As for Chu Lian, who still had no idea what was really going on, she was happily exchanging her Integrity Points for pile after pile of strange items. Most of them had uses that were difficult to describe but somehow sounded impressive, and buying them gave off the distinct feeling that something about the purchaser might end up broken afterward. Even so, she kept exchanging for them.
But it was precisely these things that attracted more and more people to stop and watch, all wanting to see whether Merchant 5733 had any other bizarre merchandise she had yet to put up for sale.
"Da Xu Foot-Fetish Doujinshi: The complete collection of Da Xu's foot-fetish doujinshi. Foot fetishists and lolicons, don't miss out. Seventeen volumes in total, only 1,700 Crystal Coins."
"Absolute Domain Photo Album: A collection capturing that strip of snow-white thigh tightly framed between stockings and skirt hems. A must-have for every leg fetishist. 200 Crystal Coins."
"Absolutely Indestructible Safety Shorts: Once you put these on, no matter what kind of attack you encounter, they will never be damaged. The most important item for protecting a girl's privacy. Only 300 Crystal Coins." She had even renamed Railgun Girl's safety shorts before putting them up for sale. Mm, not like she would ever find out anyway.
"Aqua's Aura: Nothing special. It'll just make you an idiot for the day and attract a group of equally idiotic teammates. Don't worry, you won't die. Only 1,800 Crystal Coins. Note: This is a party-wipe aura. Do not use unless you have sufficient strength."
"Takao Slash—Book of Ultimate Secrets: After using this, you will acquire the skill Takao Slash. The larger your breasts, the stronger the attack you can unleash, and vice versa. 2,400 Crystal Coins." This particular item attracted an astonishing number of buyers, both men and women. Chu Lian ended up selling around twenty copies in succession, leaving her no choice but to sigh inwardly. As expected, bust size really is combat power, huh?
"Loli's Holy Water: Exactly what the name implies. You already know where it comes from. 2,000 Crystal Coins." After putting this item on display, Chu Lian felt that whatever integrity she possessed had now completely vanished. But she no longer cared. This was supposed to be an Integrity clearance sale in the first place. Naturally, the people it attracted would be into this kind of thing... probably.
"Superman's Underwear: Red underwear with an arrogantly eye-catching design, releasing your masculine charm in an instant. And it's indestructible too. 200 Crystal Coins."
"IQ Medicine: After taking this, your intelligence will increase to a certain degree. As for how much it increases... that depends entirely on how much intelligence you started with. 300 Crystal Coins." This one seemed to sell rather well too. Seven bottles were gone in no time at all, leaving Chu Lian sighing over how easy it was to make money off fools.
"Golden Spear: A lifesaving medicine for men. You deserve one. 350 Crystal Coins." No one bought this medicine at first. Perhaps none of them were willing to admit they needed it? Of course, Chu Lian also knew that although most Spacetime Traveling Merchants were generally only at Spirit or Earth Rank, their physical constitutions were still vastly stronger than those of normal people. They did not actually need something like this. She had put it out purely for decoration.
Besides, Chu Lian had no idea why something that was clearly an item had been placed in the Integrity Points exchange category. Did selling this kind of thing really cost that much integrity? She certainly did not think so.
"Mm, this should probably be enough..." After adding another stack of non-doujin books and a few other hentai items, Chu Lian stopped doing anything else. Instead, she sat there in complete silence like an old monk in meditation. Whenever someone bought something, she merely had them complete the Crystal Coin transaction.
Her behavior attracted quite a few people's attention as well. What a peculiar stall owner. Not only was her merchandise completely different from everyone else's, even her attitude was difficult to understand.
Of course, most of these people had not witnessed Chu Lian selling dragon blood last time, so they had no idea that the stall before them was actually extremely famous around the outer region.
Those who did know had already slipped away to prepare their Crystal Coins. They had a feeling that this girl was about to cause another huge stir.
Inside the same luxurious shop as before, Merchant 4321 sat in her usual seat drinking tea. After obtaining Life Potion Type III from Chu Lian in their previous trade, her physical condition had improved considerably. At the very least, she no longer started coughing at the slightest provocation. Even if the effect only lasted a year, it had still helped her immensely.
At the very least, with the aid of that bottle of Life Potion, she was now capable of exploring more distant worlds and trading for various things along the way. Recently, the final concern weighing on her heart had also been resolved. The one person she truly cared about had found a place where she belonged. Having finally let go of everything, that person had left after saying only a few words.
Now it was finally time for her to devote herself entirely to doing something for her own sake. She did not need much. As long as her life could be extended long enough for her to fulfill her father's final wish, and then honor that promise by going back to see that person once, that would be enough.
"Shopkeeper, the merchant who sold dragon blood before has returned. She's currently selling some strange things, and it looks like she's waiting for someone." A gray-robed figure entered the shop, approached the petite girl wrapped in a black robe, and spoke softly.
"Merchant 5733? Looks like she's planning something big again. How many Crystal Coins do we currently have available?" Hearing this, a trace of brightness flashed through the girl's eyes beneath her robe. If she's back, does that mean she brought more Life Potion with her?
The girl had searched countless worlds and had indeed found other things capable of extending life. Unfortunately, most were either too potent for her body to endure or had too little effect on her. None were as mild and comfortable as the Life Potion Merchant 5733 had traded to her.
