August 10th, early morning.

After getting up and washing up simply, Lear enjoyed a hearty breakfast prepared by Brando.

Although he enjoyed the best in the City of Witness, it has to be said that there is still a big gap.

A simple breakfast can be made into something special, with 20 or 30 different options.

The swamp doesn't have time for these things, it's good enough to be able to eat enough.

After breakfast, Lear took Brando and two smarter staff members out directly.

There are two targets today. The black market and the slave market.

The intelligence refreshed a few times ago revealed a 4-star purple intelligence:

In the black market of Loran City, on the second side street, at the seventh stall, for the next month, a man in black clothes and silver hair will set up a stall here to sell goods. The silver mask in his hand is the key to open the ancient ruins - the bloody arena.

Ancient ruins!

I didn’t feel much when I heard the name before, but after exploring the ruins twice, the City of Wei Lu took off directly. Now my eyes light up when I see the ancient ruins.

Must get it as soon as possible.

This thing can only be his!!
In addition, there is a 3-star intelligence in Luolan City——

A shadowy figure has recently appeared in Loran City. He will trade with the first person he meets every day. As long as he can bring something that interests him, he can buy any treasure from him.

This piece of information is also very tempting. Just telling him the news about Shadow is worth 3 stars.

If you dig deeper, you might just catch a big fish.

Unfortunately, the news was too general. Loran City was so big that it was like looking for a needle in a haystack to try to encounter that shadow based on this news alone.

While thinking, Lear rode on the Swamp Giant Horned Deer King and took Brando and the other two who were carried by the unicorn and left the seventh district directly.

The four-meter-tall swamp deer king was too conspicuous. When passers-by saw it from a distance, they immediately stopped and stepped aside, not daring to get close at all.

The ferocious horns, the distinct muscles, and the patterns on the body that bloom like plum blossoms... everything shows that this stag is extraordinary.

And without much thought, you can tell that its owner must be an important person.

The people around secretly looked up, but were surprised to find that the figure behind him seemed to be obscured by fog and their specific face could not be seen clearly.

This makes it seem even more mysterious and majestic, making people dare not look directly at it.

Lear felt the surge of the crowd and was in a good mood.

In the future, the city of Wei Lu will also have this kind of scene!
An hour later, the familiar ruins came into view.

The sun has not yet risen, and the air is filled with a light mist that lingers all around.

This makes the broken buildings look somewhat mysterious.

The crowd was flowing continuously, and everywhere you looked, there were densely packed heads.

A large number of mysterious people wearing dark veils or cloaks were walking around, and stalls were set up on both sides of the street.

After temporarily placing his mounts in a horse storage area, Lear led a few people in with some familiarity.

Watch as you walk.

There were all kinds of things on the stalls, including ores, beast heads, standard armor, gems, and magical plants of all kinds.

Li Er looked around, and the properties of various goods appeared in his mind, among which there were several good treasures.

Unfortunately, when I asked for the price, I only got extremely high prices, which were even 10% or 20% higher than the selling prices of similar treasures outside.

This happened several times, which made him a little puzzled.

Brendel noticed Lear's doubt and whispered.

"Sir, the black market is not an antique market. Although the goods here cannot be seen in the light of day, the sellers usually know their value."

"Even if you don't understand, you can still pay someone on the black market to identify it. The black market management provides this kind of service."

"Coming to the black market is more about the convenience of trading, and the source and destination cannot be traced."

"Some high-end armor and equipment items are generally more expensive than outside because many things outside cannot be obtained through formal channels."

Lear finally understood.

Before, I only relied on intelligence to come here to harvest, and I didn't inquire about the details of the black market.

He gave up the idea of ​​picking up a bargain and waved his hand.

"You lead the way to Second Vice Street."

Brando nodded immediately and led the way in front with great familiarity. It seemed that this guy was also a regular customer.

"Are you familiar with the black market?"

"Sir, I also set up a stall in the black market to sell goods for a while. Many outsiders came here because of my reputation. They are stupid and have a lot of money. They are easy to deceive. Ahem, it's easy to make a deal."

Lear was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Are they treating the black market as a tourist attraction?
Still playing this game
Then I thought about the first time I came here, and it seemed like I was being treated like a fat sheep to be slaughtered.

The water here is a bit muddy.

Lear went deeper and deeper, passing through stalls and shops, and unknowingly walked ahead.

And the people who come into contact with him head on will inexplicably avoid him.

He was like an arrow that broke through the waves of people.

Although their faces were covered by fog and their soul aura had not been released at all, the silent and powerful divine pressure that penetrated deep into their souls still subtly influenced their surroundings.

Brando watched from behind with envy, his chest puffed out high, his eyes full of pride.

