The atmosphere in the underground black market suddenly changed.
Brother Feng, wearing a Wild Boar Mask, began flexing his wrists, joints cracking loudly.
Bai Fan reached into her black coat and gripped the Steel Bar tightly, her eyes behind the Squirrel Mask fixed unblinkingly on him.
The people around just glanced up and then looked down again. Places like this saw similar scenes every day; no one found it novel.
Bai Fan calculated in her mind.
‘Kill him? Right here? No, I need to get Master Mo’s whereabouts out of him first. Then start by breaking his limbs.’
Her grip on the Steel Bar tightened, and her eyes turned completely cold.
“Heh, you’ve got guts.” Brother Feng massaged his fists, his knuckles popping. “Do you know what happened to the last person who looked at me like that?”
Bai Fan pulled the Steel Bar a little out of her sleeve. “Get on the ground and bark like a dog twice,” she said. “I might consider letting you go.”
Brother Feng froze for a moment, then laughed. It was an angry laugh.
“You remind me of that kid surnamed Bai,” he said. “You’ll end up just like him—thrown to the dogs.”
The moment he finished speaking, the muscles on his arms bulged. He crouched, then launched himself like a cannonball at Bai Fan, his arm raised high, swinging down at her face with a whoosh.
Bai Fan didn’t move. In her eyes, Brother Feng’s movements were as slow as a turtle’s. Her Perception made everything clear: the trajectory of his punch, the shift in his center of gravity, even the rhythm of his breathing—all visible. She waited for the perfect moment, ready to raise her hand and break his limbs.
A figure suddenly appeared between them. A thin, twig-like hand grabbed Brother Feng’s wrist, while the other hand seized Bai Fan’s Steel Bar.
“Hey, hey,” Lao Hui stood between them, grinning, showing yellow teeth. “We’re all businessmen here. Harmony is precious.”
Brother Feng’s eyes widened. His hand was caught in that thin grip, and no matter how he struggled, he couldn’t break free—it was like being clamped in iron pincers.
Bai Fan also felt the dangerous aura radiating from Lao Hui.
“Damn it, Lao Hui, what’s your angle?” Brother Feng snarled. “Taking sides?”
Lao Hui let out a snicker. His gaze flickered imperceptibly over Bai Fan, and his tone was casual.
“Indeed, if I hadn’t intervened to ‘take sides,’ your head would already be smashed by her.”
Bai Fan sensed a faint ripple spreading from Lao Hui—it was his Perception.
Brother Feng flew into a rage. “You underestimate me?” Blood energy surfaced on his arms, his muscles bulging another size, making him look like an enraged beast.
“Idiot.” Lao Hui’s eyes turned cold. A layer of gray energy materialized in his palm and enveloped Brother Feng’s wrist. Brother Feng shuddered violently, as if thrown into icy water, and his hulking frame shrank visibly. Lao Hui pressed his hand against Brother Feng’s chest. Brother Feng’s face changed. He felt as if a sword was hanging over his head, ready to fall at any moment.
“Do you know that even Mo Liang wouldn’t dare speak to me like that?” Lao Hui’s voice was low, and he looked at Brother Feng as if staring at a dead man.
Brother Feng shivered, his anger dissipating, replaced by a thin layer of cold sweat. He smiled awkwardly. “L-Lord Hui, I was blind and didn’t recognize a mountain. I offended you, I was wrong… Let’s value peace. Give me a chance for Master Mo’s sake.”
“You’re sensible enough.” Lao Hui released his hand.
Brother Feng sighed in relief, his shoulders slumping.
Bai Fan let out a light laugh. Her voice was pleasant, like silver bells, and it sounded especially jarring in the dim underground space. Brother Feng froze. A girl?
“I’m letting you keep your dog life for now,” Bai Fan said.
Brother Feng’s face alternated between green and white. He gritted his teeth and lowered his voice. “Damn it, when we get out of here, I’ll make you call me daddy.”