That was exactly the kind of medicine she wanted, but sadly, she had never found another one. Something so perfectly balanced must have come from an extraordinarily powerful world. The merchant herself probably had an equally extraordinary background.
"We currently have 1.3 million Crystal Coins available. But to keep the shop operating, at least 300,000 can't be touched casually. That means we can use at most one million Crystal Coins." The gray-robed figure appeared to be some kind of manager and was extremely familiar with the girl's finances.
"One million Crystal Coins... That's not bad." She pondered for a moment, then rose and extended one fair, delicate hand. "Transfer one million Crystal Coins to me. I think this is going to be a very interesting trade."
At present, the only things she possessed capable of reaching the value required to trade for Heaven Rank items were a sufficiently large quantity of Crystal Coins or the Heart of Aquarius. But after their previous encounter, she already knew that Chu Lian had no need for that item right now, so she had no intention of trying to use it in their trade.
"Mm, 1.5 million. That should be enough." She checked the Crystal Coins stored at her wrist. With the newly transferred million added to the 500,000 she already possessed, unless the item was at peak Heaven Rank, this amount should definitely be sufficient.
"Miss, be careful." Seeing her leave, the gray-robed figure could not help calling out a warning. He did not say what exactly she needed to be careful about. Perhaps it was some kind of code known only between the two of them.
"I know." Leaving behind those words, she departed. Whether she would actually listen was another matter. Whatever. As long as she remained safe, that was enough.
"Miss... The master is gone, and now you're the only person I have left to worry about. Please don't let anything happen to you. I will absolutely take good care of this shop for you. But as for your body... if possible, please make sure to trade for something that can truly heal you." He had already said these words countless times.
At first, the young lady had listened carefully. Now she only occasionally gave him a reply. He knew she had probably begun finding him somewhat nagging. But perhaps this side of her was actually more fitting for someone her age. Normally, she was far too composed and mature, nothing like a thirteen-year-old girl.
"Huh. I never expected there to be so many gentlemen hiding among Spacetime Traveling Merchants. As expected, gentlemen really are the primary form men in this world take, aren't they? Though I'm talking about the kind written as 'gentleman' and read as 'pervert'!" Chu Lian sat firmly behind her little stall. As more and more people crowded around to watch, her merchandise began selling faster and faster.
There was no need to mention the Beautiful Girl Used Clothing Sets or the Loli's Holy Water. Those were bought by a fat man with an especially sleazy air about him. He was probably going to do something strange with them. Whatever it was, Chu Lian definitely did not want to know.
The Da Xu Foot-Fetish Doujinshi sold especially well, with twenty-three complete sets purchased. Everyone who bought those also picked up the Absolute Domain Photo Album. Railgun Girl's safety shorts sold the most of all, with a full thirty pairs disappearing. Apparently, quite a few girls suffered terribly from peeping.
Golden Spear also went from receiving no attention at all to having ten bottles swept up by a single buyer. Apparently, he had been suffering badly from a certain inadequacy. But that had nothing to do with Chu Lian. She did not even want to turn her eyes in his direction for fear of dirtying them.
What surprised her most was Aqua's Aura. She had originally thought no one would buy it, yet later, three different people each purchased one. That made her rather curious.
Takao Slash continued dominating the sales rankings, reaching seventy copies sold. As for IQ Medicine, Chu Lian had already stopped selling it. That thing was simply too ridiculous for her to comment on. There were actually that many people who believed in it. As expected...
The five pairs each of Hulk's and Superman's underwear also sold out quickly. After all, the Origin Land was a gathering place for countless worlds and countless races. There was no shortage whatsoever of people with transformation abilities.
She even spotted the familiar customer who had bought her dragon blood last time purchasing two pairs. However, perhaps because there were too many people around, he did not bother approaching her. After finishing his purchase, he simply stood off to one side. Presumably, he was waiting for her main attraction.
What a loyal customer. And judging by his build, isn't he that crocodile from Shurima in Valoran? Ahri was born in Ionia, also in Valoran. If he was able to obtain something connected to her, then he must be a native of that world. It's not hard to figure out. But why buy two pairs? Didn't he fall out with his big brother? Why does he need that many? One for changing into while the other's being washed? With nothing else to do, the bored girl could only entertain herself with idle speculation.
As time passed, her merchandise gradually dwindled. Just as many people lost interest in watching and prepared to leave, Chu Lian finally stood up. She put away everything that had not sold, then looked at the people before her and said, "I imagine those of you still here are either curious, or regular customers who already know what I sold last time, right? Mm, after being away for so many days, I've returned again, and this time I've brought something even more valuable. I wonder... have you prepared enough Crystal Coins, or items of equivalent value, to trade with me?"
Chu Lian's words left those unfamiliar with her completely confused, but the returning customers immediately revealed delighted smiles. Their wait had not been wasted. She really had brought something even better this time.
The girl smiled faintly. She certainly was not going to admit that she had deliberately set up the stall that way earlier so some old customers would come over, buy a few things, and perhaps ingratiate themselves with her in the process. She had been waiting precisely for this moment before bringing out her most valuable item.
"Then, everyone... what you've been waiting for is here..." She took one step back and raised her hand. A bottle of blood contained within a transparent crystal vial shone with extraordinary brilliance.
The moment she placed it on the stall, a pillar of light even more dazzling than the one from last time erupted into the air.
That pillar of light also announced the beginning of a new trade, quietly awaiting those who needed it to step forward...