The "Old Street" of Sector 7 was a labyrinth of steam-filled alleys and flickering neon signs. This was the gray zone a place where scavengers sold dungeon loot that hadn't been taxed by the Awakener's Guild.
Lu Chen walked through the crowds, his hood pulled low. Even though he was covered in the grime of his physical transformation, he moved with a new, fluid grace. He wasn't the invisible "Zero" anymore; he was a predator in a sea of sheep.
[Ding! Scanning surroundings...]
[Target: Broken Shield Grade: Trash. Value: 5 Credits.]
[Target: Faded Health Potion (Expired) Grade: Trash. Value: 0 Credits.]
[Target: Low-Level Mana Stone Grade: Common. Value: 1,200 Credits.]
Data flooded his vision. It was exhausting, but Lu Chen pushed through the headache. He needed that 100,000-credit quest reward. The ability to hide his level was vital; if the powerful families found out a "Zero" had suddenly awakened a Mythic-tier system, they wouldn't recruit him they would dissect him.
He stopped in front of a stall run by a hunched-over man with a cybernetic eye. The stall was filled with "Unidentified Remains" bloody chunks of monster bone and rusted equipment pulled from the most recent "C-Rank" dungeon collapse.
"Five hundred credits to pick one item, kid," the vendor rasped, his mechanical eye whirring as it scanned Lu Chen's cheap clothes. "No refunds if it's just bone meal."
A group of wealthy-looking students from the local Academy were standing nearby, laughing. One of them, a girl in a silk combat suit, pointed at a glowing ribcage on the table.
"Look at that loser," she whispered to her friends. "He looks like he crawled out of a sewer. He's actually going to gamble his life savings on Gray-Eye's trash?"
Lu Chen ignored them. His eyes were darting across the table.
[Scanning...]
[Scanning...]
Suddenly, his vision spiked with a deep blue light. In the corner of a crate, buried under a pile of stinking lizard scales, sat a small, blackened sphere. It looked like a charred marble.
[Item: Heart of the Frost Salamander (Dormant)]
Grade: Rare
Current State: Petrified.
Hidden Truth: The core is not dead; it is in hibernation. If soaked in boiling water mixed with common salt, it will reactivate.
Market Value (Dormant): 100 Credits.
Market Value (Active): 150,000 Credits.
Lu Chen's heart skipped a beat. A Rare-grade core! That was enough to pay for a year of luxury living in Sector 7.
"I'll take this," Lu Chen said, picking up the blackened marble.
The vendor, Gray-Eye, chuckled. "That? Kid, that's a burnt-out core. It's got zero mana fluctuations. It's basically a charcoal briquette. You sure?"
"I like the shape," Lu Chen said flatly, tossing his last 500-credit bill his entire month's grocery budget onto the table.
The Academy students burst into laughter.
"Hey, kid!" the girl called out, mocking him. "If you're that desperate for charcoal, I've got some burnt toast in my trash can. It'll cost you less!"
Lu Chen turned his head slightly. Under the shadow of his hood, his golden eyes flashed.
[Sovereign's Pressure: 5% Output]
The girl's laughter died in her throat. She suddenly felt a chill run down her spine, as if a cold blade had been pressed against her jugular. She took an involuntary step back, her face turning pale.
"Let's... let's just go," she muttered to her friends, her voice trembling. "This place is creepy."
Lu Chen didn't waste another second. He headed toward the "Blue Moon Exchange," a high-end appraisal shop used by serious hunters.
As he walked, he stopped by a 24-hour convenience store. He used his last few coins to buy a bottle of water and a packet of industrial salt. He ducked into a dark alley, found a discarded metal tin, and started a small fire using some trash and a cheap lighter.
He boiled the water, dumped the salt in, and dropped the blackened marble into the pot.
Sizzle...
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, the black crust began to crack. A brilliant, icy blue light erupted from the tin, freezing the boiling water instantly into jagged crystals. The temperature in the alley dropped twenty degrees.
In the center of the ice sat a pulsing, azure gem that radiated a frost mist.
[Item: Heart of the Frost Salamander (Awakened)]
[Status: Perfect.]
Lu Chen picked up the freezing gem. It didn't burn his hand; the [Sovereign's Breath] in his veins acted like an insulator.
Ten minutes later, he stepped into the Blue Moon Exchange. The air-conditioned lobby was silent, smelling of expensive incense. A sharp-looking receptionist in a suit looked up.
"Can I help you, sir? We generally only handle items valued above 10,000 credits."
Lu Chen didn't speak. He simply placed the azure gem on the velvet counter.
The receptionist's professional mask shattered. She gasped, her eyes widening as the temperature in the room began to fall. "Is that... a High-Tier Frost Core? And the purity..."
She hit a bell on her desk immediately. "Manager! We need a Senior Appraiser in the lobby! Now!"
An elderly man with thick glasses rushed out from the back. He took one look at the gem and pulled out a magnifying glass etched with runes. After a minute of silence, his hands began to shake.
"Perfect extraction... no mana leakage... this is a masterpiece of a core," the old man whispered. "Young man, where did you find this? Dungeons in this sector don't produce this quality."
"Does it matter?" Lu Chen asked, his voice cold and steady. "I want to sell it. Now."
The manager swallowed hard. "Of course. Given the purity, we can offer you 180,000 credits. Or, if you're willing to put it up for auction tonight, it might fetch 220,000."
"180,000. Cash. Right now," Lu Chen said. He didn't want to wait. He needed to complete the quest and get stronger.
[Ding! Quest: The First Pot of Gold Completed!]
[Earnings: 180,000 / 100,000 Credits.]
[Reward Issued: Skill 'Eyes of Deception' (Active).]
[Bonus Reward for Over-achieving: 500 Experience Points.]
[Ding! Level Up!]
[Level 1 -> Level 3]
[Strength, Agility, and Mana Capacity increased!]
As the manager processed the transfer to Lu Chen's ID bracelet, Lu Chen felt a new wave of power wash over him. His muscles tightened, and his mind became even clearer.
"Sir, your credits have been transferred," the manager said, bowing slightly. "And might I ask your name? An Awakener of your caliber"
"I'm nobody," Lu Chen said, turning to leave.
As he walked out of the shop, his ID bracelet buzzed. It was a text message.
From: Su Mei
Message: Lu Chen, stop trying to call me. Zhao just bought me a Level 1 Mana Earring. It cost 5,000 credits more than you make in a year. Please have some dignity and stay out of my life.
Lu Chen looked at the message, then looked at his balance: 180,000 Credits.
He deleted the message and blocked the number.
"5,000 credits?" Lu Chen chuckled to himself, his gaze turning toward the Inner City's luxury weapons shop. "That's not even enough for my dinner."
But as he turned the corner, his [God-Level Appraisal] suddenly flared red. A warning box appeared in his vision, pulsing like a heartbeat.
[WARNING: High-Level Threat Detected.]
[Target: Shadow Assassin (Level 15)]
[Status: Following you since the Exchange. Intent: Lethal.]
Lu Chen's smile vanished. He hadn't even been an Awakener for three hours, and someone was already trying to kill him.