「One day later.」
The headlines on the front pages of every major mariti newspaper and intelligence vessel were surprisingly uniform:
Ferocious Dragon of the Sea of Soaring Dragons! Humanoid Beast Slays at Least 3 S-Rank Sea Beasts! A mariti trade fair will be held in two days, aiming to share resources and steadily advance the field of sea beast research.
Unprecedented!!! The Da Yu Trade Fair’s Grand Finale Treasure! Suspected 100-gram Remains of the Holy Hall-level Sea Beast, the "Abyss Lord"!
King-level Wandering Ship [Fire Seed] Declares They Are Determined to Acquire the Abyss Lord’s Remains!
Exclusive Interview with a Lighthouse Holy Hall Research Institute Researcher: "A Sensationalist Hack! Remains of the Abyss Lord? Impossible! Absolutely Impossible!"
Shi Ming sat in the captain’s quarters of the Da Yu, looking over the digital editions of the various newspapers his crew had compiled.
As soon as he had confird the sale of so of his rare Sea Beast Flesh and Blood to obtain the final 5,000-plus Pure Do Crystals he needed, he had imdiately released his preliminary plan through various channels.
He was now a partner of the King-level Wandering Ship [Da Yu];
an Honorary Knight of the King-level Wandering Ship [Twelve Stars];
and far away in Africa, [Black Gold] owed him a favor for the Purifying Marrow transaction.
Unwittingly, his influence was on a completely different level than before.
Theoretically, since he was short on Pure Do Crystals, he could have sold the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood directly to any King-level Wandering Ship. He was confident they would offer a suitably high price. However, Shi Ming knew all too well that the managent systems of King-level Wandering Ships were incredibly cumberso. For a direct, one-on-one deal, getting a special allocation of 6,000 Pure Do Crystals approved without pre-authorized funds could easily take at least five days of "processing"—or even longer!
They needed samples, analysis, discussion, a decision, approval for the funds, and finally, paynt!
The acquisition process for that Divine Revelation Stele had been just like that!
He couldn’t afford the delay.
In contrast, a competitive trade fair was a face-to-face, one-to-many format. Furthermore, their "procurent funds" would already be available. They could use their reserve funds for paynt without needing extra approval. It was a cash-on-delivery deal. Although it was more work, it ant he could get the paynt much sooner.
Shi Ming knew his custor base perfectly well:
King-level Wandering Ships!
He was quite familiar with their procurent procedures and knew how to do things more efficiently.
Ti was tight.
He couldn’t wait to gather all the materials and upgrade the Da Yu to King-level!
"Captain, we’ve received a ssage from the Da Yu’s organizational departnt. They’re willing to sponsor the mariti trade fair, including but not limited to the venue, insurance, promotion, and organization."
"What do they want in return?"
"Nothing."
"..., ’The most expensive things in life are free.’ Tell their organizational departnt that the Da Yu accepts their sponsorship and will provide a small amount of the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood in return. They are experts when it cos to the logistics of a mariti trade fair. Entrusting a professional matter to the professionals will save us a lot of trouble."
"Understood, Captain."
Holding the trade fair in the Sea of Soaring Dragons was a decision Shi Ming had made long ago.
The European Sea Region was too far away and inconvenient. Selling the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood in the Africa Sea Area was even more out of the question. That would be tantamount to slapping the Abyss Lord across the face, a blatant taunt. Shi Ming had no desire to see his potential high-rolling custors get wiped out by a furious Abyss Lord.
As for the goods to be sold at the trade fair, Shi Ming had already finalized the list.
The Black Tortoise’s blood would not be included... there wasn’t much left anyway. Besides, Shi Ming felt a certain emotional attachnt to the sea beast that had inadvertently given him his "Angel Round Investnt." He didn’t want to disturb it again. After all, it had already lost its Black Tortoise Shield and its last resort. It was best to let it recover peacefully in its slumber.
In contrast, the flesh and blood of the Deep Sea Titan and the Dusk Whale were plentiful.
The sa went for the Moonlight Ripple Beast.
And then ca the main event, the grand finale!
One hundred grams of the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood, divided into five portions.