This is their master!!
What is deterrence? This is it!!

After walking around a large area of ​​shops, Lear came to the second block, observed silently, and counted to the seventh stall.

The footsteps stopped inadvertently.

This stall is a rare wooden stall, which is placed at chest height, so passers-by can easily see the items on it without bending down.

The stall owner was wearing a black cloak and his long silver hair fell to his waist.

Seeing Lear coming, he slowly raised his head.

"What do guests need?"

The voice was hoarse and hollow, and no information could be heard. The age, gender, or even race could not be discerned.

If it weren't for the intelligence telling us that he was a man, there would be no way of knowing.

Without dwelling on this, Lear glanced around and stopped at the cargo.

There are only seven items for sale.

Three fist-sized, inky black stones.

Three pure white jade eggs, each half the size of a head, plus a very textured silver mask.

Black Gold Ore
Rating: 4 stars

Features: Can extract black gold, which can greatly improve the effect of drawing inscriptions

White Jade Swan Egg
Rating: 4 stars

Features: Can hatch 4-star potential white jade swans.

Silver Mask
Level: Special

Features: The key to an ancient ruin.

Good guy! !

These treasures are all 4 stars?!

He took a deep look at the silver-haired man with his face covered.

The black market is indeed fierce and you never know what is hidden inside.

He put away the arrogance that he unconsciously exuded as his strength increased, and his eyes became clear.

"Your Excellency, these goods are quite good. How much are they?"

"Black gold ore, 5000 gold coins per piece, white jade swan egg, 6000 gold coins."

"This mask is free."

Lear's heart sank, and he pretended to be very interested.

"Why do other treasures cost so much, but this mask is free?"

"I dug the mask out from a mass grave. It is entangled with the power of a curse. As long as you can remove the power of the curse from the mask, I will give it to you for free."

As he spoke, the other party took out a broken sword and gently touched the broken surface.

"The mask has contaminated the sword. If its power is removed, the sword can be restored."

"Don't you think that this mask is more valuable than the sword?"

"Really? The material used to make the mask isn't high-quality, but the inscription on it is special. It seems to be a guide to open some forbidden area or ruins."

"I'm not interested in exploring the dangers of the unknown."

"This broken sword, when intact, is at least a 5-star treasure!"

“A bird in the hand is worth a thousand in the bush.”

“No matter how good a treasure is, it is only a real treasure if it can be used effectively!”

"Otherwise, it will rot in your hands and be no different from the garbage in the sewer."

Li Er couldn't help but exclaim in admiration when he heard this. This guy's perception was quite accurate.

The other party's tone became dark and unclear.

"However, there are no less than 10 people who have tried the power of the curse. As a result, they were all entangled by the curse and their lives and deaths were uncertain."

"If you are not absolutely sure, I don't recommend you to try it." Li Er narrowed his eyes.

This is not a lie?!

Subconsciously opened the other party's attribute panel.

But I found it was just a bunch of question marks and didn't get any information.

Obviously there was some treasure that concealed the aura.

But he didn't hesitate at all.

"I took it"

As he finished speaking in a deep voice, he slightly lifted the cloak behind him.

The night spread out, instantly covering the opponent's platform with a layer of fog.

The silver-haired man was startled and subconsciously reached up, but found nothing.

When I looked up, I saw the other person slowly putting on the silver mask on his face.

In an instant, the silver mask seemed to come alive, and a black smiling face with curved eyes appeared on it.

It gives people a weird and evil feeling.

He was slightly startled and was about to speak when he immediately sensed that the power of the curse was dissipating at an exaggerated speed.

In just a few breaths, the mutation disappeared without a trace.

The fog on the table also dissipated at this moment.

Ore, swan eggs, everything is included.

The broken sword in his hand now revealed a cold light, and the evil energy entangled with it had been cleared away.

Before he could come to his senses, he saw a mysterious figure whose face he could not see clearly turn around and leave.

"Payment settled. Good-bye."

Watching him leaving, the silver-haired man trembled, wanted to say something, but finally closed his mouth.

He looked down at the broken sword in his hand, silent for a long time.

The city of Loran is indeed like a deep sea, hiding countless terrifying beings.

Even a level 19 mage could not do anything about the power of the curse. It was cleared in just a few breaths!

horrible! !

Could this be an existence above the extraordinary?
He raised his head and looked deeply at Lear's figure, as if he wanted to remember it firmly.

Lear didn't expect to get what he wanted in this way.

He took off the mask on his face and raised the corners of his mouth.

The key to open the ancient ruins of the bloody arena - the silver mask, is in hand!

Delicious.

