After parting ways with Kaelith near the tavern district—she'd mentioned needing to return home before her family began asking uncomfortable questions—Vaelor's shadow clone made its way toward the Hunter's Exchange, a massive commercial complex occupying an entire city block in Hunter's Haven's central district.
The Exchange served as the primary marketplace where independent Hunters and small guilds sold materials, equipment, and other drops they didn't need. It was neutral ground, overseen by the Warrior Association with strict regulations against violence or fraud.
Vaelor approached the imposing entrance—a reinforced archway carved with protective runes that flickered faintly with defensive enchantments. Beyond it, the main hall stretched like an aircraft hangar, filled with vendor stalls, auction kiosks, and private transaction rooms.
The clone walked toward the main reception desk where several attendants processed transactions for visiting Hunters. Most desks handled individual sales—a warrior selling a few weapons, some beast parts, maybe a piece of equipment they'd outgrown.
Vaelor approached a young woman in her early twenties wearing the Exchange's professional uniform—a crisp black vest over white shirt, silver badge identifying her as "Attendant Rank 3."
She looked up with a practiced smile. "Welcome to Hunter's Exchange. How may I assist you today?"
"I need to sell materials and equipment," Vaelor said calmly. "In bulk. I'll need a private transaction room."
The attendant's smile didn't waver, though her eyes showed faint surprise. Private rooms were typically reserved for guild representatives moving large inventories or wealthy merchants conducting major deals.
"Of course, sir. May I ask approximately how many items we're discussing? Just to ensure we assign an appropriately sized room."
"Approximately three thousand pieces," Vaelor said, his tone remaining casual as if discussing the weather.
The attendant's professional composure cracked. Her eyes went wide, her pen actually dropping from nerveless fingers to clatter on the desk.
"I... I'm sorry, could you repeat that?"
"Three thousand pieces. Mixed materials and equipment from Tier 1 and Tier 2 classifications."
The woman's mouth worked soundlessly for several seconds. Three thousand items would take her weeks to process properly. This was beyond her authority—far beyond.
"Please—please wait just one moment, sir!" She practically leaped from her chair, abandoning all professional dignity as she rushed toward a door marked "Management - Authorized Personnel Only."
Vaelor waited patiently, aware that nearby Hunters and vendors were now staring at him with open curiosity. Word spread quickly in places like this—someone claiming to have three thousand items for sale would naturally attract attention.
Within ninety seconds, the door burst open and a portly middle-aged man emerged, his expensive suit slightly askew as if he'd thrown it on hastily. His badge read "Exchange Manager - Senior Rank."
The manager's eyes locked onto Vaelor with an intensity that suggested he was mentally calculating profit margins. He crossed the distance in quick strides, his professional smile so wide it looked almost painful.
"Honored customer! My name is Aldous Merchant, Senior Manager of this Exchange branch!" He bowed slightly—genuine respect mixed with obvious excitement. "My attendant tells me you have a substantial inventory for sale?"
"Approximately three thousand pieces," Vaelor confirmed. "Mixed Tier 1 and Tier 2 materials and equipment. I prefer to conduct the transaction privately."
Aldous's eyes literally sparkled. Three thousand items would keep his Exchange busy for days—perhaps a full week. The commission alone would be substantial, not to mention the prestige of handling such a large transaction.
"Absolutely! Completely understandable!" He gestured toward the management corridor. "Please, follow me to our premium transaction suite. I'll personally handle your business!"
As they walked through the corridor, Aldous made cheerful conversation. "May I ask if you're affiliated with a guild? We offer preferential rates for registered organizations."
"Independent Hunter," Vaelor replied simply.
Aldous's estimation of the young man before him skyrocketed further. An independent Hunter moving this much inventory? Either he's incredibly capable or he inherited someone's complete collection...
Either way, keep him happy. Customers like this are rare treasures.
They entered a spacious private room furnished with a large examination table, multiple scanning devices, and comfortable seating. The walls were inscribed with privacy wards and sound-dampening formations.
"Please, make yourself comfortable," Aldous said, gesturing to a plush chair. "Would you like refreshments while we work?"
"I'm fine, thank you."
"Excellent! Then let's begin." Aldous activated the scanning array—a sophisticated magical formation designed to rapidly assess item quantities, quality, and market value. "You can place items directly on the examination table, or if you have dimensional storage, you may release them into the designated zone."
He pointed to a sectioned area marked with glowing boundary lines.