Each portion was only 20 grams, priced at 2,000 Pure Do Crystals!
Shi Ming’s official story was that he had stumbled upon these 100 grams of the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood in the Sea of Boiling. The excuse was remarkably brief and flimsy, but Shi Ming didn’t care whether anyone else believed it.
Of course, so King-level ships were bound to be skeptical. ’Holy Hall-level Flesh and Blood? Back then, the Lighthouse only managed to obtain a single shed fragnt, and it drove scientists across the Endless Ocean into a frenzy. You, a re captain of a wandering ship, are really that lucky?’
Belief or disbelief—it didn’t matter.
The mont the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood was presented, all doubts would be silenced.
’If you don’t buy it, soone else will.’
In addition, there were other items Shi Ming had acquired during his adventures that were useless to keep but a pity to discard. They would serve as supplentary goods, burning their last bit of light and heat. Of course, he was careful to exclude any items from the Yellow-Stone.
The trade fair was set for the day after tomorrow.
The Lighthouse would definitely be there.
...
...
...
"Holy Hall-level Flesh and Blood? From the Abyss Lord? What are the chances it’s real?"
Trellin looked at the doctor standing before him, requesting funds.
He understood perfectly well that the Holy Hall Research Institute was desperate for research samples. Still, he remained skeptical about Shi Ming obtaining the Abyss Lord’s flesh and blood. This wasn’t so S-rank sea beast, but a Holy Hall Sea Beast, a creature practically unheard of in the entire Endless Ocean! Every single one was terrifyingly powerful!
Currently, only the slumbering Great Black Heaven Dragon had ever entered the public eye, and they had its resources under a tight lockdown.
"A seventy percent probability."
An indescribable light glead in the doctor’s triangular eyes.
"Seventy percent? How did you reach that conclusion?"
"Sir, do you rember the deceased Shadow and 2D Girl? The remains found in the Sea of Yellow Sand proved they died from a terrifying Holy Hall Level Power! The testimony of the sole survivor, Tatasta, also confird this. Shi Ming himself couldn’t possibly possess Holy Hall Level Power. It’s highly likely that the great battle between the four of them attracted the Abyss Lord’s attention, and after the fight, Shi Ming was lucky enough to collect so of its remains."
Trellin nodded.
The argunt had so rit.
He had indeed read the death reports for those individuals, but he was swamped with countless responsibilities and hadn’t made the connection.
Shi Ming’s price list had already been made public.
S-rank Sea Beast Flesh and Blood samples: only 10 kilograms available. Price is 100 Pure Do Crystals per kilogram, averaging 0.1 Pure Do Crystals per gram. This was consistent with the price Ptolemy of the Pharaoh had set for the Netherworld Feathered Serpent. After all, this flesh and blood couldn’t be used for awakenings and was only for research purposes, making the price neither high nor low.
Holy Hall-level Sea Beast Flesh and Blood samples: only 100 grams available. Price is 2,000 Pure Do Crystals per 20 grams! That averaged out to 100 Pure Do Crystals per gram—a full 1,000 tis more expensive than the S-rank flesh and blood!
In a word: expensive!
But it was expensive for a reason.
"This Shi Ming is certainly audacious. The bounty we placed on him back then was only 2,000 Pure Do Crystals! To think he’d dare ask such a high price for just 20 grams of flesh and blood. The Holy Hall Research Institute has been consuming far too many Pure Do Crystals lately. This funding will be the last major budget allocation for a while."
"Yes, Sir. But the returns will be priceless."
...
...
...
「The Da Yu.」
"Captain, six King-level Wandering Ships have expressed interest in pre-ordering and are willing to pay a ten percent deposit. But we only have five portions. Should we reallocate the weight per portion, or should we use a bidding system?"
Shi Ming shook his head.
’Bidding?’
’The clients are King-level Wandering Ships. A bidding war would be too crass and disrespectful.’
’Selling five portions to five King-level ships is perfectly reasonable. As for the one left out, we’ll just tell them we’re sold out. That’s completely normal.’
’What? Am I targeting soone?’
’Things have been done this way for years. How is that targeting anyone?’
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