Bai Fan said nothing. Her fingers on the Steel Bar slowly loosened, then tightened again. ‘There’s a formidable person here. It’s not the right time for a direct conflict.’ She suppressed the fire inside her and turned to Lao Hui.
“Appraise this Ethereal Crystal for me,” she said. “See how much it’s worth roughly.”
“Hmph.” Brother Feng hadn’t gotten up yet, but that didn’t stop him from sneering. “Where did this nobody come from? What decent thing could they possibly have? Don’t waste Lao Hui’s time.”
A gust of wind hit him head-on. Brother Feng instinctively raised his arms to protect his head, crossing them in front, but the Steel Bar still struck him solidly across the body. He toppled over.
“Fuck!” Brother Feng clutched his arm, grimacing in pain. “You motherf—”
He looked up and saw a pair of icy blue eyes looking down at him.
“Say one more word,” Bai Fan’s voice was soft, “and I’ll kill you even if Lao Hui is here.”
Lao Hui didn’t intervene again. He just leaned back in his chair, watching the scene with interest, as if enjoying a free show.
Brother Feng realized something: this person before him was indeed not to be trifled with. Not like the others he could push around.
Bai Fan pulled the Steel Bar back, gripping it, and her killing intent slowly receded.
When Lao Hui saw that was enough, he leisurely spoke, playing the peacemaker. “Alright, that’s enough. Keep causing trouble, and I won’t be polite to either of you.”
He glanced at Brother Feng on the ground, a faint smile on his face—hard to tell if it was mockery or something else. “Seeing how antsy you are, I’ll let you go first this time.” Lao Hui turned to Bai Fan, his tone casual. “Let him have his turn, alright, little girl?”
He enunciated the last three words clearly. Bai Fan’s eyebrows rose slightly. The address “little girl” bothered her, but she didn’t show it.
“Fine. I’m not as unreasonable as this beast.”
Brother Feng opened his mouth to say something, but seeing Lao Hui’s half-smile, he felt like cold water was poured on him, and the anger that had flared up instantly died. He got up, dusting himself off.
“Hmph, I came on the orders of Master Mo himself.”
He fished a stone out of his pocket. Green, cloudy, with a dim luster.
“This Ethereal Crystal—take a look at its quality and tell me how much it’s worth.”
Lao Hui took it, squeezed it, then pulled out a flashlight from somewhere and examined it for a while.
“Emerald Series,” he said. “Good lineage, but a bit too cloudy.”
Brother Feng snorted. “Compared to other crystals circulating in the black market, the purity of this one is already decent.”
Lao Hui thought for a moment. “Two million Credit Points.” He looked up at Brother Feng. “What do you think?”
Brother Feng didn’t hesitate. “Two million, deal.”
Lao Hui nodded, but didn’t look away, still staring at Brother Feng. Brother Feng felt uneasy. “Lao Hui, what are you looking at me for?”
“Is this the only Ethereal Crystal you have?”
“That’s it.”
“When you came before, didn’t you bring some Skeleton Beast parts? Prison Hound teeth, Varaki cores…”
“The kid who worked as a de-husker for the gang died the day before yesterday.” Brother Feng’s tone was casual. “I threw his body into the garbage incinerator to feed the dogs. No one suitable to recycle the parts for now.”
Bai Fan’s heart skipped a beat.
“Such a big gang,” Lao Hui laughed, “can’t even find one de-husker?”
“Ha, it’s not that simple.” Brother Feng’s spirits actually lifted at this topic. “Who doesn’t know how severe the Ether Pollution is in that job? Can’t last two years before getting deformed.”
He paused, as if savoring something. “Only that kid could last so many years. I thought Master Mo would have him do it for at most half a year before he’d be finished. Never expected him to be so resilient.”
Lao Hui also let out a sneer. “Everyone says Shisan Kai talks about brotherhood, that joining the gang means family. Your ‘family’ seems synonymous with consumables.”