Vaelor nodded and focused his consciousness on his system inventory. During the battle with Kaelith, their Domain clash and technique exchanges had inadvertently killed thousands of Abyssal Spawn across a thirty-kilometer radius. Everything those creatures dropped had been automatically transferred to his system space.
He'd been too focused on cultivation and other matters to properly examine the loot until now.
Let's see what I've accumulated.
Vaelor's consciousness interfaced with the system inventory, mentally selecting all Tier 1 and Tier 2 materials and equipment marked for sale. He excluded anything unique or potentially useful for personal development.
The items began materializing in the designated zone.
Beast bones. Monster hides. Elemental crystals. Weapon fragments. Armor pieces. Claws, fangs, scales, horns. Broken shields. Damaged swords. Intact spears. Usable bows. Common-grade equipment. Excellent-grade equipment. Rare materials suitable for crafting.
The pile grew.
And grew.
And grew.
Aldous watched with increasingly wide eyes as the mountain of merchandise continued expanding. His professional composure lasted perhaps thirty seconds before shock overtook him completely.
"By the gods..." he whispered, staring at what was rapidly becoming a small mountain of sellable goods.
Tier 1 materials dominated the collection—Ironskull Wolf bones, Earthsplitter Lizard scales, Volcanic Wyrm hides. But interspersed throughout were substantial quantities of Tier 2 materials from higher-level spawns that had been caught in the Domain destruction.
Equipment ranged from Common-grade (still usable for beginners) to Excellent-grade (valuable for established Tier 1 Warriors) with occasional Rare-grade pieces that would command premium prices.
When the materialization finally concluded, the pile stood nearly three meters tall and occupied approximately forty square meters of floor space.
Aldous simply stared, his mind struggling to process the sheer volume. In his fifteen years managing this Exchange branch, he'd never seen an individual Hunter sell this much inventory at once.
"This is..." His voice emerged as barely more than a whisper. "This is extraordinary."
Vaelor remained seated, his expression calm. "Can you process it?"
"Yes! Absolutely yes!" Aldous snapped back to professional mode, though his hands trembled slightly with excitement as he activated the scanning array.
Blue light swept across the mountain of merchandise, the magical formation cataloging each piece with incredible speed. Classifications, quality grades, estimated market values—all calculated in seconds and displayed on floating screens only Aldous could see.
The manager's eyes moved rapidly, reading the data, his expression cycling through shock, disbelief, and barely suppressed joy.
"Preliminary scan complete," he announced, his voice steadier now. "Total item count: 3,247 pieces. Breakdown by tier and grade as follows..."
He began rattling off statistics, but Vaelor interrupted politely.
"Just the total value, please. With your best discount applied."
Aldous hesitated only fractionally before nodding. A customer this valuable deserves preferential treatment. Building long-term relationships matters more than maximizing single-transaction profit.
"Standard market value for this collection would be approximately 3.6 billion points," he said carefully. "However, for such a substantial sale, and hoping to establish ongoing business relationship, I can offer our Platinum Customer discount—12% increase in our commission fees."
He tapped several screens, adjusting calculations. "Final offer: 4.2 billion points, transferred immediately to your account upon acceptance."
Vaelor pretended to consider, though the price was more than fair. He'd expected perhaps 3.5 billion given the bulk nature and mixed quality.
"Acceptable."
Aldous's face split into a genuine smile. "Excellent! Please provide your Warrior Association account credentials, and I'll initiate the transfer."
Vaelor produced his Warrior Badge, placing it on the scanner. His account information appeared—currently showing the 3,443 merit points (34.43 million currency) from his Rift dive plus the small amount he'd had previously.
"Transfer authorized," Aldous said, his fingers dancing across holographic controls. "Processing... processing... complete!"
The badge's display updated.
[Account Balance: 4,234,430,000 points]
Over four billion points.
For context, an average middle-class family in Thornhaven City lived comfortably on 500,000 points annually. Vaelor had just accumulated enough wealth to support that family for 8,468 years without working.
"Pleasure doing business with you, young sir," Aldous said, bowing more deeply this time—genuine respect for a valued customer. "Please consider Hunter's Exchange for all future transactions. I'll personally handle your account going forward."
He produced an elegant card engraved with gold filigree. "My direct contact information. Call anytime, day or night."
Vaelor accepted the card politely. "Thank you for the efficient service."
As he stood to leave, Aldous added one more comment. "If I may offer some advice—an account balance of this magnitude may attract... attention. Consider investing in secure storage or diversifying into physical assets. For your safety."
Vaelor nodded appreciation for the genuine concern. "I intend to do exactly that."