And he got more than one reward. The other party also gave him a generous gift -

The power of curse!
This terrible power is emitted by people on the eve of death, in extreme fear and resentment.

It was formed by the interweaving resentments of tens of thousands of people.

If ordinary people come into contact with it, they will suffer the most horrific erosion, their souls will rot, and they will live in the curse all day long until death.

But this power is a great tonic for Shadow of the Mist.

The Shadow of Mist can devour all energy and doesn't care about any curse of resentment at all.

After swallowing it, one could clearly feel the breath of the Mist Shadow soaring significantly.

Only one step away from reaching level 16!
This may be comparable to the energy provided by devouring the flesh and blood of tens of thousands of fallen demons.
comfortable.

Leaving the black market, Li Er, in a good mood, retrieved the Swamp Giant Deer King and headed straight for a more prosperous area.

slave market.

There was no conversation along the way. Half an hour later, a Gothic building came into view.

The relief makes the wall hollow. The heroic knight leads the team to resist the devil. The angel swings the sword to cast the holy light to save the world. The griffin swoops down from the sky to defeat the orcs.
Various lifelike and magnificent scenes are painted on it.

The rose-shaped stained glass windows are in full bloom, exuding a dark and mysterious atmosphere that makes people unable to help but look sideways.

The road was unusually wide, and Lear rode straight in on the giant-horned swamp deer king.

Slave markets are mainly composed of fixed shops, with stacked iron cages placed at the door.

Slaves for sale are displayed inside.

Orcs, dwarves, half-elves, harpies, hippopotamuses, minotaurs. There are so many races that it is difficult to count.

The slave market only prohibits carriages, and does not restrict ordinary mounts.

But there were crowds of people, and it was very lively and crowded.

The sound of bargaining is endless, just like in a vegetable market.

Li Er walked around for a while and suddenly remembered the place where he bought the wetland lizardman before - Dragon Tooth Chamber of Commerce.

He was impressed by the plump businessman with a kind smile on his face.

According to memory, after going around in a big circle, he stopped in front of the Longya Chamber of Commerce.

He took Brando, the tool man, and rolled down, letting the Swamp Giant Horned Deer King and the One-horned Horse stop at the door.

At this time, a businessman with a smiling face, a kind look and a big belly came out.

The mist that had covered Lear's face now disappeared.

The moment the other party saw his face, he was stunned at first, then surprised and happy.

"Lord Li Lier?"

Lear smiled happily.

"President McKeon, long time no see."

The other party immediately burst into great enthusiasm.

"Lord Lear, welcome!!"

"It's been almost four months since we last saw each other!"

"Praise the goddess, you have returned safely"

"Quick, bring out my best fairy tea. I want to entertain the guests!"

McKen had never expected that Lear would return to Lorain City so soon.

The last time I left, I was heading into the wilderness to explore new areas. I also bought two squadrons of wetland lizardmen.

He still clearly remembered those brutal and ferocious creatures that could not even be suppressed by the Ring of Slavery, and they were as docile as lambs in front of the other party.

This left a deep impression on him.

What's more important is that the gold coins that the other party used to pay for the wetland lizardmen were given by the Princess of Loran City!
This is a pioneer lord with a powerful background!
Now it seems that my initial guess was correct.

He glanced at the swamp giant-horned deer king parked at the door without thinking too much. Although it was an extraordinary mount, it could not move him.

What amazed him was that the other person's temperament had changed drastically compared to a few months ago.

Iron-blooded, calm, stern and wise.

Every move he makes reveals the aura of a superior that impresses everyone.

External things are always external things. They can be obtained by chance or they can be rewards from elders. Internal things are the essential core of a person.

Macon led Lear to the reception room.

After sitting down, he exclaimed in amazement.

"Lord Lear, I don't need to say much to know that you must have experienced storms that outsiders can't imagine during this period."

"It's nice to see you again."

"Can you tell me how the Dragon Fang Chamber of Commerce can help you?"

Lear smiled.

It is really comfortable to do business with such a smart person.

"I need to buy a batch of slaves. Do you have any Wetland Lizardmen?"

"Wetland Lizardmen? How many do you want?"

Lear raised his hand.

Macon's face lit up with joy.

"Five squadrons?"

That's a big deal.

"Five battalions."

Gudong~
Mikan swallowed immediately, and his eyes became extremely bright.

"Sir, are you planning to form an expeditionary force?"

For a lord who had just set out to explore the wilderness a few months ago, an army of 5000 people was too exaggerated.

The amount of food consumed every day is an astronomical figure, not to mention the need to equip them with sufficient weapons, armor, and provide adequate logistical support.

Even a veteran pioneer lord would not be able to withstand the expansion of so many troops at once! (End of this chapter)