Brother Feng gave a cold laugh, not denying it. “Even among ‘family,’ there are different levels.”
Bai Fan’s fist slowly clenched inside her sleeve. Her nails dug into her palm, veins popping one by one, but she felt no pain.
“Little bitch, what are you staring at?” Brother Feng turned around and met Bai Fan’s eyes, which made him involuntarily take half a step back.
“One day,” Bai Fan’s voice was calm, “I’ll make Shisan Kai disappear from Lincheng.”
Brother Feng was stunned, then burst into laughter, rocking back and forth. “When that day comes, you’ll have to talk about it after you leave here safely.”
Lao Hui waved his hand at them, his tone impatient. “Stop arguing in my place. There are people queuing up for appraisals. Hurry up.”
She averted her eyes, no longer wasting words on this dead man. She reached inside her coat and fumbled for something. Lao Hui raised an eyebrow, showing a hint of curiosity. Brother Feng hadn’t stopped yet, adding sarcastically, “It’s not that your stuff is too shabby to show, is it?”
She took out the item. A pale purple Ethereal Crystal, translucent, shimmering with a unique luster even in the dim light. The moment it appeared, it was as if the color of the air itself changed. Even someone who didn’t know quality could tell at a glance that this thing was worth far more than the one Brother Feng had just pulled out.
“Purity over ninety percent,” Bai Fan said. “Lao Hui, take a look.”
She glanced coldly at Brother Feng. Brother Feng shut up, his face alternating between green and white, standing there like a complete fool.
Even Lao Hui’s breathing became heavier. He took the crystal, brought it close to his eyes, examined it over and over, his eyes widening.
“The purity of this Ethereal Crystal…” His voice tightened. “It’s actually reached this level.”
He looked up, his gaze different now, as if reevaluating Bai Fan. “Where did you get this?”
“Lao Hui, I don’t need to explain the rules of this business, do I? Don’t ask what you shouldn’t. Just give me a price.”
Lao Hui looked down at the crystal in his hand, then back at Bai Fan, as if guessing something. He let out a low laugh. “Such a bold little girl,” he said. “You even dare to steal from Panshan Heavy Industries. Interesting.”
Bai Fan’s eyebrows rose slightly. Panshan Heavy Industries—one of the few companies in the Federation that mastered the technology to purify Ethereal Crystals. This old man probably thought she had stolen this crystal from a Panshan Heavy Industries employee. Bai Fan couldn’t be bothered to explain; she just hummed lightly. Lao Hui took that as confirmation.
“Stop the nonsense,” Bai Fan said. “Name a price.”
Lao Hui played with the crystal in his hand for a while, as if reluctant to put it down. “Purple Radiance Category—its applications are narrow, but given the high purity, roughly twenty million Credit Points.”
Bai Fan was glad she was wearing a mask. Otherwise, her expression would have betrayed her. Even though she knew the Ethereal Crystal was valuable, she hadn’t expected it to be this valuable. Twenty million Credit Points—back when she dissected Skeleton Beasts under Master Mo, she wouldn’t have earned that much even if she worked for ages. A huge profit.
She lowered her voice, pretending to be dissatisfied. “A bit low. Can you go higher?”
Lao Hui laughed heartily. “You know the rules—no bargaining. Unless you can find another channel to fence it.”
Only then did Bai Fan feign reluctance and hum. “Fine, you got a good deal this time. Trade at this price, and pay me in Peter Coins.”
She thought it was settled, but Lao Hui didn’t nod immediately. Instead, he changed the subject, his tone carrying a hint of something else. “By the way…”
“Don’t beat around the bush.”
“Would you consider participating in an auction?” Lao Hui said. “With that crystal in your hand.”
Bai Fan was taken aback. An auction? What benefits were there?
She was still hesitating when a familiar voice suddenly sounded in her ear. “Accept it, little sister.” It was “Jiejie.”