive influx of newcomers is absolutely guaranteed. If, by some stroke of fortune, a contingent of ultra-wealthy, spendthrift tycoons emerges among those fresh faces..." Fang Qi patted her gently on the shoulder. "My dear girl, you remain entirely too naive."

"Hmph! Old Demon Fang!"

"What did you just call me?"

"I said the Guild Master is exceedingly handsome and dashing!"

...

Meanwhile, two shadowy figures materialized, standing silently before the threshold of the Jiuhua establishment.

"Family Head Gongyi, is this truly the place?" Gongsun Chui fixed his gaze upon the shop nestled amidst a cluster of ordinary civilian residences. "There appears to be nothing remarkable about it."

Pushing the door open, the two men stepped inside, and the immense, cavernous space hidden within the interior immediately captured their undivided attention.

"..."

Gongsun Chui, who had just proclaimed the establishment unremarkable, now stared with wide, elderly eyes. "...How can the interior be so vast?!"

"I recall that the Gongsun family once obtained the construction blueprints for a spatial formation within the Cultivation Domain," Gongyi Xiu remarked quietly. "How does it compare to this?"

"..." Gongsun Chui's face darkened instantly. "Let us speak no further of that matter."

What the Gongsun family had acquired was merely a fractured, incomplete array, whereas the spatial magic operating here was vibrantly, flawlessly whole.

"Where is the proprietor?" Annoyed by his loss of face and further displeased by the distinct lack of a welcoming reception, Gongsun Chui's irritation grew.

One had to consider that whenever the two of them paid a visit to the Three Great Sacred Sects, they were invariably received by at least two high-ranking deacons. This treatment struck him as profoundly disrespectful. "To think there is not a single attendant to receive guests. A shop of this nature is grievously discourteous. In this old man's estimation, there is little point in looking further."

As the men ventured deeper into the establishment, their eyes scanned down the small blackboard, coming across the notice inscribed upon it: *Play if you wish to play; if not, please depart in a circular and smooth fashion.*

"What is the meaning of 'departing in a circular and smooth fashion'?" The two men found themselves somewhat perplexed.

"It is merely a polite, educated way of telling you to roll out!" Xiao Yulu announced from his seat upon the sofa. "You two possess rather unfamiliar faces. First-timers?"

He held a deck of playing cards aloft. "Care to join me for a couple of rounds of Fight the Landlord?"

"..." The faces of the two elders turned grim. "What manner of nonsense is this?"

Fight the Landlord? Who in their right mind would play such a ridiculous game with a boy like you?!

We have journeyed here specifically to gauge the hidden depths of this establishment! We have no time to waste on such foolish antics with a youngster!

A wave of contempt surged within their hearts. "Step aside! Who would deign to play cards with a lad like you?"

After skimming through the remaining introductions on the small blackboard, they demanded, "Where is the manager? We wish to sample this so-called game!"

"My apologies, gentlemen." A young girl who had been seated near the counter slipped off her virtual reality headset. "Every station in the shop is currently occupied. If you wish to utilize a machine, please proceed to the rear of the queue! If you find the wait tedious, you are welcome to visit the lounge area and play a few rounds of Fight the Landlord with Young Master Xiao."

The two men froze. "..."

Infuriated, Gongsun Chui pointed a trembling finger at himself. "Do you have any conception of who this old man is? Even the dignitaries of the Three Great Sacred Sects would never dare command me to wait in a line!"

"What are the Three Great Sacred Sects?" Jiang Xiaoyue crossed her arms over her chest and let out a cold snort. "Our boss has made it perfectly clear: even if the Heavenly Emperor himself shows up, if there are no vacant seats, he must wait his turn at the back of the line!"

"You—! You insolent little girl! Such outrageous arrogance!" Gongsun Chui's face flushed a furious, vibrant red, and he looked prepared to strike her down on the spot!

"Brother Gongsun!" Gongyi Xiu murmured in a low, cautionary whisper. "The circumstances remain shrouded in mystery; it is unwise to strike... Even a powerful dragon cannot easily crush a local serpent."

"Hmph!"

Over in the lounge area, settled upon the plush sofa.

"Young Master Xiao, it is rumored that you possess an intimate familiarity with this establishment?"

"Undoubtedly!" Xiao Yulu declared, briskly dealing out the cards as he puffed his chest out with pride. "Game strategies, the shop's innermost secrets—there is nothing I do not know, nothing I do not comprehend. I claim the Landlord!"

Gongsun Chui intervened with aggressive momentum: "I contest the Landlord!"

Gongyi Xiu murmured: "Pass!"

...